"Hahahaha..." A comment from a junior colleague set off a roomful of roaring laughter.
"You really are not afraid of dying, I admire your spirit," the company commander said, patting the dirt off himself and chuckling. "You’d better be careful tomorrow. The work won’t be easy. Do you still want Qin Jian to mentor you? If you want him to remember you... hehe... watch out for his special treatment."
The junior colleague sneaked a glance at the battalion commander, saw his stern face, and felt his heart pounding with fear that he might receive special attention tomorrow.
So, he hurriedly brownnosed, "Our Qin Jian isn’t like that... Right, battalion commander?"
"Can’t really say..." Qin Jian interjected nonchalantly.
"Then I should probably make a quick exit..." The junior colleague immediately shrank back into the crowd.
An Hao found it hardest to cope when a bunch of people teased her.
She stood at the door, not knowing whether to go in or out, speak or remain silent; she was exceedingly awkward.
"Stop teasing my sister," An Ping said, putting down a hot water kettle, tea leaves, and a huge stack of bowls on the table to brew tea for everyone.
The yard was too small to fit everyone, and there weren’t enough bowls either.
Several observant colleagues saw the situation and promptly advised the others, "Those who don’t need to be here can go eat!"
With those words, hordes of people left the courtyard.
In the end, only Qin Jian, Jian Ying, Tian Niu, and a few people including An Ping were left.
Seeing that it was getting late, Qin Jian also came to say farewell to An Hao, "We have to head back now. Tomorrow, we’ll be going up the mountain for an assignment, so it might be a while before we see each other again."
As he spoke about not seeing An Hao, there was a faint sense of loss in his heart.
"Qin Jian, how long will you be training around here?" An Hao asked.
"At least two months, or up to three to five months. It really depends on how the mission goes," Qin Jian replied, his gaze then landing on An Hao’s leg, noticing she had been standing for a long time. "You should go rest earlier; we need to leave."
"Hey, don’t go." An Hao quickly tried to persuade them to stay, "You’ve been working hard for so long, have dinner before you go!"
"No need, some other time," Qin Jian declined An Hao’s invitation.
For one, she was currently not able to move around freely with her leg.
Secondly, she had just moved, and there wasn’t enough food prepared. Men who worked in the field could eat a lot, and they would definitely consume quite a bit of her food.
Thirdly, she needed to focus on her college entrance exams. If her family got wind of his and An Hao’s relationship at this time, his mother would likely come looking for An Hao.
From any of the above considerations, it was something he did not want to happen.
An Hao felt bad, insisting on keeping them there: "Qin Jian, didn’t you ask me to think of a way to thank you?"
Today’s dinner is my first token of thanks!
Under the light, she looked earnestly at Qin Jian, her eyes full of the wish for him to stay.
Those moist eyes were enough to evoke pity from anyone who saw them.
Qin Jian also felt the impulse to stay, but in the end, he chose to leave with reality in mind, "I’ll remember your first token of thanks. Be good and go back inside."
Saying this, he walked back with Jian Ying and Tian Niu.
On the way, Jian Ying sympathetically said for him, "You could have stayed, and we would have left. Why did you insist on going?"
"Gone is gone, why all the fuss?" Qin Jian raised an eyebrow and glanced at him sideways.
"Tch! No wonder you can’t find a wife, serves you right!"
PS: Today’s seven updates are done, promise kept! So, you know the drill... my updates are up to you guys! If you support me energetically, tomorrow will be another seven updates... Let’s keep building it up step by step! Thanks to everyone who gave a tip! Thank you, every single one of you! Mwah～(^з^)-☆