Chapter 173: Embrace
Yue Yihan didn’t quite catch what Xie Changning said. His eyes were fixed on her hand as it patted his.
The moment Xie Changning’s hand landed on the back of his, it was as if fireworks had exploded in his mind.
He stared intently at the hand in front of him. It was only two shades fairer than his own and not particularly soft or delicate. He parted his lips, wanting to speak, but his throat felt as if it were stuffed with cotton.
His mind was filled with only one thought—’My wife touched me!’
’My wife touched me!’
✿✿ヽ(°▽°)ノ✿
Then, Xie Changning saw Yue Yihan abruptly look up at her, his expression incredibly excited. "Honey, don’t you worry! I’ll be good and wait for you to come back!"
He was so worked up and his voice was so loud that everyone around them instinctively turned to look.
A faint blush crept onto Xie Changning’s cheeks against her will.
She shot Yue Yihan an exasperated look. "What are you doing? There are so many people here! Don’t make a scene!"
"I... I was just so excited."
’It was the first time his wife had ever initiated contact. How could he not be excited!’
’If circumstances permitted, he would’ve run a lap around the training grounds!’
Looking at the somewhat dumbstruck Yue Yihan, it slowly dawned on Xie Changning why he was so worked up.
It was because she had just patted his hand.
Xie Changning was speechless. ’How pathetic. So embarrassing!’
’Can I just disappear right now?’
Xie Changning sighed and tried to pull her hand back, but Yue Yihan quickly grabbed it before she could. A blush crept up to his ears. "Honey, I... I’ll walk you back."
He stammered as he spoke.
Stifled chuckles could be heard from nearby, and Xie Changning’s face flushed in response. She tugged hard, but her hand wouldn’t budge.
She didn’t try again.
She was quite strong; if she really got into a tug-of-war with Yue Yihan, it was hard to say who would be stronger. It was just that with so many people around, making a scene would turn them into a laughingstock.
And so, under the watchful eyes of the kitchen squad, Xie Changning let Yue Yihan lead her out of the mess hall by the hand.
Once the two had left, the kitchen squad leader leaned against the doorway and sighed. "Ah, to be young..."
"Squad Leader, isn’t it a bit inappropriate for them to be walking out holding hands like that?"
"Old Yue’s wife is about to go abroad. Just let him hold her hand for a little while."
"First time I’ve ever seen Old Yue so pathetic."
Meanwhile, the subjects of the kitchen squad’s teasing, Xie Changning and Yue Yihan, arrived hand-in-hand at He Liuzhang’s office.
Seeing how late it was, Xie Changning frowned. "Hasn’t Uncle He finished work yet?"
"Things have been tense lately, so Uncle He still has matters to attend to."
"Oh."
Despite being married for over a year, holding hands now felt as awkward as it would for a young couple just starting to date.
Every attempt at conversation ended in an awkward silence.
When they reached He Liuzhang’s office, they both let go of each other’s hands by unspoken agreement.
KNOCK KNOCK—
"Come in."
The two pushed the door open and entered. He Liuzhang looked up and saw them.
"What brings you two here?" he asked, putting down the file in his hands and closing it.
Xie Changning, seemingly oblivious to his action, followed Yue Yihan into He Liuzhang’s office.
"I’m here to request a car," Yue Yihan said. "None of the other leaders’ cars are available, only yours. I want to drive my wife back. The base is too far from the guest house, and I’d worry otherwise."
’I have to take her back myself.’
He Liuzhang glanced at Yue Yihan, then tossed him the car keys. "Go on, get out of here! The sight of you is annoying!"
"That’s fine, as long as *I’m* not annoyed by the sight of you."
Yue Yihan left with a cheeky grin, car keys in hand.
After they went downstairs, Yue Yihan pulled the car around and drove Xie Changning to the nearby guest house.
"Are you leaving tomorrow?"
"Something up?"
"Yes. The people from Beijing have arrived. We were originally scheduled to meet the day after tomorrow, but since you’re here today... maybe we can see them tomorrow?"
"Okay."
Yue Yihan walked Xie Changning to her room.
Just as Xie Changning was about to close the door, a sudden impulse seized Yue Yihan. "Wait a minute!"
Xie Changning gave him a questioning look.
After a long moment of silence, Yue Yihan finally asked Xie Changning, "Can I... hug you?"
At his words, Xie Changning’s gaze met his. They looked at each other for a long moment before she took a step forward, rose onto her tiptoes, and wrapped her arms around his waist.
She gave Yue Yihan the hug he had wanted for so long.
As Xie Changning’s arms wrapped around his waist, Yue Yihan’s mind went completely blank for what felt like two full minutes.
After a long moment, he finally came to his senses and hugged her back.
He was too excited to know what to say, so he just held her tightly, as if the embrace alone could convey everything he was feeling.
Just as Yue Yihan was wishing the hug could last forever, Xie Changning patted his shoulder.
"Alright, it’s almost time for your curfew. You should hurry back."
"...I don’t have a curfew."
’I just can’t sleep off-base!’
The thought made Yue Yihan miserable. His wife was right here, yet he had to go back to the base to sleep.
’My life is so tragic!’
As Yue Yihan left, he looked completely dejected, like a wilted flower.
Watching him leave, Xie Changning let out a small laugh before closing the door.
The moment Yue Yihan got into the car, the dejected look on his face vanished, instantly replaced by a huge grin.
’Hahaha! My wife didn’t just touch me today, she hugged me!’
’Yue Yihan, your lucky day has finally arrived!’
In the car, Yue Yihan kept psyching himself up, throwing excited punches into the air.
After a long while, he finally drove away.
Only after the car was gone did two figures, who had been hiding nearby, dare to poke their heads out. They patted their chests in lingering fear. "Do psychos get to drive cars now?"
"Hush, let’s just get out of here. If he comes back, he might just beat us up again."
-
Xie Changning slept especially well that night. By the time she woke up, it was already six-thirty in the morning. Usually, she would already be at her desk in the office, handling work, but today, she was just waking up.
After washing up, Xie Changning was about to head downstairs when she saw Yue Yihan waiting for her. "You haven’t eaten yet, have you? I brought your favorite fried dough sticks and soy milk."
Xie Changning sat down across from Yue Yihan and they had breakfast.
"Shouldn’t we go buy some gifts first?" Xie Changning asked, looking at Yue Yihan.
’Now that it’s confirmed he’s their son, don’t juniors need to prepare gifts when meeting their elders?’
At her words, Yue Yihan shook his head.
"We can talk about that when we actually go to Beijing to visit them. There’s no rush." ’He didn’t even know what these people were like; he wasn’t going to let his wife waste money on them.’
That was what he said, but when Xie Changning got into the car, she saw four gift boxes sitting on the back seat.
Xie Changning’s gaze fell upon Yue Yihan—