Liu Zhixia’s eyes swept across the audience below the stage.
The gazes from the front row were still burning with excitement.
She helplessly brushed aside the loose strands of hair on her forehead.
The competition ended with Gong Xinyue’s inexplicable defeat.
Holding her aching chest, Gong Xinyue suppressed the unwillingness in her heart and stepped down.
Liu Zhixia smiled freely, her expression carrying a hint of teasing.
“Was the performance exciting? Thank you all for giving me this chance to show what I can do.”
After Liu Zhixia’s stunning performance, the military wives who performed afterward seemed rather ordinary in comparison.
Her match had brought a kind of beauty and overwhelming visual impact.
The military wives’ section was unusually quiet.
Everyone had different thoughts.
Some felt that she had brought honor to the military wives, demonstrating strength no less impressive than that of female soldiers.
Others felt wary of her.
After the welcome party ended, Zhou Yunting and Liu Zhixia walked home together.
The night breeze lifted the corners of their clothes.
The two walked side by side in silence.
Zhou Yunting was the first to break the quiet.
His cold voice carried a hint of concern.
“Did you get hurt during the competition just now?”
Liu Zhixia had thought the man would blame her for being too reckless, for revealing her abilities too early, or something like that.
She had even prepared her explanation.
She never expected his first question to be this.
“I’m perfectly fine! Gong Xinyue was too impatient and too obsessed with winning.”
“Someone like that…”
Liu Zhixia shook her head and didn’t say anything more.
Zhou Yunting reached out involuntarily and touched her short hair.
Just as he had imagined, the feeling was exactly the same.
Soft and smooth.
Liu Zhixia’s eyes widened in surprise, and her adorable reaction successfully amused him.
“Gong Xinyue was simply unlucky. She happened to meet you as her opponent.”
“Otherwise, her abilities are actually quite decent.”
“…”
“…”
That evening, Liu Zhixia simply reheated some food for dinner.
The ingredients were all ready-made cooked dishes taken from her space.
Fish cans, boiled meat, marinated eggs, boiled fish, hand-torn cabbage, and cold cucumber salad.
When Zhou Yunting saw the abundant dinner on the plates, he suddenly felt his stomach growl.
Yet he still asked in confusion:
“Zhixia, did you prepare all this at home during the day?”
“I guessed we would definitely be hungry when we came back tonight, so I prepared things in advance. It wouldn’t be good if we ended up hungry.”
Zhou Yunting silently looked at the tempting dishes on the table.
His heart was filled with warmth and emotion.
It seemed like he had not felt this kind of care and tenderness for a very long time.
Perhaps ever since his mother passed away.
His father and grandfather had always cared about him, but…
In their entire family, there was no one who knew how to cook, let alone personally prepare food for him.
The man’s Adam’s apple moved slightly.
His voice was hoarse and deep.
“Thank you, Comrade Liu Zhixia.”
The heavy emotion in the man’s eyes startled Liu Zhixia.
She felt a little shaken.
She seemed to have not done anything special…
The two silently cleaned up the dishes together.
They wiped the table together and washed the bowls together.
The man handled everything skillfully.
Just as they were almost finished cleaning, no one knew whose hand touched the other first.
The two immediately pulled back at the same time.
A tingling sensation traveled from their hands straight into their hearts.
Liu Zhixia thought she probably felt a little guilty because she was the one who touched Zhou Yunting first…
The awkward and nervous atmosphere eventually came to an end.
Liu Zhixia quickly ran into her space, having already pushed aside the sudden fluttering feeling in her heart.
Meanwhile, Zhou Yunting kept recalling the dazzling figure of the little woman throughout the day.
Even with his eyes closed, he could still see her short hair and those shining eyes.
Suddenly, he sat up.
He opened the door and walked out.
Only after running several kilometers did the man finally return to the guest room.
Perhaps because the intense exercise had consumed too much of his energy, Zhou Yunting finally slept peacefully through the night without any distractions.
The girl who had finished her beauty treatment inside the space woke up.
Her complexion looked especially radiant.
Breakfast was, of course, still prepared in the space’s restaurant.
However, since Liu Zhixia had gotten up early, she only symbolically lit the stove.
There were pork and onion stuffed pancakes, two bowls of steaming millet porridge, and pickled cabbage.
Finally, she added a plate of salted peanuts.
Zhou Yunting had morning drills, so he ate quickly.
After seeing the man off, Liu Zhixia stood at the doorway and looked around.
Their corridor was not enclosed.
Standing there, she could see the sea horizon perfectly.
A large ship slowly stopped at the pier.
Liu Zhixia’s thoughts became active again.
It seemed she really needed to go out and take a look around.
She couldn’t possibly spend every day on this bare island, sunbathing and cooking!
The last time she went to the county town, she hadn’t had the chance to properly explore.
With Zhou Yunting and Shen Hao following behind her, two grown men, it had been inconvenient to do anything.
She had also been in a hurry to return.
This time, she could finally go out alone and have a look.
Liu Zhixia estimated that Zhou Yunting probably would not be transferred again anytime soon.
According to the original story, he should only return to Beijing three years later.
But now, he had unexpectedly returned shortly after leaving the countryside.
And he had even come to this island military base that had never appeared in the original novel.
Although Liu Zhixia was not completely certain about how the future would unfold, being transferred here had already been difficult.
How could he possibly be transferred away again?
Once she made up her mind, she quickly packed her things and locked the door.
Dressed neatly, Liu Zhixia headed toward the large ship.
She arrived at exactly the right time.
There were not many people around.
Most people simply bought their tickets and boarded the ship immediately.
Liu Zhixia did not know that shortly after she left, military division commander Luo Zongming, Zhou Yunting, and regimental political commissar He Guoxian hurried over with a female officer.
The lock on the door made the three men freeze.
Zhou Yunting’s handsome brows furrowed.
She had already gone out at this hour?
Then she must have left right after he departed…
Commander Luo shouted loudly:
“Regimental Commander Zhou, what are you still standing there for?
Hurry up and ask your wife where she went! We still have important matters to discuss with her and need her opinion!”
Commander Luo’s voice was naturally loud.
Besides, since the leaders had come over, many family members wanted to show their best side in front of them.
The neighboring wife, Ge Erhua, poked her head out.
“Greetings, leaders.
I think I saw Regimental Commander Zhou’s wife earlier. She should have already taken the boat away.
I originally wanted to ask her where she was going, but you all know that your regimental commander’s wife is very fast.
I couldn’t catch up…”
Hearing this, everyone became disappointed.
Commander Luo sighed and said to the female officer opposite him, Lan Guiying:
“Commander Lan, it looks like we can only wait until Regimental Commander Zhou’s wife returns before discussing this.
For now, we’ll have to wait.”
Lan Guiying spoke with some regret:
“If I had known this would happen, I should have come earlier.”
Her tone was filled with disappointment.
Zhou Yunting, however, looked toward the vast sea.
His expression was complicated and unreadable.
Meanwhile, in Hongshan Village.
Zheng Chunli had recently been feeling weak and ill.
Her space was gone.
The person she had wanted to cling to and marry had also left.
She didn’t understand why there were so many changes in this lifetime.
But when she thought about how Liu Zhixia, who should have died long ago, was still alive, she believed Liu Zhixia was the variable that had changed everything.
She would definitely get rid of her and make everything return to its original path.
After finally accepting reality, Zheng Chunli, despite being sick, began treating Sun Haomin with even more care.
She constantly showed concern for him and asked after him warmly.
The man’s self-esteem received immense satisfaction.