This is the first time Ruan Xianxian has met An Ping in both her past and present lives.

In her previous life, she was still in the countryside when her uncle was forcibly transferred back to Beijing by Ruan Kangri and died during a mission.

I later heard that the old woman couldn't bear her husband's death, and she even took her belt with her.

Her cousins ​​didn't believe it. When Ruan Xianxian first saw this woman of average appearance, who moved with a neat and capable air, she also couldn't believe that she would have committed suicide in her previous life, leaving behind only her children.

"Auntie!" Ruan Xianxian released Ruan Jun and, as she retreated, subtly kicked him—not hard, but enough to leave his calf bruised for two days.

He turned around to take the luggage from the old lady's hands.

Ruan Jun's face darkened instantly, and he subtly moved his calves.

Grandma poked her head out from the kitchen, "Who's here? Why are they standing outside the door..."

She was only halfway through her sentence when she looked at her son and daughter-in-law's smiling faces, which were no longer young, and her eyes suddenly welled up with tears.

"You unlucky bastards, why didn't you tell me you were coming back? I could have picked you up at the station."

Yan Fenghua rushed over, looked at this one, then at that one, and nodded repeatedly, saying "good."

"I didn't mean to surprise you. I'm not on duty this year, so I took the day off and brought Daping back to see you and Dad."

He addressed Xie Zheng as "father" very naturally, clearly indicating that he knew of Xie Zheng's existence earlier than Ruan Xianxian.

Grandma kept looking behind the two of them, asking, "Where are the children? Didn't they come back together?"

Ruan Xianxian interjected, "Grandma, let Grandpa and Grandma come inside and talk first."

“Yes, yes!” Grandma gave up her seat.

“The rascal is on duty this year, and his sister’s performing arts troupe also has a performance during the Spring Festival. The two kids said they would come back to Beijing to see you separately after the Spring Festival.”

Although Yan Fenghua was somewhat disappointed, she was happier than anything knowing that her grandchildren were doing well.

"What's this?" Ruan Jun's house was small, but he immediately noticed Fan Caicai's pickled duck in the living room.

"This is my liaison officer," Nguyen Xianxian introduced the three of them.

Afterwards, Fan Caicai got up and took off her apron, saying, "I have some family members visiting, so I'm going back to work first."

Ruan Xianxian called out to him, "Where are you going to spend New Year's Eve tomorrow?"

He was a war orphan raised by the state, so he naturally said, "My work unit does the same thing every year."

"Come over here, Grandma has prepared your favorite fried spring rolls. If you don't come, no one will eat them, and she'll start nagging again."

After saying that, without looking at the frozen Fan Caicai, he went inside to help Ruan Jun and his wife with their chores.

Fan Caicai turned back and took one last deep look at the house, then silently walked to the door and gently closed it.

When the elderly couple went home for the Chinese New Year, Ruan Xianxian gave up her bedroom and moved the sofa bed into the master bedroom, which would be her new residence for the foreseeable future.

Her cousins ​​aren't back yet; if they were, the three of them would have to squeeze onto one sofa bed.

Every household is like this; it's precisely because the place is small, crowded, and lively that the constant laughter and jostling create a festive atmosphere.

They exchanged pleasantries and recounted their experiences on both sides over the past few years.

Ruan Jun talked a lot, recounting strange stories from the military and embarrassing anecdotes about his two children growing up.

The old lady nodded repeatedly, her smile gentle.

"Grandpa and Grandma, are you considering going back to Beijing to develop your career?" Ruan Xianxian asked while picking vegetables.

The air suddenly went quiet. She looked up blankly. "What's wrong?"

Ruan Jun looked at the sky and the ground without speaking, while Yan Fenghua sighed softly:

"What else can he do? He's been held back all these years, sitting in the deputy regimental commander position for ten years without moving. Your grandpa just wants to give it one last shot."

"Are you being sentimental again?" Ruan Jun's skin was dark, the kind of dark that could ooze oil, making his teeth appear exceptionally white.

"Although I haven't been promoted to deputy regimental commander in the past few years, I still have all the merits. I just need an opportunity to reclaim my military achievements and hone them for a few more years. That would be a kind of accumulation."

Yan Fenghua remained silent, knowing that her son's words were meant to comfort her. After serving as deputy regimental commander for more than ten years, what was there to "refine"?

Ruan Xianxian stroked her chin, glanced around at the family, and asked, "Is the old man's military merit enough to be promoted to brigade commander?"

Ruan Jun: "It's enough, but there aren't that many vacant positions in the military. Even if you have enough military merits, you still have to wait for the right opportunity."

The frontier offers greater opportunities. He wasn't cursing anyone to die, but in war-torn places, there's no guarantee of tomorrow, and everyone is risking their lives.

He's a pragmatic person. Besides protecting the border and providing support for his mother, he joined the army. Now that he's survived this ordeal, it would be a lie to say he didn't want to get promoted.

Ruan Xianxian's eyes darted around, and her gaze fell on Yan Fenghua, who also seemed lost in thought after she called him "Brigadier General." She chuckled.

“Opportunity? Doesn’t our family have one right here? Our former brigade commander Ruan was executed right after the New Year, and Political Commissar Qin said that his position is now vacant and is being fought over by many people.”

Ruan Jun's pupils contracted. Even though he had already received news that Ruan Kangri had been sentenced, he never expected to be eating peanuts after the New Year.

He didn't mention it after entering the house, afraid of spoiling the festive atmosphere of the New Year. But since his niece brought it up, he felt less hesitant and said, somewhat uncertainly:

"The Ruan Kangri incident has been quite ugly, hasn't it? I guess the army doesn't want anyone with the Ruan family involved in the brigade commander position anymore."

Although I don't want to admit it and we've severed ties, I am his son. If I were to take over Ruan's position in the anti-Japanese war, wouldn't the troops be extremely resentful?

Ruan Xianxian puffed out her chest and patted her small chest, "Leave it to me, we have people to rely on."

Although there was no one in the military headquarters in Beijing, there was someone in Heilongjiang Province. Feng Guang had been clamoring to come to Beijing to meet his in-laws, but since Gong Ye wasn't there, she had been keeping quiet about it.

This old bandit... no, this old hero has returned to the capital. Despite having enemies everywhere, he also has friends everywhere.

And Xie Zheng, it's not impossible to try and get the brigade commander position.

Ruan Xianxian thought that Ruan Jun would question her words, but to her surprise, he scurried behind his niece and stretched out his large, fan-like hand to massage her shoulders.

“Bao’er, it was dark in the hallway just now, so your uncle couldn’t see clearly. But believe it or not, you’ve grown at least a head taller than you did three years ago.”

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