First Night with the Army: The Stoic Big Shot Is Done Pretending

「The next day.」

Wen Ci rolled over, bumping against a hard chest. The sky outside was still dark. She opened her eyes to see the man’s face, his features peaceful in sleep.

She reached out and gently stroked Huo Jingyuan’s brow.

His skin felt incredibly smooth. A smile played on her lips as she spied the red mark on his neck; last night, her personal furnace had softly coaxed her into leaving it there.

Huo Jingyuan’s eyes fluttered open. They were like obsidian, gleaming with a comfortable drowsiness. He squinted. "Awake so early?"

"Mmm-hmm."

Under the covers, Huo Jingyuan was bare-chested, and she could feel the palpable heat rolling off him. Early morning was a notoriously difficult time for a man to rein himself in.

His large, hot hand settled on Wen Ci’s waist, pulling her closer. "How about we go again?" he asked, his voice slow and deliberate.

Wen Ci: "..."

She shot Huo Jingyuan a sharp glare.

’The things this damn man said in bed were never to be believed. Especially "one more time"—he’d say that at least a few times in a single night.’

"Don’t you have morning training?"

"I don’t."

As he spoke, he leaned in and kissed Wen Ci’s cheek. "The Yama Team I lead is exempt from morning training," he explained slowly.

Huo Jingyuan wasn’t just a regimental commander.

He was also the captain of the premier team in the Northwest Military Region.

Unlike the other soldiers in the Northwest, the Yama Team underwent special training every week, which was why they had a special exemption from morning drills.

"You might not have morning training, but I still have to work."

"Take the day off."

Nurses at the Northwest Military Region Hospital got an extra day off each week. If they needed to, they could swap shifts with colleagues or simply take leave.

Wen Ci shoved him away. "I’m not."

She threw back the covers and was about to get out of bed to wash up when he grabbed her hand. His gaze darkened. "Ah Ci, shouldn’t you be the one to put out this fire you started?"

"What do you mean, ’the fire I started’?"

Wen Ci laughed.

’So what if I did start this fire?’

’Who says I have to put it out?!’

-

As dawn approached, the bugle call for morning training echoed. Huo Jingyuan, dressed in his fatigues, headed out, deliberately leaving the mark on his neck exposed.

Five to six thousand soldiers from the Northwest Military Region were out for morning training. Their unified chants pierced the clouds as the first rays of sunlight washed over the land and the brilliant red sun began its slow ascent.

The Fifth Regiment’s drill grounds.

From a distance, the regimental commissar watched Huo Jingyuan’s confident swagger, his neck held deliberately high. As Huo Jingyuan drew closer, the commissar couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

He’d initially thought Huo Jingyuan had a stiff neck.

Turns out he was here to show off.

As he ran, Xue Li watched Huo Jingyuan’s odd behavior and whispered to the comrades next to him, "Is it just me, or is Brother Huo acting weird today?"

"Weird? How so?"

After they finished a lap, Xue Li spotted the mark on Huo Jingyuan’s neck. His eyes went wide, and he glanced around. "Did you guys see that mark on Brother Huo’s neck?"

"We saw it!"

The men were all completely shocked.

Even though many in the Fifth Regiment knew the Living Yama was married, they had yet to see what his wife actually looked like.

"Say, Xue Li, you’re the one who picked up Brother Huo’s wife from the station, right?"

Xue Li nodded. "Yup."

"So what does she look like?"

"A goddess!" Xue Li blurted out without a moment’s hesitation. Then he added, "She’s fair, beautiful, and a really great person."

From a short distance away, Huo Jingyuan’s eyes narrowed. "You’re chatting during the run?" he roared. "Are you all itching for a taste of Devil’s Week?"