1970s: My childhood sweetheart ran away, and I turned around and married the wildest chief.

This was Lu Mingzhou's first time entering Qiao Wanqing's room, and he felt that the whole room smelled wonderful.

The house has a row of wardrobes, wooden floors, a large balcony, and a separate bathroom.

The curtains are double-layered: one layer of white gauze and the other of a light blue, thick fabric. The bedding is a four-piece set with small floral patterns; the inside of the sheets and duvet cover is light blue, while the outside is white with a small floral pattern.

There's a desk, a dressing table, a bedside lamp, and a rocking chair on the balcony.

This is a privilege reserved for high-ranking officers in the military.

There was a small sofa in the room. Qiao Wanqing asked Lu Mingzhou to sit on the sofa and poured him a glass of water.

"Have some water to refresh yourself. Do you want to take a shower? Or do you want to sleep?"

After drinking so much, all he probably wants to do is sleep. If he doesn't want to move, just wipe him down with some water. Anyway, it'll be dawn in a few hours.

The key issue is that he doesn't know if he can take a shower in his current state; it would be bad if he lost his balance and fell.

Lu Mingzhou smiled and drank a glass of water. "It's okay. Although I drank quite a bit, I won't get completely drunk when I'm out. I need to stay sober at least a little."

That's the kind of vigilance a soldier has—always staying alert.

"Go to sleep, I... can I use your bathroom to take a shower?"

Qiao Wanqing raised an eyebrow, a smile playing on her lips. "We've already got the marriage certificate, and you've come in with me. Why are you asking me this?"

She turned around, grabbed a new towel, and handed him the pajamas she had just made that afternoon. "Go wash up. These pajamas are freshly made for you. I washed them this afternoon and they just dried. Try them on and see if they fit."

Lu Mingzhou's eyes lit up. She made clothes for him?

I happily accepted it and went to the bathroom.

"You can use mine for now."

Lu Mingzhou glanced at the slippers in the bathroom. They were pink. She was so fair-skinned; they would look great on her.

There was shower gel, shampoo, and some of her skincare products in the bathroom.

In the past, Lu Mingzhou could finish taking a shower in one or two minutes, but today, it took him a full half hour.

I scrubbed every inch of my body with shower gel, even between my toes.

He took out nail clippers from his pocket and carefully trimmed his fingernails and toenails, not even missing a single hangnail. Only after making sure there wasn't a single flaw on his body did he feel relieved enough to return to his bedroom.

Qiao Wanqing sat on the bed, feeling a little nervous.

On their first night of marriage, they should have consummated their marriage, but it's already midnight and he's still drunk. Will they still do it?

When Lu Mingzhou came out, he saw her sitting on the bed, looking somewhat nervous. As a former top reconnaissance soldier, he could naturally tell she was nervous. He found it somewhat amusing; actually, he was nervous too—no, he was excited!

Lu Mingzhou hesitated for a second or two before saying, "You should go to sleep. I've washed the clothes, and I'm going to sleep soon too."

After saying that, he went back to the bathroom and washed the clothes he had just changed out of.

Qiao Wanqing, who was in the bedroom, was startled. She got out of bed and looked at him, peering through the bathroom door. He was very tall, and even standing next to her, who was just over 1.7 meters tall, he still looked very tall.

The pajamas he was wearing were handmade by her; her eye for detail was quite accurate, and they fit him perfectly.

Qiao Wanqing watched for a while, then came up behind him and hugged him.

Lu Mingzhou paused, wrung out the washed clothes and put them aside, wiped his hands clean and turned around.

"What's wrong?"

Qiao Wanqing raised her head, her big eyes sparkling, "I'm afraid you'll regret it later."

I won't give myself a chance to regret it.

Lu Mingzhou's eyes were full of confidence, but he didn't let Qiao Wanqing see it.

He reached out and stroked Qiao Wanqing's hair, his voice gentle, "Didn't I tell you? This is my own choice. No matter what happens in the future, I won't blame you. I'm a grown man, do you think I don't know what I'm doing?"

Qiao Wanqing looked up at him.

Lu Mingzhou didn't say much about this issue to her, since there would be a result soon and there was no need to dwell on it.

He said, "More than that, I'm curious about when you started liking me this much?"

Qiao Wanqing was taken aback. Looking into his smiling eyes, her face flushed. "I didn't."

He leaned close to her ear, his voice full of ambiguity, "You came to me in the middle of the night asking me to marry you, and you even dared to kiss me. Doesn't that mean you like me? What did you say back then? You know how I feel about you? What do you feel about me? Tell me, okay?"

Qiao Wanqing closed her eyes. That bastard, he's really getting cocky!

"You kissed me too, so we're even!"

A smile crept into Lu Mingzhou's eyes. "But I don't want to settle things with you."

He pulled her into a tight embrace and pressed his lips against hers.

He kissed her last night with a hint of anger in his eyes. At that time, he didn't really have many romantic thoughts. But now it's different. They're married, and she's his wife!

The wedding night is always romantic and tender, with the bride holding her beloved and unwilling to let go.

Lu Mingzhou reached out and pulled her up, draped her legs over his waist, and carried her to the bedroom, placing her on the bed before pressing himself down on top of her.

Those dark, deep eyes were looking at me so closely, their breath hot.

"Have you been terrified lately?"

Qiao Wanqing's eyes reddened, and tears instantly welled up. She pursed her lips, looking aggrieved, and said, "Mmm!"

She clutched Lu Mingzhou's collar, saying nervously, "Don't blame me, okay? I didn't want to drag you into this either, but..."

"I'm scared. So many people are watching me. Even if I go to my uncle, I can't guarantee they'll let me go. I don't know if my parents really can't be saved, or if my family will really marry me off, or find someone in the capital to marry me off as soon as possible. I don't know if I can just watch my parents get into trouble and run to the capital to get married and escape. I... I don't want to leave you!"

Lu Mingzhou's breath caught in his throat, his heart aching terribly. He lowered his head and kissed her, soothingly whispering in her ear, "Don't be afraid, I'll protect you!"

He kissed her tenderly yet passionately, his protective instincts reaching their peak. Holding the person in his arms, Lu Mingzhou was even glad he had acted decisively. Fortunately, he had married her. In fact, even if the Qiao family had insisted on protecting her, they would most likely have taken her to the capital and arranged her marriage immediately. In that case, they would have completely missed their chance.

Qiao Wanqing reached out and hugged his neck, then opened her eyes and peeked at him.

His once sharp features were now so close, so gentle. He must not blame her anymore, right?

Although she deliberately dragged him into this mess, it was true that she liked him. What she said wasn't wrong either; she wasn't sure that either the Qiao family or the Xu family would insist on protecting her if their families were truly in crisis.