After Zhang Junan returned, he told Xia Anyan about what had happened.
She just smiled but didn't say anything.
Zhang Junan looked at the old man: "Father, what are your thoughts? Are you just going to let her keep spreading this in the compound?"
Grandpa Xia smiled and looked at his granddaughter before turning to Zhang Jun'an: "Jun'an, what's wrong with this? Sometimes, showing weakness doesn't necessarily mean being bullied. You might even get something unexpected in return."
Zhang Junan frowned.
He understood what the old man meant, but he still felt that this was somewhat...
"Don't think that this will embarrass Yan Yan. There's nothing shameful about it. On the contrary, some people will find her easy to get along with, which will bring about different results."
The old man saw things very clearly and understood his granddaughter's intentions.
Xia Anyan smiled and flashed a few small white teeth at the old man before looking at Zhang Junan: "Dad, Grandpa is right. Sometimes, we really don't need to put ourselves in such a high position. Especially these military wives, most of whom come from rural areas. If we don't portray ourselves as perfect, they actually like to be close to us."
Just as Xia Anyan and the old man said.
The next day, people started coming to greet Xia Anyan one after another.
At first, it was the families of the soldiers that Gu Shen brought with him, and gradually, it was the wives of soldiers of the same rank.
Even the division commander's wife came.
"Comrade Xia, you've been here for several days now, and I'm so sorry I only just had time to come and talk to you. Cough cough cough, I caught a bit of a chill a few days ago, and I haven't been feeling well. I was afraid of infecting you, so I didn't come over."
"I heard that you're not used to it here, and that you have a lot of menstrual cramps. Is that true?"
The division commander's wife looked at Xia Anyan with a touch of affection.
Xia Anyan really wanted to say that she didn't need to look at her like that.
But this is Gu Shen's boss's wife.
Even if she doesn't like being around them, she has to behave herself.
Xia Anyan forced a smile, but her slightly pale face made her look less than well: "Thank you for your concern, sister-in-law. My husband, Ashen, is away, and the commander has to worry about him. I didn't expect that even though I'm sick, you would still have to worry about me here. I really feel bad about it."
Xia Anyan is eloquent and capable, and the teacher's wife likes her more and more the more she looks at her.
The division commander was a man in his fifties. He and his wife were a young couple, and they were about the same age.
However, since they were in the same unit, everyone called her "sister-in-law," and Xia Anyan was no exception.
The division commander and his wife had three sons, but no daughters.
They say having many sons isn't a big deal, and that's exactly what happened to the division commander's wife.
His three sons are all quite old, except for the eldest who is married, and the couple doesn't live with him.
Neither of her second nor third sons seemed anxious, which dampened her enthusiasm for holding her granddaughter.
Now that she has seen the well-behaved and sensible Xia Anyan, the teacher's wife likes her as much as she can, and the last bit of distance between them has disappeared.
"What are you saying, child? We all live in the same residential compound, isn't it only natural that we look out for each other?"
As the division commander's wife spoke, she handed her a glass of warm water.
The two chatted and laughed, and before long, Sun Xiuzhi brought over several other sisters-in-law.
Upon seeing the division commander's wife, they all greeted her with smiles, and for a moment, Xia Anyan's place became lively and bustling, just like a vegetable market.
"Sisters, when I was in my hometown, I brought some local specialties with me, but I never had a chance to visit you. Now that you're here, I'll take some with me when I leave."
Xia Anyan raised her hand, signaling everyone to stop arguing.
She felt like she was going deaf right now.
Fortunately, she had quite a few things in her space, like pastries and other treats, and she planned to take them out and share them with them.
The old man and Zhang Jun'an naturally had no idea, so Xia Anyan lied to them, saying that it was sent by Tie Tou from Beijing.
Since both of them knew about her connection with Tie Tou, she wasn't afraid.
"Oh my, girl, this doesn't look cheap. Did you buy it from Shanghai?" A woman couldn't wait to open the oil paper package.
Looking at the neatly arranged pastries inside, her mouth watered.
Xia Anyan smiled and nodded: "Sister-in-law, it is indeed a pastry from Shanghai, but it is not that expensive."
After seeing what was inside, many people were already tempted.
They quietly unwrapped their own packets of pastries, pinched off crumbs, and put them in their mouths to taste.
Thinking that this way they wouldn't be discovered, little did they know that Xia Anyan had seen everything.
But she wouldn't say anything, much less laugh at them.
Since she has already given it to them, it is meant to be eaten, and they can eat it whenever they want.
"Oh dear, Xia is still not feeling well, so let's not linger here."
"Yes, yes, let's come and play with Xia again when she's better."
Once someone took the lead, everyone left one by one.
In the end, only Sun Xiuzhi and the division commander's wife were left.
The division commander's wife held Xia Anyan's hand, looking at her with increasing satisfaction: "Xia, you are so beautiful. If you had a sister, she would surely be just as beautiful."
"Hey, if you hadn't married Xiao Gu, I would have wanted you to be my daughter-in-law. Tell me, why don't my two sons have that kind of luck?"
Xia Anyan was at a loss for words.
No matter how you put it, it doesn't feel right.
Upon hearing this, Sun Xiuzhi saw Xia Anyan pursing her lips and jumped out, saying, "Sister-in-law, what are you saying? If it weren't for Commander Gu, we wouldn't have met Xia Anyan."
"However, your two Ning comrades are both good people, and I believe their future development will definitely be good. Don't worry about it. They say that children and grandchildren have their own blessings. Your eldest son is already married, and I heard that he will be transferred back at the end of this year. When that happens, you will be able to play with your grandson every day, and others will be very envious of you."
Sun Xiuzhi was quite eloquent and quickly won over the division commander's wife.
The three of them sat and chatted for a while longer before Sun Xiuzhi said she had to go back to cook and then left.
After everyone left, Xia Anyan took out a portion of pastries, which was noticeably larger than the others: "Sister-in-law, I specially made these for you. They're not too sweet, so you can eat them with tea. They taste great. Please take them home and try them."
She gave it to everyone, but not to the division commander's wife.
She believed that the division commander's wife would also be able to tell.
"You silly girl, you're really generous with your money. How much money did that cost? You should keep it for yourself."
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