Chapter 87: Lu Zhanlin’s Pride: My Wife Made It!

After Song Qi left, Chu Yue quietly asked Chen Fengying for a favor—she hoped that Chen Fengying wouldn’t spread the word about Lu Zhanlin sending someone to deliver supplies.

Chen Fengying immediately nodded.

“Don’t worry, Sister Chu. I know neither you nor Commander Lu are the type to show off. My lips are sealed. I won’t breathe a word.”

“Thank you, Sister Chen.”
Chu Yue thanked her politely.

Chen Fengying waved it off, and as she left, she added that after eating Chu Yue’s pork skin jelly, she’d come by later with some large steamed buns—all handmade by her.

That’s how neighbors should treat one another—give and take, building stronger bonds through mutual care.

After Chen Fengying left, Chu Yue and Lu Xiaobao stood in front of the brand-new bicycle, the more they looked at it, the more they liked it.

Lu Xiaobao asked softly,

“This bicycle… is ours now?”

“Yes! It’s ours!”
Chu Yue smiled and nodded. She took Lu Xiaobao’s hand and placed it on the back seat of the bicycle.
“Xiaobao, want to ride it?”

Lu Xiaobao’s pitch-black eyes lit up immediately, nodding without the slightest hesitation.

This was a bicycle, after all! In their village, only the village chief and the party secretary had one—no one else did.

And now, not only had he seen a bicycle, he’d touched it, and—he could even ride it!

It was something Lu Xiaobao had never dared to dream of before—and he wanted it, badly!

“Alright! I’ll take you for a ride!”

Not only did Chu Yue want to take Lu Xiaobao for a ride, she also wanted to ride the bike down the mountain.

The whole point of getting a bicycle was so she could travel freely and independently.

In addition, Chu Yue had made a full six to seven jin (3–3.5 kg) of pork skin jelly. That was far too much for just her own household—it was clearly meant to be sold!

There was still plenty of time in the morning, just enough to head down to the market.

Chu Yue patted Lu Xiaobao’s head.

“Go get your hat and scarf. We’re riding the bicycle down to the market!”

---

That afternoon—

When Lu Zhanlin walked into the military canteen, he was carrying a small aluminum lunchbox. The little silver container didn’t seem all that special, but Xu Feng, who’d worked with Lu Zhanlin for a long time, immediately picked up on the subtle change in his expression from a distance.

As soon as he got closer, the scout’s sharp eyes caught sight of the lunchbox in Lu Zhanlin’s hand.

Now that was interesting.

Xu Feng walked over to Lu Zhanlin, and the two of them entered the canteen side by side. Xu Feng gestured subtly with his eyes and teased,

“What are you sneakily hiding in there—something good?”

Lu Zhanlin gave him a sideways glance, clearly not intending to answer.

“None of your business.”

The more Lu Zhanlin refused to say, the more curious Xu Feng became. He not only stuck close to Lu Zhanlin, he even started teasing him out loud in mock indignation.

“Commander Lu, don’t be an ungrateful scoundrel! Just a few days ago, you borrowed eight yuan from me. And now you’re turning your back on me already? Who would’ve thought—our grand Commander Lu is actually a henpecked husband, can’t even spare eight bucks.”

In truth, Lu Zhanlin didn’t just not have eight yuan—he didn’t even have ten.

He shot Xu Feng an exasperated look. Dealing with this shameless guy was just too much.

“Fine. Sit down and eat with me.”

“Now that’s more like it!”

Xu Feng grinned happily and sat down to eat at the same table as Lu Zhanlin.

Both of them were well-known figures in the military unit—no matter where they went, they were the center of attention. So when Lu Zhanlin and Xu Feng sat down, several battalion and company commanders nearby also came over. Some wanted to chat, others were simply curious.

After getting their food, just as Lu Zhanlin set down his lunchbox, Xu Feng, holding his chopsticks, stretched his neck and widened his eyes to get a closer look.

As the lunchbox was opened, the crystal-clear pig skin jelly was revealed to everyone.

Xu Feng, a rough guy from the countryside, had never seen anything so exquisite. His eyes nearly popped out of his head.
“Pig skin jelly can look like this? This was made by your wife too? Let me try a bite—Holy sh*t! This is amazing!”

Delicious as it was, the pig skin jelly didn’t shut Xu Feng up—instead, it got him so excited he blurted out a curse.

Delicious! Damn delicious!

“Commander Lu, your wife’s cooking is really that good? I’ve never seen pig skin jelly this pretty in my life!”

“Commander Lu, when are you going to bring your wife out to meet us? We’ve eaten your wedding sweets, but we haven’t even seen your wife yet!”

“Xu Feng, is it really that good? Tell us, man!”

“Good? It’s incredible! So tender, so smooth, and chewy! I can’t even describe how good it is!”
Xu Feng was practically showing off more than Lu Zhanlin himself.
“You guys don’t know—I went to Commander Lu’s place for dinner last week. His wife made it with her own hands! It smelled so good… it made me wanna get married too!”

“Who! Who just said they want to get married?”

A voice—aged but still full of vigor—sounded from within the cafeteria. As soon as the officers heard that voice, their expressions changed. They all sat up straight and stiffened, not a trace of laughter left on their faces.

Lu Zhanlin immediately stood up and respectfully said,
“General He.”

The white-haired elderly man was General He Changzheng, the commander of the Southwest Military District.

General He had spent his life in the military, dedicating most of it to the country. He carried a unique, battle-hardened presence—though he now looked more like a cheerful old man, his aura still demanded deep respect.

As he approached, he saw the object of everyone’s attention—the lunchbox on the table containing the pig skin jelly.

With a stern expression, he looked at Xu Feng and said,
“Well? Hurry up and get me some chopsticks!”

Xu Feng was so startled he jolted. He feared nothing—except General He. He always acted like a mouse seeing a cat around him. That joke he cracked earlier had definitely been overheard, and his heart skipped several beats.

Seeing that General He didn’t seem angry, Xu Feng let out a small sigh of relief and quickly handed over a pair of chopsticks.

General He took the chopsticks and sat down, waving at the others,
“Sit, sit. Everyone sit and continue eating.”

Lu Zhanlin, Xu Feng, and the rest finally sat down again.

General He picked up a piece of the pig skin jelly with his chopsticks and asked Lu Zhanlin,
“Your wife made this?”

Lu Zhanlin nodded.
“Yes, she did.”

General He looked at the translucent jelly on his chopsticks. Though he didn’t show the kind of dramatic reaction Xu Feng had, there was clearly surprise in his expression.

Once he tasted it, that surprise turned into astonishment.

This thing—it was unexpectedly delicious!

Sitting right beside him, Lu Zhanlin caught the flash of amazement in the old general’s eyes and couldn’t help but let a small, proud smile tug at his lips.

A pride that came entirely from Chu Yue.

General He ate one bite, then another, and another.

He didn’t say a word, just kept picking up more with his chopsticks. Soon, more than half the jelly was gone. Xu Feng was growing anxious.

He’d only had one piece—Lu Zhanlin hadn’t even tasted it yet! Xu Feng still wanted another bite!

Xu Feng blurted out in distress,
“General He, please leave some for us!”

Only then did General He realize how carried away he had gotten. Who would’ve thought that a little piece of pig skin jelly could taste that good? He gave a few embarrassed coughs.

“Ahem.”
General He turned to Lu Zhanlin and said,
“Now I finally understand why you didn’t want to stay in the capital—you’d rather be out here in the remote southwest.”