The younger sister mistakenly identified her brother when visiting relatives and was kissed by the c

Qiao Xinxin suddenly stood up, patted the dust off her pants, her voice was somewhat low, even her usually soft tone sounded muffled:

"I have to work at the bathhouse tonight, and it's not good to be late."

Seeing this, a complex emotion flashed in Lu Baizhou's dark eyes, but he said nothing. He then stood up and patted the wrinkles on his military overcoat.

"Okay, I'll do as you say, let's go back."

On the way back, the atmosphere was much more somber than on the way there.

Qiao Xinxin walked ahead absentmindedly, her mind a jumble of thoughts, filled with her absurd "first night".

Lu Baizhou, pushing his bicycle, always lagged behind her by half a step, silently walking to her right rear. He didn't make a sound to disturb her, but simply used his tall frame to shield her from the cold wind blowing from the street corner, always maintaining a safe and absolutely respectful distance.

By the time the two returned to the entrance of the military family compound, the last rays of sunset had completely disappeared from the sky.

Qiao Xinxin stopped at the gate of the military family compound.

She turned around, looked at the tall and handsome Lu Baizhou beside her, opened her mouth, wanting to say something to him. Perhaps she could thank him for taking her to the charming "Chunheju" restaurant today, or perhaps she could apologize for her sudden low mood in the park earlier.

But after those words rolled around on her tongue several times, she felt that it wouldn't be appropriate to say anything at this moment.

Lu Baizhou pushed his bicycle, watching her quietly. In the darkness, his eyes were strikingly dark and bright, as if they could encompass all her unspoken words.

Seeing her hesitate and remain silent, Lu Baizhou spoke first, his voice low and gentle:

"Let's go inside. It's windy outside, don't stay out too long or you'll catch a cold."

Hearing his considerate words, Qiao Xinxin felt a warmth in her heart and nodded gently.

"Well... Brother Lu, please ride your bike carefully on your way back."

"Okay, I'll leave once I see you go in," Lu Baizhou replied.

Qiao Xinxin smiled and turned to walk into the gate of the family compound.

She hadn't walked far when she couldn't resist turning back for a quick glance.

Under the dim streetlamp at the gate, Lu Baizhou was still standing there, pushing his old bicycle. His shadow stretched long, making him look like a silent and reliable mountain, watching her go.

When she turned around, Lu Baizhou nodded slightly at her.

Qiao Xinxin's face flushed, and she quickly looked away, then ran upstairs.

"Squeak—"

When I opened the door, the living room lights were on.

Mother Bai was sitting on the old sofa, diligently sewing shoe soles under the dim light of the slightly yellowed chandelier overhead. The thick cotton thread made a "swoosh-swoosh" sound as it passed through the thick soles.

Seeing Qiao Xinxin push the door open and enter, Bai's mother stopped what she was doing, looked up at her, and her eyes held a hint of concern and inquiry:

"Going out again today? Who invited you out this time?"

"A friend."

Qiao Xinxin felt a little guilty and gave a vague reply.

As she changed into her slippers, she avoided her mother's all-seeing gaze and quickly walked into her small room, closing the door behind her.

With a "click," the door locked.

Qiao Xinxin didn't turn on the light immediately, but stood slowly against the door panel for a while.

The room was quiet, with only the occasional barking of a dog from the courtyard outside the window, and the slightly distorted Peking Opera singing coming from a radio in the far distance, adding to the stillness of the night.

She sighed wearily and sat down on the edge of the bed.

In the conservative 1980s, people placed great importance on a woman's chastity.

Even in relatively open-minded and reasonable families in the city, if a girl is rumored to have lost her virginity before marriage, the gossip and slander can ruin her life.

If Lu Baizhou knew about that... how would he view her?

He's a soldier, a young man who became a regimental commander, a rising star in the military. Such an upright and rigid person, having led troops for so many years, where discipline and conduct are his most valued qualities—could he accept this?

Qiao Xinxin dared not gamble.

As a modern person, she herself may not care about that membrane, but she cannot care whether Lu Baizhou cares or not.

You can't exactly explain to others that you've actually traveled from another time and found yourself in that guesthouse room the moment you opened your eyes, can you? Saying something so absurd would probably get you labeled a madman and sent to a mental hospital.

"So annoying..."

Qiao Xinxin scratched her hair in frustration, then leaned back and fell into the soft bedding.

Or... maybe we should just not agree to either of them?

Once the thought popped into her head, it grew wildly in her heart like weeds in spring.

Thinking about it carefully, being single is actually quite good. She's not the kind of old-fashioned woman who has to rely on a man to survive.

She now owns a small restaurant, has money, possesses modern knowledge, and even has a magical space that others don't have. Coupled with her loving family—her father, mother, and Bai Zhengyuan—she lives a stable and fulfilling life.

She won't lose anything if she doesn't date.

Thinking about it this way, Qiao Xinxin's inner turmoil and depression suddenly eased a lot.

Yeah! It's not like you have to be in a relationship!

Being single is fine; at least I don't have to live in constant fear.

But the thought of completely rejecting Lu Baizhou and his restrained yet gentle thoughtfulness caused her heart to ache inexplicably.

She kept going around in circles on this question, her mind a complete mess, and in the end, she couldn't figure it out. She could only drift off to sleep in a daze.

……

The next evening, Qiao Xinxin went to work at the military bathhouse as usual.

The weather has warmed up considerably these past few days. Although it's still chilly in the mornings and evenings, the daytime temperature isn't as freezing as it was a few days ago.

The number of people queuing to take a bath at the bathhouse entrance was less than during the coldest part of winter, but it was still quite lively.

Qiao Xinxin sat in the cramped management office, head down, tidying up the scattered bath tickets on the table with a red rubber band.

Hearing steady footsteps approaching the window, she didn't even look up, but as usual, said in her soft, sweet voice:

"Get your bath tickets ready, line up, one by one."

The footsteps stopped at the window.

Then, a bath ticket, clean and without a single wrinkle, was gently placed on the cement windowsill.

Qiao Xinxin habitually reached for the ticket, but her eyes fell on the hand that handed her the ticket first.

The hand had distinct knuckles, with faint blue veins bulging on the back of the hand, and thin calluses on the knuckles, clearly the result of holding a gun for a long time.