Chapter 94.2

The next day, wrapped in a blanket, Wen Nuan felt a bit reluctant to move.

She lay in bed, feeling as if her limbs had fallen apart. Looking out the window at the delicate falling snow, she turned over and cuddled up next to Lele to catch some more sleep.

When she woke up again, it was already ten o’clock. Lele was still nestled beside her, so Wen Nuan quickly got up.

After washing up, Gu Qinghan returned with Lele from outside.

Wen Nuan ran her fingers through her slightly messy hair and huffed at Gu Qinghan, saying, “Why didn’t you wake me up earlier? We need to go to Comrade Li’s office to sign the agreement today!”

When Wen Nuan had first woken up at seven, she hadn’t realized she had slept for another three hours. Even Lele had gotten up without her knowing!

Lele rushed over to her side, smiling, and said, “Lazy little pig, Mom is awake!”

“Mom, hurry up and eat dumplings!”

Gu Qinghan took the steamed dumplings from beside the stove and placed them on the eight immortals table before saying, “Don’t worry, Comrade Li has a meeting early this morning. After you eat, you can go over; it should be just about right.”

He had kept track of this matter for her and had deliberately let her rest a bit longer.

In the previous period, Wen Nuan had been busy until last week when she delivered the materials to the research institute and finally had some time to relax.

Now, with the coldest days of winter settling in the North, there wasn’t much work at the Kitchen Unit or the factory. Quartermaster Luo had told her she didn’t need to go back every day.

The factory had switched to a shift system, allowing everyone to take their time.

Wen Nuan’s stomach grumbled, feeling as if she could eat a whole cow, and she quickly devoured six dumplings.

However, Lele was still eating beside her.

Gu Qinghan glanced at the plate, noticing that there were still a large number of dumplings left—at least sixteen or seventeen. He frowned and said, “Why are you eating so little? Just a few won’t fill you up!”

Even Lele was eating more than her. Gu Qinghan took the dumplings away, reminding Lele, “Don’t eat so much; you already had eight when you got up.”

Wen Nuan’s appetite was quite small. Generally, a man could easily eat around thirty dumplings, and many northern female comrades could manage twenty or thirty, but she usually could only eat about ten.

“That’s enough, that’s enough.” Wen Nuan wiped her mouth and started tidying up, saying, “Let’s go sign the agreement first.”

If Gu Qinghan hadn’t been watching, she would have gone with an empty stomach and signed the agreement without a second thought!

Seeing her anxious, Gu Qinghan didn’t say anything further. As soon as he saw Wen Nuan had put on her scarf and hat, he scooped up Lele, who was still trying to sneak a few dumplings, and headed out with her.

The process of signing the agreement went smoothly and was quite simple. There were three copies of the agreement, and Wen Nuan took one with her.

Looking at the red stamp on the document and her signature beside it, Wen Nuan smiled brighter than the summer sun.

“I’m so happy today,” she said, carefully tucking the agreement away. “Let’s invite Qinglan and Sister Ju over tonight for hotpot!”

In such cold weather, hotpot was the best option. Recently, the Kitchen Unit had butchered some sheep, and Wen Nuan had bought some lamb ribs, which she could finally use.

Gu Qinghan raised an eyebrow, sensing his wife’s excitement, and asked, “How about I go to the Kitchen Unit and buy a big fat chicken?”

Wen Nuan furrowed her brow and replied, “Why don’t we go buy one outside the village instead?”

Gu Qinghan smiled and said, “The ones raised outside the village aren’t as good as those from your Kitchen Unit. I’ll make a trip to the Kitchen Unit.”

Wen Nuan chuckled and replied, “Alright, then you go ahead. I’ll go find Qinglan at the hospital.”

—o—o—o—

Meanwhile, the workers in the factory had also learned about the profit-sharing arrangement.

After Quartermaster Luo received the agreement, he had everyone sign it and submitted it together.

Some of the workers were comrades from the Kitchen Unit, and after reading the agreement, they were a bit incredulous. They couldn’t believe that they could actually receive bonuses for their work.

This was something unheard of elsewhere. Surely, Quartermaster Luo must be joking with them!

Seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone’s faces, Quartermaster Luo gathered them together and said, “Comrades, the agreement you just signed was negotiated by Comrade Wen Nuan on your behalf. In the future, 10% of the factory’s profits will be allocated as bonuses for everyone.”

Quartermaster Luo initially wanted to mention that this bonus also came from Wen Nuan’s own share, but he realized he couldn’t say that casually.

Even if everyone was happy about the bonus, human nature couldn’t withstand scrutiny. If someone felt Wen Nuan was taking too much one day, it could lead to trouble for her.

As everyone whispered among themselves, Quartermaster Luo added, “But I must remind you that this is based on merit. That means the more work you do, the more you’ll earn. If you receive less than others, you should look for the reasons within yourselves, and don’t be envious of others!”

Laughter erupted from the crowd. Even if it was just a few extra yuan, they were delighted!

How could they possibly be envious of others?

Besides, this was all free money, like a pie falling from the sky!

Everyone clutched their little amounts of money, thinking it would be bad to quietly become rich without any acknowledgment.

However, someone asked, “What about Comrade Wen Nuan? Why haven’t we seen her come back?”

“Yeah, without her, how would we have any bonuses at all? I need to thank her properly.”

“Comrade Wen Nuan developed so many new products for the factory and fought for our benefits; we must be grateful to her!”

Quartermaster Luo thought to himself that Wen Nuan had already anticipated such a scene.

When he had delivered the agreement earlier, Wen Nuan had specifically mentioned that she wouldn’t return to the Kitchen Unit for a few days, clearly to avoid everyone’s enthusiastic gratitude.

But when Gu Qinghan appeared at the Kitchen Unit, everyone seized the opportunity and pooled their money to buy a chicken, duck, and goose for him.

Gu Qinghan originally planned to buy a chicken, but to his surprise, Old Zhong handed him three plump chickens, ducks, and geese instead.

No wonder Wen Nuan had suggested he go to the nearby village; it turned out she had anticipated everyone’s enthusiasm long ago.

That was likely why she didn’t want to return to the Kitchen Unit.

After some thought, Gu Qinghan decided to leave money for Old Zhong for the three poultry and quickly left.

The comrades from the Kitchen Unit were no match for the elite of the Flight Team. After running about a hundred meters, they gave up, wishing they could sprout wings and fly over to Wen Nuan’s house.

—o—o—o—

By the time they finished work, Old Zhong, Sister Juxiang, Quartermaster Luo, and Xiao Zhu brought several more poultry and some lamb offal and lamb chops to Wen Nuan on behalf of everyone. This was pre-slaughtered at the Kitchen Unit to avoid raising them in the yard, which might lead to gossip.

Sister Guihua had already finished her month of confinement. Hearing the lively atmosphere at Wen Nuan’s home, she walked over, only to find that everyone was from the Kitchen Unit.

When Sister Juxiang saw Sister Guihua approaching, she hurriedly invited her in to join the hot pot: “Guihua, you really did well during your confinement. Not only does your complexion look good, but it seems like you’ve also gained some weight.”

Sister Juxiang had been busy with the Kitchen Unit and helping out at the factory recently, so she had only come over three or four times.

Zhang Guihua replied, “Isn’t that so? Xiao Nuan often makes soup for me, and my parents cook for me every day. I’ve basically been staying at home all winter, eating so much. I really have gained a little weight.”

“Being able to eat is a blessing. Anyway, it’s cold outside, and there’s nowhere to go, so it’s best to just stay home and relax,” Deng Juxiang said as she looked at Zhang Guihua, then asked, “How’s the baby? Is he asleep?”

Zhang Guihua replied, “He’s at home. My mother is worried about him catching a cold, so she hasn’t let me bring him over.”

“By the way, Juxiang, what’s going on with you all?”

Sister Juxiang, who could never hide anything and had a good relationship with Sister Guihua, lowered her voice and said, “Xiao Nuan managed to secure a bonus for our comrades at the factory. Everyone has been excited all day, so we pooled together some money to buy her a few poultry and some lamb.”

Then Sister Juxiang explained the bonus situation to Zhang Guihua. After hearing it, Zhang Guihua understood why everyone was so enthusiastic; anyone would be thrilled about it.

However, knowing Wen Nuan for a while, she also recognized that she was genuinely kind-hearted, not the type to just talk the talk, but someone who truly did good deeds.

Having a neighbor like her made Zhang Guihua feel like she had struck gold.

Soon, Wen Nuan saw the two sisters chatting and walked over. “Sister Guihua, we plan to have hot pot later. You should come join us.”

Sister Guihua loved lively gatherings and had been cooped up during her month of confinement, so she had long been bored.

Since it was rare to have a get-together, she immediately agreed, “Sure! I’ll come over for dinner!”

Wen Nuan smiled and said, “You’re welcome! I’ll also make you some chicken soup later. Don’t eat too much greasy food.”

Lele ran over with Wen Nuan, tugging at Sister Guihua’s hand, and added, “Auntie, let the baby come eat with us!”

Zhang Guihua picked Lele up, laughing, “The baby can’t eat solid food yet. How about you go with Auntie to see your little brother?”

Zhang Guihua genuinely liked Lele; she had even taken care of her for a while before and adored her immensely.

Lele grinned and nodded, “Okay! I want to see the baby!”

Then Lele turned to Wen Nuan and Sister Juxiang, saying, “Bye, Mom.”

“Bye, Auntie.”

Sister Juxiang watched as Zhang Guihua carried Lele away and couldn’t help but chuckle, “Lele really likes the baby! You and Captain Gu might as well have another one.”

Wen Nuan smiled but felt a bit embarrassed to admit that they were indeed trying for another.

Hearing the two sisters’ conversation, Gu Qinglan leaned in and asked, “Sister, are you and Eldest Brother planning for a second child?”

Wen Nuan shot him a glare. “What have you heard now?”

Gu Qinglan popped a peanut into his mouth and grinned, “Lele said so. She said you two are getting ready for a baby.”

Wen Nuan casually replied, “There’s not even a hint of that yet.”

After saying that, she returned to help in the kitchen.

However, today her kitchen was taken over by Old Zhong, Quartermaster Luo, and a few other men, which spared Wen Nuan from doing much work.

Wen Nuan grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and went with Gu Qinglan and Sister Juxiang to Sister Guihua’s house to gossip with them.

This year, the Spring Festival came early, falling in mid-January.

General Lu was busy this year and called her to say he would come to the North after the Spring Festival.

—o—o—o—

On the twenty-eighth day of the lunar month, Wen Nuan received the factory’s first year-end bonus, which surprisingly amounted to over three hundred yuan!

If the factory really developed in the future, there were promising prospects ahead.

Wen Nuan happily put away her bankbook, planning to use this money to buy a gift for Sister Guihua’s child for the hundred-day celebration. She also wanted to send a New Year’s gift to her grandfather and buy some things for her husband and Lele as well.

After making her plans, Wen Nuan set off with Lele and Gu Qinglan to the town.

Gu Qinghan had to go hunting in the mountains this year, so he couldn’t accompany them.

However, just before they left, Gu Qinghan couldn’t help but pull his wife into the room, reaching out to touch her belly, and asked, “Has your period come this month?”

Wen Nuan thought for a moment and replied irritably, “It’s not time yet this month!”

Since they stopped using contraceptive methods, Gu Qinghan had gone from needing to do it twice a day to now doing it two or three times a day over the last two months—almost every time finishing “inside.”

Such a diligent husband must have felt confident that he could make her pregnant.

But Wen Nuan’s period had arrived as usual last month; it just hadn’t come yet this month.

She felt well, eating and drinking fine, without experiencing any symptoms of nausea or excessive sleepiness—well, she had always been prone to sleepiness, especially in winter, so that wasn’t anything unusual.

“Is it still not here? When did it come last month?” Gu Qinghan was quite worried about letting his wife go out, especially since they were trying to conceive now.

Wen Nuan thought for a moment and said, “It seems to have been… the 19^th ?”

Gu Qinghan recalled and said, “Could it be that you remembered it wrong? I clearly remember it being the day I flew night patrol, which was around the 13^th .”

Wen Nuan hadn’t really kept track; she figured that if she were pregnant, there would definitely be symptoms. She replied, “It was just a few days; it shouldn’t be that easy to get pregnant. I had my period last month too. Let’s wait until the nineteenth to see.”

Even if she were pregnant now, she guessed they probably wouldn’t be able to find out just yet.

Wen Nuan wasn’t very sure, but right now, she truly had no symptoms at all. Plus, she had been busy with factory work and had pulled a few all-nighters, so her cycle was a bit irregular. It was better to wait and see.

Gu Qinghan instinctively glanced at Wen Nuan’s belly and gently placed his hand on it, softly saying, “It’s slippery out with the snow; just be careful.”

He didn’t have time to go with her; otherwise, he would have accompanied Wen Nuan.

Wen Nuan smiled, stood on her tiptoes, and gave him a kiss. “I know, I’ll be careful.”

Just then, Lele ran in, curious to see her dad with his hand on Wen Nuan’s belly. She leaned in slowly, pressing her ear against Wen Nuan’s stomach, and seriously said, “Mom, you mustn’t move.”

Wen Nuan was momentarily taken aback, thinking the child might be feeling unwell. She gently stroked Lele’s head and asked, “What’s wrong with our Lele?”

Lele grinned and hushed her, saying, “Mom, don’t talk.”

“Let me listen to your belly and see if there’s a little baby inside.”

Wen Nuan couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time. “……Look at you.”

Gu Qinghan was amused by Lele’s quirky behavior and felt comforted by her adorable antics. He asked her, “So, Lele, did you hear anything? Is there a little baby in Mom’s belly?” Lele, with her sparkling big eyes, looked over at her dad and smiled so widely that her chubby face resembled a round apple. She chimed in sweetly, “Yes! The little baby is already moving in Mom’s belly!”