Wen Ci was about to refuse, but seeing Xiao Chuan swallowing hard and noticing Xu Wen’s sincere invitation, she felt it would be rude to decline.
So, she agreed.
“Thank you…” Wen Ci paused and asked, “How should I address you?”
“I’m Xu Wen, the captain of the Second Regiment of the Fourth Division of the Beijing Military Base!”
Wen Ci nodded slightly. “Captain Xu.”
·
The military canteen was at its busiest time, with each regiment having its designated seating area. Xu Wen led Wen Ci and Xiao Chuan to the Second Regiment’s section.
Xiao Chuan’s eyes sparkled as he looked at the sweet and sour spare ribs in his bowl.
“Captain Xu, is this the unattainable white moonlight you’ve been hiding in your necklace?”
Everyone in the Second Regiment knew that Xu Wen kept a photo of a woman in his necklace. It was said to be a rural educated youth who had married the son of a local village chief.
Now, seeing him bring a stunningly beautiful woman with a little boy, they couldn’t help but suspect she was the unattainable love of his life.
“Don’t talk nonsense!” Xu Wen immediately tensed up, glancing at Wen Ci and speaking earnestly, “Miss Jiang, please don’t misunderstand. They just like to joke around. Don’t take it seriously.”
Wen Ci’s eyes curved into a smile. “I understand.”
The military environment was usually quite serious, and it was only during breaks that everyone would joke around and tease each other.
Xu Wen looked at his comrades in the Second Regiment, raised an eyebrow, and whispered, “This is Minister Jiang’s daughter. Don’t make inappropriate jokes.”
Hearing this, everyone immediately straightened up with respect.
Minister Jiang’s daughter? That meant she was Old Commander Huo’s granddaughter-in-law! And also the younger sister of Jiang Chen from the neighboring division.
The soldier who had just made the joke slapped his own mouth and apologized, “Sorry, Miss Jiang. I was talking nonsense.”
“It’s fine.”
Xiao Chuan had already sat down, holding his chopsticks. He licked his lips and asked, “Sister, can I start eating? I’m a bit hungry.”
“Go ahead.”
Wen Ci sat beside Xiao Chuan and gave him all the sweet and sour spare ribs from her bowl, smiling warmly. “Xiao Chuan, don’t eat too fast. Chew slowly.”
Perhaps Xiao Chuan had suffered a lot when he was kidnapped.
He tended to wolf down his food.
Wen Ci wanted to help him break this habit.
Xiao Chuan was about to stuff a few ribs into his mouth when he heard the beautiful sister’s words. He pouted, “Okay, I’ll eat slowly.”
“Should I go get another serving of spare ribs?”
“No need,” Wen Ci refused.
The special dishes in the military canteen were limited to one serving per person. Asking Xu Wen to get another serving would break the canteen’s rules.
Besides, she wasn’t particularly fond of sweet and sour spare ribs.
·
On the other side.
Jiang Chen noticed it was lunchtime and turned to Jiang Ye, asking calmly, “Xiao Ye, what would you like to eat for lunch?”
The residential canteen allowed the chefs to prepare individual dishes.
“I’ve made plans with a friend. I’ll be heading out soon,” Jiang Ye replied.
She also needed to deal with her biological parents. Having lived a second life, she wasn’t going to be as soft as before, allowing her biological parents to manipulate her.
“Then I’ll head to the military canteen.”
Jiang Ye nodded sweetly. “Mm-hmm.”
As soon as Jiang Chen left, she also left the military base.
Just as she reached the school area, a middle-aged couple in tattered clothes stopped her, looking fierce. “Are you deliberately not giving us money? It’s already the middle of the month!”
Jiang Ye’s expression was icy cold.
Every month, she gave them over a hundred yuan. When they came to ask for money, they deliberately dressed in rags to gain her sympathy.
But times had changed.
“What’s wrong, cat got your tongue?”
“No money.”
“Impossible.” Wen Shang looked his daughter up and down. Her clothes were clearly new. His eyes reddened instantly, and he said pitifully, “Daughter, your dad and mom have no skills or jobs. We can only rely on you. We still have a younger brother to support. Can’t you ask the Jiang family for some money?”
Jiang Ye laughed. “I’ve already been kicked out of the Jiang family!”
“What happened?”
Jiang Ye sneered, looking at her biological parents, and said slowly, “What else? The Jiang family prefers their biological daughter.”
After saying this, she paused deliberately. “How about I return to the countryside? You can take care of me. After all, I’ve given you so much money over the years. You must have saved up quite a bit.”
From childhood to now, she had given the Jiang family at least five or six thousand yuan.
“We don’t have money either!” Wen’s mother replied fiercely.
The money was being saved for Yao Zu’s future marriage.
Seeing her attitude, Jiang Ye shrugged, put her hands in her pockets, and suddenly had an idea. A smile spread across her face. “Wen Ci has money. She married the youngest and most outstanding officer in the Northwest Military Region.”
“An officer? Wasn’t he just a soldier before?”
Jiang Ye’s mouth twitched.
In the end, it was all because of Su Guilan’s misinformation.
If she had known earlier that Huo Jingyuan was a regiment commander in the Northwest Military Region, she wouldn’t have missed out on this marriage.
“Anyway, go find Wen Ci. She has money. As for me, I’m currently staying at a classmate’s place.”
Wen’s father, who had been on the verge of tears earlier, instantly returned to normal upon hearing his daughter say she had no money. He said disdainfully, “Since the Jiang family doesn’t want you anymore, you should go out and find a job. Send some money home every month. When your brother gets into university, you’ll have a good life!”
Family planning policies were barely enforced over a decade ago.
So, the Wen family had another son, a chubby boy named Wen Yaozu.
Jiang Ye neither refused nor agreed. Her priority was to stall them so they would go to the Beijing Military Base to ask Wen Ci for money.
Wen’s father’s eyes shifted as he thought about it. Asking Wen Ci for money seemed feasible. Over the years, Wen Ci had done all the housework, but they had provided her with food and shelter.
Moreover, Wen Ci had a soft personality.
Playing the victim might just get them some money from her.
·
Wen Ci had just finished her meal and was preparing to leave with Xiao Chuan.
Jiang Chen, having gotten his food, walked into the canteen. His comrades around him were winking and nudging him. “Old Jiang, you’ve been holding out on us!”
Jiang Chen was puzzled.
“Your stunningly beautiful sister came to the military canteen.”
“We’ve always heard you talk about how beautiful your sister is. Seeing her today, she’s exactly as you described.”
“By the way, wasn’t your sister supposed to be mysterious? Why did she show up right after getting married?”
Hearing the chatter around him, Jiang Chen frowned, looking around to spot Wen Ci. “Where is she sitting?”
“Second Regiment, Fourth Division.”
Jiang Chen was from the First Regiment of the First Division, which was separated from the Fourth Division’s seating area by half the canteen. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “How did you recognize her from so far away?”
“Xu Jinge told us.”
Xu Jinge chuckled. “Didn’t we run into your sister at the residential canteen last time? As soon as she walked into the canteen today, I recognized her!”
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