The next day.

After waking up, Chu Jiu took out her male clothes habitually.

However, she hesitated when she spotted the long dress at the side.

It reminded her of the words Lu Tingchen told her when he returned. She bit her lip and, in the end, she could not resist the temptation of putting on a dress instead.

She set down the male clothing and put on the dress Ling Lihua bought for her yesterday.

The dress was light blue and the fabric was soft. The cutting of the garment was simple and convenient to move about.

She was accustomed to male clothing, but had to admit that the dress was much more comfortable.

However, she was still not used to wearing a dress.

It could be due to the fact that she had worn one for the entire day yesterday, which was why she did not feel as awkward and uncomfortable as she did before.

She drew back her long hair casually and fixed it in place with a hair stick.

Ling Lihua had bought her many accessories yesterday, but Chu Jiu did not like putting on such trinkets, which was why she did not use them.

"Jiu, I'm coming in."

Lu Tingchen's voice could be heard from outside.

Startled, Chu Jiu quickly put down the mirror in her hand and she sat properly at the side of the bed.

Lu Tingchen pulled open the tent entrance and came in almost immediately after announcing his arrival.

There was a tray in his hands and a few breakfast items were spread on it.

A look of astonishment crossed his eyes when he saw the woman sitting on the bed.

The woman sat at the side of the bed with her long hair delicately tied up. Her head was lowered slightly and her neck was fair and slender. She looked beautiful and gentle.

Lu Tingchen gave a start.

However, he knew that getting Chu Jiu to put on a dress was no easy feat.

Now that she had taken the first step, he was afraid she would reject it if he gave a huge overreaction, which might make it even more difficult to make her wear a dress again in the future.

That was why even though he felt Chu Jiu looked incredible in the dress, he tried his best to avert his gaze and pretended to turn away nonchalantly as he placed the breakfast on the table. He pretended not to notice her in a dress.

"Come over and have breakfast, Jiu." His tone was indifferent, but there was a shred of gentleness in it.

Chu Jiu indeed felt relieved when she saw that he did not bring too much attention to her wearing a dress.

"Alright," she replied as she walked over to him.

The food at the army camp was quite basic.

Breakfast usually consisted of some bread, buns, and simple congee paired with two side dishes.

Chu Jiu was not particular when it came to food. It was enough as long as she could fill her stomach.

However, she was still astonished to see Lu Tingchen eating with such gusto.

He was from an affluent family and she did not expect him to adapt so well to life in the army camp.

"Why are you staring at me?" Lu Tingchen noticed her watching him. He raised an eyebrow and asked her with a smile.

Chu Jiu shook her head. "Nothing." With that, she lowered her head and ate a mouthful of congee.

"Don't just have the congee by itself. The bread isn't that bad. You should have more." Lu Tingchen took a piece of bread and placed it on the plate in front of her.

Chu Jiu paused a moment before picking it up and having a bite.historical

When Lu Tingchen saw that she was not put off by him passing her bread with a chopstick he had used, he felt secretly happy.

After they were done with breakfast, Chu Jiu noticed Lu Tingchen was still hanging around her tent. She could not help frowning. "Why are you so free? Don't you need to train your soldiers?"

"I've already done that earlier this morning. I need to let them have some rest. We'll be continuing with training in the afternoon." Lu Tingchen knew she wanted to kick him out. He looked at her with a hint of playfulness.

Chu Jiu paused. "You still have military duties to handle, don't you?"

Lu Tingchen sighed. "Don't you want me to accompany you?"

Chu Jiu was taken aback and she shook her head decisively. "No, I don't."

Lu Tingchen's eyes narrowed. "But I've finished my work in advance just so that I can accompany you. If you don't allow me to accompany you, I won't know what to do with my free time."

"How have I never noticed you can be so clingy?" The corners of Chu Jiu's lips twitched. It was as though this was the first day she got to know him.