Chapter 82

After making the call and learning about the situation in Xujiatun, Gu Xi finally felt relieved.

Back home, Xu Huaisheng asked with some worry, "Second sister, what if Mom and Dad, to avoid paying back the dowry to the mentally challenged family, come to the army to find you and take you back to marry that mentally challenged man?"

No one knows better than their daughters what kind of people Xu Dagui and his wife are.

When his parents wanted to marry his second sister off to a mentally challenged man in the county town for the bride price, Xu Huaisheng was extremely anxious. He wished his second sister would stay far away from him and not let her waste her whole life.

She was initially happy to come to the army base with her second sister and to see her eldest sister, but now she's worried that her parents might actually come and take her second sister back for money...

Xu Yuansheng saw that her eyes were red with anxiety, and wondered what the girl was thinking about. He sighed.

“Don’t worry, they won’t come, because they’re not desperate yet. They still have money to pay back the fool’s family. I didn’t take all their money, only half.” She chuckled again as she said this, “But after they pay back the dowry money to the fool’s family, there won’t be much left.”

Unless they were in dire straits, Xu Dagui and his wife would not dare to come to the army easily.

Deep down, they knew that forcing their daughter to marry a mentally challenged man was disgraceful. If things didn't escalate, it would be fine, but if they did, they would be in the wrong. Parents can't simply use their position to dictate their children's marriages. Those who can be manipulated by their parents and elders are merely children who are filial, obedient, and unable to resist.

People like Xu Yuansheng, who dare to scheme against them, are clearly disobedient. If things really escalate, no one will benefit.

There are many soldiers in the military base, so Xu Dagui and his wife wouldn't dare cause trouble in such a place.

Why didn't Xu Yuansheng take all the money? Why did he leave half of it for them, leaving such a loophole?

Of course, it was because they couldn't let the fool's family go to ask for the bride price and leave Xu Dagui and his wife without a single penny.

If the family of the fool refuses to give up and makes a scene, even going so far as to report them to the police, and the couple has no way to repay the money, they will have no choice but to harden their hearts and, even if they don't have the guts to come over, muster the courage to go to the military base and cause trouble...

She couldn't cause trouble for her older sister or affect her sister and brother-in-law's lives.

Not to mention they would even cause trouble for the battalion commander and his wife just to get the unit's address. Tian Qiaolian has helped them a lot over the years; they can't repay kindness with enmity like this.

Although Xu Yuansheng purposefully cultivated her reputation and image in her hometown, it doesn't mean she was ungrateful. She knew who treated her well and appreciated it.

Moreover, if Xu Dagui and his wife were allowed to frequently cause trouble at the brigade leader's house, sooner or later the brigade leader and his family would become so annoyed by the disturbances that they would develop resentment towards the sisters, and the goodwill they had cultivated would turn into a negative one.

This is very disadvantageous for them.

-

Xu Yuansheng explained his thoughts to his younger sister in detail.

Although she wanted to protect her innocent younger sister, being too naive is also a problem; otherwise, she would be bullied. She also needed to know the things she should know.

After hearing this, Xu Huaisheng couldn't help but cup his face in his hands, look at her and say, "Second sister, you're so cunning, it's scary."

Xu Yuansheng pretended to hit her.

Xu Huaisheng shifted his position, hiding behind Gu Xi, and peeked out, saying, "No wonder you've always been so resourceful since you were little, always managing to sneak food back for me and my eldest sister. Second sister, you're the best!"

At the end, she gave a thumbs-up and smiled ingratiatingly.

Gu Xi nodded in agreement and smiled, "Indeed, Yuan Sheng is very capable."

It seems that even if she hadn't been called to the military base, she could have lived a good life in Xujiatun.

The three sisters then looked at each other and burst into laughter.

They sat around the brazier to warm themselves, with an iron mesh placed over it, on which a few sweet potatoes were placed and slowly roasted. There was also a cup of prepared malted milk powder next to them, one cup for each person.

Xu Huaisheng sat back down, took a sip of malted milk powder, and suddenly said with some worry, "Second sister, Mom and Dad are convinced that you stole the money. If they report it to the police, will they really be okay?"

Although the fact that her second sister took the family's money and left had a big impact on her, when she thought about what her second sister had said, she felt that the money should clearly belong to her eldest sister, so she felt it was only right and didn't feel guilty.

She was afraid that the police would really come looking for her second sister.

Xu Yuansheng knew she was timid, so he comforted her, "Don't worry, nothing will happen! They're just saying I stole money, there's no evidence, so the police won't take it into account. Besides, nobody knows how much money they have. They say they lost so much money, but who believes they really did? Just like Aunt Tian said, everyone is more willing to believe that they're just making things up because they can't afford to pay back the bride price."

No one knows how much money Xu Dagui and his wife have except for themselves.

Even Grandpa Xu and Uncle Xu were unaware of it.

They say they lost money, but that's just their claim. They need evidence. If they can't produce evidence, who will believe them?

If Xu Dagui and his family were to actually report the police to the authorities, claiming that their daughter had run off with the family's money, the police would probably have a headache just hearing about it. When a family member runs off with money, most people would probably consider it a family matter, and even an upright official would find it difficult to settle a family dispute. The police would also have a hard time handling it.

Although Xu Yuansheng didn't know how the police handled cases, she had seen many examples before. There was a gambler who stole money from his family and gambled it away. Later, when his family reported the case to the police station, it was of no use and the matter was left unresolved.

Seeing that his second sister was so confident that nothing would happen, Xu Huaisheng decided to believe her.

Gu Xi sat quietly, saying nothing, nor did she need to say anything.

She knew that Xu Yuansheng harbored resentment towards her parents. How could a daughter not feel resentment towards parents like Xu Dagui and his wife? She wouldn't say anything about what Xu Yuansheng had done.

After the sweet potatoes were roasted, Gu Xi invited them to eat them and asked them what they wanted to eat, saying that they would go to the town market together on the first day of next month.

It looks like it's going to snow today. I heard that when it snows, it lasts for several days, so we can't go anywhere. We need to stock up on some supplies.

Now that there are two more mouths to feed in the family, she suddenly feels that the food stored in the cellar is not enough.

The two younger sisters were immediately distracted and began asking about the town market. They were very interested when they learned that the market had many things and that nearby villagers were bringing their own agricultural products to sell.

These days, private buying and selling is prohibited, but farmers are not prevented from selling their own agricultural products at the market.

But before they could even go to the market, the sewing machine was already bought.

The sewing machine was delivered by a young soldier from the logistics department.

The commotion attracted the attention of many people in the residential compound, who peeked out to see what was happening. Upon learning that the family had bought a sewing machine, many people showed envy on their faces.

These days, you need coupons to buy anything, especially industrial coupons, which are very difficult to obtain. Even if you have money, you can't buy anything without coupons. Industrial coupons like bicycle coupons, radio coupons, and sewing machine coupons are even harder to get, and not everyone is willing to spend the money to buy them.

Gu Xi was surprised that the logistics department delivered the sewing machine back to her just two days after she mentioned buying it to Shen Mingzheng. The efficiency was truly remarkable.

She beckoned to the two young soldiers and asked them to carry the sewing machine inside, then gave each of them a handful of candy as a thank you.

After seeing the two young soldiers off, he turned around and saw the people who had come to watch the commotion, and invited them in to sit down.

Zhao Yanfang, who was on good terms with Gu Xi, asked, "Gu Xi, why did your family suddenly buy a sewing machine?"

“It’s more convenient to sew clothes with a sewing machine,” Gu Xi explained, pulling Xu Yuansheng over to introduce her to them. “This is my younger sister, Xu Yuansheng, from my hometown. She is a seamstress and very good at making clothes. If you want to have clothes made, you can come to her.”

The Xu sisters had only been at the military base for two days and were not familiar with the people in the family compound.

When they arrived that day, everyone's attention was focused on Gu Xi's injured face, and they didn't pay much attention to them.

Now, after Gu Xi's formal introduction, everyone knows that Gu Xi has two younger sisters from her hometown. The older one is a tailor with excellent clothing-making skills. If you want to make clothes, you can find her instead of traveling all the way to town to find a tailor.

Actually, there are some women in the family compound who can sew, but there are only two of them, and their skills are limited. With so many people making clothes, some people are impatient to wait in line and would rather go to town to find a tailor to make them.

Xu Yuansheng was good at getting along with people. He quickly struck up a conversation with the older women and women present, asking them what kind of clothes they wanted to make and offering suggestions when appropriate.

From the age of seven or eight, she assisted the old tailor and learned from him for ten years. She was very skilled and could talk about making clothes in great detail. She could even give timely advice based on their needs, which made it clear that she was a capable person.

Gu Xi offered them peanuts and melon seeds, while Xu Huaisheng fetched the boiled water and poured it for them.

Watching Xu Yuansheng chat with them, smiling and handling everything with ease, making them beam with joy, I couldn't help but smile myself.

My younger sister has really grown up. She's no longer the child who needed my protection; she's become a capable young woman.

After the guests left, Xu Yuansheng already had three orders of clothes to make, and was just waiting for them to deliver the fabric.

Gu Xi said, "Yuan Sheng is really amazing. He's only been here for two days and he already has business."

Xu Yuansheng touched his nose, feeling a little embarrassed for some reason, and muttered, "This is all thanks to my brother-in-law who had someone help buy a sewing machine."

Originally, she planned to buy a sewing machine once she was settled here.

Who knew that the sewing machine would be delivered so quietly? This brother-in-law really is... clearly the kind of man who does things without saying a word.

In the evening, when Shen Mingzheng returned for dinner, Xu Yuansheng specifically thanked him and returned the money they had spent on the sewing machine.

She didn't have the money to sew the plane tickets, so she could take advantage of them, but she absolutely refused to let them pay for the sewing machine.

Shen Mingzheng didn't care. Seeing that she insisted on returning the money, he just looked at Gu Xi.

Gu Xi, however, was a little worried: "Do you still have money to spend?"

“Yes,” Xu Yuansheng said without changing his expression. “Besides, I’ve already taken on three orders of clothing, so I’ll be able to start making money soon.”

The Lunar New Year is not far away, and when everyone wants to make a new outfit for the holiday, even more people will come to her to make clothes, which will be her time to make money.

Gu Xi knew she didn't want to trouble them too much, so she had no choice but to accept the money.

**

The sewing machine was placed in the guest room where Xu Yuansheng and her sister were staying.

Gu Xi originally suggested putting it in the study, but Xu Yuansheng knew that she liked to read in the study and was afraid of disturbing her reading. In addition, there were some woodworking tools in the study, and if there were too many things, there would not be enough room.

So they decided to put the sewing machine in the sisters' room. Since the room was big, they could use a curtain to separate a small space to use as her workshop.

The first thing Xu Yuansheng did after starting work was to make a beautiful curtain, and he even added a skirt to it.

These curtains are hung in the master bedroom.

The curtains in the master bedroom were hand-sewn by Gu Xi. They were passable, but nothing else could be said to be acceptable. The stitches were quite rough upon closer inspection.

Gu Xi smiled as she accepted the curtains her sister had made and hung them up, trying to save face for herself: "I've never been good at needlework since I was little. You always sewed my clothes when they were torn or ripped, so I've never really practiced it."

She has a younger sister who has loved needlework since she was little, so she doesn't have to worry about these things.

After returning to the Gu family, all the clothes in the Gu family were either custom-made or bought ready-made, so she didn't need to make clothes herself.

Xu Yuansheng got a job and started getting busy.

When she was busy, Xu Huaisheng seemed to have nothing to do.

However, Gu Xi didn't let Xu Huaisheng sit idle. She carried him to the study, took out the set of math, physics, and chemistry materials she had bought in the city, and prepared to teach him.

Xu Huaisheng was bewildered: "Big sister, why are you teaching me this?"

Gu Xi: "Of course I want you to study hard. After the New Year, I'll send you to junior high school, and then you can go to high school."

Gu Xi was thinking to herself that when the college entrance examination was reinstated, her younger sister would only be nineteen years old, just the right age to go to university. In order to help her pass the university entrance examination smoothly, she had to start her studies in advance.

Not only my younger sister, but my second younger sister is also going to take the college entrance exam.

Wouldn't it be great if the three sisters went to university together? Girls should read more books to broaden their horizons; there's no harm in that.

Xu Huaisheng is still young and knows that besides studying, there's not much else he can do right now.

Go find a job? Putting aside what kind of job she could find, her two older sisters would definitely not let her go out to find work at this age; as for doing chores for the family? This isn't the countryside, there's not much farm work to do.

Then I can only listen to my older sister and go back to school first.

Xu Huaisheng began to learn from Gu Xi.

When she discovered that her eldest sister was not only making her study, but also her second sister, she was stunned again.

"Big sister, do you want second sister to go to high school?" Xu Huaisheng asked.

Upon hearing this, Xu Yuansheng immediately said, "I don't want to go to high school."

If they go to high school, they'll have to live on campus and won't have time to work. Does that mean their older sister and brother-in-law have to support them?

Gu Xi said, "Whether or not I go to high school is another matter, but there's no harm in studying more."

Xu Yuansheng didn't want to go to high school, so she naturally wouldn't force her, but her studies couldn't be neglected.

Thinking that there were still several years to go, Gu Xi didn't press them too much and said, "But if you have time, you can come and study with Huaisheng."

Xu Yuansheng glanced at his younger sister, who was studying at her desk, and nodded in agreement.

Anyway, as long as the three sisters are together, she's willing to study even if it means studying.

She glanced at a specially made study plan in front of Gu Xi, then paused and said, "Big sister, your handwriting is getting better and better."

Gu Xi smiled and said, "Really? It wasn't for nothing that I've been practicing calligraphy so hard these past few months."

Then she told them that Shen Mingzheng had been teaching her calligraphy for the past few months, and that if they wanted to practice calligraphy as well, she could teach them.

"As the saying goes, handwriting reflects one's character. Handwriting is like a person's second face, and others will look at you with more respect and have a better impression of you."

Upon hearing this, the Xu sisters exchanged a glance and agreed again.

Since their older sister has said so, they definitely have to practice, otherwise wouldn't they be embarrassing her?

-

Shen Mingzheng was quite surprised to see the three sisters studying together with such enthusiasm.

That evening, as he applied medicine to Gu Xi's facial injuries, he asked, "Did you buy that set of books specifically for them? Are you planning to send them to school?"

“Only Huaisheng will go to school. We’ll send her to the military junior high school after the New Year,” Gu Xi said. “Yuansheng has already graduated from junior high. She doesn’t want to go to high school, but it’s never a bad thing for her to learn more.”

Shen Mingzheng didn't think much of it. After applying the medicine, he examined her face.

These past few days, probably because she has her two younger sisters with her, she has been very happy every day. Her eyes are smiling and she looks especially beautiful. The gloom and indifference of the past are gone from her brows. She finally has some of the vitality that a young girl should have.

Sure enough, it was good that her two younger sisters came to keep her company.