After returning home, Gu Qingqing put the kettle back in the kitchen and went to the backyard with the hoe.
The front and back yards were fenced in and painted white.
It was too late when she arrived yesterday, so she didn't see much. She only knew that the backyard was next to a mountain. The mountain was not very high, and the vegetation was very lush. She couldn't recognize the strange grasses and trees.
I haven’t seen it in Datunzi Village.
Placing the hoe casually in the corner of the wall, she stretched her back and neck to stretch her muscles, then walked slowly towards the fence, wanting to take a closer look.
With her hands on the fence, she looked into the distance and saw a large blue area on the side of the mountain. She put her hands on her forehead to block the sunlight and almost jumped up when she saw it clearly.
It's the sea!
Xu Nian called her a few times in the yard, and seeing that the door was open, he looked around the house, but didn't see her, so he thought of going to the backyard to check.
I happened to see her rubbing her hands on the fence, and I remembered that Gu Qinglie said she was like a monkey jumping up and down every day, and it was true after seeing this.
Xu Nian held her stomach and smiled with pursed lips.
She walked over slowly and asked softly, "What did you see?"
"Ocean!" Gu Qingqing smiled brightly, her smile brighter than the sun: "Sister Anian, my yard is really great! I can dry clothes and quilts in the front yard and grow vegetables in the back yard. There are no houses next to it, so I don't worry about disturbing others. Now I can even see the sea."
Xu Nian leaned against the fence slightly, followed her line of sight, and said with some amusement: "It's normal to be able to see the sea on an island. The houses here are all built by the sea, and every house can see the sea."
As she spoke, she touched her belly, her expression gentle: "Brother Ze has been watching me very closely recently, but now his husband has something important to do and can't control us. Don't you want to eat seafood? How about we go to the beach this afternoon to see if we can pick up something?"
"Okay," Gu Qingqing said without hesitation. She glanced at the wasteland in the backyard, "But I have to dig the ground to loosen the soil first. There's not much fresh water on the island, and I don't know if sea water can be used to water the vegetables."
"No way." Xu Nian saw her pick up the hoe again and shook his head, saying, "The sea water has too much salt. If you really water the vegetables, they will be killed."
Gu Qingqing was holding the hoe and was also worried.
She had never considered this problem before. Although the Corps was short of water, the soldiers went to the desert lakes every day to fetch water and fill up all the water tanks. She had built so many greenhouses and had access to water as she pleased.
Taking a shower here is very stingy. Chu Dai always uses her bath water. This morning, she was reluctant to throw away the water after washing her face, intending to save it for watering the floor after mowing.
She dug twice with the hoe and looked at the light yellow soil, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"The soil here is still better than the one in the Corps. It's not sandy, it's pure soil. But the water issue is very troublesome."
Xu Nian comforted her: "The island's supplies are delivered by boat. It doesn't matter whether you grow vegetables or not. The south is not like the north. There are many kinds of vegetables, enough for us to eat."
Gu Qingqing knew she was right, but she still felt a little conflicted: "It makes me sad to see so much land sitting there without vegetables. I think it's such a waste."
"How about you plant some flowers?" Xu Nian suggested, "I see the flowers, plants and trees on the island are growing well. I heard from Brother Ze that the rainfall here is quite heavy, and a typhoon will hit in two days."
"Huh? Then can I save the rainwater and use it to grow vegetables?" She suddenly thought of something, threw down the hoe in her hand, and gestured at the area next to the back wall, "I'll dig a reservoir here to store rainwater and use it to water the vegetables. This way, it won't become saline."
Xu Nian stared blankly at her mumbling and waving her hands, and couldn't help laughing out loud: "Qingqing, you are really smart. I think it's feasible."
"Sister Anian, wait a moment!"
After saying that, Gu Qingqing quickly ran to the front yard. Xu Nian didn't know what she was going to do. After waiting for two minutes, he saw her move a chair over and put it in a place without shadows beside the fence.
"You can bask in the sun here and chat with me while I plow the ground first."
"Okay." Xu Nian felt warm in his heart, and he slowly sat down by holding the back of the chair. The sun was strong on the island and the temperature was high during the day.
Although it was already very hot in early spring, she wore a thin shirt, which made her look very fashionable.
Gu Qingqing first left the edges open, then began to loosen the soil.
She had hardly worked in the fields at home, but she was already very familiar with the work in the Corps.
Her movements were very quick. Even someone like Xu Nian, who was used to doing farm work at home, thought she was very fast. She loosened a small piece of land in half an hour.
She held the wooden handle of the hoe with her left hand, wiped the sweat off her forehead with her right hand, and chatted with Xu Nian: "I heard from Brother Zhao last time that you can't eat raw or cold food now. Does that mean you can't eat crabs and shrimps before the baby is born?"
"I can eat a little bit occasionally." Xu Nian hesitated for a moment, "But Brother Ze said that I can only eat fish during this period of time, and I am not allowed to eat anything else."
Gu Qingqing chuckled, her big eyes rolling around, clearly harboring ill intentions: "Sister Anian, who has a high status in your family? Why do I feel like Brother Zhao has you in his grasp?"
"You should listen to him about this matter, he's a doctor." Xu Nian had been married to him for several years and finally got pregnant. She was also very careful and didn't dare to be greedy: "Do you think that Captain Chu listens to you so much, just like you?"
"That's not the case." Gu Qingqing thought about how she asked him to get some hot water last night, but the man brought back so many things. She said with hot ears, "I can't control him."
"He cares about you the same way, but last night Brother Ze told me that he suspected Captain Chu was injured in the battle... so they can't have children for the time being." Xu Nian regarded Gu Qingqing as her only good sister, so she hesitated for a moment before saying this. "How is your married life? He said that he would have children after you get used to life on the island. Isn't he just trying to trick you?"
Gu Qingqing was dumbfounded, "How could Brother Zhao think so? Chu Dai and I... are doing fine." The box was used up in just ten days.
The man in bed...well, pretty fierce.
"Maybe you think it's a little unusual that Captain Chu said he doesn't plan to have children for the time being? Qingqing, don't take it to heart. They are brothers who always speak their mind." They often insult each other.
Gu Qingqing didn't think it was a big deal and waved her hands: "I thought it was strange when he told me that he wanted to have a child later. I thought he didn't want to have one with me. It's normal. I understand Brother Zhao's thoughts."
As she said this, she looked at Xu Nian's belly and said, "If your baby grows up and I'm still nowhere to be found, then Chu Dai will really have a problem."
After saying this, she suddenly shut up again.
Chu Dai didn't like her talking about these things with others, so this shouldn't count, right? They were talking about the children.
She still feels a little guilty.
Xu Nian shook his head and chuckled, "Are you tired? I'll go get you a glass of water?"
Seeing that she was about to get up, Gu Qingqing put down the hoe and held her shoulders, "Don't move, I'll do it. Do you want to drink? I'll bring it to you."
"Okay, bring me a cup." Xu Nian didn't bother to be polite with her.
Gu Qingqing brought two cups of hot water from the kitchen and handed her an enamel cup. She drank while looking outside the fence: "It's quite quiet today. Yesterday I saw 30 or 40 sisters-in-law with their children, but I didn't see them coming out to play."
"We must have gone to the beach. Children love to play. You couldn't take your eyes off the sea, right?" Xu Nian blew slowly on the rim of the cup, not forgetting to tease her.
Gu Qingqing looked at her with a faint smile on her face, and thought of the time when he met her on the train to the Corps, and he remained silent.
She couldn't help but joked, "Women who are nourished by happiness are indeed the most beautiful."
"Qingqing!" Xu Nian was indeed thin-skinned.
The two went to the cafeteria together at noon. There were not many people in the kitchen, only four or five. The squad leader, Lao Zhu, had to steam rice, cut vegetables and cook.
Gu Qingqing lay on the table, reached for a spoon, and asked Xu Nian beside her: "What do you want to eat? I'll help you serve it."
"Braised hairtail and kelp tofu soup." Xu Nian said in a distressed tone, "I haven't had a very good appetite lately. I feel full after eating a few bites, and if I eat more, I'll throw it up after a while."
Gu Qingqing didn't understand this. She took the lunch box that Xu Nian handed over to her blankly and said, "What should I do? Did Brother Zhao say how to relieve the pain?"
"He doesn't understand either. Suturing wounds is what he is good at." Xu Nian shook his head.
Gu Qingqing couldn't help laughing when she remembered that Goudan and Chu Dai often called Zhao Ze "the trickster".
My sister-in-law, who was serving food nearby, interrupted and said, "Are you pregnant and have no appetite? There should be sour oranges and hawthorns on the back hill of this island. Let your man pick some and see if it works."
Xu Nian turned his head to look sideways and saw that it was his sister-in-law with a little boy. The boy pointed at the serving table and asked for braised hairtail fish one moment and then for cold jellyfish the next. After he was served both, he also said that steamed crabs were also good.
She touched her belly subconsciously, her brows softened: "Thank you, sister-in-law, I'll ask my husband to look for it later." She didn't know whether she was pregnant with a girl or a boy.
The boy seemed a little too noisy, and she was more quiet, so she was afraid she couldn't handle him.
The lady is also good.
After preparing the meal, Gu Qingqing took her to sit at the table against the wall and gave her the lunch box and chopsticks.
"Eat quickly, Sister Anian. Go back and rest later. I'll find you at two o'clock and go to the beach together."
"Okay, you should eat more too." Xu Nian first picked up the spoon and drank two sips of soup. He only started eating after his appetite felt a little better.
More and more sisters-in-law came to the cafeteria to eat, all with their children.
Gu Qingqing looked left and right but didn't see Chu Dai coming. Thinking of what he said last night that he couldn't have lunch with her at noon, she sighed heavily.
Xu Nian asked doubtfully, "What's wrong, Qingqing?"
"It's okay, I just think they are working too hard and can't come back to eat when it's time for dinner."
Xu Nian nodded in agreement.
Old Zhu came over, wiping his hands on a white coarse cloth apron. He just happened to hear what they said and said with a smile, "Don't worry, the soldiers' meals have been delivered. They have a heavy task, and our kitchen team can't afford to let them down."
"Captain Zhu," Gu Qingqing greeted him, "Can they come back for dinner tonight?"
"Sure, just wait patiently. By the way, do you want some food? Tell me what you want to eat and I'll get it for you. There's plenty of food."
"No need, that's enough, thank you, Captain Zhu." Gu Qingqing smiled, and her mood suddenly became cheerful when she thought about having dinner with a man in the evening.
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