Chapter 28 Everyone has a bright future. I'll lie down first as a sign of respect. ...

There were only three of them eating that night, so they only made cold chicken salad and a vegetable dish, but they still ate it with great relish.

Gu Yan was completely impressed by Zhao Shuyi's cooking skills.

In fact, Zhao Shuyi herself was also very surprised.

She felt as if her previous cooking skills and the original owner's cooking skills combined to create a 1+1=2 effect, and with the addition of the spiritual spring water, it was truly remarkable.

Perfect timing, she herself is a glutton.

You can lose anything but your own stomach.

After eating, Gu Yan continued working, afraid that Zhao Shuyi would get covered in sawdust. The yard became a no-go zone for Zhao Shuyi, who could only sit by the yard and have Cai Mingliang teach her to write.

This child hasn't started school yet, but has endless enthusiasm for it.

Zhao Shuyi also enjoyed it.

Tao Yuan stood at the door, saw what appeared to be a family of three, pursed his lips, and then knocked on the gate.

After chatting for a few minutes, the two called Zhao Shuyi over.

As expected, Xia Mulan agreed to let Zhao Shuyi take care of her.

She doesn't need to stay at their house all the time; she can just go over every two hours to check on them and cook them a meal while she's at it.

"Comrade Zhao Shuyi, we can give you an extra thirty yuan for meals every month, is that alright?"

Zhao Shuyi was somewhat surprised, because with the prices of that era, thirty yuan was definitely a high salary.

Although she couldn't compare to her parents, her parents were high-tech professionals with expertise in technology, rare talents in the country, while she, who went to take care of Xia Mulan, was, to put it nicely, just a caregiver.

However, she felt that they must have considered the matter carefully before deciding on such a large sum of money.

Zhao Shuyi did not refuse.

"Okay, don't worry, I definitely won't let your money go to waste."

They are indeed generous people, and it was worth it for me to use the sacred spring water to help them.

"Okay, I'll go apply for it now and try to get some subsidies from the military. You don't have to rush; you can start after you get married."

"Okay, I'll let you know later. I can bring you some of the food I cook these days. It's just a matter of having a couple more pairs of chopsticks."

Tao Yuan was a little embarrassed, but he still reluctantly agreed.

"Thank you very much. To be honest, my wife really likes your cooking. I haven't seen her eat this much in a long time."

"It's alright, it's alright. I admire Company Commander Xia very much. I hope she gets better and better, and that your family gets better and better too."

Tao Yuan's eyes seemed to have sand in them, and he nodded earnestly with his lips pursed.

"I will tell her what you said, and I hope things will get better for you both."

He patted Gu Yan's arm, "Then I'll head back now."

He's the only one busy at home right now, so he must have a lot to do. The other two are also busy, so they didn't stay long.

After everyone left, Gu Yan said, "Thank you, Shuyi, you really helped them a lot."

Company Commander Xia was never short of people to take care of her, but she was very uncooperative.

The reason for their lack of cooperation is obvious to everyone.

Others are impatient with her.

She's already in this state, why should she have to put up with those people's bad temper?

She did cause trouble for Commander Tao, but she did not wrong anyone else.

But Zhao Shuyi was different. Although Zhao Shuyi was also trying to coax her, she could tell that it wasn't genuinely for her own good.

Therefore, she was willing to offer a high price of thirty yuan.

Thinking about this, Zhao Shuyi asked, "If others find out about the thirty yuan, won't they have something to say? Do you think I should take the thirty yuan?"

Gu Yan didn't expect her to still be dwelling on this, and smiled.

"I thought you had thought it through so readily when I saw you agree so readily, but I didn't expect you weren't sure either."

"I thought they must have discussed it beforehand and wouldn't try anything funny. No matter how much they gave me, I could make better food so that Company Commander Xia would be more comfortable. But I didn't think about us."

"It's alright. Just as you said, they must have had their reasons for bringing this up." Gu Yan subconsciously reached out to touch Zhao Shuyi's head, but when he saw his hands covered in dust, he withdrew them.

"You've put their minds at ease, and it's what you deserve for your hard work. But you can't say that in front of outsiders; that's your reward in private."

"I'll discuss the details with them later. You can just do what you want to do."

Zhao Shuyi blinked, said "Oh," and went back to find Cai Mingliang.

She had also noticed Gu Yan's actions just now.

He probably wanted to touch his own head; the action was almost subconscious.

this……

It's hard not to overthink it.

Zhao Shuyi's heart was pounding, and she didn't pay much attention to what he said next.

However, one thing is certain: I can accept thirty yuan.

"Wow, Xiao Liang's writing is so beautiful! It would look even better if this horizontal stroke could be written a little flatter."

In the courtyard, Gu Yan watched Zhao Shuyi, who seemed to be fleeing in a panic, rubbed his fingers together, and continued working.

He worked tirelessly, and by nightfall he had already made two boxes.

According to their idea, about six boxes would be enough to achieve the desired effect.

After making sure it was secure, Gu Yan climbed up and stepped on it to confirm that it was still very stable.

"Let's do it tomorrow. Go home and rest early tonight."

"I'd like to work a little longer. Could you please boil some water for Xiao Liang to take a bath? He can bathe himself."

Knowing he was probably busy, Zhao Shuyi agreed.

"It's dimly lit, be careful not to hurt your hand," she instructed again.

Getting a nail or something similar hit your hand is no small matter.

Gu Yan agreed and continued working. At this time, the light was so dim that Zhao Shuyi could hardly see anything while lighting the fire.

However, having electric lights is already a very good condition.

She knew that many places still didn't have electricity these days.

People should be content; if you're always comparing yourself to those you can't compare to, you'll be exhausted.

Zhao Shuyi gave the child a bath, then took one herself. When she came out, Gu Yan prepared two more.

He has already made all the parts; now it's just a matter of assembly.

"How about we do it tomorrow? Will you be able to see it?"

The courtyard was darker, with only lamps under the eaves.

Zhao Shuyi tried to bring the oil lamp to him, but he immediately stopped her.

"Don't come any closer, I'm too dirty."

"I'll go back now and come back tomorrow. I'll get this done first thing tomorrow morning."

Zhao Shuyi stopped in her tracks when she thought of the wood chips all over the yard.

“I’ve boiled some water for you. You can wash up before you go back. The child is already asleep, so let him sleep here.”

Gu Yan thought for a moment, "I'm afraid he'll have nightmares in the middle of the night, so I'll take him back. Wait for me a moment, I'll be right away."

Zhao Shuyi's color radar went off immediately, and she burst out laughing.

"Okay, go ahead, no rush, I took a nap this afternoon and I'm not sleepy yet."

Gu Yan couldn't understand what Zhao Shuyi was laughing about at all, but he had a bad feeling about it.

But he was never one to pry, so he didn't ask any more questions and went to take a shower.

He wasn't sure if it was because Zhao Shuyi had just taken a shower, but when he got close to her, he could smell a faint fragrance emanating from her, which made Gu Yan somewhat dazed.

Most men in the military are a bit rough around the edges.

They take showers and eat very quickly.

Gu Yan finished washing up quickly.

He also brought over a few clothes, changed into them, and smelled them. Apart from a very faint soapy smell, there was nothing else, which was far different from the smell on Zhao Shuyi.

I don't know if the other person will find me unattractive.

Gu Yan remembered the bar of soap he had left over from washing bed sheets in Shanghai. Perhaps he could use it to wash clothes when he got back.

Zhao Shuyi had no idea that Gu Yan had been thinking so much while taking a shower. She sat under the eaves and looked up to see a sky full of stars.

She hadn't seen such a sight in many years.

Tomorrow should be another sunny day.

The sound of a door opening came from behind them, and Gu Yan carried out a bucket. Even though it was hard to see clearly, Zhao Shuyi still felt that he was soaking wet.

I don't know how they washed it, and I'm worried they might have wet the floor.

Before Zhao Shuyi could speak, he had already given his answer.

"Don't go into that room yet, the floor is a bit wet and might be slippery."

"Okay, don't worry about it, go back and rest."

Gu Yan hummed in agreement and went inside to find Xiao Liang.

Once inside the room, the closer you got to the bed, the more pronounced Zhao Shuyi's scent became.

Gu Yan felt a pang of regret.

I regret suggesting that I renovate the cottage.

If the two of them slept together, could I really remain calm and composed?

But since things have come to this, we can only take it one step at a time.

Zhao Shuyi listened to Gu Yan. He went out and locked the door from the outside, but didn't see him off. She was preoccupied with her own space and didn't notice Gu Yan's slight abnormality.

As soon as Gu Yan left, she went inside and returned to her own space.

The rice in the space had already started to sprout ears, it was really fast, so fast that she felt the space was just a dream of hers.

But seeing that the vegetables planted next to her were about to ripen, Zhao Shuyi knew that this was not a dream, but reality.

Her fence was already built, and the chicks and rabbits each had their own nest.

Everyone has a bright future.

That is, she stuffed it into her mouth.

After wandering around the space for a while without doing anything, Zhao Shuyi drank a cup of spiritual spring water and went to sleep.

Gu Yan will have to come find her to go out for exercise tomorrow, so she needs to be well-rested.

Although the space seemed to refresh her, she seemed to have developed a dependence on sleep.

I feel uncomfortable if I don't lie down.

I'll lie down first as a sign of respect.

He lay there until the sun was high in the sky.

Seeing the bright sunlight outside the window, Zhao Shuyi wondered if she had another dream yesterday.

I checked the time and it was nine o'clock in the morning.

Breakfast was laid out on the table as usual, and the messy yard from yesterday had been tidied up, except for the pile of bricks in the corner.

She soon found out the answer.

The gate was unlocked, and Gu Yan walked in from outside, carrying Xiao Liang in his arms and a hen in his hand.

"You're awake. I've already bought the groceries, but I didn't wake you because you were sleeping so soundly."

Thinking of the scene he saw when he arrived that morning, Gu Yan looked away.

Zhao Shuyi was still a little confused, "Then I didn't get to exercise again, and there's also the neighbor next door..."

He was startled awake from his deathbed!

"Have Company Commander Xia and the others eaten?"

Zhao Shuyi looked nervous, standing there like a child who had done something wrong.

Seeing this, Gu Yan's lips curved into a slight smile.

"Don't worry, I've already spoken to Commander Tao. There's no need to make breakfast. Your schedules don't quite match up. If he has something to do, he'll let me know in advance."

"Oh." Although the matter was resolved, she was still embarrassed and knew she had to put her skills to good use at noon.

What groceries did you buy?