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

Some items were damaged on the way, so she picked out the good ones and put some in the refrigerator. Since the refrigerator couldn't hold them all, she had to put them in a cool little room. She couldn't put them in the kitchen because the temperature was too high and they wouldn't last long.

They brought over 300 jin of grain, but not much vegetables, as they were too heavy to carry. Besides, their son's yard is so big, he probably already grows some vegetables, so they didn't bring much.

It took the group quite a while to pack up all the supplies they had brought. The three of them had brought a total of five large sacks and baskets. The Miao cousin had kept one sack for his own family, and the rest they brought over.

After tidying up, Miao Cuiying and Mr. Lu were about to go to the hospital to see the children, while Grandpa and Grandma Xu stayed at home to look after the two older children.

When Miao Cuiying and her group arrived at the hospital, Miao's uncle was also there, and the whole ward was very lively.

When Miao Cuiying and Mr. Lu saw the three little children, they were overjoyed. The older children all had sons and daughters, and the two younger ones had been admitted to university. Their lives were complete.

Qiao Wanqing ignored them. The child was there, and someone was watching over him. She was only responsible for eating, sleeping, and resting. Most of the time she was resting with her eyes closed, and she would fall asleep when she was tired.

Everyone spoke softly in the ward so as not to disturb Qiao Wanqing's rest. Qiao Wanqing stayed in the hospital for ten days before being discharged.

Back at the family compound, there were already quite a few people waiting. They had heard that the Lu family had given birth to triplets. Good heavens, they had thought it was twins before, but it turned out to be three. What incredible luck!

So, when Qiao Wanqing returned home, she was once again surrounded by onlookers. Fortunately, no one was watching her; they were all focused on the child. She left the child to Lu Mingzhou and her in-laws to deal with, and Qi Ya helped her upstairs.

The three babies shocked the family compound. Not only did people like Wu Yuxiu, who were on good terms with her, come to see what was going on, but even Sun Xiaoqin, who was her nemesis, came to watch the spectacle.

Qiao Wanqing hadn't seen Sun Xiaoqin for a long time, and when Sun Xiaoqin came to see her, she rolled her eyes.

Sun Xiaoqin retorted angrily, "What kind of look is that? I came to see you out of kindness, and you roll your eyes at me?"

Qiao Wanqing: "You're here to see the child, right? Or do you have some juicy gossip to tell me?"

Sun Xiaoqin immediately laughed, "Oh, you really understand me. No wonder you were the one who fell for the same man as me back then."

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

I was so angry I wanted to punch her!

Sun Xiaoqin said quietly, "The news of your triplets has spread throughout the compound. In all these years, we've only had triplets once, last year, but those were three girls. Yours is wonderful, a boy and a girl triplets! All the aunties and grandmas are so envious, saying you're so lucky!"

Qiao Wanqing thought to herself, the military hospital had delivered two sets of triplets before, and there was only one in the family compound. It seemed that the other triplets were not from their family compound.

"Having children is all about luck. Where does so much good fortune come from? I've even heard of someone giving birth to triplets of boys! Giving birth to one is hard enough, but carrying three at once is practically unbearable. Look at those who praise me for being lucky, most of them are mothers-in-law, other people's daughters. They don't care about their daughters-in-law, they all wish their daughters-in-law could have as many children as possible."

Sun Xiaoqin glanced at Qiao Wanqing's face. "You look great. Is your mother-in-law treating you badly? They don't seem to live here permanently, do they? By the way..."

Sun Xiaoqin seemed to suddenly remember something, "Your mother-in-law has retired, right? Now that you have three babies, plus the two older ones, is your mother-in-law going to come and help you take care of the children?"

Her tone was excited, clearly showing her great anticipation.

Qiao Wanqing rolled her eyes, knowing that this guy wanted to see her make a fool of herself and see her family in chaos. "I'm sorry to disappoint you, my mother-in-law is going back to her hometown."

"Oh, is that so!" Sun Xiaoqin was very disappointed. "How could your mother-in-law go back to her hometown? She's so old, and she doesn't need to work anymore. Her son has had so many children, how could she not come to take care of them at all? Oh, she's so heartless, she doesn't care about her grandson at all."

Qiao Wanqing was speechless. "You'd better get lost. I don't want to talk to you."

Sun Xiaoqin laughed heartily, "I'm not going to leave, what can you do to me? You think you're still the same person you used to be, all energetic and lively? You can't beat me now."

Qiao Wanqing did not speak.

Sun Xiaoqin whispered, "I saw Zhou Hong. When you just got back, she was watching you from around the corner not far away. I saw it clearly from my second-floor window. Her face was contorted with jealousy. She's probably dying of jealousy."

Qiao Wanqing paused. "You really saw her?"

The Gu family lived in the area behind her house. If Zhou Hong came over, Sun Xiaoqin could indeed see her from the back window of the Sun family's house.

Sun Xiaoqin laughed and said, "Of course I saw it, why would I lie to you?"

"You could see her contorted expression from that far away? You have amazing eyesight!"

Sun Xiaoqin: "..."

"Don't be ungrateful. I'm kindly reminding you, but you don't take it seriously. If something happens, don't blame me for not warning you. She's the daughter-in-law of the Gu family. If she wants to deal with you, she'll still have a chance."

Qiao Wanqing knew this, of course, but she wouldn't tell Sun Xiaoqin. So she laughed nonchalantly, "Come on, don't try to sow discord between us. Gu Xun and Lu Mingzhou are comrades who fought together on the battlefield. They have a very good relationship. My family and the Gu family even have some connections. The Gu family won't do anything to us."

Sun Xiaoqin's expression was somewhat meaningful. "Really? I noticed that her gaze towards you wasn't very pleasant."

Qiao Wanqing said indifferently, "I don't have much interaction with her, so what's wrong with that? We'll just live our own lives."

Seeing that she didn't believe her, Sun Xiaoqin didn't say anything more and stopped the topic.

Sun Xiaoqin said a few words and then left. Qiao Wanqing watched her retreating figure with a deep look in her eyes.

She didn't tell Sun Xiaoqin the truth, nor did she need to. But don't think Sun Xiaoqin is stupid. She managed to live well in the patriarchal Sun family. In the end, she wasn't sent by her brother to a marriage alliance to consolidate his power. Instead, she married a promising young man. Although Commander Sun hasn't been promoted in recent years, he's kept his position and will probably retire steadily. Whether Commander Sun stays in the army until retirement or transfers to another post, at least Sun Xiaoqin has settled down. Her man has a bright future ahead of him.

At first, she was aggressive and seemed like a mean and stupid person, but later her attitude towards her changed a lot. At first, Qiao Wanqing thought that Sun Xiaoqin wasn't that bad and was just angry at the time. But after seeing how she treated the families of ordinary officers, Qiao Wanqing realized that she was wrong.

This girl is opportunistic; Sun Xiaoqin treats ordinary people the same way she always has—still as harsh and domineering as before.

This person is not stupid at all. How did she know that she and Zhou Hong didn't get along?

She only analyzed the Gu family's situation with Lu Mingzhou, but never complained to outsiders about Zhou Hong's hostility towards her.

With a large family and a pregnant woman in her postpartum period, people's enthusiasm for the triplets has not diminished at all, and the family often has guests.

Before the birth, people thought Qiao Wanqing was pregnant with twins. Since Qiao Wanqing deliberately hid, some people could still control themselves. But once the triplets were born, many people couldn't hold back and often came to see the children.

The house is often lively, and even some leaders' families come to visit. When the child is a little older and can go out to enjoy the sun, everyone who sees him on the street will praise him.

The parents-in-law have returned home, but life in the Lu family is still bustling with activity. The chickens and ducks that the parents-in-law brought back are not finished, the old hen is laying eggs, and the rooster is crowing, calling out before dawn every day.

When Qiao Wanqing woke up, she heard the rooster crowing outside and said to Lu Mingzhou, "Let's kill the rooster. There are very few roosters crowing in the family compound. Our area is usually very quiet. If it keeps crowing like this, people will get annoyed after a while."

Lu Mingzhou woke up too. It was still dark outside, and the rooster was crowing loudly. He didn't think much of it. "Lots of families in this yard raise chickens. What's there to be afraid of? Isn't it normal for chickens to crow at night? Which of the regimental commanders' yards in those rows up doesn't raise chickens?"

Yes, there are, but they're a bit further away from their area, so the sound isn't that loud.

"How's your relationship with Deputy Division Commander Lin next door?"

Lu Mingzhou paused. "Are you worried the rooster's crow will disturb them?"

"There's one thing: he's in competition with you. I suspect your relationship isn't that great. Our family's been doing so well lately, and I'm worried it might upset him."

Lu Mingzhou hugged him tightly. "It's okay. Competition is inevitable. This little thing won't affect him. If he really wants to do something, he'll do it regardless of these little things."

Qiao Wanqing sighed, "Do you think I'm getting a little paranoid because of having a baby? I feel like it's been too quiet lately. Aunt Qiu just left like that, and the Gu family hasn't made a move at all. If they really were coming to cause trouble, I'd actually feel relieved. Gu Xun... is your competition fierce lately?"

Lu Mingzhou remained silent for a while, and finally said only one sentence: "Competition is inevitable. Competition has always been fierce in the military."

Qiao Wanqing was a little annoyed. "He's not much older than you. Wasn't he transferred before? He's already a deputy now. How old is he? Does he want to become a full division commander so soon? That's too hasty."

Lu Mingzhou suddenly said, "Chief Jiang is being transferred."

Qiao Wanqing was startled. "Really? When?"

"Soon, by the end of the year, or early next year."

This is not good news for Qiao Wanqing. Chief Jiang has always been somewhat protective of the Xu and Qiao families, and he also greatly admires Lu Mingzhou. With such a powerful backer gone, the next one...

"Do you know who's next?"

"It's not clear yet. I only know that there should be a personnel reshuffle in the near future, and a group of people will most likely be promoted. Gu Xun probably wants to take this opportunity to get promoted again."

Qiao Wanqing took a deep breath. "He's not even forty yet. Isn't that a bit too hasty? It's not easy to be that age in peacetime. There must be competitors in the military, right?"

"Yes, there's Lin Zhengjun next door, Brigade Commander Sun in front, and... me. We're all about the same rank. It just depends on which position we're transferred to, whether it's before the new leader arrives or after Commander Jiang has made the arrangements."

Qiao Wanqing was a little incredulous. "You're here too? How could someone so young be here?"

In the darkness, Lu Mingzhou's expression was not good. "I also think it's unlikely for me, but I can't help it because others think it's possible. I've been in this position for many years. I even went for training before. According to the usual practice, I should be promoted after the training, but I was too young at the time, so I wasn't promoted. Now that I'm getting older and my qualifications are gradually being filled, what's meant to happen will happen. They probably see me as a competitor."

Qiao Wanqing: "..."

Power is truly a magical thing!

Many people you encounter can turn into something neither human nor ghost.

"You're only thirty-two. Even a fool would know that's impossible. Are these people crazy?"

Lu Mingzhou laughed, "You're oversimplifying politics. I might not be able to this time, but what about next time? Young and promising people with similar qualifications will always become rivals. Gu Xun isn't confident he can keep suppressing me. He knows I haven't been promoted because I'm too young. Once I'm older in a few years, what makes him confident he can still suppress me?"

"We'll be rivals sooner or later. If there's an opportunity, I should make my move before I've fully matured. Otherwise, I might not have another chance in the future."

Qiao Wanqing leaned against him, saying with some worry, "The Gu family has a strong foundation. I'm worried they might join forces against you. Be careful at work, don't fall into any traps. You can know a person's face but not their heart. Some people, even if they are friends at first, can't be completely trusted."

Lu Mingzhou certainly knew that without a brain, how could he have gotten to where he is now?

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. We all seem nice on the surface, and we can even cooperate for the sake of the mission, but when it comes to competition, we won't hold back at all. I've gotten used to it over the years, and Gu Xun and I are still good friends!"

Such things happen all the time. It's impossible to completely eliminate them in this industry. Qiao Wanqing couldn't do anything about it, so she could only say, "I will take care of things at home. As for your work, you'll have to rely on yourself."

Lu Mingzhou kissed her forehead. "Don't worry, your man isn't that easy to deal with. I've had it too easy these past few years, and I guess I've upset him."

"You're young, have a smooth marriage, and a son and a daughter. I had the best performance in the previous training, so the higher-ups must have noticed me. Gu Xun's advantages over me are decreasing, so it's normal for his mindset to change. I know what I'm doing, so don't be afraid."

Lu Mingzhou gently coaxed Qiao Wanqing, and she soon fell asleep in his arms.

In the darkness, Lu Mingzhou held the person in his arms, looking out at the starry sky, his heart unmoved.

Comrades are comrades, and opponents are opponents. If he finds an opportunity, he won't hold back.

In the Lin family next door, Lin Zhengjun also woke up. Looking at Wu Yuxiu, who was sleeping soundly beside him, Lin Zhengjun felt a surge of irritation.

"Wake up, wake up..."