She looked at the homespun curtain and the bundle of vegetables in her hand, her feelings complicated.
They're finally gone. Those women were so enthusiastic they could melt you...
[Although this piece of cloth is a bit old-fashioned, it does seem to block out the light?]
Even though the vegetables are wilted, they still represent someone's kind intentions...
Pei Jiwang looked at the undisguised exhaustion on her face and pushed the water glass on the table toward her.
"Sister Li is a kind-hearted person, but she has a loud voice and talks a lot. You'll get used to it."
Pei Jiwang offered a rare explanation.
"Thank you... Comrade Pei."
Zi Xi raised her eyes, glanced at him, and, remembering how he had helped her out of a tight spot earlier, whispered something.
[At least you have some conscience; you didn't just stand by and watch me get dissected.]
Pei Jiwang didn't respond to her thanks, his gaze falling on the two suitcases: "Do you need me to help you unpack your things?"
"Need not!"
"I...I can do it myself!"
Zi Xi immediately refused, like a mother hen protecting her chicks.
She dared not let him see the evidence of bourgeois crimes in the box so soon after she arrived.
"The cafeteria opens for breakfast at seven o'clock, so there are still twenty minutes left."
Pei Jiwang did not insist, but simply said calmly.
After saying that, he turned around and went to clean up the chairs that the group of women had just sat on.
Zi Xi looked at his back, then at the feel of the homespun cloth in her hand and the bundle of vegetables that smelled of earth.
Then I recalled the genuine smiles of those women, though rough, and their practical advice.
This island, with its neighbors, doesn't seem to be as terrible as she imagined.
The military mess hall was a spacious bungalow with rough walls, but it was newer than the houses in the family compound.
Before you even get close, a smell of food, disinfectant, and the sweat of the crowd hits you.
Zi Xi followed half a step behind Pei Jiwang, her steps hesitant.
The closer she got, the clearer the clamor of voices and the clanging of bowls and chopsticks became, giving her a sudden, inexplicable pang of unease.
Wow, there are so many people! It seems like the entire camp is crammed here. And the smell is just too complicated...
Pei Jiwang walked steadily into the cafeteria.
The moment he appeared, the noisy cafeteria fell silent for a moment, and countless eyes turned to him.
Of course, most of the attention was focused on the slender figure behind him, dressed in a light-colored dress, who seemed out of place in her surroundings.
They stared at it curiously, and there was even some undisguised discussion.
"Look, that's Company Commander Pei's wife!"
"Wow, so fair and clean!"
"A capitalist's daughter from Shanghai, huh? She looks so spoiled..."
The hushed whispers entered her ears like mosquitoes, and Zi Xi felt her cheeks burning.
She subconsciously lowered her head, wishing she could hide herself in Pei Jiwang's back.
[What are you looking at! Never seen a beautiful woman before?! Are you so delicate you're eating your family's pickled vegetables?!]
Pei Jiwang seemed oblivious to the commotion behind him, and led Zixi straight to the food pick-up window to queue up.
The lunch in the cafeteria is very simple.
Golden cornbread buns, a pot of boiled cabbage with hardly any oil, and a pot of radish soup with a few specks of oil floating on top.
And a fixed portion of braised canned meat for each person.
Looking at the hard, dense cornbread and bland vegetables in the bowls of the soldiers getting their meals, Zi Xi's stomach began to churn slightly.
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