14: Tenderness and Memories

In the residential area of the Star Rail Headquarters, time seemed to flow exceptionally slowly.

Outside the window was the eternal, deep starry sky and the occasional shimmering flight paths; inside was a luxury environment with constant temperature, humidity, and spotless cleanliness.

More than half a year had quietly slipped away in this almost frozen state of comfort.

The apartment's kitchen wasn't a traditional stove, but a silver-white streamlined operating platform that integrated molecular gastronomy, nutritional synthesis, energy extraction, and various other functions.

At this moment, Lin Wei was standing before the console with a focused expression.

She had selected the "Traditional Medicinal Diet Simulation" mode.

A holographic interface unfolded before her, displaying various "ingredients" purified by modern technology that retained their essential active components:

Red Crystal Date extract from the Alpha System, Ginseng Polysaccharide Essence cultivated through genetic restoration, active collagen peptides extracted from the marrow of deep-sea behemoths... these were all tonics she could obtain through the Advanced permissions granted to her by the Star Rail Group's medical department, based on Chen Jun's "physical weakness."

Her movements were meticulous and gentle. She didn't look like she was operating high-tech equipment; instead, it looked like she was slow-simmering a pot of tonic soup in a Blue Star period drama.

She carefully controlled the intensity and temperature of the energy injection, letting the various essential components slowly Fusion and permeate within an invisible force field, emitting a strange scent that mixed the fragrance of vegetation with the warmth of energy.

"Men rely on eating for health, women rely on sleep..."

She murmured an old saying she had seen somewhere, her eyes full of earnestness.

For the past half year, she had spent almost all her thoughts on how to "nourish" Chen Jun's body, as if this could make up for the debt caused by her previous "demands" and allow the vitality consumed by his "special Physique" to slowly recover.

Finally, the "soup" was ready.

It wasn't liquid, but had condensed into a bowl of gelatinous substance that emitted a soft glow and had a texture as lustrous as amber.

She carefully placed it into a heat-retaining energy vessel and carried it toward the living room.

Chen Jun was nestled in a soft ecological sofa, a light screen unfolded before him showing Federal news flashes, but his eyes were unfocused; clearly, his mind was elsewhere.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up and saw his wife walking over with that familiar bowl of "tonic," his face immediately showing a mix of gratitude and helplessness.

"Weiwei, thank you for your hard work again."

He quickly sat up straight.

"Quick, drink it while it's 'hot.' This is the latest formulation; Dr. Zhang said it's particularly good for nourishing the Origin."

Lin Wei handed him the energy vessel and snuggled down beside him, her soft body pressing against him, her head leaning gently on his shoulder, which was no longer broad and was even a bit thin.

Chen Jun took the bowl, the gentle energy passing through the walls of the vessel into his palms, feeling warm.

He ate it in small mouthfuls; the texture was delicate, and a gentle warm current surged into his limbs and bones, which indeed felt very comfortable.

But he knew that no matter how good the nourishment was, it couldn't buy back the thirty years of lifespan deducted by the System.

Lin Wei watched him eat, her gaze gradually becoming soft and misty, as if looking far away through the warmth of the moment.

"Brother Jun,"

She spoke softly, her voice brushing against Chen Jun's heart like a feather,

"Do you remember? When I was pregnant with Xi Xi, the reaction was particularly strong. I couldn't eat anything, and just the smell of grease would make me vomit until I was dizzy."

Chen Jun's eating slowed down, and his eyes softened:

"How could I forget? I was so worried back then, and there was nothing good in the shanty town. I even felt that buying you some sweet and sour fruit was too expensive."

"Later," a sweet yet bitter smile appeared at the corners of Lin Wei's mouth,

"you heard a folk remedy from somewhere, saying that soaking the cheapest synthetic Vitamin C tablets in water, adding a little industrial saccharin, and chilling it could suppress the vomiting. You would run to the factory's refrigeration unit every day to secretly chill a small cup for me. Every time you brought it back, you were covered in sweat, but the outside of the cup was frosted..."

She paused, her voice even softer:

"Even though that water was sour and astringent and had a strange smell, I drank every single drop every time. Because it was something you secretly got for me after a long day of work, when you were so tired you couldn't even straighten your back, yet you were still thinking of me."

Chen Jun's throat moved, but he didn't speak; he just reached out and tightly hugged his wife's shoulder.

Those days were too bitter—so bitter that looking back now, that cup of low-quality ice water had become the only sweetness in his memory.

"When I was over seven months pregnant with Xi Xi, my feet were swollen like steamed buns, and I couldn't fit into my old shoes anymore."

Lin Wei continued her reminiscence, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of Chen Jun's clothes,

"After work, you ran to the garbage disposal station and rummaged through those discarded industrial Materials for a long time until you found a large piece of soft anti-pressure foam. That night, under the dim light, you used a utility knife with a dull blade to carve it out bit by bit, following the shape of my foot, trying to make me a pair of slippers..."

She seemed to see that scene again:

The man with a hunched back, not even bothering to wipe the sweat from his forehead, clumsily yet seriously struggling with that disobedient piece of foam, his hands sustaining several cuts from the utility knife.

"You worked on them for several nights and finally finished. Although they were crooked, one side high and the other low, I felt so warm and secure wearing them."

Her voice choked up slightly,

"Later, when I gave birth to Yao Yao, I was still wearing them..."

Chen Jun's eyes also turned red.

He remembered those ugly foam slippers, and he remembered how Lin Wei cherished them.

Back then, a tiny bit of insignificant warmth could be magnified into the entire strength needed to keep going.

"After Xi Xi was born, you were even more exhausted."

Lin Wei's voice was like water-soaked cotton, heavy,

"You worked three jobs during the day, and when you came back at night, I often couldn't sleep because of the pain from engorged breasts. You would hold Xi Xi and walk back and forth in the room, humming out-of-tune songs to coax her, just so I could sleep a little longer. Sometimes I saw you holding the child, but you were almost falling asleep leaning against the wall yourself..."

"And that time, when I took Xi Xi, who had just learned to crawl, and was still pregnant with Yao Yao to collect the relief nutritional paste distributed by the Federation. It suddenly started pouring rain on the way back, and the roads in the shanty town instantly became a mud pit. I was holding Xi Xi and carrying the things, stumbling along, and I fell. I was covered in mud, and Xi Xi was so scared she wailed..."

Her tears finally couldn't be held back and fell onto the back of Chen Jun's hand, scalding hot.

"I was so cold and scared then, sitting in the mud, I really wanted to just give up... but thinking of you still working hard at the factory, and thinking of Yao Yao in my belly, I gritted my teeth and climbed back up... When you saw the two of us looking like mud monkeys after I got back, your eyes turned red instantly. That night you held me, held me so tight, you couldn't say a word, just shaking there..."

Chen Jun could no longer hold back; he pulled her tightly into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head, his voice incredibly raspy:

"Don't say it... Weiwei, it's all in the past... I'm sorry, I made you suffer so much back then..."

Those memories were a bitterness carved into their bones, but also a deep affection mixed with blood and tears that only the two of them understood. It was the cold rain, the muddy roads, the low-quality ice water, the ugly slippers, the late-night crying, and the silent embraces... it was all of this that bound them tightly together, making them each other's only reliance in a cold world.

Lin Wei shook her head in his arms, her tears soaking his shirt:

"It wasn't bitter, Brother Jun. Being with you, it wasn't bitter. I just... I just feel so sorry for you. You don't have to be so tired anymore. I just want you to be well, to recover your health, and for us to watch Xi Xi, Yao Yao, and Lu Lu grow up together. That's enough."

She looked up at him through teary eyes, her gaze filled with unreserved love and heartache:

"We won't have any more children. I just want you to be healthy and stay with me, okay?"

Looking at his wife's tear-stained face, pain and warmth intertwined in Chen Jun's heart, nearly overwhelming him.

He nodded heavily, his voice choked:

"Okay, okay, I promise you. I will be well and stay with you forever."

He lowered his head and finished the last bit of the warm tonic in the bowl.