Seeing Zhou Qiqi walk towards the kitchen, I felt my eyelids were a little itchy, so I reached out to touch them. I didn't pay attention to my footing and stumbled as I turned the corner.
Shen Huaichuan had just returned from outside when he saw her like this. He quickly took two steps to the kitchen door to stop her, without even bothering to close the door.
"I can heat it up myself, you go back to sleep first."
His Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he spoke, and his brows furrowed with a barely perceptible tenderness.
Just as Zhou Qiqi was about to shake her head, there was a knocking sound at the courtyard gate.
Battalion Commander Jiang's loud voice boomed through the crack in the door, "Regimental Commander Shen! Are you home? I need to speak with you urgently!"
Zhou Qiqi nodded towards the door, took the blue cloth apron from the hook behind the door, and neatly tied it around her waist, making a tight knot in the apron strap behind her.
"Alright, you two talk. It's so late, Battalion Commander Jiang must have something important to discuss with you. I'll just heat up the food. There's still a fire in the coal stove; it's just a matter of opening the stove lid. It won't be tiring."
"OK."
Shen Huaichuan hummed in agreement, reached out to smooth out the folded edges of her apron, and then went to greet Battalion Commander Jiang.
Battalion Commander Jiang spoke directly, without even drinking the water that Shen Huaichuan had poured for him, relaying his wife's words like beans being poured from a bamboo tube.
"...Anyway, from what my wife said, she wanted me to remind you that if the wedding should be rescheduled, then we should hold a rescheduled one for her, otherwise the woman will feel uncomfortable."
"Yes, I understand."
Shen Huaichuan nodded, then looked up and asked, "Why did Sister-in-law Deng suddenly bring this up?"
Battalion Commander Jiang is quick-witted and often speaks without thinking, so he just said it directly.
"This afternoon, Lin Yao made things difficult for your wife in the square because of this, and your wife hasn't told you yet."
Shen Huaichuan's eyes flickered slightly. "I just got back, and you arrived before we could even exchange a few words."
Battalion Commander Jiang patted himself on the shoulder.
"It's my fault, it's my fault, I came too early. Anyway, your wife will definitely tell you what happened later. You've suffered such a huge injustice! You'll have to make it up to her later! A wedding is a major event in a woman's life! Every woman hopes to marry her husband in a grand and glorious way!"
In order to fulfill his wife's task, he deliberately made it sound very serious.
As he spoke, he craned his neck to look into the kitchen, and seeing that Zhou Qiqi hadn't come out yet, he quickly went over and gave her some instructions.
"Otherwise, this woman can cause you a lot of headaches if she gets upset! She might even refuse to let you into bed!"
Shen Huaichuan's knuckles turned slightly white as he gripped the water glass, his Adam's apple bobbing heavily, but he remained silent.
Battalion Commander Jiang was thinking about his wife waiting at home, so he got up to leave before he could even sit down properly, and Shen Huaichuan went to close the door.
When they returned, Zhou Qiqi was setting the food on the table.
The three dishes and soup were steaming hot, and a braised egg rested on top of the braised pork rice, the yolk oil dripping down.
"Why is Battalion Commander Jiang in such a hurry?"
She pushed the pork rib and radish soup towards Shen Huaichuan and asked, "Did something happen to Sister Cuixiang's family?"
"No."
Shen Huaichuan turned around and went to wash his hands by the water vat.
The water flowing from the tap at night was icy cold. As he scooped up the water and splashed it on his face, he heard Zhou Qiqi calling from inside the house.
"I just went to the cellar to check, and a lot of persimmons are ripe. You can try some after you finish eating. I've washed them all."
As she spoke, she sat down on the stool and started eating a persimmon.
The persimmons, coated with quicklime and turned golden brown, made a "crunch" sound when she bit into one, and juice dripped down her chin—crisp, sweet, and refreshing.
How's things at home today?
Shen Huaichuan wiped his hands with a coarse cloth towel and sat down at the dining table.
The rice in the enamel bowl was piled high, and wisps of steam were rising from it.
"What could possibly happen? Everything's fine."
Zhou Qiqi didn't even look up, wiping her hands, which were munching on persimmons, on her apron before speaking.
"Oh, by the way, Zhouzhou had a competition at the art studio today and actually lost. There's a little boy in their studio, what's his name, something like Guangming, I heard he's really hardworking..."
"Also, Deputy Factory Director Zhang called me today and said that the winter clothes for the renovation have started production. He will have Sister Zhao send me a sample garment tomorrow. As for the loan, I have also submitted it to Deputy Mayor Zhao. I should hear from him soon."
......
She kept talking about good news, but she didn't mention the grievances she suffered at Lin Yao's place, nor did she mention the wedding.
"Nothing else?"
He listened for a long time but didn't hear what he wanted to hear, so he couldn't help but speak up, his voice lower than usual.
Zhou Qiqi finally raised her head, her eyes wide open, "That's all? What else could there be?"
Shen Huaichuan felt empty inside, as if a cold wind had blown through his heart.
Although they are husband and wife, Zhou Qiqi never tells him about any problems she can't solve or any grievances she suffers.
When the factory contract ran into trouble, she preferred to switch to another factory or even find a factory in another city rather than ask her for help.
I was wronged in the square today, but I didn't tell him.
Furthermore, she didn't bring up the incident of encountering a thief on the train.
In short, she seemed to bear all her sorrows alone, never intending to tell him anything.
Shen Huaichuan felt as if he had chewed a bitter melon raw, the bitter taste slowly spreading in his heart.
He suddenly remembered what Battalion Commander Jiang had said: "When a woman is wronged, she can make you have a headache."
But his wife wouldn't even give him a chance to have a headache.
Zhou Qiqi listened to him for a long time without saying anything, then looked up and saw that the corners of his mouth were turned down, just like when Xiangyang and Zhouzhou had a fight today. She couldn't help but ask.
"What's wrong?"
Shen Huaichuan lowered his head. "Nothing."
He lowered his head, avoiding looking at Zhou Qiqi, and started the conversation himself.
"By the way, didn't we say we'd take you to meet my parents when we had some free time? How about we have a wedding ceremony then? Would you like it held in the military dependents' quarters or at my parents' house?"
Zhou Qiqi frowned slightly and said.
"Why bring this up again? Didn't we say before that it's fine whether we hold it or not? If Mom and Dad want to hold it, let's do it back in our hometown and make them happy."
As she spoke, she turned around and threw the half-eaten persimmon pit into the trash can without looking back. Her voice was light and airy, like willow catkins, as if it could drift away at any moment.
"OK."
Shen Huaichuan responded softly, mechanically picking at the rice in his bowl, the grains of rice tasteless in his mouth.
I didn't eat much before I went to wash the dishes.
When he came back after washing the dishes, Zhou Qiqi was already lying down. When she saw him come back, she moved to the side, and the warmth of the quilt flowed out.
Normally, Shen Huaichuan would have snuggled up and lay down next to his wife; he was used to sleeping next to her.
But today, he simply lay down on the edge of the bed.
The two lay with a half-foot gap between them, neither of them speaking.
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