With every grievance bottled up inside him, Lu Ze threw himself into training back at the barracks as though he had no tomorrow. Even his own Battalion Commander Shen Yi could not stand by and watch it — and He Weidong of the Third Battalion from next door came over to speak his mind.
“Great things cannot be rushed in a single day,” He Weidong said gently. “Besides — the standards the Division Commander set are nearly impossible. Hardly any of our battalions can meet them.”
Lu Ze lifted his head and drank deeply from his canteen, then let out a long, heavy breath. “My apologies. It so happens… I am one of the few who can meet them.”
He Weidong rubbed the bridge of his nose awkwardly, then shot a sharp glance at Shen Yi, who was clearly trying not to laugh. “My mistake. I spoke out of turn.”
As he turned to leave, Lu Ze spoke up: “Commander He — does your wife ever speak ill of you? Or belittle you?”
He Weidong had married two years earlier. The couple was devoted to one another; twins had been born just months before, and Lu Ze had attended their full-moon feast. He Weidong raised an eyebrow, amused. “Oh? You’ve set your heart upon some girl, have you? Which company? The Arts Troupe? Signals?”
“None of those,” Lu Ze said, irritable. “Just answer the question.”
Seeing he did not wish to speak further, He Weidong answered plainly: “Very well. From what I know of my own marriage — first, my wife loves me too deeply to truly belittle me, not before anyone. Second — if she ever did speak sharply, it would surely be because I truly had those faults. She would say it only so I might correct them — for my own good. And third… women often say one thing and mean another. Pay less attention to what they say — and more to what they do. My own wife might declare in anger that she could strangle me — yet when I return home, she will still have cooked my favourite meal.”
For my own good… say one thing and mean another… watch what she does, not what she says…
Everything he had struggled to understand suddenly made sense. Lu Qinian was his adoptive father — yet he had always treated him with detachment. Before he turned sixteen, he had been placed entirely in the care of teachers. After sixteen, he had been sent directly into the army — to be commanded, corrected, and moulded by platoon leaders, company commanders, and battalion commanders. When he erred, Lu Qinian would see that discipline was administered — yet he would never explain exactly what was wrong, or how to avoid repeating it. He would give only the briefest hint, and say not a word more.
And Jiang Yuan — ever since she had arrived and caused all manner of trouble — Lu Qinian had changed. He had begun to care. For the sake of correcting him, he had issued orders to every battalion commander to intensify training. To care enough to correct him — was that not, in its own way, preparing him for greater responsibility? Truly — she had been acting for his good all along.
Jiang Yuan had travelled such a vast distance to find him. She had gone to such lengths, such trouble — all for his sake. And he… he had not offered a single word of thanks. Instead he had doubted her.
Damn it all, Lu Ze thought. I am a fool.
“Division Commander Lu…”
Lu Qinian had scarcely opened his eyes when that sweet, honeyed voice washed over him — and soft, warm lips pressed to his own. Hands cupped his face, kissing him deeply, then gently, then deeply again — a rhythm so sure and practiced it stirred his blood and clouded his mind.
“I am ready to fulfil my duty as your wife… and lie with you,” she whispered. Soft, slender hands guided his large hand to rest upon her impossibly narrow waist. “Am I not beautiful enough? Is my waist not slender enough?”
Bewitched by her voice, Lu Qinian’s fingers tightened — pressing lightly into that slender waist.
“Mmm…” A soft, breathless sound escaped her throat. The kiss returned — deeper still. And between kisses, she asked, breathless and innocent: “And is my bosom not full enough?”
At her words — the face before him, blurred and dreamlike, slowly came into focus. Lu Qinian started awake with a gasp, sitting bolt upright. Only then did he realise — it had been a dream. He breathed out slowly, shaken.
Xu Qianjin stood watching him, his expression knowing and teasing. “Breathless, flushed, and starting up in alarm… Division Commander Lu — did you dream of a woman?”
Still reeling, Lu Qinian stared at him in shock — then abruptly looked away, face darkening, and snapped gruffly: “Absolute nonsense!”
Lu Qinian had finished his meal and meant only to rest his eyes upon the sofa — and had fallen asleep. Xu Qianjin knew his friend well enough — Lu Qinian was a man who would speak nothing he did not wish to speak, no matter what leverage one held. He pressed no further, and simply handed over his report.
“I have checked the village clinic, the county hospital, and every major hospital in the capital,” Xu Qianjin said. “No record whatsoever of Jiang Yuan seeking medical attention. In her hometown, the community is close-knit and traditional. Aside from her family and relatives, no man — aside from Lu Ze — has been seen keeping close company with her.”
Jiang Yuan was strikingly beautiful. In any ordinary village, a girl like her would have been sought after by every family for miles. In years past she had been too young — but once of marriageable age, Lu Ze had appeared. To rural folk, any man serving in the army was a man of standing — not to be offended lightly. And Lu Ze had come from the capital. Even if others had harboured interest, they had kept their distance. And Jiang Yuan — she had eyes and thoughts for Lu Ze alone. No other man existed in her sight.
In short — aside from Lu Ze, Jiang Yuan had kept herself entirely above reproach. There was no evidence whatsoever of pregnancy.
Lu Qinian knew she spoke freely, often wildly — yet he had not imagined she would dare invent something so serious as carrying a child. A girl willing to stake her reputation — willing to even force marriage upon her own father-in-law — was a girl who cared little for what people said. That she would cast aside her reputation entirely… perhaps it was not so strange after all.
“Have you investigated the educated youth stationed there? Travellers and outsiders who pass through? Those who visited occasionally but not regularly?”
“Every last one,” Xu Qianjin replied. “Not only her village — several surrounding towns as well. No suspicious persons. No unusual events.”
Lu Qinian considered. “The place where I was sent on that mission… was it not also near her hometown?”
“Separated by two mountain ridges. About ten miles in a straight line. I checked that area as well. Those mountains are rich in wild mushrooms — and in season, villagers travel from miles around to gather them. But the terrain is treacherous. Only locals and those with experience dare venture deep inside.”
Lu Qinian knew as well — it was a remote, insignificant place. No enemy would operate there. Yet… something tugged at his mind.
“And those three vagabonds we apprehended that day?”
“Common ruffians from the foothills,” Xu Qianjin said. “They waited along the path to rob and cheat villagers returning with mushrooms. They preyed upon the weak and solitary. They sell what they steal for food and drink. Odd thing — ordinarily they never enter the mountains. That day… they went up. Every interrogation, every confession — they insisted they went only to gather mushrooms, and had the misfortune to cross your path. I sentenced them to labour at the reservoir — better than letting them roam free and continue plaguing the villagers.”
Lu Qinian fell silent, deep in thought. Xu Qianjin hesitated, then spoke gently.
“Division Commander Lu — you come from high standing and do not know the hardships of common folk. Farmers toil from dawn till dusk, year after year — and seldom taste meat. A meal of pure white rice is a luxury. Life is hard. Any girl of passable looks would give anything to marry a man from the city, to change her fate and live well. And Jiang Yuan? She is beautiful. And Lu Ze — handsome, well-born, from the capital… to her, this was manna falling from heaven. She would cling to such an opportunity with every fibre of her being. She would never let such a chance slip away.”