Perhaps it was because Qi Taiguo had returned to her side, but Cheng Su slept very soundly that night, warm and cozy. In the morning, when she woke up, he was still holding her, which made her smile and she leaned over to give him a kiss.
"Awake? Want to sleep a bit more?" Qi Taiguo slowly came to consciousness with that uniquely rough voice of the morning, incredibly sexy and magnetic.
Cheng Su couldnât resist snuggling up closer to him.
"Whatâs with you, acting like a little puppy?" Qi Taiguo laughed.
Cheng Su stiffened and pinched him hard, snorted, and sat up to glare at him.
Qi Taiguo reached out to her, "Are you annoyed? Come here, let me smooth your fur!"
Cheng Su let out a yelp and lunged forward, flipping his blanket to scratch him. Qi Taiguo dodged and with a quick grab pulled her onto himself.
After a sweet and tender tussle, Cheng Su said, "I should get up. I have a lot to do today!"
"Mhm!"
Seeing him with his eyes closed, Cheng Su said, "You lie down for a while longer."
The weather outside was very cold. Cheng Su shivered as she washed her face, then scooped some rice to cook porridge in the kitchen.
Squeak!
The bathroom door in the kitchen opened and Hualing came out humming a tune. Startled to see Cheng Su, she went to wash her hands under the faucet and said, "Morning, cooking breakfast?"
"Yes, good morning." Cheng Su rinsed the rice, added water, and turned on the gas stove.
"Is Commander Qi okay?" Hualingâs voice came from behind her again.
Cheng Su was taken aback and turned to ask curiously, "Whatâs wrong with Old Qi?"
Hualing feigned surprise, "Donât you know? I heard Commander Qi didnât follow orders during the mission and left the team on his own, which led to the mission not going well, and even caused the death of a soldier. I hear the organization wants him to write a self-criticism report and have a talk with him. Who knows if theyâll demote him or not!"
Cheng Su frowned, wondering why he hadnât mentioned anything.
"Hualing!" Chen Shouwang stood at the kitchen door, calling her name with a hint of displeasure, "Are you cooking breakfast or not?"
"Coming!" Hualing immediately went over, and seeing the dazed look on Cheng Suâs face, couldnât help feeling a bit of schadenfreude, delighted inside. She thought, now itâs my familyâs turn; Old Chen is definitely going to get a medal this time.
Cheng Su returned to her room. The sound of running water came from the bathroom, so she waited outside. She had noticed how tired he appeared last night and although she knew the mission hadnât gone perfectly, she hadnât realized there was an issue like this.
Why hadnât he told her?
Qi Taiguo came out and saw Cheng Su pondering at the door. He couldnât help asking, "What are you standing here for?"
Cheng Su pulled him to sit down on the sofa and said, "Hualing just told me, during this mission, you didnât obey orders and left the team on your own? Whatâs that about? The organization is going to talk to you? Are they blaming you?"
Qi Taiguo gave a start, "Itâs not a big deal, and they might come to understand the situation."
"But what does leaving the team on your own mean?"
"Thatâs a state secret, and itâs not very convenient for me to tell you, but such a thing did happen. Later, I filed a report, so donât worry about it."
Cheng Su became anxious, "How can I not worry? Tell me, this mission, itâs not going to be blamed on you, right? Could you really be demoted because of it?"
Qi Taiguo patted her shoulder and said, "Itâs not as serious as you think. Rest assured, even if I get demoted this time, Iâll make you a Generalâs Wife someday!"
Cheng Su clicked her tongue, "I donât care about that. Iâm just afraid youâll be upset about it. Even if you leave the military, I wonât let you lack food or drink. Iâm just worried you wonât take it well."
Qi Taiguo felt a deep warmth inside and embraced her tightly, saying, "Thatâs right, even if Iâm no longer a soldier, I still have you!"