Zhou Jiuzhen lowered his head and carefully tied her waistband, making a pretty bow.

“These clothes were prepared for you before I fell into a coma. Back then, it was summer and I thought that the wind was strong on the island, and the clothes my delicate wife brought would definitely not be warm enough, so I prepared winter clothes, thinking that I couldn’t let my delicate wife get cold.”

"And these woolen pants, you don't know how long I begged my mother to knit them for me, stitch by stitch, just so I could give them to you and let you wear them during the New Year..."

In the quiet space, the man's magnetic voice was unhurried, as if it had traveled across the river of time, allowing one to clearly see the awkward sight of that burly man clumsily knitting a sweater with a stick.

"But later, I made my lovely wife dress me up for a whole year. From now on, let me dress you up for you, okay?"

Ling Huanwu was already sobbing uncontrollably while hugging him, nodding frantically, "Okay, from now on you will wear all my clothes. I won't allow you to dress other people, and I won't allow other people to dress you!"

"Yes, I, Zhou Jiuzhen, am all yours, so... don't even think about that silly eighteen-year-old boy. I'm much better at taking care of people than him, okay?"

Soft fingertips gently brushed across her cheeks, wiping away the tiny pearls that had fallen from her face.

Ling Huanwu burst into laughter through her tears, and couldn't help but punch his chest, "You're still jealous? Did you get confused last night?"

Zhou Jiuzhen, his eyes red-rimmed, grabbed her wrist as she pounded on it, tears streaming down his face unexpectedly. "Don't cry. I couldn't bear to see you cry last night, but now you're crying like this..."

As he spoke, tears welled in his eyes, and he lowered his head to kiss her lips, remaining still for a long time, savoring the long-lost thrill of this moment.

*

Inside the post office.

Ling Huanwu was still shocked when she heard that it would cost ten yuan per minute to make a phone call to Gangcheng.

But she still filled out the application form and prepaid 100 yuan for phone bills.

After waiting for three hours, the operator finally told her that the transfer had been successful.

She called a female classmate she had met when she was studying in Gangcheng, and briefly told her Zhou Shuyao's current address, asking her to make a trip there to check if Zhou Shuyao's children were all safe and sound. She would call back four hours later.

Fortunately, the other party remembered their past friendship and quickly agreed, saying they would go and visit right away.

Ling Huanwu knew that, given Zhou Shuyao's personality, he would definitely stay in the same room the two of them used to share when he went to Hong Kong.

After hanging up the phone, she looked at her mother-in-law beside her, whose eyes were red and swollen. She knew that this was just the beginning of her anxious wait. She carefully hugged her mother-in-law and gestured for her to relax.

At the entrance of the post office.

Zhou Jiuzhen and his bodyguard Xiao Wang hid behind the corner of the wall, watching the two worried people inside with furrowed brows.

"Send a few people here to protect them, and send a car. I need to go to the Great Hall of the People!"

Guard Xiao Wang's eyes widened. "The political commissar and the others were discussing the relocation of Wantan Island today. Commander Zhou, you haven't recovered yet, what were you doing there?"

Zhou Jiuzhen's expression hardened, and he said, word by word, "I'm going to seek justice!"

He looked at Xiao Wang beside him, spread his hands, and asked, "Where's the marriage certificate I told you to get from the Civil Affairs Bureau?"

At this point, Officer Wang seemed to suddenly remember the purpose of his visit and said awkwardly, "Commander Zhou, are you sure you're not mistaken? The staff in the office have searched everywhere but couldn't find your marriage record with your wife!"

Zhou Jiuzhen stopped turning around, his pupils dilating. "Nothing?"

He clearly saw the staff file the materials, so how could they not be there?

The guard, Wang, was puzzled. "Yes, Commander Zhou, are you mistaken? Both parties need to be present to get a marriage certificate. If you got a marriage certificate, how come Comrade Ling didn't know?"

Zhou Jiuzhen didn't explain much. At the time, he had Ling Huanwu's consent form for handling the household registration and a certificate from the military. The staff at the civil affairs office made an exception because they had the marriage report and other materials that had been approved.

But now his marriage file is missing, and the marriage application in the military can't be approved, which means the two of them can't get married in the future.

Unless he can leave the army!

Zhou Jiuzhen almost lost his balance while leaning against the wall.

He looked at his adorable, plump wife in the post office, his eyes gradually hardening. "Let's go to the auditorium and get justice!"

The deep winter wind, carrying a biting chill, swept through the poplar trees in the military compound.

A worn-out military jeep screeched to a halt in front of the Great Hall of the People. The door was suddenly pushed open, and Zhou Jiuzhen, clutching his military cap which he hadn't worn in a long time, slammed his military boots on the concrete floor.

A meeting of military region cadres was being held in the auditorium to discuss various relocation and resettlement plans for Wantan Island.

Amidst the swirling smoke, Zhao Tingguo sat in the front row, listening to the report with a slight frown.

Behind him, Zhao Jingxiang leaned back in his chair, his fingers unconsciously tapping the back of his leg, his eyes revealing a coldness that kept strangers at bay.

Since Zhou Jiuzhen woke up, he took the opportunity to return to the city to assist in the plan to relocate the islands. After being trained in the countryside, his position was promoted from Minister of State-owned Department Store to Minister of Commerce.

Therefore, he was qualified to sit here and participate in this important decision.

The people in the auditorium were having a heated discussion about their new address.

Suddenly, the heavy wooden door was kicked open from the outside.

"Zhou Jiuzhen, 38th Independent Regiment stationed on Wantan Island, reporting!"

Zhou Jiuzhen's voice, like a steel rod chilled to ice, pierced the noisy meeting hall.

All eyes immediately turned to him, where he stood in his crisp military uniform, his epaulets gleaming under the overhead lights, but his face held a chilling expression that could crack stone.

Zhao Tingguo looked up and recognized the person as the vegetative state leader to whom he had awarded the badge a few days ago.

Initially, he received a report that Commander Zhou was dating a capitalist's daughter.

He didn't dislike capitalists, but their class positions differed. There was no precedent in the army for an officer marrying a capitalist's daughter, so he rejected the marriage application and demoted the officer.

Unexpectedly, this young man later became a vegetable after a heroic rescue, so the punishment was put on hold, and he also agreed to his regiment's political commissar's application to award him a first-class merit medal.

Looking at him again today, I was surprised to find that this young man's features resembled those of his eldest son.

Two guards stepped forward to stop him, saying, "Comrade Zhou Jiuzhen is in a meeting. If there is an urgent matter, we can talk about it later."

"This matter must be discussed here!"

Zhou Jiuzhen took two steps forward, the sound of his military boots rolling across the ground particularly clear in the silence.

His gaze swept across the entire room, finally settling on Zhao Jingxiang's face.

Zhao Jingxiang gave him a nonchalant smile, which pierced Zhou Jiuzhen's eyes like a thorn.

"I want to report Comrade Zhao Jingxiang!"

Zhou Jiuzhen's voice suddenly rose, making the windowpane vibrate. "Three days ago, at 11 p.m., Comrade Zhao Jingxiang scaled the wall and sneaked into the Stone Village Handicraft Production Cooperative. He broke into the office and made improper advances towards the cooperative's team leader. I demand that the organization severely punish him!"