Zhou Yuanyuan didn't want to be noticed, especially by people with ulterior motives. Zhou Xi had already made her evasive, so she naturally wouldn't expose herself for a few vegetables. So when Xiaoyu suggested to plant vegetables quickly, Zhou Yuanyuan slapped her to death.
Zhao Yunxiang had been here for over two months, and while she'd managed to strike up a conversation with every military wife, she hadn't made a single friend with whom she could share her innermost feelings. It wasn't that Zhao Yunxiang was aloof, but rather that the twenty or so military wives came from all corners of the country, each with their own ulterior motives and agendas. They competed for jobs, for their husbands' publicity, for whose wife was the most virtuous... Everything was brought up for comparison and debate. Zhao Yunxiang was a simple person, and being around them was too tiring, so she preferred to stay away.
When Zhao Yunxiang and her family first moved in, Zhao Qingshan, He Laidie and other military wives made some malicious speculations about Zhao Yunxiang's family, which made Zhao Qingshan very unhappy.
After Zhao Qingshan started working at Renhe Hospital, he was assigned a three-bedroom, two-living-room apartment. To make himself comfortable and more convenient for work, he stayed at Zhou Zhixin's house for two days before moving to his own apartment. After Zhao Qingshan left Zhou Zhixin's house, the rumors about him in the military family housing complex gradually died down.
However, even if Zhou Yuanyuan had intentionally concealed the rumors from Zhao Yunxiang, after a month or two, some of them still made it to her. Zhao Yunxiang was furious and no longer had any desire to make friends here.
Where there are many women, there is a lot of gossip. What's more, military wives have too much time left after taking care of children and doing housework, so they get together to gossip about other people's affairs.
Zhao Yunxiang's family had so much going on that it would almost become a drama. Zhou Zhixin's status as an adopted son, the shamelessness of Zhou Chunping's family, and the falling out between Zhou Zhixin and Zhou Chunping's families—every single incident would surely be talked about for half a year if it were known to outsiders. To avoid trouble, Zhao Yunxiang simply kept a distance from all the military wives.
However, finding a job wasn't easy for Zhao Yunxiang. Jobs were scarce in those days, and many of the wives of soldiers accompanying the troops came from rural areas, some of whom hadn't even graduated from elementary school. This made finding work even more challenging.
Among the military wives living in the dormitory building, only a few of them have jobs at present. They are Lin Weixiang, the wife of the regiment political commissar, Chen Qiuyu, the wife of the regiment commander, Xu Meiyue, the wife of Captain Xu, and Hu Meilin, the wife of Battalion Commander He.
The army had opened a kindergarten, headed and taught by Lin Weixiang, the daughter-in-law of the regimental political commissar. The kindergarten was designed to accommodate the families of soldiers accompanying them. In reality, the Guards Regiment only had about twenty families, some of whom were newly married and had no children.
The military kindergarten is called a kindergarten, but it is actually a nursery. Children of military dependents can go to kindergarten from the age of four, and when they are eight years old, they have to go to elementary school in Kyoto.
Children under four years old must be raised by the wives of the military themselves. Not only will they not learn anything in kindergarten if they are too young, but they will also disrupt the studies of older children.
There are currently only seven children in the kindergarten where Lin Weixiang works, so only one teacher, Lin Weixiang, is needed.
The regimental commander's wife, Chen Qiuyu, was a well-educated woman. I heard she graduated from Kyoto Normal University and was currently a teacher at an elementary school in the city. The army's base was quite a distance from the city, so Chen Qiuyu usually lived in the school dormitory, returning to the army only after the holiday on Saturday afternoons. Early Monday morning, she would catch a ride to school to get to work.
Then there's Captain Xu's wife, Xu Meiyue. Although she comes from the countryside, she's a junior high school graduate, making her somewhat educated. Because of her junior high school diploma, Captain Xu found her a job as a salesperson at a department store. Consequently, Xu Meiyue is the pride and role model for all the rural military wives in the housing complex.
Captain He's wife, Hu Meilian, had been with the army for six or seven years. She had been with Captain He since the army first settled in Shilitun. Therefore, when the army's cafeteria needed a temporary worker, Hu Meilian became the most qualified wife to get the job.
China is a society based on personal connections, and seniority is the norm in every unit. Zhou Zhixin was the newly appointed battalion commander, and Zhao Yunxiang, the most junior military wife, seemed to have no chance of getting a job. There were twenty or so other military wives ahead of Zhao Yunxiang, all eyeing the same job opportunity!
Zhou Yuanyuan will be exactly six years old after the Chinese New Year, and is within the enrollment range of the kindergarten. Zhao Yunxiang thought that Zhou Jiasheng and Wen Ziqing would go to school in the city in September, so she planned to let Zhou Yuanyuan go to kindergarten in September, freeing up her time to find a job or start a small business.
The successful case of fish balls has given Zhao Yunxiang full of confidence. Now all she has to do is to find out whether private business is allowed here. If possible, Zhao Yunxiang plans to open a tailor shop or a snack bar in the small town.
Zhao Yunxiang's tailoring skills are undeniable, and her clothes are both comfortable and beautiful. She is also confident in her food preparation. Of the four areas of food, clothing, housing, and transportation, Zhao Yunxiang believes that clothing and food are the two areas that best suit her.
Zhou Yuanyuan didn't want to go to kindergarten. The thought of a 30- or 40-year-old woman sitting in a classroom with a bunch of snotty-nosed kids learning how to add one plus one was enough to make her feel uncomfortable.
Zhou Yuanyuan would rather go to Renhe Hospital to accompany her grandfather for his consultation than waste time at the kindergarten. After all, she could practice acupuncture with Zhao Qingshan and gain some knowledge.
However, Zhou Yuanyuan didn't tell Zhao Yunxiang about her plan. She felt that Zhao Yunxiang was now a tyrant at home who had the final say. If she dared to openly oppose Zhao Yunxiang's arrangements, the broom knob on Zhao Yunxiang's hand might "kiss" her little butt.
Being spanked by a monk was a deeply shameful thing. To protect her reputation as a monk, Zhou Yuanyuan decided to have Zhao Qingshan intervene. Zhao Yunxiang wouldn't dare be harsh with anyone, but Zhao Qingshan. With Zhao Qingshan's protection, Zhou Yuanyuan felt her future was still bright.
Zhao Yunxiang didn't know what Zhou Yuanyuan was thinking. She planned to go to the market that day, so she took her three little ones with her.
Of course! Zhou Jiasheng is the only real child. The other two are much older than Zhao Yunxiang in their two lifetimes combined.
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