“Awake?”
Seeing that Lian Qiguang had moved, Xiahou Shaoxuan put down what he was holding and walked over to sit beside the bed.
“When did you get back?”
Rubbing his eyes, Lian Qiguang’s brain was still struggling to get online.
“Just got back. Were you up playing games again last night?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan grabbed Lian Qiguang, who was squinting sleepily and had somehow picked up a pair of pants and was trying to pull them over his head.
“You played games again, didn’t you?”
“I didn’t play games.”
With both little paws raised, Lian Qiguang obediently let Xiahou Shaoxuan dress him and mumbled softly.
“The computer wasn’t even turned off, and you still say you didn’t play games! You didn’t finish the level again, did you?”
“I didn’t play games.”
Remembering how he had stayed up for most of the night yesterday, listening to all sorts of strange answers and suggestions from people online, Lian Qiguang suddenly felt his face grow a little warm for some reason.
“Then who was my wife thinking about all night instead of sleeping?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan pulled Lian Qiguang into his arms, gently rubbing his chin against the other’s neck as he spoke in a deep voice.
“Thinking about you.”
Lian Qiguang tilted his head up and gave Xiahou Shaoxuan’s chin a hard bite, then pouted.
“You stayed out all night!”
He had tried very hard to remember a particularly bad description.
“Heh…”
Xiahou Shaoxuan laughed softly at Lian Qiguang’s accusation.
“All right, wifey. Get up. I’ll take you to eat.”
He picked Lian Qiguang up from the bed and half-pushed, half-carried him into the bathroom.
“I don’t want to drink a nutrient solution.”
Lian Qiguang broke free of Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand and stuck his head back out.
“Don’t drink it. Get inside.”
He pushed him back in and closed the door.
Returning to the room, Xiahou Shaoxuan looked at the bed Lian Qiguang had thoroughly messed up and resigned himself to tidying it.
Lian Qiguang quickly washed up, put on a loose shirt and a pair of beige sweatpants, then took Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand and left the room.
Xiahou Shaoxuan was the highest-ranking commander of Falling Star. He had his own house on the base, right beside the training grounds.
When they stepped outside, sunlight spilled down and made Lian Qiguang’s eyes sting.
Along the way, the soldiers training nearby secretly glanced at Lian Qiguang, all of them wearing strange expressions as though they wanted to say something but did not dare.
And when they looked at Xiahou Shaoxuan, their eyes contained undisguised hostility, as though they wanted nothing more than to cut him into a thousand pieces.
“Are you really the highest commander?”
Lian Qiguang pointed toward the groups of soldiers on the training grounds who were practically throwing daggers at Xiahou Shaoxuan and looked at him expressionlessly.
“……”
“Good morning, Boss! Good morning, Sister-in-law!”
A squad of soldiers running past stopped beside Lian Qiguang, stood straight, saluted, and shouted energetically.
“Boss!”
Xuan Lang, the squad leader, saluted Xiahou Shaoxuan. He sneaked a glance at Lian Qiguang from the corner of his eye, then looked back at Xiahou Shaoxuan with undisguised contempt.
Xiahou Shaoxuan frowned slightly.
The doubts he had been carrying all the way over finally made him lower his head and look at Lian Qiguang.
Because of his height advantage, he could easily see the other’s soft hair and the two open buttons on his shirt.
Naturally, he could also clearly see the distinct marks covering Lian Qiguang’s jade-like neck, spreading toward his delicate collarbones and continuing downward, looking exceedingly suggestive.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s expression darkened exactly as expected.
“Cough! Boss…”
Xuan Lang rubbed his nose and lowered his voice.
“I know you haven’t seen Sister-in-law for a long time and you’ve missed him, but… isn’t Sister-in-law still underage?”
“……”
“Boss, we’re brothers and I’ll definitely support you, but… you know, being involved with a minor is illegal.”
“……”
“Xuan Lang!”
“Present!”
The icy pressure filling the air made Xuan Lang straighten instantly. He stood at attention, staring straight ahead.
“Double today’s training.”
“What? Why?!”
Xuan Lang’s eyes widened.
“Four times.”
“Boss, this…”
“Six times.”
“……”
“We understand!”
Before Xuan Lang could complain again, the soldiers behind him hurried forward and covered his mouth.
“Boss, don’t worry. We’ll make sure he does it.”
Several of them desperately held down the struggling Xuan Lang while smiling apologetically.
Xiahou Shaoxuan swept them with a cold glance and led Lian Qiguang away.
“I said all of you.”
“……”
Everyone froze.
Boss! This is going to kill us!
“What happened to them?”
Lian Qiguang looked up expressionlessly.
“Don’t worry about them. They’re a bunch of idiots who need discipline.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan bent down, fastened the two loose buttons on Lian Qiguang’s shirt, then took off his own coat and draped it over him.
“It’s stuffy.”
Lian Qiguang frowned uncomfortably and tugged at the collar around his neck.
“Wifey, keep it buttoned. Be good.”
“Why?!”
The tight collar made Lian Qiguang’s tone sharper.
“……Because the restaurant doesn’t allow anyone to eat inside while improperly dressed.”
“……”
Lian Qiguang’s hand froze on his collar.
“Really?”
“Mm.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan lied without the slightest strain.
Taking advantage of his height, he quietly fastened the one remaining open button as well, then calmly led his wife toward the dining hall.
Since it was not mealtime, there were not many people inside the restaurant.
That did not stop Lian Qiguang from attracting plenty of attention.
Xiahou Shaoxuan seated him first, then went to get food for him.
“Eat. Later I’ll take you around the base.”
He pushed the food toward Lian Qiguang, patted his hair, then took out his computer and started dealing with the work he had left unfinished the night before.
“I wasn’t first in my last training session.”
Lian Qiguang quietly spoke while eating.
“Don’t take those things too seriously. They don’t mean much.”
What the academy taught consisted of little more than basic theoretical knowledge.
As a soldier, one had to accumulate real experience through warfare.
Whether you came first or last, when you encountered the enemy, you couldn’t pull out your test paper and say, “Oh, I’m first in the academy. Don’t hit me.”
It was all nonsense.
“But then I can’t graduate early.”
Lian Qiguang lifted his face from his food, cheeks puffed out with a mouthful of rice and vegetables.
He looked remarkably like an indignant little kitten.
“If you really want to graduate early, I can speak to the academy.”
Seeing his little wife was unhappy, Xiahou Shaoxuan raised his head from his work and reached over to pinch Lian Qiguang’s cheek.
“Scientifically speaking, that would be using connections to get special treatment.”
Lian Qiguang dodged his mischievous hand and answered seriously.
“There’s no point having connections if you don’t use them.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan lightly scratched his nose and smiled.
The people secretly watching them almost had their eyes pop out of their sockets.
Looking at Xiahou Shaoxuan’s smiling face, Lian Qiguang tilted his head in confusion.
“Eat.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan withdrew his hand and prepared to return his attention to work.
“You don’t have to stay with me.”
Lian Qiguang suddenly caught Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand and said seriously.
“Would you get angry?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan used his other hand to wipe away a bit of food from Lian Qiguang’s cheek.
“Then I’d go home.”
“That’s a relief. It means I haven’t left you.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan was helpless.
“All right! Eat.”
Seeing that Lian Qiguang was drifting off topic again, Xiahou Shaoxuan darkened his expression and put on a stern face.
“I told you before that I wanted to tell you one of my secrets.”
His delicious food was gone, his fun was gone, and the possessions he had saved up were gone too.
The useless space ability made Lian Qiguang too lazy to enter it, and he could barely even be bothered to think about it.
“What secret?”
“I’ll tell you tonight, when it’s just the two of us.”
“All right. I’ll wait. Now eat.”
Seeing that Xiahou Shaoxuan did not seem particularly interested, Lian Qiguang withdrew his hand, pouted, and continued eating.
Looking at Lian Qiguang’s wooden little face, Xiahou Shaoxuan shook his head, unable to hide his amusement.
After eating, Lian Qiguang followed Xiahou Shaoxuan out of the dining hall and toward the training grounds.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s military uniform hung loosely on Lian Qiguang, making him look like a child who had secretly put on an adult’s clothes.
The sleeves were far too long and kept flapping around, smacking him in the face several times.
But his other hand was being held by Xiahou Shaoxuan, so all he could do was occasionally rub his face against the sleeve.
The sight made the corners of Xiahou Shaoxuan’s mouth twitch upward uncontrollably.
When they reached the training grounds, the thunderous shouts could be heard from far away.
A group of well-trained soldiers were carrying out the same monotonous training they had repeated day after day, year after year.
The arrival of Xiahou Shaoxuan and Lian Qiguang distracted them.
They secretly glanced over and nearly made mistakes several times.
“Boss!”
“Good morning, Boss!”
“Boss…”
The passing soldiers greeted Xiahou Shaoxuan.
But the instant he stepped onto the training grounds, the warmth that had been present on Xiahou Shaoxuan’s face when he was with Lian Qiguang disappeared.
In its place was sternness and coldness.
His hard, resolute features radiated an intimidating authority that made people shudder.
In response to the soldiers’ greetings, Xiahou Shaoxuan returned their salutes with an expressionless face.
At the center of the training field, a group of soldiers crowded together, loudly cheering and shouting encouragement.
The noise was nearly loud enough to tear the entire base apart.
When Xiahou Shaoxuan approached, all of them immediately stopped and stood straight, saluting him.
“Good morning, Boss!”
“Boss!”
Yuan Ling and Zhong Mu, who had been surrounded by the others, walked over.
Both were wearing black tank tops, sweat pouring down their faces, with various bruises and injuries visible on their bodies.
“Who lost?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan asked coldly.
“Reporting, Boss. The two of us were evenly matched and failed to determine a winner.”
Zhong Mu stood straight and answered loudly.
Nearby, Yuan Ling covered his face, crying internally.
It’s over! This idiot!
“Do you think you can beat him?”
“Reporting! Yes!!”
His voice was full of confidence, flames blazing in his eyes as he looked at Yuan Ling like he was declaring war.
“Good spirit. Keep it.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan nodded.
“After training, do five thousand push-ups. Keep up the effort.”
Whoosh!
The blazing flames in Zhong Mu’s eyes instantly went out, a wisp of white smoke practically rising from him.
He wilted on the spot.
“And you? Can you beat him?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan looked toward Yuan Ling.
Yuan Ling shuddered.
“Boss… should I say yes or should I say no?”
“……”
“That is… I mean, which answer will let me do fewer push-ups than Zhong Mu?”
“If you don’t even know your own abilities, then after training, do ten thousand push-ups.”
“……”
Yuan Ling.
Boss! You’re doing this on purpose to get revenge, aren’t you?!
“Yes!”
His voice was utterly dejected.
“What are you still standing around for?! Train!”
Xiahou Shaoxuan swept his cold gaze around.
“Yes!!”
With one unified roar, everyone scattered.
“You’re even scarier than me.”
Lian Qiguang spoke expressionlessly.
When he had trained new recruits in the past, he had been the classic type who preferred action over words.
Those arrogant, unruly brats who had thought themselves invincible were all beaten into obedience by him.
Especially at the beginning, practically every day someone had to carry a group of bruised and battered recruits out of the training grounds.
After getting beaten by him enough times, they eventually became accustomed to it.
No one dared to make smart remarks in front of him anymore.
“Afraid?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan rubbed Lian Qiguang’s hair, the chill disappearing from his eyes.
“Not afraid!”
I’ve seen plenty of people scarier than you.
Looking at Lian Qiguang’s expressionless face and raised chin, radiating an unmistakably “tsundere” attitude, Xiahou Shaoxuan felt as though all the ice around him was about to melt.
The young major general, who only moments ago had been imposing enough to shake the heavens and earth, instantly transformed into warm spring.
The soldiers secretly watching them were so shocked that their hands slipped.
Thump!
One after another, they fell over, creating complete chaos throughout the training grounds.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s expression immediately darkened again.
“Shaoxuan.”
Lian Qiguang broke free of Xiahou Shaoxuan’s hand and stepped back two paces.
He loosened his limbs, rolled the overly long sleeves up to his elbows, then assumed an attacking stance and stared imposingÂly at Xiahou Shaoxuan.
“Let’s have a match.”
Crack!
The sound of jaws dropping out of place seemed to echo all around them.
Looking at Lian Qiguang, whose fighting spirit was blazing, Xiahou Shaoxuan could only sigh helplessly.
He stepped forward and pressed a hand on Lian Qiguang’s head.
“Are you challenging me, wifey?”
“Mm!”
Lian Qiguang nodded firmly.
“You’re very strong. I want to fight you.”
“No.”
“……”
Lian Qiguang stared at him.
“At least not now.”
Seeing that Lian Qiguang was about to argue again, Xiahou Shaoxuan quickly cut him off.
He could not guarantee that if his wife tried to “act cute” again, he would still be able to remain firm.
“Why not?!”
“……”
Could he really say that he simply did not want other people seeing all those marks on his wife’s body?
“You’ve been traveling on a spaceship for several days. Your body hasn’t recovered yet. Wait a few more days until you’ve rested properly, and then I’ll spar with you.”
“You’re not lying to me?”
“When have I ever lied to you?”
He seemed to be doing it constantly.
“…Fine!”
After thinking for a moment, Lian Qiguang nodded expressionlessly.
“I’ll wait for you.”
“Let’s go. I’ll take you to see some other places.”
Seeing Lian Qiguang nod, Xiahou Shaoxuan was simultaneously helpless at how easily his wife could be fooled and a little guilty over the trust placed in him.
But that tiny bit of guilt was soon wiped away cleanly.
“The book says to train soldiers strictly and command them strictly.”
Lian Qiguang expressionlessly glanced at the soldiers getting back up from the ground.
“Your soldiers are really weak.”
“……”
Xiahou Shaoxuan.
“Everyone! Increase today’s training tenfold!!!”