Qin Lie was drilling his troops and himself on the training ground, trying to use intense training to dispel those chaotic images from his mind.
The effect was minimal.
All day, he was restless and distracted.
He zoned out during meetings.
When instructing soldiers on shooting, his own shots went off-target.
Heck, even during lunch at the mess hall, staring at the plain white rice made him think of Jiang Wu’s snowy-white skin.
Qin Lie felt he was going crazy.
Several of his battalion and company commanders noticed something was off.
“What’s up with the regimental commander today? Seems like he’s lost his soul.”
“Who knows? He’s been scowling all day, looking like someone owes him a million bucks. He made us run ten kilometers this morning, my legs are still trembling.”
“You guys don’t get it!” Battalion Commander Zhang Dashan flashed a knowing, lewd smile. “This is what they call ‘once you taste the marrow, you forget all about Shu!'”
“What do you mean?” a few young officers asked, clueless.
“Dummies!” Zhang Dashan lowered his voice. “Haven’t you heard? Last night, the regimental commander’s bed creaked all night! This morning, he was late for the first time ever!”
“Hiss—”
Everyone sucked in a cold breath, expressions of sudden understanding dawning on their faces.
Their gazes towards Qin Lie turned ambiguous and teasing.
So, their usually ascetic, woman-avoiding regimental commander had finally broken his fast last night!
No wonder he looked like he’d had his vitality sucked dry by a temptress today!
Qin Lie felt uncomfortable under their stares.
He knew exactly what these brats were thinking.
His face darkened a few shades.
“Finished eating?! Get back to training!”
He slammed his bowl onto the table and roared.
Everyone scattered immediately.
Qin Lie sat alone in the mess hall, staring at his barely touched food, feeling a wave of irritation.
For the first time, he felt a day could be so unbearably long.
He actually found himself looking forward to the end of the workday.
He wanted to go home.
Wanted to see the woman who said she would cook and wait for him.
The moment this thought surfaced, even Qin Lie himself found it unbelievable.
Since when had he become so attached to home?
Meanwhile, a small-scale “earthquake” was happening in the residential compound.
The epicenter was still Jiang Wu.
Ever since Jiang Wu made Sister Zhang kneel and beg for mercy in the laundry room, the attitude of all the military wives in the compound had done a complete 180.
No one dared gossip in her face anymore.
When they saw her, they’d even ingratiatingly call her “Sister Jiang.”
However, gossip behind her back was still unavoidable.
Especially after yesterday’s incident where Zhou Mingyuan came knocking, only to be powerfully defended by Regimental Commander Qin who carried her home. That scene added another layer of mystery and legend to Jiang Wu.
“What do you think, what’s Jiang Wu’s background anyway? How can she have Regimental Commander Qin wrapped around her finger like that?”
“Who knows? In my opinion, she’s a temptress reborn! Look at that face, that figure, what man wouldn’t be captivated?”
“Exactly! Before, she made all that fuss and Regimental Commander Qin wouldn’t even glance her way. Now? He carries her, holds her, even wants to kick that Comrade Zhou off the island for her! He spoils her way too much!”
“I heard, yesterday afternoon after Regimental Commander Qin went home, there was no end to the commotion from their room! My mother-in-law said she got up to use the bathroom late at night and could still hear Jiang Wu crying, crying really miserably!”
“Tsk tsk tsk, some are dying of drought, others drowning in flood! That deadbeat of mine doesn’t touch me once a month! Look at Regimental Commander Qin, that physique, that stamina… Jiang Wu sure is lucky!”
The women huddled together, discussing these suggestive topics with complex expressions of jealousy and envy on their faces.
But today, they discovered something that made their eyes pop even more.
Jiang Wu, the “temptress” in their eyes who was lazy and didn’t lift a finger, had, unprecedentedly, entered the kitchen!
In the afternoon, when the sun wasn’t so fierce, someone saw Jiang Wu carrying a vegetable basket to the vegetable patch.
The plots were assigned by the military; every household had a small one to grow some ginger, garlic, or seasonal greens.
Before, Jiang Wu’s plot lay fallow, overgrown with weeds.
But today, she was actually holding a small hoe, working diligently in the plot as if she knew what she was doing.
She wore old, faded clothes and a scarf wrapped around her head.
That stunningly beautiful face had a few specks of dirt on it, which didn’t diminish her beauty at all; instead, it added a touch of simple, genuine, earthly vitality.
The military wives in the compound were dumbfounded.
“Am I seeing things? Is that… Jiang Wu?”
“It seems… it really is her! She… she’s planting vegetables?”
“Oh my God! Has the sun risen from the west? This delicate young lady actually knows farm work?”
Everyone felt the world had become surreal.
Before they could recover from the shock of Jiang Wu gardening, as evening approached, they caught a waft of rich, tantalizing cooking smells drifting from Qin Lie’s small courtyard.
The aroma was overwhelmingly enticing.
The sweet fragrance of braised pork, the savory scent of scrambled eggs, the fresh aroma of fish soup…
Several scents blended together, making mouths water.
“Whose cooking smells so amazing?”
“Seems… it’s coming from Regimental Commander Qin’s house!”
“No way! Regimental Commander Qin usually eats at the mess hall. Jiang Wu… she knows how to cook?”
Everyone, filled with suspicion, secretly crept over to the outside of Qin Lie’s courtyard, craning their necks to peek inside.
Not looking was fine; one look nearly gave them a shock.
They saw Jiang Wu wearing an apron, bustling about in the simple, brick-built outdoor kitchen.
Her movements looked a bit unfamiliar, but they were orderly.
Washing vegetables, chopping, tossing the wok, plating…
The evening glow bathed her figure, casting a golden light around her.
That scene was as beautiful as a painting.
“Good heavens! She really can cook!”
“And… it looks like it tastes pretty good!”
“This… is this still the Jiang Wu we knew? Has she… turned over a new leaf?”
The military wives’ worldviews were refreshed yet again.
They couldn’t wrap their heads around how a person could change so much.
Just a few days ago, she was a love-struck fool willing to die for a lover; today, she was a virtuous wife and mother cooking meals?
The contrast was simply too great!
Just as everyone was whispering and gossiping, Qin Lie returned.
He was riding a somewhat old-fashioned “28-inch” bicycle, with something tied to the back carrier.
He wheeled the bike into the courtyard.
Seeing the busy figure in the kitchen and the three dishes and a soup laid out on the small table in front of him, Qin Lie’s steps halted.
His heart felt filled with something, wrapped tightly in an unprecedented warmth called “home.”
“Husband, you’re back!”
Hearing the noise, Jiang Wu turned and saw him.
Her face had a smudge of soot from the stove, like a little calico cat.
But the smile on her face was brighter than the sunset in the sky.
“Go wash your hands! Dinner is almost ready!”
She spoke to him in the matter-of-fact tone of a household mistress.
Qin Lie looked at her, a lump forming in his throat.
He made an acknowledging sound, put down the bike, and walked to the faucet in the yard to wash his hands.
As he washed, he watched the figure still bustling about for him.
In his heart, the string called “tenderness” was gently plucked.
He seemed to understand a little why so many people longed for a family.
This feeling of having someone waiting, someone thinking of you, coming home to a warm meal… seemed… really, truly, pretty good.
After washing his hands, he walked over and sat down at the table.
The braised pork glistened with a glossy sheen, melting in the mouth.
The scrambled eggs with tomatoes were sweet, sour, and delicious, vibrant in color.
And there was a sea bass he caught from the ocean yesterday, which she had stewed into a milky white fish soup.
Every dish was something he liked.
Qin Lie picked up his chopsticks and put a piece of braised pork in his mouth.
Fatty but not greasy, sweet, soft, and glutinous.
Much tastier than the mess hall chef’s version.
He took a sip of the fish soup.
Incredibly fresh and flavorful, warming his heart and stomach.
He didn’t know how she knew he liked these dishes.
He also didn’t know how a pampered city girl like her could cook such authentic home-style meals.
He had many questions.
But in the end, he didn’t say anything, just ate bite after bite.
It was the most delicious meal he had ever had in his life.
Jiang Wu brought over the last bowl of rice and sat down opposite him.
She didn’t speak either, just propped her chin in her hands, smiling as she watched him eat.
Her eyes were bright, filled with anticipation and satisfaction.
As if seeing him enjoy his food made her happier than eating it herself.
Qin Lie felt a bit embarrassed under her gaze, but his heart felt indescribably comforted.
After the meal, he took the initiative to clear the dishes.
“I’ll wash them.”
“No need,” Jiang Wu took the bowls from his hands. “You’ve been training all day, you must be tired. Go rest.”
“Today was my first time cooking for you, I should wash the dishes too, see it through from start to finish.”
Saying this, she carried the dishes to the sink.
Qin Lie watched her slender back, the warmth in his heart surging again.
He walked to the bicycle and untied the package wrapped in oilpaper from the back carrier.
Then, he walked up behind Jiang Wu.
“This, for you.”
He handed the package to her.
“What is it?”
Jiang Wu wiped her hands and took it curiously.
Opening the oilpaper, inside was a white, milky-scented… cake.
The old-fashioned kind, with a small flower piped on top using red jam.
In this era of scarce supplies, this was a rarity.
Only available at the state-owned store in the county town.
And not cheap, requiring special purchase tickets too.
“Where did you get this?”
Jiang Wu was somewhat surprised.
“Asked someone to bring it from the county town.”
Qin Lie’s voice was a bit unnatural.
“I heard them say, women… all like eating this.”
“And also… last night…”
He paused, his face starting to flush again.
“You said you were hurting, didn’t you?”
“Eating something sweet might make it hurt less.”
He, a man as rough as they come, could only come up with this method of comforting a woman; it was his limit.
Jiang Wu looked at the cake in her hand, then at the man in front of her with a flushed face and evasive eyes.
Her eyes suddenly felt a bit warm.
This time, it wasn’t an act.
It was real.