Chapter 10, Four Years of Prolonged War

The atmosphere felt increasingly strange, and even the dizziness that had previously eased seemed to have suddenly intensified, leaving Mu Ke feeling extremely oppressed. She abruptly sat up, pushed his hand away, and questioned, "Have you had enough of touching me?"

The trainees at the training base are equivalent to soldiers in the army. This is an ironclad discipline that cannot be altered by anyone. Provoked by the challenge to his authority, He Hongxun's composure was ultimately worn away, and he coldly said: "Pick up the blankets and practice!"

Upon hearing this, Mu Ke slowly moved to the bedside, pulled up the blanket, shook it vigorously in front of him a couple of times, and then gently spread it out. It was as if he was replaying in slow motion as he began to fold it up. By the time he finished tidying it, a full twenty-five minutes had passed.

With a stubborn look in her eyes, Mu Ke replied loudly: "Could you stop it?"

Looking directly into his eyes, Mu Ke retorted: "You know I am a trainee, not a soldier! Why should I be held to military standards? Your obsession with cleanliness is your own business; I prefer a more chaotic environment!"

After all, he is still a child. When mentioning his girlfriend Mu Chen, his face turned red. He swung his thin arm to lift his older sister's suitcase and urged, "We should go now; if we are late, we will be punished by standing." In his young heart, standing as a punishment was the best consequence for being late.

With a stern demeanor, He Hongxun coldly commanded: "You, step forward! Stand aside!"

Afterwards, He Hongxun learned from Xiang Wei that her remark "Could you stop it?" was not directed at him. Instead, it was a sudden outburst triggered by Mu Ke, who could no longer tolerate her incessant use of every beautiful adjective in the world to describe soldiers, even continuing to whisper praises of the instructor's handsomeness after the assembly.

On the battlefield, we emphasize tactics; within the troops, we adhere to internal regulations. As a trainee, you must follow my instructions and comply with management

I know

What do you know

Retracting his hand and gazing at her flushed cheeks, a burning light flickered in the depths of his dark eyes. He asked her, "Do you dislike me?"

Mu Ke silently took the bag without saying a word

After a few minutes of silence, just as Comrade He Hongxun was about to deliver a concluding statement regarding the rather unfriendly meeting between the two, Mu Ke furrowed his brows and said with considerable distress: "The consequences everywhere are somewhat severe; can I bear them?"

He Hongxun furrowed his brows and said, "Do not doubt my eyesight"

After some thought, Muko decided to present a highly persuasive reason. She said, "Well, I have ... ... "

Our military has always placed great importance on internal management, as it cultivates the spirit of discipline and uniformity among soldiers. Do not underestimate this seemingly trivial matter. On the battlefield, even the smallest detail can determine whether a soldier's life belongs to them or not

Sensing her husband's mood, the mother hesitated for a moment and finally said: "Keke, why don't you let your father take you over there? Let's see if there is anything that needs to be arranged, to avoid..."

Time inadvertently rewinds to four years ago, the moment of first meeting as perceived by Mu Ke

He Hongxun calmly interrupted her: "This cannot be a reason for refusal"

I know what you think I do not know

"There is really no need." Muko gently interrupted her, a calm gaze like water revealing an unassailable determination: "I can handle the matters at school, and I will call back on time..."

On the day of the new student registration, Mu Kaiming did not go to the army; he had made arrangements in advance to personally drive Mu Ke to C University. However, he was rejected by his daughter.

"If you eat like this morning and night, you'll become a fat person." Mu Ke also laughed, tugging at Mu Chen's ear: "If you have too much presence, you won't be able to find a girlfriend"

Recalling those days of youthful exuberance, Mu Ke truly could not understand whether He Hongxun's so-called "quite likable" was meant as a compliment or a criticism. Moreover, she had just fainted in another man's arms that afternoon; how could she be so certain that she did not have a boyfriend? Although her appearance resembled that of an underage girl, surely her situation was not so dire that she could not handle it. Furthermore, given her habitual defiance against him, what basis did he have to think that she did not dislike him? She even suspected that he was deliberately trying to make things difficult for her, perhaps as a form of revenge for her having planted "crops" on his neck without permission. Alternatively, he might have gone mad from training, mistaking her, as the "enemy," for an ally.

Such a sharp question, how is she supposed to answer? Ruffling her messy hair, she said somewhat nonsensically: "Commander He, take a good look, I am Mu Ke."

Muko silently stepped out and stood by the training ground, remaining there for three hours

... ...

He Hongxun's expression was extremely grim as he pointed at her blanket and coldly said: "The eight-year War of Resistance has ended, and you still look like this! I have seen substandard internal affairs, but I have never seen anything this poor!"

Looking at her youthful oval face, He Hongxun raised his voice and said in a tone that brooked no disobedience: "Repeat it!"

Having never been yelled at by anyone since childhood, Mu Ke's anger immediately surged to her head. In a fit of pique, she threw the quilt onto the floor, raised her eyebrows, and shouted back: "Is the internal affairs department really that impressive?" Stomping on the quilt twice, she said: "If you have the ability, use a block of tofu to kill the enemy, and then you can claim to have some skill."

When He Hongxun inspected the internal affairs, her quilt was scattered on the bed without being folded. He, with a dark expression, ordered: "I give you five minutes to tidy up."

Later, he realized that his quilt had already been folded into an imprint, which was indeed much easier to fold compared to theirs. On the day before the end of the military training, when he looked at the quilt that was folded in a complete mess during the internal assessment, he understood that she had never opened that quilt at all; it had always been left there for him to inspect.

Standing by the window, watching the car from He Yi City take Mu Ke away, Mu Kai Ming's eyes suddenly turned red, and he murmured, "Qiao Mei, I am sorry for our daughter." He then turned and went to the study.

Do you dare to say that you do not know what I am talking about

What I thought you did not know

He Hongxun curved the corners of his lips and said: "You are an advisor, which is fundamentally different from an ordinary student." He then corrected himself: "It is not an antagonistic relationship; it can barely be considered a comrade relationship."

I haven't said anything yet

Angered by his rigidity, Mu Ke jumped onto the blanket, stepping on it countless times under the astonished gazes of her classmates. After locking eyes with He Hongxun for five seconds, she suddenly shouted: "I demand to swap blankets with you!"

The students present were all taken aback, and even He Hongxun could not keep up with her leaps of thought, remaining silent for quite some time.

After coming to a halt, He Hongxun rendered a standard military salute to the trainees and spoke in a resonant voice: "Hello, classmates. Let me introduce myself, my name is He Hongxun..."

Muke stood in the living room with her neatly packed simple luggage. Her short hair looked lively, but the expression on her face was quite desolate. She said softly, "I don't want to trouble you; I will take a taxi by myself."

She was unexpectedly confessed to? Mu Ke stood there in a daze, allowing him to touch her hair, trying to figure out what it was about her that he liked, but no matter how hard she thought, she couldn't come up with an answer. In her memory, there had never been any harmony between them.

However, the young girl did not become fragile due to her upbringing in a special family environment. She, along with books, enjoys laughter, remains optimistic and strong, loves to share experiences with others, and knows how to organize her life. In short, to borrow Wei's words, compared to her charming virtues, Muko's minor flaws are hardly worth mentioning

When Muko's thoughts drifted far away and she came to her senses, she realized that He Hongxun had not yet left. She felt those large hands gently stroking her head, such a tender gesture, as if comforting a wounded child, which was completely at odds with his usual indifference and seriousness.

Taking a deep breath, He Hongxun ordered himself to remain calm. In the face of this young woman who was deliberately opposing him, he could not lose his composure

The classmates were all taken aback, their gazes turning in unison. Xiang Wei sensed that something was amiss and quietly nudged Mu Ke's sleeve.

The tall and handsome young officer He Hongxun walked in through a wisp of mist, his expression solemn and his posture upright. Mu Ke clearly remembered that he was the only captain among the ten military training instructors, and later learned from Wei, a fervent military enthusiast, that he was the commander of the reconnaissance company.

Raising her eyes to look at He Hongxun, Mu Ke stood motionless in the middle of the line

Comrade soldier," Mu spoke resolutely, "Society is progressing, and the times are developing. Please change your outdated views and do not use tofu blocks as the standard for internal affairs evaluation. On the battlefield, no one will carry a quilt into battle.

This misunderstanding infused the month-long military training with a palpable tension.

I suspect your intelligence! Muko added in his heart, then said: "You are the instructor, and I am the student; our identities are opposing, which is inappropriate"

The new student military training begins on the second day after registration

Hearing such praise, Mu Ke grinned widely, wrapping her arms around Xiang Wei's neck and affectionately said: "Dear classmate Xiang Wei, you are truly a good person, and you will definitely marry a senior colonel."

He He Hongxun's expression was somewhat somber, his gaze fixed on Muke's face. He asked in a deep voice, "What did you just say? Repeat it!"

In this family of four, Muko is only close to Muchen; as for Mukaiming and her mother, they are merely her nominal parents and elders. In her heart, she already feels like an outsider. Therefore, after entering university, she rarely returns home and spends almost all her spare time tutoring.

At that moment, a sweet female voice interrupted him. Standing in the line, Muko instinctively blurted out a sentence in English. He heard her say: "Could you stop it ?"

Mu Kaiming sat on the sofa, looking at her, feeling that his daughter was becoming increasingly unfamiliar. As a soldier, he felt he owed too much to his family, to his wife, and to his children. He did not know how to mend the unbreakable bond between father and daughter.

Mu Kaiming listened silently to Mu Ke's words; she ultimately did not say that she would come home often. It was not until the eleven-year-old Mu Chen pulled Mu Ke's hand and said, "Sister, I'll pick you up from school this weekend. Can you come back and tutor me in English?" that he saw Mu Ke ruffle her younger brother's short hair and promise, "Then we will call in advance. I will come back to tutor you when I have time, okay?"

Thus, he was in despair regarding her internal affairs. Otherwise, he would not have emotionally remarked to Muko on the day of their separation: "The formidable internal affairs of our army have been completely ruined by you"

He pushed Wei away and saw the greasy little paw prints on the shoulder of his white shirt, then gave Mu Ke a sharp slap on the head

The shepherdess also stepped forward to help carry things and said in a conciliatory tone: "How about letting Yicheng take you?"

On that morning, the thin mist had not yet completely dissipated, and the dewdrops glistened on the blades of green grass. A faint fragrance lingered in the air, and with my eyes closed, I took a deep breath, feeling a profound sense of comfort throughout my body

"Alright." Mu Chen smiled as he held Mu Ke's hand, leaning close to her ear and whispering, "Sister, don't forget to buy me some delicious food"