"I don't care if she dies!"
Zhan Zeye's answer was ruthless, but it reassured Tang Qiyue.
"I told you—our marriage isn't fake!"
Zhan Zeye stepped forward, grabbed her arm, and pulled her into his embrace. His expression was far from pleasant.
This was the first time Tang Qiyue had seen such a look on his face. It was terrifying—like anger on the verge of exploding.
"I never said it was fake!"
Tang Qiyue responded softly, trying to placate him. But instead of calming him down, it only made him angrier.
She poked his chest with her finger. "I was just asking. Why are you so angry?"
Her nails were neatly trimmed, and the gesture didn't hurt—but it stirred something Zhan Zeye had been suppressing all week.
He grabbed her finger and dragged her straight into the house.
Before Tang Qiyue could react, he leaned down to kiss her.
Instinctively, she covered his mouth.
"Calm down—it's broad daylight! I just saw Sister Qiuju and the others laughing next door!"
If they stayed inside too long, people would definitely start gossiping.
Zhan Zeye's lips brushed against her palm, his stubble prickling her skin.
He raised an eyebrow, glanced out the window, and clicked his tongue.
Tang Qiyue withdrew her hand. "Also, I've been out all day—I'm sweaty. I need to bathe first. You should go back to your work. It'll be dinner time soon anyway. I won't cook—can you bring me something to eat?"
Taking advantage of his silence, she quickly arranged everything.
Fortunately, Zhan Zeye didn't insist on continuing.
"If you really want to… how about tonight?"
A blush crept across her cheeks as she offered a compromise.
Zhan Zeye fell silent.
Did he not want that?
The problem was that every night they spent together, he was the one suffering. They were husband and wife, yet he couldn't fully claim her. If others found out, he'd be laughed at endlessly.
"Fine. Then remember your promise—you'll kiss me tonight."
Tang Qiyue nodded quickly.
Who kissed whom didn't matter. They were husband and wife—what was there to be afraid of?
Her response satisfied him.
He checked the time. He still had things to handle, so he motioned for her to step away.
But just as she took two steps back, he pulled her in again and kissed her quickly.
"I'm leaving. Lock the door when you bathe."
Before she could react, he was gone.
Tang Qiyue covered her mouth, both amused and annoyed.
It wasn't that she minded the kiss—she just didn't trust his promises anymore. This man clearly had no intention of keeping them.
After calming herself, she grabbed a change of clothes and stepped outside to bathe—only to see three heads peeking over the neighbor's fence.
"Oh my, newlyweds really are something!"
Xu Qiuju teased, her eyes full of mischief.
Li Erhong nodded. "Exactly! After just a short separation, they can't wait to cling to each other!"
Sun Maisui joined in. "What do you know? Our sister-in-law is such a beauty. How could Battalion Commander Zhan stand being away from her?"
Tang Qiyue's face turned bright red.
"Sisters… do you not want to eat the chili sauce I made anymore?"
She threatened through gritted teeth.
The three women burst into laughter and promised to stop teasing her.
"Don't rush to bathe. Let's go to the beach! A fishing boat just docked—we can get fish and shrimp to make shrimp paste. I even bought Erjingtiao chilies today!"
Xu Qiuju urged her.
"Yes, we came to tell you that—but we didn't expect your Battalion Commander Zhan to be so impatient!"
Li Erhong laughed again.
Tang Qiyue sighed helplessly, put her things down, grabbed a wooden bucket, and followed them.
The four women chatted nonstop along the way. Even though they said they wouldn't tease her, they continued anyway. Luckily, Tang Qiyue had a good temperament and didn't run away in embarrassment.
Somehow, the conversation turned to Sister Zhao.
"Did you hear? Sister Zhao had a fight with Company Commander Wang yesterday!"
Li Erhong lowered her voice, revealing shocking gossip.
"What happened?" Xu Qiuju asked immediately.
"Did he hit her?" Tang Qiyue asked, frowning. She had no tolerance for domestic violence.
Li Erhong shook her head. "No, no. The soldiers here are all decent men. I heard it's because he hasn't been intimate with her. She suspects he's having an affair!"
Tang Qiyue: …
Xu Qiuju: …
Sun Maisui: …
It wasn't that they didn't want to believe it—it just seemed unlikely.
The island was small, and aside from their families, there were only villagers. The men trained hard every day and were exhausted. Even Zhan Zeye came home, hugged Tang Qiyue, and fell asleep immediately.
Let alone others.
"Sister Zhao might be overthinking things…" Sun Maisui suggested.
"They've been married for years but only recently reunited. Why would it come to this?"
Li Erhong shook her head again. "I don't think so. My husband said it was a huge argument—people had to step in to stop them!"
Tang Qiyue didn't know the full story, so she stayed quiet.
"When I came earlier, I saw Sister Zhao coming back from the fishing village. Her eyes were red and swollen. I greeted her, but she didn't even notice me. Do you think she suspects someone from the village?"
Just as Li Erhong finished speaking, they spotted Sister Zhao ahead.
The four women exchanged glances, sensing something was wrong, and instinctively followed her.
But what they didn't expect was that Sister Zhao walked toward a pile of rocks, stood there for a moment, looked around—and, seeing no one nearby, began climbing up.