Everyone was very supportive, so we started by telling our stories according to our enlistment numbers. At that time, we all thought we would die in the vehicle, so we spoke without reservation, revealing all our sordid, private, and glorious deeds. We even divulged family secrets and some even announced their bank card passwords.
Everyone discovered that the life experiences of their comrades around them were so spectacular that each person was practically an epic novel.
One person got pregnant in middle school and dared not tell her parents. She relied on tightening her clothes and her stomach to conceal it. Later, she gave birth in a bathtub and called her boyfriend for help with the delivery. After the baby was born, she strangled it, washed the bloodstains from the bathtub, and buried the dead infant deep in the forest.
Another person was born into a wealthy and noble family, wearing a fifty-thousand-dollar watch in elementary school and growing tired of chocolates that cost hundreds of dollars for a small piece. Later, the family's fortunes rapidly declined, leaving them so poor they couldn't afford food. During university, arriving a day early, the school dormitories were not yet ready. To save money, they didn't stay in a hotel and slept on a school bench with their luggage. In the middle of the night, a passing female teacher woke them up. Pitying them, the teacher took them home to sleep. The result was that they willingly had a sexual relationship.
Someone herded sheep in the mountains as a child and personally witnessed a group of people burying an old man alive in a mountain ravine at dusk. For a long time afterward, there was no news of any crime. Someone went to the bank to withdraw money and happened to encounter robbers holding up the bank. As soon as the robbers entered the bank, they shot a few people to establish their authority without a word. At that moment, he lowered his head, and a bullet passed over his head, killing a grandfather behind him.
Someone wrote a long novel, serialized in their hometown newspaper, receiving rave reviews. Someone interned in a top planetary laboratory. Someone encountered a famous painter by chance. Someone was one digit away from winning the lottery jackpot and was so frustrated they couldn't sleep all night. Someone, while traveling, saw a thief and, acting bravely, chased the thief for six blocks. The thief suffered a cardiovascular rupture and collapsed dead on the spot.
Pei Yongxin paused and continued, "However, three months later, all of us had finished telling our experiences."
"What did you do after that?" Jiang Ye asked.
"Books," Pei Yongxin said. "A soldier in the vehicle had a copy of 'Metro 2033' in his backpack, and he read it to us. We listened to it over and over again. Eventually, everyone could recite the book, and the pages were so tattered that they fell apart as soon as you picked them up. That book lasted for another month. After that, we shared novels we had read, which lasted for another two months."
"Six months have passed," Jiang Ye took a deep breath. "This is only a quarter of the way; there's still a year and a half left."
"There was nothing else to do, so I had to think of a game every day," Pei Yongxin sighed deeply. "For example, Werewolf, charades, calisthenics, group dances, Gomoku, Go, chess, tying a card with a word to one's head for others to describe, and guessing the content of the card based on that."
"Thinking of games every day pushed me to the brink of collapse, because everyone was on the verge of collapse. The games had to be able to excite everyone, make them happy, and temporarily forget their predicament of being imprisoned. Once I suggested Sudoku, another time I suggested idiom chain, and within ten minutes, everyone had completely lost interest. Every day I was on tenterhooks. After each fun game, I would return to my carriage with a smile, and as soon as I closed the door, I would feel an immense weight, my strength draining away instantly, because I had to come up with tomorrow's game."
"One month, three months, five months, sleepless nights every day. This pressure was unbearable. Once, I even raised a pistol to my temple. At the critical moment, I relied on my remaining sanity to unload it, and then I frantically pulled the trigger for half a minute, imagining my head exploding and my body trembling, sweating profusely."
Pei Yongxin's narration stopped here. He trembled slightly, his eyes showing a deathly grayness.
He suddenly became abnormal, as if a switch in his mind had suddenly turned off, his expression instantly stiffening.
Seeing that the situation was not right, Jiang Ye quickly reached out and held his shoulder, squeezing it hard. "It was too difficult, but you got through it. You are very tenacious and possess the qualities of an excellent officer. Relax, you don't have to recall it anymore."
Cen Yemeng stood up, poured a glass of water, and handed it to him. Pei Yongxin took the water and drank it, his hands shaking so much that the cup kept hitting his teeth with a clinking sound.
"Dinner is ready, let's go eat first. Yongxin hasn't recovered yet, let's let him rest," Jiang Ye said.
The division commander next to him nodded quickly. She was also worried about Pei Yongxin's condition. It didn't matter how crazy he went in the hospital, but losing composure in front of the commander could very well end his career. Eating something might help.
...
Dining Hall.
Outside the window was the midnight hemisphere of the meteor star, appearing completely dark, with no light at all. In the distance, Red Moon 1 was slowly approaching, with a circle of dim yellow light on its surface, looking exactly like a Cantonese big mooncake. From space, Red Moon 1 was dim yellow, but after the light passed through various components of the atmosphere, it appeared dark red when viewed from the meteor star.
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng sat on one side, while the division commander and Pei Yongxin sat on the other. The four of them ate facing each other.
After drinking some hot soup, Pei Yongxin indeed calmed down.
Jiang Ye no longer asked about the situation at that time but chatted about everyday matters.
"Yongxin, your file still says you're unmarried," Jiang Ye said. "Are you a bachelor, or have you just not found a suitable girlfriend yet?"
"I've been busy with work and haven't had time for romance," Pei Yongxin said. "Once the meteor star is taken down and I have more time, I might look for a girlfriend or something."
"What about you?" Cen Yemeng asked, smiling at the division commander opposite. "Your file also says you're unmarried."
"I've been busy too," the division commander blushed.
"Why are you blushing?" Cen Yemeng's eyes lit up, her gossip desire burning fiercely. "Have you already found someone you like?"
"Who is it?" Jiang Ye's expression immediately became gossipy. "If it's convenient, tell us. We won't leak it."
"It's..." The division commander blushed even more. She fumbled with her chopsticks several times trying to pick up a peanut but couldn't, so she simply picked up a spoon and drank her soup. "It's a man in the army."
"In the army?" Cen Yemeng raised an eyebrow. "That's good. You both have the same job, and a couple can understand each other. Is he your superior or subordinate?"
"Subordinate," the division commander's voice was as quiet as a mosquito's buzz.
"Could it be..." Jiang Ye noticed something was off. "Could it be Yongxin?"
Pei Yongxin was startled. "How is that possible? You and the division commander..."
He stopped halfway through because the division commander next to him nodded.
Pei Yongxin was stunned, his mouth agape, as if time had frozen again.
The division commander covered her face with one hand and turned to look out the window.
"What? Is this the first time you're saying it? Then... Yongxin, what do you think of your division commander?" Jiang Ye chuckled.
"She..." Pei Yongxin stammered, somewhat flustered. "She's... she's very good."
"Don't force yourself, an unwilling melon isn't sweet," Cen Yemeng also chuckled. "Is she really good? If you think your division commander is suitable, Jiang Ye and I can be witnesses, and you can start dating now."
"I think... I'm not worthy of her," Pei Yongxin said, embarrassed. "It's too sudden... Division Commander, you..."
"What's worthy or not worthy? Old Pei, I fancy you! Don't stammer, you big man, give me a straight answer! If it's yes, it's yes, if it's no, then forget it!" The division commander suddenly turned her head, looking angry. She tried to speak quickly and casually, but her tongue was almost tied in knots as she stammered halfway through.
Pei Yongxin's face turned red to his ears. He gritted his teeth and said, "Yes!"