Lin Zhilan remained silent.
Did she not want to go?
Not exactly.
It was just her feminine modesty rearing its head at a time like this. She felt a bit too shy to admit it so openly.
Fortunately, the darkness lent her a bit of courage. Lin Zhilan lightly scratched the palm of Su Lang's hand.
Su Lang chuckled softly. His deliberately lowered laughter was inexplicably seductive, making the tips of Lin Zhilan's ears burn hot.
Before his wife could shy away and change her mind, Su Lang guided her hands around his neck and effortlessly lifted her into his arms.
Back in the upstairs bedroom, Lin Zhilan shrank back toward the inner side of the bed.
The man was too close, so close that their breaths seemed to intertwine.
Su Lang turned onto his side, offering one arm as a pillow for his wife. His other hand lingered on her creamy cheek before slowly tracing down to her lips, caressing them with an ambiguous friction.
"Give me a kiss?"
He asked suddenly. Just as Lin Zhilan was about to smile, Su Lang leaned his entire body over, completely capturing her lips and tongue.
His long, slender hands didn't stay still either, slipping down to continuously caress her slender waistline.
Whenever it came to moments like this, this man was always exceptionally fierce.
Recalling the memories of their last intimate encounter, Lin Zhilan couldn't help but tremble all over.
She could only follow the man's rhythm, letting out passive whimpers and rapid pants, her mind turning into complete mush.
"Su Lang..."
"I'm here."
Su Lang leaned in closer, pressing his tall, straight nose against his wife's neck. He opened his mouth, sucking blooming red marks onto her tender, fair skin.
His head moved lower and lower, gradually slipping beneath her collar.
He was like a starving wolf that had finally caught its prey, absolutely refusing to let go.
Lin Zhilan's entire body tensed up, and she let out a delicate groan. "That hurts."
Su Lang instinctively lightened his force, using his burning tongue to gently lick the spot as if to soothe her.
"Can I?" The man's voice carried the husky gravel of desire.
He was doing it again, teasing her on purpose.
Annoyed, Lin Zhilan gritted her teeth and bit down hard on his collarbone.
Su Lang laughed. The rumbling vibration in his chest shook his entire body, making her itch to bite him again.
Compared to his wife's shyness, Su Lang was utterly uninhibited.
He gripped his wife's waist and pressed her down onto himself.
And then...
The bed collapsed.
It literally collapsed.
Unable to bear the weight, the four legs of the bed gave way and crashed directly onto the floor with a heavy, muffled thud.
Su Lang had a carpenter make this bed when he first arrived on the island. It wasn't made of high-quality wood, and combined with the humid island climate, the timber was prone to rotting.
But who could have anticipated it would break at a crucial moment like this?
Lin Zhilan bit her lip and climbed off him.
Covering his eyes as he lay on the broken bed, Su Lang reached out to grab his wife's arm. "Where are you going?"
With the mood completely ruined, Lin Zhilan's embarrassment took the upper hand. "To sleep. I'm tired."
Su Lang rolled out of the ruined bed and picked his wife up in his arms.
Before she could even speak, he whispered into her ear, "I won't mess with you anymore. Let's get you downstairs to sleep."
After carrying his wife to their daughter's room, Su Lang still couldn't resist pecking her lips a few times. His voice was a mix of helplessness and firmness. "I'm keeping a tab on this. You'll have to make it up to me later."
Taking advantage of the darkness, Lin Zhilan shot him a reproachful glare.
Unfortunately, Su Lang was blessed with excellent night vision. That coquettish glare only stoked his fire again, and he kissed his wife until she was completely out of breath before finally letting her go.
After taking a shower, Su Lang headed to Jiang Chengzhou's room.
Squeezing his nephew toward the inner side of the bed, Su Lang stared up at the ceiling, lost in deep thought.
So, what kind of wood was the absolute sturdiest and most reliable?
...
Su Lang originally wasn't supposed to return until after the New Year. However, due to the sudden typhoon, they had decided to end the mission early and dock for the safety of the entire crew.
Su Lang didn't take a single day to rest. Early the next morning, he led a team to the villages on the island for disaster relief efforts.
By the time Lin Zhilan woke up, he had already set off.
Boiled eggs and plain rice porridge had been left warming on the stove.
After the typhoon passed, the heavy moisture in the air quickly dissipated, and the sky outside soon cleared up beautifully.
Lin Zhilan's mood seemed to clear up just as quickly as the weather.
After eating breakfast with the children, Jiang Chengzhou took the initiative to clear the bowls and chopsticks from the table and carried them to the kitchen.
"Auntie, I'll wash the dishes from now on."
Lin Zhilan was momentarily stunned before she realized what Su Lang must have said to him yesterday.
Patting his head, Lin Zhilan didn't refuse. Instead, she and her daughter kept him company in the kitchen.
Because of the disaster relief operations, the military base and the hospital became the busiest places around.
Lin Zhilan handed the medicinal formulas she had prepared yesterday over to Ye Congshan and Lin Zijun, while she herself followed a team of medical staff from the hospital to the disaster zone.
The Traditional Chinese Medicine department was somewhat detached from the rest of the hospital. Lin Zhilan hadn't interacted with most of the staff there, so she simply sat in silence in the corner of the transport vehicle, making no effort to strike up a conversation or feign closeness.
These doctors and nurses were all quite young, but they had all heard the rumors about Lin Zhilan.
After all, she had been specially recruited into the TCM department right after graduating from junior high school.
And just a few days later, she had single-handedly managed to make the TCM department an independent entity.
Not to mention that pain-relieving ointment of hers, she heard loads of people were lining up just to buy it...
Regardless, there were simply too many extraordinary things about her, not to mention the fact that she possessed such a striking face.
When her face was devoid of expression, she looked pure and ethereal, as if she were a fairy untouched by the mortal world.
But when she offered a slight smile, a trace of natural allure shone through.
That allure was neither deliberate nor tacky; paired with her clear, glistening eyes, it only made her appear vibrant and exquisitely beautiful.
Even though they were all wearing the exact same white lab coats, why was her back so straight? Why was her figure so elegantly slender?
The male comrades only dared to take one look before quickly turning their heads away, terrified of making a fool of themselves in front of everyone.
The female comrades also felt a sense of distance from her and didn't dare to strike up a conversation. After much nudging and shoving among themselves, a young nurse finally sat down next to her.
"Doctor Lin."
"Hmm?" Lin Zhilan looked over in confusion.
Struck head-on by her breathtaking beauty, Qin Qing was dazed for a few seconds before regaining her senses. "I... my name is Qin Qing. The surname is Qin, as in the Qin and Han dynasties, and the name is Qing, as in a clear, sunny sky."
Since her first and last names sounded identical, Qin Qing blurted out her usual go-to self-introduction.
"Qin Qing?" Lin Zhilan's lips curved upward. "What a coincidence. My daughter's name is Linlin. Her surname is Lin, made of the double-wood character, and her name is Lin, as in a dazzling array of beautiful jade."
At the mention of her daughter, her expression instantly softened.
Anyone could tell at a single glance just how deeply she loved her daughter.
"Your daughter must be incredibly cute."
"Yes, very cute," Lin Zhilan smiled, her lips parting slightly. "You're very cute too."
She called me cute...
Qin Qing blushed so hard that smoke was practically billowing from the top of her head. Not daring to linger any longer, she silently scuttled back to her group of colleagues.
Her colleagues all teased her, but no one else tried to approach Lin Zhilan again.
Fortunately, they soon arrived at their destination.
This village was the area hit hardest by the typhoon, and many of the houses had completely collapsed.
The soldiers were still tirelessly carrying out search and rescue operations, refusing to give up on any life that might still be surviving.
The only road leading into the village was blocked by fallen trees, making it impossible for vehicles to pass. Lin Zhilan and the others carried the medical supplies and other equipment on foot to the temporarily erected tents.
Witnessing the true devastation of the disaster zone, everyone lost any lingering mood for joking around. They worked non-stop to organize the medical supplies.
The medical staff who had arrived the day before had stayed up all night. Seeing the relief team arrive to take over, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Is there a doctor here? We have a pregnant woman who's about to give birth!"
