"I'm going to be away for a while. You guys should keep a low profile and don't make a scene like last time."

Lu Desheng reminded them earnestly that after going to Jiangcheng for the meeting, he would apply to go to the cadre school. The couple were crazy and they should not make trouble.

"We never cause trouble, but we are not afraid of it either. Don't worry, Dad."

Ruan Qiqi made the assurance sincerely and spoke from the heart.

Even though she is a crazy woman, she never bullies others actively, but always fights back passively!

It's just that she fought back a little harder.

"You guys go back!"

Lu Desheng suddenly felt tired, and he couldn't explain it to these two rebellious sons at all.

If it rains, let it rain. If my mother wants to get married, let her get married.

Anyway, no matter how many people in the military district are combined, they can't be more crazy than these two rebellious sons.

Ruan Qiqi, with a huge sum of 10,000 yuan in her pocket, went happily to buy vegetables with Lu Ye. With 10,000 yuan, her vegetable basket would be free early.

Chicken, duck, fish, meat, a lot of everything was bought. The meat coupons I got from Shi Jinghong were about to expire, so I had to spend them quickly.

The two men returned with a full load, and the women who were chatting downstairs were all furious.

How come this couple eats so well when they have meat and vegetables every day?

"Sister Ruan, why are you buying so much meat again?"

"Lu Ye and I like to eat meat."

Ruan Qiqi smiled.

"Sister, you are such a joke. Who doesn't like to eat meat? We want to eat meat too, but we don't have meat coupons. Each person is only provided with half a pound of meat per month. There are five people in our family, and two and a half pounds of meat is not enough."

The woman who asked the question gave a few bitter smiles. The three children are all growing up, and the half-grown ones are eating their parents out of money. The family savings have been used up by the three half-grown children. The monthly food supply is not enough, and they have to spend money to buy food on the black market. Alas.

"Don't complain, my family only has half a pound of meat, and I haven't complained yet!"

Wang Shuhua joked that she and her three children all had rural household registration, and her husband was the only one in the family who had meat coupons, so they lived a very tight life.

But for the sake of her children's future, she would rather live a hard life in the city than go back to the countryside.

"Why do you only have half a pound of meat ticket?"

Ruan Qiqi was a little curious. She had a good impression of Wang Shuhua. She was not a meddlesome person and had her own opinions.

When Ji Xianglian and Shang Lehua gossiped about her, Wang Shuhua did not participate and even spoke for her. However, her words had no weight in the family building and the other military wives all listened to Ji Xianglian.

"Shuhua is not eligible to join the army. She and her child are still registered in the countryside." Someone helped to explain, with a hint of contempt in the tone.

After all, they are all military wives who follow the army. Even if the military district does not arrange jobs for them, they will still receive a living allowance of five yuan per month. Moreover, she and the children eat commercial grain, which is supplied every month, so their lives are much more affluent than Wang Shuhua's family.

Unlike Wang Shuhua, she only boiled the dishes in water and added a drop of oil after they were cooked. The food was watery and her children were all pale and thin. She had the hardest life in the residential building.

Although Wang Shuhua was still smiling, there was a hint of bitterness in her smile. In fact, she knew that these people looked down on her. Sometimes they said it unintentionally, and sometimes they said it intentionally, all to belittle her.

She was not a fool, so how could she not hear it? But she just pretended not to understand. The next two years were a critical period for her husband, and she could not hold him back, so she had to endure it as long as she could.

And no matter how hard life is here, it is not half as hard as back home. Wang Shuhua is quite content with her current life. If her husband can be promoted, she will have no regrets in her life.

"My husband is a company commander, but he hasn't reached the required military service age. I'm just staying here temporarily."

Wang Shuhua took the initiative to explain, neither humble nor arrogant.

Ruan Qiqi didn't quite understand the conditions for joining the army, but she knew that these women looked down on Wang Shuhua, so she suddenly wanted to piss these women off.

"Your man is Lu Ye's comrade-in-arms. Friendship lasts a lifetime. This piece of meat is for you!"

Ruan Qiqi had a knife in her hand and cut off a piece of fat weighing about a pound and stuffed it into Wang Shuhua's hand. She had read in a novel about the period that people nowadays loved to eat big slices of fat meat.

"Oh, how can this be? Take it back quickly. Thank you!"

Wang Shuhua was shocked. There was so much meat, which was enough for her family to supply for two months. She couldn't accept it.

Ruan Qiqi was unhappy, "Do you dislike my meat?"

"Of course not, Sister Ruan, I appreciate your kindness, but I really can't accept this meat, so take it back quickly."

Wang Shuhua smiled helplessly. She couldn't afford to pay back such a big piece of meat for no reason.

"But I just want to give you the meat. Ji Xianglian and the others gossiped about me before, and you spoke up for me. Take it."

She forcefully stuffed the meat into Wang Shuhua's hand with a tone that brooked no refusal, just like a domineering president, except that she lacked a wicked smile.

Wang Shuhua looked stunned. She didn't expect that Ruan Qiqi knew about her few fair words. She couldn't help feeling warm in her heart and thought that Ruan Qiqi was actually quite easy to get along with. How could a person who was grateful and repaying kindness be a difficult person to get along with?

"Why hasn't Captain Peng been promoted yet?"

Lu Ye frowned slightly. He remembered that Captain Peng had been the captain for six years. In terms of seniority and ability, he should have been promoted long ago.

"My old Peng still needs to learn."

Wang Shuhua answered very officially, but she felt very bitter in her heart.

Because her husband had two opportunities for promotion. In terms of qualifications and abilities, her husband was better. But each time, people who were not as good as her husband's old Peng were promoted. In the final analysis, it was because her husband's old Peng had no background.

"Take the meat. I've eaten your dumplings before. They're delicious."

Lu Ye cut another piece of lean meat, which together with the fat weighed about two kilograms. He stuffed it all into Wang Shuhua's hands, then pulled Ruan Qiqi upstairs.

By the time Wang Shuhua reacted, the two men had already gone upstairs. The meat in their hands was heavy, the fat was shiny and greasy, and the lean meat was bright red. Although it was raw, it still made her drool.

Not only is the child greedy, she is greedy too!

"Shuhua, when did you and Deputy Battalion Commander Lu become so close? Did you even have dinner at your house?"

Everyone was very curious and a little regretful. They didn't expect Wang Shuhua to be so secretive and have such a relationship with Lu Ye. If they had known this earlier, they would have been more polite to Wang Shuhua.

"I don't remember anything. You'll have to ask my old Peng."

Wang Shuhua told the truth that she really couldn't remember.

She also felt that Lu Ye might have said that on purpose because he was afraid that she would feel embarrassed to lose weight.

Everyone in the building said that Deputy Battalion Commander Lu and Ruan Qiqi were a crazy couple, but she felt that the couple were very good and warm people.

"Shuhua, your husband Peng has become rich, but don't forget us sisters!"

The other women all had sour tones in their voices. In the past, when they were with Wang Shuhua, they all felt superior and spoke in a condescending tone. But now that Wang Shuhua and her husband have hooked up with Lu Ye, they will surely have a bright future in the military region, so they have to curry favor with Wang Shuhua.

"What a joke! Deputy Battalion Commander Lu and Xiao Ruan are kind-hearted. They felt sorry for my child who had no meat to eat, so they gave him the meat. What are you thinking?"

Wang Shuhua knew that no one would believe her if she said that, but she still had to say it, whether they believed it or not was up to them.

"I'm going home to cook."

Wang Shuhua didn't even bother to sew her shoes and took the meat home. Her family of five lived on the first floor in only one room. Although it was crowded, she kept it tidy. She cooked and did laundry in the corridor. The room was divided into two halves. She and her husband lived in the inner room, and the outer room had bunk beds and a folding bed for her three children.

It was okay when the children were young, but now they are older, especially the daughter who is about to grow up. It is inconvenient for her to sleep in the same room with her two brothers. This is also the main reason why Wang Shuhua is anxious for her husband to be promoted.

As long as she is promoted, she and her child will be eligible to join the army. Not only will they be given an extra room, but she and her child will also be able to eat commercial grain, and she can also arrange a job, so her life will be better.

That night, on the Peng family's dining table, there was a large plate of stir-fried pork with white peppers. The meat was mostly fatty slices, with only half of the fat coming out. It was glowing with an enticing grease that made people drool.

Wang Shuhua also made some dumplings. There was not much white flour at home, so she made few. She served a large bowl of dumplings with pork and cabbage filling and only had one bowl left for the family of five.

"You're done with life? Wang Shuhua, are you planning to go your separate ways after this meal?"

Before Captain Peng even reached his doorstep, he could already smell the aroma of meat from afar. He thought it was from Lu Ye's house again, and cursed Lu Ye in his heart for being a beast and eating meat every day to seduce him.

As a result, he saw a large plate of meat on his table, all of which were fatty slices, more than the meat during the Chinese New Year. Captain Peng swallowed hard a few times and joked humorously.

He is from Shaocheng, Hunan Province. He is of medium height, dark complexion, kind and humorous, down-to-earth and hardworking, and eager to help others. He is very popular in the army. The only thing he lacks is his background.

Captain Peng was a native farmer's son. His family was extremely poor. He had put in more effort and sweat than others to become a company commander, almost at the cost of his life.

But in the army, it is very difficult to be promoted to the position of company commander. First, it needs luck, second, it needs connections, and third, it needs strength. All three are indispensable. If you don't have all three, you can only gain experience through experience.

Captain Peng knew this very well, so he just hoped to get through this. He had to let his wife and children eat commercial grain no matter what, otherwise he would not be willing to accept this.

[Children in the 1970s and 1980s followed their mothers’ household registration. If Wang Shuhua could not follow the army, she would have been registered as a rural hukou. This was also the reason why her husband endured hardships in the army. Everything was for the future of the children.]

"Mom, are we going to have a hard time?"

Captain Peng had just finished joking when their eldest son Peng Haijun came back, with a washed-out army green schoolbag slung across his shoulder and a bundle of firewood in his hands for the family.

The popular schoolbags at that time

Every time on the way home from school, the three siblings would pick up a bundle of firewood so that the family could save money on coal.

"What are you yelling about? Where are the ocean and the starfish?"

Wang Shuhua picked up a piece of fat and stuffed it into her eldest son's mouth, and also fed a piece to her husband.

“It smells so good!”

Peng Haijun was reluctant to finish it in one bite. He held the meat in his mouth, closed his eyes, and looked very enjoyable.

Captain Peng was reluctant to eat it and wanted to put it back on the plate, "Let's eat it when the children come back."

The children are growing and need to eat more, but he is old and it doesn't make much difference whether he eats or not.

"There's so much meat, why don't you eat it?"

Wang Shuhua glared at him. Captain Peng smiled and picked up a piece of meat and fed it to her, "You work the hardest, eat more!"

"I ate it while I was cooking. You should eat it quickly. By the way, I want to ask you something."

Wang Shuhua didn't eat it and fed it to her husband. In the end, the piece of meat returned to the plate and neither of them ate it.

"This meat was given by Deputy Battalion Commander Lu and Sister Ruan. They gave two kilograms. Deputy Battalion Commander Lu said that he had eaten our dumplings before. How come I have no impression of them at all?"

Wang Shuhua showed the remaining meat to her husband. She fried half a pound of fat and made some dumplings. There were still about 700 to 800 grams of meat left, enough for several meals.

"Why are you giving me so much meat? You shouldn't have accepted it."

Captain Peng frowned, thinking that his wife had not done the right thing this time. How could she collect so much meat? It would cause people to gossip.

"They forced it on me, and I didn't even have time to return it. You can send this bowl of dumplings to the Lu family later. They're stuffed with pork and cabbage."

Wang Shuhua felt a little aggrieved. She had always been very cautious in the staff housing complex, not offending anyone and not forming cliques with others. The meat this time was really an accident.

"I'll send it over in a moment."

Captain Peng didn't say anything else. He knew his wife well enough and she was definitely not taking advantage of him. Lu and Ye both tended to do things their own way, so perhaps she just acted on impulse this time.

"What about the dumplings?" Wang Shuhua was very curious.