Chapter 13: Going to the Army—I’m Lu Zhanlin’s Lover

“Lu Yuanbao! Lu Yuanbao! Wake up, come here quickly!”

Damn it, just because he called someone “Dad” once, he really thinks the man’s going to be his free father?

In her urgency, Chu Yue gave Lu Yuanbao a few pats to wake him up.

Still drowsy, Lu Yuanbao slowly opened his eyes. At first, he looked dazed and groggy. But the moment he saw Lu Zhanlin’s face, he was instantly jolted awake, his round eyes widening in alarm.

His reaction was exactly the same as Chu Yue’s earlier.

The small child quickly wriggled out of Lu Zhanlin’s arms. Though he moved fast, his sleepy legs couldn’t hold him up well when he landed, and he staggered, nearly falling.

Fortunately, Lu Zhanlin was quick to react and caught him in time.

Chu Yue pulled Lu Yuanbao to her side and glanced across at the seat opposite.

The woman from yesterday—Auntie Zhong—was gone. She must have gotten off midway to avoid trouble. What a shame she didn’t get handed over to the police—it was letting her off easy!

What Chu Yue didn’t know was that Lu Zhanlin had already arranged for someone to keep an eye on Auntie Zhong. She had been arrested right on the station platform when she snuck off the train in the middle of the night.

Seeing that Auntie Zhong was no longer around, Chu Yue dropped the act.

“Yuanbao, quickly thank the uncle.”

“Thank you, Uncle,”

Lu Yuanbao said woodenly, doing as Chu Yue told him.

At the same time, he handed Lu Zhanlin the black trench coat that had been covering Chu Yue.

Lu Zhanlin didn’t particularly like being called “Uncle,” but he showed no reaction on his face. Instead, he looked at Chu Yue and said,

“I ate two of your steamed buns yesterday and watched over you two while you slept last night. We’re even now. You don’t need to feel awkward about it.”

He was returning the very same words Chu Yue had said to him before.

Upon hearing that, Chu Yue realized he had a point and her expression gradually relaxed.

Still, just thinking about the “intimate contact” she’d had with Lu Zhanlin earlier made her face feel hot again.

Thankfully, the train was pulling into the station. As it slowed down, passengers began standing up to gather their belongings and prepare to disembark.

Chu Yue started packing her backpack too.

Winter in the south was milder than in the north, so all her thick clothes were stuffed into her backpack. She’d wait until no one was around and then stash them in her personal storage space—it was very convenient.

Once she was done, she took Lu Yuanbao’s hand and prepared to get off the train.

She looked back briefly at Lu Zhanlin. The man was still seated, showing no signs of getting up.

With the black trench coat off, his full military uniform was on display—an impeccable dark green that perfectly complemented his sculpted features and sharp, commanding presence. Cold and handsome.

What a shame. A man this good-looking—she probably wouldn’t see him again.

Chu Yue didn’t say goodbye. She simply got off the train.

As soon as she stepped onto the platform, a loud voice rang out from the front of the train:

“Everyone line up! Align front and back! Start counting!”

“One! Two! Three! Four!…”

Chu Yue looked ahead and saw rows of soldiers standing neatly in formation.

They all looked like young recruits, no older than seventeen or eighteen. Their faces still carried the awkwardness of youth, and as they stood in line, their eyes kept wandering curiously—some even more inquisitive than Lu Yuanbao.

Each one wore a big red flower pinned to their chest.

They were all new conscripts, on their way to report for duty.

Chu Yue had originally planned to ask a sentry at the station how to get to the military compound.

But to her surprise, this train happened to be carrying new recruits heading to the army—what a lucky coincidence. She couldn’t have planned it better.

She waited nearby for a while until the conscripts finished lining up and began heading out of the station. Then she stepped forward.

She approached a man wearing a military uniform and cap—clearly an officer.

“Hello, Comrade.”

When Xu Feng turned his head at the voice, he saw a fair-skinned, delicate-looking young woman. She was quite young but was holding the hand of a little boy around five or six years old.

After a few glances, Xu Feng felt the girl looked familiar. He frowned slightly and thought for a moment—then the image of something he saw in the train car flashed through his mind.

This girl… wasn’t she the one who had been cuddling Lu Zhanlin yesterday?!

Xu Feng was stunned and bewildered. Were young women these days really this bold? Not only had she clung to him on the train, but now she was chasing him all the way to the military base?!

But what was going on with that little girl holding a child by the hand?

Was it her younger brother or her son? Was this a “buy one, get one free” situation?

Xu Feng’s mind was a complete mess. His wild imagination had shocked even himself speechless. As a proper company commander, he was now standing dumbfounded in front of a young girl.

Chu Yue had no idea what the rugged military officer in front of her was thinking. She just thought he looked rough and sturdy, with an upright and honest air — but also a bit dumb and dazed.

Since Xu Feng hadn’t spoken yet, Chu Yue simply continued:

“Comrade, my name is Chu Yue. I’m a military family member. This is my personal identification, this is my marriage certificate, and here’s a copy of our marriage application report. I want to go to the military compound. Could you point me in the right direction — or perhaps take me there yourself?”

Xu Feng was shocked again. This young lady was married? Then why had she been all touchy with Lu Zhanlin earlier?

He suppressed the doubts rising in his heart and took the documents Chu Yue handed him, examining them carefully.

Then, when Xu Feng saw the name on the marriage certificate, he was utterly stunned:

Lu Zhanlin?!

When did that guy get married?! Why didn’t he know anything about it?

Besides, Lu Zhanlin had just been sitting next to her yesterday. The girl was clearly headed to the army base — with the same destination as Lu Zhanlin — so why hadn’t he arranged anything? Why let her figure things out by herself?

Too many things weren’t adding up.

Xu Feng stared at her in disbelief, frowning as he asked, “You’re Lu Zhanlin’s wife?”

“Yes, I’m Lu Zhanlin’s spouse. He’s a soldier in the Southwest Military Region. I think he’s a platoon leader.”

Seeing Xu Feng frown, Chu Yue assumed he didn’t believe her, so she told him everything she knew — even though she wasn’t sure if Sister Leng and Chu Yaoyao had been telling the truth.

Xu Feng held the documents, looked at Chu Yue, then glanced behind her.

Not far ahead, beside another train car, Lu Zhanlin was standing there.

He had clearly seen what was going on but didn’t come over. Instead, he shook his head at Xu Feng — just like when they used to give hand signals during battlefield missions.

Xu Feng instantly understood what Lu Zhanlin meant.

This young girl truly didn’t recognize him — she’d been sitting next to him the whole time and hadn’t figured it out. She even got his military rank wrong.

As if Lu Zhanlin could be just a lowly platoon leader.

And yet — the two of them, who hadn’t even met properly — were now married?

The world really was full of strange things.

Once Xu Feng understood, he gave Chu Yue a nod as she looked at him expectantly. “Here are your documents. Keep them safe. Since you’re a military family member, our unit will take good care of you. I’ll arrange transportation to the compound.”

With that, Xu Feng turned around and called out to the recruits behind him, “Song Qi! Step forward!”

“Here!”
Song Qi shouted in response and jogged over in perfect form, snapping to attention in front of Xu Feng.

“Company Commander Xu!”

Xu Feng ordered, “Song Qi, this is Lu— Lu Zhanlin’s wife. She needs to go to the military family compound. You don’t need to stay with the main unit. Take a vehicle and drive her there.”

The moment Song Qi heard this, he reacted exactly like Xu Feng had moments earlier.

His eyes widened, his face full of disbelief, as if the words “When did our commander get married?!” were written across his forehead.

Song Qi was Lu Zhanlin’s personal aide and had followed him around daily. This time, only because Lu Zhanlin was on a solo mission had Song Qi been reassigned to Xu Feng.

By all logic, he should’ve known all about Lu Zhanlin’s personal life.

But even he had no idea Lu Zhanlin was married.

Seeing Song Qi’s reaction made Xu Feng feel a little better. He grabbed Song Qi and pulled him aside, lowering his voice to give him a warning.

“About Commander Lu’s marriage — don’t ask anything, don’t say anything on the road. This is their private matter. As an outsider, don’t get involved. Got it?”

“Understood, Company Commander Xu!”

“Good. Be careful on the road. That’s the commander’s wife and child — nothing can happen to them. Deliver them safely!”  “Mission guaranteed!”

While the two men were having this secret exchange, Chu Yue watched their sneaky behavior. If they hadn’t both been in uniform, she might’ve taken Lu Yuanbao and run for it.

Lu Yuanbao also felt something was off. He tugged on Chu Yue’s hand, looked up at her with big, dark eyes full of unease. “It’ll be fine,” Chu Yue reassured him. “They’re all soldier uncles. We can trust them.”