Gu Xiaobei felt as if she was in a haze all the way to the provincial city. Thankfully, Li Fengmei and Ge Chunling helped take care of the two kids. Ge Chunling, worried that Fengmei alone couldn’t handle both children if something were to occur, also came along.

Upon arrival at the provincial city, Liu Hongbing drove them. Seeing the pale look on Gu Xiaobei’s face and the complete lack of color in her lips, he consoled her, "Sister-in-law, it will be okay. Doctor Jin is highly skilled. We believe he can bring people back from the brink of death."

Gu Xiaobei felt as though her heart was blocked by a big stone. Mechanically, she nodded her head and said, "First, take everyone to the reception house, then take me to the hospital." Her tone was indisputably determined.

After reaching the reception house, Gu Xiaobei fed the children before following Liu Hongbing to the military hospital.

Upon seeing Gu Xiaobei, Doctor Jin sighed heavily, "Our domestic medical equipment is still limited. Whether Zhanguo can withstand this will depend on his fate."

Gu Xiaobei felt as if a small knife was cutting into her heart; it was painfully sharp. After a while, she slowy responded, "He will be fine. He is just tired and wants to sleep longer." As she said this, her tears started to well up. However, she looked up at the ceiling, blinking hard, and managed to stop them from falling.

Looking at the time, Dr Jin said, "You can go in and see him."

Gu Xiaobei rubbed her eyes firmly then followed Dr. Jin into the intensive care ward.

In the hospital room filled with the heavy smell of disinfectant, Lu Zhanguo was lying quietly on the bed, face yellow and lips colorless from blood loss.

Gu Xiaobei had been holding in her tears. No longer able to repress them, they splashed down her face. She quickly went to Lu Zhanguo’s bedside and crouched down, daring not make a sound.

With Lu Zhanguo’s left hand, free from the IV drip, in hers she muttered to herself, "Are you trying to rip my heart out?" She spoke softly, as if not wishing to wake Lu Zhanguo.

After those words, Gu Xiaobei remained silent, merely holding Zhanguo’s hand to her face and stroking it gently.

After a long while, Gu Xiaobei turned to Dr. Jin, "Doctor Jin, could you please leave the room for a bit? I want to talk to Zhanguo."

Dr. Jin nodded and left the room quietly, closing the door behind him.

Gu Xiaobei crouched down, pressing her face to Zhanguo’s hand again. In a low murmur, she said, "I know you wouldn’t leave us behind. I know you’ll wake up. But seeing you lying here like this...it hurts so much..."

"All these years, I’ve been waiting for you to ask me why I’ve changed, why I’ve become so different from before..."

"But you never ask. Your unconditional trust warms my heart, but the secret I’m hiding is so overwhelming..."

With that, Gu Xiaobei lifted her head, reaching out to touch Zhanguo’s face. Her eyes welled with tears as she slowly continued, "Do you know? I am not of this world. Due to a mistake in the space-time tunnel, my destiny was switched with the original Gu Xiaobei. Later, we both encountered an accident, so our destinies switched back, returning each of us to our original paths."

"Can you understand what I have just told you? You may not believe it. I remember when I first saw you in the hospital, I knew then it was you. Perhaps this is destiny; it can cross light years, and transcend parallel space-times."

"Husband, do you know? In my original world, I lost my parents when I was five years old. I didn’t have a home. At that time, my greatest wish was to have a warm, complete home. Heaven was kind to me - not only did I meet you, but I also got a home and our adorable son and daughter."

With that, Gu Xiaobei, through her tear-filled vision, managed to smile. She paused, then continued, "Husband, you’re tired. You should sleep now. But don’t sleep too long, okay? I lost my parents, and now without you, what am I supposed to do?"

No longer able to hold back her tears, Gu Xiaobei began to sob. Between her sobs, she said, "If you don’t wake up, who will buy me cookies? Who will wrap me in a scarf in winter? Who will check my drafts? Who will take me to see the snow in the Forbidden City?"

"When my hands are cold, who will warm them? When I’m hungry, who will cook me delicious food?"

"Do you remember? You promised me that we would be together for life. Forever. You can’t go back on your word..." By this point, she was barely audible through her crying. Tears and snot were streaming down her face as she threw herself onto the bed, wailing in grief.

All these small things, no matter how inconsequential, were all manifestations of Lu Zhanguo’s love and care for her.

Gu Xiaobei had thought she would be strong, believing she could recount their beautiful memories together with a smile to wake him up. But now, she realized she couldn’t do it.

Her strength was due to the shield she had at her back in the form of Lu Zhanguo. Now that the shield had fallen, she had lost the strength that allowed her to remain strong. How could she not cry?

Without any regard for her appearance, Gu Xiaobei continued to sob, thinking to herself that if Lu Zhanguo dared to leave her, she would cry until his spirit wouldn’t rest, causing him to come back to her.

The sound of Gu Xiaobei’s mournful crying pulled Lu Zhanguo back from the scatterings of his departing thoughts. He struggled to open his eyes, feeling as though they weighed a ton. But he had to wake up because his wife was crying, and there was no one else to wipe away her tears.

When Gu Xiaobei finally lifted her tear-stained face, she saw Lu Zhanguo, eyes wide open, staring unwaveringly at her.

Immediately, Gu Xiaobei’s tear ducts dried up. Elated, she stammered, "I knew you’d wake up... I knew you were just sleeping... I told you... you won’t... abandon me..."

As she was speaking, she attempted to stand up. However, having crouched for too long, her legs were numb, causing her to kneel on the floor. She knocked over a chair and sat there on the floor, laughing giddily.

From outside the room, Dr. Jin heard the chair fall with a clang. Worried that an accident had occurred, he hurried into the room only to see Lu Zhanguo, eyes wide open, looking at Gu Xiaobei who sat on the floor laughing like a fool.

Dr. Jin found the scene astonishing. According to his experience, Zhanguo’s injury from the bullet grazing his heart was beyond saving, even by a deity. He had thought that the reason Zhanguo hadn’t yet passed was because he was hanging onto some last wish, wanting to see his family one last time.

He never would have thought that Lu Zhanguo would wake up - without any warning, no less. Dr. Jin quickly summoned other doctors to conduct a thorough examination on Lu Zhanguo again, and they found that everything suggested a medical marvel - all signs of Lu Zhanguo’s vitals were recovering well.

Doctor Jin felt he didn’t have enough knowledge to explain why Lu Zhanguo had woken up.

But Gu Xiaobei knew the reason: this was fate. She and Lu Zhanguo each had to go through a life-or-death tribulation. Only then could their future lives progress smoothly.