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Qin Yunfeng saw Bai Ruolin approaching with a furious expression and immediately sensed something was amiss.
Before she could explode, he quickly spoke up, “Su Yi asked me to come over.”
His statement left Bai Ruolin speechless for a moment. “Why did you tell her that we haven’t decided to get married yet?”
Qin Yunfeng sighed in exasperation. “Su Yi asked me herself. She’s our friend, after all.”
Bai Ruolin scoffed. “She’s our friend? How is she being our friend? She clearly wants us to not get married so she can go back and rekindle things with you during the Spring Festival!”
Qin Yunfeng’s heart sank. “Did she really say that?”
Bai Ruolin spat out a disgusted sound. “She wouldn’t dare! Qin Yunfeng, who do you love, her or me?”
Qin Yunfeng pursed his lips. “Didn’t you say we weren’t in a hurry to get married? We said we’d wait until after you met my family next year. Why are you blaming me now?”
Bai Ruolin was furious. “That was before! I’ve changed my mind. I’ll talk to my family. Just tell me, are you going to marry me or not?”
Qin Yunfeng hesitated for a moment before finally coming to his senses. “Marry! Of course I’ll marry you!”
Bai Ruolin finally felt relieved, “Okay, you said it, let’s go get the marriage application right now. Anyway, we still have to wait a month for it to come through.”
Qin Yunfeng, “Right now?”
Bai Ruolin widened her eyes and looked at him, feeling like he was reluctant.
He had been so eager to marry her when he was pursuing her.
Now that she had brought it up, why was he hesitant?
Just as the two were in a stalemate, Zhou Jinchuan, who happened to be passing by, suddenly walked over.
“What are you two doing, pulling and tugging at each other in broad daylight?”
Qin Yunfeng and Bai Ruolin were both startled and quickly took a few steps back.
“Commander Zhou Zhou, you’re mistaken. We were just talking after eating.”
“Yeah, Commander Zhou Zhou, we’re a couple.”
Zhou Jinchuan snorted, “Even if you’re a couple, you shouldn’t be pulling and tugging at each other in public.”
He then lectured them a few more times, “I see that your relationship is so good, why don’t you submit your marriage report sooner and get married. Otherwise, it’s not good to keep dragging it on like this.”
Qin Yunfeng and Bai Ruolin looked at each other in surprise and quickly agreed.
When Su Yi found out about this, it was Bai Ruolin who deliberately went to show off to her.
“Su Yi, you can give up. The marriage report of Brother Qin and me will be approved soon. Commander Zhou even helped to expedite the application.”
“We’re planning to have a wedding banquet in the army after the New Year. Then, during the Spring Festival, Brother Qin will take me back to his hometown to hold another one!”
“You wouldn’t be so upset that you wouldn’t even dare to go back to your hometown, would you?”
Su Yi was so happy that she couldn’t close her mouth. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely go back. I’ll even drink at both weddings!”
Bai Ruolin saw her smiling so radiantly, even more joyful than herself.
She thought to herself, “Could this person be going crazy?”
She gave her a puzzled look and then turned and walked away.
With the major issue settled, Su Yi felt a weight lifted off her shoulders.
In addition, her work in the cafeteria had become more and more proficient. Chef Wang, after failing to steal seasonings last time, dared not make any more reckless moves.
Taking advantage of her day off, Su Yi planned to prepare well for the winter ahead.
On her day off, Su Yi made an early appointment with Aunt Yao and Aunt Zheng. The three of them quietly left the house before dawn.
They headed straight to the black market on the outskirts of town, ready to make a big impact.
Although the economic prosperity has not reached this remote place, there are now significantly more goods in the black market.
It’s not as strict as before.
Upon entering, they saw many people already selecting goods.
The three of them headed straight to the stall selling cotton, buying the most essential items for the winter first.
Cotton was in high demand, priced at 1.8 yuan per catty.
Yao and Zheng found it expensive, each only buying a catty, saying they would have enough to make winter clothes for their children.
Su Yi had no choice, as she had no other clothes.
So she bought three and a half catties, planning to make two winter jackets for herself.
After buying the cotton, Yao and Zheng quickly took Su Yi to look at the yarn.
Even the cheapest yarn cost two yuan per catty, more expensive than the cotton.
Su Yi began to envy Aunt Yao and Aunt Zheng again.
However, she was most afraid of the cold, and she gritted her teeth to knit two sets of woolen sweaters and woolen pants to get through the winter.
Besides her own, Su Yi picked out a pound of pink and a pound of gray, intending to knit new sweaters for the two children.
She also bought a pound of red, planning to combine it with the remaining yarn to knit some scarves, hats, and gloves.
Because they bought so much, the three of them were each given a set of knitting needles by the yarn seller.
After buying cotton yarn for the winter, Su Yi set her sights on a coal stove.
There were no kang beds in the army, but the northwest winter was cold and windy.
Ordinary families relied on burning coal stoves to get through the winter.
Aunt Yao and Aunt Zheng helped Su Yi brainstorm, and after much haggling, they managed to get a brand-new coal stove for six yuan.
It was cheap.
The key was that it was just an empty shell, and they would have to use yellow earth to plaster the walls of the stove before they could use it.
“Don’t worry, Xiao Su, plastering the stove is easy. You buy it first, and I’ll have my husband plaster it for you when he’s free.”
Su Yi hurriedly thanked them and paid in full.
After buying these major items, the three of them bought some lining fabric, face fabric, pork, eggs, and other necessities before rushing back.
Fortunately, when they returned, everyone in the courtyard was busy with their own affairs.
Aunt Yao directly called the two of them to her yard.
“Since the weather is good today, let’s help Xiao Su make her cotton-padded jacket and pants in the yard.”
Su Yi happily agreed and moved the remaining things she had bought to the next yard.
This way, it would be convenient for her to come over to learn knitting from Aunt Yao when she was free, without having to carry things back and forth.
Since the last time she had a heart-to-heart talk with Zhou Jinchuan, the two of them no longer deliberately avoided each other.
Su Yi would often come over to see the children when she had time, and she would cook them a meal to improve their diet.
In the morning, Aunt Zheng skillfully cut out Su Yi’s cotton-padded jacket.
Seeing that she couldn’t help, Aunt Yao sat aside and taught Su Yi how to knit.
Although Su Yi had never knitted before, she could tell from the level of skill that the original owner knew how to.
After teaching her for a while, Aunt Yao confidently let her knit on her own.
The three of them basked in the sun lazily, chatting and knitting sweaters and sewing cotton-padded jackets, which was quite enjoyable.
It was only a little past eleven o’clock when Ye Xiaowu and Ye Nuannuan ran home quickly.
They knew that Su Yi was off today and would definitely cook something delicious for them.
As soon as they entered the yard, they smelled the meat simmering in the pot.
However, they searched everywhere but couldn’t find Su Yi. Instead, they saw a lot of things on the table in the yard.
Then they heard laughter coming from the next yard.
The two of them excitedly ran to the next yard, “Sister Su—”
Su Yi quickly stood up, “You’re back early today! I’ll finish this ball of yarn and then go back to cook for you.”
Ye Xiaowu quickly shook his head, “No hurry, I’ll go back and do some homework first. Sister Su, you can go back later.”
With that, he ran back home.
57: Preparing for Winter