There was no hard wooden bed digging into her back, no annoying buzzing of mosquitoes in her ears. The scent lingering at the tip of her nose wasn’t mildew either, but a strangely comforting mix of sandalwood soap and masculine warmth.
She woke up from the heat.
Still half asleep, she felt herself being tightly wrapped in someone’s arms like a body pillow.
“Mmm…”
Su Huaijin shifted slightly, trying to turn over and get some air.
“Don’t move.”
A man’s hoarse morning voice sounded above her head, carrying the lazy rasp of someone who had just woken up, mixed with instinctive dominance.
The iron arm around her waist tightened even more.
Su Huaijin instantly woke up completely.
Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was the man’s bronze, muscular chest, marked with a few faint old scars. Higher up were his sexy Adam’s apple and sharp jawline.
Scenes from the previous night flooded into her mind like a movie.
The bloodstained perfume bottle. Washing his back in the shower. That goodnight kiss on her forehead.
Her face instantly turned bright red.
She had actually shared a bed with this man all night!
Carefully, she lifted her head, wanting to secretly check whether he was awake.
But unexpectedly, she crashed directly into a pair of deep black eyes.
Cheng Beitang had already been awake for a long time.
He lay on his side with one hand propping up his head, openly staring at the little woman in his arms with eyes that seemed capable of swallowing people whole.
She had just woken up, her hair messy like a fluffy little lion cub, red sleep marks pressed onto her cheeks, her eyes hazy and innocent.
“Morning, wife.”
A wicked smile tugged at his lips as he greeted her in a low voice.
The word “wife” rolled naturally off his tongue, carrying shameless possessiveness.
Su Huaijin’s face burned under his gaze as she stammered awkwardly, “M-morning…”
Instinctively, she tried to scoot backward to create some distance. The position was far too intimate. She could clearly feel a certain unspeakable change in the man’s body after waking up.
“What are you hiding from?”
How could Cheng Beitang possibly let her escape? With one long arm, he pulled the little woman—who had only managed to move two inches away—right back into his embrace.
Lowering his head, he pressed his nose against hers, their breaths intertwining.
“Last night you were clinging to me and crying about how much you felt sorry for me. Why are you pretending it never happened the moment the sun came up?”
“I-I’m not pretending!”
Mortified, Su Huaijin pushed weakly against his chest, not daring to use force for fear of hurting his wound.
“Get up already! You’re crushing me!”
Watching her embarrassed and flustered expression, Cheng Beitang’s mood brightened considerably. He chuckled lowly, leaned down, and lightly bit her lip before finally mercifully loosening his hold.
“Fine, I’m getting up. Come help the injured patient get dressed.”
He lay flat arrogantly, putting on the attitude of a pampered lord who couldn’t move, and pointed at his heavily bandaged right arm.
Su Huaijin: “…”
This man was really pushing his luck.
Though she grumbled inwardly, seeing the blood seeping through the bandages still softened her heart.
Fine. She’d endure it for the sake of that perfume bottle.
Resigned, she climbed out of bed and busied herself like a little maidservant.
With his right arm injured, Cheng Beitang truly couldn’t move conveniently.
Su Huaijin brought over a clean shirt and carefully slid it over his injured arm first, then circled behind him to help him into the other sleeve.
They stood extremely close.
Positioned between his legs, she lowered her head and focused intently on buttoning his shirt.
Her warm breath brushed against the sensitive skin of his chest while those soft little hands grazed repeatedly over his abs and muscles.
Every muscle in Cheng Beitang’s body tightened, his breathing growing heavier and heavier.
This wasn’t helping him get dressed.
This was testing his self-control.
“All done.”
After fastening the final button, Su Huaijin patted his chest in satisfaction.
But when she looked up, she found his eyes staring at her like a hungry beast.
“What?” she asked innocently.
Cheng Beitang took a deep breath, grabbed her mischievous little hand, and ground out through clenched teeth:
“Su Huaijin, are you doing this on purpose?”
“Huh?”
“Early in the morning—stop setting fires.”
His voice was hoarse as he released her hand and strode toward the door.
That retreating figure looked suspiciously like someone fleeing in panic.
Su Huaijin froze for two seconds before finally realizing what he meant.
Covering her burning face, she collapsed onto the bed laughing so hard she rolled around.
This cold-faced king of hell didn’t seem so impossible to deal with after all.
…
Breakfast was still brought back from the mess hall.
But today’s treatment had upgraded.
Besides the usual steamed buns and rice porridge, the head cook had specially prepared two meat buns and a small plate of pickled vegetables.
“The regiment commander’s injured. He needs nourishment!” the cook said with a grin.
Inside the room—
Cheng Beitang sat at the table staring at the buns without moving.
“Why aren’t you eating?” Su Huaijin asked.
Cheng Beitang raised his injured right arm innocently.
“It hurts. Can’t lift it.”
Su Huaijin: “…”
You weren’t complaining about pain when you carried a hundred-pound sack of rice one-handed yesterday. You weren’t complaining when you held me all night either.
Keep pretending.
But looking at the deliberately “weak” expression on his handsome face, her heart softened again.
Fine. For the perfume’s sake.
Resigned once more, she picked up a meat bun, tore it open, blew gently on it, and held it to his mouth.
“Open up, young master.”
Cheng Beitang shamelessly enjoyed his wife’s “imperial-level” service. He bit into the bun—and deliberately sucked her fingertips into his mouth too.
The warm, wet sensation made Su Huaijin yank her hand back as though electrocuted.
“Are you a dog or something?! Why do you keep biting people?!”
Slowly chewing the bun, Cheng Beitang looked at her with dark eyes.
“The meat bun smelled too good. Couldn’t help myself.”
Who knew whether he was talking about the bun—or her fingers.
The breakfast was unbearably sweet, pink bubbles practically floating everywhere.
Just then—
Knock knock knock—
Someone knocked on the door.
“Sister-in-law, are you home? There’s a letter for you!” It was Xiao Zhang, the guard.
A letter?
Su Huaijin’s eyes instantly lit up.
Could it be from home? Had Grandpa found out she was suffering and sent money—or a letter asking her to return?
Immediately, she set down her chopsticks and hurried to open the door.
“Thank you, Comrade Xiao Zhang.”
Taking the thick envelope, she looked at the familiar Beijing postmark and felt her heart pound rapidly.
At the table, Cheng Beitang watched her excited expression, his gaze darkening slightly.
She still missed home.
Still wanted to return to prosperous Beijing.
“Who’s it from?” he asked casually, though his grip on the chopsticks tightened.
Su Huaijin didn’t notice anything strange. Lowering her head, she read the sender’s name on the envelope—
Su Wan.
Her stepsister.
The smile on Su Huaijin’s face faded slightly.
Why her?
A bad feeling rose in her chest.
Without avoiding Cheng Beitang, she stood by the doorway and opened the envelope.
It was thick. Besides several sheets of paper, a newspaper clipping also slipped out.
Su Huaijin picked up the clipping first.
“Massive Sandstorm Hits Northwestern Military Region—Several Soldiers Missing, Environment Extremely Harsh, Heavy Casualties Reported…”
The shocking headline and black-and-white photo filled with endless yellow sand made her heart clench painfully.
Subconsciously, she glanced back at Cheng Beitang.
Had he faced dangers like this during his mission?
Taking a deep breath, she unfolded the letter.
Su Wan’s familiar handwriting—full of arrogance and malice—came into view.
“Dear Sister,
I hope this letter finds you well. I heard conditions in the Northwest are quite harsh, and I’ve been very worried about you here in Beijing.
Oh right, I have good news! Brother Xu and I are getting engaged next month. Brother Xu said you probably won’t be able to make it back from so far away, which is such a pity. But don’t worry—I’ll be happy enough for the both of us.
Also, Grandpa’s health hasn’t been very good lately. He’s been coughing constantly. The doctor said he can’t handle any emotional stress. Considering your current status… after all, you’re a military wife now, so just live your life quietly over there and don’t think about coming back. If you upset Grandpa and something happens to him, you’ll become the sinner of the Su family.
Dad and Mom both said you should stay there peacefully and stop causing trouble for the family. Enclosed is twenty yuan—the money from selling the old clothes you didn’t want before. Mom asked me to send it to you so you can spend it carefully…”
Every sentence looked caring on the surface, but each word was a poisoned blade stabbing precisely into Su Huaijin’s heart.
Brother Xu was her childhood sweetheart. The boy she had once secretly loved.
And now, he was Su Wan’s fiancé.
But what she couldn’t bear most was the news about her grandfather.
Grandpa was sick?
And they wouldn’t let her return?
Afraid she’d upset him?
Impossible!
Her grandfather adored her. He would never refuse to let her come home!
This was obviously her stepmother and Su Wan trying to isolate her completely in the Northwest and leave her to fend for herself.
Plop.
A tear splashed heavily onto the paper, blurring the line:
“Don’t think about coming back.”
Su Huaijin’s hands trembled violently.
Grievance. Rage. Fear.
Emotion after emotion drowned her like a tidal wave.
She had thought she married Cheng Beitang out of gratitude. She had believed her family at least loved her.
But this letter told her she was the one who had been abandoned.
“What’s wrong?”
The sound of a chair scraping came from behind her.
Cheng Beitang had sensed something was off. He strode over and firmly turned her shoulders toward him.
The woman who had been laughing happily moments ago now looked pale as paper, tears streaming down her face, lips bitten white.
“Who bullied you?”
His voice instantly turned terrifyingly cold, murderous pressure radiating uncontrollably from him.
He snatched the wrinkled letter from her hands.
His eyes scanned rapidly across the page.
The darker his face became, the more frightening he looked.
Engagement bragging. Grandpa critically ill. Not allowed home. Selling old clothes for money?
What kind of disgusting family was this?!
“Is what this says true?”
The knuckles gripping the paper turned white as Cheng Beitang struggled to suppress the urge to kill.
Crying too hard to speak, Su Huaijin shook her head desperately.
“I don’t know… I don’t know if Grandpa’s really sick… I want to go home and see him… but they won’t let me…”
She cried like a child abandoned by the whole world, clutching desperately at Cheng Beitang’s shirt as though he were her final lifeline.
“Cheng Beitang… I don’t have a home anymore… They don’t want me anymore…”
Those words—
“I don’t have a home anymore”—
struck Cheng Beitang’s heart like a heavy hammer.
He remembered himself.
Twenty-eight years ago, when the final death notice had been delivered into his hands, he too had become a wandering ghost with no home.
He understood that feeling of being abandoned by the world far too well.
“Bullshit.”
With sudden force, Cheng Beitang pulled the trembling woman fiercely into his arms.
Ignoring the way his wound split open and bled again, he only wanted to use all his strength to give her warmth and support.
“Who says you don’t have a home?”
He roared beside her ear, his voice hoarse yet firm as steel.
“As long as I’m standing here, this is your home!”
“Those people who don’t treasure you don’t deserve to be called your family!”
Rage burned violently in his chest.
The treasure he cherished so carefully was being treated like this?
The Su family in Beijing, huh?
Diplomats, huh?
Did they really think Cheng Beitang was just some country bumpkin in the Northwest eating sand?
“Stop crying.”
His rough hands awkwardly wiped away her tears, movements unbelievably gentle.
“I’ll handle this. I’ll investigate your grandfather’s condition. As for that mother and daughter…”
A bloodthirsty glint flashed through his eyes.
“They dared make my wife cry. I’ll make them regret it so badly their intestines turn green.”
With that, he released Su Huaijin and turned toward the door.
“Stay home and lock the door. I’m going to the regiment headquarters to make a phone call.”
Su Huaijin grabbed him with red eyes.
“What… what are you going to do?”
Cheng Beitang stopped and glanced back at her.
That single look radiated overwhelming dominance and gave her a sense of safety she had never experienced before.
“File a complaint.”
He sneered and strode away.
“If I’ve worn this military uniform for so many years and still can’t protect my own wife, then I might as well strip it off and feed it to the dogs!”
…
Ten minutes later. Regiment headquarters communications room.
The duty officer barely dared breathe.
Because their usually cold-faced regiment commander stood there with a dark expression, the low pressure around him enough to freeze people solid.
“Connect me to the Beijing Military District switchboard. Transfer me to Old Master Su’s guard unit.”
Cheng Beitang’s voice was as cold as ice.
The line connected.
A stern voice came from the other side.
“Hello? Who is this?”
“I’m Cheng Beitang, regiment commander of a Northwestern military unit.”
He introduced himself calmly before getting straight to the point, his voice steady yet carrying undeniable pressure.
“Please inform Old Master Su that I am his grandson-in-law.”
“Someone has been falsely spreading news that the old man is critically ill and preventing my wife from returning home to fulfill her duties. They even sent letters mentally tormenting her.”
“I’m a rough soldier. I don’t understand diplomatic etiquette.”
Speaking into the receiver, every word struck like iron.
“But I understand one thing. My wife followed me to the Northwest and suffers hardship with me. If anyone dares make things difficult for her in the rear and make her feel wronged…”
“Then don’t blame me for forgetting family ties and leading my men straight to Beijing to have a proper discussion with them.”
Bang!
Without waiting for a response, he slammed the phone down.
The communications officer nearby was drenched in cold sweat.
Good lord.
The regiment commander had actually challenged Beijing’s powerful elites for his wife?
That was terrifyingly fierce.
Walking out of the communications room, Cheng Beitang looked up at the vast and desolate Northwestern sky.
He let out a long breath.
If her family couldn’t make room for her, then from now on, he would become her sky, her earth, her only support.
And if anyone dared touch her—
He’d fight them with his life.