Chapter 172: Meeting
Xie Changning slept at Xie Changyi’s home until evening before she left.
After leaving, she decided it would be best to tell Yue Yihan about her upcoming trip in person. So, she had Xie Changyi rent a car to take her to Yue Yihan’s military base.
Xie Changning was beautiful, and her arrival immediately drew a great deal of attention.
The soldiers guarding the gate were especially quick to notice. They recognized her at once as Yue Yihan’s wife.
How were they so sure?
It was because Commander Yue’s wife was so beautiful that you could never forget her face after seeing it just once!
"Ma’am, you’re here! I’ll call the commander’s office right away and get ahold of Commander Yue." The soldier at the gate was incredibly enthusiastic, even bringing Xie Changning a chair and a cup of hot water.
His enthusiasm left Xie Changning feeling a bit overwhelmed by the attention.
She accepted the hot water and thanked him. "There’s no rush. This was a last-minute visit, so I didn’t let him know I was coming. If he’s busy, please don’t bother him on my account..."
"Ma’am, you’re here to see him. Commander Yue will definitely make time!" ’Even if he doesn’t have any, he’ll find some.’
’Don’t you see all the new recruits gathering around our main gate?’
’They’re all here to get a look at our beautiful ma’am!’
"Commander Yue is so lucky. Ma’am is gorgeous."
"You said it. All the hardships the Commander went through must have been so he could meet her, right? Not only is she beautiful, she’s incredible! I heard she earned over a billion for our Lin Province!"
Hearing this, Xie Changning found it impossible to remain unfazed.
Her eyes flew open in shock as she stared in disbelief at the young man who had just spoken.
’You can’t just say things like that!’
’My gross profit was nine hundred million! How did that turn into over a billion?’
"Whoa, whoa, she looked at me! She must’ve heard me talking about her accomplishments and thinks I’m some kind of young business genius! Didn’t you see the admiration in her eyes?"
Xie Changning: "..." ’Kid, I’m speechless. Utterly speechless!’
As the young men chattered on, Xie Changning averted her gaze and did her best to tune out the noise around her, right up until Yue Yihan came sprinting into view.
Yes, sprinting.
It was so rare for Xie Changning to visit him at the base on her own initiative. How could he not be thrilled that she had come to see him today?
But when he reached the gate, he found a crowd of men huddled around his wife, whispering and stealing glances at her.
Yue Yihan’s face darkened with jealousy.
"Ahem!"
Yue Yihan’s soft cough instantly drew everyone’s attention.
Seeing that they were blocking Yue Yihan’s path, the crowd scattered like mice before a cat, instinctively backing away and trying to disappear.
Yue Yihan snorted. "Weren’t you all having a good time? Why stop now?"
"Hahaha, I just remembered, I’ve got training to do! See you later, Commander!"
"I... I just remembered my roommate hasn’t washed his socks yet. I’m going to go make sure he gets them clean!"
"My bunkmate keeps farting in the dorm! I’m going to report him to the squad leader!"
The excuses for leaving were wildly creative, but one thing was certain: they were all terrified that Yue Yihan would assign them extra training.
That even went for the men who weren’t under his direct command.
When Xie Changning saw the crowd disperse, she knew Yue Yihan had arrived. She stood, placed her mug on the small table, and stepped out of the guard shack.
"Yue Yihan."
Yue Yihan, who had been glowering at the retreating backs of his soldiers, immediately spun around at the sound of Xie Changning’s voice.
His expression transformed instantly, like a big guard dog that had been scaring off an intruder, only to turn and see its owner. A brilliant smile bloomed on his face as if he were wagging his tail. He grinned widely. "Wifey!"
All traces of his previous glower had vanished.
One soldier who was walking away too slowly heard Yue Yihan’s voice and turned back. He gaped, wide-eyed, at the sight of his commander fawning over Xie Changning as he followed her. The soldier felt like his eyeballs were about to pop out of his head.
’What did I just see?!’
’I saw Commander Yue trailing after her like a little puppy!’
’A woman who can earn over two billion for Lin Province is on another level! She’s incredible!’
Xie Changning had no idea that in the span of a mere ten minutes, the rumor had already inflated from "over a billion" to "over two billion."
The two of them walked out of the military base. Xie Changning looked at Yue Yihan, who had clearly rushed over to see her. "I... I haven’t eaten yet. Have you?"
"I—I’ll take you to the mess hall!"
"Okay."
So, the two of them turned around and went back to the base’s mess hall.
The mess hall was quiet at this hour, with only a few people inside. Their arrival was quite conspicuous.
Even the kitchen soldier, who had been about to call it a night, saw them and quickly offered to heat up some dishes.
’He was afraid that if they left, he’d miss out on all the good gossip!’
’Discipline could be bent just a little, for a good cause!’
Xie Changning and Yue Yihan sat facing each other. She glanced around the quiet hall and lowered her voice. "Is dinnertime over? We could have gone out to eat, you know..."
"It’s fine. It just ended a little while ago. There’s still plenty of food."
’Where would we find a restaurant around the base, anyway?’
’We’d have to go a long way, and he couldn’t bear to let his wife stay hungry for that long. He’d just have to ask her to make do with a meal on base.’
In reality, though, the army cooks were all very skilled.
And Xie Changning happened to quite like their food.
Xie Changning felt too awkward to tell Yue Yihan she’d be going abroad for a long time before the food arrived. It was only after they had eaten that she finally spoke up quietly, "I came here because there’s something I need to tell you."
"What is it?"
Yue Yihan was in a fantastic mood just from seeing Xie Changning. It never crossed his mind that she was here to tell him she was leaving the country.
Xie Changning explained that she had to go abroad.
"There’s a competition overseas, and I’ve been invited to participate. It’s a very important event that represents China’s technological standing on the international stage. I... I can’t turn it down."
Yue Yihan blinked, trying hard to suppress the wave of disappointment that washed over him.
He had thought she came to see him because she wanted to grow closer to him.
’It turns out she was just visiting before she left.’
In that moment, to Xie Changning, Yue Yihan looked like a kicked puppy—dejected, pitiable, and whimpering silently.
Xie Changning said, "...I felt I should tell you beforehand, so you could be prepared."
"When are you leaving?"
Xie Changning thought for a moment. "Sometime next month."
Yue Yihan was silent for a long time before he finally looked up at Xie Changning. "I support your decision."
"Thank you." Xie Changning could see how disappointed he was.
To be honest, seeing his disappointment made her feel uncomfortable as well.
They had been married for some time now, and though they hadn’t spent much of it together, the occasional meetings and phone calls had helped Xie Changning grow accustomed to the fact that she was a married woman.
Her feelings for Yue Yihan had also started to become something special.
She reached out and gently patted his hand where it rested on the table. "I’ll be back as soon as I can."