Chapter 70.1

The fireplace in the house was already lit, and the kang bed was warm and cozy.

Little Lele rolled around on the kang, his soft hair breaking into a light sweat, and his entire little face flushed red from the heat.

Lele had covered herself with a quilt, exposing only her face, and she cheerfully shouted, “Daddy, come catch me!”

Gu Qinghan had just returned from taking a hot bath on this cold day and heard the little guy calling for him as soon as he entered the room.

Wen Nuan sat cross-legged on the kang, reading a book. Her long hair, which had been waist-length, was cut a little shorter and cascaded over her shoulders. The warm yellow light illuminated her face, making her look especially gentle.

Gu Qinghan draped his coat over a nearby chair and climbed onto the kang. Before he could even reach Lele, the little girl began to shout again, hiding herself back under the covers.

“Daddy, Daddy, I’m here!”

Hearing Lele call him, Gu Qinghan bent down and dove into the covers. Lele shouted even more joyfully, and when she found herself cornered against the wall, she squealed loudly.

Wen Nuan was drawn in by the child’s screams. Seeing the quilt propped up high, she couldn’t help but put down her book and join in.

Seeing Wen Nuan also joining the fun, Gu Qinghan wrapped his arms around her waist, and while Lele was busy playing, he secretly stole a few kisses from her.

Wen Nuan elbowed him twice, saying, “You’re at it again! Hurry and check on your daughter; don’t smother her!”

Gu Qinghan, tall and lanky, inadvertently pushed the quilt aside, causing Lele to lose her cover. Lele, realizing she was no longer hidden, tried to burrow into another blanket.

However, quick as a flash, Gu Qinghan caught her little feet and said, “You can play later; look at the sweat on your forehead.”

In this season, it was easy to catch a cold without realizing it. While adults could usually handle it, Lele had had a fever when she was teething, and being sick could really be quite a fuss.

With her feet caught by her dad, the little girl was instantly immobilized and could only lie on the blanket, laughing heartily.

Fearing that she might laugh uncontrollably, Gu Qinghan picked her up and said, “Still laughing? If you keep this up, you won’t be able to sleep later, and your mommy will scold you again.”

Wen Nuan playfully kicked the man and shot him a fierce look, saying, “If you keep this up, I’ll scold you too!”

Gu Qinghan sat down next to Wen Nuan, holding the child, and then asked her, “What’s the story with that He Manqing?”

Earlier in the living room, Wen Nuan had mentioned He Manqing, and he hadn’t expected so many things to happen in just over a month since he left.

Wen Nuan closed her book, then linked her arm with his, resting her head against his shoulder. She replied, “She’s just jealous of how excellent your wife is. But Grandpa said she’s already retired, and there won’t be any more connections with the He family in the future.”

“What about you? How’s it going over there in Shenyang? Have you picked out a few students for test flights?”

Gu Qinghan casually wrapped his arm around her shoulder and patted her back, responding lightly, “I’m in the selection process.”

Wen Nuan leaned against his arm and let out a soft yawn. “Isn’t the pilot selection in the army about to start, too?”

“Yeah, I hurried back this time for that reason.”

Due to the weather, flight missions in winter were relatively few, so he and Liang Guoan decided to take this opportunity to select a batch of soldiers for basic training. When spring arrived and the weather improved, they would choose another group for flight training.

Hearing Gu Qinghan say this, Wen Nuan suddenly thought of Ding Guoli. She had heard from others that the man seemed to have signed up as well.

It appeared that Ding Guoli’s earlier intentions to approach Qinglan were not entirely pure.

She then recounted the incidents involving Yang Xiaomei, Ding Guoli, and how Qinglan had been harassed by this person. The more Gu Qinghan listened, the tighter his brows knitted.

Finally, he remarked, “If Ding Guoli’s only aim was to prepare for the pilot assessment, and he approached Qinglan for that, then he’s really naive.”

Wen Nuan also disliked this person, her face filled with disdain. “A man with ulterior motives—wouldn’t it be better for him to focus that energy on improving himself? It’s really unfortunate for Sister Xiaomei; she was abandoned without any closure!”

Speaking of Yang Xiaomei, Gu Qinghan’s expression softened a bit. “Yang Xiaomei’s parents are officials in the provincial government of Meng Province. If Ding Guoli bullies her like this, the Yang family definitely won’t let him off easily.”

He continued, “Even if the Yang family doesn’t take action if her brother finds out, he’ll have a role to play as well.”

Wen Nuan hadn’t realized that Yang Xiaomei’s parents were so powerful; she had never heard that girl mention it before. However, it was true that she had a bit of a spending problem. Besides the small matters of her love life, it seemed she didn’t have any other worries.

After hearing Gu Qinghan’s words, Wen Nuan couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s a good thing. Ding Guoli is so fickle; he deserves a lesson.”

Wen Nuan also felt that Ding Guoli had gotten off too easily. Being beaten up by Qinglan and Yang Xiaomei was nowhere near enough punishment.

Seeing her grit her teeth, Gu Qinghan couldn’t help but chuckle. He playfully bit her lip and said, “Hurry up and get Lele to sleep; I miss you.”

Wen Nuan threw a pillow at him and shouted: “How shameless!”

Still, she began to tidy up the bedding while Gu Qinghan was busy wiping the sweat off Lele’s back and head.

Lele, noticing that his father had turned off the room lights, blinked her big eyes in confusion. She tried to get up from the kang, but her father caught her little feet and wouldn’t let her move.

—o—o—o—

The next day, Wen Nuan was awakened by the morning call. The big man and little girl on the kang were still sound asleep.

It was rare for Gu Qinghan to not wake up when the morning call is being played. It seemed that the test flight work must have been quite exhausting.

Wen Nuan lay between Gu Qinghan and Lele. The more than two-meter-wide kang had plenty of space for the three of them; they no longer had to squeeze together as they had before.

Lele had already curled up in the corner of the kang, with one foot boldly resting against the wall, still deep in sleep.

Gu Qinghan lay on his side, one hand resting on her waist. Despite the width of the kang, this man still had to be close to her—clinging to her.

It was not at all like when he was outside—his fierce and cold demeanor instilled both respect and fear.

Wen Nuan looked at the man for a while but ultimately couldn’t help herself.

She pulled the little girl, who was curled up in the corner, back so that she could sleep more properly.

At this time, Lele was in the deepest part of her sleep. Not to mention being tugged or pulled, she could sleep even if someone picked her up and carried her anywhere.

Lele adjusted her position and fell back asleep.

Wen Nuan looked at this adorable little bun, feeling an immense sense of satisfaction and softness in her heart.

No matter how she looked at her, she found her extremely endearing.

After watching for a while, Wen Nuan quietly shifted her body towards Lele, then slightly raised her head to lean down and kiss the child’s tender face.

After the kiss, Wen Nuan cautiously lay back down on the kang, but she couldn’t find a stable position. Suddenly, her whole body fell towards Gu Qinghan.

Wen Nuan was startled by this sudden movement and gasped, then instinctively glanced at the child. Seeing that he was still sound asleep, she turned her head to look at the man who had wrapped his arms around her waist.

Noticing that Gu Qinghan still had his eyes closed, Wen Nuan raised her hand to pinch his face and, in a low voice, complained, “You scared me! I thought you weren’t awake yet.”

The man directly pulled her onto his chest with some force, his voice a bit hoarse. “Don’t move. Let me hold you for a moment.”

Wen Nuan wrapped her arms around the man’s waist, resting against his chest obediently without moving around. Then she smiled and said, “Alright, then you can continue to sleep for a bit.”

While asking, Wen Nuan glanced at the bruise she had discovered on the back of the man’s hand the night before, and she reached out to lightly brush over it.

When she touched the man’s thin wrist, her heart softened in an instant.

Gu Qinghan had been away for just under a month and a half for a test flight, but he had lost several catty in weight. He was already quite lean, and now his face had thinned out considerably.

She had originally wanted to tease him a little. However, at this moment, however, Wen Nuan couldn’t bring herself to do it. She lay quietly in his embrace, completely still, allowing him to hold her.

Though she didn’t move, the man opened his eyes instead. He pointed to his mouth and said, his voice still a bit hoarse, “Why do you only kiss Lele and not me?”

Wen Nuan couldn’t help but laugh, raising her head to plant several kisses along his beautiful jaw, eventually kissing her way to his thin lips. She smiled and said, “You’re actually competing with the child for kisses? Is this good enough?”

Gu Qinghan was stirred by his wife’s actions and became restless. His warm palm slipped beneath her clothing. Then he lowered his head to capture the soft, rosy curve of her lips.

After being apart for so long, Gu Qinghan thought about her almost every day, obsessively longing to finish his work quickly and return home.

The young couple had not seen each other for over a month; a simple kiss was enough to ignite a passion that was difficult to control…

Fortunately, they had changed to a new kang, which creaked with every movement, unlike before. Throughout their intimate moments, Lele remained asleep at the other end of the kang.

—o—o—o—