After confirming that Qiao Baozhu was fine, Shen Xiao's tense heartstrings relaxed.
Although she was not feeling unwell, Qiao Baozhu sat on the kang in a daze, which meant that something was worrying her.
Shen Xiao slowly sat down in front of Qiao Baozhu, with a smile on his face and a soft voice: "You have something bothering you, are you willing to tell me about it?"
Qiao Baozhu was stunned, and could see nothing except Shen Xiao's smiling eyes.
There is a very unique feeling about Shen Xiao, a kind of trustworthy power that people can't help but rely on.
Seeing Shen Xiao's smile, Qiao Baozhu couldn't help but smile, and the worries and anxieties in her heart disappeared.
Qiao Baozhu briefly told Shen Xiao about how Hao Chunmei and other girls exchanged their labor for candy.
He skipped the minor conflicts that occurred later and went straight to the root of the problem: "Normally, people in the family compound should have no worries about food and clothing, but I see that some families live worse than ordinary farm workers like us."
"Also, the power lines have just been laid in the family compound. All the equipment is new, and the electricity consumption of each household is not high. Why do the power outages always happen for no reason?"
"Tell me honestly, is there any financial problem with your corps?"
Hearing Qiao Baozhu's three consecutive questions, the smile on Shen Xiao's lips gradually faded, and his expression became serious.
Qiao Baozhu didn't know about the Corps' restructuring, and it happened so long ago that she couldn't remember many details.
She only remembered that after the Chinese New Year in 1976, the Construction Corps was disbanded. The state-owned farm where she worked was transformed into an agricultural reclamation bureau, which accepted all the retired veterans from the Construction Corps.
Qiao Baozhu's understanding of the disbanding of the Corps is still based on what Qiao Xifeng said in her previous life. She said Shen Xiao could have returned to his old unit, but stayed for Bai Hongmei.
Through the contact during this period, Qiao Baozhu could clearly conclude that Shen Xiao was not a man blinded by lust. There must be some other reason why he was unable to return to his old unit.
Qiao Baozhu didn't provoke Bai Hongmei because she was afraid of falling into her trap, causing trouble for Shen Xiao and affecting his future.
Now it seems that Shen Xiao was unable to return to his old unit, and the people above must have done something wrong.
Moreover, that person was highly skilled and of high status. Otherwise, how big a mistake would Shen Xiao, a second-generation military man with a good family background, have to make to be abandoned by his family and left on the farm to fend for himself?
This incident also confirmed once again that Shen Xiao's relationship with his family was extremely bad.
"Baozhu, what happened to you? Did you hear something or think of something?"
Shen Xiao looked at Qiao Baozhu, whose brows were furrowed and worried, and his heart was also in a knot.
Qiao Baozhu forced a smile and said, "It's okay. I just didn't expect that the people in the family compound also live in such a tight situation. Everyone works so hard every day. Life is so difficult. There must be something wrong with the Corps' decision."
Shen Xiao was very surprised. After a moment of surprise, he looked at Qiao Baozhu with admiration in his eyes.
"You can see the social problems behind the little things in people's lives. You have a really good vision and are very courageous."
Life in the family compound is not easy. Even if some people privately suspect that their leaders are corrupt, they dare not speak out.
Qiao Baozhu was even bolder. She bypassed the leadership and said directly that the problem lay in the decision-making of the leadership team.
Shen Xiao didn't say anything, but turned around and pulled the light cord on the wall in the room.
High-pressure mercury bulbs are brighter and noisier than ordinary tungsten filament lamps, and a crackling sound can be heard in the quiet room.
Qiao Baozhu raised her head, looked at the bright and dazzling light bulb, and sighed quietly: "Sister Wu told me that many families in the family compound bought 40-watt bulbs but don't use them. They usually only use 25-watt bulbs at home, and only change to 40-watt bulbs when guests come or during festivals."
"I thought it was funny. Their electricity consumption is not that much to begin with, so it wouldn't cost more than a few cents to change to a brighter one."
"Now that I think about it, I am the one who doesn't understand the sufferings of the world."
Qiao Baozhu felt that her previous thoughts were a bit unreasonable. She thinks that the extra few cents on electricity bill is nothing, but for some families, if they really have that few cents, they would buy their children a candy or a hairband.
"Replace the kitchen light with a regular one tomorrow. You don't need such an expensive light bulb for cooking."
Seeing Qiao Baozhu's lost and guilty expression, Shen Xiao pulled down the light cord of the kitchen light with amusement, and opened the cupboard to take out Qiao Baozhu's exclusive soup bowl with a peony painted on it.
After entering the house, he did not rush to comfort Qiao Baozhu, but walked to the cabinet, opened the drawer and took out two biscuits. He picked up the thermos and made a bowl of milk powder, then threw the two biscuits into the bowl to soak.
Shen Xiao held a bowl of milk powder and biscuits in one hand and picked up the kang table with the other hand and placed it in front of Qiao Baozhu.
"We are not at the point where we cannot afford the electricity bill. Eat something to fill your stomach first."
Qiao Baozhu looked at the whole bowl of milk powder in front of her and looked at Shen Xiao with a helpless look.
"Even a cow can't drink such a big bowl. It's too extravagant to drink so much at once..."
Shen Xiao sat down opposite and looked at Qiao Baozhu with an indifferent expression.
"Drink as much as you can, and give me the rest."
Qiao Baozhu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly thought of something and looked panicked.
"Oh, I forgot to cook. You must be very hungry, eat this bowl of milk powder first, I'll go make some noodles, it will be quick."
Qiao Baozhu pushed the biscuits and milk powder in front of her towards Shen Xiao, then stood up and was about to get off the kang.
Shen Xiao leaned forward, and gently placed his big hand on Qiao Baozhu's forehead, and said in a deep and powerful voice: "I'm not that hungry, you eat the biscuits first. You will feel better if you have something in your stomach."
How could Qiao Baozhu have the nerve to eat by herself and let Shen Xiao go hungry.
Since getting married, Shen Xiao has taken care of almost all the housework at home.
He took the initiative to do all the dirty and tiring work that a man should do, such as cleaning the yard, fetching water, chopping wood, and cleaning the dry toilet.
Qiao Baozhu took the initiative to take on housework such as cleaning the house, cooking, and washing clothes.
But in fact, Shen Xiao not only washed his own clothes, but also washed the thick coat that Qiao Baozhu took off.
Every day, Shen Xiao got up early to do morning exercises. By the time Qiao Baozhu got up, not only was breakfast ready, but he had also cleaned the ash from the bottom of the stove and scrubbed the slop bucket until it was sparkling. While Qiao Baozhu was washing up, Shen Xiao wiped the furniture in the room again.
If she wasn't even given a dinner to cook for her, Qiao Baozhu would really feel embarrassed to stay in this house.
But Shen Xiao was determined and stared at Qiao Baozhu while she was eating.
Qiao Baozhu suddenly had an idea. She picked up the biscuit in the bowl, bit off half of it, and then picked up the large bowl and gulped down two mouthfuls.
After drinking, he held the big bowl and handed it to Shen Xiao: "I'm done, it's your turn."
Shen Xiao stared at the faint lipstick mark on the white porcelain bowl, his cheeks burning, his breathing short and his heart beating violently.
As if possessed by a ghost, he took the bowl from Qiao Baozhu's hand, and a little man in his mind laughed excitedly.
"This is her bowl. She gave me the bowl she just used."
"Oh my god, we kissed..."
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