B5SB -Chapter 198 The Independent Regiment

Early March, 1972 (Gregorian Calendar)

It was the weekend, and since they didn’t have to go to work, Gu Yihan and Grandma Gu lingered in bed, enjoying a rare lazy morning.

Lu Huailin had gotten up early. Taking advantage of the fact that Grandma Gu hadn’t yet risen, he boiled some water and began to slaughter a chicken.

Next door, Deputy Battalion Commander Wang was returning from his morning run and passed by Lu Huailin’s house.

Seeing Lu squatting in the yard plucking a chicken, a flash of envy crossed his eyes.

“Congratulations, Regiment Commander Lu.”

Lu Huailin didn’t stop his plucking.

He glanced at Deputy Commander Wang with a sharp, calm expression: “If you put that kind of thought into your missions, you could succeed too.”

Hearing this, Wang’s face almost betrayed his emotions.

He hurriedly tried to smooth things over, smiling: “It’s just that I don’t have your capability!”

But the moment he turned his head, the smile vanished.

This was the Independent Regiment—directly reporting to the division headquarters.

If he had Lu Huailin’s strong family background, even without Lu’s exceptional ability, he wouldn’t still be a deputy battalion commander at thirty.

Lu Huailin didn’t care about Wang’s petty thoughts. He stood up, shook the dirty water from his hands, and walked over to close the yard gate.

By the time Grandma Gu got up and came into the yard, Lu had already cleaned the hen and placed it in a clay pot to stew.

Grandma Gu looked at Lu, who was tidying up the chicken feathers, and asked in puzzlement: “When did we buy a chicken?”

Lu’s lips curled slightly in a smile. “The supply company sent one over.”

Grandma Gu didn’t question it and went over to help tidy the yard efficiently.

Looking at the familiar-colored feathers, a flicker of doubt passed through her eyes—it felt like she had seen them somewhere before.

Gu Yihan pushed open the bedroom door, stretching and yawning.

Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at Grandma Gu sitting on the sofa, and she complained softly: “Good thing it’s a day off, otherwise your granddaughter wouldn’t have been able to get up.”

The little one had been so excited last night that he had cried and fussed all evening.

Only after exhausting all his energy by midnight did he finally sleep.

Grandma Gu’s expression stiffened; she realized she had forgotten to tell her little granddaughter that yesterday, during their afternoon nap, she had accidentally overslept with Haohao.

“Honey.”

Lu Huailin entered the living room carrying a pot of porridge, his eyes warm with a smile: “Let’s have a simple breakfast this morning.”

Grandma Gu, still slightly annoyed, replied, “I saved the good stuff for your stomach.”

Gu Yihan looked at Lu in confusion. “Did you make something delicious?”

Lu smiled. “The chicken soup you’ve been thinking about.”

Gu Yihan froze for a moment, then her eyes lit up.

Could it be what she thought?

Lu Huailin, amused by his wife’s cute expression, nodded slightly at her.

Gu Yihan’s heart felt like it had been scratched by tiny claws. She quickly finished breakfast and pulled Lu, who hadn’t finished yet, back toward the bedroom.

Grandma Gu watched her granddaughter’s actions and laughed: “Little Lu, you’ve really spoiled her.”

Once the bedroom door was closed, Gu Yihan whispered impatiently: “How did you do it?”

Every day before meals, Grandma Gu would feed her precious chicken, counting each one.

Lu Huailin chuckled softly, took his wife’s hand, and sat her on the bed: “I found a very similar chicken and swapped it.”

He had been observing this chicken for several days.

For more than ten consecutive days, he had instructed the supply company to catch chickens for the regiment, carefully selecting the ones that matched the color he described.

It had even made the staff chase him away whenever they saw him.

But, as they say, hard work pays off—he finally found a chicken almost identical to the one at home.

A faint smile curved Gu Yihan’s lips. She was a little bit happy.

Then she cupped Lu Huailin’s face and planted a quick kiss.

“This is your reward.”

Lu Huailin’s gaze deepened as he bent down, capturing her lips precisely in a kiss.

The Next Day, After breakfast, Gu Yihan pushed her bicycle out the door and noticed Grandma Gu murmuring around the chicken coop: “Why is one missing?”

“Missing what?” Gu Yihan asked curiously.

Grandma Gu looked at the small hen in the cage with reluctance and sighed: “One hen didn’t lay an egg, that’s never happened before.”

“And strangely, one of our hens’ tails has changed color.”

Gu Yihan felt a jolt in her heart.

She had forgotten that their hens had been drinking the water from the space since they were chicks, so they laid eggs very regularly.

“Maybe it’s because the weather is too cold.”

She quickly hopped on her bicycle and sped off.

On the way to the textile factory, Gu Yihan couldn’t help smiling.

After thinking about this for so long, the chicken she finally got didn’t taste as wonderful as she had imagined.

It tasted just like a normal free-range chicken, maybe even worse.

The home-raised chicken had been growing for too long; its meat was tough and hard to bite.

At the Accounting Office, When Hu Shan saw Gu Yihan at the door, she stood up and stopped her outside, then quietly took her arm and walked a short distance away.

Gu Yihan was stunned and asked, confused: “What’s going on?”

Hu Shan glanced around to make sure it was safe.

She leaned close to Gu Yihan’s ear and whispered: “Secretary Jiang wants you to go to his office for a moment.”

“That’s it?”

Hu Shan nodded once.

Gu Yihan looked dumbfounded. “Shan, you could’ve just said that openly in the office! You’re making us look like we’re sneaking around.”

Hu Shan: “……”

Gu Yihan handed her handbag to Hu Shan to take to the desk.

Hu Shan looked at the bag in her hand, then hurriedly grabbed Gu Yihan before she could turn, whispering: “Are you going to the provincial city with Secretary Jiang?”

“I’m not sure when yet!” Gu Yihan replied curiously.

It wasn’t really a secret—Cheng Bo, who usually followed Secretary Jiang, would also go with them.

“When you go to the provincial city, keep some distance from Secretary Jiang. In public, talk to him as little as possible,” Hu Shan cautioned.

Gu Yihan’s eyes showed a flicker of doubt—during a business trip, communication was inevitable.

Hu Shan continued: “Xiaohan, I’m just looking out for you. Cousin Jiang has a betrothal to a girl working at the provincial city garment factory.”

“What does that have to do with me?” Gu Yihan asked, confused.

Seeing that Gu Yihan hadn’t registered her warning, Hu Shan patiently explained: “That woman’s crazy. She can’t stand not seeing him; if she does, she wants every mosquito near him to be male.”

Gu Yihan nodded, indicating she understood.

As long as it wasn’t the female version of a love-obsessed Shen Yujie, anything else was manageable.