"Tanjin is hardly a place of peace,"
"Brother Lu, is there really any place in this world that’s truly peaceful?"
Song Lili helped roll up the wallpaper, her lips gently curving into a smile.
Lu Ziqing raised an eyebrow and glanced at Song Lili, feeling that such a desolate and negative expression shouldn’t appear on the face of a twenty-year-old girl, at least not on Song Lili’s face...
The Song Lili who had fallen flat on her face in dog poop but didn’t care as she got up and ran towards him and Xiao Hua,
Her little round face was more brilliant than the sun itself as she held up the flowers she had picked,
"Look how pretty these flowers are!"
"But the flowers smell good! Ear Lu, you smell them. Otherwise, Brother Lu, you smell them and see if they’re fragrant, won’t you?"
Seventeen-year-old Lu Ziqing mocked her for falling into dog poop but was surprised by her indifference and lost in her foolish laughter...
In the eyes of that ten-year-old girl, there were the purest things in the world that haunted him for ten years...
Jolted back to the present, Lu Ziqing suddenly flicked Song Lili’s forehead hard with his finger,
"My hand was a bit itchy."
Lu Ziqing stood up and dusted off his hands.
Song Lili looked at him in shock.
"I’ll take you out for a walk, and tonight I’ll treat you to dinner."
Song Lili truly couldn’t understand Lu Ziqing, but...
"Thank you... for preparing all this..."
"Don’t be so formal. Just do well on your exam, don’t disgrace me. Others may not know, but Company Commander Duan knows you’re my person."
What does it mean... your person?
Song Lili’s heart was pounding—did all the old men at Xilin Military Region have such a lack of concern for propriety?
The small restaurant was in the town, not far from the neighborhood.
With a sign that read "Luoshe Family Dishes"—Luoshe being the name of this small county town.
Merely walking beside Lu Ziqing for a few minutes, Song Lili fully understood his reputation in this community.
Song Lili had grown up in the military compound and was quite familiar with soldiers. After living in the President Mansion for thirteen years, she had seen many military officers, both big and small, but it was rare to find an officer like Lu Ziqing, who was so cordial and familiar with almost everyone in the town.
"Senior Lu, you’ve got to introduce us. Who is this beautiful young lady?"
The owners of the small restaurant asked teasingly.
"A distant relative’s child, sort of like my sister. Her name is Tang Xiaohua."
Having said that, Lu Ziqing looked at Song Lili, as if asking whether this explanation was satisfying.
Naturally, Song Lili was satisfied and politely greeted the restaurant’s owner and his wife, "Hello."
"She’s so pretty! How old are you? Do you have a boyfriend yet?"
"Madam, we’re all hungry. Cook us some dishes to fill our stomachs, what do you think?"
Lu Ziqing decisively interrupted the proprietress’s probing of Song Lili.
The proprietress gave Lu Ziqing a glare, "Commander, you won’t let me be a matchmaker, and you won’t let me do it for your distant relatives either. Don’t you trust me?"
"How could I not? Boss, why don’t you hurry and pull your wife into the kitchen? I surrender; I can’t outtalk her."
"Haha, alright, alright. Senior Lu, Miss Tang, please wait a moment."
Song Lili couldn’t help but smile. The decoration of the restaurant was simple, with clean tables and several long benches. The tables were set with chopsticks and some condiments, and facing the door was a fortune-bringing Maneki Neko cat.