Chapter 44

Xue Miaoyun kept her word. After returning, she made a large jar of health-boosting pills.

“Why did you make so many?” Cang Ling was surprised. He knew that due to the shortage of medicinal materials, his wife was usually very careful with them.

Xue Miaoyun felt a little embarrassed. “You need to take good care of yourself during this period. Although you can still work, you can’t overexert yourself. Many things will have to be handled by Comrade Yan.”

Cang Ling understood. When someone helps you, you’re in their debt.

His wife’s thoughtfulness was quite endearing.

“Yun’er, you’re really considerate,” Cang Ling said with a smile, pulling his wife into an embrace. He felt that life was getting better and better.

Yan Minghu took the large jar of pills from Cang Ling’s hands and listened as he explained how to take them.

“Old Cang, this is too much, isn’t it a waste? Do you have enough medicine?” Yan Minghu genuinely hadn’t expected Cang Ling’s wife to be so sincere.

Cang Ling smiled. “My wife said that for a while, you’ll need to take on some of my work. She’s worried you won’t be able to handle it physically.”

“Oh, so this is a bribe?” Yan Minghu immediately understood Cang Ling’s intention and joked.

“That’s not all. Once I’m better, Ah Yun said she wants to host a dinner at home. You must come when the time comes.”

“Of course, I wouldn’t miss it.”

In the following days, Xue Miaoyun lived a peaceful life. Although she was supposed to take care of the patient, Cang Ling was very independent. Once he was able to get out of bed, he didn’t need any more help from Xue Miaoyun. In fact, he was the one looking after her.

Half a month later, they went to the hospital for a check-up. Cang Ling was almost fully recovered and could return to work, as long as he avoided strenuous activities.

With Cang Ling recovered, Xue Miaoyun felt much more relaxed. She was finally able to relax and felt that the worst had passed.

Xue Miaoyun considered this a great occasion, so she planned to upgrade the scale of the dinner they had discussed before. Since she had enough meat, there was no need for fancy decorations. She preferred to focus on more food.

When she told Cang Ling about this, he didn’t object.

Xue Miaoyun immediately brought out a piece of pork, and Cang Ling didn’t say much, just telling her to leave everything to him.

Soon, a large amount of ingredients appeared at their home, all delivered by Cang Ling himself.

“I’ve already spoken to a few of the old soldiers in the kitchen unit. They’ll come to help. Your hands are for healing, not for cooking for so many people,” Cang Ling said with a smile. “I don’t want to get scolded by Director Zhou.”

Xue Miaoyun laughed. These days, she often went to the military hospital to perform acupuncture on patients, with great results. However, while cooking before, she had accidentally injured her hand. It was a small wound, but Director Zhou saw it and immediately went to Commander Qian to complain about it.

Everyone in the military district knew about it, and Xue Miaoyun’s reputation grew significantly.

Some admired her, while others were jealous. However, aside from Sister Qiu, Xue Miaoyun didn’t have much interaction with other military wives. Most of them only knew her by name, partly because Cang Ling had been injured shortly after she arrived.

The plan to host a dinner for some close comrades had to be postponed.

Now that Cang Ling was better, it was time to finally host the banquet.

With the help of the kitchen unit soldiers, Xue Miaoyun was relieved of much of the burden. She could cook, but her skills were average, and she wasn’t good at making meals for large numbers of people. Preparing such a large feast was beyond her capabilities.

Now it was perfect—she only needed to attend the event with Cang Ling and meet a few people.

The main guests would be comrades from other regimental units with whom Cang Ling had a good relationship, as well as a few from his subordinate battalions.

“Cang Ling, you kid, you’re amazing! Quietly, you found such a beautiful wife.”

“…You definitely have to drink this one…”

“Sister-in-law isn’t just pretty; her medical skills are excellent too…”

“…He’s really a lucky man…”

“…Some people really make others jealous…”

Zhao Meihua listened to the men’s envious compliments, and her expression twisted more and more with each passing moment.

Why? Why did Xue Miaoyun get to marry Cang Ling, who excelled in every way—family background, ability, appearance? Why was a rural village woman like her so highly regarded by the director of the military hospital? There had to be some hidden scheme behind all of this.

“This banquet feels more like a wedding banquet, doesn’t it?”

“Well, you could say that. Cang just got married not long ago.”

“But didn’t I hear that Cang Ling’s wife is from the countryside? She looks like a young lady from a wealthy family, though.”

On the women’s side, there was more curiosity about Xue Miaoyun.

“She looks just like a seductress. No wonder Commander Cang is so infatuated with her,” one woman with a bitter expression said, shoveling food into her mouth as she spoke, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

The young wife sitting next to her couldn’t help but move away, disgusted by the way the woman was speaking while spitting bits of food everywhere.

“Men like pretty women. If you don’t look good, you wouldn’t even dare stand next to Commander Cang,” An Xiaoxiao commented, watching the young couple greet the guests, thinking they made a perfect match.

“Someone who can’t lift a finger or carry a load—how is she supposed to do housework or have children?” Another woman, whose complexion was dark, looked at Xue Miaoyun’s fair and delicate skin, her eyes filled with jealousy.

An Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes. “She’s skilled in medicine. The director of the military hospital values her. Her hands are meant for saving lives, not for carrying burdens. And as for children, she’s a doctor; she knows her own body better than anyone else.”

“Well, you can’t say that. She doesn’t seem like someone fit to have a son. I heard Cang Ling is the only son in his family. If she can’t have a son, won’t that be the end of the family line?”

An Xiaoxiao was speechless now, but this time, it was directed at herself. Why was she even bothering to engage with these people? Silence was the right choice.

Her silence made the other women think they had won the argument. They exchanged smug looks before continuing to gossip about Xue Miaoyun.

With her keen senses, Xue Miaoyun glanced in their direction and memorized An Xiaoxiao’s appearance. She had heard enough jealousy and slander to not be bothered by it. But she was intrigued by someone whose values seemed to align with hers, and she wanted to get to know her better.

“What’s wrong?” Cang Ling, although joking and laughing with his comrades, kept most of his attention on his wife.

Seeing her look deep in thought, he asked with concern.

“It’s nothing. Do you know that woman over there?”

Cang Ling followed her gaze. “That’s the wife of my subordinate, Battalion Commander Luo Changzheng. I don’t know her name, but she must have joined the army recently. She should call you ‘sister-in-law.'”

“What’s going on with her?”

“I just want to get to know her. I feel like we might get along. You know, there aren’t many military wives I can really connect with here,” Xue Miaoyun explained. “It’s not that I’m being pretentious, but when the values don’t align, it’s hard to force it.”