Chapter 43

Chapter 43

"I never intended to sneak off, disregarding you and the child..."

It hurt Lin Ze to be misunderstood, but it quickly turned to guilt—because he had always kept things from him, making him prone to such suspicion.

"Before, I might have done as you said, but now, I wouldn't disregard the child in my belly, nor would I make a move without asking you..."

After speaking, Lin Ze covered his teary eyes.

In truth, Li Xiujin's heart ached at the first words of his explanation, but he wanted to force Lin Ze to lay bare his true feelings.

His feet suddenly left the ground. Lin Ze was startled, but soon worry took over: "Xiu Jin, Xiu Jin, this might reopen your wound. I can walk on my own..."

Li Xiujin paid him no mind, carrying him back to the bedroom, placing him on the bed, and quickly settling over him. He cupped Lin Ze's face, looking into his damp eyes.

"Have you been crying?"

Only when reminded did Lin Ze feel slightly embarrassed, covering his eyes.

"No... My eyes have been a bit uncomfortable lately..."

He used to endure severe injuries without even a frown, but lately, he had become strangely fragile.

"Is that so?"

Li Xiujin pulled his arm away from his eyes and, as if thirsty, licked his damp eyelashes before sucking on his delicate, red eyelids.

The slight, tingling sensation made Lin Ze's scalp tingle, and his reproductive cavity softened with a faint ache. If this continued, he might just come from having his eyes kissed...

Lin Ze spoke up: "Xiu Jin, I never meant to hide it from you. Can I see your wound now?"

Reluctantly, Li Xiujin released his hold on Lin Ze's face, took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeve, and showed him.

"It's just a flesh wound."

The gunshot wound was wrapped in a layer of gauze, faint traces of blood seeping through. Lin Ze's shoulders trembled slightly. He wanted to touch it but was afraid of hurting him, his hand hovering in mid-air. His eyes, which had just been licked dry, grew moist again.

Seeing him so distressed, Li Xiujin felt that getting injured a few more times, even more severely, wouldn't matter.

He longed for Lin Ze to worry about him, to care for him.

He drew Lin Ze into his arms, kissing his soft black hair, and asked hoarsely, "Do you know why I saved that person?"

Lin Ze was still trembling because of the injured arm and didn't speak, but he knew Li Xiujin wasn't as cruel as others said—he was actually a very good person.

"Because she was pregnant, just like you."

Lin Ze froze.

Most of the time, the lives of others didn't concern him, but when he saw that pregnant woman, he instantly thought of Lin Ze. What if he wasn't there and Lin Ze, alone and pregnant, encountered danger?

Lin Ze trembled and held him tighter.

But Li Xiujin cupped his face again, speaking seriously:

"To me, you are the most important, understand?"

Lin Ze's heart pounded wildly, his eyes stinging. No one had ever said such words to him before.

"Don't hide anything from me."

"Mhm..."

"Besides 'mhm,' what else can you do?" Li Xiujin lifted him onto his lap, nuzzling his nose, his voice hoarse.

"Then, what do you want me to do?" Lin Ze asked, somewhat at a loss.

Li Xiujin's eyes darkened instantly. He patted Lin Ze's bottom. "Stick out your tongue."

Lin Ze's cheeks flushed, but he obeyed, sticking out his tongue.

Lin Ze's lips were a tender pink, and so was his tongue. Li Xiujin's Adam's apple bobbed as he took Lin Ze's tongue into his mouth, sucking on it.

Lin Ze trembled slightly in his arms but remained docile, as if allowing anything to be done to him.

Having slept at the military headquarters these past few days, Li Xiujin had been pent up. He poked Lin Ze's increasingly plump bottom...

Sucking on his earlobe, he whispered hoarsely, "Your husband is hard. As his wife, what should you do?"

As his wife, what should he do...

Lin Ze's snow-white body flushed pink. If he weren't pregnant, he should open up, let him in...

But now he was pregnant. Did that mean he should let him stay outside like that night...?

While Lin Ze was shamefully pondering, Li Xiujin watched him with amusement.

Having never been in a relationship before, Lin Ze was very naive, even innocent, in matters of love. Li Xiujin actually loved seeing him blush and feel ashamed over crude language; sometimes he even deliberately provoked him.

"Colonel Lin, haven't you figured it out yet?"

"I'm already hurting more than my wound." Li Xiujin poked him again, breathing heavily in his ear.

Hearing him say it hurt more than the wound, Lin Ze's heart clenched immediately. "Wait a moment..."

With that, he lay down, trembling slightly as he removed his clothing, opening himself to him, then covering his face, whispering almost inaudibly, "Xiu Jin, you can stay outside for now... wait until after three months..."

Li Xiujin's blood boiled. "Outside what?"

His entire body, following his master's flushed cheeks, trembled, and his bud-like toes curled in shame...

"Rub against it..."

Li Xiujin's Adam's apple bobbed. "Then I won't hold back, Colonel Lin."

With that, he lifted him, the plump flesh squeezing together.

Li Xiujin swallowed, never imagining that one day the person he could only watch on screen would let him do as he pleased.

Seeing Lin Ze couldn't take it anymore and fell silent, Li Xiujin finally relaxed slightly...

Li Xiujin hugged Lin Ze again, wanting Lin Ze to feed him, only to find that Lin Ze had unknowingly passed out, his face flushed.

Li Xiujin chuckled softly, affectionately licking his cheek, then held him and fell asleep as well.

Li Xiujin, full of energy, woke after just three hours. He suckled at Lin Ze's chest until dawn, when Lin Ze finally opened his eyes, breathing rapidly, and saw Li Xiujin's head buried against his chest, immediately blushing with shame.

"Xiu Jin, why aren't you at work?"

"I wanted to get up, but you kept holding me and wouldn't let me leave."

Lin Ze had never known himself to be this way. "Is it too late to go now?"

"It's almost noon."

Guilt washed over Lin Ze.

"Just kidding."

Even though he was tricked, Lin Ze wasn't angry. Instead, he asked with concern, "Are you sure it won't interfere with your work?"

"I'm all yours today."

Hearing this, Lin Ze finally relaxed, feeling a flicker of happiness. But when he sensed something, he trembled, overcome with shame.

Lin Ze hadn't gotten out of bed all morning. At noon, Li Xiujin brought him food, feeding him bite by bite. After eating, he held Lin Ze and lay back down. He undid Lin Ze's pajamas, revealing his pale stomach. It had been almost three months, with only a slight curve, hidden by his clothes.

"So flat," Li Xiujin said with a frown.

But Lin Ze felt ashamed. "It might take a few more months to show..."

"How big will it get?"

"I... I don't know..."

Li Xiujin teased, "Can you give birth to six like a she-wolf?"

Lin Ze's face flushed red. "I couldn't possibly give birth to that many..."

"How many can you have?"

Lin Ze shook his head. After a while, he asked, "Xiu Jin, how many children do you want?"

"At least three," he said, though even one felt like too many to him.

Three...

Lin Ze's ears grew warm. "Three is okay..."

"You're willing to give me three children."

Lin Ze averted his gaze. "Mm..."

Li Xiujin's throat tightened as he pulled him into his arms. "One is enough."

Then, noticing Lin Ze's chest had grown larger again, he swallowed hard. "Are you going to produce milk?"

Realizing what he was referring to, Lin Ze's cheeks burned.

Li Xiujin took it in his mouth for a while, then said hoarsely, "If there is, it's mine alone to drink."

"You can't feed the child."

Lin Ze trembled slightly but finally agreed.

"Mm, only for you..."

*

They rested for a day, doing nothing but kissing and holding each other in bed. The next day, while Lin Ze was teaching the children, he still felt a burning pain there. During lunch, he drifted back to the previous noon, being fed and kissed by Li Xiujin, their tongues erotically entwined.

Perhaps because pregnancy made him lethargic, Lin Ze found himself only wanting to stay at home with Xiu Jin, wanting to be kissed and held tightly by him, his body feeling warm, tingling, and numb.

A certain place grew damp. Realizing what was happening, Lin Ze quickly stopped such fantasies, his handsome face flushing slightly pink...

He felt ashamed for not understanding why he had become like this.

A text message interrupted his thoughts. It was from Lu Mo.

— Colonel, Su Wang actually plans to have his son participate in the Regeneration Plan.

— What's more, his son passed the screening. His physical fitness and intelligence are both qualified.

Lin Ze's expression turned serious. He truly hadn't expected this news. The Regeneration Plan was still in its exploratory stage. When they went back then, they were prepared to die. Now, after seven years of stagnation, it couldn't have improved much. He never thought Su Wang would make that sacrifice.

But on second thought, this would actually benefit Su Wang's own career and help with future recruitment for the Regeneration Plan.

Lin Ze thought for a moment and replied, "Understood."

In the afternoon, he saw Su Wang again.

Compared to last time, Su Wang wasn't smiling. He pushed the Regeneration Plan documents toward him again.

Lin Ze didn't touch them. "I already told you last time, I don't plan to participate."

"I'm not asking you to participate," Su Wang said.

"I want you to help train them."

Lin Ze's pupils contracted slightly. "I still have work. It wouldn't be very convenient for me."

"Colonel Lin, you must have noticed many more vagrants on the streets recently. If we can't find usable Ruo Energy, there will be more and more people like this. Can you bear to witness such a scene?" Su Wang asked.

"It has nothing to do with me," Lin Ze said calmly.

"Is that really what you think?" Su Wang narrowed his eyes. "If you were truly a cold and heartless person, why did you risk your life to join the Regeneration Plan back then?"

"You also don't need to worry that I'm scheming. Now that my own son is involved, what underhanded tricks could I possibly play?" Su Wang sighed slightly. "My only wish now is to train them thoroughly to increase their chances of survival."

Lin Ze wavered slightly.

Although they had gone prepared to sacrifice everything, he still didn't want himself or his teammates to die. Lin Ze opened the documents Su Wang had given him. They listed several soldiers who had passed the screening, all very young, with long lives ahead of them...

"Think it over carefully," Su Wang said before leaving.

When Lu Mo found out, he asked, "So, Colonel, what do you plan to do?"

Lin Ze smiled bitterly. Seven years ago, he believed that through his own efforts, he could make everyone live a stable and happy life, only to meet such a fate.

Now, he only wanted to find out the cause of his teacher and teammates' deaths and live a good life with Xiu Jin.

But another voice kept condemning him.

When you possess some ability, wealth, or power, you shouldn't ignore those living in dire straits. This is your responsibility and your basic conscience as a fellow human being.

*

Yang Yu went to Li Xiujin's office and noticed he looked much better than a few days ago, probably because they had reconciled. This made Yang Yu less anxious about what he was about to report.

"This Su Wang is still scheming. He went to see Colonel Lin again."

Li Xiujin scoffed lightly.

"This time, however, they're not asking Colonel Lin to participate, but to have him guide them."

Li Xiujin had already guessed as much. After all, in the entire nation of A, there was no one else with Lin Ze's combination of experience and theoretical knowledge. How could Su Wang let him go so easily?

"General, if it's just guidance from behind the lines, there wouldn't be any danger. Will you consider allowing Colonel Lin to agree?"

"That's up to Colonel Lin."

If I discussed it properly with him, he might not refuse. But if Lin Ze dared to hide it from him... Li Xiujin's expression darkened as he bit down on his knuckle...

*

Lin Ze didn't dare get into bed. He was afraid he might fall asleep and then fail to discuss the important matter with Li Xiujin. Fortunately, Li Xiujin returned home very early today.

As soon as Li Xiujin returned, he buried his face in the crook of Lin Ze's neck, breathing in his scent. After his fatigue vanished, he took Lin Ze's lips in his own. Lin Ze's cheeks flushed as he parted his lips obediently, accepting his tongue...

After the kiss, Li Xiujin nuzzled against his nose. "Waiting for me?"

"Mhm."

"Is there something you want to say?" Li Xiujin scrutinized him.

"We haven't chosen a name for the baby yet," Lin Ze said softly.

"Is that all?"

"Mhm..."

Li Xiujin's expression darkened. He gripped Lin Ze's chin. Always hiding things from him like this... He should be glad he's pregnant, otherwise...

Just as he was about to bite his lips hard in frustration, Lin Ze spoke again, voice tinged with shame: "Xiu Jin, wait... There's one more thing. I want to be honest with you..."

Li Xiujin's movements paused slightly.

"Speak."

"Su Wang approached me today... He asked me to provide some guidance."

Li Xiujin's expression softened a little.

"Xiu Jin, can... can I go?"

Li Xiujin didn't say yes or no. Instead, he kissed him again, parted his legs, and began to caress. Soon, a slick strand was drawn out.

Li Xiujin forced him to look.

Pregnant as he was, his desire was still strong—even stronger than before he was pregnant. Lin Ze's eyelashes fluttered intensely, his cheeks slightly flushed, but he didn't forget the matter at hand: "Xiu Jin, is it okay?"

Li Xiujin gave a low chuckle and patted his rear:

"Sit on my face.

"If you satisfy me, I might consider it."