Chapter 20 Lu Zhanting, I'll go with you to brave the dragon's den and the tiger's lair!

Chapter 20 Lu Zhanting, I'll go with you to brave the dragon's den and the tiger's lair!

The room was deathly silent.

Outside the window, the last ray of daylight was swallowed by darkness, and night reigned supreme over the entire military compound with absolute authority.

The letter from the capital lay there on the floor.

The paper is thin, yet it carries immense weight.

Su Wanqing felt completely cold.

The chill exploded from her heart, crawling along her veins to her limbs, pinning her to the spot.

She married a hero, a mountain that could shelter her from the wind and rain.

Only then did she realize that the mountain itself was on the verge of collapse.

The "home" he spoke of was an abyss a thousand times more complex and terrifying than Zhao Family Village or Li Juan's maternal home.

And she, Su Wanqing, along with this marriage, is the trouble he must "deal with" before returning to the abyss.

A huge rift opened between the two of them in silence.

Su Wanqing looked at Lu Zhanting.

He sat on the sofa, his back taut like a fully drawn bow, like a wild beast trapped in an invisible cage.

He didn't look at her; his gaze was unfocused, landing on the empty wall.

The comforting scent of sunshine and soap that always made her feel at ease was gone, replaced by a cold, aloof silence.

She opened her mouth, but her throat felt like it was blocked with cotton, and she couldn't utter a single word.

Comfort? Promise?

In the face of absolute power that can determine an officer's future, any words are light and meaningless.

Just as this deathly silence seemed to be solidifying into eternity, Lu Zhanting made a move.

He slowly bent down and picked up the letter.

His knuckles were a little stiff, but he still carefully folded the letter along the old creases and put it back into the envelope with the seal of the character "Lu" on it.

He neither hid it nor threw it away.

He placed the letter in the most conspicuous spot on the coffee table, like an undefendable bomb.

Then, he stood up and walked step by step to Su Wanqing.

His tall figure completely enveloped her, even stealing away the faint starlight filtering in from the window.

Su Wanqing subconsciously took a step back, her heart pounding like a drum.

Is it an apology, or... a farewell?

Lu Zhanting didn't say anything.

He reached out and, with his calloused, rough hand, touched her cheek with an almost timid tentative touch.

My fingertips are icy cold.

"Are you hungry?" he finally spoke, his voice hoarse as if it had been ground by sand and gravel. "I'll go cook."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards the kitchen, his steps unsteady, like a defeated soldier who had just crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood.

Su Wanqing stood frozen in place, watching his desolate and weary figure, tears streaming down her face without warning.

There was no explanation, no discussion, not a single word about the future.

With just this most ordinary sentence, he temporarily pulled the two of them back from the nightmare called "the capital".

He was saying it in his own way: even if the sky falls, you still have to eat first.

That night, no one mentioned the letter again.

They ate, washed, and lay in the same bed as usual.

The distance between the two was greater than ever before, like being separated by an icy river.

They stood back to back, in the darkness, listening to each other's deliberately slowed breathing and their own wildly beating hearts.

Su Wanqing knew that Lu Zhanting was protecting her with silence.

Or rather, to protect the fragile, easily shattered happiness between them.

He shouldered all the pressure and choices alone.

And she seems to be able to do nothing but wait for the verdict.

The next day, Su Wanqing was awakened by the sound of chopping wood in the courtyard.

She opened her eyes; the spot beside her was already cold, indicating that he had been up for a long time.

He put on his coat and walked into the courtyard. In the dim morning light, Lu Zhanting, shirtless, was mechanically swinging an axe.

Sweat beaded on his forehead, sliding down his resolute face and into his solid chest.

The firewood beside him had already piled up into a small mountain half a person high, enough to burn for two winters.

He was venting.

To vent that suppressed and bewildered feeling that has nowhere to go.

Su Wanqing felt as if her heart was being squeezed tightly by a hand.

She didn't make a sound to disturb them, and silently went back to the kitchen to start a fire and boil water.

The atmosphere at breakfast remained as somber as iron.

Lu Zhanting buried his head in his porridge, while Su Wanqing tried to speak several times, but swallowed her words back.

Suddenly, Lu Zhanting put down his bowl.

"It'll get cold in a few days." He looked up, his gaze falling on the poplar tree outside the window that was beginning to turn yellow. "We haven't done the winter storage at home yet. This afternoon I'm going to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy cotton and cloth, and also bring back a few hundred kilograms of coal."

Su Wanqing was stunned.

He didn't mention the capital, the Lu family, or that damned engagement.

He was saying that it's getting cold and we should prepare for winter.

It was as if the letter from yesterday was just a nightmare she was having.

Su Wanqing looked at him.

His eyes were bloodshot, his chin was covered in dark stubble, and he looked exhausted.

But the way he looked at her was the same as always, carrying an unquestionable arrangement and a hint of persistence that she could understand.

Those eyes seemed to say: Don't be afraid, I'm here.

Su Wanqing's eyes instantly welled up with tears. She nodded vigorously, her voice thick with a nasal tone: "Okay."

From that day on, a wonderful tacit understanding flowed between the two of them.

No one mentioned the letter, no one mentioned that heavy future.

Like two birds sensing the coming winter, they seized the last moments to frantically build a warm nest for themselves.

In the afternoon, Lu Zhanting borrowed a cart from somewhere and took Su Wanqing to town.

He took out all the money and tickets he had and stuffed them into her hands.

"This cotton fabric is thick; I'll make you a new cotton-padded jacket."

"The curtains need to be replaced; buy two windproof ones."

"Weigh out another ten catties of cotton and make the quilt thick."

He was like any ordinary husband, accompanying his wife on winter shopping trips and always fulfilling her requests.

Looking at his profile as he carefully compared the colors of the fabrics, Su Wanqing momentarily believed that they could live a peaceful and stable life in the northern frontier.

On the way back, the carts were piled up like a small mountain.

Lu Zhanting pulled the cart in front, his arms, with their prominent muscles and bulging veins, showing through.

Su Wanqing pushed from behind.

The setting sun cast their shadows long, long.

"I'll do it, you sit down and rest." Lu Zhanting turned around and saw that her cheeks were flushed.

"No need, I still have the strength." Su Wanqing shook her head and smiled at him.

Looking at his back soaked with sweat, Su Wanqing's heart suddenly calmed down.

This is not escapism.

This is building a wall.

He was using every piece of winter clothing he bought by hand and every piece of coal he hauled back by hand to reinforce the walls of his little home.

He was telling her, and himself: This home was built brick by brick by us, and no one can easily tear it down.

After returning from the supply and marketing cooperative, the two became even busier.

Lu Zhanting carried hundreds of kilograms of coal briquettes into the storage room, stacking them like a military parade formation.

He checked all the gaps in the doors and windows of the house and sealed them tightly with old strips of cloth mixed with yellow mud.

He even climbed onto the roof and hammered several loose tiles back into place.

Su Wanqing then stepped onto the old-fashioned sewing machine and began sewing winter clothes for the two of them.

She soaked all the newly bought cotton fabric in the spring water, making the clothes more durable and warmer.

The rhythmic clatter of the sewing machine became the most comforting background noise in the house.

She made him the thickest cotton overcoat, with fine stitches and filled with soft cotton. She also used the remaining fabric to make two pairs of thick-soled cotton shoes.

She also made herself a bright red cotton-padded jacket, the most fashionable style at the time with a cinched waist.

Lu Zhanting watched her twirl in front of the mirror in her new coat, like a burning flame. He leaned against the door frame, and a genuine smile finally appeared in his tired eyes.

Besides these, Su Wan-qing also used the space to begin preparing her real trump card for that unknown future.

Courage alone is not enough.

The Lu family was a behemoth beyond her comprehension. She needed the power to overturn the table.

She used the spiritual spring water and precious medicinal herbs from the space to brew many ointments.

"Shengji Ointment" can quickly stop bleeding and promote wound healing.

The "Detoxification Pill" can cure all poisons.

There is also the "Peiyuan Dan" which can quickly replenish physical strength.

She sorted these items into small porcelain bottles and hid them in a hidden compartment of her suitcase.

She also packed up some of the gold bars and silver ingots she had previously collected from the space warehouse.

In this world where power reigns supreme, money can sometimes be a weapon that buys lives.

The days slipped by in this atmosphere of apparent calm but underlying turmoil.

Winter in northern Xinjiang can arrive suddenly.

Overnight, the temperature plummeted, and heavy snow fell everywhere.

The fire in the stove inside burned brightly, effectively keeping the cold air out of the window.

Su Wanqing, wearing her red cotton-padded jacket, sat by the stove, knitting a sweater in her hands.

Lu Zhanting sat on a small stool opposite her, carefully sharpening his military dagger with a whetstone.

"Hiss... hiss..."

The whetstone rubs against the blade, producing a regular but dangerous sound.

The flickering firelight illuminated the quiet profiles of the two people.

Outside the window, the wind and snow howled, but inside it was warm and cozy.

This tranquility was stolen.

Su Wanqing calculated in her mind that there were only a few days left until the deadline on the letter.

The sword hanging overhead could fall at any moment.

"What are you thinking about?" Lu Zhanting suddenly asked.

He had sharpened the dagger and was slowly wiping the blade with a soft cloth, a flash of cold light passing by.

"It's nothing." Su Wanqing came back to her senses and smiled at him. "I was thinking that once this sweater is finished, it will definitely be very warm for you to wear."

Lu Zhanting looked at her without saying a word.

He put down the dagger, walked to her side, sat down close to her, and then stretched out his strong arm to pull her into his embrace.

"Wanqing." He buried his face in her hair, took a deep breath, and said in a voice filled with undisguised exhaustion and determination, "I'm sorry."

Su Wanqing's hands, which were knitting a sweater, stopped.

They've arrived.

The final moment has arrived.

"Are you leaving?" she asked softly, her voice so calm it surprised even herself.

"Hmm." Lu Zhanting responded sullenly, his arms around her waist suddenly tightening. "Tomorrow."

Su Wanqing did not cry, nor did she ask, "Then what should we do?"

She simply rested her head gently on his shoulder, absorbing the reassuring warmth and strength emanating from him.

"Lu Zhanting".

She looked up and stared directly into his eyes.

Those eyes, which were always clear and bright, now burned with two flames, filled with an unwavering determination.

“You said you are my husband, and your business is my business.”

"Whether the capital is a dragon's den or a tiger's lair, I'll go with you."

She paused, then spoke each word with conviction.

"We are husband and wife. As long as we are together, there is nothing to be afraid of."

Lu Zhanting looked at her, at her eyes that shone brighter than all the stars in the sky in the firelight, and the fortress in his heart, built with despair and ice, collapsed in that instant.

The depression, confusion, anger, and helplessness of the past few days were all melted away by a surge of intense power in her words.

He had prepared for the worst.

If he couldn't have both, he'd rather take off his military uniform and elope with her to a place where no one could find them.

But she said she wasn't afraid.

She said she would face it with him.

He suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace, with such force that it seemed he wanted to meld her into his very bones and never separate them again.

"good."

He whispered a single word in her ear.

"Let's go together."

The wind and snow outside the window seemed to be getting heavier.

The two people in the room no longer felt the previous hesitation and unease.

The storm from the capital will eventually arrive.

But this time, he wasn't alone.

Their hands were clasped tightly together, and the warmth of their palms gave each other boundless courage.

Volume One, Complete.