Chapter 156: Just Want to Catch a Glance of You (Part I)

At seven o'clock the next morning, Kang Ning drove and arrived at the west side of Shangzhou city.

In front of a crossroads, Kang Ning hesitated: heading south along National Highway 312 was the quickest way to reach Wuhan, which was also his original itinerary.

However, an irrepressible impulse surged in Kang Ning's heart at this moment. He wanted to take a glimpse of the person he cared about so deeply, to look at the school where she was stationed, even if it meant only seeing her from afar—that alone would bring immense comfort to his mind.

After lingering at the intersection for a full hour, Kang Ning decisively set his direction northward.

Preoccupied and lost in thought, Kang Ning drove through a long and exhausting journey of a day and a night, finally arriving at Luoyang, the ancient capital of nine dynasties, at five o'clock the next afternoon.

Along the way, Kang Ning did not stay at any inns. He casually grabbed his three meals at roadside eateries, and whenever fatigue or darkness overtook him, he would drive the car to a secluded spot by the road, sleep for an hour or two, wash his face with bottled water, and continue his journey.

Upon entering Luoyang, Kang Ning realized that he had no idea of the exact address of the Luoyang Foreign Language Institute; he only vaguely remembered it being somewhere in the Guishui area.

Shortly after entering the urban area from the west, Kang Ning stopped his car beside a small newsstand and spent one yuan and fifty cents to buy a pirated map of Luoyang city. Unfortunately, this famous military academy was not marked on the map at all. Still, having the name of the district was enough.

After a brief inspection, Kang Ning drove onward. Passing along Zhongzhou West Road, he turned right onto Jianshe Road, and near Guishui, the terminus of Tram Route 102, he finally laid eyes on this nationally renowned military academy.

Driving slowly, Kang Ning carefully observed the sprawling campus covering one hundred and forty hectares. Gazing at the simple yet majestic school gate, an inexplicable surge of excitement welled up within him, as if those stern gates held an invisible tie to his endless longing.

After circling the campus once, Kang Ning steered his car back onto Zhongzhou West Road. He stopped at the Luokuang Hotel, located three or four tram stops away from the Foreign Language Institute. Checking into an eighty-yuan single room, he collapsed onto the bed the moment he entered and remained there for a long time, unable to get up. His mind was entirely filled with Shuyi's voice and smile, as well as her parting words at the railway platform...

By the time he finished washing up, it was already nine o'clock at night. Looking closely at himself in the wall mirror—his hair grown longer and his face covered in stubble—Kang Ning noticed that his originally fair complexion had darkened under the autumn sun, and his face was even leaner than it had been a week ago, bearing a striking resemblance to his appearance back when he was a mechanic. His deep, melancholic eyes carried a hint of worry, which, combined with nearly a centimeter of stubble across his face, made him look thoroughly down-and-out and desolate as long as he restrained his gaze.

After washing his clothes, the ravenous Kang Ning changed into a plain camouflage uniform with no insignia, stepped out of the hotel, hailed a taxi on the sidewalk, climbed into the back seat, and politely asked the driver, "Master, where can I find some good food?"

"The Old Town! The night market in the Old Town is the most famous!"

The driver glanced at Kang Ning through the rearview mirror and introduced enthusiastically, "In a moment, we'll turn onto Jiudu Road toward South Street. When you look south at the entrance of Caishi Street, you'll see it right there. All kinds of northern and southern delicacies, you name it... Brother, where are you from?"

Keeping his eyes fixed on the street signs along the way and relying on his memory of the map, Kang Ning knew the enthusiastic driver was not taking any detours, so his reply was equally mild: "I'm from Sichuan. What a pity, though—I won't be able to see the peonies this season."

The driver hadn't expected the down-and-out-looking Kang Ning to possess such refined tastes. However, having driven for many years, he was a man of wide experience; furthermore, Luoyang's peonies were hailed as the finest under heaven, holding an extraordinary attraction for outsiders. Therefore, finding nothing strange about it, he laughed heartily, "Haha, it's understandable that you want to see peonies, brother, but this isn't the season. Come back next April! Still, Luoyang isn't just about peonies. Tomorrow is a major weekend; you can go check out the Longmen Grottoes and White Horse Temple—those places are wonderful. If you don't want to travel far, visiting the Luoyang Palace and the Imperial City is fine too..."

Soon, they arrived at the entrance of South Street. Paying the fare, Kang Ning stepped out of the car and saw that the entire hundreds-meter-long street leading to the entrance of Caishi Street was indeed bustling with extraordinary liveliness.

Walking to the middle section amidst the bustling crowd, Kang Ning chose a barbecue stall among rows of food stands and sat down. The reason was that behind the glowing red stove, he spotted a genuine Hui master whose kind eyebrows and friendly, attentive demeanor put him at ease, and of the seven or eight small round tables, only the innermost one remained empty.

Ordering ten skewers of mutton, a grilled fish, and a plate of pickled cucumbers, Kang Ning contentedly sipped a bottle of iced "Luoyang Palace" beer that cost one yuan and twenty cents. He instantly felt a great deal more relaxed. Faced with such affordable prices, Kang Ning's first comforting thought was that his lovely Shuyi would not be living in hardship here.

Halfway through his meal, Kang Ning noticed two old-clothing stalls set up against the doorway of a credit cooperative that had already closed for the day. After a moment of thought, he accelerated his eating pace, settled the bill, and walked over to the stalls to pick out a washed-out canvas work uniform. Then, heading back to the street corner, he hailed a taxi and returned to the Luokuang Hotel for a sound rest.

At seven o'clock the next morning, Kang Ning, now wearing the old work clothes, walked briskly out of the Luokuang Hotel. Twenty--odd minutes later, he arrived diagonally across from the main gate of the Foreign Language Institute, staring blankly at the school entrance without blinking for a long time.

After more than half an hour, many students who had obtained exit permits walked out of the school gates in high spirits. The radiant smiles and vibrant youthful spirit on the faces of these young soldiers stirred deep emotion in the heart of the eagerly waiting Kang Ning.

"Master, could you please move aside?"

Kang Ning turned around and saw an elderly woman in her fifties struggling to arrange a small square table. Pointing at the sign of her tiny noodle shop, she smiled apologetically at him, "This space under the tree is where I set up my stall every day. Young man, you've been standing here for almost an hour—aren't you tired? Would you like to come in for a bowl?"

Kang Ning quickly stepped forward to help the old woman set up the table and a few small square stools. Glancing at the customers arriving one after another, he turned to the elderly woman and smiled, "I'm sorry, granny. Now that you mention it, I am indeed hungry. Give me a bowl of beef noodles, please."

"Coming right up! Just a moment..." The old woman, speaking with a rich Sichuan accent, warmly invited Kang Ning to sit down and hurried back into her shop to get to work.

Sitting down, Kang Ning observed carefully and noticed that the small noodle shop had quite a few patrons. A girl of about seventeen or eighteen was frantically boiling noodles behind several stoves near the entrance.

The old woman had to serve noodles and clear tables simultaneously, bustling back and forth with tireless enthusiasm. However, a few impatient customers simply walked away to another establishment.

Kang Ning didn't mind. His gaze drifted back toward the school gate from time to time, while his mind remained completely filled with thoughts of Shuyi. At this very moment, how he wished Shuyi would suddenly appear within his field of vision!

Noticing that all the female cadets wore short hair, a smile surfaced on Kang Ning's face as he foolishly imagined what Shuyi would look like with short, playful hair.

After a long while, the old woman finally brought Kang Ning his noodles. "I'm so sorry, young man. I'm short-handed here and couldn't make it in time. Please bear with me."

"It's no problem! Granny, judging by your accent, you must be from Beichuan, right?" Kang Ning smiled and greeted the elderly woman in the Sichuan dialect.

Hearing her hometown accent, the old woman was overjoyed. "Oh my, this young brother is a fellow townsman of ours! There are quite a few fellow townsmen in the city, but they're rarely seen around here. Ah, my son has been sick for the last couple of days and couldn't come, so I've been extra busy—don't be upset! Eat up, and if it's not enough, I'll add another bowl for you on the house!"

"What are you saying? Thank you so much, granny. Go on with your work."

Watching the beaming elderly woman walk away, Kang Ning ate his noodles while keeping his eyes fixed on the school gate.

Soon, two young female cadets walked over to Kang Ning's table. One of them politely asked him, "Hello! The other tables are full. May we sit here?"

Kang Ning looked up to see two young girls in winter cadet uniforms standing beside him with smiles, looking energetic and graceful...