Ji Boyan had already stayed in this remote little county town for almost a month. Originally, he had only come to help his mother pick up his uncle and take him back to Hong Kong. In his plans, he intended to spend at most a week in this backward little county town.
But now… he had lived in this county town that he looked down on for nearly a month.
All because there was a girl in this county town he despised who had captured his heart.
Unfortunately, after that one fleeting glimpse that day, he had turned the entire county town upside down. He even spent money to hire some local street toughs to search for the girl who had stirred his heart, but there was no news at all…
“Boyan, if your uncle doesn’t want to come back, then forget it. Don’t worry about your mom. Hurry back soon. There’s something at the company that needs handling…”
Listening to the phone call from his father, even though Ji Boyan desperately wanted to find that girl, he had no choice but to leave.
Because he knew his father well—if it wasn’t truly urgent, he wouldn’t call to urge him home like this.
So, despite his reluctance, he regretfully decided to give up staying longer in this backward county town, blindly searching like a headless fly for the girl who had moved his heart.
Perhaps… it really was as his uncle had said. They simply weren’t fated.
“I got it. I’ll book the earliest flight back to Hong Kong.”
Ji Boyan hung up the phone and left the telephone office in a somber mood.
Perhaps because he was about to leave this county town, maybe never to see that heart-stirring girl again, Ji Boyan was utterly distracted. With a wistful expression, he walked toward the guesthouse where he was staying.
Suddenly—
“Ouch!”
The distracted Ji Boyan, not watching his path, bumped into a thin, dark-skinned girl carrying a shoulder pole.
The thin, dark-skinned girl let out a startled cry and hurriedly protected the large baskets on her shoulders. Somewhat angrily, she said,
“You! How do you walk without looking where you’re going!”
Hearing the girl’s loud reprimand, Ji Boyan finally snapped back to reality. He looked at her simple attire and realized that this girl he had bumped into must come from a poor family. Subconsciously, he pulled a leather wallet from his suit pocket, took out several large bills, and handed them to her.
“Sorry, I bumped into you.”
Seeing the several big unity bills offered, the thin, dark-skinned girl frowned tightly. Utterly speechless, she said,
“An apology is enough. Why are you giving me money? It makes it seem like I’m trying to scam you. Alright, alright, it’s nothing serious. Put your money away and watch where you’re going next time.”
With that, the thin, dark-skinned girl shouldered her pole, walked past Ji Boyan, and continued on.
Since the girl hadn’t taken the money he offered, Ji Boyan instinctively turned his head to look at her.
And at that glance, his heart suddenly clenched.
Wait… this silhouette…
Ji Boyan had an excellent memory, especially for the girl he had been constantly thinking about.
So, he quickly realized that the thin, dark-skinned girl he had just bumped into was the one carrying the shoulder pole who had been with her the last time he saw the girl.
In an instant, Ji Boyan’s eyes lit up. He shouted loudly, “Stop!”
Then, taking big strides, he hurriedly caught up and blocked the thin, dark-skinned girl’s path.
This girl with the shoulder pole and baskets was none other than Qiao Shu’s third cousin sister, Qiao Xia Hua.
Qiao Xia Hua was startled by Ji Boyan’s sudden urgent shout. Seeing the tall man abruptly block her way, she instinctively protected the pocket where she kept her money.
This—in broad daylight—surely this guy wasn’t trying to rob her!
But soon, Qiao Xia Hua’s worry turned entirely to speechlessness.
“Miss, do you know an extremely, extremely beautiful girl? I saw you two together last time. Are you friends?”
Hearing Ji Boyan’s words, Qiao Xia Hua immediately understood. This was another admirer smitten by her little cousin.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Qiao Xia Hua didn’t want to deal with Ji Boyan. Though the man before her was well-dressed and tall and handsome, what did that have to do with her or her little cousin?
After all, her little cousin was already married~!
“Wait! I’ll buy all the melon seeds in your two baskets!”
Seeing Qiao Xia Hua about to leave, Ji Boyan quickly said.
Hearing that the man wanted to buy her melon seeds, Qiao Xia Hua stopped. She raised an eyebrow at his eager and sincere expression.
She was just about to say something when the man opposite her spoke first, rattling off his basic information like he was registering at a household office.
“Hello, I’m Ji Boyan, from Hong Kong. I came here to pick up my uncle and take him back to Hong Kong…”
From Ji Boyan’s sincere words, Qiao Xia Hua finally understood the connection between this man and her little cousin.
To be precise, they were strangers who had crossed paths once. More accurately, they had no relation at all.
However…
Qiao Xia Hua was moved by Ji Boyan’s sincerity. She could tell this man wasn’t a bad person, and… he was truly deeply infatuated with her beautiful and kind-hearted little cousin.
Though they had only met twice, and her little cousin didn’t even know this man.
But with her little cousin’s fairy-like beauty, Qiao Xia Hua figured that if she were a man, she’d fall for her after one glance too.
“Sir, the beautiful girl you’re talking about is probably my little cousin, Qiao Shu.”
Before Ji Boyan could rejoice that he had finally found the object of his heart and learned her name, Qiao Xia Hua’s next words dragged him straight back into the abyss.
“But you should give up on pursuing my little cousin. Shushu is already married and has gone to the Capital.”
Boom—!
Ji Boyan felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his mind going blank.
“She’s… she’s married…?”
Ji Boyan stared at Qiao Xia Hua in a daze, his face full of disbelief.
“Yeah, married. So, give up. You have no chance.”
Qiao Xia Hua gave the obviously wealthy man a pitying look and said sympathetically.
After that, she glanced at the man standing there dumbfounded, shook her head sympathetically, kindly stuffed a handful of sweet caramel-flavored melon seeds into his hand, and left.
By the time Ji Boyan came back to his senses, Qiao Xia Hua’s figure was nowhere to be seen.
He looked at the small bag of melon seeds in his palm, his gaze darkening as he narrowed his eyes.
Give up… How could he?
He had finally found the girl he liked. He had even been ready to give up after his father’s call, but by such a coincidence, he met her cousin and learned her name and details…
This had to be heaven not wanting him to miss the girl who moved his heart!
So, they were fated!
“Married… so what…”
Marriages could end in divorce…
Ji Boyan clenched his fist tightly, his face set with determination.
Since opportunity had come his way, he would seize it firmly and infiltrate the world of the girl who stirred his heart.
And the first step was to get close to her intimately related cousin…
“Melon seeds, huh… Maybe worth a try…”
…
“Brother Xiao, we just launched a strong assault. They won’t dare make a move for a while. Plus, we’re guarding here. Go back with peace of mind. I know your aunt sent another telegram urging you to go home and marry your little wife.”
“Yeah, A Xiao. Since Brigade Commander Ding approved your leave and told you to go get married, head back first. This battle is a prolonged one; it won’t end anytime soon. You can’t seriously want to wait until it’s over to marry the little wife your family arranged? By then, the opportunity would be long gone!”
“Hahaha, if we wait that long, Regiment Leader Feng’s little wife might not be his anymore—she could get swept away and become someone else’s little wife.”
“Who knows, maybe even a mom of a few kids by then~!”
…
Listening to his comrades’ good-natured teasing, Feng Xiao, dressed in his military uniform with camouflage paint on his face, remained calm.
Even though his face was covered in camouflage paint, obscuring his features, his high nose bridge, deep eyes, and the powerful aura emanating from him all marked him as extraordinary.
“I can’t leave yet. They’re too quiet, too compliant. I have a hunch they’re lulling us into complacency. They might act soon, trying to catch us off guard.”
Feng Xiao’s mind wasn’t on his little wife. All his attention was on the current campaign.
After all, it was a brutal battle, and he wanted to bring his comrades and his men home safely.
So, he didn’t take to heart his mother’s urgent telegram urging him to hurry back and get married.
However… he did feel some guilt toward that nineteen-year-old girl named Qiao Shu.
In the end, he had let down the little girl who was already his wife…
Sigh. He really shouldn’t keep the poor girl waiting too long.
Just a bit longer. He still needed to find time to go back, explain things to her face-to-face…
At that moment, the great Regiment Leader Feng had no idea that his little wife was being eyed by quite a few people. If he didn’t return soon… she might really get swept away and become someone else’s little wife~!
…
“Fairy Little Aunt, let’s go play! We can go fishing by the river…”
“We can go roller skating at the rink!”
“Swimming in summer is the most fun…”
When the kids from the Military District Compound dragged Qiao Shu out from the Feng Family Residence and sat her down in the Feng family’s fenced grassy yard to chat, the older brothers and sisters nearby—who had followed their younger siblings out of curiosity, hiding near the Feng Family Residence just to catch a glimpse of the ‘Fairy Little Aunt’—were all stunned into a daze!!!
Originally, none of them believed their little brothers and sisters’ tales about how stunningly beautiful the ‘Fairy Little Aunt’ was, like a fairy descended to earth.
So, before Qiao Shu appeared, they had mocked their siblings as ignorant kids spouting nonsense.
They hadn’t taken Qiao Shu seriously at all.
But when they saw the delicate, beautiful girl surrounded by the group of little radishes, they were instantly rooted to the spot.
Their eyes filled with awe as they gazed at the radiant girl who seemed to glow, so beautiful she didn’t look real—their jaws nearly dropped!
At that moment, everyone had just one thought—
Oh my gosh, they had really seen a fairy! The ignorant little kids hadn’t lied!!! This had to be the Fairy Little Aunt, a celestial fairy from the ninth heaven!!!
After that heart-shaking moment of awe, everyone pondered how to befriend the little fairy…