Chapter 97: T-Turn Off the Lights

At the military base, during the New Year’s celebration event.

An hour ago, Commander He personally arrived to offer his New Year’s greetings to the young recruits spending their very first Lunar New Year away from home.

These new soldiers, fresh into service, had only ever seen someone as high-ranking as Lu Zhanlin, their regiment commander. Seeing someone of Commander He’s rank—well, their eyes went wide, shining with awe and nervousness. Some were so tense they couldn’t even speak.

Fortunately, Commander He showed his approachable side, taking the initiative to shake hands with several of the young recruits from the training unit.

These new soldiers would eventually be assigned to different divisions and companies. During the training period, Lu Zhanlin and Xu Feng were responsible for their instruction. They had seized the opportunity to hand-pick the most promising ones for their own units.

This was also a chance to give those selected a little exposure in front of Commander He—how far they’d go from there would be up to them.

As for Commander He’s visit, it wasn’t entirely official. He had his own agenda.

After circling the lively event like a hawk surveying its surroundings, his sharp gaze finally landed on Xu Feng, and a small smile crept across his face.

Xu Feng had no way of dodging it and reluctantly stepped forward.

Commander He gave a snort.
“Smart kid—you didn’t try to sneak off. But don’t think you’re off the hook after I leave. I’m leaving Xiao He behind to keep an eye on you.”

Xu Feng had been smiling bitterly before—now he could only smile through the pain. He tried to sound tough:
“I didn’t run from the frontlines—why would I run from a silly little mixer?”

“Hmph.” Commander He let out a scornful laugh.
“You’d better stick to your word.”

The two stood there, locked in a silent standoff for a while—both radiating pure soldier-like stubbornness, neither willing to back down.

When it was time to leave, Commander He did exactly as he said—he left his adjutant, Xiao He, behind to make sure Xu Feng didn’t sneak away from the party.

But that wasn’t all.

Commander He left him with one more parting shot:
“So many young women around—why don’t you talk to them? Dance a little? Don’t sit there like a log! How do you expect to get married like this? Plan to die single? If you keep this up, don’t tell people you’re one of mine—I’d be ashamed!”

Xu Feng didn’t even get a chance to argue—he could only watch helplessly as Commander He walked away.

He sat back down and listened to the noise and chatter of the soldiers around him, quietly drinking in frustration.

As he drank, he suddenly felt someone sit down beside him. He turned his head and saw…

“You… You… What are you doing here?”

Xu Feng’s face was practically shouting disgust, his eyes wide as he stared at He Meijiao, who had just taken the seat next to him.

He Meijiao rolled her eyes at him with a huff.
“Look around—do you see any other empty seats? What was I supposed to do, stand all night? You think you’re so special? Like I want to sit next to you or something?”

Xu Feng didn’t actually hate He Meijiao—
But her reputation in the unit was notorious. The pampered, princess-like air she carried was the exact kind of woman Xu Feng found terrifying.

So maybe “disgust” wasn’t the right word. More like… fear.

Just as he was about to say something, a sudden wave of beer gas rushed up from his chest, and he let out a loud burp.

They’d been drinking beer—carbonated and alcoholic—and the pressure in his chest rose uncontrollably. He couldn’t hold it in.

Unfortunately, he was sitting right in front of He Meijiao, and the burp hit her square in the face.

“Aahhh!” He Meijiao let out a shriek, leaping up from her seat in outrage.
“Xu Feng! Even if you don’t like me, do you really have to chase me off like that? That’s so gross!”

As if it weren’t enough that Xu Feng was already known for sleeping without showering or washing his butt—now he had a new crime to his name.

He scrambled to explain,
“I didn’t mean to! I swear, it wasn’t on purpose—it’s a biological reaction! You studied medicine—you know this kind of thing just happens!”

“Don’t give me that! ‘Can’t help it’—who are you trying to fool? You just don’t like me! You wanted to get rid of me! Hmph! Fine—I’ll go!”

Utterly humiliated, He Meijiao turned on her heel and stormed off.

Their little argument had nearly turned their corner of the room into a battleground.
Thankfully, the overall party was loud and bustling—so their spat didn’t draw too much attention.
Otherwise, by tomorrow, Captain Xu’s new “reputation” would’ve spread throughout the entire base.

Xu Feng had always avoided He Meijiao like the plague, but this time it was his fault—he couldn’t just watch her storm off in anger.

He quickly reached out to pull He Meijiao back, dragging her back to her seat.

“Comrade He, I’m sorry, really! I didn’t mean it! Please sit down—right next to me.”

Xu Feng was a rough man and didn’t know his own strength. How could He Meijiao possibly resist? She was practically yanked back, stumbling slightly.

Luckily, she landed squarely on the chair and didn’t fall to the floor.

It was New Year’s Eve, and aside from this room, the rest of the military camp was cold and quiet. If He Meijiao left now, she’d have to return alone to her dorm.

She didn’t want that. Since Xu Feng had pulled her back, she decided to go along with it—though her face still wore a look of pride.

Crossing her arms, she raised her chin and shot him a sidelong glance.

“What? Can’t bear to let me leave now?”

“Of course not! What if you leave and go looking for Lu Zhanlin again? You’d be disturbing a married couple’s New Year’s night! As his brother, I have to keep an eye on you right here.”

Nothing decent ever came out of Xu Feng’s mouth. His words made He Meijiao’s face flush red with anger—but she couldn’t argue, because deep down… she had thought about it.

So this little corner of the room turned into a standoff of glaring eyes.

Guard Xiao He stared at Xu Feng, Xu Feng stared at He Meijiao, and He Meijiao glared so hard at the wall she almost bored a hole through it. The atmosphere was tense.

…

While some were tense, others were heating up.

In a small room, the temperature steadily rose. The sound of wet, sticky kisses and entangled movements filled the space.

Lu Zhanlin’s military coat had been taken off, leaving him in just a thin shirt. But he didn’t feel cold at all—his whole body felt like it was on fire, heat radiating endlessly.

Chu Yue’s cheeks flushed even deeper, like she’d just downed two pounds of rice wine. Her body felt light, almost floating—but her mind was crystal clear.

She could clearly feel her hand touching Lu Zhanlin’s waist and abdomen.

And those were—abs. Eight-pack abs!

So this was what it felt like?

The last few times she touched him were when she was half-asleep and couldn’t remember. But this time—she felt it all.

Her fingertips lingered, brushing and igniting sparks.

Blushing deeply, her breath came in hot and uneven gasps.

“T-Turn off the light…”

Click.

The room fell into darkness.

Chu Yue had no idea how Lu Zhanlin managed to do it so fast. Was he just waiting for her to say that? Ready at any moment?

In the dark, everything turned soft and intimate.

What followed next came naturally. They were both willing.

As waves of heat and passion surged, Chu Yue slowly closed her eyes, ready to give in—

But just then, her ears twitched.

Bang bang bang!

Bang bang bang!

Knocking. Loud knocking.

And not just knocking—there was a faint sound of a woman crying outside. The soft, thread-like weeping wrapped around Chu Yue’s ears, tugging at her one pull at a time…