Translator: ryuxenji Editor: H2dH2mr Ling Xiao's plan was perfect, but Lan Luofeng did not approve of it. In fact, when she heard that Ling Xiao had decided to let Ling Lan enroll in the First Men's Military Academy, Lan Luofeng flipped out.
Lan Luofeng did not want her daughter to continue pretending to be a man. Ling Lan was already 16 years old, the best time for a young girl to develop. However, in order to disguise herself as a man and not be discovered, Ling Lan had been taking hormone suppressors to limit the strong estrogen production in her body to stimulate sexual development. The military had always advertised that hormone suppressors were harmless to the human body, and that once stopped, the person would return to normal in a short period of time.
Of course, the military had invented this hormone suppressor not to limit development and use women as men, but to ensure the survival of female soldiers on the battlefield.
Mind you, women would always have those few days every month when it was inconvenient and uncomfortable, their mental and physical health constantly below average. It was fine during normal times, but in the event of war, these reasons would cause the combat strength of female soldiers to weaken, and they might even sacrifice their lives. Thus, as long as female soldiers entered a wartime zone, all of them would be given a hormone suppressor beforehand, ensuring that they would not have to worry about being a woman for half a year.
Of course, drugs like hormone suppressors were semi-banned in the military, so normal citizens had no way of obtaining them. However, the second generation of the Ling family had all held high positions in the military after all. Even though Ling Xiao had died, the connections he had left behind still allowed the Ling family to easily obtain this type of banned drug that was not in high demand.
Ling Lan had been taking hormone suppressors since she was 10 years old, and had been taking them continuously for 6 years. This had caused Lan Luofeng to worry that Ling Lan would develop some side effects from taking too many hormone suppressors. After all, female soldiers would not take injections continuously over a long period of time like Ling Lan. They would only take injections at certain critical moments as preparation before battle, and once the battle was over, they would stop taking them immediately.
This time, Ling Xiao's sudden revival was a pleasant surprise for Lan Luofeng, and also a weight lifted from her heart. Lan Luofeng believed that as long as Ling Xiao returned, the matter of Ling Lan pretending to be a man could be easily resolved.
This was also why when Lan Luofeng had heard that Ling Xiao had rashly recommended his daughter to study at the Federation's First Men's Military Academy without even knowing the truth, although she had been shocked, she had not been enraged. After all, Ling Xiao had not known at that time that Ling Lan was a girl. Therefore, Lan Luofeng rationally pulled Ling Xiao back to the bedroom and quietly told Ling Xiao this secret.
Lan Luofeng had initially hoped that Ling Xiao would think of a way to refuse to go to the First Men's Military Academy, but unexpectedly, the answer she received was still to let her precious daughter continue to pretend to be a man for another 6 years. Not only that, she would also have to eat and live with a group of men. This made Lan Luofeng explode.
"No! I will never allow my daughter to enter the all-male First Men's Military Academy. Ling Lan is a girl. " At this moment, Lan Luofeng had to thank the Ling family for the soundproofing devices installed in every bedroom of the old mansion. Even if the two of them were to shout, no one outside could hear them.
"I know. I promise I will arrange everything so that no one will discover Ling Lan's true gender." Ling Xiao comforted the agitated Lan Luofeng, trying to calm her down.
However, his words only made Lan Luofeng even angrier. She pointed angrily at Ling Xiao's nose and said, "Ling Xiao, what guarantee do you have? 17 years ago, you promised that you would definitely come back, but you went back on your word. You 'sacrificed' for a whole 17 years, making us mother and daughter suffer all kinds of humiliation, and even forced us into this kind of dilemma. Now, what kind of guarantee are you giving me? Do you want Ling Lan's reputation to be completely ruined before you're willing to come back? "
At this moment, Lan Luofeng did not believe a single word Ling Xiao said. As a mother, her worries and fears were much greater than Ling Xiao's. She knew very well that once Ling Lan's true gender was discovered in the First Men's Military Academy and eventually exposed, Ling Lan's life would truly be ruined. No one would be willing to believe her innocence, especially when she was living in the same place with so many men.
Even if Ling Lan did not mind, even if Ling Xiao did not mind, as a mother, she would still not be able to accept her own daughter being looked at differently by others. This would drive her crazy.
"I had clearly arranged everything so that Ling Lan would stay away from Doha, away from the eyes of the upper echelons of the military, and then slowly disappear. In the end, she would revert to her true gender and live freely … but all of this has been ruined by you! Why didn't you come back earlier or later? Why did you have to come back now? "
At this point, Lan Luofeng's eyes were filled with resentment. She hated Ling Xiao for coming back at such a coincidental time, coming back at the critical moment when Ling Lan was deciding on her future path, and then changing the path they had arranged on his own accord, causing Ling Lan to once again fall into this dangerous predicament.
"I'm sorry, Luofeng. I was too anxious. When I saw that Ling Lan's body had not yet recovered from her injuries and accidentally missed the chance to enter the First Men's Military Academy, I lost control. I originally just didn't want to disappoint my child. She was so outstanding at the Scout Academy, she would definitely want to enter the First Men's Military Academy … I took it for granted." Ling Xiao hugged Lan Luofeng tightly and apologised repeatedly, "The mistake has already been made. I can only do my best to make up for it. It's not that I can't refuse, but the risk for Ling Lan is no less than entering the First Men's Military Academy!"
Hearing that there was a risk, Lan Luofeng calmed down. Seeing this, Ling Xiao quickly explained to her why he had made such a decision.
Ling Xiao belonged to the marshal's faction. There were many higher-ups in the military who did not agree with the marshal. Of the nine great generals, four of them belonged to other factions, while the other two remained neutral. If it were not for the fact that the various factions were at odds with each other and were not harmonious, the marshal would not have been able to sit on the throne of the First Marshal for so many years.
But even so, if there was a slight disturbance and the other party found an excuse to attack the marshal, the marshal would not be able to guarantee that he would continue to sit on the throne. Ling Xiao had no choice but to take this into consideration. It should be known that the marshal had put in a lot of effort to get Ling Lan into the First Men's Military Academy.
However, if Ling Lan refused to enroll in the end, the other party would definitely not let go of this opportunity. They would set their sights on Ling Lan and secretly monitor her to find out the real reason for her refusal... no, even if they could not find the reason, they would probably create something to embarrass the marshal who had given his approval...
This would definitely put the marshal's faction in a disadvantageous position. As part of the marshal's faction, Ling Xiao naturally did not want to see this happen, but more importantly, he was afraid that he would not be able to hold his own against so many fists. One moment of carelessness would put Ling Lan in danger.
Lan Luofeng did not hear anything else, but she did hear that Ling Lan would be under long-term surveillance and would easily be in danger. Lan Luofeng was a smart woman — she quickly understood which choice was more beneficial to Ling Lan. Ling Xiao's decision was actually not wrong.
Although Lan Luofeng understood, she still felt a surge of anger in her chest. It was this Ling Xiao who had made his own decision that her precious daughter had no choice but to delay her return to her true form for six years... no matter how Lan Luofeng looked at it, she felt that Ling Xiao was despicable!
"Ling Xiao, do you still remember those promises you made when you proposed?" Now that she had calmed down, Lan Luofeng seemed a little scary.
Ling Xiao's forehead was covered in cold sweat, but he did not dare to not answer. "I remember."
"What was the fourth promise you made back then?" asked Lan Luofeng coldly. At this moment, she had the air of a soldier.
"After marriage, I must make my wife happy and blissful forever. I must never make my wife angry. If I go against this, I will accept any punishment from my wife." Ling Xiao's memory was very good — he immediately blurted out the fourth promise.
"Ling Xiao, right now I'm very unhappy, very unhappy, very angry, very angry. What do you think I should do?" said Lan Luofeng through gritted teeth.
"I know, Luofeng. Just say it. You can punish me however you want." Ling Xiao smiled bitterly. He had no excuse. He had not fulfilled his promise back then. Not only had he left Lan Luofeng worried about him on the battlefield as a newlywed, he had also gone missing for seventeen years, leaving Lan Luofeng to support the family alone. He had even made a mess of things as soon as he returned, causing Lan Luofeng to be furious. He really did deserve to be punished.
"I've decided. Before Ling Lan returns to her true form as a daughter, you will not be allowed to take a single step into my room..." Lan Luofeng tossed out these words. She did not even look at Ling Xiao as she opened the door and left.
Only Ling Xiao was left stunned. After a moment of panic, he shouted, "Luofeng, don't treat me like this. Let's talk things over..." He quickly chased after her, trying to make Lan Luofeng take back her harsh words.
Lan Luofeng's punishment was too cruel. Wasn't this the same as making him a monk for another six years? Although he had already been a monk for seventeen years, he had not seen any meat dishes back then. Of course he could endure it. But things were different now. His favourite meat dishes were right in front of his eyes every day, but he was not allowed to eat them. This was definitely a form of spiritual torture...
Ling Lan saw Lan Luofeng rush back in, ignoring Ling Xiao who was chasing after her. She knew that the situation was not good.
Meanwhile, as soon as Ling Xiao arrived at the dining room, his originally flustered and exasperated mood disappeared. In its place was a sense of calm and gentleness. However, Ling Lan could still clearly sense the trace of awkwardness that remained in his heart. It looked like Ling Xiao was also at his wit's end when faced with the furious Lan Luofeng.
Lan Luofeng's displeasure was too obvious. He Xuyang did not dare to stay for too long. He quickly finished his breakfast and found an excuse to leave the dining room. Ling Lan signalled with her eyes for Ling Qin to follow and see him off, but she was actually making sure that there was no one else around. This was because the topic of their family next was really too important. No one could know about it.
Although Ling Xiao was calmly eating his breakfast, he could read the expressions of everyone in the dining room. Seeing Ling Lan's careful approach, he could not help but feel a sense of pride rise in his heart — look, this is my, Ling Xiao's, daughter!
Compared to his son, Ling Xiao had even less resistance towards his daughter …
"Does it mean that my decision to enter the First Men's Military Academy cannot be changed?" Ling Lan stared at Ling Xiao after receiving confirmation from Ling Qin.
"That's not it either. It's just that the risk of refusing is too great, whether it's for you or for me." Ling Xiao did not hide anything, explaining all the possible consequences of refusing Ling Lan. "The final decision is still up to you. If you really don't want to go, I, Ling Xiao, can take it. It's just that for you, it will be a little more dangerous."
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
