Volume One, Chapter 50: About to Be Exposed

“Captain Huo, what’s going on here?” Secretary Jiang hurried forward, her eyes casting a puzzled glance at the masked woman.

Su Wan turned to see Secretary Jiang and felt as if she had just found her savior. She feared that if Jiang called out her name, everything would be over. Quickly, she greeted her proactively, “Secretary Jiang, I’m Tingting.”

“Tingting?” Secretary Jiang scanned Su Wan’s face several times before smiling and saying, “Tingting, I’ve called you several times this morning, but you didn’t answer. So you’re at the hospital.”

“Secretary Jiang, I need to talk to you about something,” Su Wan hurriedly said, hoping Secretary Jiang would take her away quickly. She even winked at her.

Su Wan was the maid at the Song family’s household. When she came looking for Secretary Jiang, it was obvious the reason was the same as Captain Huo’s. Unexpectedly, they had come with the same intent.

“Captain Huo came to see me early this morning and even brought a bag of treats for you. Now you’re here too, hehe...” Secretary Jiang glanced at Captain Huo, then at Su Wan, her smile blooming like a flower, her meaning unmistakable.

It was best to have them sort things out first. Once things were settled, she could reveal Su Wan’s true identity to Captain Huo—or perhaps Su Wan would confess herself.

“Secretary Jiang, Comrade Tingting injured her leg. I’ll take her to the medical room to get her wound dressed first,” Huo Xiao Han said without changing his expression. His dark gaze fell on Su Wan’s bleeding leg, his brow furrowing slightly.

“Yes, look at you bleeding. Let Captain Huo take you to the medical room to treat your wound. We can talk about everything else later,” Secretary Jiang said, looking down at Su Wan’s raised foot and noticing the injury. She quickly added, “Have Captain Huo carry you.”

“Secretary Jiang, no need. Please accompany me instead,” Su Wan felt suffocated and immediately grabbed Secretary Jiang’s arm, her eyes reluctantly pleading to say something. But Captain Huo had already approached, tightly holding Secretary Jiang’s hand, hoping she would understand.

Secretary Jiang thought the girl was just shy and wanted to give them some private time. She said, “Tingting, I still have things to do later. Let Captain Huo carry you.”

“No need to trouble Captain Huo. If my foot bleeds on his clothes, it’ll dirty them,” Su Wan tightened her grip on Secretary Jiang’s hand, her soft, gentle voice carrying a hint of earnest pleading. “Secretary Jiang, please just accompany me.”

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Captain Huo’s dark, deep eyes landed on Su Wan’s slender back, then back to her injured foot, where several drops of fresh blood had already dripped onto the gravel path. “Secretary Jiang, if you don’t mind, please accompany Comrade Tingting. Her foot wound needs urgent bleeding control.”

Seeing Huo’s words, Secretary Jiang nodded, realizing that as a student, Su Wan might indeed be a bit nervous facing a military regiment commander.

Huo Xiao Han crouched down, his broad back straight and muscles taut, radiating strength and stability. His voice was steady: “Climb up, Comrade Tingting.”

“Quick, get on,” Secretary Jiang took Su Wan’s hand and helped her lean onto Huo’s back.

Su Wan’s long, curled lashes trembled. She knew resisting was futile. With Secretary Jiang’s company, it was better than being alone with Captain Huo. She bit her lip, took a deep breath, bent forward, and wrapped her arms naturally over Huo’s shoulders, lying on his back.

Huo held Su Wan’s white plastic sandal in one hand, his other hand clenched into a fist, passing under her knees without touching her thighs—measured and gentlemanly.

He stood up easily, carrying Su Wan effortlessly.

At his height of 1.86 meters, Su Wan’s hand lightly resting on his shoulder instinctively hugged his neck. But after getting used to the height, she loosened her grip and moved her injured left foot away from him to avoid staining his pants.

At the medical room, the doctor examined the wound. It wasn’t deep but contained rust—likely from a rusty nail near the stone she stepped on. A tetanus shot was advised to prevent infection.

Huo Xiao Han took the examination report and left, returning shortly after settling the payment.

Before the tetanus injection, a skin test was required to avoid allergic reactions. After the test, they had to wait fifteen minutes to confirm no allergy before giving the shot.

Secretary Jiang helped Su Wan sit on a green-painted bench outside, smiling: “See how considerate Captain Huo is.”

“It’s so hot, why are you still wearing that gauze mask? Take it off,” Secretary Jiang said, reaching to help Su Wan remove it, hoping Huo would see her face.

Su Wan panicked instantly, her complexion paling. Leaning back, she hurriedly said, “Secretary Jiang, I have acne on my face. It doesn’t look good.”

If she removed the mask now, her secret would be exposed.

Secretary Jiang smiled knowingly; young girls were always concerned about their appearance, especially in front of someone they liked. She glanced meaningfully at Huo Xiao Han.

Huo stood against the wall, his back straight as a pine, his dark eyes scanning Su Wan’s bandaged left foot. Her broken white plastic sandal remained on, but she obviously couldn’t walk in it.

“Secretary Jiang, I need to step out briefly. Please take care of Comrade Tingting,” Huo said, then strode away.

As soon as Huo’s figure disappeared down the corridor, Su Wan relaxed and turned to Secretary Jiang.

“Secretary Jiang, please don’t tell anyone that I’m standing in for Ruan Tingting at the social event.”

Secretary Jiang was puzzled. “Why? Don’t you see how well Captain Huo is treating you? If he wanted to inquire, he wouldn’t be fooled.”

“Secretary Jiang, just don’t let anyone know it’s me instead of Ruan Tingting. I only want to focus on my studies and get into university. Besides...” Su Wan’s eyes flickered, “I like someone and plan to marry him after graduation. I thought it was just about filling a spot and having some food. I didn’t expect this. If people find out, how will I face them in the future?”

Secretary Jiang opened her mouth wide in surprise—Su Wan actually had someone she liked. This complicated things.

“Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone. When Captain Huo returns, I’ll explain everything to him. You won’t be put in a difficult position.”

No wonder Su Wan had been avoiding Captain Huo and didn’t want to interact with him.