Gu Lina Zha looked up curiously.
Under the not-so-bright streetlights, she saw a bank card in Lu Mingyu's hand.
It was a very ordinary bank card, with no fancy design.
Lu Mingyu handed the card to her.
"This is my salary card," his voice was as steady as ever, "The password is six eights."
Gu Lina Zha was completely stunned.
She looked at the card, then at Lu Mingyu's serious face, and for a moment, she couldn't react.
"For... for me?"
"Yes," Lu Mingyu nodded.
Gu Lina Zha instinctively reached out and took the card.
The card carried the residual warmth of his body, yet it felt heavy in her hand.
What... what kind of development was this?
She was somewhat amused, yet her heart felt as if it had been filled with honey, so sweet it was cloying.
She held the card, tilted her head, and looked at him, deliberately teasing:
"Captain Lu, our relationship has just been confirmed, hasn't it?"
"And you're entrusting your salary card to me so readily?"
"Aren't you afraid I'll run off with your money and then dump you?"
Lu Mingyu looked at her mischievous smile, his eyes full of doting affection.
He shook his head, his tone so matter-of-fact.
"No fear."
These two simple words once again struck the softest part of Gu Lina Zha's heart.
He paused, then added:
"There isn't much money in it, but all future payments will be deposited into this card."
"Buy whatever you want, don't be frugal."
Gu Lina Zha listened to his earnest instructions.
She couldn't help but burst out laughing.
As she laughed, her eyes welled up again.
This man truly didn't speak flowery words.
But he was delivering everything he had to her in the most direct and unadorned way.
His trust, his future, all that he possessed.
Gu Lina Zha nodded vigorously, smiling as she said, "Okay."
She clutched the card tightly in her hand.
Then she opened her arms again and hugged Lu Mingyu tightly.
This time, her arms held him even tighter, as if she wanted to melt into his body.
"Lu Mingyu, you're so good," her voice was a little choked.
Lu Mingyu felt the softness in his arms, and his stiff body slowly relaxed.
He gently patted her hand and softly said, "It's getting late."
"The military sub-district entrance doesn't allow long-term parking, you should go back early."
Gu Lina Zha knew she couldn't delay him any longer.
She reluctantly pulled away from his embrace, looking up at him.
"Then you should also go to bed early, no staying up late," she instructed.
"Okay," Lu Mingyu nodded in promise.
Gu Lina Zha then walked back to the driver's seat, turning her head every few steps, opened the car door, and sat inside.
She rolled down the window and waved at him again.
Lu Mingyu stood in place, quietly watching her.
Until her car started smoothly, merged into the distant traffic, and completely disappeared into the night.
The night wind blew, but it couldn't disperse the warmth that had just risen in Lu Mingyu's heart.
He lowered his head and looked at his hand, as if the touch of her hair and the softness of her body still lingered there.
The corners of his mouth had already unconsciously turned slightly upward.
This was an experience he had never had in his twenty-something years of life.
A feeling of being grounded, of being filled.
After standing there for a long time, he regained his usual stern expression.
Lu Mingyu turned and strode with long legs towards the gate of the Haining City Military Sub-district.
In the guard post at the entrance, two guards stood at attention, their gazes sharp.
They had long noticed the car parked at the entrance and Captain Lu who had gotten out of it.
As for this God of War, famous throughout the entire military sub-district, they were naturally more than familiar.
However, usually Captain Lu either drove back himself or took the military's special vehicle.
Tonight, being dropped off at the entrance by a woman in a private car, was an unprecedented first.
What surprised them even more was the scene that unfolded next.
They saw the beautiful woman get out of the car and say a few words to Captain Lu.
Then, they witnessed with their own eyes, their unapproachable Captain Lu, who was as cold as an iceberg.
Actually embrace a woman.
The first hug seemed to be initiated by the woman.
The second hug was longer and more intimate.
Although there was a distance and the light wasn't bright.
That intimacy and attachment were clearly visible to anyone.
Even after the car drove away, Captain Lu stood there for so long.
The two guards exchanged a shocked look.
The eternal iceberg, was it melting?
Watching Lu Mingyu's steady footsteps get closer.
The two guards immediately put away their gossipy thoughts, straightened their chests, and looked straight ahead.
"Lu Team, good evening!"
Their voices were loud, standard, and powerful.
Lu Mingyu nodded slightly in response, then walked straight through the gate.
His figure, tall and straight as a pine, quickly disappeared around the corner of the main road of the camp.
Only after confirming that Lu Mingyu had gone far away did one of the younger guards let out a long breath.
He leaned closer to the other veteran, lowering his voice.
"Squad leader, I didn't see wrong, did I?"
"Just now... Captain Lu, he...?"
The older guard glanced at him, saying with a feigned calm expression.
"Don't ask what you shouldn't ask, don't look at what you shouldn't look at."
He said that, but his hand had already quietly reached for the internal phone in the guard post.
The young guard understood and immediately leaned over to help keep watch.
The older guard picked up the phone and skillfully dialed a number.
The call was quickly connected.
"Hello, Deputy Political Commissar Lu?"
"I'm Xiao Wang from the guard squad at the gate."
His voice was very low, but his words were clear.
"Reporting, Chief, I have something to report to you."
A steady middle-aged male voice came from the other end of the line: "Speak."
"It's about Captain Lu."
Guard Xiao Wang glanced outside the guard post and continued:
"Just now, Captain Lu returned, and a lady drove him back."
"Yes, a private car, the license plate number is Hai A..."
He accurately reported a string of Gu Lina Zha's license plate numbers.
"That lady is very young, very beautiful, they..."
"They said goodbye at the entrance, and their behavior was very intimate."
To help the leader better understand the degree of "intimacy," he carefully chose his words.
"They hugged twice, said goodbye for a long time, and their relationship seemed unusual."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, as if processing the information.
After a few seconds, the steady voice spoke again.
"I understand, thank you for your hard work."
"Serving the Chief!"
Guard Xiao Wang crisply hung up the phone, his face serious, as if he had completed an important mission.
...
At the same time, in the military sub-district office building, the light in one office was still on.
It was Lu Hai, also Lu Mingyu's paternal second uncle, sitting at his desk.
He had just put down the phone, his expression quite spectacular.
Shock, confusion, then immense surprise.
He picked up the cup of strong tea on the desk and took a sip, trying to calm his excited mood.
Lu Mingyu, his nephew who had been like a little old man since childhood, only focused on training and missions, had actually opened up?
Moreover, according to the guard's description, the progress was not slow.
Hugged twice?
Unusual relationship?
Lu Hai leaned back in his chair, his mind already uncontrollably imagining.
His nephew had been cold-natured and quiet since childhood, causing his family a lot of worry.
Especially his elder brother and sister-in-law, who were Lu Mingyu's parents.
Far away in the capital, every time they called, they would inevitably bring up their son's personal issues.
Lu Mingyu was already twenty-seven this year.
Not to mention a girlfriend, he rarely even saw a female creature around him.
As his only elder in Haining City, Lu Hai was often asked to help arrange things.
But this kid, every time this topic came up, it was as if it was killing him, completely unresponsive.
Lu Hai even once suspected that he was going to spend his entire life with his special forces team.
Never thought of it, truly never thought of it.
During the day, he was still pondering in his office whether to find another opportunity to give this kid a stern talking-to.
As a result, in the evening, the surprise was delivered directly to the military sub-district gate.
The more Lu Hai thought about it, the happier he became, even feeling a bit restless.
No, he had to call this kid over immediately and ask him clearly.
Which family's girl was this, so capable, to be able to conquer his family's iceberg?
Thinking of this, Lu Hai could no longer restrain himself.
He picked up another phone on his desk and directly dialed Lu Mingyu's mobile number.