In the residential quarters.
Liu Shutong was washing his feet while listening to Wei Wenjie ramble on beside him.
“Old Liu, just think about it—Little Huo’s wife has really suffered. Look how thin those two children are, like matchsticks! Their whole bodies are nothing but one oversized head left! How did life become like this? Just last month I saw Little Huo sending money home. By all rights, he’s not the kind of man who’d ignore his wife and children!”
Liu Shutong paused and sighed.
“The women back in the countryside all live hard lives. The country isn’t wealthy, and the people aren’t living easy either… sigh… We’ll just have to take better care of them from now on.”
Truthfully, Liu Shutong himself couldn’t figure out why Qin Yu’e and the children had ended up like this.
Based on what he knew of the soldiers under his command, Huo Guangji absolutely wasn’t that kind of person.
“Well, of course we should! She even came to see me earlier.” Wei Wenjie handed him the towel from the washbasin rack.
“She came to see you? Was something wrong?” Liu Shutong immediately asked.
“Exactly! If you ask me, Comrade Qin Yu’e is quite a stubborn woman. She came asking me to help her find work so she could support the children!”
The moment those words came out, Liu Shutong froze.
Frowning, he asked, “Didn’t logistics allocate rations to the three of them?”
“I already arranged it. They’ll definitely have meal tickets.” Wei Wenjie glanced at him. “But for some reason, judging by her appearance, she seems desperately short on money… But Little Huo’s salary isn’t low at all!”
His salary certainly wasn’t low.
As a special operations captain with hazardous mission subsidies, it should have been more than enough to support the mother and children.
But whether that money ever actually reached Qin Yu’e’s hands…
That was another matter entirely.
If Huo Guangji had given Qin Yu’e even half the money he earned, would the mother of his children really need to beg others for work?
Thinking of Qin Yu’e and the children’s timid, cautious expressions, Liu Shutong suddenly felt a painful sting in his eyes. Without warning, he flung the towel in his hand straight into the footbath.
Splash—
Water sprayed everywhere as he shoved his feet into his shoes and stood up.
“Old Liu! It’s already so late—where are you going?” Wei Wenjie called after him.
“I’m going to settle accounts with that brat Huo Guangji!” Liu Shutong growled through clenched teeth before storming out.
“Huo Guangji!”
“Sir!”
The door to Huo Guangji’s dormitory, where he had already been preparing to sleep, was kicked open by Liu Shutong.
The furious roar shook him to the core.
Still, military discipline kicked in immediately. He quickly straightened his appearance and waited for instructions.
Liu Shutong looked him up and down before suddenly snapping,
“Didn’t I tell you to go comfort your wife? What the hell are you doing here?!”
Huo Guangji frowned instinctively.
Seeing the company commander’s deeply knotted brows, he immediately understood Liu Shutong was furious.
Thinking back to Qin Yu’e appearing in the square earlier, Huo Guangji instantly concluded that woman had gone crying to the commander about him.
How utterly womanly.
He let out a quiet snort before reporting,
“Report! I was preparing to sleep!”
Liu Shutong glared at him.
“You can still sleep? Is this where you’re supposed to be sleeping? You’re here in the dormitory while your wife and children are staying in the guesthouse?”
So she really had complained.
Using the company commander’s authority to pressure him now?
When demanding money failed, was she trying to force him into sleeping with her?
What a scheme.
Huo Guangji curled his lips dismissively.
“Company Commander, the guesthouse is inside the camp. It’s perfectly safe. I don’t need to—”
“Bullshit!” Liu Shutong exploded, looking ready to pry open his skull. “You have family here visiting, and you still think you should sleep in the dormitory? Grab your things and get your ass over to the guesthouse right now!”
“I—”
“Don’t play tricks with me, kid! Xiao Li, go with him and carry his stuff over there. Keep an eye on him—I want him inside that room no matter what!”
Liu Shutong directly issued the order.
“Commander, is this really necessary…” Huo Guangji’s face darkened.
“Yes, it’s necessary! Hurry up before the children fall asleep!”
Outside the guesthouse.
Qin Yu’e had just laid down with the two children when she heard knocking.
“Coming!”
She hurriedly threw on her clothes and opened the door.
The moment the door opened, Huo Guangji’s tall figure stood outside.
“You—why are you here?!” Qin Yu’e was so shocked she nearly bit her tongue.
Seeing him holding bedding and carrying a pile of daily necessities, Qin Yu’e instantly understood.
This scumbag actually intended to sleep with her!
She immediately blocked the doorway.
“The bed inside isn’t big enough. There’s no room!”
Huo Guangji glanced over the woman before him.
Her soft hair hung loose around her shoulders, making her appear much younger than when it had been tied up during the day.
The image of her draped in a military coat overlapped perfectly with the fleeting glimpse he had caught earlier in the square.
Subconsciously, he swallowed.
Only then did he remember—
Back when they first married, she had actually been rather pretty…
“Ahem.”
After coughing lightly, Huo Guangji squeezed past Qin Yu’e into the room.
“I’ll sleep on the floor.”
Qin Yu’e was speechless.
But there was no stopping his mountain-like body, so she could only glare as he spread his bedding on the floor beside the bed.
The two children on the bed had already seen Huo Guangji’s heroic appearance while he was leading drills earlier. They no longer seemed quite as afraid of him and instead stared curiously with wide eyes.
Looking at the two little children, Huo Guangji felt his heart soften slightly.
Today was the first time he had ever met them.
Every time he wrote home asking for a photograph of the children, his mother always claimed taking pictures frightened young kids and kept delaying.
Before he knew it, the children had grown this big.
He couldn’t stop the faint smile from appearing at the corner of his lips as he reached into his jacket and pulled out two eggs.
“Eggs!”
Zhuyue’s eyes immediately lit up. She turned to look at Qin Yu’e.
Qin Yu’e curled her lips.
This scumbag really knew how to win children over.
Still, food brought right to their mouths would be foolish to refuse.
She nodded slightly.
“Go ahead and eat. Afterward, I’ll get you some water.”
The joy on Zhuyue’s tiny face became instantly visible. Her big eyes curved into happy crescents.
Afraid of frightening her, Huo Guangji placed the eggs on the edge of the bed and slowly pushed them toward the children.
Two little hands immediately reached out, snatching the eggs before stuffing them into eager mouths.
The effect of using two eggs to buy affection was incredibly obvious.
After finishing his egg, little Qingfeng let out a tiny burp.
Then he opened his mouth and spoke the very first word of his life.
“Dad!”