Chapter 29.2

At the end of the drinking, only Xie Yanzhao was still drunk. The others had already fallen down. He looked like nothing had happened. His face showed no reaction at all, and his eyes were still clear.

The others, who could barely stand, were still shouting to continue drinking.

“…Drink, don’t stop me, let’s keep going!”

“There’s plenty of time. I can still drink, hahahaha…”

Xu Zhu could barely sit up, yet he raised his hand, “Drink, I want to keep drinking…”

“Enough already!”

Hu Wanning intervened, suppressing Xu Zhu’s drunken antics and guiding him to the side.

To her surprise, Xu Zhu laughed foolishly and kissed Hu Wanning’s face roughly.

“Wife, so full… my dear wife…”

Hu Wanning’s cheeks flushed bright red, as if she had been painted with rouge. She dared not look back.

How embarrassing!

“Shut up,” Hu Wanning covered Xu Zhu’s mouth, using surprising strength to drag him back to their room.

Ruan Mingfu, who was playing with the dog, didn’t witness this scene.

But Xie Yanzhao saw everything clearly.

He glanced over at Ruan Mingfu, who was bathed in the soft glow from the living room light, her smile gentle as she looked at the dog.

“I’ll see you home,” Xie Yanzhao said with a light cough. “I’ll accompany you back.”

Ruan Mingfu turned to him, still smiling.

“Alright.”

She wasn’t going to refuse.

It was already dark outside. Although the guesthouse was under the military’s jurisdiction and it was safe, the dark road without street lights made her nervous.

Ruan Mingfu looked at the people sprawled on the table. “You’re going alone to send them off?”

The four people, plus Xu Zhu, were all out cold.

What a formidable man!

Xie Yanzhao responded lightly.

These people couldn’t stand on their own, so he couldn’t just leave them here for Hu Wanning to clean up.

Fortunately, the four people lived nearby, so it wasn’t much trouble.

They were also prepared, their lights were still on. If it weren’t for the kids at home, they probably would have come to collect them.

When they finally reached Wu Gang’s place, his new wife was already waiting at the door. Seeing them approach, she brightened and quickly walked over, “Commander Xie, thank you for bringing Wu Gang back.”

“No need to mention it,” Wu Gang, heavy with drink, was too much for his wife to handle alone. Xie Yanzhao helped him inside.

“Thank you for your trouble. Please help me get him inside.”

Wu Gang’s wife grabbed his other side, trying to avoid the strong smell of alcohol as she turned her head away.

They had just gotten married, and the house had only recently been assigned to them.

As newlyweds without children, they had been given a two-bedroom apartment. For now, it was enough, but as their family grew, it might be too small.

Xie Yanzhao helped Wu Gang onto the bed and finally sighed in relief.

“I’ll be going now.”

Wu Gang’s wife, who was taking off Wu Gang’s shoes, looked up in surprise when she heard him say he was leaving. She called out, “Commander Xie, let me see you out.”

Just as Xie Yanzhao was about to leave the bedroom, a girl of about eighteen or nineteen with two braids came over with a glass of water.

She looked at him shyly and then lowered her head. “Comrade Xie, thank you for bringing my brother-in-law back. Have a glass of water.”

“No.”

Xie Yanzhao didn’t even glance at her. With a long stride, he walked out the door.

The girl watched Xie Yanzhao’s departing figure, frowning deeply, and unconsciously tightened her grip on the cup of water.

Wu Gang’s wife came out and saw this scene.

She frowned. “Chunhua, what are you doing?”

“I saw Commander Xie sending my brother-in-law back,” He Chunhua said as she set the cup on the table. “I thought he could use some water.”

Wu Gang’s wife’s frown deepened.

“Chunhua, don’t do anything unnecessary. Commander Shen is already in a relationship.”

When Wu Gang’s wife married, several of Shen Yanzhao’s comrades had arranged meetings with female companions for him, including He Chunhua. At that time, she was unwilling to accept the match, finding Xie Yanzhao too young and fierce-looking, and firmly opposed the marriage.

The He family gave up on the idea, and the matter was dropped.

A look of unwillingness flashed in He Chunhua’s eyes. “Sister, why didn’t you mention that Comrade Xie is a commander?”

She would have been the commander’s wife.

She had heard that with Xie Yanzhao’s rank, his monthly allowances amounted to several hundred yuan. Marrying him would mean a comfortable life. Moreover, Xie Yanzhao was highly capable and might even be promoted further.

She could have become a general’s wife.

Now, missing this opportunity meant a lifetime regret.

“He Chunhua, wake up,” Wu Gang’s wife said, sensing trouble. “You rejected him back then, so you have no one to blame.”

He Chunhua pressed her lips together, clearly still dissatisfied.

Indeed, almost becoming a commander’s wife is a hard pill to swallow. Anyone would feel a pang of imbalance in such a situation.

“Don’t forget, Commander Xie is already in a relationship. Even if you keep pursuing him, he won’t look at you,” Wu Gang’s wife thought her sister was quite unlucky and felt like taking it out on Wu Gang.

Initially, they only knew Xie Yanzhao was Wu Gang’s comrade and assumed he was a captain like Wu Gang.

Who would have guessed he was a regiment commander?

Wu Gang’s wife sighed. “I understand you’re upset, but life goes on. There are many young, promising men in the military. I’ll make sure to introduce you to some.”

If it were someone else, Wu Gang’s wife might encourage her sister to try harder.

But having seen Ruan Mingfu, she didn’t believe her sister stood a chance.

Not to mention, Ruan Mingfu’s appearance alone would overshadow her sister.

With such a handsome man, Wu Gang’s wife doubted Xie Yanzhao would choose her sister over Ruan Mingfu. Thus, she decided to dissuade He Chunhua.

He Chunhua clutched her clothing tightly, her eyes reflecting a struggle.

After a long while, she finally nodded.

“Sister, I’ll listen to you.”

Seeing this, Wu Gang’s wife breathed a sigh of relief and quickly offered comforting words to her sister.

….

Hu Wanning, after taking care of Xu Zhu and putting the chubby son to sleep, exited the room and saw the empty dining table. “Did Old Xie send everyone back?”

“Yes,” Ruan Mingfu was petting Goudan’s head. “He should be back soon.”

Seeing Ruan Mingfu petting the dog, Hu Wanning smiled. “Comrade Ruan, you really like our Goudan.”

Probably sensing the attention, Goudan wagged his fluffy tail, his face looking like it was smiling.

“Goudan is so well-behaved and adorable. Who wouldn’t like him?”

Ruan Mingfu almost wanted to take him home, making Goudan her own.

“Once you get a house, you could keep a dog…” Hu Wanning suddenly realized, excitedly saying, “Comrade Ruan, do you want to move into one of the single-family houses?”

Apartment buildings aren’t ideal for keeping dogs.

Ruan Mingfu nodded. “You know, with so many people living on each floor of the apartment building and poor sound insulation,” she patted Goudan’s head. “It’s much more comfortable here with front and back yards.”

In an apartment, even speaking loudly can be heard by neighbors, offering no privacy.

Besides, with so many families around, it’s noisy. Ruan Mingfu imagined the annoyance of being woken up every morning and felt she would break down eventually.

Hu Wanning’s smile deepened. “You’re speaking exactly what I was thinking.”

She chose this place to avoid crowding.

“Since you’ve made up your mind, let’s get Old Xie to finalize it quickly,” Hu Wanning smiled. “That way, you can also keep me company.”

Ruan Mingfu patted Goudan’s head.

Goudan squinted his eyes in a contented expression.

“Old Xie has come to pick you up,” Hu Wanning said, spotting Xie Yanzhao’s tall figure approaching from afar. “It’s getting late, so I won’t keep you. Be careful on the road.”

As she spoke, Xie Yanzhao had already arrived.

His gaze fell on Ruan Mingfu. “Let’s go.”

Ruan Mingfu stood up. “Goodbye, Sister-in-law.”

“Take care on the road!”

“Got it~”

The night was pitch dark, but with the moonlight, the path was vaguely visible.

Ruan Mingfu walked beside Xie Yanzhao, the night breeze brushing her hair and making her face itch. She reached up to tuck the stray hairs behind her ear.

“Are you really okay after drinking so much?”

Today had been quite an eye-opener for her.

Xie Yanzhao was incredibly resilient, drinking five people under the table and showing no sign of intoxication. If she hadn’t caught the scent of alcohol on him, she would have thought he was drinking plain water.

That raised a question.

How had such a heavy drinker gotten drunk the first time she met him?

Ruan Mingfu furrowed her delicate brows.

She suspected Xie Yanzhao might be pretending!

Xie Yanzhao lowered his gaze and paused. “Do you wish for me to be drunk or sober?”

Ruan Mingfu: “……”

What kind of answer is that?

On a summer night, the cool breeze rustled the trees and brushed the hem of her skirt against Xie Yanzhao’s legs.

“Let’s go.”

Xie Yanzhao took the lead with his long strides, heading forward.

The night was cooler than the day.

Stars dotted the sky, the croaking of frogs filled the air, and fireflies occasionally flitted by.

Ruan Mingfu smoothed her wind-tousled hair and followed behind with light steps.

“Xie Yanzhao, when should we go and get the marriage certificate?”

The person in front suddenly stopped. Ruan Mingfu, caught off guard, bumped into him hard, feeling as if she had run into a solid wall. She covered her sore nose, her beautiful peach blossom eyes quickly misting up.