Chapter 3: 3. Chapter 3: "Picking a Fight

Chapter 3: "Picking a Fight"

The following day at noon, a welcome banquet was underway in the dining hall of the 624 Border Defense Regiment camp. Several simple yet delicious dishes were laid out on the table, such as braised beef and sautéed seasonal vegetables; though not luxurious, they exuded a rustic charm.

The dining hall was arranged simply and neatly, with morale-boosting slogans and the honorary flags of the border defense forces hanging on the walls.

Everyone sat around the table in a harmonious and lively atmosphere. At that moment, the Division Commander of the border defense forces stood up. He possessed a tall, upright stature, and his dignified face bore a kind smile.

Raising his glass, the Commander spoke in a resonant voice: "Today, we are here to welcome our new member, Comrade Meng Youyou. As an excellent translation talent, it is our honor to have Comrade Meng Youyou join our 624 Border Defense Regiment. I believe your arrival will bring new vitality and momentum to our work. Let us all raise our glasses to welcome Comrade Meng Youyou!"

The crowd raised their glasses one after another, and the crisp sound of clinking echoed through the hall. Meng Youyou also stood up, speaking with a poised smile: "Thank you all for the welcome. I will certainly work hard to contribute my modest strength to the border defense forces."

Not long after sitting down, the Commander began introducing the attendees to Meng Youyou.

This continued until he introduced the battalion commander sitting next to Meng Youyou—a man whose face looked so grim and resentful that it seemed as if being invited to this meal was equivalent to being asked for a loan.

"This is Battalion Commander Huo Qingshan. Your subsequent foreign affairs work and teaching tasks in our regiment will be coordinated directly with him. If you encounter any difficulties, you can go directly to him to help resolve them."

From the very beginning, Meng Youyou had been harboring a belly full of pent-up frustration with nowhere to vent. After running five kilometers yesterday, she felt as though her legs no longer belonged to her; they were sore, swollen, and incredibly uncomfortable.

Hearing the Commander say this at this moment, she couldn't help but play the "victim" on the spot: "Battalion Commander Huo looks like he might be difficult to get along with, and he must be very busy with daily affairs. I fear that if I truly encounter difficulties and seek him out, the Battalion Commander might not be willing to help from the bottom of his heart."

As she finished speaking, Meng Youyou faintly felt a cold, piercing gaze shoot toward her from her side.

Undeterred, Meng Youyou met the gaze head-on. The second their eyes locked, the man indifferently looked away, then spoke up: "It would be better to leave the handover work to Battalion Commander Zheng. I am a local, born and raised in this small place, and I lack worldly experience. I am not like Translator Meng, who comes from a big city and has even traveled abroad; there will likely be communication barriers, and I fear I may fail to provide proper hospitality."

Sitting in the seat of honor, the Division Commander gave his dark-faced, smug subordinate a disapproving glance, thinking to himself that with such a miserable expression, it was no wonder he left such a terrible impression on the female comrade.

He immediately reprimanded him: "Do you think you can pick and choose the tasks assigned to you? Whether you do them well or not, you must do them properly. That is an order!"

Immediately after, he turned to Meng Youyou to clarify his stance: "This kid's temper can indeed be a bit poor at times, but Comrade Meng, you don't need to worry. If you encounter problems, just come to him. If he fails to meet your satisfaction, tell me, and I will deal with him."

Having received the commander's guarantee, a triumphant smile slowly spread across Meng Youyou's lips: "Thank you, Commander. Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease."

*

After the welcome banquet ended, Meng Youyou deliberately detoured behind Huo Qingshan and spoke with a sharp, biting tone: "Battalion Commander Huo, don't be in such a hurry to leave. Wait a moment. I've just arrived here, and I didn't bring everything I need. I need to make some temporary purchases, but since I am unfamiliar with the people and the place here, I would like to trouble Battalion Commander Huo to take a trip to the state-run department store for me while you are out today."

Hearing this, Huo Qingshan's brow twitched imperceptibly. His eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a look of impatience and annoyance. After a few seconds of silence, he finally replied in a low voice: "I'll have Xiao Li go buy them for you later."

Meng Youyou was clearly dissatisfied with this arrangement, her lips curling downward slightly: "Commander Peng just said that if tasks are given to you, you will personally ensure they are completed with quality and quantity. What happened? As soon as the Commander leaves, you change your face and pass the task to a subordinate? Is this how you dismiss me?"

As she spoke, perhaps caught up in her own momentum, Meng Youyou continued in a mockingly high-pitched tone: "Some people, just yesterday, were saying they 'wouldn't dare neglect a translation talent from afar.' How is it that today, your actions are a completely different story?" Meng Youyou's words were thick with hostility.

But she didn't intend to stop there. As soon as she finished, she feigned surprise, raising a hand to cover her mouth as she leaned closer to ask: "So, is inconsistency between words and actions the standard style of Battalion Commander Huo?"

Huo Qingshan stood motionless. The surrounding air seemed to freeze instantly. His gaze never left Meng Youyou. The two stood in a silent confrontation for a long time, the atmosphere becoming incredibly tense.

Ultimately, Huo Qingshan restrained himself from exploding and said with forced patience: "Give me the list once you've written it down."

Watching the man's broad, angry back as he walked away, Meng Youyou's lips curled into a visible smile of victory. She straightened her back slightly, like a victorious peacock proudly displaying its brilliant tail feathers.

Upon returning to her room, Meng Youyou's eyes fell upon the paper and pen on the table.

She gently opened the luggage she had brought. Most of the clothes inside were of fine quality, exuding an elegant temperament, but they were all, without exception, in the typical "good girl" style of a high-born lady of this era—too traditional and plain, not at all her preferred type.

In the modern era, Meng Youyou's mother ran a large, well-known fashion brand. From a young age, Meng Youyou had been immersed in a fashionable atmosphere, gaining access to vast amounts of information and resources from the fashion industry.

Her mother's brand frequently held clothing exhibitions spanning different eras, and her mother also loved visiting vintage shops. In such an environment, Meng Youyou had developed a deep understanding of the clothing styles, cuts, and popular elements of various decades.

She was particularly familiar with the fashion of the 1980s.

In Meng Youyou's memory, her mother held the fashion trends of the eighties in very high regard. Her mother had once remarked: "If the essence of fashion is a cycle, then the eighties were the starting point of the fashion cycle in mainland China. Bell-bottoms, red dresses, long trench coats, high heels... the way women dressed in the eighties underwent a revolutionary change compared to the sixties and seventies. This was a change brought about by the rise of the era, as well as a synchronized leap in both consciousness and sartorial form. The entire decade of the eighties was an accelerator for fashion in the mainland."

After much thought, while recalling the knowledge in her mind, Meng Youyou picked up her pen and began writing her shopping list.

*

The state-run department store.

Huo Qingshan looked at the long, dense shopping list in his hand, feeling a massive headache coming on.

When Meng Youyou spoke those words at noon, he thought she wanted to purchase some daily necessities. Though reluctant, he had ultimately compromised for the sake of the Division Commander.

Now it seemed... Hmph, he shouldn't have agreed to her in the first place. What kind of nonsense was she buying?

· Solid color silk nightgowns?

· Printed polyester shirts??

· Black leather stiletto high heels???

...

What a nuisance!

The more Huo Qingshan read, the more his head throbbed.

· Shampoo, soap, facial cleanser, laundry detergent, lipstick, face cream, hand cream...

How pretentious!!

Battalion Commander Huo, who used only a single bar of soap to handle washing hair, bathing, and laundry all year round, was utterly bewildered. For the first time in his life, he realized that cleaning different parts of the body could be categorized so minutely.

Shampoo for hair? Soap for the body? Laundry detergent for clothes? And what on earth was this "facial cleanser"?

Huo Qingshan's face was filled with question marks.

Since she had already been so detailed in distinguishing products for different parts of the body during the cleaning process, Huo Qingshan found it unsurprising when he saw that she required different products for facial, hand, and lip care.

Following the list further down, he finally reached some common daily necessities.

· Three basins.

Huo Qingshan was not surprised by her request for three basins; he already had a general idea of her logic. He guessed she likely intended them for: one for washing her face, one for washing her feet, and one for bathing.

· Two ceramic cups, two glass cups.

One cup was likely for brushing teeth and rinsing, which he could understand. But what about the other three... one for hot water? One for warm water? One for cold water?

Huo Qingshan shook his head helplessly.

· Five towels.

· Six...

She was definitely a pampered young lady from a wealthy family!!!

It wasn't until he saw the name of the very last item on the list that Huo Qingshan's face turned completely dark, his brow furrowing into a tight knot.

Huo Qingshan had every reason to suspect that she was doing this on purpose.