Chapter 181 Hearing her say she didn't love him

Gu Feiyan smiled, but her gaze passed over Zhao Wenchang and landed on Jiang Wanqiu behind him.

When he saw Jiang Wanqiu's face clearly, a complex and unfathomable emotion flashed in his eyes.

But that emotion was fleeting, too fast to grasp.

He quickly regained his composure and said apologetically, "I had some business to attend to on the way, and even though I rushed, I'm still late. Zhao Ying, sister-in-law, I'm so sorry."

Zhao Wenchang laughed nonchalantly, then stretched out his arm and pulled Jiang Wanqiu into his embrace. His strong arms tightly hugged her waist, as if asserting his ownership.

"It's alright! We're late, but the thought is what counts! Your sister-in-law and I aren't people who are particular about details."

Gu Feiyan's gaze lingered on Zhao Wenchang's arm around Jiang Wanqiu for a moment, then she smiled again.

"No way, being late is being late, I have to punish myself with three drinks!" he said, pouring himself three full glasses of wine and drinking them down cleanly in one gulp.

"Well done!" Zhao Wenchang exclaimed, his spirits rising. "You drink three, I'll drink one with you!"

The two clinked glasses again.

After putting down her wine glass, Gu Feiyan got down to business: "By the way, Zhao Ying, I haven't had a chance to tell you yet, but the transfer order has come down, and I might be working with you from now on."

"Oh?" Zhao Wenchang was somewhat surprised. "Really?"

"Yes," Gu Feiyan nodded, a serious smile in her eyes, "I'll be working under Battalion Commander Zhao from now on, so please give me your guidance."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang smiled and said, "That would be great! I definitely will!"

Gu Feiyan picked up her wine glass again, her gaze sweeping between Zhao Wenchang and Jiang Wanqiu before finally settling on Zhao Wenchang's face.

“Since we’ll be working together from now on,” he paused, “let’s take advantage of this wedding banquet to have a good chat and get to know each other better?”

Zhao Wenchang laughed loudly and pulled Gu Feiyan to sit down at an empty table in the courtyard. On the table were untouched peanuts and melon seeds, a plate of cold cabbage salad, and two empty wine bottles lying crookedly beside them.

"Come, sit down!" Zhao Wenchang pressed Gu Feiyan down on the bench, then sat down himself with an air of authority. He picked up the wine bottle and filled the white porcelain cups in front of them with it. The wine almost spilled out of the cups with a "whoosh".

Gu Feiyan looked at the wine swirling in her glass and said, "Zhao Ying, I heard that your battalion is conducting nighttime training exercises. Since I've been transferred here, will I be training with you?"

Gu Feiyan was afraid of revealing unnecessary emotions, so she only talked about work-related matters.

But after Gu Feiyan finished speaking, seeing that he didn't react for a long time, she stopped talking, and only the noisy voices from afar remained between the two of them.

After a long pause, Zhao Wenchang suddenly spoke up: "You like Jiang Wanqiu, don't you?"

Gu Feiyan's hand, holding the wine glass, froze for a moment in mid-air.

He was silent for a few seconds, then brought the glass to his lips and drank it all in one gulp. The spicy liquid slid down his throat before he slowly put the glass down, neither admitting nor denying it.

“She…is different from other women.” Gu Feiyan’s voice was a little hoarse.

This sentence is the best answer.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang said calmly:

"Stay away from her from now on."

Gu Feiyan met his gaze without flinching. He even twitched the corners of his mouth, as if he were smiling.

"Yes, I will," he answered readily.

Then, he poured himself another glass of wine, and as if to add a further explanation, slowly added, "However, if you ever treat her badly..."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Then don't blame me for taking him away from you."

Zhao Wenchang stared at him for a moment, then suddenly chuckled softly.

"Then you'll never have that chance in your life."

After saying that, he picked up his wine glass and slammed it against Gu Feiyan's glass, making a crisp "clang" sound.

The two men exchanged a smile. Gu Feiyan didn't say anything more, but kept toasting Zhao Wenchang and drinking herself.

Jiang Wanqiu watched from a distance, feeling uneasy.

She was really worried, so she went over and said, "You two should drink less. Drinking too much is bad for your health."

Zhao Wenchang turned his head, grabbed her hand, his palm burning hot. He looked up at her, his eyes filled with a stubbornness born of drunkenness, and asked, "Who are you worried about who's had too much to drink?"

Jiang Wanqiu was taken aback by his question and subconsciously replied, "I'm worried that you two have drunk too much."

“Don’t worry.” Zhao Wenchang’s thumb rubbed against the back of her hand, the rough calluses causing a slight itch. He grinned, a hint of boastfulness in his voice: “Your man’s alcohol tolerance is pretty impressive. I think you should worry about him more.”

He gestured with his chin toward Gu Feiyan.

Jiang Wanqiu found this person utterly unreasonable and scolded him, "What nonsense are you spouting!"

"Sister-in-law, it seems that Battalion Commander Zhao is really drunk." Gu Feiyan smiled faintly from the side, as if trying to smooth things over, but also as if adding fuel to the fire.

Jiang Wanqiu glanced helplessly at Zhao Wenchang, then turned to Gu Feiyan, who was still relatively sober, and said, "Comrade Gu Feiyan, could you please persuade him to stop drinking?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang's brows furrowed instantly. She actually sent another man to persuade him? Without a word, he picked up the wine glass on the table and tilted his head back for another drink.

Just then, Li Yanhong walked over with a smile and grabbed Jiang Wanqiu's arm: "Oh my, my bride, what are you still standing here for! After you finish toasting, you should go into the bridal chamber and sit and wait for the groom!"

Jiang Wanqiu was half-pushed and half-pulled away, and before leaving, she looked back worriedly.

Zhao Wenchang watched her figure disappear behind the door, then downed several more glasses. When he finally stood up, he swayed, clearly having reached his limit.

Seeing this, Jiang Wanxia, ​​who was sitting not far away, quickly gave Gu Feiyan a wink.

Gu Feiyan tightened her grip on the wine glass, a hint of hesitation flashing in her eyes.

But in just a moment, he put down his glass, got up, and left the table.

Inside the house, several aunties and older women were rummaging through drawers and cabinets, shouting, "Oh dear, where's the red cloth for the bride's veil? We just saw it a moment ago, how come it's gone in the blink of an eye?"

"Late Autumn, come out for a moment."

Gu Feiyan's voice rang out at the door. Jiang Wanqiu, who was surrounded by several women, went out upon hearing the voice.

Gu Feiyan led the woman to a corner of the courtyard.

"What's wrong, Comrade Gu Feiyan?" Jiang Wanqiu asked, standing in front of him, somewhat puzzled.

Gu Feiyan stared at her intently, watching her in her brand-new military uniform, her face flushed with the rosy glow of newlyweds, radiant and beautiful.

Suddenly, the words Jiang Wanxia had said when she found him flashed through his mind.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and he spoke with difficulty, saying, "Happy wedding, sister-in-law."

"Thank you." Jiang Wanqiu smiled, her smile carrying a hint of distant politeness.

Gu Feiyan's gaze was fixed on her, as if trying to discern some clue from her face. He finally asked the question that had been lingering in his heart:

"Do you... truly love Zhao Wenchang?"

Jiang Wanqiu's smile froze for a moment, then turned into a hint of curiosity: "Comrade Gu Feiyan, why did you suddenly ask about this?"

“I…” Gu Feiyan looked into her clear eyes, the words in his heart almost bursting out. He took a deep breath, “What I mean is, if you have any difficulties or troubles, you can tell me.”

Jiang Wanqiu frowned.

She found Gu Feiyan acting very strangely tonight, saying nonsensical things.

"Comrade Gu Feiyan," she looked at him with a hint of helplessness, "are you drunk?"

At the other end of the courtyard, Zhao Wenchang stood up, leaning on the table. His body swayed suddenly, and the figures in front of him became double.

His stomach churned violently, and his throat burned.

"Hey, Battalion Commander Zhao, you've had quite a bit to drink. Let me help you." Immediately, a friendly man came up to him and tried to support his arm.

But the man reeked of sweat mixed with alcohol, making Zhao Wenchang feel even more uncomfortable. Just as he was getting irritated, a hand, smaller than the man's and smelling of cheap face cream, wrapped itself around his elbow.

"Brother-in-law, you're drunk. Let me help you inside to rest."

It was Jiang Wanxia's voice.

Zhao Wenchang's mind was a complete mess; he only felt this force relentlessly dragging him into the house. He was seething with anger, not knowing who he was angry at, when he suddenly swung his arm and shook off the person clinging to him.

"Don't touch me!"

He roared, his strength so great that Jiang Wanxia cried out "Ouch!" and almost fell to the ground.

"Brother-in-law, what are you doing? Everyone's watching..."

"What the hell are you looking at!" Zhao Wenchang shoved her away again, this time without even thinking, and roared gruffly, "I need to pee! Get out of my way!"

This shout startled several women who were chatting and eating sunflower seeds nearby, and they all turned to look at them.

Jiang Wanxia's face instantly turned somewhat ugly. She hadn't expected Zhao Wenchang to be so stubborn and unyielding when drunk, just like a stubborn donkey.

But seeing that the stubborn donkey was about to walk out of the yard, she gritted her teeth and reluctantly stuck to it again.

This is a one-time opportunity; once it's gone, it's gone forever!

Zhao Wenchang staggered forward a few steps, his feet feeling like they were walking on cotton, his steps uneven.

He raised his head, squinting his drunken eyes, and tried to find Jiang Wanqiu.

Two figures were not far away; one of them was Jiang Wanqiu.

another……

Zhao Wenchang blinked, trying hard to make out the blurry figure. The person was also wearing a green military uniform and was about the same height as him.

It's Gu Feiyan!

Without a second thought, he shook off Jiang Wanxia, ​​who was still trying to grab him, and strode towards the other side.

The courtyard was noisy, filled with the sounds of drinking games, laughter, and cursing. But Zhao Wenchang couldn't hear anything; all he could hear was the pounding of his own heart.

The closer he got, the clearer he could see.

Gu Feiyan was staring at his wife and asking her something.

His wife, Jiang Wanqiu, was frowning slightly, as if she was pondering an extremely difficult problem.

Zhao Wenchang slowed his pace and was about to call out when he heard Jiang Wanqiu's clear voice drift into his ears.

She said, "I can't say I like Zhao Wenchang..."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Wenchang stopped abruptly.

Jiang Wanxia, ​​who had been following behind him, grabbed Zhao Wenchang's cold arm when she saw that the man had finally stopped.

"Brother-in-law! You've had too much to drink. Quick, the kang (heated brick bed) is all set up for you inside, come and lie down!"

As she spoke, regardless of whether Zhao Wenchang was willing or not, she used all her strength to pull the tall man back, almost dragging him along.

The people around were having a good time, and no one noticed that the groom was being dragged into the bridal chamber by his sister-in-law.