Tang Bai jogged all the way back to the dormitory. The moment she opened the door, she saw Zhou Min with her back to her, apparently busy sorting through something. Tang Bai let out a breath, closed the door behind her, and said excitedly,
“Minzi, I can go home today!”
The cheer in her voice made Zhou Min’s eyes sting. Zhou Min turned around, smiled, and nodded.
“Heh. Once you’re home, get some good rest.”
Tang Bai nodded vigorously and immediately began packing her clothes. About fifteen minutes later, she had finished packing. After four years in the military, she did not have much luggage. She simply stuffed her toiletries, a towel, and two or three outfits she had bought the previous year into her backpack.
After changing into casual clothes, Tang Bai glanced at Zhou Min, who was standing nearby, and smiled.
“Minzi, I’m off. Don’t miss me too much while I’m gone!”
She slung her backpack over her shoulder and strode out of the dormitory. Zhou Min listened as her footsteps gradually faded down the corridor, her expression lonely and tinged with reluctance.
Just after Tang Bai went downstairs, she saw a military vehicle parked by the road. The driver leaned his head out and waved to her. Tang Bai smiled, walked over, and asked,
“Old Lu, did the captain send you to take me to the station?”
Old Lu nodded.
“Come on, get in. Time is precious. I have to get you to the station before one this afternoon.”
Tang Bai said nothing more. Once inside, she leaned against the seatback and feigned sleep. Inside, however, her heart was surging with excitement. She was finally going home—to her sister’s side.
Just as Tang Bai was about to fall asleep, the vehicle came to a steady stop outside the somewhat crowded station. She opened her eyes, grabbed her luggage, and said goodbye to Old Lu before opening the door and getting out.
She watched the military vehicle drive away before turning and heading into the station. The crowded hall was extremely noisy. Tang Bai gave a wry smile. After being away from crowds for so long, she had actually grown unaccustomed to them.
Shaking her head, she strode forward. After buying a ticket home at the ticket counter, she queued up and made her way to the waiting area. Before long, she boarded the bus.
Tang Bai rummaged through her backpack and took out a wallet. Inside were her military officer’s ID and a bank card. The card held four years of allowances accumulated since she had joined the military, along with bonuses from missions she had completed. There was roughly two or three million yuan in it.
Clutching the wallet, Tang Bai’s lips curved into a faint smile.
A little over an hour later, the bus arrived in Z City. Tang Bai picked up her luggage and stepped off, looking at the familiar city with an indescribably warm sense of belonging.
This time, she was truly standing in Z City. She could finally go home openly.
She remembered how, two years earlier, she and her sisters-in-arms had passed through Z City while carrying out a mission. Tang Bai had forcibly suppressed her desire to go home and visit her sister, afraid that the enemy might discover her and perhaps even drag her sister into danger. She had clenched her teeth and shut her eyes, forcing herself to pass through Z City.
No one could have understood what she had felt at that time.
Tang Bai spread her arms toward the clear blue sky and shouted silently in her heart,
“Z City, I’m back! Sis, I’m back…!”
She took some loose change from her wallet, bought a bottle of soda at a supermarket, and then went to a public telephone booth. There, she dialed the mobile number she had kept etched in her memory.
A moment later, a gentle voice came from the other end.
“Hello? Who is this?”
Tang Bai was unable to speak for a moment. On the other end of the line, a strange feeling stirred in Tang Xi’s heart. After a long pause, she asked, her voice trembling slightly,
“Is that you, Xiaobai?”
Tang Bai’s eyes stung. How long had it been since she had heard her sister’s voice? She drew a breath, rubbed her nose, and smiled.
“Sis, it’s me—Xiaobai!”
Tang Xi’s heart had been taut the entire time. Only when Tang Bai’s familiar call reached her ears did it finally relax.
It really was Xiaobai.
Tang Xi’s voice was thick with emotion.
“Xiaobai, have you been all right lately? Didn’t you say you’d contact me once a month? How come it’s been almost half a year since you last called me? I thought you…”
Hearing the emotion in her sister’s voice, Tang Bai felt a pang in her heart. She hurriedly said,
“Sis, I’m back today. We’ll talk when you get home. I’m heading home now, and I’ll wait for you there!”
Before Tang Xi could answer, Tang Bai promptly hung up. She wiped at the damp corners of her eyes, paid the phone bill, and hailed a taxi.
After giving the driver her address, Tang Bai sat quietly in the back seat, watching the scenery flash past outside the window. Suddenly, an enormous billboard caught her eye.
It showed a woman wearing delicate makeup and an elegant evening gown, sitting quietly in front of a black-and-white piano. An indescribable loneliness seemed to cling to her.
Tang Bai blinked. The name on the billboard was Lin Mo, wasn’t it? What a coincidence.
The driver glanced at Tang Bai’s puzzled expression and laughed heartily.
“That’s Lin Mo, a rising star who only became famous last year. My daughter absolutely worships her. Her entire bedroom is plastered with Lin Mo’s posters. Lately, she’s been pestering me to buy her a ticket to Lin Mo’s concert here in Z City!”
Tang Bai raised an eyebrow.
“Heh, those tickets must be expensive, right?”
The driver nodded, looking somewhat troubled.
“Yeah. I promised my daughter that if she ranked in the top five at school, I’d buy her a ticket. And that girl actually did it. Since I’d promised her, I had to keep my word. Yesterday, during my afternoon shift change, I went to the ticket office to buy one. Once I had paid, my heart was aching. A regular ticket alone cost around fourteen or fifteen hundred yuan—almost half a month’s living expenses for an average family.”
Tang Bai smiled and consoled him.
“It was worth it. Your daughter made the top five, didn’t she?”
The driver smiled and nodded.
“Heh, that’s true!”
The two of them chatted about various trivial matters for a while. Soon, the driver pulled up at the entrance to the residential compound.
Tang Bai paid the fare, picked up her luggage, and got out. Looking at the familiar apartment building, she was filled with emotion. Four years ago, when she had left, it had looked almost exactly the same. Now, after four years, the only real change was that it had grown more worn and aged.
Otherwise, nothing much had changed.
With her backpack over her shoulder, Tang Bai followed the route from memory to her family’s apartment. The Tang family lived on the third floor.
When she reached the door, her gaze grew distant, as though she were lost in thought. A warm, captivating smile curved across her lips.
