Chapter 39
While eating rice noodles, Jiang Suihan suddenly stared at Xu Zhao's face, without blinking, making Xu Zhao a little at a loss.
He raised his hand and wiped his face: "Is my face dirty?"
Jiang Suihan: "No, I suddenly realized that you are quite fair, fairer than many lesbians."
He is a soldier who goes out in the sun every day and doesn't pay attention to sun protection. He only wears a hat after she reminds him, but he doesn't get tanned.
Xu Zhao put down his chopsticks and looked at Jiang Huihan helplessly. She compared him with lesbians and said that he was whiter than lesbians. He was not happy at all with such compliments.
"It's inherited from my family. My mom is also very fair and doesn't get tanned easily. I probably inherited it from her."
There are three children in the Xu family. Xu Zhao has two older sisters. His sisters inherited his father's genes and have a darker skin color, which gets darker when exposed to the sun. In the past, his sisters often complained to their parents why all the good genes were passed on to their younger brother. They inherited all the bad genes, and their younger brother was whiter than the girls. It was really unfair.
He had fair skin since he was young. He played outside all day in the summer. Other children were tanned like coal balls, but he was the exception. Although he also got tanned, while other children got five degrees darker, he only got one degree darker. He turned white again in one winter.
Jiang Huihan asked Xu Zhao to stretch out his arm and compare it with hers to see who is whiter.
Xu Zhao didn't really want to participate in this boring game and felt a little speechless.
There are two arms, one big and one small. Fortunately, hers is whiter.
Jiang Suihan withdrew her hand with satisfaction, and suddenly a very interesting picture popped up in her mind. It was very funny to see a person with a white face suddenly appearing among a group of dark men.
The more she thought about it, the more she couldn't help it, and her shoulders were shaking.
Xu Zhao was confused and didn't know why she was laughing so hard.
"why are you laughing?"
Judging from her expression, she must have thought of something funny, and it was probably related to him.
Jiang Huihan slowed down and tried to hold back her laughter: "It just suddenly occurred to me that everyone except you is very tanned, as if a white glutinous rice ball was mixed into a bowl of sesame glutinous rice balls. It's really funny."
No, my stomach hurts from laughing so hard, I can’t think about it anymore.
Xu Zhao's mouth twitched, his expression was helpless and speechless. He couldn't tell her that when he was a child, the elders in his family gave him a nickname, Tangyuan.
I couldn't understand the weird thoughts in the mind of a 19-year-old girl, so I reminded her: "Be careful not to laugh so hard that you choke."
Jiang Suihan specifically asked Wu Guihua how to cook mutton, and stewed the mutton in the evening. Fortunately, she didn't live in the building and the neighbors were a bit far away, otherwise everyone would know that her family eats mutton.
Jiang Leyun ate with great relish and kept giving his sister sweet talk, saying that the mutton was especially delicious and he wanted to eat more.
The tender stewed mutton, served with white rice, tasted really good. Jiang Suhan believed that she had some talent in cooking. Her cooking skills were just average before because she lacked experience.
Xu Zhao usually has a big appetite, and he even ate an extra bowl of rice tonight.
Jiang Suihan felt that his stomach was a bottomless pit. Even after eating so much, there was still no change in his stomach. At one point, she thought that she had abused him in the past few days and did not feed him enough.
She discovered that the two men in the family, one big and one small, were carnivores. If you asked them what they liked to eat, they would probably answer meat.
We finished the big pot of rice, but there was still a small portion of mutton left, which we could save for another meal tomorrow.
I went out today and was a little dirty, so Jiang Suihan washed her hair while taking a shower. There was not enough water, so she asked Xu Zhao to fetch water twice.
It was a bit late by the time my hair was dry, it was already ten o'clock.
Xu Zhao put his arm around Jiang Huihan's waist and held her in his arms. Noticing that she was a little nervous, he whispered, "Go to sleep."
Jiang Huihan's heartbeat quickened unconsciously, and she was worried about how to refuse him if he wanted to do that kind of thing, but she found that he was just holding her and did not take the next step.
Well, she was overthinking it, her face turned red, she was judging others by her own standards.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Xu Zhao chuckled softly: "Why? Do you think I'm going to do something to you?"
Jiang Huihan was glad that there was no light at the moment, otherwise Xu Zhao would definitely see her embarrassment.
She would not admit that her thoughts just now were unhealthy, so she replied guiltily, "No, I didn't think about that."
In the darkness, Xu Zhao curled his lips: "What kind of thing?"
You've confessed yourself!
Jiang Suihan wished she could travel back to the last second and take back what she had just said. How stupid she was.
She was stubborn and refused to discuss the extremely embarrassing topic: "You are so annoying, I am sleepy, don't talk to me, I am asleep."
Sure enough, men who have started having sex have changed and can talk dirty with ease.
Don't want to piss people off all of a sudden, Xu Zhao lowered his head and gently kissed Jiang Huihan on the forehead: "Good night."
Have a sweet dream.
It was a particularly gentle kiss. Jiang Huihan felt like a feather fell on her forehead. She grabbed the quilt with both hands and whispered, "Good night."
I had a good sleep last night. When I woke up, I looked at my watch and it was a little after nine in the morning.
After breakfast, Jiang Suihan took a piece of cloth and needle and thread, and brought Jiang Leyun with her, planning to go to Wu Guihua's house to ask her how to make clothes.
Wu Guihua touched the cloth carefully and praised it: "This cloth is good and feels thick. What kind of clothes are you going to make?"
There are many people in her family and the boys are naughty. New clothes are not worn for long and are torn after a few times. It wastes a lot of fabric. She also has to consider her hometown. The family’s cloth coupons are often not enough all year round, and the children have not had new clothes for more than a year.
Jiang Suihan had already planned: "I want to make a set of pajamas for Xu Zhao, but I am not good at making clothes. Sister-in-law, can you help me see if I can make a set of clothes?"
When she was sorting out clothes yesterday, she found that Xu Zhao's underwear was almost all torn, and the same went for his socks. He still wore them even with a big hole in them. This man wears a military uniform every day and looks like a decent person. You would never tell that he is so careless about his clothes.
Wu Guihua spread out the cloth and roughly compared the length: "It's enough to make one set of clothes. I think there should be some left. Do you have Captain Xu's size?"
I don't know who spread the rumor that Xu Zhao and Jiang Huihan got married because their families forced them to do so, and that they had no feelings for each other. Xu Zhao helped with the laundry because he couldn't stand Jiang Huihan's laziness, and he had no choice but to do it himself.
Wu Guihua just listened to these words, thinking that these people were simply full and had nothing to do. They were idle and were complaining about the sour grapes because they couldn't get any. The young couple had a good relationship.
Jiang Suihan took out a piece of paper and said, "I measured him the day before yesterday and wrote it down here."
The remaining cloth was just enough to make two pairs of underwear for Xu Zhao. She suddenly remembered that the underwear should have elastic bands. She forgot to buy them last time and could only wait for the army to send a vehicle to the county to buy them.
Jiang Suihan looked at Wu Guihua's needlework skills and couldn't help but praise: "Sister-in-law, your embroidery is so beautiful, it looks like the real thing. You are so amazing. I admire those who have skills the most. I think they are amazing."
The so-called masters are among the people, and she saw it this time.
Wu Guihua smiled a little embarrassedly: "I can only embroider. I am not as good as you say. My grandmother used to be a maid in the landlord's house. She became a relative of an embroiderer in the inner house and learned embroidery for a few years. My grandmother taught me this needlework. Compared with my grandmother, my skills are nothing in front of her."
After the master's family fell into decline, Wu Guihua's grandmother and other servants were dismissed. She was sold when she was very young and could no longer remember her hometown. Later, she met Wu Guihua's grandfather, who did not despise her for having no relatives, and the two got married.
Wu Guihua had seen an embroidery left by her grandmother's godmother. It was so lifelike that one could smell the fragrance of flowers when one got close. It was then that she realized why her grandmother always said that she was slow to act. A truly gifted person would embroider something spiritual. Her embroidery skills were only good enough to fool outsiders who didn't know the inside story.
Jiang Suihan really admired her: "That's different. Your grandmother embroidered for as many years as you have. Besides, you were delayed by your family. You were busy at home every day, taking care of the children. How could you have the spare time to concentrate on embroidering? I think it's amazing that you can achieve this level now."
"Sister-in-law, you are too modest. Look at me. I can't even do simple stitching. Compared with you, my fingers are stiff. If you ask me to embroider, I can embroider something that looks nothing like it."
Jiang Suihan felt that Wu Guihua was talented, but as a child from a poor family, she had to grow up early, so she did not have the conditions to specialize in technology. She got married early, and had children one after another. She had to take care of the children and worry about the household, so she had no extra time to think about embroidery.
In society, when a man and a woman get married, everyone naturally thinks that the woman should return to the family. Women have been suppressed by such ideas for thousands of years, and they have unconsciously put shackles on themselves. Men do not think that women taking care of the family is a sacrifice. They even think that they are working harder outside, and it is easy for women to take care of children and do housework at home. If a woman complains to them that taking care of the family is tiring, men will think that women are pretentious and they cannot see their efforts.
Year after year, women consume all their energy in the family. They can no longer see themselves, only men and children. Maybe they once had interests and hobbies, but they can no longer pick them up.
Wu Guihua's eyes were confused for a while, and her expression was a little disappointed. She looked at Jiang Suihan with an unclear expression: "It's better to study. Look at what you said. It warms my heart. Everyone has gone through this. When they get old, they find a suitable man to marry, and then have children. They spend their whole lives around the stove, men and children. There is endless work to do every day, so how can they have the heart to think about anything else."
"I married Dajun's father when I was 18, and gave birth to Dajun the following year, then Xiaojun, and later Xixi. Before joining the army, I was taking care of three children in my hometown. Although my mother-in-law would help, there were too many children in my hometown and she couldn't help much. I was basically the only one taking care of them. It was really hard at that time. I couldn't eat or sleep well, and I had to work in the fields. Sometimes I was so tired that I just wanted to fall asleep, but I couldn't. The children hadn't eaten yet, so I had to take care of them first. It was only in the past two years since I joined the army that I was able to take a break."
Her husband is in the army all year round and sometimes he doesn't come back once a year, so he can't help at all. Her mother-in-law favors her younger brother-in-law and his children more. Sometimes when the family buys candy, the three children watch her brother-in-law's children eat the candy with their eyes wide open, but they tell their mother sensibly that they don't like candy.
Wu Guihua wanted to cry after hearing this. The salary her husband sent back was all in the hands of her mother-in-law. She didn't even have money to buy a few candies for her children. One time her daughter was sick, and she wanted to take her to the town to see a doctor. Her mother-in-law said that there was no need to spend so much money on a girl, and maybe she would be fine after drinking some sugar water and covering herself with a blanket and taking a good sleep. She was so angry that she was shaking all over. It was the neighbor's aunt who kindly lent her money.
During the Chinese New Year, her husband came back from vacation, and for the first time, she strongly proposed to take the child with her to join the army. Her mother-in-law disagreed. She knew that her mother-in-law was worried that after she and the child went to the army, her husband would send less money back home. However, no matter how her mother-in-law threw a tantrum, she would not give in. She insisted that they either join the army or live separately. It was either one or the other, and finally her mother-in-law had no choice but to compromise.
Many people say that life with the army is hard. In Wu Guihua's opinion, the environment here is indeed difficult and life is inconvenient, but it is much better than her hometown. Although she still has to send money back home every month, she is now the head of the family and does not have to suffer from her mother-in-law. If the children want to buy candy, she can also give them money to buy it.
Jiang Suihan didn't know the situation in Wu Guihua's hometown, but she could tell from her words that she was not living well in her hometown and seemed to be having a hard time.
She thought Wu Guihua was a cheerful person and lived a good life, but she didn't expect that every family has its own problems and everyone has their own difficulties.
Jiang Suihan is not very good at comforting people. She patted Wu Guihua's hand and said, "It's all in the past. There is bitterness before sweetness. Sister-in-law, you should look forward. Dajun and his family are lively and cute, filial and obedient. You and Captain Zhao are a loving couple and your family is harmonious. When the children grow up in the future, you and Captain Zhao will sit in the rocking chair in the yard, looking at the blue sky and white clouds, drinking the tea made by your son and daughter, and hearing the laughter of your grandchildren. Isn't this a very desirable scene?"
Wu Guihua couldn't help but laugh out loud, and poked Jiang Huihan's head with her finger: "You really have such a sweet mouth. If I were Captain Xu, I would be so happy to be flattered by you every day."
She liked Xiao Jiang more and more. As they got to know each other better, she found that the girl was not only beautiful, but also had a good personality. She was not shy at all and spoke nicely.
Meeting such an interesting girl, no wonder Xu Zhao was so eager to marry her and almost hold her in his hands.
The two chatted and laughed. Jiang Suhan learned how to cut in just one morning. She planned to go home and find an old piece of clothing to practice on first. Although she didn't have to wear her pajamas outside to show others, it still had to look presentable.
It was the first time she made clothes for someone, and she hoped that the gift would be presentable and not disappoint the person. Of course, if the craftsmanship was too bad, she guessed that Xu Zhao would not despise it in front of her, as he was usually very accommodating to her.
Jiang Leyun was running and jumping with a group of kids downstairs and was sweating. Jiang Suihan wiped the kid's face and prepared to go home to make lunch.
At this time, someone was already washing vegetables at the sink downstairs.
Jiang Huihan didn’t know those military wives, but she smiled and nodded, thinking that they all lived here together and were half-neighbors.
I don't know if she was just being sensitive and overthinking. Standing at the last seat of the sink was a girl with two braids. She looked to be about eighteen or nineteen years old. Her skin wasn't very white and her eyes were very dark. The girl kept staring at her and the expression on her face seemed very complicated, as if mixed with many emotions.
Jiang Suihan was confused. After thinking about it carefully, she realized that she had never seen this girl before, let alone knew her. She couldn't understand why she was looking at her with such strange eyes.
She ignored the stranger and walked away with her things.
Wang Lijuan unconsciously stopped what she was doing. Her face turned red, her heart beat fast, and a voice in her heart was repeating the same sentence.
It's her!
Jiang Suihan!
The woman who had been spoiled and loved by Xu Zhao all her life, the smile on her face was still as disgusting as ever after so many years.
Wang Lijuan was very upset. She was still late and was once again beaten to it by Jiang Suihan.
Half a month ago, she had an argument with her cousin from her uncle's family. During the argument, both of them started fighting. She was not paying attention and was pushed to the ground by her cousin. She hit her head and fainted on the spot. After waking up, she realized that she was living in a book.
How ridiculous, this is a world in a book.
The title of the book is "The Chief's Little Wife of the 1970s". It tells the story of an officer named Xu Zhao, who married a wife he had no feelings for out of responsibility because of a marriage arranged by his family. His ex-wife died unexpectedly and he was too busy with work to remarry.
The heroine is a teacher in a military primary school, who has the same name and surname as her. Yes, she is the heroine of the book. Xu Zhao saved her by chance once, and she fell in love with him. She didn't care that he had been married before, and she pursued him wholeheartedly, wanting to marry him. However, Xu Zhao was ambiguous towards her because of his previous marriage, fearing that he would delay her.
Finally, after her unremitting efforts, Xu Zhao accepted her. They happily held a wedding and lived a happy life. She gave birth to three children for Xu Zhao and became an enviable leader's wife.
Wang Lijuan firmly believes that God letting her see this book is God's favor to her.
She had had enough of the ignorance and poverty in the countryside and couldn't wait to escape from here.
The Chief’s wife is destined to be hers!
In the book, there is still half a year left, and in half a year something will happen to Jiang Suihan, and the obstacles in her way will disappear.
Now that she has the initiative, she must make good use of it. It's only half a year, she can afford to wait.
Wang Liying patted Wang Lijuan's hand and said, "Lijuan, what's wrong with you? You didn't respond when I called you. You looked stupid and dazed. Are you okay?"
Wang Lijuan came back to her senses and smiled to cover up: "It's okay, I just suddenly remembered something and didn't hear you calling me."
She poured out the water in the basin and followed Wang Liying holding the basin.
Wang Liying's house has two bedrooms and a living room. She and her husband live in one room, and her two children live in another. Now that Wang Lijuan has come, there are not enough rooms, so her husband and son live in one room, and she, her daughter, and Wang Lijuan sleep in another.
Wang Lijuan doesn't like living in the same room with others. She feels that she has no freedom and is very uncomfortable. But there is nothing she can do. Her second brother-in-law's rank is not high enough, so the only house he can get is this one.
She prayed every day that the six months would pass quickly so that she could marry Xu Zhao earlier and live a good life.
Wang Lijuan wanted to find out more about Jiang Suihan's background in advance, so she pretended to speak casually: "Second sister, the girl who just passed by was really pretty, with big eyes and fair skin. Do you know her? What's her name?"
She secretly complained that no matter how beautiful she was, she would still die young, and she was destined to enjoy a happy life.
Wang Liying was cooking in the kitchen. She didn't think much about it, thinking that her younger sister was just curious because she saw someone prettier than her.
"Don't think Xu Zhao's new wife is a good person just because she's pretty. I tell you, she's not a good person. She has a cunning personality, doesn't take anything away from people, and looks down on people from the countryside. Who is she trying to show off to with her noble face all day? Anyway, I don't like her. It's only because her mother-in-law is not here that Xu Zhao spoils her. If it were in our hometown, if a new wife slept until almost noon and didn't get up, she would be drowned in the spit of the villagers."
Thinking about the last time Jiang Suihan made her feel upset, Wang Liying was still a little indignant. In the past two days, her family members all knew that Jiang Suihan said that she had a big face and many wrinkles. She didn't know how many times she was laughed at, and she was embarrassed to go out.
Wang Lijuan said half-seriously, "Xu Zhao? Is he the person you mentioned in your letter and introduced to me?"
Wang Liying was worried that her younger sister would be angry, so she quickly comforted her, saying, "Xu Zhao is good-looking and has a good family. I originally wanted to let you meet him, maybe you two would get along and you could marry into a good family. But who knew that Xu Zhao went out for a week and got married when he came back? Man proposes, God disposes. You two are not destined to be together. Don't be too sad. There are many good men in the army. I will find you a better one later."
That being said, she felt a little guilty. There were many single men in the army, but those who looked better than Xu Zhao did not have a better family background than him, and those with a better family background than him did not look as good as him. It was not easy to have both.
My younger sister came to the army to settle her marriage. Let's calm her down first. As long as she doesn't compare herself with Xu Zhao, it won't be difficult for her to find a man to marry in the army.
The two sisters each had their own plans in mind, and neither knew that the other had other ideas.
Wang Lijuan knew that her second sister was trying to comfort her, so she pretended to accept her second sister's good advice and said, "I know, don't worry, some things are destined by God. What's mine is mine. Even if someone else takes it away, I will naturally return it when the time comes."
She is not in a hurry. In half a year, everything will return to its original track, and what belongs to her will be hers.
This sounded a little strange, but I couldn't tell what was wrong.
Wang Lijuan thought that she might have overthought it: "Just stay at home for the time being. I have already talked to your brother-in-law and he has no objection. Don't worry, Second Sister will definitely find you someone who is no worse than Xu Zhao."
Wang Lijuan was worried that her second sister would cause trouble for her and make things complicated: "Second sister, I don't want to get married for the time being. I want to wait a little longer."
Wang Liying said anxiously, "This won't do. You're already nineteen, and you'll be twenty next year. If you delay any longer, you'll become an old maid. If you're not anxious, then Dad and Mom should be anxious. Tell me, do you have someone you like?"
Could it be that my younger sister has a crush on Xu Zhao?
Wang Liying's face changed drastically: "Xu Zhao is already married, you can't have that kind of thought, it's absolutely not okay, you will be despised by others, do you understand?"
Wang Lijuan didn't expect her second sister to have guessed it. After all, she was young and had not experienced much. She panicked for a moment and pretended to be angry and said, "No, second sister, how could you think of me like that? I'm not that kind of person. You also said that she is married. Jiang Suihan is so beautiful. How could I have the confidence to think that I am prettier than her and can snatch her away from her? Second sister, you think too highly of me."
After a pause, she continued, "Besides, I haven't even seen what Xu Zhao looks like."
It seems that I have to be more careful in the future and never let my second sister find out.
Wang Lijuan breathed a sigh of relief: "It's my second sister's fault. My little sister is so pretty and has even finished junior high school. With such good conditions, there's no need to worry about no one wanting her."
Wang Lijuan forced a smile, lowered her head, and did not dare to look at Wang Lijuan.
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