Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Seeing Feng Ling so obedient, Qiao Fei even had an urge to pick up chopsticks and feed her.
But he knew what kind of personality Feng Ling had. This innocent, cute look was only for a moment.
He smiled at her and said, “Eat first. Speak when you are full and have enough strength.”
Feng Ling looked at him again and asked, putting food into her mouth, “What do you want me to say?”
Qiao Fei glanced at the door that had closed automatically, and then looked at her. “What happened between you and Boss Li? According to what he said yesterday… Does he know your secret?”
Feng Ling paused. “I don’t know very well.”
“What do you mean by ‘don’t know very well’? Do you know it or not? When I found out you’re a woman, I knew it. I won’t tell people ‘I don’t know very well’!”
Feng Ling didn’t explain but lowered her head to continue eating.
Seeing she didn’t want to say much about it, Qiao Fei sighed. She had always been like this. She never talked with others about herself, but was strangely attractive to people. No matter men or women, everyone wanted to be closer to her.
Qiao Fei simply sat next to her and held her wrist, and when Feng Ling was trying to pull her hand out, he held her hand more tightly. “Don’t move.”
“What are you doing?” Feng Ling had sobered up. Even though she was not as cold and sharp as usual, when her hands were suddenly held, she just wanted to pull it out.
“You have regarded yourself as a man since you were a child, so you have no concept whether you’re a man or a woman, do you?” Qiao Fei held her hand, looked at her eyes, and asked seriously.
Feng Ling looked at him for a while, without nodding or shaking her head.
She knew she was a woman. She just didn’t think it necessary to clarify whether she was a man or a woman.
“So even if I like you, you can’t feel it?”
Feng Ling was surprised, but the next moment she withdrew her hand.
Looking at the palms that were empty in an instant, Qiao Fei gazed at her again.
Feng Ling put down her fork. “Deputy Drillmaster Qiao, I …”
“The other members often call me Brother Qiao. Of the five, only you call me Deputy Drillmaster.” Qiao Fei looked at her. “I know you can’t accept my love for the time being, and I’m not pushing you to accept me. I just want to tell you that you don’t have to avoid me. This is just the simplest love and appreciation of a man to a girl. I don’t have any other purpose; I like you and want to take care of you. That’s all.”
Feng Ling raised her hand and brushed her hair casually. “I’ve been used to being alone since my childhood, and I don’t need to be taken care of. Thank you for your kindness, Deputy Drillmaster Qiao. It’s not that I don’t accept you, but that I have never considered something like this. It’s not in my current plan.”
Qiao Fei immediately smiled. He raised his eyebrows and looked at her. “Do you think you will spend your whole life at XI Base? Sooner or later, you’ll quit and get married. Take me for example, I am still in XI Base because I was in poor health when I was a child, and my parents wanted me to be stronger, so I was sent here, but after a few years, I’ll still have to go home and inherit the family business, get married, and have children. No matter men or women, we have to live our lives step by step. This is not something you can plan. Before meeting you, I had never considered what kind of woman I like, but all of a sudden, love comes. Who can predict this?”
Feng Ling didn’t know what to say. She took another sip of milk and said, after thinking about it, “Is there any training program I have to participate in tomorrow? If not, I will rest for another day, and if there is, I will go over early so as not to delay others’ training.”
“I’m talking to you about something serious. Don’t divert the topic.” Qiao Fei frowned, looking at her.
“I’m talking about serious things too.” Feng Ling put down the glass: “In this XI Base, isn’t training, missions, systems, and rules the most serious things?”
Qiao Fei stared at her face, and after a while, he suddenly smiled. “Are you reminding me that I violated the rules and regulations of the base?”
Feng Ling smiled faintly. “There is indeed a rule in the base that no member is allowed to have any love affair before leaving the base. After all, many missions are life-risking. The members can’t have too much concern and regret. Otherwise, we will only be distracted, and it is safest to focus on training and missions.”
Qiao Fei chuckled. “Silly girl, I didn’t say I want to have a love affair with you. You’re still so young. I don’t want to rob the cradle.”
Feng Ling: “…”
“Besides, I won’t leave the base until three years later. For the time being, I just like you, so I want to take care of you as long as I can. After I leave the base, no rules and regulations can restrict me. I’ll be free to love any woman then! I just want you to wait for me, understood?”
Feng Ling: “… Deputy Drillmaster Qiao, although I don’t understand very well if you want to have a love affair with a woman, you have to get her consent first, right?”
Qiao Fei’s eyelids twitched, and before he said anything, Feng Ling continued, “But I don’t feel that way for you…”
Qiao Fei: “….”
Feng Ling looked into his eyes and said a bit awkwardly, “Am I being rude?”
Qiao Fei caressed his forehead and then seemed to want to pat her shoulder, but he hesitated, retracted his hand, and patted his thigh instead, saying helplessly, “It’s okay. You’re not rude. You’ve been a man for a long time, and being straightforward is not bad. I’m not in a hurry. Let’s take it slowly.”
With that, he put down his hand, looked at her again with a smile, and said gently, “No hurry. I have enough patience. You’ll feel the same for me one day. I still have a few years to win your heart.”
“No, I don’t even…”
“Okay, let’s not talk about this topic for now.” Qiao Fei raised his hand to signal her to shut up, refusing to listen to her next words. “Eat first.”
Feng Ling still wanted to speak, but Qiao Fei picked up his phone and glanced at it. “I just received a call before I came. I have to go to the meeting room now. You eat first. I’m not in a hurry to make you accept me. I’m not in a hurry at all, so you don’t have to hurry to reject me. I know. You are a man now, and I will treat you as a man, OK?”
“But…”
“Okay, Okay, I have to go.” Qiao Fei looked at her, signaling her to shut up, then took the phone and walked away.
Feng Ling: “…”