A faint smile played on Shen Huaichuan's lips, a hint of amusement flickering in his deep eyes. His expression remained calm and composed, as if everything was under his control.
"Yes, Qiqi made it herself. Comrade Lei should have seen it before, right? Doesn't it look familiar?"
He deliberately dragged out the last syllable, speaking in a slow, deliberate tone, with a hint of nonchalant boasting.
These words made Lei Ming's gaze suddenly focus, staring at the floral pattern, and his memories instantly surged.
"This is... the one in the bag when we caught the thief last time..."
Recalling how much Zhou Qiqi cherished the clothes in the snakeskin bag that day, his face instantly turned as pale as paper.
Shen Huaichuan nodded.
"That's right, thanks to Comrade Lei for his bravery in catching the thief for Qiqi, which saved this set of pajamas."
As he continued, he pressed his advantage and handed over an exquisite kraft paper bag.
“Your suit was torn back then, so I specially bought you a new one. You must accept it.”
Lei Ming waved his hand, his voice sounding somewhat weak.
"You're too kind. I already told Qiqi that she didn't need to pay for my suit. In any case, she saved me."
"Without Qiqi, it wouldn't just be the suit that's torn."
When Shen Huaichuan heard him repeatedly use "Qiqi," his eyebrows twitched slightly, and his tone suddenly became assertive.
"Qi...no, my wife said that this favor must be repaid. If Comrade Lei doesn't accept it, I'll have to send it to Political Commissar Lei."
Upon hearing the words "Political Commissar Lei," Lei Ming felt a chill run down his spine.
He had been afraid of his uncle since he was a child, who always had a stern face and gave him ideological education lessons. How could he dare to tell his uncle about this?
He could only grit his teeth and reluctantly accept the return gift.
He turned around and casually tossed the suit aside, looking utterly disgusted.
Actually, the reason he refused to accept the return gift before was because he thought he could use it to maintain some connection with Zhou Qiqi, and maybe they would have a chance to meet again in the future.
But now that they've accepted it, that faint hope has been completely shattered.
He couldn't help but wonder if Shen Huaichuan had already seen through his little scheme.
After two rounds of combat, Lei Ming was repeatedly defeated by Shen Huaichuan.
He had never experienced such a setback in his life.
Feeling both frustrated and angry, I made an excuse to go to the restroom and left in a hurry.
By the time he returned, dinner was almost ready.
Qin Lei was busy setting up tables and chairs, separating those who ate spicy food from those who didn't.
Battalion Commander Jiang helped bring the meat to the table, but when he saw the situation, he refused to comply.
"Stone, what's wrong with you? Why did you put all the stools over there? We only have two stools left, and it's just me and Commander Wang sitting here? This is outrageous!"
"Quickly, bring your commander's chair over here!"
Battalion Commander Jiang brought a bottle of good wine today, hoping to support Shen Huaichuan, but this is the treatment he received. He was extremely unhappy.
Stone scratched his head, looking helpless.
"Battalion Commander Jiang, there's nothing we can do. Your table has spicy hot pot, and our regimental commander can't handle spicy food very well!"
Battalion Commander Jiang curled his lip, his face full of disgust.
"Can't even handle spicy food? That's so pathetic, not manly enough!"
He glanced at Lei Ming beside him, and his eyes lit up.
"And what about Comrade Xiao Lei? Can you handle spicy food?"
Shen Huaichuan knew that Lei Ming, like Political Commissar Lei, was from Guangzhou and couldn't handle spicy food very well, so he was about to help answer.
But Lei Ming spoke first, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"I can eat spicy food! I can handle spicy food! What's wrong with not being able to eat spicy food!"
The voice carried a sense of resignation, as if it were something to be done with.
Upon hearing this, Battalion Commander Jiang was overjoyed and grabbed Lei Ming by the neck, pulling him toward his desk.
"Come on, perfect timing, let's sit together! I'll treat you to a proper meal!"
Shen Huaichuan watched as Lei Ming followed without looking back, and helplessly gave Qin Lei a wink, signaling him to move his own chair to that table as well.
Qin Lei immediately said, "Then I'll sit at the same table as you!"
Shen Huaichuan shook his head, his tone calm.
"No need, you go to that table and help your sister-in-law greet the guests. I can handle things here."
The coal stove was burning brightly, and the spicy broth was bubbling and churning inside.
Thinly sliced beef and mutton, tender green vegetables, are coated with a layer of bright red chili oil as soon as they hit the pot.
Looking at the sizzling scene, Lei Ming felt a chill run down his spine, his throat tightened, and he even considered backing out.
But when he saw that Shen Huaichuan was also sitting at this table, his competitive spirit instantly surged up.
He gritted his teeth, grabbed the spicy beef that Battalion Commander Jiang had given him, and put it in his mouth.
The spiciness is like a firecracker exploding, shooting from the tip of the tongue to the top of the head.
Lei Ming's eyes were red and swollen, with tears welling up in his eyes.
But Shen Huaichuan was sitting right next to him, so how could he show weakness?
He could only force himself to swallow the beef, and even gave Shen Huaichuan, who hadn't touched his chopsticks, a defiant glance.
This was his third offensive; he refused to believe that he was no match for Shen Huaichuan!
But to his surprise, before Shen Huaichuan could even make a move, Battalion Commander Jiang, as if he had found a kindred spirit, warmly put his arm around his shoulder and praised him loudly.
"Brother Lei, you've got guts! Come on, let me toast you!"
"I..."
Don't let Lei Ming's status as a playboy fool you; he never drinks alcohol.
But with Shen Huaichuan right there today, he didn't want to lose face at all.
He snatched the glass, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp!
"So generous!"
Battalion Commander Jiang had thought he would have no one to drink with today, but he was overjoyed. He returned the toast with two drinks and even put his arm around Lei Ming, calling him a brother.
At the dinner table, it's customary to reciprocate. After being toasted twice, Lei Ming had no choice but to grit his teeth and drink another cup.
This is a very strong pure grain liquor. After two cups, he felt dizzy, his stomach was churning, and he was in a lot of pain.
But he maintained a facade and didn't show any unusual behavior.
At this moment, Commander Wang also walked over with a wine glass in his hand.
As a guest, Battalion Commander Jiang had already offered a toast, so he had to reciprocate.
Lei Ming understood basic social etiquette and knew he couldn't refuse this drink.
He forced a smile and was about to raise his glass when a slender hand stopped him.
"Comrade Xiao Lei is my guest, so I'll drink his wine in his place!"
Shen Huaichuan's voice was calm and unhurried, yet carried an undeniable power.
As soon as he finished speaking, his fingertips firmly gripped the wine glass, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he drank it all in one gulp.
Battalion Commander Jiang usually loves to drink and has always been worried about not having anyone to drink with. Now that it's the New Year, he poured two more glasses of wine and brought them over.
"Good, good, good! Comrade Lei is so generous! Commander Shen is so loyal too! Let's drink until we drop tonight!"
......
Shen Huaichuan kept his word; every glass of wine he offered to Lei Ming went straight into his stomach.
Not only that, Shen Huaichuan also had Qin Lei bring over two bowls filled with water so that Lei Ming could rinse the food in the pot before eating.
Lei Ming drank two glasses of baijiu (Chinese liquor), and his head was throbbing badly, but he also knew clearly that he had lost this third round as well.
A complete defeat.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com