It's time to give out the rings, Admiral!

Incidentally, before leaving the academy and returning to the naval base, someone was once again called "mentor" by his ship girl, which made the sullen Jun Quan twist his ear in displeasure.

"Jiajia, have you peeled the garlic cloves yet? Hurry up, we'll need them later."

"Okay, sister... Waaah, why do I have to peel garlic? The spicy smell is making my eyes so uncomfortable."

"Stop being stubborn. Look at Xiaofei, she's almost finished peeling a whole bowl of food, and you haven't even touched your little plate yet."

"Marani, hand me the raw meat from the fridge. I think there aren't enough slices. Maybe you should cut some more."

"Okay! Sister Ninghai, I understand!"

Holding the leave slip approved by his mentor, Junquan, the young man returned to his garrison with Zhaohe. Although it was only a little past eleven o'clock, there wasn't a soul in sight in the vast garrison. Staggering to the door of his dormitory, where he hadn't returned all night, the young man finally heard the sweet voices of his girls coming from inside.

There was no other way. After all, he was going to Tianshui with his wife and the others that afternoon. This would be the last lunch he would have at the naval base before leaving. He couldn't take everyone with him, since such a large naval base needed someone to take care of it. So, he decided to have lunch in his dormitory to chat with everyone before leaving and ease the girls' sadness at parting.

"Congratulations, little Fei!"

"Hehe, thank you, Glorious Sister."

"Missouri, how's the repair work on the naval base going? Will it be able to be restored to its previous size before the Admiral brings Xiaorou back?"

"I doubt it. Wisconsin and I have been pushing them very hard, but the project seems to have run into some trouble recently, and the progress is very slow. I'm afraid the repair work won't be completed on schedule before the admiral returns."

The boy didn't rush into the house. Through the half-open door, he cast his gaze into his familiar living room. On the double sofa directly opposite the door, Jiajia and her wife were huddled together preparing garlic cloves for lunch. Perhaps because she had never peeled garlic before but was being forced by her sister, the girl's expression didn't exactly suggest she was happy.

On the remaining sofa and a half, Phil, Lasty, Yixian, and Missouri were preparing other ingredients while chatting idly. Radiant held Phil's hand, seemingly discussing the ring the girl had just received; while others appeared to be talking about something, placing the finished pastries on the coffee table for the children to eat, Yixian and Missouri's eyes kept stealing glances at the sparkling diamond ring on the girl's finger beside them.

The unicorn originally wanted to sit next to her Radiant sister, but seeing Ying Rui, who always helped her, and Princeton, her instructor, washing vegetables that hadn't even been processed yet, she obediently ran over to help wash the vegetables.

Near the bedroom window, Washington and Wisconsin sat in chairs, looking at some documents and exchanging ideas. But as they sipped the coffee Belfast had prepared for them while he busied himself setting the table, Wisconsin suddenly seemed to have swallowed something foul. She frowned, rested her chin on her hands on the table, and looked at the girls sitting on the sofa, muttering something like, "What a blunder, Little Fei beat me to it."

Marani, who had just joined the port, was helping Ning Hai and Ping Hai, who were making soup. Atlanta and Juno couldn't cook and couldn't help much either. With nothing to do, they stayed by the bookshelf and observed their admiral's collection, such as the 1/700 scale ship models and the swimsuit figure of Lexington, which the admiral treasured.

Portland, being rather quiet by nature, helped Changchun prepare some desserts for Haiqi to enjoy after dinner. Xue'er lay on Changchun's lap, licking her snow-white fur, occasionally meowing at Portland, who wanted to pet her but was too shy to do so. Perhaps noticing someone slacking off outside the door, she lightly jumped off Changchun's lap, darted out of the room, and rubbed her fluffy tail against the person peeking in from outside.

Looking at the harmonious scene before him, the young man nodded. It seemed that the ring he had given Fei'er that morning had not caused any impact on the garrison. He breathed a sigh of relief, but before he could pick up Xue'er, who was very clingy to him, and stand up, the mischievous child behind him who had been watching him and peeping had already made an impatient sound.

"Admiral, what are you looking at? Why aren't you going inside? I'm starving!"

She could already smell the rich aroma of food coming from the Admiral's room. She had only eaten a little bit of the egg rolls made by Sister Yixian in the morning, and then she had spent so much time attending classes at the academy with the Admiral. Now she was practically starving.

"Ahem... It's nothing, I just wanted to see if everyone was here."

"Really? Then why did the admiral peek into the room? Couldn't he just go in?"

The boy subconsciously shrank his neck and turned to look at Zhao He, who seemed impatient and confused. However, before he could explain to Zhao He in his embarrassment, he felt many oppressive gazes directed at him as soon as Xue'er pushed open the door.

Volume 1, Chapter 341: Come on, let's have some lemons!

"!!!"

Like a lamb being stared at by a hungry wolf, with his back to the living room, the boy felt as if countless oppressive gazes were staring at his back. He almost got goosebumps from fright and trembled slightly when he saw Zhao He looking at him with a puzzled expression. He immediately turned around and looked at his girls in the living room who were looking at him with happiness, smiles, trust, or affection after hearing his words.

But when the boy came to his senses, his gaze unconsciously swept over each of the ship girls who were looking at him so gently. The feeling that he had just felt, as if he were being targeted by a natural enemy and alarm bells were ringing, vanished in the blink of an eye, just like the snow in Si Xue, as if it had never existed.

"Admiral, you're back~ What's up? Why were you peeking in at the door?"

"Admiral, thank you for your hard work!"

Lexington, standing next to Gaja, smiled gently at the boy. Along with the radiance beside him, her gentle gaze made the boy's heart flutter unconsciously. He thought that the sense of crisis he had just felt was just an illusion. After all, how could anyone in his own naval base want to harm him? He then led the somewhat apologetic Zhaohe, who had realized that he seemed to have ruined something for the admiral, into the living room.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to see if you were all here. Isn't it almost lunchtime?"

"Thank you, Belfast."

"You're welcome, Master. It's just my duty."

As soon as he entered the living room, Belfast came over and skillfully helped the boy take off the admiral's uniform he had been wearing all morning. The boy casually made up an explanation for why he had been standing at the door and not coming in. He couldn't very well say that he was actually observing everyone's reaction after he gave Phil the ring.

"I see... So how's the vacation situation? Junquan shouldn't refuse your vacation, right?"

"Of course it's settled. My mentor, Junquan, is very easy to talk to. She initially said she would give me six months of leave, which is equivalent to a whole semester, but that was too long, so I only asked for two months."

The young man chuckled awkwardly, then looked away, a little embarrassed, at his wife's gentle, teasing gaze that seemed to understand everything. Zhao He, standing beside him, had already snuggled into Yi Xian's arms on the other side of the sofa. Watching Yi Xian stroke Zhao He's forehead like an older sister, he heard Yi Xian's voice, which sounded strangely soft for some reason.

"I hope Zhaohe didn't cause you any trouble, Admiral? I'm sorry to have made you take her to the academy so early in the morning. Zhaohe is too naughty. I spent a lot of effort getting everyone's bedding out to air it this morning, but I didn't expect her to always make things worse."

Lying on Yi Xian's long, slender legs, Zhao He's previously playful face suddenly stiffened. Thinking of how she had been scolded that morning for always making things worse for Yi Xian, she subconsciously looked pitifully at her admiral, hoping he would say a few kind words to her.

"No, Zhao and she are very well-behaved. With her around, I have a lot more fun."

The boy nodded. Although she was one of the most mischievous kids in the garrison, and had given him a lot of trouble early in the morning, he still had to pamper his own daughter, and besides, she hadn't done it on purpose. This earned him a shy smile from Zhao He. But before the boy could even find a place to sit down, and with his long, full legs encased in thin stockings and high heels, Yi Xian's soft voice rang out once again.

"Yes, it seems the Admiral really dotes on the little girls in the naval base. He even gave Xiaofei a ring this morning. The Admiral has gained another member as a bride. Today is truly a day to celebrate."

Yi Xian's soft voice echoed in the living room, where many people were sitting. The sounds of chopping and washing vegetables that had been going on suddenly fell silent. Su Yuchen, who was already a little worried about what others might think, felt the girls' gazes on her again after hearing Yi Xian's words, especially those from Yi Xian, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Feeling a chill down her spine, Su Yuchen subconsciously looked at the lovely girl sitting next to Guanghui, who had been snuggling in her arms and calling her "Daddy" just two hours ago.

The girl's delicate face was slightly flushed, but when she saw her "father" looking at her, her watery eyes blinked shyly but did not look away. Instead, she met the boy's gaze with a look of deep affection and shyness.

She gently bit her lip, the shimmering light in her eyes so captivating and alluring, as if possessing a magic that was both endearing and irresistible. Perhaps it was the suspension bridge effect of nervousness, but his heart was racing. Looking at the girl, the boy opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word.

The beautiful girl gazed shyly and tenderly at her beloved boy, and it was as if an electric current had struck her, making her heart flutter. But this beautiful scene, when seen by the ship girls other than the few who were already settled in their marriages, made their already sour mouths feel even more sour, like they had eaten lemons.

What?! Getting the admiral's ring is one thing, but why show it off like this in front of us? This is just too much!

So what if you beat us to the punch last night? Do you think we'd envy that big, dazzling diamond ring on your hand? Do you think we'd envy the Admiral kneeling down and gently placing the wedding ring on your finger, Little Fei? Do you think we'd care that you can lie on that soft bed, blissfully enjoying the Admiral's intrusion? Do you think we'd envy how you look now, so mature and happy, like a flower finally blooming?

To be honest, we're absolutely envious! Not just envious, we're incredibly jealous! So jealous, it's like we've eaten a whole lemon tree's worth of lemons! We could do that too, right? So why is it that while everyone else is still putting in their best effort, you, Xiaofei, have already made your move? Does this really prove the saying, "First come, first served"?

Enough said, I'm so jealous.

The air in the living room seemed to be filled with a strong lemon scent. Seeing that everyone was staring at the sparkling diamond ring on the girl's finger and their eyes were getting hot, Lexington coughed lightly at the right moment.

"Ahem... Yes, that's right. Little Fei's ring was the first ring the Admiral gave out after he returned. He's already married Little Fei after only a few days. The Admiral is such a womanizer. There are still so many vow rings left. Even if you gave one to everyone here, you probably wouldn't be able to distribute them all, would you?"

Volume 1, Chapter 342: It's not scarcity that's worrisome, but inequality.

Lexington's gentle voice echoed in the living room, but looking at their admiral who was like a child, someone they never had to worry about, the girls who were initially envious of the deep gaze between the boy and girl suddenly calmed down.

Missouri continued munching on her half-eaten apple, while Washington and Wisconsin continued to discuss various reports from their respective naval bases. Yi Xian smiled and took Fei'er's hand, whispering something in the girl's ear that made Fei'er's already rosy cheeks blush even more deeply than the clouds on the horizon. Meanwhile, Chongqing, wearing a beautiful blue cheongsam, gracefully walked to the boy's side with a small plate in hand, asking him if he wanted to try the rose cake that Sister Yi Xian had just made.

"Admiral, you must be tired from studying at the academy. Would you like to try some of the rose cakes that Sister Yixian just made? They're delicious and appetizing."

"Ah... thank you, Chongqing. Mmm, delicious!"

Meeting Chongqing's amber eyes, which held a gentle smile, the boy, flustered by Lexington's words, took a beautifully presented white pastry from the plate she handed him, and gently tasted it. Hmm, very sweet. No wonder it was a pastry made by Yixian herself.

He looked up at Lexington, who was gazing tenderly at him, then glanced at Jiajia, who had stood up, tossed aside the small dish of garlic cloves in her hand, and pounced on him. He then quietly pouted at his wife.

He clearly had no intention of spending the night at Fei'er's last night! It wasn't you and Fei'er who conspired to trap him here without him even realizing it. Of course, he couldn't say that. If he said something like that, he'd gotten the better deal and was now acting innocent, and his wife probably wouldn't help him anymore.

"How could that be, madam? Last night that was just... that was just... cough..."

In front of all the girls, he felt embarrassed and wanted to think of a sentence to defend himself. He really wasn't a womanizer! If he didn't really like her, he wouldn't have given her the ring so casually! But after thinking about his actions over the past few days, and all the wedding ships he had, he could only come to the conclusion that he was indeed a despicable scumbag. His cheeks immediately turned pitiful.

I'm sorry, ma'am, I'm a jerk, I'm an idiot, I'm a bad guy. I'm so sorry for being born a jerk. But it's not all my fault! If I didn't see so many big red hearts flashing around every time I entered the dock, urging me to get married, I wouldn't have turned this game into a marriage simulator...

"Oh, silly girl, I'm not blaming you, it's just... okay."

Lexington held the small bowl in her hands and looked at her husband. The boy's dejected expression and pitiful eyes caught her eye, and she, who had noticed that her husband had become increasingly good at acting cute lately, suddenly felt a pang of pity and heartache.

Although her husband doesn't usually say it, sometimes he can be quite stubborn. Of course, she wasn't trying to blame him when she said that, because there wasn't a hint of blame in her words. She was just trying to comfort everyone who was upset by the Fei'er ring.

My dearest Oath Ring, in the garrison where even a handful of beans could be scattered and fill a train car with lovers yearning for their beloved sisters, it has always been the most important and precious treasure.

It's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality. The value of the vow ring goes without saying; each time, it takes hundreds of those special diamonds to buy it from that small merchant in the governor's mansion.

Although no one knows where my dear got those special diamonds from, and before getting them she was always muttering words like "pay-to-win," everyone knows that even in her own large and powerful garrison, every time she obtains those special diamonds and uses them to buy rings, my dear shows a very painful and distressed expression.

The special diamonds in the naval base are now almost gone, making it impossible to use them to purchase new Oath Rings. Therefore, every Oath Ring issued means that the naval base has one less Oath Ring left.

Saying that her darling is fickle is meant to tell everyone that as long as they win her affection, she will definitely be willing to give them a ring. Saying that her darling wants to give everyone a ring is meant to tell them that there are still many vow rings left, and there is no need to rush.

Although my silly darling didn't catch the implication, everyone else understood the unspoken meaning perfectly. Sigh... what an infuriating little fool! I personally handed him the vow ring this morning, how could I suddenly blame him now? Oh well, I'll just have to comfort him properly later.

"Hehe~ Brother-in-law, does Xiaorou like dolls? I have a lot of unwanted dolls in my dorm, and I'm thinking of taking them to give to Xiaorou this afternoon."

The girl hugged the boy's waist. She had waited all night in her brother-in-law's bed but he didn't come back. This morning, she learned from her sister that her brother-in-law had been snatched away by Xiao Fei. So, she was in a bad mood from the moment she woke up. But when she smelled her brother-in-law's scent and thought about how she could get rid of all the ship women eyeing her brother-in-law at the naval base in the afternoon and go on a boat trip with him, her gloomy mood immediately turned sunny.

"Hmm... Hmm? Jiajia is going to give Xiaorou a gift? Then I'll thank Jiajia on behalf of Xiaorou. Xiaorou probably likes dolls quite a bit, right? She still has those two dolls I gave her in her bedroom."

"Hehe, no need! My brother-in-law's sister is Jiajia's sister too~ Besides, Xiaorou should call her sister-in-law~"

The girl nuzzled against her brother-in-law's waist, pressing her soft breasts against his broad chest. But as she felt the boy lower his hand to pat her head, she suddenly noticed a sparkling ring on her brother-in-law's finger. Looking at the glittering diamond ring on her brother-in-law's hand, and then at the identical wedding ring on her own ring finger, the girl's pretty face immediately broke into a smile.

"Xiaofei, Xiaofei, let me see your ring. Is Xiaofei's ring the same as the other sisters' vow rings?"

"Atlanta, don't use so much force, you might break Phelps' ring."

"Oh dear, don't worry, little Juno, I'll be very careful! Fei, wearing the Oath Ring will give you an extra wedding dress, right? What's Fei's wedding dress like? Is it the same as Lexington's and Gaga's?"

"It's not a bridesmaid dress like Jiajia's, it's a real wedding dress like Lexington's!" The girl pouted.

"Admiral, I've already packed all the local specialties to take back and distribute to everyone. Before lunch, think again about whether there's anything I forgot to bring?"

Washington put down the report in his hand and said to the boy with a smile.

"Hmm... I've brought everything I need, so there shouldn't be anything else."

"Alright, we already have enough luggage. This afternoon, we'll have to ask Wisconsin to drive the luggage to Annam Port first."

"Okay, I got it. But Admiral, don't forget to bring me a gift when you come back. I've helped you so much, if you don't bring me a gift, don't expect me to help you like this again."

"By the way, Admiral, how's the food on board? If it's not good, would you like me, Ning Hai, Ping Hai, and I to make some of your favorite dishes and bring them aboard?"

"It's possible, but in this hot weather, the food you make for me probably won't last very long, right? It'll take at least ten days to get to Tianshui."

"It's okay, there should be a cold storage on the ship. If not, just bring a small refrigerator with you. You can just heat it up when you want to eat."

Knowing that the admiral was leaving in the afternoon, Yixian had actually prepared quite a few pastries to keep for him to eat as snacks on the road. As for food, she hadn't initially planned to do so, since Lexington was going with them too. But considering the environment of a small passenger ship, and Lexington's escort duties, she figured the food wouldn't be very good in the end.

“It’s alright, we can use the ship’s kitchen. When I’m not here, Glorious Sister can cook for the Admiral.”

"Really? That's fine too. After all, frozen food is never as good as freshly made food. Why don't we bring some ingredients with us? The food and ingredients on the ship are definitely not as good as those at the naval base."

Lexington nodded, gently placed the small bowl full of garlic cloves on the coffee table, glanced at the clock on the wall, and then, from the kitchen, Pinghai peeked out and shouted into the living room.

"Admiral, the hot pot broth and ingredients are all ready. Everyone, you can start eating now."

"Okay, let's put down what we're doing and have some hot pot together!"

The boy answered.

Volume 1, Chapter 343: Not a single hair will be missing!

At 2 p.m., the sky over Anan Port was clear and blue. As the largest seaport in Tsugawa City, the bustling Anan Port was as crowded as ever. However, unlike before when most of the passengers were tourists or people who had to take the boat for various reasons, a group of people who were different from the others had arrived at the port today.

Four high-end cars parked in the harbor parking lot in a row. As soon as they stopped, the cars with naval academy license plates and the dozens of stunning women who stepped out of them immediately became the focus of everyone's attention in the harbor.

These people were, of course, Su Yuchen and the girls in her family. The admiral was leaving for a while, so she had to come and see him off, right? Although she couldn't go with him like Lexington and Phelps' sister, seeing which ship the admiral was going to take and which places he would pass through would at least satisfy some of her fantasies when she missed him.

As for why the vehicles had the Naval Academy sign, it's because everyone doesn't go out much. Their own naval base only had one car that was usually used for the admiral's transportation. Now, with more than twenty people in the naval base and the admiral, one car was definitely not enough. So Lexington went to the academy to ask the monarch to borrow a few more cars.

Dressed in brand-new clothes, having been specially dressed up by Lexington before coming, the young man, feeling rather flashy, was the last to get out of the car. He was carrying large and small bags and wearing shiny leather shoes; to the uninitiated, he would have looked like a successful person returning home in glory.

In the morning, Lexington said she would help him pack, but as he carried his suitcase and saw his wife, Jiajia, carrying an even bigger and heavier package, he never imagined that Lexington would bring him so much stuff. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was moving house.

Fortunately, the luggage wasn't too much; at least the boy could manage to carry it all by himself and walk a few steps.

Thinking back to how Missouri and Washington had crammed so many local specialties into the trunk before he arrived, and the snacks that Yixian and Haiqi had prepared for him to eat on the road, he suddenly felt that the suitcase in his hands wasn't so heavy anymore.

"Admiral, Admiral! Is that the ship? It looks so old and dilapidated!"

As soon as he got off the car, the boy heard Atlanta's excited voice. He turned around and saw her and Juno curiously observing their surroundings. She pointed to the somewhat dilapidated passenger ship that was docked at the pier not far away.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. After all, it's just a coastal vessel, not some high-end passenger ship. Plus, shipping hasn't been doing so well these past few years, so it's already quite good that there's one ship like this still running long-haul routes."

Behind them, Washington and Wisconsin were unloading local specialties from the trunks of several cars. Lexington, holding Jiajia's hand, was talking to the academy president, Monarch, and mentor Junquan who had come with them. Radiance, holding Unicorn's hand, was counting the food and snacks they had brought with them, while Phil, beside her, was holding the hand of the boy in front of her, helping to share the weight of his luggage like a caring little cotton-padded jacket.

"But Admiral, these ships have absolutely no defensive capabilities, right? What if they encounter deep sea?"

Haiqi's Xue'er snuggled in Changchun's arms, licking her fur. Hearing what the admiral said, Changchun tilted his head and glanced at the waterline of the passenger ship covered with barnacles.