Chapter 47 : The Leader’s Kindness

“I know everything about Sister Meijiao and the captain’s family. Come with me.”  

Sun Manling had been living in the family compound for several years and was familiar with everyone.  

“Sorry for the trouble, sister-in-law.”  

Lu Fangfang found an enamel basin, scooped up more of the food, and then left with Sun Manling.  

Sister-in-law Meijiao’s home was in the third row. Her husband was the battalion commander of the second regiment. Since Sister-in-law Meijiao wasn’t home, her husband accepted the soup on her behalf.  

Then, Lu Fangfang and Sun Manling headed to the team leader’s house.  

The regiment leader’s home was in the staff quarters on the west side. Lu Fangfang knocked on the door, and a woman in her thirties answered.  

She politely declined at first but eventually accepted the broth.  

On the way back, Lu Fangfang asked curiously, “Sister Manling, what does the captain’s wife do? She has such a good temperament.”  

“Sister Shuhua works in the art troupe, so of course, she has a good temperament.”  

“Art troupe?”  

Lu Fangfang was a little surprised and greatly admired her.  

The art troupe was a prestigious unit. Looking at the sisters-in-law in the family compound, some were salespeople, some were in the art troupe, and some were teachers. There were truly many talented people.  

Lu Fangfang thought about herself.  

She had neither a city hukou nor a diploma, so in this era, there really wasn’t much she could do.  

Forget it, there was no point in feeling envious. She should just focus on her side job.  

—

Family Compound – The Regiment Leader’s Home  

As soon as the team leader, Gao Dajiang, got up and walked into the outer room, he spotted a bowl of beef offal soup on the table.  

“Hmm? What smells so good?”  

Walking closer, he picked up a pair of chopsticks, grabbed a piece of tripe, and stuffed it into his mouth.  

“Ah, so hot, so hot…”  

“You haven’t even brushed your teeth yet! Put it down and don’t eat it.”  

But Gao Dajiang didn’t listen. He chewed with satisfaction, savoring the taste.  

Picking up another piece with his chopsticks, he blew on it before putting it in his mouth.  

While chewing, he curiously asked, “Shuhua, where did this beef offal soup come from?”  

“ComradeLu sent it.”  

Chen Shuhua snatched the chopsticks from his hand and pushed him toward the washstand.  

“ComradeLu? Which ComradeLu?”  

“Captain Zhuang’s wife.”  

“Oh, her.”  

Gao Dajiang immediately understood. Before Xiaozhuang had left, he had specifically asked him to look after her.  

While brushing his teeth, he frowned and asked, “Why would Xiaozhuang’s wife send beef offal soup to our family? Why did you accept it? This could cause a bad impression.”  

Chen Shuhua shot him a reproachful glance and said, “Don’t overthink it. Comrade Lu treated everyone in the family compound to soup this morning. It wasn’t just you, everyone got some.”  

“She treated the whole compound to soup?”  

Gao Dajiang was amused. “That girl is using my money to do favors.”  

After washing up, he sat down at the table and began eating heartily.  

To be honest, this beef offal soup was really good especially the broth, which was incredibly rich and flavorful.  

While eating, he asked his wife, “Shuhua, what do you think of Comrade Lu?”  

“She’s fine.”  

“Then let her work in your art troupe?”  

Chen Shuhua couldn’t help but laugh. “Old Gao, our art troupe only recruits girls with a strong foundation in dance. Xiao Lu doesn’t meet the requirements at all.”  

“What about singing?”  

“You need to have a solid foundation for singing. Do you know how many people want to join our military art troupe? How could it be that easy?”  

Gao Dajiang scratched his head, feeling a bit regretful.  

Looking at the bowl of beef offal soup in front of him, he said helplessly, “We can’t just drink and eat other people’s food for free, right?”  

Chen Shuhua rolled her eyes at her husband and said, “I heard from her sister-in-law that Comrade Lu is looking for quail eggs. If you don’t want to eat for free, go find some quail eggs for ComradeLu.”  

“Quail eggs?”  

Gao Dajiang was stunned for a moment, then laughed.  

He had just seen some quail eggs at the commander’s place a few days ago. He heard that someone had given them to the commander as a tonic. What a coincidence!  

He chuckled twice, lowered his head, and began eating happily. “By the way, Shuhua, if your art troupe is recruiting, you have to consider our family compound.”  

“I know, I know. Let’s eat.”  

Chen Shuhua responded helplessly.  

—

In the staff quarters, most families were having beef offal soup early in the morning.  

With the spices added by the sisters-in-law, the soup had an especially rich flavor, without any unpleasant odor.  

Moreover, the beef bones had been simmering in the soup for most of the day, making it rich and oily, leaving a sticky sensation in the mouth after drinking.  

Nowadays, people were lacking oil and fat in their diet. The greasier the food, the more addictive it became.  

The thrifty sisters-in-law fished out the beef liver and tripe to eat and planned to use the remaining soup to stew cabbage and radish in the evening.  

After this incident, Comrade Lu’s way of handling people and situations became well-known in the family compound. However, what became even more well-known was the fact that she had boiled a whole cow skeleton to extract a jar of butter.  

The latter rumor spread even more widely.  

—

After sending off the last of her sisters-in-law, Lu Fangfang finally had some free time.  

The large iron pot of soup was now nearly empty, with only a little left at the bottom.  

She took a bowl, scooped up some of the remaining beef liver and tripe, and then sat down among the children.  

Looking around, she smiled and asked, “Are you all full?”  

“I’m full! I’m full!”  

“I’m full too!”  

The little children patted their round bellies and nodded.  

“Aunt, when will you make it again? I want to eat more. It was so delicious!”  

“Again? If I make it again, you guys will bankrupt me! Let’s see if there’s a chance next time.”  

Lu Fangfang shook her head, unsure whether to laugh or cry.  

She picked up her chopsticks, lowered her head, and started eating.  

Today’s beef offal soup was truly delicious, and the beef liver and tripe had no unpleasant odor.  

Lu Fangfang added some cilantro and drank two full bowls before finally feeling satisfied.  

There was still a little left in the pot, so she scooped up a small bowl to save for the evening.  

“Hey, Fangfang, should we clean the iron pot?”  

Lu Fangfang glanced at Yang Yufen, then at the pot. “Then I’ll have to trouble you, sister-in-law.”  

At this point, only a little soup and some broken bones remained in the large iron pot. Since Yang Yufen wanted it, Lu Fangfang didn’t refuse.  

Yang Yufen was overjoyed. She scooped out the remaining bits from the bottom of the pot into her own small bowl.  

She had her son carry it home carefully, washed the big iron pot with clean water, and then left happily.  

After spending two days together, Yang Yufen had figured out Lu Fangfang’s personality.  

As long as you helped Lu Fangfang with some work, you could always get something in return.  

Touching her full belly, Yang Yufen felt a little smug. No one in the family compound had eaten more than she had this morning.  

And with her three children included, she had really made a fortune today.