For some reason, as she looked at the round, plump Egg in her hand and the people hurrying toward the Office Building, Qian Duoduo suddenly had the strange illusion that she was back in college.
Around her, the people were classmates, and Lu Qiming was the sweet roommate who kindly brought her breakfast…
In a daze for a moment, Qian Duoduo snapped back to herself, closed her fingers tightly around the Egg in her palm, and gave Lu Qiming a grateful smile. “Thank you, Captain Lu. I’ll accept this Egg.”
The clouds in the sky drifted apart, and a ray of sunlight broke through from behind the clouds. A golden halo enveloped the girl, softly bathing her in its glow.
From Lu Qiming’s angle, he could clearly see the fine, soft fuzz on her cheeks.
That radiant smile dazzled him for an instant, but his expression remained unchanged, and he made no move.
Qian Duoduo was still thinking about Officer Xue and Da Kuan, the blogger, who were in the Mess Hall, so she didn’t intend to linger. Before Lu Qiming could reply, she smiled again, her eyes squinting. “Officer Xue and the others are waiting for me. They said we still have to meet a few of the senior leaders later. Captain Lu, you go ahead, I’ll head in now?”
“Mm.” Lu Qiming kept his gaze on her. “Goodbye.”
“Bye-bye.” Qian Duoduo waved, then turned and jogged back to the Mess Hall lobby.
Lu Qiming watched that slender figure go.
Today she wore a beige down jacket over loose, sky-blue jeans. The whole outfit was light and neat. Her thick black hair was tied into a high ponytail with a dark bow.
As she ran, the jet-black ponytail swung with a lively arc, and the sunlight through the leaves gilded her hair with a flowing sheen of gold.
Youth and energy overflowed in her brisk steps.
Lu Qiming couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows ever so slightly.
Life in the Compound was dull and tedious. All these years, it was the first time he’d seen such a vivid and bright scene in the army camp.
Suddenly, his shoulder sank as a heavy force pressed down from behind.
Lu Qiming glanced sideways out of the corner of his eye, unsurprised to see Song Qingfeng’s handsome, slightly irritating face.
“Hey, hey, hey.” Song Qingfeng was about 1.8 meters tall, a few centimeters shorter than Lu Qiming. His arm looped naturally over Lu Qiming’s shoulder, as if it was the most familiar thing in the world. Song Qingfeng lowered his voice, bringing his mouth close to Lu Qiming’s ear. “Look at you, standing here at the Mess Hall entrance with all these people coming and going. Can’t you rein in your soul a bit? You’re practically glued to her already.”
Lu Qiming didn’t say a word, just casually shrugged Song Qingfeng’s arm off and strode toward the Office Building.
Song Qingfeng raised his eyebrows up and down.
He caught up in a few steps, drawling, “Yo, so you really have your eye on that little blogger girl? You can’t even be bothered to deny it anymore?”
Lu Qiming said, “Work hours. No gossip.”
“Tch, it’s still a few minutes before eight.” Song Qingfeng paused, suddenly thinking of something. His brows furrowed. “But didn’t you just go on a blind date recently? Back then you seemed pretty interested in your date. Now you see the little blogger and forget all about her? That doesn’t fit the Captain Lu I know.”
Lu Qiming kept walking his own way, not even glancing at Song Qingfeng. He just said, “My blind date is great. Ms. Qian is also great.”
“…So now you like both girls?” Song Qingfeng frowned even deeper, trying to persuade him. “Old Lu, you can’t have a foot in two boats. Don’t be that ‘casting a wide net’ playboy type. Personal conduct is important, no turning a blind eye!”
At that, Lu Qiming stopped walking and finally turned to look at Song Qingfeng.
Song Qingfeng stared back, expressionless, determined to defend the excellent conduct and noble image of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.
Lu Qiming commented objectively, “Old Song, your thinking is very correct.”
“Of course it’s correct.” Song Qingfeng snorted. “My wife and I have been childhood sweethearts, always faithful. ‘Loyalty’ is the best dowry a man can have, get it? You either keep chasing your blind date, or give her up before making a move on the blogger girl. Can’t have it both ways.”
“My previous blind date is Qian Duoduo,” Lu Qiming said calmly.
Song Qingfeng’s eyes went wide and he froze.
“And another thing. I don’t like you using the term ‘making a move’ to describe my feelings for Qian Duoduo,” Lu Qiming said casually. “The Chinese language is rich. Next time, pick a better word.”
Song Qingfeng was bewildered, not sure how he’d touched this comrade’s sore spot. His expression grew blank. “What’s wrong with those words? Doesn’t everyone say it like that… You’re just making a move on her, aren’t you?”
“You could say I have feelings for her.”
“…”
All right, you’re really pure-hearted.
Song Qingfeng had no idea how to deal with this cold, iron-blooded, yet extra pure-hearted captain.
He fell silent for two seconds, then sighed, “So your blind date is actually the blogger girl? You two are really fated.”
They chatted as they walked, and before long, they’d reached the doors of the Office Building.
A security officer with a stern face and a detector came forward.
Lu Qiming and Song Qingfeng stopped, each taking their personal phones from their pockets and placing them in the Security Cabinet, then stood in front of the Infrared Scanner.
After the scan,
Lu Qiming and Song Qingfeng entered the elevator.
Pressed the floor button.
While waiting for the elevator, Song Qingfeng suddenly remembered something. “Wait, didn’t you say your blind date didn’t like you?”
Lu Qiming looked straight ahead, face calm. “Mm.”
Song Qingfeng choked, his expression hard to describe. “Then why are you so attentive? She’s obviously popular, a big influencer… From what I know, girls like her aren’t into soldiers. They prefer that kind of artistic, sweet-talking, fashionable guy.”
“Still worth a try.” Lu Qiming’s expression was unchanged, but the light in his eyes was deep and intriguing. “You never know.”
Song Qingfeng was silent, then gave Lu Qiming a smile and a fist-to-palm salute. “Good luck.”
*
Over at the Mess Hall, Qian Duoduo tucked the Egg from Lu Qiming into her coat pocket before returning to her seat.
Seeing her come back, Xue Wei casually asked, “Ms. Qian, did you finish your business?”
“Mm.” Qian Duoduo nodded. “Sorry for making you wait.”
“Not at all, we were just eating.” Xue Wei replied, taking a sip of rice porridge, while pondering inwardly.
After what happened this morning, it was obvious to everyone that Captain Lu and this blogger girl had some kind of connection. But in the workplace, colleagues see each other all the time. Even if people were curious, no one would really dig into the relationship between the two. Everyone just pretended not to notice.
Knowing how to restrain and suppress your curiosity is a basic adult skill.
While Officer Xue was lost in thought, Da Kuan seemed unconcerned, quietly finishing off his bowl of noodles.
Once Da Kuan finished his “clean plate campaign,” Xue Wei glanced at the plates in front of the two bloggers and asked, “Have you both finished eating?”
“Yes.” Both nodded.
“The bosses are still in a meeting, so I’ll take you to get familiar with the Cooking Squad.” Xue Wei smiled, then took the initiative to clear Qian Duoduo and Da Kuan’s plates.
“We can do it ourselves!” Qian Duoduo quickly picked up her plate.
“Exactly,” Da Kuan chimed in with a smile. “Officer Xue, since we’re living here now, just treat us like everyone else. No special treatment. We can handle our own stuff.”
“All right then. This way, please.”
After clearing the plates, the three followed Officer Xue to the Mess Hall kitchen.
Unlike local businesses or government units that hire professional chef teams, in the army camp, all the cooking was done by actual soldier cooks.
As soon as she entered the kitchen, Qian Duoduo was attracted by the vegetables piled at the door.
There were several large plastic baskets filled with all kinds of vegetables— tomatoes, potatoes, corn, carrots…
The fresh veggies were neatly arranged, each one plump and vibrant, like little soldiers lined up in the baskets.
“Squad Leader Cui!” Xue Wei called out with a smile.
At his words, a young soldier in desert camouflage at the washing station turned around. Seeing Xue Wei, the soldier’s dark face immediately broke into a broad grin, his white teeth flashing. “Officer Xue.”
“Busy, huh?” Xue Wei said.
“Busy, yeah.” Squad Leader Cui joked, “Just finished breakfast, now we have to wash dishes. After that, it’s time to prep lunch. We’ve been at it since four in the morning.”
As Officer Xue chatted with Squad Leader Cui, Qian Duoduo looked around.
The kitchen was spacious, clean, and bright. The floor and worktops were spotless, not a single stray vegetable leaf in sight.
Several young soldiers in camouflage were busy in an orderly way— one dumping baskets of potatoes into a huge washing basin to clean under the faucet, another chopping meat quickly on a cutting board.
The various sounds mingled together, full of the energy of daily life.
As she was looking around, she heard Officer Xue call her. “Ms. Qian!”
“Oh!” Qian Duoduo snapped out of it and hurried over.
“Squad Leader Cui, let me introduce you.” Xue Wei smiled. “These are the two bloggers taking part in the ‘Walk into Mess Squad’ Military-Civilian Exchange Activity: Ms. Qian Duoduo and Mr. Da Kuan. Ms. Qian, Mr. Da Kuan, this is the squad leader of our camp’s Cooking Squad, Cui Yurong.”
“Hello, Squad Leader Cui.” Qian Duoduo extended her right hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Cui Yurong had joined the army at eighteen and had been assigned to the Cooking Squad in the Stonewater District Compound for six years.
Although he was squad leader, he was only twenty-four— a sunny, cheerful, and always smiling big guy.
Seeing the pretty blogger he’d only seen in videos now standing in front of him, offering a handshake, Cui Yurong blushed, then quickly gave a shy smile in return. “Hello, hello.”
Da Kuan also offered his hand. “Hello, Squad Leader Cui. I hope we can work well together over the next month.”
“Welcome to the Cooking Squad to guide our work,” Squad Leader Cui said.
Afterward, Cui Yurong called over the other soldiers working in the kitchen to introduce them one by one to Qian Duoduo and Da Kuan.
“Liu Jie, Han Lei, Haozi, that’s Zhang Da, and that’s Xiao Honghua…”
“What do you mean, Xiao Honghua!” A young soldier’s face flushed red as he protested, “Squad Leader, my name is Xiao Honghua! Can you stop saying it with an accent!”
“Right, right, Xiao Honghua, Comrade Xiao Honghua!” Cui Yurong laughed.
Most of the Cooking Squad members had just been assigned here.
Except for the twenty-four-year-old squad leader Cui Yurong, most of the young soldiers were only eighteen or nineteen, lively and cheerful.
The whole squad atmosphere was harmonious and friendly, full of warmth.
Leaving the kitchen, Qian Duoduo couldn’t help but praise, “Officer Xue, your Cooking Squad’s atmosphere is really great.”
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