Chapter 37

Jiang Che comforted her, “It’s okay, it was all over a decade ago. Grandma suffered too much when she was young. Lung cancer was just one of the causes of her death. Grandpa always blamed himself for this mistake. He not only quit smoking but also ordered my father, my uncles, and my cousins to quit smoking. Even our grandsons are not allowed to touch it.”

“Smoking is indeed harmful to health. It’s not just secondhand smoke, but also thirdhand smoke that sticks to clothes, furniture, and walls. It can also cause cancer in people around you. And it’s addictive. Anything that can make people addicted isn’t good.” Ji Wanqing sighed.

During the apocalypse, there were actually people who would trade a pack of instant noodles for a cigarette in her hand.

Their addiction was so bad that even when they hadn’t fully solved their food and clothing problems, they still had to have a puff.

It was simply incomprehensible.

After taking care of everything in the county and getting their photos taken, it was already past 2 pm.

Ji Wanqing hurried back to cook dinner. She wanted to bring it to Aunt Zhuge’s house at night.

Jiang Che was also busy inviting his comrades. He bought twenty pounds of pork and four chickens in the county and brought them to the regiment headquarters canteen for the wedding banquet tomorrow, and he also finalized the dishes.

The newlyweds were busy with their own things.

In just two and a half hours, Ji Wanqing had made Sichuan pepper fish slices, garlic-flavored pork, tomato and egg stir-fry, and stir-fried vegetables.

She left some in the pot for Jiang Che, and the rest she packed into four aluminum lunch boxes. She also took a small bag of luggage and asked Jiang Che to take her to Aunt Zhuge’s house.

Li Hongmei was delighted when she saw the four aluminum lunch boxes. “Oh, you’re so polite! I was going to show off my cooking skills today!”

Ji Wanqing politely said, “It’s already a lot of trouble to come here tonight. I’m only good at cooking, and luckily Aunt Zhuge likes to eat it.”

“You speak so beautifully and elegantly. Let’s just call you Xiao Ji from now on, and you can call me Sister Hongmei, just like Xiao Jiang. Let’s not be so formal.”

Ji Wanqing smiled softly. “Sister Hongmei.”

Aunt Zhuge smelled the aroma and came over, beaming with joy. She chided, “After eating your food, I didn’t even find the chef Zhang’s signature dish at the state-run restaurant tasty yesterday.”

She asked, “What was the signature dish? I’ll add it to the menu.”

“Braised pork! For all these years, except for that time I ate my fill at the state banquet, I haven’t had braised pork that delicious.”

Aunt Zhuge pulled Ji Wanqing into the house. When she turned around and saw Jiang Che still standing at the door, she raised an eyebrow. “Alright, go back and rest. Come to pick up the bride tomorrow. Remember to bring two more people, it’s not easy to get past my gate!”

Jiang Che was helpless and could only say to Ji Wanqing, “I’ll come to pick you up tomorrow.”

With a new love, Aunt Zhuge quickly abandoned her previous favorite and most admired junior. “Go, go, go, I’m not going to eat your wife.”

The dishes at the Fang family tonight were truly a rare sight, even on New Year’s Eve.

Besides the four dishes that Ji Wanqing brought, Sister Hongmei also sliced up some bacon and sausage and steamed them, made sauerkraut and vermicelli soup, and steamed a whole steamer of rice. The two children ran around the dining table like they were playing tag, chasing after the delicious aroma.

Aunt Zhuge poured herself a glass of ginseng wine.

Her family had brewed mulberry wine, ho shou wu wine, plum wine, wolfberry wine, and wine infused with tonifying herbs.

Whenever she took out her treasured ginseng wine, it meant that there were dishes worthy of good wine on the table.

Ji Wanqing listened as Aunt Zhuge introduced her collection one by one. “… My eldest son found someone to get these herbs for me. It’s really hard to drink. I usually only take a sip when I don’t have any other wine.”

Looking at the tall and short wine jars, Ji Wanqing worried, “You should drink less, it’s not good for your heart and blood vessels.”

Aunt Zhuge chuckled. “I have a good tolerance for alcohol, and I know my limits. I only have one glass every day, never more.”

That was true.

Although Aunt Zhuge loved alcohol, Ji Wanqing had never seen her drunk. She was always energetic and lively.

Soon, Commander Fang came back, and it was time to eat.

There were four adults and two children. Ji Wanqing had intentionally added extra portions when cooking, so the aluminum lunch boxes were full to the brim. Everyone ate happily.

After dinner, Sister Hongmei refused to let Ji Wanqing help in the kitchen. She pushed her to her mother’s room and closed the door.

Aunt Zhuge chatted about many old stories from their generation and also mentioned some things about Jiang Che’s family.

“When Xiao Qin was born, the War of Resistance Against Japan hadn’t ended yet, and living conditions weren’t that good. Compared to the younger ones, Jiang Che’s older brother suffered a lot when he was young. So, your mother-in-law favors your older brother the most among her children.”

Ji Wanqing didn’t think there was anything wrong with that. Even five fingers have different lengths.

Aunt Zhuge laughed. “But Jiang Che is the most handsome of the Jiang brothers. Especially those eyes, they’re exactly like his grandmother’s. He’s the only one in the younger generation who inherited them! Back then, his grandmother and I fought against the Japanese together. She taught me how to throw grenades. Who knew, alas, she didn’t enjoy much happiness before she passed away.”

The glorious years of the older generation were always filled with endless vicissitudes and regrets.

“Because of this, Teacher Jiang favored Jiang Che a lot. He arranged your marriage to him back then.”

Before the Cultural Revolution, the Ji family was also a scholarly family, with a long tradition of Confucianism and merchants. Her grandfather and mother had both studied abroad, which was considered a high status in those days. Jiang Che’s family was considered to be climbing up in society by marrying into the Ji family.

It was just that they later fell into decline and had to flee to a foreign land, hiding their overseas education experiences.

Ji Wanqing smiled. “Then I should thank Grandpa Jiang for choosing Jiang Che for me.”

They chatted and laughed, washed up, and went to bed.

Just before going to sleep, Aunt Zhuge suddenly remembered.

— Oh no.

Didn’t she tell the little girl about the wedding night yet?

Forget it, Jiang Che should understand, right?

That night, some people slept soundly, while others tossed and turned.

Ji Wanqing had long since gotten rid of her habit of being unable to sleep in a different bed after all these years in the apocalypse. She got out of bed with a spring in her step, rummaging through her clothes for today.

The top was a red shirt she had bought from Yu Jia.

She had originally found an excuse to buy more items from the trading system.

It turned out that she and Jiang Che had hit it off so quickly, and she was able to use it.

For the bottom, she wore a black knee-length skirt.

The skirt was from a supermarket, one of the few items with a simple pattern and style that could be worn in this era.

Then she put on a light makeup. She didn’t need foundation, she just drew her eyebrows and applied mascara, then finished with a bright red lipstick.

As for her hairstyle, Aunt Zhuge used a wooden hairpin to tie her hair into a bun at the back of her head. It made her look refreshing and tall, with a hint of gentleness and grace, which suited her temperament.

Ji Wanqing immediately wanted to try this hairstyle and learned it from Aunt Zhuge.

Of course, she learned it by watching once.

Aunt Zhuge gritted her teeth. “You’re already beautiful, and you’re also so smart! It’s a good thing that Jiang Che got you. Otherwise, I don’t know who could control you!”

Looking at her radiant face in the mirror, Ji Wanqing smiled and leaned closer. “I’m not a fairy, why do you have to control me?”

Aunt Zhuge snorted. “You’re almost as good as a fairy!”