RMM – Chapter 68 Childhood Sweethearts

Xi Yuechen didn’t ask Wang Ze to pick him up. He drove Su Ruo’s car straight from Zhengjia Courtyard to the military compound, thinking it would be convenient for Su Ruo to drive herself back later.

This was Su Ruo’s first time visiting the military base, and she was full of curiosity and excitement.

“Commander, is your base far away? Where exactly is it?”

“It’s a bit of a distance. If you get bored, you can take a nap,” Xi Yuechen answered without taking his eyes off the road. Su Ruo had already asked a flurry of questions along the way.

Yet Xi Yuechen showed no trace of impatience—his answers were brief but clear, and it was obvious he was in a good mood.

“No way, I’m not tired. I want to see the route myself.” Su Ruo leaned on her hand and looked out the window.

Hearing her casual remark, Xi Yuechen’s lips curved into a smile. This little woman—was she trying to memorize the way?

They arrived just as night was beginning to fall. Su Ruo thought to herself, It’s really not that far or that remote—next time, I can come by myself.

As they drove into the base, a sentinel stopped them for inspection. The moment he saw Xi Yuechen, he snapped to attention with a loud salute. “Commander!”

Xi Yuechen, unable to return the salute from the car, simply nodded before restarting the vehicle and driving in.

Wow, so commanding… Su Ruo watched the scene unfold with awe, quietly marveling at the soldier’s deference. He really seems to hold Xi Yuechen in awe.

She snuck a glance at the man beside her and muttered inwardly, Is it possible this grim-faced man just intimidates people with his expression?

The white sedan attracted plenty of attention as it drove through the base. Many soldiers turned their heads to look, curious.

Xi Yuechen hadn’t rolled his window back up after passing the gate, and everyone recognized him as they passed, saluting and calling out, “Commander Xi!”

He was, after all, a hero of their unit—and his recent performance in the military exercise had brought them even more honor.

Because of this, Xi Yuechen drove slower, and he never bothered to close the window again.

Su Ruo felt a bit awkward under the subtle but obvious gazes from all the camo-clad soldiers. Though their looks were discreet, she could still sense the sheer gossip radiating from them.

Xi Yuechen drove directly to the military family quarters, intending to drop off their things before taking Su Ruo to the mess hall for dinner.

Su Ruo took in the building thoughtfully. The family apartments were plainly built, with no fancy paint or decoration—just a muted gray. Many windows glowed with warm light, and the smell of dinner drifted on the evening breeze, giving everything a cozy feel.

The buildings were only three stories high. Su Ruo guessed they were designed this way deliberately, to preserve confidentiality in the base. If the buildings were too tall, it’d be easy to see into the military camp.

Xi Yuechen’s place was on the third floor of the first building. As she followed him upstairs, Su Ruo scanned the layout quickly and got a general sense of the place.

It wasn’t big—about 90 square meters—but it was more than enough for one or two people.

To the left of the entrance was the living room. Near the door was another doorway, which Su Ruo assumed led to the bathroom. Around the corner, she spotted two more doors—likely the bedrooms.

Xi Yuechen didn’t bother changing shoes and carried the suitcase straight inside. Su Ruo raised an eyebrow—not changing shoes?

Then she looked down at the floor, which had a thin layer of dust under the light, and decided not to fuss. The place definitely needed a good cleaning anyway. If it was going to get dirty, so be it.

Entering the living room, Su Ruo noticed the kitchen just to the side. It wasn’t large, with a small dining area in front, separated from the living room by frosted glass.

Not bad at all—small but complete. Su Ruo was quite satisfied with the little apartment.

“Let’s go downstairs and eat,” Xi Yuechen said after putting the suitcase away, glancing at Su Ruo still examining everything.

What’s there to look at in such a tiny place?

“Go downstairs? Where to?” Su Ruo asked curiously. “Aren’t we eating here?”

“We’ll eat at the mess hall tonight. There’s nothing at home yet.”

Not only was it inconvenient since they’d just arrived, but there were no groceries at all—they had no choice but to eat out tonight.

“Ugh… if we go down now, I’ll have to meet a bunch of your comrades…” Su Ruo pulled a face.

Her rare discomfort amused Xi Yuechen. He chuckled lightly. “It’s fine. You’ll have to meet them eventually.”

“But… I’m not mentally prepared. I’m nervous.” Su Ruo rubbed her head and mumbled.

“What’s there to be afraid of? Are you not eating?” Xi Yuechen slung an arm over her shoulder and gently steered her forward.

As soon as they entered the mess hall, they could tell something was off—it was unusually quiet, and there were far more people than usual. Every single pair of eyes seemed to subtly drift in their direction.

Su Ruo tried hard to ignore the countless eyes turning her way, cursing Xi Yuechen silently. I told him I didn’t want to come! Now look, we’re being stared at!

She kept a smile on her face and tried to act calm as she followed Xi Yuechen further into the mess hall.

“Yuechen, come on over! You finally decided to show up at lunchtime, huh?” Political Commissar Wang stood up and greeted them loudly.

Xi Yuechen looked over. The whole table was filled with senior officers—it was obvious why they’d all gathered here.

“That’s the top brass. Let’s go greet them,” Xi Yuechen said quietly to Su Ruo.

What choice did she have? They were already being called out. And sitting at that table was still better than being openly gawked at here.

Being stared at was one thing—but being surrounded by an entire hall of sharp-eyed, uniformed men was overwhelming. Su Ruo appreciated the soldiers’ sincerity and enthusiasm, but did they have to stare like searchlights?

As Xi Yuechen led her over, Commissar Wang took a good look at Su Ruo. So this must be Yuechen’s new wife? Hey, she’s really quite the looker—not bad at all!

Xi Yuechen saluted each officer around the table while introducing Su Ruo. She followed along, greeting each of them with a “Good evening, sir!”

The scene drew chuckles from the rest of the mess hall—especially watching them go around the entire table like a comedy routine.

Even the senior officers at the table couldn’t help smiling, coughing lightly to cover it.

Are we performing a comedy sketch or something? Why are they so amused? Su Ruo thought to herself.

After the round of greetings—just like a bride meeting her in-laws—Su Ruo finally sat down with Xi Yuechen, though she stayed a bit tense.

She worried that one wrong word would embarrass him.

Commissar Wang was the first to speak. “Yuechen, you lucky guy! What a beautiful wife you’ve got!”

The moment he said that, the whole table burst into laughter.

“You flatter me, sir. It’s my great fortune to have married our esteemed Commander,” Su Ruo replied with a smile.

Half joking, half sincere—after spending so much time with Xi Yuechen, she already saw him as family, as her husband. Her feelings for him had deepened with each passing day.

Her words brought a round of meaningful looks and knowing smiles, filled with teasing and amusement.

Xi Yuechen smiled calmly, neither confirming nor denying it—but no one at the table missed how pleased he looked.

These two seem to get along well, Commissar Wang thought. He had been worried at first. Xi Yuechen was excellent in every way—except his icy personality. He was like a block of ice. What kind of woman could live with someone like that? If their marriage soured, it’d be a real shame.

He truly hoped Xi Yuechen could live a lighter, happier life. Always stuck on base with a bunch of men, training or on missions—never smiling or speaking much—it was suffocating. But from the looks of it, their relationship was quite good.

He’d heard they were childhood sweethearts with an arranged marriage—no wonder the girl had agreed to marry him.

Little did he know how far the truth actually was from his imagination.

And it wasn’t just Commissar Wang—everyone in the mess hall was curious about the commander’s wife.

Xi Yuechen wasn’t just anyone—he was a military genius, respected by all the senior leaders. His achievements over the years spoke volumes.

Word had long since spread that he was married. The bride? A beautiful young lady from a prestigious family. They grew up together, and every time Wang Ze came back, he would proudly gush about how gorgeous the commander’s wife was—prettier than any actress, with a sweet, gentle personality, and filthy rich too!

Thanks to Wang Ze’s constant bragging, word spread like wildfire. Soon everyone in the base had heard about the commander’s stunningly beautiful, wealthy wife—and they were all dying to see her.

So when someone spotted Xi Yuechen bringing his wife to the base, the whole place exploded with excitement. Life here was dull—365 days with barely any excitement. This was the biggest news in ages!

Even a few senior officers had made their way to the mess hall to catch a glimpse. How could they not?

After all, Xi Yuechen had just returned to base. He obviously couldn’t cook yet, so dinner would have to be in the mess hall. Naturally, he’d bring his wife with him—he wasn’t going to keep her hidden.

Commissar Wang even instructed the kitchen to prepare an extra nice dinner. They couldn’t let the commander’s young wife think the military life was too shabby—they needed to make a good impression.

After being stared at for so long, Su Ruo finally grew used to it. So what if people look? I’m this pretty—they’re allowed to look.

That was how she comforted herself, and on the outside, she remained poised and graceful. The senior officers at the table all nodded secretly in approval—Xi Yuechen had married well. A Su family daughter was truly a cut above.

Everyone at the table knew Su Ruo came from the renowned Su military family. With their support, Xi Yuechen’s future looked limitless.

Over in the reinforced regiment, not a single person was missing tonight. Everyone had come to see the commander’s wife. They’d been tormented long enough by Wang Ze’s bragging—now they could finally see for themselves.

And wow, he hadn’t lied. She really was gorgeous and elegant—a perfect match for their commander!

“How about now? Do you believe me? You were just jealous that I’d already met her,” Wang Ze said smugly to his comrades. “Now you’re all stunned, huh?”

“Well, of course. Our commander isn’t the type to marry just anyone. He was bound to pick the best.”

The mess hall erupted into another round of laughter. Voices overlapped in chatter—it was the liveliest it had been in a long time.