Chapter 142: Zhuang Lili Turns Herself In

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Lin You carried Xia Yan on his back, drawing plenty of curious looks along the way. The rumors that the two of them had fought earlier vanished without a trace.

Lin You strode forward, secretly wishing the road were longer. Carrying his wife like this filled him with happiness, and his heart felt sweet as honey.

“Lin You, have they still not caught Huang Qiang?”

“Not yet, but it shouldn’t be long now. The mountain may be large, but there aren’t many paths down it. I refuse to believe he can sprout wings and fly away.”

At the mention of Huang Qiang, Lin You’s expression darkened. “Xia Yan, from now on, tell me before you do anything, all right? This time was far too dangerous. If something had happened to you, what would the children and I have done?”

Xia Yan nodded. Even now, she was still shaken by what had happened. She had indeed thought things far too simply—or perhaps she had been too arrogant, leaving herself completely unguarded.

“It won’t happen again. I never imagined they would do something like that.”

“People can be vicious. Remember that in the future.”

As he spoke, Lin You gave the hand supporting her bottom a light slap. “Consider that your lesson.”

Xia Yan had no idea what he meant until she felt the smack. Her face instantly flushed. This man had truly grown bold.

When they arrived home, Xia Yan saw that someone had come to visit.

“Little Sister, what brings you here?”

Lin Ling came forward with Nuan Nuan in her arms. “Sister-in-law, you’re back! Yesterday, my brother called down from the mountain and said he was looking for you. Our parents were worried, so they sent me up to check on you both. But you two…”

Seeing her elder brother carrying Xia Yan on his back, Lin Ling broke into a smile.

Blushing, Xia Yan patted Lin You’s shoulder and said reproachfully, “Aren’t you going to put me down?”

That evening, Lin Ling prepared a tableful of dishes under Xia Yan’s guidance.

“Little Sister, how is the performance troupe?”

Lin Ling had successfully joined the troupe the previous time, but because Lin You had hurried up the mountain, the family had never had a chance to celebrate.

“It’s going very well. Everyone has been taking good care of me. By the way, Sister-in-law, New Year is coming soon, isn’t it? Our troupe is going to hold a New Year’s Eve gala on the mountain. You must come. I heard there will also be an awards ceremony.”

As she spoke excitedly about the upcoming gala, she glanced at Lin You.

An awards ceremony?

From the look on Xia Yan’s face, it was obvious she knew her husband would certainly be among those honored.

“Don’t look at me. I haven’t received any notice yet.”

Lin You seemed utterly uninterested in the so-called awards ceremony.

“Mom, Dad is always like that. At last year’s ceremony, everyone else wore a big red flower, but he refused to wear one.” Lin Hongzhuo whispered into Xia Yan’s ear, telling her about his father’s past “glory.”

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“Eat your food. You’re always talking. Did you even finish your homework today?”

“Dad, why are you always picking on my homework? I finished it at school.” Lin Hongzhuo pouted.

“If you finished it, you can still do some more. Learn from your brother!”

“Mom…”

“Your father is right. I haven’t had time to keep an eye on your studies these past few days. Tonight, you’re going to work hard. For every mistake, you’ll write the correct answer ten times!”

When it came to disciplining the children, Xia Yan and Lin You had long since agreed that they must stand united. Neither of them was allowed to take the children’s side.

“Auntie…”

“Xiaozhuo, do you think your aunt can persuade your father and mother?”

Lin Ling laughed inwardly. She truly admired this sister-in-law of hers, who was younger than her by a year. Lin Hongzhuo had never exactly been a well-behaved child. He was not quite a little demon who wreaked havoc everywhere, but he certainly had never been easy to control. Yet somehow, this sister-in-law had him completely wrapped around her finger.

After dinner, the two sisters-in-law spent some time whispering together in the kitchen.

“Sister-in-law, Mom said you and my brother aren’t planning to have another child?”

Xia Yan set down the dishcloth. “For now, at least. Your brother thinks that three children are enough for our family.”

“What do you think?”

Lin Ling felt sorry for her nieces and nephew, but her sister-in-law was still young. Not having a child of her own would be unfair to her.

“Me? I don’t want one for the time being either.”

Xia Yan glanced at the children playing noisily in the sitting room.

“It’s up to you both. I shouldn’t say too much. I only wanted to say that I don’t think any of the three children would mind having another little brother or sister.”

“Mm. We’ll talk about it another time.”

Night settled over the station, leaving everything quiet save for the occasional bark of a dog.

Curled up in Lin You’s arms, Xia Yan slept soundly, wrapped in a deep sense of security.

Bang, bang, bang!

A frantic knock at the door jolted them both awake.

Lin You put on his overcoat. “Go back to sleep. It’s probably something from the army.”

Wrapped in the quilt with only her head exposed, Xia Yan blinked sleepily. “Come back soon.”

“All right.”

Lin You hurried into the courtyard. When he opened the door, he found Li Guoxiang standing outside.

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“Battalion Commander!”

“What happened?”

“The young female intellectual named Zhuang Lili has arrived at regimental headquarters. She seems to have suffered some kind of shock and is insisting on seeing you and Sister-in-law.”

Li Guoxiang explained what had happened after Zhuang Lili arrived at headquarters.

“All right. Wait for me. I’ll be there shortly.”

Lin You immediately turned and went back inside.

Seeing him return so quickly, Xia Yan asked curiously, “What is it?”

“Zhuang Lili has come to headquarters. She’s demanding to see both of us.”

“Zhuang Lili? She went to headquarters by herself? What about Huang Qiang?”

As she spoke, Xia Yan got up and began putting on her clothes.

Lin You shook his head. “Li Guoxiang didn’t say. They probably still haven’t found him.”

The moment they stepped out of the room, Lin Ling emerged sleepily from hers.

“Brother, Sister-in-law, where are you two going in the middle of the night?”

“We’re going to headquarters. We don’t know when we’ll be back. If we’re not home by morning, prepare breakfast for the children.”

After giving Lin Ling her instructions, Xia Yan picked up her scarf and wrapped herself tightly in it before leaving with Lin You.

Lin Ling let out a sleepy “Oh.” “Those two are rushing off in the middle of the night. They really are husband and wife.”

“Auntie…”

“Nuan Nuan, you’re awake? Auntie is here. The sun hasn’t even come up yet, so let’s go back to sleep.”

Lin Ling pulled her clothes tighter around herself, hurried back into bed, and soothed Nuan Nuan until she fell asleep again.

Meanwhile, when Zhuang Lili woke, she found her clothes in disarray and Huang Qiang gone. The pain in her lower body made her realize what had happened.

She hated him. She wanted nothing more than to tear the flesh from Huang Qiang’s bones. After hastily straightening her clothes, she searched the mountain for him like a madwoman.

But how could she find Huang Qiang on that pitch-black mountain?

She sat there helplessly for a long time, realizing how laughable she was. Huang Qiang had actually used her. Then, in the middle of the night, she saw the lights glowing at the station and made up her mind.

By the time she reached regimental headquarters, she was utterly exhausted. The moment she saw the soldier on duty, she said, “I want to see Lin You and Xia Yan! Bring them here at once!”