It turns out that men do have their obsessions when it comes to certain matters—speed might be quick, but time certainly isn’t.
When Jiang Si woke up again, it was almost noon.
She rolled over and lay on her stomach, listening carefully.
The house was quiet—it seemed no one else had returned yet.
Letting out a relieved sigh, she couldn’t help but question her life choices.
Who was it that said men start declining after twenty-five?
If it weren’t for the fact that she drank spiritual spring water daily, Jiang Si would’ve wondered if she’d been overdoing it with Huo Tingzhou’s "supplements."
Did he ever get tired?
She’d often heard people say, "Some are parched to death, while others drown."
Back then, she’d naively thought it was better to have too much than too little.
But now that her dream had become reality, she realized that sweetness came with its own burdens.
Though Huo Tingzhou had obediently slowed down afterward, Jiang Si soon discovered that wasn’t the real issue.
At times like this, she could only console herself—thank goodness for the spiritual spring water.
After freshening up, she soaked in the spiritual spring for a while.
Once most of her discomfort had faded, she finally settled in front of her vanity.
By the time Huo Tingzhou pushed the door open, Jiang Si was nearly done getting ready, now braiding her hair.
Hearing the movement, she instinctively glanced up.
Fresh from the shower, Huo Tingzhou stood bare-chested, water droplets still trickling from his damp hair.
With each step he took, the beads of water trailed down his neck and further below…
Jiang Si swallowed hard and muttered under her breath, "What a demon."
Demon?
Huo Tingzhou paused briefly.
But he quickly realized—his wife was probably complimenting him.
A faint smile tugged at his lips as he sat behind her.
"Why didn’t you sleep longer?"
As he spoke, he took over braiding her hair. "Four strands?"
Jiang Si hummed in agreement, smoothing a bit of snowflake cream onto her hands.
"Any more sleep, and I won’t be able to rest tonight."
Insomnia wasn’t the real concern—she was more worried about a certain "demon" challenging her to another "battle" after dark!
"Darling—"
Huo Tingzhou hesitated, studying her reflection in the mirror—bright-eyed and energetic—before speaking cautiously.
"Are you still sore? Should I give you a massage?"
Truthfully, she wasn’t uncomfortable anymore, but Huo Tingzhou’s massage skills were unmatched.
Besides, a little strategic vulnerability now could save her a lot of trouble later.
"My lower back aches a bit. Rub it for me?"
With that, she flopped onto the bed.
Huo Tingzhou’s hands moved gently along her waist, working upward from her lumbar spine.
"Is this pressure okay?"
"Mhm, perfect."
Though she was too relaxed to speak, Jiang Si still made sure to praise him.
"You’ve gotten really good at this."
As the saying goes, men thrive on praise.
The more you commend them, the harder they work!
The more you encourage them, the more diligent they become!
Sure enough, Huo Tingzhou redoubled his efforts at her words.
If Jiang Si hadn’t mentioned hunger, he might’ve kept going indefinitely.
Knowing her love for soup, Huo Tingzhou had washed the bedsheets that morning before heading to the state-run market to buy an old hen.
After simmering it for two to three hours, the meat was now fall-off-the-bone tender.
The moment she said she was hungry, he stood up immediately.
"I’ll get you a bowl of chicken broth first."
"The noodles will be ready soon. Want a sesame-paste cabbage salad too?"
"Yes, yes!" Jiang Si nodded eagerly, adding, "Extra sesame seeds, please!"
Since moving to Capital City, her tastes had shifted quite a bit.
Back then, she wouldn’t have touched high-calorie foods like sesame paste.
Huo Tingzhou acknowledged her request and turned to leave—until Jiang Si suddenly hooked a finger around his belt.
"Put a shirt on first."
Even with the heating on full blast, the living room curtains were wide open.
If someone saw him like this, wouldn’t they figure everything out?
Besides, people were often hypocritical—she might drool over other men (hypothetically, of course), but her own husband’s physique was for her eyes only.
(Not that she’d ever actually ogle another man—indecency laws in this era were strict, regardless of gender.)
Pulling a shirt from the wardrobe, she declared, "From now on, no going shirtless except during training or when we’re alone. Understood?"
"Orders received!" Huo Tingzhou replied solemnly before adding, "Actually, not even during training."
"What?" Jiang Si didn’t quite catch it.
Buttoning his shirt meticulously, he explained,
"Regulations require full uniform during drills. Unless absolutely necessary, no stripping allowed."
"Really?"
This surprised her. Qiongzhou Island’s temperature never dipped below 20°C, and their training routines were intense—
"If we can't take off our clothes, won't we risk heatstroke?"
Huo Tingzhou gave a quiet hum of agreement. "Heatstroke is indeed a possibility, but there’s no way around it. Those are the rules."
The rule might seem unreasonable, even a little absurd at first glance, but behind every seemingly odd regulation lies a reason.
Noticing her puzzled expression, Huo Tingzhou explained.
"Our training uniforms have been specially treated to provide maximum protection. If we accidentally scrape our skin during drills, it could affect our performance later during flights."
Of course, that was only one reason.
Another was that their flight unit’s ground crew included many female personnel.
Huo Tingzhou wasn’t comfortable exposing himself in front of other women.
So no matter how stifling or sweltering the training got, he never removed his uniform.
"No wonder you came back from the dorm last time with all that prickly heat powder and Huoxiang Zhengqi water."
Jiang Si suddenly felt a pang of sympathy.
But sympathy aside, she understood the principle—"More sweat in training means less blood shed in battle."
There wasn’t much else she could do to help, so she made sure to give Huo Tingzhou extra doses of the spiritual spring water.
At noon, while Huo Tingzhou was in the kitchen cooking noodles, Jiang Si quietly added a full bowl of the spiritual spring to the chicken broth.
Thanks to the spring water, the broth that day was exceptionally rich and flavorful.
In the end, they barely touched the chicken, finishing off most of the soup between them.
After the meal, they tidied up the house and decided to head to the square first.
With New Year’s Day around the corner, the number of visitors in the square had multiplied.
In an era without mobile phones, Jiang Si wasn’t sure if they’d manage to reunite with the rest of the family.
If they ran into them, great. If not, she’d use the time to stock up on supplies.
The past few days had been a whirlwind of wedding preparations, with the entire family pitching in—especially Second Brother and Fourth Brother.
The previous day, they’d helped fend off toasts and scouted for groomsmen.
Early that morning, they’d even escorted their uncles and aunts to the train station.
These were tasks that should have fallen to her and Huo Tingzhou.
Why "again"?
Because when Mother-in-law left for Qiongzhou Island earlier, they’d already entrusted her with delivering the wedding gifts in advance.
