“Let the past stay in the past.” Sarah Bennett gently comforted in a soft voice, “Cherish the present and the future, that’s the way to be happy.”

“Shanshan, actually…” Alice Parker looked quietly at Sarah Bennett.

He had only spoken half a sentence when Sarah Bennett covered his mouth with her small hand, a hint of panic flashing in her eyes. She quickly masked it, forcing a smile as she stood up, “Alice Parker, you must be hungry, right? I’ll go make the boiled fish, it’ll be ready soon.” As she spoke, her steps were a bit unsteady as she hurried off to the kitchen.

Alice Parker watched her retreating figure and, for once, let out a gentle sigh. Although his attention was on the TV, his thoughts drifted far away, as if back to events from centuries ago.

“Bang!” The bullet burst open on his chest. Even after piercing two layers of body armor and a human body, it still had enough force to slam into Alice Parker’s chest from behind.

Killed with a single shot—even though Alice Parker was right there, he didn’t hear any last words from one of his best brothers. Just a second before, he’d heard him shout, “Watch out for the sniper.” Then he shifted his position, blocking Alice Parker with his own body.

After that, all Alice Parker could remember was the sound of gunfire, and his comrades desperately dragging him behind cover. Alice Parker wanted to shout, but it felt like something was stuck in his throat—no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t make a sound.

Later, the surviving comrades said that in that ambush, three people died. And Alice Parker was lucky—the bullet, after passing through a comrade’s body armor, was slowed by his own armor, then broke a rib. The bullet lodged just a few millimeters from his heart.

Alice Parker knew that if that brother hadn’t shielded him, he would have been one of the three dead. It hurt—a lot. Not to be melodramatic, but at the time, Alice Parker would rather have died himself. After all, in his father’s eyes, he was just an unfilial son, with nothing to worry about.

But that brother—the night before he died—had pulled Alice Parker to drink Erguotou and smoke tribute Changbaishan cigarettes. After getting drunk, he performed a one-man skit in his thick Northeastern accent, putting on a two-person comic show. Afterwards, he excitedly announced to everyone that the girlfriend he’d dated for years had finally agreed to his proposal letter. He’d be getting married when he went home for the New Year. Alice Parker still remembered how, drunk, he grabbed him and insisted he attend the wedding, threatening to toss a grenade into Alice Parker’s bed if he dared to skip.

Alice Parker still clearly remembered that the day his brother died was the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, the day after the Little New Year in the North. And his wedding was only eleven days away.

Alice Parker also remembered how that brother had patted his chest and said that as long as Alice Parker came, he’d introduce his little sister to him—to be his girlfriend, his wife. He even started bragging, fueled by alcohol, about how pretty his sister was. But Alice Parker remembered even more clearly that the guy’s sister was only twelve that year…

Chapter 15: Drinking Erguotou With You

“Alice Parker, Alice Parker! The boiled fish is ready.” In the kitchen, Sarah Bennett had actually already seen Alice Parker sitting alone on the sofa, staring blankly, sometimes tearing up, sometimes chuckling to himself. She knew he was remembering painful memories. Not daring to disturb him, she just hid in the kitchen, secretly watching.

Seeing Alice Parker acting so different from usual, a bit silly, Sarah Bennett actually felt a wave of warmth in her heart. Only after finishing the boiled fish did she call out from the kitchen, pretending to remind him.

Hearing Sarah Bennett’s call, Alice Parker snapped back to reality, hurriedly wiped away his tears, and returned to normal, pretending to watch TV.

After a while, Sarah Bennett brought out a steaming pot of boiled fish, set it directly on the coffee table in front of the TV, and took out two wine glasses. With a mysterious air, she pulled a bottle of Erguotou from the cabinet.

She showed off in front of Alice Parker, “Guess what this is?”

Alice Parker’s eyes lit up, and he quickly reached out like a monkey to grab it. But Sarah Bennett was ready—she turned away, making him miss, and hid the bottle in her arms, smiling at him, “This is the original liquor I went through a lot of trouble to get.” Sarah Bennett had heard before that Alice Parker liked Erguotou, and it had taken quite some effort to get such good stuff.

“Thank you, thank you.” Alice Parker knew she was teasing him, but couldn’t just snatch it. He circled around Sarah Bennett, but she kept dodging, refusing to hand it over. Alice Parker could be heard swallowing, grinning, “My Shanshan is the most thoughtful, the gentlest, the sweetest.”

“So, which is better—the liquor or me?” Sarah Bennett teased, acting like a mischievous schoolgirl.

“Of course it’s…” Alice Parker was so tempted by the Erguotou that he almost blurted out that the liquor was better. Luckily, he caught himself and quickly changed his answer with a big smile, “Of course it’s you, Shanshan.”

“Well, since I’m better, tonight you can only choose one—me or the Erguotou.” Sarah Bennett looked at Alice Parker playfully, her eyes full of laughter. “So, what’s your answer?”