Chapter 51.3

The flat-bottomed pan didn’t need washing. After all, it had only been used to fry dumplings, and it would be used again later in the evening. She simply covered it with the lid and put it away.

Once the pan was set aside, Qin Qingman washed her hands and went to the west room to retrieve some yarn.

The yarn she had purchased, of course, was meant to be knitted into sweaters.

She glanced at the different colors of yarn and picked out the black skein first. Wei Ling was a man and spent most of his time at the military camp, so darker-colored clothing would be more suitable. She had already planned this when she bought the yarn.

“Chuchu, Ah Ling has to train outdoors often. Should I knit him a sweater first?”

Qin Qingman was very democratic and asked for Chuchu’s opinion.

Although she and Chuchu both lacked sweaters, they rarely went out in the winter, so the sweaters could be knitted later. She noticed that Wei Ling’s sweater cuffs had worn out severely and guessed that it wouldn’t be long before they completely tore.

The priority now was to knit a sweater for Wei Ling.

“Big sister, knit for Brother-in-law first, Brother-in-law works hard.” Chuchu, who now lived a much more comfortable life, understood the sacrifices Wei Ling had made for the family. He didn’t even ask for a sweater to be made for himself.

“Mm, my Chuchu is really thoughtful.” Qin Qingman said, ruffling the boy’s head as she led him back to the warmth of the living room’s hearth.

The living room had a fire, and the temperature was higher than in the room. It was more convenient to knit sweaters here, and with the large windows, the lighting was excellent, making it ideal for such an eye-straining task.

Qin Qingman had shared a bed with Wei Ling several times and had already figured out his size. Without hesitation, she cast on the stitches.

The bamboo needles flew up and down, and the ball of yarn started to shrink.

Chuchu carried a small stool and sat next to Qin Qingman, watching her knit.

Seeing Chuchu sitting so close, Qin Qingman felt a bit helpless and reminded him, “Chuchu, move a little further away from me, or the needles might poke you.” The needles were very sharp. Although they wouldn’t break the skin, they could definitely poke out an eye.

“Okay.” Chuchu responded, moving his stool a little farther but not taking his eyes off Qin Qingman.

Seeing this, Qin Qingman decided to stop knitting for a moment and taught Chuchu a few new characters. The characters weren’t complicated and were suitable for a child of Chuchu’s age to learn.

With this new knowledge, Chuchu immediately focused on the new characters.

He grabbed a small stick and began writing beside the fire.

Seeing that Chuchu’s attention was fully absorbed in learning, Qin Qingman picked up her knitting again.

In her past life, she had been a country girl who had learned various skills, and knitting sweaters was very simple for her. As long as she had enough time, she could finish a simple sweater in just a few days.

Qin Qingman had previously visited the county Supply and Marketing Cooperative and knew what kinds of sweater styles were popular in this era. She didn’t use any complicated techniques but instead picked simple, timeless stitches.

As time passed, and as evening drew near, she had knitted about seven or eight centimeters of the sweater.

“Big sister, Brother-in-law should be back soon, right?” At this point, Chuchu also lifted his head from his learning.

“Probably soon. Let’s go light the ice lanterns under the eaves.” Qin Qingman remembered that she had bought some candles last time. Although the light from candles wasn’t as bright as electric lamps, having a light on in the house would be more meaningful to someone returning than the light’s ability to illuminate the surroundings.

“Let’s go, big sister, let’s prepare the lights.”

Chuchu dropped the stick and excitedly hugged Qin Qingman.

“Okay, let’s go find the candles.” Qin Qingman packed up the yarn and the half-finished sweater and placed them into the wicker basket before taking them to the west room.

Looking at the wardrobe in the west room, she found the candles and began tidying up Wei Ling’s clothes, putting them into the wardrobe.

The wardrobe was large, but Wei Ling didn’t have many clothes, so it wasn’t full.

Qin Qingman also put some of her and Chuchu’s clothes into it. With this added, the wardrobe immediately appeared fuller. The two large boxes on the kang were mostly just summer bedding, with little else taking up space.

Sighing, Qin Qingman knew that their family still didn’t have enough to spare.

She would save up little by little in the future.

“Big sister, let’s go, let’s light the lamps.”

Seeing that Qin Qingman had finished with the wardrobe, Chuchu quickly grabbed her hand and tried to pull her outside.

The eaves of the living room had two lanterns hanging, and there was also one in the snowman’s hands.

“Big sister, which one should we light?” Chuchu looked at the two lanterns above their heads and then at the little chubby snake lantern in the snowman’s hands, a bit unsure.

“Light them all.” Qin Qingman said, glancing at the sky. She guessed that Wei Ling would be back soon, and thought it might not be necessary to keep the lamps lit for long, so she decided to light them all.

The three ice lanterns represented the three people in the family. It seemed a bit wrong to light only one, so Qin Qingman decided to light all three. It was a rare indulgence, and if they were worried about wasting candles, they could always use oil lamps next time.

“Big sister, you’re so kind.” Chuchu said, hugging Qin Qingman’s legs and rubbing his little face against them.

This was his way of showing affection.

“Chuchu, take the candles, I’ll go get a stool.” Qin Qingman glanced at the height of the eaves, then turned and went inside to fetch a tall stool.

The stool was more than a meter high, and standing on it, she could just barely reach the ice lanterns to take them down.

After lighting two of the lanterns, Qin Qingman looked at the little chubby snake lantern in the snowman’s hands. Chuchu had taken that lantern out to show off earlier, and when they came back, he casually placed it in the snowman’s hands. Now, if they lit it while it was still in the snowman’s hands, it would seem a little too low.

“Big sister, what should we do?”

Chuchu noticed the issue too and blinked his large eyes, looking around the eaves for a better spot to hang the lantern.

Qin Qingman jumped down from the stool and patted Chuchu’s anxious little face.

Chuchu immediately furrowed his brows as the coldness of her hand made him shiver.

His sister was so naughty! If they weren’t still waiting to light the last lantern, he would definitely be chasing after her, playfully teasing her.

“Don’t worry, Ah Ling has already left a spot for you to hang the lantern.” Qin Qingman said, picking up the stool and heading toward the window in the west room. There, Wei Ling had already made space for the little chubby snake lantern.

Chuchu immediately smiled and grabbed the ice lantern from the snowman’s hands, following Qin Qingman.

Once Qin Qingman stood on the stool, she handed over both the ice lantern and the candle.

She lit the candles, placed them carefully, and then hung the ice lantern beneath the eaves.

All three lanterns were lit. Qin Qingman and Chuchu stood under the eaves for a while, admiring the light before heading back inside, knowing the ice lanterns would look even more beautiful in the evening.

While Qin Qingman and Chuchu were waiting for Wei Ling, Wei Ling was also on his way back with the pan-fried dumplings.

Wang Chengping had a meeting and couldn’t meet Wei Ling right away. After waiting in the office for a while, Wei Ling decided to take matters into his own hands. He found Wang Chengping’s lunchbox and filled it to the brim with pan-fried dumplings. He then closed the lid and thought for a moment. Leaving a note, he wrote that the dumplings were made by Qin Qingman, who had prepared them in advance for the old leader to celebrate the Winter Solstice.

After leaving the note, Wei Ling took the wicker basket and went to find Hong Wei.

His wife and brother-in-law were still waiting for him at home, so he couldn’t stay out too long.

Carrying the wicker basket, Wei Ling headed for the logistics department.

In the division’s meeting room, Wang Chengping had finished his stage work summary and dismissed the meeting. However, there were still some issues to consider, so he didn’t return to his office right away. Instead, he stayed in the meeting room to write up materials.

The participants of the meeting scattered to attend to their respective tasks.

Political Commissar Zhang returned to his office to handle some official business, but then remembered that he had forgotten to ask Wang Chengping for a document. He decided to go to the office next door.

One was a Colonel, the other a Political Commissar, and their offices were adjacent.

Political Commissar Zhang knocked on the door, but when he didn’t hear a response, he realized that Wang Chengping was probably still in the meeting room. After thinking for a moment, he decided to open the door himself.

The document had been seen by both of them, and since Wang Chengping wasn’t in, he figured he could just take it and mention it to him later.

The document was right on the desk, quite visible, but what caught his attention even more was the large lunchbox on the desk. It was custom-made to fit Wang Chengping’s appetite, much larger than a typical lunchbox. At the moment, the box was bulging, and the lid wasn’t quite sealed.

The office had a steel stove, so the temperature wasn’t too low.

The frozen dumplings, sitting in the warm environment, began to release their delicious aroma, and it only grew stronger.

As Political Commissar Zhang noticed the lunchbox, he also saw the note that Wei Ling had left behind.

It didn’t take long for him to realize that the dumplings had been sent by Wei Ling and his wife.

As the rich aroma of the pan-fried dumplings filled the air, Political Commissar Zhang felt as though his heart was being scratched by a cat, unbearably restless.

Eventually, he told himself that he would just take a quick look.

But after one glance, he lost all control.

Political Commissar Zhang picked up a dumpling with his fingers and popped it into his mouth, immediately conquered by its taste. He glanced at the steel stove beside him and, without hesitation, placed the lunchbox on the stove’s round plate. The temperature there wasn’t low—it was usually used for roasting sweet potatoes, potatoes, or peanuts.

He grabbed a pair of chopsticks and, in his mind, told himself that he would just have a few.

But a few turned into several.

Before he knew it, the large lunchbox was nearly empty, with only a few dumplings left.

Full and content, Political Commissar Zhang stared at the few remaining dumplings in the lunchbox, torn between two choices: should he destroy the evidence, or should he leave them for Wang Chengping?

If he decided to destroy the evidence, he would also have to get rid of the note that Wei Ling had left behind.

But these dumplings weren’t just Wei Ling’s gift—they were also his wife’s, and now Political Commissar Zhang was truly conflicted.

Just as he was wrestling with his dilemma, the door to the office was suddenly pushed open.

When he saw Wang Chengping, Political Commissar Zhang felt a wave of guilt wash over him, and the need to make a decision was gone.

Wang Chengping, smelling the strong aroma in the room, turned to look at the lunchbox on the stove. Though he wasn’t sure what had happened, he immediately recognized that the lunchbox was his and rushed over to grab it.

Wearing thick gloves, he wasn’t concerned about burning himself. He looked up at Political Commissar Zhang and asked, “Old Zhang, did you steal my food?”

Political Commissar Zhang: “…”

Old Wang was too sensitive, he had hit the mark perfectly.

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