"Comrade Lin, you've worked hard!"
The visitor was Zhai Gang, the political commissar of the Second Regiment, whom Bao Ni was unfamiliar with.
"It's not hard work, it's all for the people!"
Bonnie's words amused the soldiers who had followed her. This sister-in-law was so interesting; no one had expected her to be such a formidable fighter.
Bonnie felt incredibly awkward and touched her nose sheepishly. "Well, I'm leaving the baby with you guys. I need to go check if the baby's been born yet."
Without giving them a chance to react, Bonnie turned and walked away, faster and faster until she was jogging.
Bonnie chose not to hear the laughter coming from behind, pretending to be temporarily deaf.
"Bonnie, you're here?"
"Sister-in-law Huang, how is it? Has she given birth yet?"
"Not yet, I'm so anxious, I wonder if something's wrong?"
"Everything will be alright, Goddess Mazu will protect us!"
At this moment, Bonnie wished that there really was a Goddess Mazu to bless everyone on the island.
More and more wives came over, some I knew and some I didn't, some I was familiar with and some I wasn't. Now they all have a common name—military wives.
"Wow..."
"She gave birth! Sister-in-law Fu has given birth!"
"Thank God!"
"Thank you, Goddess Mazu!"
...
The baby's cry seemed to flip a switch, and the sister-in-law outside the delivery room unconsciously clasped her hands together, her eyes filled with tears as she thanked all the gods!
About half an hour later, the delivery room door opened, and Dr. Yang and the others pushed Mrs. Fu out. The baby in swaddling clothes lay quietly next to his mother.
"Dr. Yang, how is it?"
"Mother and baby are both safe! The mother suffered a bit during childbirth, but with some rest, she'll be fine."
"Dr. Yang, you've worked hard. Go and rest. We'll take care of things here. Those people have been taken away by Political Commissar Zhai."
"Bonnie, thank you!"
Yang Yue knew that if she were really taken away today, she would be badly injured, if not killed.
"It's alright, shouldn't we help each other out?"
After exchanging a few pleasantries, they took Sister-in-law Fu to her hospital room.
Some of my acquaintances went back to make soup, and others helped tidy up.
"Thank you, ladies!"
"No need to thank me. The men are sheltering us from the wind and rain, so we have to keep each other warm."
Sister-in-law Huang's words were very true, and Bonnie agreed.
"Sisters-in-law, please take care of Sister-in-law Fu. I need to go back and check on my Liu Jiu. Zhao Yuan is taking care of three children by herself. I wonder how she is doing."
"Baoni, you should go home quickly. Zhao Yuan is no match for your Liu Jiu!" Aunt Huang, who lived nearby, knew the strength of Bao Ni's Liu Jiu and urged Bao Ni to go home immediately.
"Ah! Ah..."
From a distance, Bonnie could hear her son Liu Jiu's voice. Was he having a good time?
"Zhao Yuan, open the door, I'm back."
"Oh, you're finally back! How is it? Has the baby been born yet?"
"She's given birth! Mother and baby are safe!"
Bonnie took a breath; she had just done a lot of exercise and was hungry.
"Zhao Yuan, let's have lunch here. It seems that Gu Ye and the others have all gone out to sea."
"Okay, I'll take care of the seasoning."
Those who know her well know that Lin Baoni doesn't know how to flavor food; it's an open secret.
"There's still one big fish left from yesterday's cooking, let's stew it all. My grandma also brought a lot of pickled bamboo shoots, let's steam a pot of rice, that'll do it all."
Bonnie is a woman of action; once she's made up her mind, she goes into the kitchen, first steaming rice and then preparing the fish.
"Zhao Yuan, you can add the seasoning."
"They're here."
Zhao Yuan carried her little girl into the kitchen, saying, "You hold the baby for a bit, I'll wash my hands."
"Little poplar, come here, Auntie will hold you for a while."
After washing her hands, Zhao Yuan listened helplessly as Bao Ni gave her daughter nicknames. In Bao Ni's words, her two children were like a pine tree and a poplar tree.
"Alright, it's all set up."
"Here's the poplar tree back. I'll watch the pot and call you when it's ready."
After lunch, the children soon became sleepy and fell asleep on the kang (a heated brick bed).
It was already dark when Gu Ye and the others returned, and no one was chatting outside in the family compound anymore. After the handover, they went straight home, not even knowing if there was any food at home.
"You're back? Have you eaten?"
Liu Jiu went to sleep. Bao Ni didn't know if Gu Ye would come back today. She thought she would wait a little longer, and if he didn't come back, she would go to sleep.
"We haven't eaten yet. Is there anything to eat at home?"
"I've rolled out the noodles, now I'm going to boil some water, is hot soup okay?"
"Okay, I'll season it myself in a bit," Gu Ye's voice came from the bathroom.
"Why did you put so many eggs in? Save them for you and Liu Jiu."
Gu Ye looked at the poached eggs in the bowl, feeling a pang of heartache. Things were so chaotic now that they didn't dare raise so many chickens anymore; there were only two left.
"Eat up, there's more. It's hot, so it won't keep for too long."
Bonnie wished she could pile these troublemakers up and kick them into the sea. Three of her five hens had been forced to eat, leaving only two. Fortunately, they laid two eggs a day.
After eating and drinking their fill, the two tidied up and went to bed. They had done a lot of things, big and small, that day, and Bao Ni was so tired that she forgot to tell Gu Ye about her heroic deeds during the day.
Gu Ye learned about Bao Ni's situation from their regimental commander.
"Gu Ye, come to my office."
"Commander, what's the matter?" Gu Ye entered their commander's office looking completely bewildered.
"Yesterday, a group of young revolutionaries broke into the family compound and injured the soldiers on guard. They also broke into the clinic to arrest Dr. Yang. Thanks to your comrade Lin, who single-handedly defeated all the young revolutionaries and tied them together with a rope."
Even now, the regimental commander still finds it a bit unbelievable when he talks about it. He's met Gu Ye's wife before; she looks smiling and plump, and you'd never guess she's so skilled in combat.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
