After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

With her biological clock always on time, Ye Zhen's mind instantly cleared the moment she opened her eyes.

The next second, she realized something was wrong.

I felt like I had been welded into a scorching, human-shaped furnace.

An arm like an iron clamp encircled her waist, tightly encircling her within a broad, sturdy chest. Her back pressed against that warm skin, and the strong, powerful pounding of his heart, each beat clearly piercing her spine through the thin fabric of her nightgown.

It's Gu Zheng.

This was the first time in both her lifetimes that she had woken up in someone else's arms.

The unfamiliar feeling of confinement made her body tense instinctively, her muscles preparing to break free. Behind her came the voice of a man who had just woken up, hoarse and lazy, with a touch of unreasonable domineering.

"Don't move, sleep a little longer."

He tightened his grip, as if soothing a cat with its quills raised, and mischievously nuzzled the top of her head with his chin, complaining in a low voice, "You must have been exhausted last night."

Ye Zhen's ears immediately burned.

She kept a straight face and tried to remind him in the calm tone of a surgeon dealing with an out-of-control patient: "Don't move."

Gu Zheng let out a low, muffled laugh behind her, the vibration of his chest clearly transmitted to her back.

"Giving a foot massage takes effort," he said confidently, his warm breath brushing against her sensitive neck, sending a slight shiver down her spine. "My hands are still sore."

Rascal.

Ye Zhen made a mental judgment about him. But her body, which had been tense from living alone for many years, gradually relaxed in this embrace, which was devoid of any passion, only stubborn possessiveness and domineering warmth.

She simply stopped moving, closed her eyes, and listened to his steady heartbeat. The rhythmic and reassuring sound actually made her drift off to sleep again.

When I woke up again, it was already broad daylight.

When the two finished getting ready and came downstairs, the Ye family members were already up.

Morning light streamed through the window, bathing the small building in a warm golden glow. Ye's father was helping Uncle Fu wipe the stone table in the yard, while Ye's mother, wearing an apron, busied herself in the kitchen, the soft clatter of pots and pans filling the air. Ye Cheng, in the living room, was practicing standing, leaning against the wall, his forehead glistening with sweat, following the rehabilitation plan Gu Zheng had devised for him.

At the dinner table, Ye's mother placed a bowl of steaming millet porridge in front of Ye Zhen, and then put a hard-boiled egg into her bowl, saying, "Eat more, look how thin you are, you'll fall over in the wind."

Gu Zheng picked up the egg quite naturally, tapped it on the corner of the table, and slowly began to peel it with his large, well-defined hands. He peeled it very carefully, as if he were disassembling some complex and precise instrument, his gaze focused.

After peeling it, he placed the smooth, round egg, still warm, into Ye Zhen's bowl.

Watching this scene, Mr. and Mrs. Ye exchanged a quiet glance, their eyes filled with satisfaction and relief. This son-in-law, renowned outside as a commander, truly cared for their daughter Zhenzhen at home.

Ye Zhen paused, her hand holding the spoon still warm from his fingertips, as she looked at the egg in the bowl. The place in her heart, frozen for years, felt as if it were being slowly soaked in warm water, gradually softening.

This feeling of being surrounded by family and cherished by her lover is a luxury she never experienced even when she reached the pinnacle of medicine in her previous life.

After breakfast, the Ye family was about to head home.

Gu Zheng had already instructed his bodyguard, Xiao Wang, to drive the car to the entrance. The trunk was filled with all sorts of nutritional supplements and specialties from Beijing, ranging from Daoxiangcun pastries to new fabrics from the supply and marketing cooperative.

Holding Ye Zhen's hand, her eyes were red, and she had a thousand words to say, but in the end, they all turned into the simplest advice: "When you get to his family, be diligent and don't be petty. Gu Zheng is a good boy, you must live a good life with him."

Ye's father stood aside, and said to Gu Zheng with restraint and solemnity, "Gu Zheng, Zhenzhen is in your care." He couldn't say many nice words, but this one sentence weighed as heavy as a thousand pounds.

Ye Cheng, leaning on his crutches, patted Ye Zhen's shoulder, his eyes more determined than ever before: "Sis, don't worry, I'll go back and take good care of my leg. I'll support you from now on!"

Ye Zhen looked at them, her nose tingling with emotion. She pulled a thick envelope from her pocket and handed it to her mother: "Mom, here's some money. My brother needs to keep up with his nutrition, and the house needs some repairs."

When Ye's mother's calloused hands touched the thickness of the envelope, she immediately pushed it back: "This won't do! You just got married, you need to keep some money for yourself."

"Take it." Gu Zheng reached out and pressed down on Ye's mother's hand, which was pushing away. His voice was steady and strong. "Mom, this is Zhenzhen's way of showing her respect to you. I'll take care of the household expenses from now on."

The word "Mom" came out naturally and loudly, and Ye's mother could no longer hold back her tears. She nodded repeatedly and choked out, "Okay, okay."

The car slowly started moving, and the Ye family members waved continuously from the car window until the small building became an invisible dot.

Ye Zhen stood at the door, staring in the direction the car had disappeared, remaining motionless for a long time.

"Can't bear to part with her?" Gu Zheng appeared beside her at some point and draped a military overcoat, still warm from his body, over her shoulders.

"They are my family," Ye Zhen said softly. She spoke these words with a touch of solemnity.

"They're my family too," Gu Zheng corrected her, then took her hand, his large hand completely enveloping hers, the warmth of his palm radiating from it. "Come on, come with me somewhere."

The car didn't head towards the military hospital, but instead headed towards the western suburbs.

The further west we drove, the fewer buildings there were, and the quieter the scenery became. Finally, the car stopped at the entrance of a well-managed cemetery surrounded by pine and cypress trees.

Here, the pines and cypresses remain evergreen, creating a solemn and quiet atmosphere.

Ye Zhen had a guess in her mind, but she didn't ask. She just let him lead her.

Gu Zheng led her through rows of neat tombstones, finally stopping in front of one of them.

It was a very clean tombstone, the white marble stone spotless. Embedded in the tombstone was a black and white photograph. The woman in the photograph had two braids, a gentle and bright smile, and her eyes and brows exuded the scholarly air and determination unique to an intellectual woman.

Gu Zheng's mother, Song Qinghe.

Gu Zheng took out a clean towel and a bunch of fresh white daisies from the cloth bag he brought with him. He released Ye Zhen's hand, squatted down, and carefully wiped every inch of the tombstone, from the top to the base, with gentle movements and focused eyes.

Ye Zhen stood quietly to the side, watching. The wind rustled through the pine forest, and sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled patterns that fell on his shoulders and onto the black and white photograph.

He wiped it for a long time, leaving no corner untouched, as if it were not a cold stone, but the most precious treasure in his memory.

After doing all this, he stood up and gently placed the bouquet of daisies in front of the tombstone.

He turned his head to look at Ye Zhen, his gaze deep and serious, all traces of his roguishness and domineering nature gone, leaving only a pure, unguarded solemnity.

His voice was terribly hoarse.

"Mom, I brought her to see you."

He spoke to the tombstone, his voice low and clear.

"Her name is Ye Zhen, and she's a doctor. Very good, very capable."

After saying that, he took Ye Zhen's hand again, held it tightly, and then introduced her to the woman in the photo, word by word.

"She is my wife, and also your daughter-in-law."