Uncle Zhou cursed with a smile, "It's rude", but he also took out a red envelope from his sleeve. He looked at the delicate pine and crane patterns on it, and deep wrinkles appeared in the corners of his eyes when he smiled.

The warm afternoon sun shone obliquely as Zheng Wanqing sat alone in front of a stone table in the courtyard, reading miscellaneous notes. The delicate fragrance of Biluochun tea rose from the teacup.

She suddenly heard hurried footsteps, and looking up, she saw Zhou Lin walking briskly through the hanging flower gate, but he stopped suddenly the moment his eyes met hers.

The beautiful woman in front of him had eyes as clear as autumn water and her long eyelashes trembled slightly, which made Zhou Lin's breathing stagnate. He lowered his head in a hurry, his military boots unconsciously crushing the fallen leaves on the ground, and he couldn't help but steal a glance at that beautiful color again.

Zhou Lin's Adam's apple rolled several times before he managed to utter: "Happy New Year, my husband and my wife."

Zheng Wanqing raised her lips slightly, smiling gently, and handed over the red envelope: "Adjutant Zhou, please give me a lucky gift too."

When their fingertips touched each other accidentally, Zhou Lin quickly retracted his hand as if burned by fire, and the red envelope almost fell to the ground. He grasped the red envelope clumsily, and the soft touch of that moment seemed to remain on his fingertips, and his heartbeat was like a drum beating in his chest.

Zheng Wanqing didn't notice anything unusual about him. She glanced at the telegram in his hand and asked, "Is it an urgent message for the young commander?"

"Madam, it's Director Liu who sent me a New Year's greeting message." As he spoke, his eyes swept across her slender fingers resting on the celadon teacup, and quickly moved to the rockery in the distance.

Zheng Wanqing's eyes flickered slightly. She knew very well that Chief Liu, as Xie Yun's immediate superior, was in charge of the military affairs of Zhili. In this ever-changing situation, his every move was crucial.

She nodded slightly and closed the book: "The young marshal is in the study reviewing military newspapers. I'll take you over there."

Zhou Lin slightly stepped aside, his jawline tense: "Please trouble my madam." He followed in the most standard military posture, his eyes always fixed straight ahead.

In the study, Xie Yun was writing at his desk, his wolf-hair brush making rustling sounds on the rice paper, and the official documents with ink marks were neatly stacked on the desk. Hearing a light knock on the door, he paused and said calmly, "Come in."

"Young Marshal, here's the telegram from General Liu." Zhou Lin quickly walked to the desk and placed the telegram on the corner of the table with both hands.

Xie Yun looked away from the official document, and casually pushed the telegram away half an inch with his left hand. His tone was so indifferent that no emotion could be heard: "I know."

Adjutant Zhou was slightly startled, with an expression of wanting to say something but hesitating to do so appearing on his face.

Xie Yun suddenly put down his pen, and the ink splashed in the Duan inkstone, creating tiny ripples. He looked up at Zhou Lin: "Any questions?"

"I dare not." Zhou Lin immediately put his legs together and saluted, saying in a crisp and clear voice: "I will take my leave."

The sound of the door closing gently had not yet dissipated, and Zheng Wanqing quietly moved behind Xie Yun. She reached out and placed her hands on his tense shoulders, massaging them to relax him, and gently scolded him, "Why are you so angry on the first day of the New Year?"

Xie Yun gently rubbed his brows, held her slender wrist with his backhand, and brought her to his knees. His thumb stroked the healed chilblains on her knuckles, and when he touched those tiny cracks, the ice in his eyes melted a little: "It's not directed at you."

Recently, the army has been in a state of chaos. Cheng Shaojie, who was originally transferred to Tianjin for training because he was General Liu's nephew, has taken advantage of this relationship to act recklessly in the army and look down on everyone. He lives an extravagant life and spends money like water. Not only that, he also allows his men to do evil in the garrison, bully men and women, and make the originally disciplined military camp a mess.

It was not easy for him to get evidence of his waste of military rations and drive this scourge out of Tianjin, but he received news that General Liu had issued a transfer order, directly promoting him to the governor of Heilongjiang. Thinking of the fate that the people at the border were about to face, the teacup in Xie Yun's hand made a slight sound of being overwhelmed, and the Biluochun in the cup rippled finely.

What made him even more disappointed was the change in General Liu. When he joined hands with his father to start the uprising, he was a tough guy who dared to charge forward with his head on the line. Now he was guarding the fat piece of meat of Zhili and indulging in wine and women all day long.

When he heard about the tragic situation of disaster victims in the southern suburbs who had to trade their children for food, he only got a perfunctory response: "Disasters are inevitable."

Seeing his frown, Zheng Wanqing thought he was worried about the disaster relief food in the southern suburbs. She stretched out her bare hands and stroked the wrinkles between his eyebrows, wanting to wipe away all the haze and worries in his eyes.

"As the old saying goes, frowning on the first day of the lunar month will bring 300 days of bad luck." She deliberately put on a stern face, pretending to be serious, but the corners of her eyes curved into a crescent shape, with a hint of playfulness and coquettishness: "Please don't bring this bad luck to me."

Xie Yun looked at her coquettish expression, and the depression in his chest suddenly dissipated. He took her slender waist and brought her to sit on his lap. The cloth of his military uniform rubbed against the soft silk surface of her cheongsam, making a rustling sound: "All up to you."

Zheng Wanqing drew circles on the copper buttons of his military uniform with her fingertips, and said in a muffled voice, "Tomorrow... do you want to go back to my parents' home with me?"

Xie Yun's chin rubbed against her temples. He greedily sniffed the jasmine scent on her hair. After a long while, he replied in a low voice: "Hey. It's time to pay respects to my father-in-law and mother-in-law."