The Tycoon's Mysterious Darling Wife
Chapter 144. Go to the Army (Second Update)

Chapter 144: 144. Go to the Army (Second Update)

Descending the stairs, her gaze met Fu Hengyi’s, and he offered her a comforting smile, prompting Shen Qinglan to laugh despite herself.

"Daddy, you came back today to see me, didn’t you?" Shen Qinglan cut to the chase.

Shen Qian smiled. "Qinglan is still as clever as when she was a child. Daddy hasn’t even started talking, and you already know."

Shen Qinglan didn’t say a word, and Shen Qian continued, "As a child, you loved sitting on Daddy’s shoulders the most, asking me to run with you on my back, and you said that when you grew up, you wanted to be a soldier like Daddy, protecting our home and country."

Remembering her childhood, Shen Qinglan was taken aback; in her scant memories, the person she cherished most was actually her father, a towering hero in her heart, formidable and omnipotent.

When did the father in her heart start to fade away? Was it when she was abducted by a human trafficker, waiting day and night for her father to come to her rescue but he never did? Or was it the first time she was beaten half to death by those people in the organization, barely clinging to life? Or the first time she picked up a knife and drove it into someone’s heart?

Shen Qinglan remained silent, but her aura grew increasingly frosty.

Shen Qian seemed oblivious to his daughter’s turmoil, continuing on his own, "You probably don’t know how overjoyed I was when I found you again, but it didn’t take long for me to realize that you seemed to dislike soldiers. I was very disappointed at that time, and I couldn’t help but reminisce about the little girl who hugged my neck and said she wanted to be a great hero like Daddy."

As Shen Qinglan listened to Shen Qian’s reminiscing, her gaze became somewhat scattered.

"An, we’ve been set up this time. We are surrounded by the military, and their equipment is more advanced than ours. Looks like we won’t be able to escape this time."

"An, I’m already injured, don’t worry about me. I will only be a burden to you."

"An, in a moment I’ll go draw their fire, and you take the chance to escape. Without me holding you back, you can definitely make it out safely. Once you’re out, you must find the person who plotted against us and avenge me."

"An, hurry, leave. Don’t worry about me."

"An, don’t come back."

Whose hoarse shouts were these, urging her to flee, paving her a path to survival with their blood?

Shen Qinglan’s eyes flickered as if there were stars twinkling before her, stirring up distant memories, and her gaze instantly sharpened.

At that, Shen Qian finally noticed something off about his daughter. "Qinglan, what’s wrong?"

Shen Qinglan’s eyes cleared, and the coldness enveloping her vanished in a moment. "Please continue," she said.

Shen Qian looked at her, then resumed speaking, "Today, a friend sent me a video. I was confused when they asked me if the person in it was my daughter, but after I watched it, I knew my daughter was still that kind and brave child."

Shen Qinglan seemed to understand the purpose of Shen Qian’s visit today. Her eyes cooled slightly, and she pressed her lips together.

"Qinglan, consider joining the army after graduation. Even though you didn’t graduate from a regular military academy, with your skills, and Daddy’s support, you’ll definitely achieve a lot in the military," said Shen Qian, revealing his intentions for the evening.

Shen Qinglan curled her lips, the arc tainted with mockery, but she kept her head down and didn’t say a word, ice lingering in her eyes.

Her gaze fell upon her own hand, where a ring was worn on the ring finger of her left hand. Her gaze paused, and the ice in her eyes slowly melted.

"I refuse," Shen Qinglan slowly said.

The expected answer came, Shen Qian was not disappointed, but instead felt a sense of relief at the bottom of his heart. Before he came back, he had anticipated the outcome. If it hadn’t been for the leader in his unit asking him to serve as a persuadee and not to miss out on such a good prospect, he probably wouldn’t even have brought it up with Shen Qinglan.

He smiled faintly, patting Shen Qinglan’s shoulder, "Daddy’s suggestion is something you can consider carefully, if you really don’t like it that much, Daddy won’t force you."

His face was entirely different from the one persuading just a moment ago, which caught Shen Qinglan by surprise. She had thought Shen Qian would surely try to convince her to join the military.

Shen Qian noticed the expression on Shen Qinglan’s face and smiled warmly, "Actually, it was one of Daddy’s comrades-in-arms who saw that video and took an interest in you. He hoped you would enlist, which is why Daddy came to do the persuading." He was quite frank. Having failed to persuade her, he outright sold out his teammate, especially since he had already detected a moment of distance from Shen Qinglan after he revealed his purpose.

Since her return, his daughter wasn’t very close to him as a father, and if their relationship worsened because of this, he really would have nowhere to cry.

"Qinglan, putting aside my identity as a soldier and standing from a father’s perspective, no matter what choice you make, Daddy will support you." It wasn’t just because of his wife’s last wishes before she passed away, but also because of his guilt as a father. Their last conversation hadn’t left Shen Qinglan with pleasant memories.

Looking at Shen Qian, Shen Qinglan was at a loss for words, but the chill at the bottom of her eyes was quietly replaced by emotions she couldn’t quite explain or articulate.

"Actually, Daddy is quite happy about making this trip. There’s been a lot to deal with in the military recently, and Daddy hasn’t had the time to come home. Today, I got the rare opportunity to have dinner with you all, thanks to you." Shen Qian laughed.

Shen Qinglan smiled faintly, pondering whether her previous view of this father was somewhat biased?

Seeing Fu Hengyi approaching from across the way, Shen Qian smiled, "You can’t bear to be away from your wife for even a little while, can you?"

Fu Hengyi laughed too, "Grandpa said he was tired, so I wanted to take him back first. I came to let Qinglan know, and I’ll be back to pick her up later."

Shen Qinglan thought for a moment, "I’ll go with you."

Fu Hengyi glanced at Shen Qian, who waved them off, and the young couple departed.

Fu Hengyi still held Shen Qinglan’s hand, "Why is your hand still so cold?" Feeling the icy temperature of Shen Qinglan’s hand, Fu Hengyi furrowed his brow and stuffed her hand into the pocket of his coat.

Shen Qian watched his daughter stand beside Fu Hengyi, exuding warmth, and he smiled contentedly.

**

Shen Junyu and Han Yi, with Yu Xiaoxuan in tow, left the bar. "Where do you live? I’ll take you home," Shen Junyu said, seeing the slightly drunk Yu Xiaoxuan.

Before Yu Xiaoxuan could speak, Han Yi interjected, "I know where she lives. I’ll take her, you go on ahead."

"I don’t want to be escorted by you, you corpse demon; I want the male god." As soon as Yu Xiaoxuan heard Han Yi’s words, she instantly bristled.

Han Yi gritted his teeth, "You brat, who are you calling a corpse demon?"

"I’m talking about you, corpse demon, you lecher, you jerk," Yu Xiaoxuan shot back instantly. Despite being obviously drunk, her mouth didn’t stop for a second.

Han Yi’s eyes flashed dangerously; he truly wanted to strangle this brat.

Shen Junyu frowned and spoke up, "I’ll take her home, just give me the address." He was genuinely worried that these two would start fighting, even though Han Yi never hit women.

Han Yi’s voice sounded like it was squeezed out through clenched teeth, "No need, I’ll take her. I refuse to believe I can’t handle this brat."