Humans are very adaptable. In less than a month, Bonnie and Liu Jiu have adapted to the weather and food in Guangdong and are managing their lives quite well.

Although Sanqi still misses her maternal grandmother a little and is afraid of getting sunburned, there is a place with all kinds of delicious fruits, which Sanqi likes.

Gu Ye has been incredibly busy lately, barely returning home and having not been intimate with his wife in a long time. The Marine Corps brigade has several thousand men, requiring not only high physical strength but also mental acuity.

He attended the best military academy, gaining exposure to various fields. Moreover, over the years, his older brother has sent him many of the latest military theories and research findings. As long as it is within a reasonable range, Gu Ye has never given up learning.

"Brigade Commander Gu, we can finally take a breather. These guys really respect you." Political Commissar Xu brought tea into Gu Ye's office. He had been fully cooperating with Gu Ye's work during this period and had been living and working at the military base.

"I have to thank Political Commissar Xu for being able to take over the work so quickly. Without your cooperation, it wouldn't have been easy for me to fully take over and gain their trust." Gu Ye knew in his heart that when you arrive in a new place, you can't expect to be put in a tough spot! Many people are eyeing this position, and if he doesn't put in his best effort, he'll be laughed at, and he might even drag his brother down with him.

“We’re in the same trench, there’s no point in talking about those things. Let’s work hard and achieve results in the future, so that we can both look good and it will be very beneficial for our future development. What do you say, Commander Gu?”

"That's right. We've been in the army for so many years and have faced life and death several times. It's impossible for us to be without any distractions. As long as we don't violate our principles and mission, it's understandable to think more about ourselves. We are all mortals, with all emotions and desires."

Neither of them were the type to engage in empty rhetoric or pretentious posturing. They spoke their minds frankly and openly, which made future work much easier. Comrades-in-arms, on the battlefield, are meant to support each other through thick and thin.

Gu Ye drank a cup of tea. He should be able to go home normally on his next day off. He would take Bao Ni and the others out for a stroll and see some different scenery.

Bonnie hasn't seen any different scenery yet, but she has seen some different neighbors.

After breakfast, Liu Jiu and San Qi didn't go to school. Bao Ni gave them a task: to clean the chicken coop.

"Mom, can we find another job? Chicken droppings are too dirty." Sanqi looked resistant.

“Chicken poop is dirty, but I didn’t see you complain about it when you ate eggs. If you can promise not to eat eggs and chicken anymore, then you don’t have to clean up; whoever eats them can clean up.” Bonnie gave her a choice; she wasn’t forcing anyone.

"Oh heavens! Why did you poop, little chick?!" Sanqi couldn't possibly not eat eggs and chicken. If he chose not to clean the chicken coop, his mother would definitely keep her word and he wouldn't get any eggs or chicken.

Liu Jiu watched with a smile as San Qi and her mother outwitted each other, ultimately losing.

The siblings went to work in the chicken coop, and Bonnie took a long wooden stick to trellis the vegetable seedlings.

Around the fence, Bonnie planted two rows of sticky corn. She had saved quite a few seeds from the ones she had previously acquired; they were quite good when boiled. Now the corn was over half a foot tall. In the gaps between the corn seedlings, Bonnie also planted green beans, not knowing if they would grow well—they're a northern variety.

The persimmons and cucumbers are growing well; once they're trellised, they'll last for a while. Any surplus will be dried into preserves for Gu Ye to take with him when he goes out to sea.

The three of them each did their part diligently, and even the reluctant Sanqi tried her best to adapt. Wearing a straw hat and borrowing Bonnie's gloves, they were fully equipped.

"Wow, what are you doing? It stinks! It's so dirty!"

The neighbor's child stood by the wall watching Liu Jiu and San Qi sweep up chicken droppings, then ran away shouting.

"Sis, that older sister is so noisy!" Sanqi frowned, her voice too shrill.

"Don't worry about her, she's making a fuss over nothing, it didn't affect her."

Liu Jiu had already collected the chicken manure she had swept into a basket, which she would later pour into the manure pit her mother had dug, to add nutrients to the vegetables.

"Mom, this is it. Their chicks poop and it smells awful. Tell them to get rid of the chicks; they're too dirty."

It was that shrill-voiced older sister again, this time with her mother by her side.

Liu Jiu ignored her and continued to sprinkle lime in the chicken coop according to her mother's method.

"Sanqi, go get some water for the chicks." Liujiu saw that the chicks had run out of water and ordered Sanqi to do the work.

"Okay, I'll go right now." Sanqi ran to find her mother first, thinking that without an adult around, her sister shouldn't suffer.

"Little friend, where's your mother?" Xu Mei, like her daughter, covered her nose, as if the chicken coop were some kind of poison gas bomb.

"Auntie, my mom's working, what do you need?" Xu Mei was taken aback by being called "auntie." She wasn't that old, how did she become an auntie?

"Your chicken coop smells really bad. Why are you raising chickens here?" She remembered that her previous neighbors didn't raise chickens.

"Auntie, aren't the chickens all kept in the yard? Besides, my chicken coop is cleaned up every day, so there's no smell."

"How can you not smell it? Can't you smell such a strong stench? Is there something wrong with your nose?" the girl next door screamed again, Liu Jiu clenched and unclenched her fists.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie asked, finishing her work as soon as she heard what Sanqi said.

"Mom, the aunt and sister next door said we shouldn't keep chickens in the yard because it smells bad." Liu Jiu repeated what they said, and left the rest to her mother.

"Hello, our chicken coop is very clean. I wouldn't say there's no smell at all, but it shouldn't affect your area." Bonnie hadn't had any contact with her next-door neighbor; she seemed to be at work and she hadn't seen her much.

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