2.5w nutrient solution plus additional housing allocation for family members in the residential compound
Chapter 98
As soon as he finished speaking, Old Master Song on the other end paused for a moment, "It's me, and who are you?"
The voice was very authoritative.
"I am Chen He, stationed in Harbin."
After only giving his name, Old Master Song knew who it was: Chen He. He had only been stationed in Harbin for ten years, yet he had already secured the position of the top leader of the Harbin garrison.
Even the Song family shouldn't be arrogant in front of such a person.
"Commander Chen, I wonder why you're looking for me?"
Commander Chen was about to speak when he heard it was Old Master Song, and his mind changed. "It's nothing, I just wanted to ask how you are doing."
If it were Old Mrs. Song, he might have spoken up, but when it came to Old Mr. Song, he thought of the trouble the Song family had caused back then.
He then denied his purpose for coming.
Although Grandpa Song found it strange, he didn't think much of it. Because his son and daughter were doing well, he received many greetings from people throughout the year.
"My TOEFL score is still okay."
After exchanging pleasantries, Mr. Song hung up the phone. Just as he was wondering what was going on, Mrs. Song returned from her exercise.
"What's wrong?"
Mr. Song, “Chen He, who is stationed in Harbin, just called to say hello.”
"Isn't this strange? When did our family get involved with the Harbin garrison?"
As soon as she said this, Old Mrs. Song seemed to realize something. She suppressed her emotions without showing any emotion and said, "Perhaps the team here wants to get closer to Fenfang through us."
"You know Fenfang's base. They've developed a lot of new weapons in the last two years. I reckon the Harbin garrison wants them, and they'll have a good chance to get them from us since we're so close."
That explanation makes sense.
Grandpa Song didn't think much of it.
However, after Grandma Song brushed the other party off, she felt increasingly uneasy and decided not to stay at home.
I picked up my bag and was about to leave.
He's over sixty, but he walks with a brisk pace and doesn't look old at all.
After arriving at the garrison, Old Mrs. Song identified herself as someone who was looking for Commander Chen. After verifying her identity, the guard led her into Commander Chen's office.
To be honest, Commander Chen didn't expect that Old Madam Song would arrive so quickly. It had only been half an hour since he hung up the phone.
It should be noted that the Song family lived in the factory's residential compound, which was not exactly close to here.
"Grandma, what gust of wind blew you here?"
When Grandma Song came in, Commander Chen personally came out to greet her.
Grandma Song was carrying a small black bag, wearing a cotton-padded coat, and her hair was tied up in a bun, combed meticulously.
"Commander Chen, give me a straight answer. You called my house earlier, but did my Yingying have an accident at the garrison?"
It was so kind of Commander Chen to make the call personally; Old Mrs. Song had been on tenterhooks the whole way.
No, not at all.
Upon seeing her arrive, Commander Chen didn't hide anything. He poured her a glass of water and told Old Madam Song to calm down before saying, "I wanted to tell you that Meng Yingying got married."
"What?"
Grandma Song almost dropped the enamel mug she was holding, but Commander Chen caught it with lightning speed.
This prevented a whole enamel mug of tea from being spilled.
"When did she get married? Who is her husband? Is he reliable?" Old Mrs. Song asked in rapid succession. "Why haven't I heard anything about it on my end?"
Commander Chen smiled and said, “Comrade Meng was the matchmaker I arranged. You also know the man here. He is our garrison commander, Xiao Qi. He is twenty-four years old this year and has already reached the position of commander. He is also a very handsome man.”
"The key is that Comrade Meng is also willing."
"The young couple just got their marriage certificate yesterday."
Grandma Song was still a little dazed. "How could this child not tell us about something so important?"
Commander Chen paused as he put away the thermos, and said calmly, "Grandma, Comrade Meng doesn't even know about the Song family."
Although the Song family's actions back then were for the sake of their daughter Song Fenfang's future.
However, it is undeniable that the one who was truly hurt was Meng Yingying, the child.
As soon as he finished speaking, Old Mrs. Song's hand trembled slightly. "You're right."
"That child doesn't know about the Song family either."
They had no right to say anything to that child.
Thinking of this, Old Mrs. Song's emotions calmed down a bit, and she began to make plans, but she figured it out in an instant.
Her face also changed to a polite smile.
"Since it was you, Commander Chen, who acted as matchmaker, I naturally trust you."
"I wonder if the groom's family has made any gestures since the couple got their marriage certificate? Have they prepared the 'three turns and one sound' (a traditional wedding accessory) for the wedding? When is the wedding banquet?"
These are all questions that hit the nail on the head.
Commander Chen didn't hide anything and said after a while, "You know a bit about the man's family. Xiao Qi is the son of the second daughter-in-law of the He family in your motor factory."
"So, if he really gets married, his family probably won't be able to offer any support."
As soon as these words were spoken, Old Mrs. Song immediately realized who the other person was. "You mean, he's Liu Qiufeng's youngest son?"
She had even helped the other party financially at the time.
More importantly, just two days ago, she also met the other party's uncle, Chef Liu.
Chef Liu had told her that his nephew was getting married, and she had congratulated him, but she never expected that he would tell her that so soon.
Her granddaughter is going to marry that little bitter gourd from back then.
This left Grandma Song completely bewildered; she was utterly unable to accept it.
"That child's family is really poor. His father died and his mother remarried. And it's just the He family's mess, Commander Chen."
Grandma Song stood up angrily, "Are you trying to arrange a marriage for my Yingying, or are you trying to harm her?"
Commander Chen knew she was agitated, so he immediately came over to comfort her, "Grandma, don't panic."
"I know that Xiao Han's family is not well-off, but that's also an advantage. Once Comrade Meng marries into that family, she won't have in-laws above her or sisters-in-law below her. Isn't that great?"
"Besides, you can't just look at Xiao Han's complicated family background. He himself is also outstanding. Ask yourself honestly, how many regimental commanders in the whole country can you find at the age of 24 or 25?"
"Don't worry, if Comrade Meng marries him and doesn't cherish him, I will be the first to not forgive him."
In fact, Commander Chen had analyzed Meng Yingying in private. After digging around, he realized that she wanted to find a male comrade who was even more outstanding than Qi Donghan.
No, there isn't.
His weakness is that his family is not well-off, but this is also his strength.
The house is clean, there are no burdens, and no mother-in-law/daughter-in-law conflicts. Qi Donghan's monthly salary is over a hundred yuan, which is enough for the young couple to live very well.
Grandma Song didn't speak, but asked, "Xiao Chen, tell me honestly, if you had a daughter, would you marry her off to Xiao Qi?"
Commander Chen sighed, "Grandma, do you think I don't want to? My daughter is five years older than Xiao Han. I've been trying to match them up for the past five years, but Xiao Qi just doesn't like them."
Judging from his eye for men, Xiao Han is really suitable to be a husband.
If his daughter weren't a bit older, he would have already taken Qi Donghan to his home.
Upon hearing this, Old Mrs. Song understood that Commander Chen had indeed put a lot of effort into choosing a partner for her child.
"Thank you on behalf of the child."
"However," she changed the subject, "I wonder if my child did it willingly?"
If it weren't voluntary, she would still fight for it even if a high-ranking leader like Commander Chen were to act as matchmaker!
Commander Chen understood what she meant. He nodded and said, "Of course it's voluntary. We live in a new society with new people and new things. We don't follow the old-fashioned feudal ways."
"Comrade Meng and Regiment Commander Qi went on blind dates and agreed to date each other. They dated for a while and were both quite satisfied with each other, which is why they got married."
"Grandma, don't worry, I'm a leader, not a bandit. I won't force the children to agree."
Grandma Song nodded. "Then where will they hold their banquet?"
"The male comrades want to work in the stationed office."
Grandma Song paused for a moment, then pondered for a while, "Is it because of money and tickets?"
She knew that state-run restaurants were expensive to host banquets, and not only were they expensive, but they also required all sorts of receipts.
Commander Chen shook his head. "It's hard to say. The children have their own ideas."
After considering it for a moment, Grandma Song said, "I have a favor to ask."
"Please speak."
Grandma Song whispered something to Commander Chen, "I want the children to have a banquet at a state-run restaurant, but I can't be in charge. However, I can provide the money and tickets. I just want to ask you to talk to the children and tell them that the two children have suffered a lot. As an elder, would it be alright if you could host a lively banquet for them?"
Commander Chen thought for a moment, "Grandma, have you thought this through? If this is the case, in the end you'll pay for the money and the tickets, but the favor will fall on me."
Although his salary was high, he couldn't support his family. In the end, he had done his best to furnish Qi Donghan's house.
As for sending Qi Donghan and Meng Yingying off to a state-run restaurant for a banquet, he simply didn't have the ability.
He was a division commander, but he was not a corrupt official, much less someone from a wealthy family like the Song family.
Grandma Song nodded, "If it happens to you, it happens to you. We don't care about reputation, we just want my child's marriage to be respectable."
Commander Chen didn't give a definitive answer. He thought for a moment and said, "I need to ask the children. Secondly, Grandma, you shouldn't just come to me. One person like me isn't enough to convince them. You should also go to Xiao Han's uncle. He's the head chef at the state-run restaurant. If you can convince him too, the chances of the two children agreeing will be higher."
Grandma Song thought about it and agreed.
They split into two groups, and when Grandma Song left, she even went to the performing arts troupe.
Meng Yingying was practicing dancing in the dance studio. She was wearing a black dance outfit and was dancing ballet on tiptoe. Her dance moves were extremely professional.
Grandma Song secretly watched for a while, but didn't dare to go up and acknowledge them before leaving.
Meng Yingying practiced for three hours straight until her whole body was completely relaxed, and then she lay comfortably on the wooden floor.
"I feel like I should train like this every day, like I'm going to die."
Only in this way will she not feel that time has been wasted, nor will she feel guilty or ashamed.
"Yingying, you're terrifying! Didn't you take your honeymoon? Why are you still working so hard?"
According to Ye Yingtao's idea, Meng Yingying shouldn't be going back to the practice room during her week-long wedding leave, but she didn't expect this workaholic to...
We got our marriage certificate in the morning and came to the practice room in the afternoon; we got our wedding photos in the morning and came to the practice room in the afternoon.
The main point is to not waste a single minute.
Meng Yingying lay down to rest for a while before doing the splits, saying, "I have to fight this hard."
Her expression turned somewhat solemn. "I'm worried that I might be transferred to the capital at any time."
"I can't possibly forget all my basic skills just to get married, can I?"
"Then I'm really at a loss."
She's going to get married, but she can't forget her basic skills either; she plans to be ready to compete with the Capital Song and Dance Troupe at any time.
She fought her way in, refusing to believe that there weren't any spots available for her.
Thinking of this, Meng Yingying stopped stretching her legs and walked up to Yang Jie to ask, "Teacher, is there any news from Director He?"
Yang Jie shook her head, "Not yet. The information I received is that she went to Beijing."
Unlike her personality, Director He is a true workaholic.
Having failed to secure a spot here, she immediately headed to the capital.
Yang Jie has been calculating the time these past few days. "It takes more than four days to travel from Harbin to the capital by train, plus the time she has to go through networking and getting into her workplace."
"It will probably take another two days before she gets back."
"You should hurry up and get the wedding done these next few days, so that you won't be delayed when you go to the capital later."
That's why Yang Jie is so straightforward; he could actually say something like that.
Fortunately, Meng Yingying knew Yang Jie's character, so she didn't mind. She just focused on the key point: "He and I have set a date for the banquet in three days. We hope that Director He will return in three days."
We're too early; my third uncle hasn't arrived yet.
The staff quarters area isn't ready yet.
All I can say is that these things take time.
Yang Jie hummed in agreement, and was about to say something to Meng Yingying when Commander Chen's bodyguard came over to greet her, "Is Comrade Meng Yingying here?"
"Commander Chen needs to speak with her."
To be honest, this is really beyond the expected level.
Division Commander Chen is Commander Fang's superior, and Commander Fang is Meng Yingying's superior; now they are separated by several ranks.
How could this not be surprising?
When Guard Zhang called out, everyone turned to look.
Meng Yingying was also a little confused, but she told Yang Jie before leaving with Guard Zhang.
As soon as she left, the cultural troupe was in an uproar.
Ye Yingtao and Lin Qiu exchanged a glance, both of them realizing from each other's eyes that Meng Yingying was about to make it big!
It's clear that she's different from ordinary people when a high-ranking leader like her comes to visit her.
Ordinary people like them in the cultural troupe could only catch a glimpse of the top leaders from afar at social gatherings and commendation ceremonies.
Meng Yingying was directly summoned by the top leader.
The differences here are really huge.
Jiang Li whispered, "I feel like Meng Yingying has really prospered ever since she got together with Commander Qi."
Upon hearing this, someone nearby couldn't help but say, "Even if she doesn't stick with Commander Qi, with her talent, she'll be successful sooner or later."
He had only been in the group for four or five months when he rose to the top.
Flying with the group.
Based on her record, she's on track to take off.
Division Commander Chen's office.
He called Qi Donghan over first, mainly to talk about what Old Madam Song had told him. Qi Donghan arrived.
He then asked indirectly, "Xiao Han, what's your reasoning for not wanting to hold the banquet at a state-run restaurant?"
Qi Donghan didn't expect him to ask this question. He thought for a moment before saying, "Firstly, I don't want to see irrelevant people."
"Secondly, there's the issue of funding and tickets. Uncle Chen, you know I know quite a few people here in the team. If Yingying and I were to hold our wedding banquet at a state-run restaurant, we would need at least three to five tables."
"In this situation, I have enough money, but not enough tickets."
This is a real problem.
Commander Chen paced back and forth, pondering for a long time, "What if I said I was willing to cover this part of the cost and the ticket?"
Qi Donghan instinctively wanted to refuse, but Commander Chen interrupted him, "Xiao Han, don't rush to refuse, let me finish."
"You and Yingying are both from poor families, we all know that. Marriage is a once-in-a-lifetime event. Do you really want to hold your wedding banquet with Yingying at the garrison?"
“I’m not looking down on our team’s canteen, but you know that the canteen has limited ingredients. If we were to host a banquet, it would only be cornbread and cornmeal. We might not even be able to find a few meat dishes.”
Qi Donghan pursed his lips and said, "I know, so I plan to secretly use my own money and ration coupons to buy pork, chicken and duck and send them to the cooking squad."
Commander Chen shook his head again, "Then who do you plan to eat, and who don't?"
"Xiao Han, you should know that there are more than 400 people in your regiment alone."
Qi Donghan remained silent, knowing what Commander Chen meant.
"Then we'll just cook at home and invite some people over for dinner."
Commander Chen said earnestly, "Go to the state-run restaurant. I'll pay for it and provide the tickets. You can have a grand event. Even if you don't want to, have you considered whether Comrade Meng would like to?"
Meng Yingying came in at this moment, and she subconsciously refused, "Leader, it's fine for Qi Donghan and me to hold the banquet at the garrison, so as to avoid extravagance."
Commander Chen, "Why are your two kids so stubborn?"
“Going to a state-run restaurant is much more prestigious, and Xiao Han’s uncle also works there. We can have him cook for us.”
Qi Donghan and Meng Yingying exchanged a glance, which was considered a concession from both sides.
"In that case, we'll pay for the banquet at the state-run restaurant ourselves, but you, leader, can help us pay for the grain coupons, meat coupons, cigarette coupons, and alcohol coupons."
This time, Commander Chen readily agreed, "Okay, then let's do it this way."
"I'll take care of the invoices; you just need to focus on having a nice banquet."
"Afterwards—" Commander Chen paused, "Xiao Han, remember to go back to your father's grave, pour him a glass of wine, and tell him."
Actually, at this point, Commander Chen realized that even if Old Madam Song hadn't come looking for him, he would still have wanted to take responsibility for the invoices for Qidong Han Baijiu.
He thought that if Lao Qi were here, he would definitely take responsibility for everything if he saw Xiao Han get married.
Qi Donghan remained silent for a moment, but he still nodded in agreement, "I will."
After leaving Commander Chen's office.
Meng Yingying turned around and said, "I feel that Commander Chen is acting a bit strange."
Why would someone be so eager to throw a banquet for someone else?
Qi Donghan surprisingly didn't think too much about it; he simply didn't want to put too much thought into his family.
He said in a low voice, "The apartments we were allocated in the family compound were also furnished by Uncle Chen."
At this point, he unfolded the key in his hand, "Yingying, Uncle Chen probably wants to stand in my father's position and help me out."
Just like when I saw him as a little boy, huddled in a state-run restaurant on a cold winter day. For many winters after that, he would eat and stay at Uncle Chen's house for free.
Basically, he switched between Uncle Chen's and his uncle's houses very casually.
Qi Donghan was already quite satisfied with this.
Seeing Qi Donghan's explanation, Meng Yingying stopped thinking about it and said, "Uncle Chen is really good to you."
This statement only scratches the surface.
After Qi Donghan took Meng Yingying to the family compound, their house was located behind Zhao Yueru's house, which was directly opposite it.
If you climb the wall, you can climb from their yard wall to Zhao Yueru's yard wall.
It's quite a coincidence.
Meng Yingying glanced at Zhao Yueru's house, but the door was locked. She didn't see Zhao Yueru and didn't rush over to greet her. Instead, she went to her own house with Qi Donghan to take a look.
They were allocated a three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment, all with excellent orientation and a large yard of over 70 square meters. The land hadn't been developed yet, so it was clear that the house had been vacant for a long time.
The courtyard walls are all uniform, probably about 1.5 meters high, just enough so that you can see the scene outside the courtyard from inside the wall.
Meng Yingying walked in, and Qi Donghan took the key and opened the living room door before the furniture was moved in.
Upon entering, there is an eight-immortal table and four chairs.
The bedroom also has a proper bed, the kind made of wood, not pieced together from long benches.
This made Meng Yingying much happier.
In the corner, there was a wardrobe, and in front of the wardrobe was a large mirror, making the space very bright.
It must be said that these pieces of furniture were very timely, directly solving Meng Yingying's immediate problem.
We have a table for eating, a bed for sleeping, and a wardrobe for dressing.
Upon arriving at the kitchen, there was a vermilion five-drawer chest in the corner, clearly for storing dishes.
A broom stood to the side.
After reading it, Meng Yingying murmured, "Qi Donghan, Uncle Chen is so good to you."
She also went to Yue Ru's house and saw that the furniture provided by the team was not like this at all.
The furniture that Commander Chen sent was obviously newly made, and it even had markings on it.
Large pieces of furniture like these require money and tickets; in fact, even with money and tickets, some items may not be available for purchase.
Because of the shortage of supplies, people were grabbing everything they could.
Qi Donghan hummed in agreement and touched the five-drawer chest. "This set of furniture was prepared by Uncle Chen three years ago."
Meng Yingying took his hand and said softly, "Then we will take good care of Uncle Chen in the future."
Qi Donghan has no parents.
But both Uncle Liu and Commander Chen did their best to treat her well.
"Yingying?"
Just as Meng Yingying and Qi Donghan were talking, a tentative greeting came from outside the courtyard.
Meng Yingying knew who it was as soon as she heard it, and she immediately ran out. Qi Donghan was left standing there alone, and it took him a while to follow her out.
Outside, Meng Yingying saw Zhao Yueru standing there as soon as she came out.
She was carrying a vegetable basket, clearly indicating that she had just returned from the supply and marketing cooperative where she was stationed.
"Yueru, why did you go grocery shopping in such cold weather?"
Zhao Yueru stood in the cold wind, carrying a basket, but her eyes were curved in a smile. "It's not cold, it's not cold. Pregnant women are afraid of the heat, and I couldn't stand it at home, so I came out for a walk. When I entered the family compound, I heard someone say that a new family had moved in. I guessed it was you."
At this point, she peeked over and asked, "Is this the house your family was allocated?"
Meng Yingying naturally didn't hide anything from Zhao Yueru, and pulled her inside, saying, "We just got our first job, we haven't moved in yet, come in and take a look."
Zhao Yueru didn't stand on ceremony and handed the shopping basket to Meng Yingying, who then bought some frozen radishes and frozen cabbage.
The main problem is that during this season, even the supply and marketing cooperative stationed in the team doesn't have many good dishes. After the first frost, it's just the same two dishes over and over again.
Even meat is hard to buy; you can't get it, you simply can't get it.
After Zhao Yueru came in and looked around, she couldn't help but pull Meng Yingying around, saying, "Your house is wonderful in every way."
"It's just missing one thing."
Meng Yingying thought the house was quite nice, and she subconsciously asked, "What's missing?"
Zhao Yueru said, "I'm getting married, but there's not even a 'double happiness' character on the door. It's not festive at all."
When are you having your wedding banquet?
Meng Yingying calculated the time, "Three days later, which is October 18th."
She and Qi Donghan even specially picked an auspicious day.
“There are still three days left, that’s enough time,” Zhao Yueru said. “I’ll cut the paper these two days, and then I’ll ask Zhou Jingsong to paste it up.”
Qi Donghan rarely spoke up, "I'll post one too."
It was only after Zhao Yueru reminded him that he realized there was indeed no festive atmosphere in his home.
"Besides that, I checked and found that I didn't buy any pots, pans, or other kitchen utensils, and I didn't have any firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, or tea either."
"These are the most basic things you need to prepare for daily life."
It has to be said that Zhao Yueru is truly different after getting married; she's completely different from that boisterous girl she used to be.
They arranged her life in an extremely proper way.
Meng Yingying thought for a moment, "I'll go and get these things when I have time in the next few days."
It's just a bit difficult; the performing arts troupe is quite busy and simply doesn't have time to spare.
Even now, when she came to the family compound, it was only because Commander Chen asked her to come out at the last minute; otherwise, she wouldn't have had the time.
Zhao Yueru raised her hand and touched Meng Yingying's head. "You don't need to worry about these things. I'm pregnant now, so I eat and sleep all day long. I have plenty of time."
"Leave everything that needs to be purchased to me."
How could Meng Yingying possibly have such a thing?
Zhao Yueru retorted confidently, "Am I not part of your family?"
"Oh right, bedding, sheets, and duvet covers are also important. We need to get them all ready in the next few days, otherwise we might find we have nothing when we move in."
Even with large pieces of furniture, these small items still require some thought and effort.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to live there.
Meng Yingying went to see Qi Donghan, and Qi Donghan said, "I'll take care of the bedding, sheets, and duvet covers."
If the logistics department can get it, they will; if not, he will find another way.
Zhao Yueru didn't try to be brave. She could afford to buy some firewood, rice, oil, and salt, but she didn't have the coupons to buy bedding, sheets, and duvet covers.
They decided not to fight Qi Dong for such things anymore.
While Meng Yingying was busy preparing for moving into her new house and holding a wedding banquet.
The Song family.
Grandma Song also received a call from Commander Chen. After listening to the call, she sighed and said, "Just take the receipts. I'll arrange the grain and meat coupons."
Commander Chen said, "The cigarette coupons and alcohol coupons are mine."
Grandma Song didn't argue with him about this. Instead, she said, "I've already arranged the four-piece bedding set for Yingying's dowry."
"I would also like to ask Commander Chen to help me send it over. Just like before, don't say that I sent it, just say that it was arranged by you."
Commander Chen sighed, "Old lady, why are you doing this to yourself?"
He wanted to be good to Meng Yingying, but he didn't dare, so everything was done secretly.
Grandma Song smiled wryly, "Commander Chen, you don't understand. I'm afraid if we said it was a gift from us, Yingying would probably throw everything out."
I will never have anything to do with them again.
Commander Chen also fell silent. He said in a deep voice, "I'll try it first, but the truth will eventually come out. If it gets out one day, don't blame me."
Grandma Song nodded, and after hanging up the phone, she stood there for a while, counting the eight quilts and various jacquard satin sheets and duvet covers embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in the water.
She remained silent for a while before dialing the number to go to the Northwest base.
This was the seventh phone call she had made in the past two days, once in the morning, once at noon, and once in the evening. Even if she couldn't reach her daughter, at least she could leave a message to let her know.
The call was answered.
Grandma Song immediately said, "Fenfang, Yingying is getting married the day after tomorrow."
"Can you come back?"
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Author's Note: Bonus chapter for 2.5 days of nutrient solution! I'm back, the workaholic queen!
Haha, I'm begging for nutrient solution, please comment, even landmines are welcome, thank you babies, love you all~ goodnight~
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