Chapter 47

This time, it’s actually before the start of the main text. Theoretically, Qiao Wei wouldn’t know what happened at this time.

But this era wasn’t like future times where love and divorce were casually discussed; this was an era where even sleeping with a few people could get you shot for “hooliganism.”

The lifestyle issues of ordinary cadres were very serious, let alone Captain Zhao, who was a military man.

If he had dared to make such a mistake, he would have been taken down long ago. He might have been directly discharged.

But Captain Zhao, as Lin Xixi’s uncle and an important supporting character, had been present throughout the entire text.

His work was stable, showing no signs of being affected.

It could be seen that what Sister Yang said was impossible.

Qiao Wei’s attitude calmed Sister Yang down, and her emotions stabilized: “Right, right, our Old Zhao isn’t that kind of person! No, he isn’t.”

She was momentarily panicked, her steps faltering as she walked home. Inside, there was only her husband’s niece with two children.

She couldn’t face these children with this kind of mood. Anxious, she remembered Qiao Wei and fled to her place in desperation.

She came to the right person.

“It must be nonsense,” Qiao Wei said. “Who said it?”

“I, I…” Sister Yang said, “I had my back to them. I heard them mention Old Zhao’s name, and I panicked. I was afraid they would see me, so I, I ran away…”

“The more it’s blindly spread behind someone’s back, the more it’s false,” Qiao Wei patted her back gently. “Don’t panic. Since you trust Big Brother Zhao, why not wait until tonight to talk to him.”

“Sister-in-law, this is a matter of work style, not just a private matter between you two. It concerns Big Brother Zhao’s future.”

“You must tell him about this.”

Sister Yang, who had a slight hesitation at first, was awakened by her words.

Their whole family relied on Captain Zhao alone. His future was more important than anything else.

“I understand! When he comes back, I’ll talk to him.”

Sister Yang was usually a very stable person.

But she was a typical wife who had endured hardships. Now that her husband was in power, deep down, she was actually worried about being replaced.

This incident just hit her sore spot, causing her to panic momentarily.

Now that she had calmed down, she noticed the woven basket at Qiao Wei’s feet, still empty.

“Oh dear, are you going grocery shopping?” She felt embarrassed.

Because Qiao Wei was already going out late, and now that she had been delayed by Sister Yang, there might only be rotten vegetable leaves left if she went now. The meat would definitely be gone.

Sister Yang directly took out some vegetables and meat from her own basket: “Here, take these, take these!”

Qiao Wei hurriedly stopped her, “I don’t need so much. There are only a few people in my family. We still have some meat at home.”

Leaving only a few vegetables, enough for a meal at night, and not bothering to cook lunch, Qiao Wei decided to go eat at the canteen in the main courtyard.

She sent Sister Yang out the door.

Switching the woven basket for a bucket, she took Yan Xiang to pick up half a bucket of pebbles.

She wouldn’t tire herself out, anyway. As long as there was time, she made a trip in the morning and another in the afternoon.

Easy and leisurely, neither hurried nor slow.

At noon, mother and son went to the main courtyard canteen for lunch.

After waking up from a nap, Qiao Wei went to the tailor shop in the skill alley. The clothes and pants were ready and could be picked up.

There was a small compartment in the tailor shop where clothes could be tried on. Qiao Wei went in to try on the outfit.

The upper part was indigo, and the lower part was in its original color. Both pieces were loose and draped comfortably and naturally.

The top was cut flat, and the hanging pleats on the sleeves gave a relaxed feeling.

The pants were extremely comfortable, perfect for walking.

The coarse cloth wasn’t very smooth, and upon close inspection, there were some tiny lint particles floating on the surface. When the fabric touched the skin, there was a slight, rough friction sensation.

Qiao Wei liked this friction sensation.

Moreover, it was absorbent and breathable, much more comfortable than dobby fabric.

“Tsk.” The old tailor remained the same, lifting his chin and rolling his eyes upward as he looked at people, “They would say: the clothes of an old lady from the countryside.”

Qiao Wei, looking in the mirror, turned around at his words and asked, “What about in your eyes?”

The old tailor was very disdainful, “I’ve seen it all.”

In the past, there was a wide variety of styles, unlike now where there were only shirts, Lenin suits, and breeches.

Heroes have no place to use their skills.

“You have seen the world.” Qiao Wei smiled.

The old tailor shook his head with a sigh.

Qiao Wei twirled her hair and asked, “Let me ask you something, can I not perm my hair?”

The old tailor raised an eyebrow and asked, “Do you have a letter of introduction?”

Qiao Wei: “…”

Although she knew that before the appearance of the first-generation ID card, a letter of introduction was equivalent to an identity certificate, she needed it for everything when going out. But she couldn’t have imagined that even perming her hair would require it.

The old tailor sneered at her, “No letter of introduction, what are you perming your hair for?”

“Only comrades from the literary and art troupe, or comrades from the unit’s union who need to participate in cultural performances due to work, have special needs. The unit will give you a letter of introduction to let you perm your hair for work reasons.”

“How can you perm your hair just because you want to?”

Alright.

Qiao Wei changed her clothes and asked, “Do you make shoes here?”

“Crossing boundaries,” the old tailor said. “You have to find a shoemaker.”

“It’s not leather shoes, it’s hand-stitched thousand-layer soles. I just need to make the uppers.”

“Even so, it’s not my job. You might as well find an old lady on the street, give her a few food stamps or a couple of eggs, she’ll be happy to help you.”

“Hey, why didn’t I think of that?”

As she was leaving, the old tailor kindly reminded her, “Don’t let people catch you doing speculation.”

“Understood!” Qiao Wei left with a smile.

In the evening, as soon as Yan Lei came back, he noticed that Qiao Wei was giving him the cold shoulder.

Taking a quick glance at their child who was still playing with the sandbox, he followed her into the kitchen, pinching Qiao Wei’s waist. “What’s wrong? What did I do to make you angry?”

Qiao Wei huffed, banging the pot brush on the stove as she said, “I told you yesterday to hurry up, and yet you took so long. I didn’t even have time to get up today.”

“I didn’t go for a morning run, and I didn’t manage to buy groceries.”

“It’s all your fault!”

Yan Lei laughed. It was such a trivial matter.

He whispered in her ear, “Didn’t I leave you a note? If we couldn’t buy groceries in time, we could go to the canteen. If you don’t like the canteen, we can go to a restaurant.”

There were restaurants in town.

Although the service attitude at state-owned restaurants was terrible, the chefs were skilled.

It was worth a try.

Speaking of “try,” Yan Lei caught a whiff of Qiao Wei’s scent.

She now used soapnuts to wash her hair and body, and the scent was very fresh. Last night, she had made him unable to resist.

The feeling of being sweaty was still vivid in his mind.

Just as he was about to strategize on how to continue the battle today and wage a protracted war, Qiao Wei turned around and pointed at him with the pot brush, “Let me tell you, not today.”

“Today, we rest.”

Yan Lei: “…”

Ah.

After Zhao, the company commander, returned home, Sister Yang secretly observed and increasingly believed Qiao Wei’s judgment.

With such a simple-minded man in her family, he wouldn’t have such conniving thoughts. Those gossipers were just talking nonsense.

That night at home, Sister Yang calmly told Zhao about the matter.

Zhao was even angrier than she was!

Of course Zhao was angry. If such accusations were made, it would affect his future. Who wouldn’t be angry?

He immediately exploded. After cursing, he asked Sister Yang who was spreading rumors.

Sister Yang, who had been flustered in the morning and hadn’t seen clearly, now said sheepishly, “I, I didn’t see clearly.”

Zhao: “…”

Zhao was so angry he rolled his eyes.

“We must find these two people,” he said, “Who the hell spread these rumors about me? This could affect my work.”

Sister Yang nodded quickly, “Yes, Qiao Wei also said the same.”

“…” Zhao, “Qiao Wei? How did she know?”

Sister Yang: “…I told her.”

Zhao rolled his eyes.

Sister Yang, feeling ashamed and angry, said, “I was flustered at the time, and there were only children at home. I had to find someone to talk to.”

“Alright, alright, stop talking,” Zhao said helplessly. “Let’s go find Yan.”

Originally, the fewer people who knew about this, the better. But now, she was yelling that even Yan Lei’s wife knew about it.

Ah.

The couple knocked on Yan’s door, and Qiao Wei opened it. “You’re all here.”

She hurriedly invited the two inside. “Yan Lei, Brother Zhao and Sister-in-law are here.”

Inside, Yan Lei responded with a simple “yeah.”

Captain Zhao was about to speak when he glanced up and saw Yan Lei washing dishes.

Zhao: “…”

Just let him wash dishes, why was he so happy doing it? Zhao’s expression turned strange.

Fortunately, Yan Lei finished washing the dishes and dried his hands before coming over. “What’s with all the fuss? What’s going on?”

Putting aside the trivial matter of washing dishes, Zhao got straight to the point: “About the matter your sister-in-law told Qiao Wei today?”

To their surprise, Qiao Wei smiled and said, “I didn’t tell him.”

“I thought it wasn’t a good thing. If it’s false, spreading rumors is even worse. Spreading rumors may be fun for a moment, but dispelling them can be a pain.”

Over the years, Zhao hasn’t been particularly fond of Qiao Wei. Seeing his childhood comrade-in-arms marry such a pretty but not very considerate wife didn’t sit well with him. As an old comrade, he naturally had a protective mindset and inevitably found Qiao Wei displeasing.

But today, he discovered that Qiao Wei indeed had her merits.

He glanced at his own wife and said, Look at how strict she is.

Since they were all present, he explained the situation to Yan Lei.

Yan Lei’s expression immediately turned serious. “This matter, it’s not insignificant. Since you’re being assessed for promotion, it’s definitely not a minor issue.”

He asked Sister Yang, “What were their exact words?”

Sister Yang recalled, “…They said that Captain Zhao was smiling at a newly arrived female soldier, being overly familiar.”

“A newly arrived female soldier?”

Yan Lei and Zhao exchanged a look.

“It couldn’t be…” they both said at the same time, “The division commander’s daughter?”

“Damn it!” Zhao cursed again. “If I don’t smile nicely, can I still frown at the division commander’s daughter?”