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T/N: Thank you CattyCoopster and YaGirl for sponsoring the first extra release of SMM!
-komorebi
Xu Xinghe’s new room, a large suite with its’ own facilities, is located on the east side of the second floor.
After putting down his luggage and settling the cat, he lay down on the sofa and opened the group chat that had been ringing for a while.
Lin Qi: “How is it, Brother Xu? Did the marriage go smoothly? What’s Marshal Ling like?”
Vincent: “He should have reached the Marshal’s mansion by this point.”
Vincent: “How’s the new environment? @Xu Xinghe”
Lin Qi: “Can you help me ask Marshal Ling for an autograph, Brother Xu?”
Vincent: “? If it was Cheryl who asked, I could still understand. Why do you want Marshal Ling’s signature?”
Cheryl: “?? Why do I want Marshal Ling’s signature?”
Lin Qi: “My supervisor is urging me to hand in my thesis. I’ll take out the marshal’s signature next time and say that I have a secret project for the military that needs to be completed first, and my thesis will still need some time.”
Vincent: “…How can you always come up with so many strange things? What a lame reason.”
Vincent: “This is more unreliable than the last time you said that your computer was taken away by a dog.”
Cheryl: “Don’t make trouble, the marshal’s signature will not be given to anyone. Be careful of getting yourself put into military court.”
Lin Qi: “…Sorry!!”
Vincent: “Speaking of which, why didn’t Xinghe reply yet?”
Cheryl: “Too happy and forgot?”
Lin Qi: “It’s still daytime. It can’t be that they already entered the bridal chamber??”
Xu Xinghe: “Lin Qi.”
Lin Qi: “Why did you suddenly call me by my full name?”
Lin Qi: “F*ck I’m panicking”
Xu Xinghe: “I think you, a graduate student, don’t want to graduate on time.”
Lin Qi: “These words don’t faze me anymore. I’m already prepared to extend my graduation.”
Xu Xinghe: “Oh?”
Xu Xinghe: “Oh, I suddenly found that Professor Neumann is still in my address book.”
Lin Qi: “…Brother, I’m wrong.”
Lin Qi: “Brother, please show mercy!”
Lin Qi: “How is it with you, brother? Is the real Marshal Ling more handsome than that grandson, Mu Qingyun?”
Xu Xinghe: “…I don’t know, I haven’t seen him yet.”
Lin Qi: “Ah?! Why haven’t you??”
Xu Xinghe: “I don’t know, why should I care?”
Cheryl: “He’s a marshal. It’s inevitable to have many duties in a day.”
Xu Xinghe: “Who cares about him, I’m going to wash and sleep first.”
Vincent: “Brother Xu… It’s only after four o’clock in the afternoon”
Xu Xinghe: “So? I’ve been smiling for a day, and my face is almost stiff. Better to rest for a while”
Lin Qi: “You still smile?? Why don’t you ever smile at me?”
Xu Xinghe: “Because you’re not worth it”
Lin Qi: “Xinghe, it’s easy for you to lose me like this”
Xu Xinghe: “…I’ve set the alerts for this group to do not disturb, bye bye”
Xu Xinghe turned off his smartphone and stared at the white ceiling for a while.
He didn’t really plan to go to sleep. Instead he lay down on the sofa for a while, and then got up to unpack his meager luggage.
At half past six in the evening, he had dinner alone in the house.
After dinner, he went out for a walk for an hour. After playing with Xiaoqi for another hour, he decided to wash and go to bed.
As expected, Marshal Ling still did not appear.
And this time, Xu Xinghe didn’t want to wait any longer.
Unfortunately, just as Team Leader Xu stepped into the bathroom humming a little song, the sound of the bell rang outside the door. “Mr. Xu, the marshal is back, please come over.”
—–
Carrying an important document in hand, he was led to the door of Ling Changfeng’s study.
Marshal Ling seemed to have just returned from an important occasion. Wearing a neat military uniform, he sat behind a large desk, looking down at a blue paper document.
This is the first time Xu Xinghe has seen the “Black God of War” of the five galaxies in the Alliance.
Rows of dazzling medals were pinned to the man’s chest, confirming the marshal’s past achievements and glory.
Paired with that stern profile, it’s difficult to move one’s eyes off.
The servant stood at the door and saluted, “Reporting to the marshal, Mr. Xu is here.”
Ling Changfeng raised his head at the movement.
His sight collided with Xu Xinghe.
The moment their eyes met, Xu Xinghe’s heart jumped.
Contained in those dual-colored pupils was a sharp edge that can kill, and kill decisively, like a sharp arrow.
Such sharp eyes made Xu Xinghe, who grew up in the capital, a little uncomfortable.
He lowered his eyes subconsciously, avoiding the gaze.
Therefore, the sensitive and dull young man did not notice the sharpness being quickly restrained in those dual-colored pupils after seeing him.
He only heard Marshal Ling say to the servant: “You go down first.”
His voice was cold, but sonorous and powerful.
Now only Ling Changfeng and Xu Xinghe remained in the room.
The two of them, one sitting and one standing, didn’t say a word, and the atmosphere cooled.
It was unlike a wedding night for a newlywed couple.
After a long silence, Ling Changfeng spoke first: “I originally planned to pick you up by myself today, but I had to deal with an emergency and couldn’t leave.”
Taken by surprise, Xu Xinghe raised his head to look at him.
“The matter has been dealt with now.” Ling Changfeng closed the folder in his hand, and raised his eyes. “Come here.”
“Eh?” Xu Xinghe froze. His big black eyes blinked, as he stood at the door without moving.
Ling Changfeng’s eyes swept over the folder in Xu Xinghe’s hand, and said lightly, “Didn’t you prepare a file for me? Bring it over.”
“Oh.” Xu Xinghe breathed a sigh of relief, and walked over.
Perhaps because he is used to giving orders all the year round, Marshal Ling’s words were very authoritative.
However, Xu Xinghe also understood.
In his eyes, Ling Changfeng is still the commander-in-chief of the Alliance. The two of them are simply two strangers with different identities bound together by the mastermind.
Xu Xinghe stepped forward and laid the prepared documents out on the large desk.
Ling Changfeng glanced at it and asked blankly, “What is this?”
Xu Xinghe said, “As you can see, this is a divorce agreement. I have already signed it, and I’m just waiting for the marriage protection period. Once it’s over, the initiative is in your hands – when you want to divorce, just sign it.”
Frankly speaking, Xu Xinghe has some respect for this hero of the Alliance with great achievements in front of him, so he used honorifics when speaking.
Hearing this, Ling Changfeng hummed noncommittally. His slender fingers slowly tapped the desk, with an expression of mixed joy and anger.
Xu Xinghe was stunned. Some kind of magical intuition told him that Marshal Ling wasn’t very happy now.
He hesitated for a moment and felt that his bargaining chip was not enough, so he continued: “After the divorce, I don’t need any compensation from you, nor will I do anything in your name to cause you trouble.”
“What about the conditions?” Marshal Ling glanced at the documents, his tone still indifferent.
Xu Xinghe bit his lower inner lip lightly: “If… I mean, if we have a child in the future, I hope to get joint custody of the child.”
Ling Changfeng raised his head.
His eyes narrowed slightly, and his eyes swept across Xu Xinghe.
Even though the other party tried his best to appear calm, the battle-hardened Marshal Ling could read the nervousness and anxiety from his slightly trembling eyelashes and white fingers.
The dual-colored pupils scanned Xu Xinghe, and finally landed on the bitten light pink lips.
His eyes flashed.
The omega in front of him just came of age two years ago and is still going through the transformation from a teenager to a youth.
Compared to the seasoned Marshal Ling, he is very young and immature.
Fragile as a human cub.
In this way, he obviously looks like a child.1as in lack of life experience; young age. Not physically, more so mentally
And why make such a request?
Ling Changfeng withdrew his almost sharp gaze and asked in a light tone, “Why?”
He knew that Xu Xinghe had also made this request to Mu Qingyun.
But he doesn’t believe it’s because of the reasons rumored online.
He still remembered that night when they first met, when the seemingly quiet little guy was brandishing his claws and clamoring about like a small beast…
Why is he obsessed with joint custody of the child?
Xu Xinghe fell silent at Marshal Ling’s question. Then he suddenly smiled softly, and asked in an almost provocative tone: “As a child’s father, is it really difficult to understand that I don’t want to give up custody of my own flesh and blood in the future?? Just because I am an ordinary person and you are the marshal, so even this is considered a luxury?”
Ling Changfeng’s fingertips, who were tapping on the table, suddenly paused.
He raised his head to look at Xu Xinghe, with surprise hidden in his eyes.
This time, the pair of black eyes on the opposite side did not dodge, and met his gaze directly.
The corner of Xu Xinghe’s mouth raised a self-deprecating arc. “But don’t worry, I probably won’t be able to conceive. After you sign the divorce agreement in a year, you should have no worries in this regard.”
After speaking, without waiting for Ling Changfeng’s reply, he ended the conversation on his own. “You must be tired after a busy day. You should rest early, I won’t disturb you any longer.”
He left the study decisively.
Marshal Ling, who was left behind: “…”
No one has spoken to him in such a tone for a long time.
He hadn’t figured out how to respond yet, and his little spouse ran away and disappeared.
Staring in the direction Xu Xinghe left, Ling Changfeng was suddenly reminded of an animal – a little hedgehog.
That kind of small hedgehog whose outer shell is hard and thorny, but the inside is soft, and you can hold it in the palm of your hand and touch its belly.
But now, this little hedgehog seems a little unhappy?
Thinking of this, Ling Changfeng frowned slightly.
Why? He did not refuse his request.
After a moment of contemplation, Ling Changfeng reopened the blue paper document he was reading when Xu Xinghe entered.
This is the wedding notice prepared for him by his adjutant, Major General Qin Yuan, who calls himself an “omega’s friend”.
The eight-page A4 report was full, but he hadn’t had time to read it because there were a lot of things to do today.
With a serious attitude like reading a military report, Marshal Ling read the notices for newlyweds from beginning to end, trying to find a solution to the problem of “what to do if your spouse is unhappy”.
Unfortunately not.
Only a handwritten tip from Qin Yuan is attached to the last page of the document—
[For the sake of your future marriage happiness, I recommend you to complete the following work on the wedding day as an old classmate:
(1) Explain to your spouse why you did not pick him up, and emphasize that your absence is for a reason, so as not to cause the other party any misunderstanding;
(2) Give each other enough patience and companionship on the wedding night, and do your due diligence between husband and wife. Believe me, this will definitely promote the relationship between the two of you to a great extent;
(3) In view of the fact that you have been absent from the first important ceremony in marriage, it is recommended that you provide corresponding compensation in time to let the other party feel that he is valued. For example, give some gifts as he likes, and invite him to have a candlelight dinner on another day.
Note: I hope you are always aware that the other person is your legal spouse and do not speak to him in the tone of a subordinate.
Finally, I sincerely wish you a happy wedding!]
Ling Changfeng: “…” What a mess.
He snapped the file shut.
After a few seconds, it opened again.
His eyes fell on the words.
Is it because his tone was too stiff just now?
But this kind of problem fell into Marshal Ling’s blind spot, and he had no choice but to trust his adjutant once.
So he pulled out a pen and put a tick behind the first tip.
The explanation was completed just now. Next…
Ling Changfeng put away the divorce agreement on the table and stuffed it into the bottom drawer of the desk.
Then he got up, brushed the corners of his clothes, and headed towards Xu Xinghe’s room.
Anyone else find the ML’s confusion humorous? If only the MC wasn’t scarred by those MQY/Mu family bastards.
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1as in lack of life experience; young age. Not physically, more so mentally