After becoming a widow, I became the apple of a rough man's eye.

That night watching Huo Yuanjia was worthwhile; the next morning, five giant pandas sat around the dinner table.

Jiang He kept nodding his head, almost burying his face in the millet porridge in front of him. His eyes were swollen like two walnuts, and there were dark circles under them.

"Stop shaking it." Gu Qiangying, holding a half-peeled egg, couldn't stand it any longer and tapped Jiang He's head with the tip of her chopsticks. "If you shake it again, I'll shake your brains until they're all mixed up."

Jiang He groggily raised his head, glanced at Gu Qiangying, then at Li Dongye who was also yawning beside him, and finally fixed his gaze on Lin Qingqing, who was serving Xiao Yong pickled vegetables.

"elder sister……"

Jiang He reached out to cling to Lin Qingqing, saying, "I'm not eating anymore, I want to go back to sleep."

Before his hand could even touch Lin Qingqing's clothes, it was intercepted by a rough, large hand.

With a dark expression, Qin Lie shoved Jiang He's restless hand away and stuffed a hot steamed bun into his arms.

"Eat first, then sleep." Qin Lie's voice was deep, and he didn't sound much more energetic than Jiang He.

"Brother, your dark circles are so bad, anyone who didn't know better would think you'd been digging coal in a mine all night." Li Dongye, being cheeky, couldn't resist making a joke even when he was exhausted.

"Eat your fried dough sticks." Qin Lie ignored Li Dongye's teasing and pushed a plate of pickled cucumbers to the center of the table. "Nobody's allowed to work today. Everyone stay home and catch up on sleep."

"That's great." Li Dongye stuffed the last bite of the fried dough stick into his mouth. "My back is about to break. I can't watch that crappy TV too late anymore. It wastes electricity and hurts my back."

"It's because you have kidney deficiency."

Gu Qiangying slowly placed the peeled egg into Lin Qingqing's bowl. "Judging from your pulse, you have excessive internal heat. I'll give you a couple of acupuncture treatments another day."

"Get lost, you're the one with kidney deficiency," Li Dongye cursed.

After the meal, Xiao Yong took the initiative to wash the dishes.

Although he was a man of few words, he never shirked his duties. Just as Lin Qingqing was about to go and help, there was a knock on the door.

Xiao Yong wiped his hands and went to open the door.

A military green jeep was parked outside, half of its body covered in mud, clearly having traveled a lot of mountain roads. Two men in uniforms stood beside the jeep, their posture upright, obviously from military backgrounds.

The one in the lead was a bit older, with some gray in his temples. When he saw Qin Lie come out, he snapped to attention and saluted.

"Comrade Qin Lie."

Qin Lie also saluted and stepped aside to make way, "Come in and talk."

The two men didn't stand on ceremony and followed him into the courtyard. Their gazes swept over the various men in the courtyard before finally settling on Qin Lie.

"From the Armed Forces Department," Gu Qiangying pushed up his glasses and whispered in Lin Qingqing's ear.

Lin Qingqing's heart tightened. People from the armed forces department rarely come to this kind of place; when they do, it's usually for a major operation.

The atmosphere in the main room was somewhat heavy.

Qin Lie poured water for the two of them; the enamel mugs were steaming.

"Squad leader, I won't beat around the bush." ​​The older man took off his hat and placed it on his lap, his expression somewhat complicated. "I've come here today for two things."

As he spoke, he took a file folder out of his briefcase, untied the rope, and took out a black and white photograph and a copy of a drawing.

The pattern printed on the blueprint was the same totem that Li Dongye had previously used on that piece of animal hide.

Li Dongye was leaning against the doorframe smoking when he saw the blueprint. A piece of ash fell from his cigarette and burned the back of his hand without him noticing. He straightened up, walked a few steps to the table, and stared intently at the paper.

"We've found this." The man pointed to the totem. "This is a personal item from the J City Military Region... from some years ago. Back then, it was a special period, and this totem was a variation of the insignia of his old unit. Only a very few close associates had it."

At this point, the man paused, glanced at Li Dongye, and then looked at Qin Lie.

"They said that fifteen years ago, during his time in the countryside, he did lose his youngest son. The situation was chaotic at the time, and the child was abducted by human traffickers. He was carrying this leather amulet and a watch with the same pattern on it."

The room was so quiet that only the sound of breathing could be heard.

Jiang He was no longer sleepy and stared wide-eyed at Li Dongye.

Li Dongye's face, which usually wore a roguish smile, was now as stiff as a stone. He moved his lips, as if to say something, but no sound came out.

That was the root he had been searching for for over a decade.

He had been driving trucks for so many years and seen so many roads, but he never really knew where the destination was.

Now someone is telling him that his roots are in J City.

"Are you sure?" Qin Lie asked in a deep voice, placing his hand on Li Dongye's trembling shoulder and applying some pressure.

"There's no mistake." The man sighed. "When the old commander saw the photo of this design, he had a heart attack. After he recovered, he immediately sent us to verify it."

Li Dongye suddenly turned around, his back to everyone.

No one saw his expression, only that his shoulders twitched violently, and then he raised his hand and slapped his face hard.

"Fourth Brother..." Lin Qingqing was a little worried and wanted to go over, but Gu Qiangying stopped her.

Gu Qiangying shook her head at her.

At this moment, a man's pride is stronger than anything else; he doesn't want anyone to see him cry.

After a long while, Li Dongye finally turned around. His eyes were frighteningly red, but he still had that cynical smile on his face, though it was an even uglier smile than a cry.

"Alright," Li Dongye said in a hoarse voice, "Looks like I'm a second-generation official after all."

"There's one more thing."

Seeing that the atmosphere had eased somewhat, the man from the armed forces department spoke again. But this time, his tone was even heavier than before, even carrying a hint of difficulty in speaking.

He looked at Qin Lie, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Qin Lie keenly sensed something, and slowly withdrew his hand from Li Dongye's shoulder, letting it hang at his side: "What is it? Just say it."

The man took a deep breath and took an envelope out of his bag.

The envelope was made of kraft paper, stamped with a red seal, and had some wear on the edges.

"Squad leader, this letter went through several hands before finally reaching our county's armed forces department." The man pushed the envelope in front of Qin Lie, his voice lowering. "It's about... Tiger."

Upon hearing the name "Tiger," Qin Lie's usually impassive face turned deathly pale.

That was his observer back then.

He was also the brother who shielded him from shrapnel on the battlefield and carried him out of a pile of dead bodies.

"A few days ago, there was an earthquake in the southwest." The man didn't dare to look Qin Lie in the eye, looking down at the wood grain on the table. "After Tiger was demobilized, he went to the Production and Construction Corps. During the earthquake, in order to save a student who was buried under the rubble, an aftershock came... and a landslide occurred."

"The person couldn't be rescued, he..."

The man didn't finish his sentence.

But the meaning is already quite clear.

Qin Lie stood there, staring at the red stamp on it.

a long time.

"understood."

Qin Lie's voice was very flat, so flat that it had no inflection whatsoever.

He reached out and picked up the envelope: "Please thank the organization for passing the message over."

After saying this, he took the envelope, turned around, and went into the inner room.

The curtain fell, and the man from the armed forces department looked worried: "The squad leader... he..."

"Let him be alone for a while." Gu Qiangying stepped forward, adjusted her glasses, and said, "I'm afraid I won't be able to entertain you all today. I apologize."