Jiang Lin looked at the rearview mirror and felt as if she had lost a child, feeling a deep ache in her heart.

Dabao had a serious expression, clearly holding back his emotions, while Xiaobao couldn’t help but cry loudly.

Cheng Rushan, driving with one hand, comforted the two boys with the other.

He used the back of his hand to wipe Jiang Lin’s tears and held her hand, saying, “We’ll be living together soon, I promise.”

Jiang Lin kissed his hand, encouraging him to focus on driving.

Since they weren’t carrying any cargo, their trip to the provincial capital was much quicker, and they arrived at the provincial military district compound by noon.

The military district compound was located in the northwest of the provincial capital.

Although it was close to the military camp, it was separate, with a wide road and tall poplar trees separating the two.

The military camp backed onto a rolling mountain range, and the military district compound occupied a large area with high walls and a big iron gate guarded by four sentries.

Familiar with Cheng Rushan and Dai Guohua, the sentries waved them through without hesitation.

In front of the military district compound were the administrative offices, including the headquarters and the political department.

The family drove directly to the residential area, parked the car by the roadside, and Cheng Rushan asked Dai Guohua to stay with them while he went to the logistics department to handle paperwork.

The logistics department was large, with various divisions such as the headquarters, political office, and transportation department.

Cheng Rushan needed to first visit the political office to process the household registration and then move on to the finance department and housing construction department, among other tasks.

Fortunately, having worked in transportation for over a year, he had built up some connections.

He was able to get things done more smoothly by speaking with the relevant department heads.

Director Di, who had a good relationship with Cheng Rushan, was particularly pleased to help him.

Director Di was in his forties, of medium height, dressed in military uniform without a belt, and had a slight belly.

He was very friendly and approachable, creating a warm atmosphere.

“Rushan, your wife getting into university is impressive!” Di Guangming said with a smile.

Cheng Rushan didn’t hide his pride at all. “Thank you, Director. So, I want to transfer our household registration to our military district.”

“Of course, of course. It’s inhumane for a young couple to be separated,” Di Guangming said cheerfully. “Come on, I’ll go introduce you.”

He accompanied Cheng Rushan with a big, confident stride to the Political Department.

The Transport Department was a unique department, as almost every department relied on them and had good relations with them.

The Political Department was even more special because they controlled everyone’s political status and background.

“Old Feng, are you there?” Di Guangming called out as he reached the door.

A voice from inside replied, “Director Di, Director Feng is not here at the moment. If you have any instructions, you can give them to me.”

Di Guangming said, “Oh, Haitao is here. As the deputy director, he can handle things too.”

He turned to Cheng Rushan and smiled. “You’ve been with the military district for a whole year. You should have met Deputy Director Bian, right? He’s young and promising, really impressive.”

Cheng Rushan replied, “No.”

Indeed, he hadn’t met Bian Haitao directly before.

They usually drove straight to the base at the foot of the mountain and only visited the Transport Department and Supply Department, never the Political Department.

The Political Department’s office was in the same building as the Command, which was in a different direction and quite far away, so they hadn’t had the chance to meet.

Of course, Cheng Rushan was familiar with Bian Haitao from his investigations.

Bian Haitao then turned his attention to Cheng Rushan.

Seeing his tall stature, cold demeanor, and sharp eyes, he resembled someone from Captain Cen’s group.

He smiled and asked, “And who might this be?”

Cheng Rushan responded calmly, “I’m Cheng Rushan from the Transport Team.”

Bian Haitao’s smile momentarily froze as he stared at Cheng Rushan, then he smiled again and said, “Cheng Rushan.”

Di Guangming asked, “Oh, do you two know each other?”

He sensed a bit of tension between the two young men.

Had they had some friction before?

Both men immediately denied, “We don’t know each other.”

Di Guangming took a look at them and noticed that although he didn’t recognize them, they didn’t shake hands or greet each other, which seemed odd and suggested something might be wrong.

He said to Bian Haitao, “Deputy Director, please process Cheng Rushan’s transfer. His wife got into our provincial university, which is quite impressive. He’s moving his and his children’s household registrations to our military district, so the couple can be together and not be separated.”

Bian Haitao found this remark very unpleasant and a hint of gloom flashed in his eyes.

He then forced a smile and said, “Really? Is this within the regulations?”

He extended his hand towards Cheng Rushan, “Let me see the documents.”

Cheng Rushan replied, “I’m afraid the Deputy Director might not handle it properly.”

Di Guangming took the folder from Cheng Rushan, placed the documents on the desk, and said with a smile, “Just get the stamps. It’s not complicated. After this, you still need to go to the finance department.”

He asked Cheng Rushan, “Is it difficult to get housing now?”

Cheng Rushan answered, “We’ll stay in a dormitory for now.”

Di Guangming patted his shoulder and said, “Don’t worry, you’ll get a place eventually.”

Bian Haitao picked up the stack of documents and examined them, raising an eyebrow. “Captain Cheng, this doesn’t quite meet the standards.”

He pointed to a specific part, “The background is unclear. Our troops’ political status needs to be absolutely clear. Otherwise, who knows what might get mixed in?”

He had one hand in his pocket and the other holding the documents, glancing at Cheng Rushan with a mix of disdain and provocation.

Di Guangming chuckled, “I know about this. Cheng Rushan’s family has been rehabilitated and is now considered revolutionary gentry. There’s no problem.”

Bian Haitao was reluctant to stamp the document and kept finding excuses, claiming that the paperwork was not in order and that the procedures were not being followed.

Cheng Rushan said, “Deputy Director Bian, if you don’t stamp it now, you’ll have to personally go down and handle it later. Isn’t that a hassle?”

Transferring household registration wasn’t the same for everyone.

Normally, it required coordination between the two locations, one receiving and one releasing, and sometimes one side would deliberately complicate things, passing the buck back and forth.

In Cheng Rushan’s case, it was handled by Gu Mingyi, which meant the military district was actively transferring his registration, and it was supposed to be processed with the staff here without Cheng Rushan having to run around.

But Cheng Rushan knew how these bureaucrats worked.

The process could drag on for a year with endless excuses.

They would claim to be busy and have no time, so he brought the paperwork himself to speed things up by a couple of months.

Bian Haitao’s expression changed, and he narrowed his eyes, glaring at Cheng Rushan.

To be honest, Cheng Rushan’s name wasn’t unfamiliar to him.

Despite his efforts to ignore and even belittle him, he couldn’t help but investigate the background of Jiang Lin’s rural husband.

However, Bian Haitao had no respect for Cheng Rushan, dismissing him as just another landlord’s offspring.

If it weren’t for his marriage to Jiang Lin, Bian Haitao wouldn’t even care to know his name or appearance.

He had imagined Cheng Rushan as a shabby, unrefined rural man whom Jiang Lin would certainly look down on.

Seeing Cheng Rushan now, he was surprised by his outstanding appearance, which stood out even among actors who relied on their looks.

This made Bian Haitao uncomfortable and led him to compare himself unfavorably.

Moreover, recently, when Dai Guohua sought connections, he came to Bian Haitao for help with Cheng Rushan’s registration.

Bian Haitao had refused at that time and even warned the section chief not to engage in any irregularities.

Di Guangming was surprised that Cheng Rushan managed to find someone to help process his household registration so effectively.

This really annoyed him.

Even if the paperwork was legal, it could be delayed for months—this was a common practice.

The two men exchanged glances, with an unspoken tension between them.

Bian Haitao’s eyes were smug, as if he was reminding Cheng Rushan that he was Jiang Lin’s first love, the man she truly cherished, while Cheng Rushan was just a rural man she was using!

In the past, this might have unsettled Cheng Rushan.

But not now!

His wife had reassured him.

She had long moved on from the past and valued their family above all.

He felt her sincerity and knew she had chosen a new life with him.

Bian Haitao’s attempts to drag her back to the past would not be tolerated.

To Cheng Rushan, Bian Haitao was no longer a rival but a troublemaker trying to cause problems for his wife.

This was absolutely unacceptable!

Bian Haitao met Cheng Rushan’s gaze and saw the sharp, cold look in his eyes.

After a few seconds, he began to retreat, pretending to examine the documents, and said to Di Guangming, “Director Di, is this urgent? Could we wait a couple of days?”

He was determined to make Cheng Rushan experience some setbacks.

Director Di, sensing the underlying tension, smiled and said, “It’s not a big deal. We can wait a couple of days.”

Bian Haitao hoped to keep the documents here, but Cheng Rushan refused, “A couple of days is fine.”

Leaving the Political Department office, Director Di couldn’t help but ask Cheng Rushan, “Rushan, have you had any conflicts with Deputy Director Bian?”

Cheng Rushan was open about it but didn’t want to go into too much detail, so he replied, “My wife and Deputy Director Bian were high school classmates.”

Classmates? Director Di quickly understood.

In their logistics department, handling personal matters like relationships was part of their job, so he grasped what Cheng Rushan was implying.

So, Cheng Rushan’s wife and Deputy Director Bian used to date?

Director Di was intrigued and wanted to know more.

However, as a leader, he felt it wasn’t appropriate to pry into his subordinate’s personal life, as it could affect his image.

After all, no one likes to have their spouse’s past relationships scrutinized.

“Don’t worry, let’s go directly to the Finance Department and then to the Housing Management Office to get the keys. We’ll deal with the household registration later.”

Everything went smoothly from there.

After getting the keys, they needed to visit the cafeteria to handle some relationships and get the transfer for himself and the children sorted out.

Jiang Lin would first need to report to the school before deciding whether to transfer all the registration there or just part of it.

While Cheng Rushan handled the paperwork, Jiang Lin took Dabao and Xiaobao to stroll around the family compound with Dai Guohua.

Dai Guohua said with a smile, “Sister-in-law, Rushan is really capable. Even with the difficult task of transferring household registration, he managed to get it done.”

When Dai Guohua initially sought help, he was told that if it was for Cheng Rushan, it could be done.

He had joked about it and was told it wasn’t possible.

Dai Guohua knew his own limitations and wasn’t jealous.

He realized that Cheng Rushan was not an ordinary person and couldn’t be compared with him.

Some people, even if they start from the same point as everyone else, can eventually surpass others and get ahead in ways that are hard to catch up with.

The family housing complex featured traditional courtyards, rows of dormitories, and several apartment buildings.

The red brick and tile structures were neat and attractive.

Jiang Lin thought the environment was quite similar to what she saw in the 1990s in her previous life.

Compared to the countryside, it had developed about twenty years earlier.

At this time, most people were at work or school, leaving the residential area mostly empty, with only some elderly people, unemployed women, and children around. When they saw Dai Guohua and Jiang Lin, they came over to greet them and inquire if they were new arrivals.

Dai Guohua responded, and while some were friendly, others looked down on them with disdain.

Two women, noticing Jiang Lin’s beauty and stylish clothes, as well as her two well-behaved, identical sons, were initially drawn to them.

However, a younger woman in her twenties pulled them away, saying, “Let’s go. Don’t interact with these rural folks. You don’t know, but they might try to take advantage. They could end up asking for money, food, or anything else.”

Da Bao said, “We’re from the countryside but won’t take advantage of anyone.”

Xiao Bao added, “My mom isn’t just a country person. She’s a university student from the provincial capital!”

The women felt embarrassed after hearing this and quickly left.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao each took Jiang Lin’s hand, comforting her, “Mom, don’t be upset. We’ll be careful and won’t cause trouble.”

Jiang Lin wasn’t bothered and smiled, “They talk big, but their ancestors were probably from the countryside too.”

She wasn’t impressed by their pretensions. If anything, being from the countryside had its own challenges.

She believed that city and countryside people weren’t fundamentally different, and those who used such distinctions to feel superior were either insecure or arrogant.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao were determined to behave more elegantly, not wanting to be seen as a joke or to embarrass their mother.

Dai Guohua noticed how the two kids were behaving and remarked, “Sister-in-law, your kids are really more mature than older children.”

Jiang Lin felt proud and thought about Wen Sheng. She wondered if he would be lonely at home.

With her and the children gone, she feared that Yan Runzhi and Cheng Yunzhi might feel a bit empty.

Dai Guohua intended to have Jiang Lin and the kids wait while he went to check on Cheng Rushan.

However, he saw a tall, thin military officer approaching them.

The officer had a long face and a handsome but slightly delicate appearance.

Though his military uniform made him appear more upright and spirited, his gentle aura was still noticeable.

Dai Guohua immediately greeted him with a smile, “Deputy Director Bian.”

Bian Haitao acknowledged him with a nod but his eyes were fixed on Jiang Lin.

She was even more beautiful than before, perhaps due to her maturity.

She stood there looking dazzling, impossible to ignore.

He calmed his racing heart and smiled at her, “Linlin, long time no see.”

Confident as ever, Bian Haitao thought he had matured and become even more attractive since high school.

As a military officer, he possessed an allure and authority that ordinary people did not have, naturally drawing admiration from women.

Back in high school, Jiang Lin had been infatuated with him, and he was sure she would now fall for his charm immediately.

However, when Jiang Lin heard him address her, she looked up with a displeased expression and said, “Who are you? Calling me by a nickname like that, your thoughts are inappropriate!”

Bian Haitao was taken aback.

His appearance had changed so much that she didn’t recognize him right away.

He smiled more cheerfully, “It’s me, Bian Haitao.” He took a few steps closer and spoke even more gently, “Linlin, did you receive my letter?”

Jiang Lin looked at him coldly.

Although Bian Haitao now was taller and more refined, his appearance was still about 80% similar to the one from her past life, which she found unpleasant.

She raised her eyebrow and said, “Yes, I received it. I was just about to give it to your superior and report you for harassing a married woman and being a creep!”

Bian Haitao’s expression darkened, “You’re not Linlin. Who are you?”