Jiang Wanqing lowered her head, took a sip of soup, and smiled faintly without saying a word.
The meal ended quietly after Guo Xueyun left. Cheng's parents asked a few questions occasionally, and Jiang Wanqing only gave a brief reply, showing proper manners without engaging in excessive conversation.
Before leaving, Cheng's mother said, "Wanqing, why don't you stay here tonight? I'll make your bed."
"No need, thank you. My things are all at the guesthouse. I'll just go back to my room," Jiang Wanqing replied politely.
Cheng Ran frowned, a hint of displeasure creeping into her eyes as she looked at her mother.
He told his family yesterday that he would bring his wife back. If he really wanted her to stay overnight, he should have prepared everything long ago instead of just saying it in a hurry now.
“I’m with Wanqing.” He answered without hesitation.
Cheng's mother opened her mouth, then said anxiously, "Our home is here, why are you staying in a guesthouse..."
"Wanqing is my wife, but more importantly, she is my family. Wherever she is, that's my home. Do you understand?"
He held Jiang Wanqing's hand tightly, giving her a strong sense of security, and she smiled slightly.
"I'm fine. You stay and keep your parents company. We'll have plenty of opportunities to meet after we go back. It's rare for your parents to see you."
These words struck a chord with Cheng's mother, while Jiang Wanqing wore a considerate, harmless smile.
"No need, I'll go back to the guesthouse with you."
After saying that, Cheng Ran and Jiang Wanqing went out together. Cheng's mother pointed at their backs, speechless for a long time, and sighed indignantly.
"It's true what they say, once you have a wife, you forget your mother. If I had married Ruoxue, at least I would have someone by my side. You know... sigh, why can't that girl be patient? If she really liked Cheng Ran, maybe she would have waited two more years..."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Are there people in this world who would like their son to get divorced?" Mr. Cheng interrupted her.
"Alright, alright, I won't say anything more. Children and grandchildren have their own blessings; let's see how the couple's future goes."
Mother Cheng was too lazy to go out and see him off, so she went straight into the house and went back to her room to sulk.
Back at the guesthouse, Cheng Ran followed her all the way to her room.
"Are you feeling better?" he asked with concern.
He had noticed her hand was cold as soon as he held it, and worried that she might still be uncomfortable, so he took out a white paper package containing medicine from his pocket and handed it to her.
"Take one if your stomach still hurts."
Jiang Wanqing was stunned. She had been with him since last night and had no idea when he had bought the medicine.
She wanted to say thank you, but felt that would be too distant, so she simply accepted it and said "okay".
He didn't leave for a long time. Jiang Wanqing cleared her throat, turned her face away, and dared not look him in the eye.
"Aren't you...aren't you leaving yet?"
"Are you kicking me out?" Cheng Ran's tone carried an unusual sense of grievance.
"Isn't your room next door?"
"I checked out; I only booked one day."
Jiang Wanqing opened her eyes wide in confusion.
"Why? Are you going home later?"
"I won't reply."
"and you……"
Cheng Ran stroked her hair, gesturing to the neatly made bed.
"I don't think you'll ignore me for long. I hope I'm not just imagining things."
Uh… Jiang Wanqing’s eyelids twitched. Why did she have a feeling of being targeted by a wolf?
She took a notebook out of her bag and sat down at the simple wooden table in the room.
"I'll organize what Professor Xue taught me again."
"I'll stay with you."
He moved a small stool and sat down next to her, almost in a squatting position, seemingly unaware of the discomfort.
She glanced down, quickly looked away, closed her eyes, and focused on her own task.
Before long, she was completely absorbed in the task, forgetting that there was another person beside her. Her pen flew across the paper, just like her quick and clear thinking.
She wrote a full page, and Cheng Ran watched quietly from the side. He wasn't surprised by just one or two words, since he only had a superficial understanding of these professional knowledge. But after looking at the whole page, he felt that the overall style of the writing was extremely similar to that of the letter he had read today!
"etc……"
"What's wrong?"
She frowned in confusion, seeing his serious expression, and thought something terrible had happened. She even subconsciously looked out the window, but there was nothing there, quiet and clean.
"Show me what you wrote."
He didn't take it directly, but first asked for her permission. Jiang Wanqing was just puzzled. What she wrote wasn't anything confidential, just some conversions and experimental ideas. It wouldn't hurt to let him see it, so she pushed it in front of him.
"Look, see."
She rested her chin on one hand, her eyes slightly lowered, and couldn't help but chuckle when she saw him looking at her so seriously.
Her slender fingers tapped twice on the paper: "Hey, what are you looking at so intently? Does Battalion Commander Cheng also want to discuss academic matters?"
Cheng Ran's fingers tightened; he was almost certain that the handwriting was 80% similar to that of the letter...
Could she be the one who wrote the letter? A strange light flickered in his eyes.
Seeing that he seemed hesitant to speak, Jiang Wanqing lowered her hand and asked, "Is there something you want to ask me?"
Since it concerned the mission, Cheng Ran could not and should not ask directly, otherwise it would backfire.
He carefully considered his words: "Besides writing to Professor Xue, have you written to anyone else in the Beijing area?"
His sudden question startled Jiang Wanqing, a barely perceptible glint of darkness flashing in her eyes…
She smiled and calmly answered his question.
"Yes, Professor Xue gave me the contact addresses of several other authoritative scholars. I wrote to them, but not as frequently as Professor Xue. Why is that?"
Cheng Ran certainly believed her words were true, but he couldn't glean any information he wanted from her words alone. He narrowed his eyes, smiled, and shook his head.
"Nothing, you can continue."
He pushed the papers back and got up from the small stool...
Her expression remained calm, revealing nothing. She picked up her pen and continued writing, though the habitual strokes of her handwriting showed subtle changes.
To be fair, Cheng Ran's sensitivity was many times greater than that of ordinary people, but for Jiang Wanqing, this might not be a good thing. That very night, she tore up all the papers with writing on them, leaving not a trace...
That night, she didn't chase Cheng Ran away, and the two slept in the same bed. He hugged her from behind. The northern winter night was bone-chillingly cold, and Jiang Wanqing wasn't used to it, especially since her stomach was uncomfortable, and she could hardly sleep.
A pair of warm hands covered her lower abdomen and gently massaged it.
"Thank you."
Before Jiang Wanqing could speak, Cheng Ran spoke first. She had her back to him and couldn't see his face, so she didn't know what he was like at that moment. She could only hear some heartfelt emotions in his voice.
"Huh? Why are you thanking me?"
"Thank you for appearing in my life and becoming my second life."
"Why are you being so sentimental? It's so cheesy."
Jiang Wanqing shrank back, but Cheng Ran hugged her tightly.
"It's not cheesy, it comes from the bottom of my heart."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
