Qin Lie carried Jiang Wu swiftly, his face darkening because of this woman’s antics.
But the woman in his arms was far from obedient.
Wrapped in his military jacket like a silkworm cocoon, only her small face and darting eyes were visible.
Once she stopped struggling, she began challenging his limits in other ways.
“Darling, walk slower, I’m feeling dizzy.”
Her soft, sweet voice drifted up from his chest.
Qin Lie unconsciously slowed his pace.
“Darling, you’re holding me too tight. I can’t breathe properly.”
His arms loosened ever so slightly.
“Darling, you smell so good.”
Qin Lie: “…”
His face grew even darker.
This woman was his nemesis!
He was filled with fury, wanting to settle the score with her. Yet with just a few words, she turned all his anger into an indescribable, restless heat.
From the beach to their barracks was only a few hundred meters, but Qin Lie felt as if he’d walked an entire century.
Along the way, they encountered many military wives out for a stroll after dinner.
Seeing him carrying Jiang Wu like this, their expressions ranged from shock to gossipy curiosity. Then they gathered in small groups, whispering and pointing.
At twenty-six, Qin Lie experienced for the first time what it meant to feel “pierced by stares.”
He wished he could leap home in one step, shut the door, and block out everyone’s gazes.
Finally, he reached their small yard.
He kicked the gate open roughly, strode into the house with Jiang Wu in his arms, and slammed the door shut with a loud bang, locking it from inside.
The world was finally quiet.
Qin Lie let out a sigh of relief.
Then he turned and tossed the person in his arms onto the bed.
The action was far from gentle.
Jiang Wu let out a soft “ouch” as she bounced on the bed. The military jacket around her came undone from the movement, revealing the fiery red dress beneath and the mesmerizing expanse of fair skin.
Qin Lie stood by the bed, looking down at her from above.
His chest heaved violently, his eyes burning with suppressed flames.
His gaze seemed ready to devour her whole.
“Jiang Wu!”
He gritted her name out between clenched teeth, syllable by syllable.
“You’ve got quite the nerve!”
Jiang Wu sat up on the bed, rubbing her sore hip. She looked up, meeting his fiery eyes without a trace of fear, and even smiled at him.
“Darling, are you angry?”
She asked knowingly.
“I’m asking you!”
Qin Lie took a step forward, placing his hands on either side of her body, trapping her between the bed and himself.
“Who said you could go out dressed like that?!”
His voice was husky, low, carrying a dangerous edge.
The distance between them closed instantly.
His intense, masculine scent—a mix of sweat and sunlight—engulfed her completely.
Jiang Wu could even see the faint redness at the corners of his eyes from anger and the veins standing out on his forehead.
“Isn’t it pretty?”
She blinked her innocent eyes, reaching up to gently tug on the straps of her dress.
“I think it looks quite nice.”
“Nice?”
Qin Lie let out a cold laugh, as if he’d heard the greatest joke.
“So nice that every man on the beach had his eyes popping out! So nice they all looked like they’d lost their souls!”
“Jiang Wu, do you have any idea how you looked dressed like that today?!”
The angrier he grew, the louder his voice became.
“How did I look?” Jiang Wu tilted her head.
“Shameless!”
Qin Lie roared the word.
Immediately after, he regretted it.
He saw the woman’s smile slowly freeze. The bright sparkle in her eyes dimmed bit by bit.
In their place, a layer of mist quickly gathered.
Her lips trembled slightly, as if she had suffered an immense injustice.
“You… you say I’m shameless?”
Her voice held a barely detectable sob.
Qin Lie’s heart clenched inexplicably.
He knew his words had been too harsh.
But the thought of how many men had stared at her with that look in their eyes on the beach today made the furious heat in his heart impossible to suppress.
“Isn’t it true?”
He turned his face away, avoiding her tear-filled eyes, but his tone remained stubborn.
“Which decent woman would dress like that and parade around!”
“Parade around?”
Jiang Wu repeated the words, then suddenly laughed—a laugh tinged with bitterness and self-mockery.
“I only went to the beach to pick up some shells, wanting to make this home prettier.”
“I only thought this dress was beautiful and wanted to wear it for you to see.”
“I only… wanted to be a wife you could be proud of, not ashamed of.”
As she spoke, the tears in her eyes finally overflowed, streaming down her cheeks.
That tear felt like a drop of scalding lava falling onto Qin Lie’s heart, making him flinch violently.
“I didn’t know that in your eyes, everything I do is wrong.”
“Everything I do is ‘shameless.’”
She sniffled, wiping her tears haphazardly with the back of her hand.
“Qin Lie, have you… never believed in me from the start?”
“Do you think everything I said earlier about wanting to live well with you was all a lie?”
Her questioning felt like a hammer pounding into Qin Lie’s heart, leaving him speechless.
Yes.
Had he ever believed her?
From the moment she tore up the divorce report, he had doubted her. Doubted her motives, doubted her intentions.
He thought she was acting, playing games.
He had never truly believed her.
“I…”
Qin Lie opened his mouth, wanting to defend himself, but found he couldn’t utter a single word.
Looking at her tear-streaked face and those eyes filled with disappointment and hurt, an unprecedented feeling of remorse and ache flooded his heart.
Had he… really misunderstood her?
Had he… gone too far?
“Sorry…”
He wanted to apologize.
But before the words “I’m sorry” could leave his lips, the woman on the bed suddenly moved.
She threw herself forward, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, burying her tear-stained face deep into the crook of his neck.
Warm tears instantly soaked through the fabric at his collar.
“Qin Lie…”
She whimpered tearfully in his ear.
“Please don’t hate me, okay?”
“From now on… I’ll listen to you.”
“I’ll wear whatever you want me to wear.”
“Please don’t leave me…”
The girl’s body trembled in his embrace like a frightened, homeless little animal—so fragile it ached his heart.
Qin Lie froze completely.
All his anger, all his accusations vanished the moment she clung to him, leaving only helplessness and… guilt.
His hand hovered in midair for a long moment before finally, slowly, settling on her back, patting gently as if to soothe.
“I never said… I would leave you.”
His voice was dry and hoarse.
“Really?”
The person in his arms lifted her head, her red, swollen eyes looking up at him pleadingly like a little rabbit.
“Mhm.”
Qin Lie nodded with difficulty.
Receiving his affirmation, Jiang Wu’s face instantly brightened as if after a storm.
Her tears turned into a smile.
Then, she did something Qin Lie never expected.
Rising on her tiptoes, she lifted her face.
Her lips, still damp with tears, appeared particularly full and glistening as they pressed against his thin ones.