Chapter 6 She is my wife.

As soon as Huo Changzheng looked up, he saw a piece of fabric flash past his eyes. By the time he focused, Lin Suisui was already standing in front of him, wrapped tightly in a bedsheet. Realizing what had happened, he immediately turned around and shut the door.

Lin Suisui lowered her head, not daring to meet his gaze. Her freshly washed hair hung loose and slightly messy, and droplets of water trickled down her fair, slender neck, disappearing into the bedsheet. At that moment, she looked just like a cooked prawn—blushing from head to toe.

Even without looking at him, she could feel the intense heat of his gaze on her. The room had gone so quiet it seemed only their soft breathing remained.

She couldn’t take the tension any longer and finally gathered the courage to speak. “Can you… step outside for a moment?”

She looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with a pleading light, looking every bit like a helpless little creature.

Huo Changzheng’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly. He turned to open the door. “I’ll go eat at the canteen. Take your time.”

With a loud bang, the door opened and then shut again. Only then did Lin Suisui finally feel her heart settle back in her chest.

That was way too close!

Thinking back on the scene just now, her legs still felt weak. Thank goodness she reacted fast enough to grab the bedsheet at the end of the bed and wrap herself up.

She had done her best to salvage the situation. Hopefully, he hadn’t seen anything… and hopefully, he wouldn’t think she was deliberately trying to seduce him. That was her biggest worry—that he’d misunderstand and send her packing back to the countryside.

Anxious and uneasy, she finished the rest of her bath and washed the dirty clothes for both herself and Doubao before finally climbing into bed to rest.

She hugged Doubao and quickly fell asleep, completely unaware that news of her arrival had already spread through the canteen—the unofficial information hub of the base.

When Gu Cheng heard that Lin Suisui had come to join the unit as a military spouse, his first reaction was disbelief.

“Impossible. Absolutely impossible.”

Based on his understanding of his close friend Huo Changzheng, there was no way he would allow that woman to follow him to the base.

“How is it impossible? Sister Huang said so. The regiment commander’s wife came to the canteen to get food at noon,” one soldier insisted. “If you don’t believe Sister Huang, you can ask Fang Weiguo. I heard he was the one who picked her up.”

His confidence made Gu Cheng start to waver. Just then, Fang Weiguo came in carrying a tray of food, and Gu Cheng immediately stopped him.

“Your regiment commander’s wife came?”

“Yep,” Fang Weiguo replied with a grin. “She’s great. Now the commander finally has someone to take care of him.”

Gu Cheng scoffed. “She’s just visiting. She’ll be gone in a few days. You think he’d let her stay?”

“Nope, she’s staying,” Fang Weiguo said with certainty. “The commander’s already applied for a house in the family compound.”

At that, Gu Cheng lost his composure.

“Where’s your commander now?” he asked, standing up abruptly.

“He’s running laps on the training field,” Fang Weiguo said proudly. “Still training at this hour—what a role model!”

Gu Cheng marched outside, and sure enough, he saw Huo Changzheng on the track, running like a lion full of strength.

“You’re running now? Skipping meals? Did the higher-ups punish you?” Gu Cheng jogged over, teasing him.

Huo Changzheng didn’t even spare him a glance. All the frustration he was feeling had nowhere to go, and he poured it into his pace, picking up speed.

“Aren’t you recovering from a concussion? Why push so hard?” Gu Cheng was amazed by his stamina. He quickened his own pace to keep up, then got straight to the point.

“So, I heard Lin Suisui came to stay?”

“Mm,” Huo Changzheng replied without turning his head.

Gu Cheng’s expression changed. “And you’re just letting her?”

“What else can I do?”

That offhand response made Gu Cheng furious. “Huo Changzheng, did you hit your head too hard? Do you even remember who Lin Suisui is?”

“I do. She’s my wife.”

As soon as he said that, Huo Changzheng felt the fire that had just left his body come rushing back. He sped up again.

Gu Cheng was momentarily speechless. He wanted to keep asking questions, but by then, Huo Changzheng had already left him in the dust.

Back at the dorm, Lin Suisui slept soundly until the knocking on the door woke her. It was Fang Weiguo, here to take her to pick out a house.

There were three vacant houses in the family compound. Based on Huo Changzheng’s rank, she had her pick.

“Sister-in-law, once you pick the house, you can start buying furniture and essentials. Then you can move in,” Fang Weiguo explained as he led Lin Suisui and Doubao around.

All the houses were spacious and came with both front and back yards. Lin Suisui found them all quite nice and didn’t have a strong preference—after all, she was only staying a year. Huo Changzheng would be the one living there long-term.

“Maybe your commander should decide. He’s the one who’ll be here longer,” she suggested.

“No need,” Fang Weiguo said casually. “The commander said it’s up to you. As long as you like it, that’s all that matters.”

“…Alright then.”

Since Huo Changzheng had given her full say, she wasn’t going to be shy about it.

They’d already viewed the first two houses, and Lin Suisui preferred the second one but still wanted to see the third before deciding.

Just as they reached the door of the third house, the door across the street suddenly swung open.

Lin Suisui looked up and saw a tall woman step out.

She wasn’t stunningly beautiful, but her eyes were bright and spirited. Her light blue dress made her look full of life.

Of all the military wives she had met in the past two days, none had the presence this woman had.

“Xiao Fang, what’s going on here?” the woman asked, glancing at Lin Suisui and taking the initiative to speak.

“This is Deputy Commander Huo’s family,” Fang Weiguo replied. “They came with the unit. I’m showing them around to pick a place to live.”

Fang Qianqian looked Lin Suisui up and down, then smiled and reached out her right hand. “Hello! I’m Fang Qianqian.”

Although Fang Qianqian’s gaze was quite direct, Lin Suisui could sense the friendliness in her tone. She reached out her right hand in return, gave a slight smile, and said, “Hello! I’m Lin Suisui.”

“Our names both have repeating syllables. Looks like we’re fated to get along!” Fang Qianqian said cheerfully. “You guys carry on for now. We’ll chat another time when you’re free.”

“Alright.”

Lin Suisui was quite curious about Fang Qianqian. Once they entered the house, she was just about to ask Fang Weiguo about her when he proactively began to explain.

It turned out that Fang Qianqian was the wife of a deputy company commander named Cheng Hao, who served under Huo Changzheng. She had been living with the military unit for a year, and ever since the day she arrived at the family compound, she had been the center of attention.

For one, her relationship with Cheng Hao was a rare case of an older woman-younger man dynamic—she was five years older than him—which made for constant gossip. On top of that, her taste in clothing and lifestyle was quite refined, which also got people talking from time to time.

“I think her skirt looks really nice—better than what I saw on city girls back in the provincial capital a few days ago,” Lin Suisui commented.

“Her hometown is in Dongcheng. I heard she has relatives in Hong Kong who often send her packages. Those beautiful clothes of hers probably came from there,” Fang Weiguo shared what he’d heard.

When Lin Suisui heard “Dongcheng” and “Hong Kong,” her eyes instantly lit up. She hadn’t even finished touring the house before she told Fang Weiguo, “I’ll take this one.”