CHAPTER 97: CHAPTER 095 ALL CONSPIRED TO DECEIVE HIM

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Xie Jingchen had to catch a train from the county town to leave, so before departing, he made a point of bidding farewell to his former commander and casually mentioned his assignments for the coming months.

Of course, before he left, he also passed on salutations from his immediate superiors, Mr. Zheng and Chief Tao, to the old commander.

Xie Jingchen distinctly felt his own aging hand tremble slightly, yet, the old commander regained his composure in a mere moment, nodded to acknowledge, and then closed his eyes.

"Careful, you rascal," Liu Aimin murmured softly as he watched the tall and robust young man, now powerful, about to disappear at the turn near the door, his voice full of tender caution.

Xie Jingchen continued striding forward unabated, as if he hadn’t heard.

However, just as his figure was about to step out of the door, he subtly nodded almost imperceptibly. The guard leading the way, Wang Lixing, didn’t even notice the slight movement behind him.

Without hesitation, Xie Jingchen headed straight for the train station after saying goodbye to the old commander. He timed it perfectly, arriving just ten minutes before the train, entering his cabin and waiting there for over half an hour before the train began to move.

Only then did he pull out the food bag prepared by his dear wife, noticing the specially made thick gray cloth bag and seeing at the bottom a few clear water bottles—

Xie Jingchen’s eyes, deep and dark, flickered slightly; his movement had no pause of surprise. He grabbed a scallion pancake and took a bite as naturally as one would long to nibble on the tender neck of a loved one, his heavy gaze laden with undercurrents; not even the bits of braised egg inside the pancake could slow him down, as he chewed slowly and swallowed.

Xie Jingchen’s expression remained unchanged, and being in the upper bunk, no one else noticed his actions. However, the moment he took out the scented pancakes, its aroma immediately filled the cabin. Additionally, the eggs, which Zhang Shanni had already peeled fearing her husband would conserve his ration or find going to the restroom on the train too troublesome, had been neatly packaged by her.

When he bit into it, the aroma of the braised egg filled the air. Zhang Shanni’s marinade was not of this era’s bland taste; she had concocted it using soy sauce she preserved from the future, even warming it at home for him, so it still retained a hint of warmth when he ate it.

This warmth came from a metal water kettle from Rong Guard, which retained the heat.

Inside the kettle was not just plain water but a thick rice soup meticulously cooked by Zhang Shanni, free of any oily smell, with only the sweet essence of sweet potatoes, which paired perfectly with the scallion-stuffed braised egg pancakes, creating a delicious taste.

"Gulp~" "Gulp"

Sounds of swallowing saliva consecutively echoed in the cabin; two young men seated below clandestinely exchanged glances and then quickly exited the cabin.

Both men were seen hurriedly escaping with an embarrassed ’awkward’ expression.

This was a special cabin on the train, with four seats spread across the top and bottom sides, providing a relatively spacious area. It had been secured by Xie Jingchen using his Rong Guard official status.

As such, the men sitting here were not ordinary citizens; those in such privileged Rong Guard cabins were either nobility, relatives of the Rong Guard, or like him, members of the Rong Guard themselves.

Xie Jingchen did not display any arrogance openly; on one hand, his survival instinct taught him not to court death without substantial strength — not everyone is entitled to throw their weight around blindly, as acting foolish without thought only leads to tragic consequences.

On the other hand, his very appearance was imposing enough to others; were he to remain stern-faced, it would convey a sense of bullying the weak.

And when he stepped outside, he didn’t put on a stern face. In fact, sensing the love his young wife put into the food she made for him, and her implied trust, his tiger-like eyes softened and his lips curled into a smile, making him look exceptionally gentle.

At that moment, reminiscing after his departure, his facial expression could be described as exceptionally tender, like still waters.

But being a tall and muscular man, over 1.9 meters, and a Rong Guard, the other two passengers in the same carriage instantly felt intimidated by his imposing stature. They awkwardly moved away, not daring to stay and lose face, indeed not daring to disturb him.

There was no helping it, comparing oneself to others can be aggravating!

After confirming their departure, Xie Jingchen, making use of the opportunity, deftly tucked the ’special’ water bottle his little wife gave him into the very bottom layer of his backpack.

At the same time, he remembered that his little wife had specifically told him before he left that all the food in the bag was especially prepared for him, and he shouldn’t ’share’ it with anyone else!

After completing these actions, Xie Jingchen turned back and continued to nibble on the second scallion pancake, taking a bite of pancake and a sip of rice soup alternately. In ten minutes, he had polished off five pancakes and finished all the rice soup.

Meanwhile, he sorted out the uneasiness he had been feeling lately—his little wife was just a village girl who hardly left home; how come she knew so much about the ’common knowledge’ of the Rong Guards?

Moreover, coming from a village girl with no family history of chefs, where did her excellent cooking skills originate from?

Furthermore, whether it was strength, caution, or agility, his little wife was no less capable than his experienced Rong Guards!

Looking at himself, he had suffered a gunshot wound in the lower back during the war. Although the bullet had been removed, he still experienced pain during stormy weather or when using his back excessively. The pain had already spread to his shoulder area before he returned home!

When did his body start feeling stronger? At the time, he was completely focused on his new marriage and felt excessively safe and unthreatened at home, leading him to relax his guard around his own people, and without realizing it, he was led astray by his little wife!

Oh, right—it was the first time he bathed together with his little wife. The harder he exerted himself, the more comfortable his body felt, as if flushing out all the hidden ailments within him...

Then, noticing the unexpected color tone of his wife’s skin, he was merely enjoying himself and didn’t realize—perhaps he instinctively guarded against her, but when his little wife lowered her guard, he accepted her presence in his heart!

She was his wife, the mother of his future children, and his guard against her was reduced to its weakest.

Later on... acknowledging the identity of his little wife and out of affection for her as a person, he eventually harbored no suspicions towards her at all!

Most importantly, Zhang Shanni was indeed born and raised in Shanglin Village of Qingshan Team, and her parents, Zhang Zhiguo, were famously oblivious throughout the Qing Mountain Team. Who didn’t know their capable daughter?

During the banquet, many had seen Zhang Shanni; nobody noticed anything amiss, including her closest kin, Zhang Hongqiang’s family.

It was impossible for the entire Qing Mountain Team or even Qingyun Town to conspire to deceive him.

Thus, his newly-wed little wife was indeed ’Zhang Shanni’, without a doubt!

But now, the contents of his backpack and his physical condition were both revealing the ’facts’ he had overlooked!