Chapter 35.1

The peaceful family compound was disrupted by a piece of news.

The long-time bachelor, the fiercest officer in the entire military region, Xie Yanzhao, had gotten married!

And his wife looked like a fairy.

The man was tall and imposing, while the woman was petite and delicate, making them a striking pair.

Those who hadn’t seen Ruan Mingfu were skeptical.

It wasn’t that they hadn’t seen Xie Yanzhao.

He looked so fierce that even standing at the door could ward off evil. The children in the household would avoid him, so how could someone like that possibly have a wife?

The sister-in-laws didn’t believe it.

“What are you still doing here?” One of the sisters-in-law who was passing by saw the others gathered and talking about the new bride. She said, “Why not go and see for yourselves?”

Her own son, Huwa, had already gone and received two pieces of candy.

The sisters-in-law, hearing this, hurriedly asked.

“Does Commander Xie really have a wife?”

“My goodness, if Commander Xie can get married…”

“I heard the new wife looks like a fairy. Have you seen her?”

The sister-in-law was busy going to see the commotion and couldn’t be bothered to explain further.

“Believe it or not, I’m going.”

The sisters-in-law frowned and were about to speak when several children came running, shouting from afar.

“Mom, Mom! Look, they’re giving out candy over there.”

Their little hands were holding two pieces of candy each.

The sisters-in-law looked over.

One piece was milk candy, and the other was fruit candy.

Other children had them too.

Milk candy wasn’t cheap, so the person giving out candy was really generous.

“Take it,” the sister-in-law grabbed the child and, seeing his dirty clothes, scolded, “Where have you been rolling around? Look at how filthy you are. It’s painful to look at. Go wash up and get inside!”

Scolded, the child acted as if nothing happened.

Clearly, he was used to it.

“No, I want to go get more candy.”

Saying this, he wriggled away and ran off without looking back. The other children quickly followed.

Of course, the candy was at the new bride’s place now.

The sisters-in-law were itching to see and exchanged glances.

“…Shall we go and see too?”

….

Ruan Mingfu was currently in the new house.

The front and back yards were spacious, with a pebble path laid from the gate to the house. The weeds inside had been cleared and the old, broken fence had been replaced.

Ruan Mingfu liked the natural wood look, so she had only applied a coat of clear varnish.

It retained the original color of the wood.

Next to it, a small ditch had been dug. Ruan Mingfu planned to ask Xie Yanzhao to plant some rose seeds one day.

Once the roses grew, she would have a beautiful flower wall.

But for now, it was still bare, with nothing done yet.

Ruan Mingfu wasn’t in a hurry.

It was summer, and she couldn’t catch up with the season. The yard could wait. The most important thing was the house itself.

Xie Yanzhao had put a lot of effort into it.

He had become quite thin from working on it.

The house had been transformed inside and out.

Hu Wanning, leading a chubby child, entered and exclaimed, “Sister-in-law, why did you even put down flooring?”

She hesitated a bit, wearing shoes.

“It’s just some leftover pieces.” Ruan Mingfu was most satisfied with the floor, “Sister-in-law, come on in. It’ll need to be tidied up again anyway.”

She had already planned.

She would buy a rug and make some cushions. It would be very comfortable for afternoon naps.

Since they had even bought a refrigerator, they were destined not to keep a low profile. Ruan Mingfu wouldn’t shortchange herself and chose the most comfortable arrangements.

The floor was smooth and waxed, feeling even more polished underfoot.

Hu Wanning was impressed.

The walls had been repaired and repainted, and the door frames had been replaced with new ones.

The previous windows had looked cramped, so Ruan Mingfu had Xie Yanzhao enlarge them.

At least now, it didn’t look as cramped, and all the rooms were bright.

Hu Wanning’s eyes lit up. “It’s so beautiful, I don’t want to leave.”

Ruan Mingfu felt a sense of pride.

These were all her achievements.

“Then move in here.” Hu Wanning was nice to her, and Ruan Mingfu liked her, “If you ever have a fight with Xu Zhu, come here.”

“Okay, sister-in-law, you’re so unkind.”

Xu Zhu came in from outside, looking at Ruan Mingfu with a resentful expression.

He realized that this newlywed couple were quite the opportunists.

Hu Wanning didn’t mind.

Their relationship was good.

“Why are you here?”

“I’m here to help.” Ruan Mingfu and Xie Yanzhao were officially moving in today, so Xu Zhu took a day off to help, “Old Xie has already gone to the back. I came ahead to take a look.”

He glanced at the house and said, “Sister-in-law, you’ve done well.”

Ruan Mingfu was even prouder.

She was from fifty years in the future, standing on the shoulders of giants. If she messed it up, it would be a disgrace.

“Why don’t you move out, and we’ll move in?”

Xu Zhu looked at the layout of the house, growing increasingly envious.

If he had known, he would have done it like this back then.

“What are you saying?” Hu Wanning hit Xu Zhu lightly and then smiled, “Next time we need to move, we’ll consult with sister-in-law.”

Anyway, she wasn’t planning to move again anytime soon.

Ruan Mingfu also smiled. “Of course, it’s fine.”

After touring the house, they moved to the backyard.

Like the front yard, the backyard was also bare. They had only removed the weeds and hadn’t had time to do anything else.

The kitchen had been renovated as well.

Ruan Mingfu didn’t have any complaints this time.

She wasn’t familiar with kitchens.

Hu Wanning stood on the cobblestone path, feeling the pleasant sensation of the stones underfoot. They were not only beautiful but also practical, as they didn’t get dirty easily even in the rain.

“Old Xu, why don’t you bring back some stones like these one day?”

Such stones were plentiful by the river and cost very little.

While other aspects couldn’t be replicated, this cobblestone path was easy to achieve.

“Got it,” Xu Zhu promised, placing this task high on his priority list. “I’ll go this afternoon.”

Just then, a voice came from the front gate.

Ruan Mingfu turned to see Xie Yanzhao returning with the furniture they had ordered.

As she stepped out, she heard a lot of whispered conversations.

Looking over, she saw that their fence was surrounded by a crowd of onlookers, some of whom had even walked into the yard.

Seeing the crowd gathered both inside and outside the yard, Ruan Mingfu wondered if it was everyone from the compound.

When Ruan Mingfu appeared, the murmurs grew louder.

“So this is Commander Xie’s new wife. She’s really pretty.”

“Pretty? What’s the use of that? She looks too delicate to do any work.”

“Finding a wife isn’t like finding livestock. Why does she need to be good at work?”

“Such a flirtatious look. Clearly not someone who will settle down!”

…

Younger military wives were astonished when they saw Ruan Mingfu.

“Is this really Commander Xie’s wife?”

“Did Commander Xie use his authority to force her into marriage?”

“Marrying Commander Xie seems a bit pitiful for the new wife…”

Some young soldiers were almost stunned.

“This is the wife Commander Xie married from the countryside?”

“I’d be happy to marry a village girl like this.”

“Who’s to say otherwise…”

“I’m really interested now. Does the sister-in-law have any siblings?”

“Good kid, you’re quick to catch on…”

With so many people talking, Ruan Mingfu could only catch a few snippets. She didn’t take it to heart and asked Xie Yanzhao, “Are all the things here?”

Ruan Mingfu had ordered quite a few items.

There were seven or eight carts of goods, covered to protect them from bumps along the way.

“Everything’s here.”

Xie Yanzhao wiped the sweat from his forehead and then directed everyone to start unloading.

The crowd outside was momentarily stunned by the sight of so many items.

“How much did this cost?”

“Commander Xie’s wife must be quite extravagant…”

“Oh my, these pieces of furniture are so beautiful. They must have been expensive.”

“Wasteful woman…”

Some people seemed to feel as if they were spending their own money, experiencing pangs of discomfort and starting to curse.

On the other hand, younger military wives didn’t see it the same way.

“Though Commander Xie is a bit fierce, spending so much for his new wife shows he’s a good man.”

“Not to mention, has your husband ever spent this much for you?”

“Who says Commander Xie is fierce?”

He’s clearly a good man!

They felt envious, their hearts aching with jealousy. They wondered where the rumor of Commander Xie being fierce came from. Otherwise, if it were them…

He Cuixiang was also among the onlookers.

Seeing this, she pulled He Chunhua aside and said, “There’s nothing more to see. Let’s go home.”

He Chunhua seemed not to hear, standing still with her eyes fixed on the tall figure busy in the yard.

He Cuixiang frowned.

With so many people around, she didn’t want her younger sister to make a scene and embarrass them.

“Cuixiang, what’s wrong with Chunhua?”

Apart from He Cuixiang, Sister Wang and Sister Lin were also present.

They saw Ruan Mingfu working so hard and didn’t want to interrupt.

He Cuixiang’s eyes flashed with embarrassment. “Oh, it’s nothing. She broke a bowl while washing dishes yesterday, and I scolded her a bit. She’s just upset.”

Nowadays, even a single broken bowl was precious.

“Cuixiang, was it badly broken?” Sister Lin asked. “I know someone who can fix it. It will look as good as new.”

“Who cares about how it looks? As long as it doesn’t leak, that’s all that matters.”

“Aihua, please introduce me to that person later. I have a few bowls that need fixing.”

Seeing that they were discussing something else, He Cuixiang sighed in relief.