Chapter 50

On the way back, Sister Yang said to Qiao Wei, “Thank goodness for you.”

“As soon as I see officials, my palms sweat, and I can’t speak,” she said. “Why aren’t you afraid?”

Qiao Wei said, “Sister-in-law, they are cadres, not officials. They all serve the people. Brother Zhao and Brother Yan are also cadres, serving the people just like us. We are the people, so there’s nothing to fear.”

Captain Zhao nudged Sister Yang with his elbow and said, “Don’t talk nonsense.”

Sister Yang hurriedly said, “Yes, serving the people.”

They first went to Captain Zhao’s house and brought back Yan Xiang.

Back at their own home, after Yan Xiang had washed up and been tucked into bed, he said, “Mom, I looked at Yingzi’s textbook.”

Qiao Wei asked, “Could you understand it?”

Yan Xiang nodded.

Qiao Wei asked, “Was it interesting?”

Yan Xiang shook his head.

Since Qiao Wei discovered Yan Xiang’s exceptional abilities, she had been eager to start his education.

According to her estimation, with the help of “The Adventures of Little Butou,” Yan Xiang should have already mastered the vocabulary of elementary school.

So, instead of reading to Yan Xiang, she had him read to her.

Yan Xiang was very happy; the change of roles made him feel grown-up.

Qiao Wei thought this method was great until today when she and Sister Yang went to stake out the public restroom at the compound, leaving Lin Xixi to look after Junzi, Wu Nier, and Yan Xiang in the compound.

When they finally identified Xia Hehua as the source of the rumor and returned to pick up the children, Lin Xixi was holding Wu Nier, playing on the slide, while Yan Xiang was sitting alone on a swivel chair, slowly turning and looking up at the blue sky.

Back home, Yan Xiang suddenly asked, “Mom, what’s outside the sky?”

He wasn’t an ordinary child, so even though he was only in the nursery class, Qiao Wei explained some basic astronomy to him.

The universe, planets, stars, and on Earth, rotation, revolution, the atmosphere, then extending to geography, the core, mantle, crust, and also physics, gravitational force.

Qiao Wei explained it all to Yan Xiang before Yan Lei came home from work.

Yan Xiang understood it all.

At that moment, Qiao Wei realized she was wrong again.

She had been treating Yan Xiang as a real genius child.

Real genius children had high IQs, attended junior high school, and went to university at thirteen or fourteen.

That was a real genius child.

But a genius baby wasn’t a real genius child.

A genius baby was a character in a novel, just like a domineering CEO, a delicate flower, a villainess, or a proud dragon.

Being admitted to university at a young age isn’t considered a genius baby; it’s just a real child prodigy.

A genius baby needs to become the world’s top hacker at seven, control global finance at eight, and handle nuclear bombs at nine.

The creator had casually given Yan Xiang this attribute, but didn’t provide an era where he could unleash this potential.

Nowadays, schools have abolished exams.

Qiao Wei had heard from Yingzi that to advance grades in primary school, students had to recite quotes from great figures.

For example, to advance from second to third grade, they had to memorize five quotes, and from third to fourth grade, ten quotes.

And Gangzi also said that the school had received news that further reforms might be implemented in the future, with classes only in the morning and agricultural and industrial studies in the afternoon.

They were in the town, without the conditions to study industry, so they would probably end up learning agriculture.

In this special era, even though Qiao Wei was a transmigrator, she had no way out.

All she could do was pat Yan Xiang’s head and kiss his smooth little face. “Go to sleep early. Tomorrow, we have to pick up more stones. Dad said we’ll be repairing the road together on Sunday.”

The unnaturally dark glint in Yan Xiang’s eyes disappeared, replaced by the joy and brightness unique to children. “Okay!”

After patting his head again, Qiao Wei left.

Back in the West Room, Yan Lei was still reading.

He would process one book after another, stacking them in the kitchen for firewood.

When Qiao Wei entered, he put a bookmark in the book and closed it. “Are you going to bed?”

Qiao Wei had just been lying diagonally on the kang, supporting herself, and her shoulder was sore. She rubbed it. “Not yet, I’ll sleep in a little while.”

Yan Lei stood up and gave her the chair at the desk, then sat on the desk himself and massaged her shoulders.

As they chatted, Qiao Wei said, “Captain Pan seems like a learned person.”

His demeanor and temperament were very refined.

Yan Lei said, “He used to be a scholar who turned to the military.”

Qiao Wei glanced at him.

Yan Lei asked, “What’s wrong?”

Qiao Wei turned her face away. “Nothing.”

Yan Lei gritted his teeth. “It’s just ‘turning from the pen to the sword.'”

Qiao Wei chuckled. “I didn’t expect you to know that term.”

Yan Lei clicked his tongue. “Every time Captain Pan is mentioned, this term is sure to come up. I’ve heard it countless times, so how could I not learn it?”

“But to be honest, using such four-character words when speaking does give a different feeling,” he admitted.

Even he himself felt that using such words made him seem more cultured.

“These are just superficial changes. Your true value lies within you, not in these,” she said, smiling at him.

Yan Lei exerted some force on her shoulders, causing Qiao Wei to cry out in pain. “You’re returning kindness with ingratitude. I was praising you.”

Yan Lei said, “Hmph.”

But he couldn’t help but smirk.

Of course, Qiao Wei knew that Yan Lei would only get better and better in the future.

He would continually improve himself and eventually become a great leader. With just a kind smile, he could make people feel oppressed, just like Captain Pan.

He would get better and better because he was the male lead.

Qiao Wei didn’t tell him that Yan Xiang was a genius baby.

One was the male lead, and the other was a genius baby. Both were attributes and definitions given to them by the creator. They were beyond their understanding.

But none of this mattered.

Since she had come to this world, everything, including the male lead and the genius baby, was irrelevant.

She was already in this world, and this world was real to her.

Now they were her husband and child.

Before going to bed, Qiao Wei went out to the toilet, and before entering the house, she casually adjusted the mat on the cool bed.

She lay down and continued chatting with Yan Lei, “I think the master’s house is quite simple. Look at our house, there’s nothing inappropriate, right?”

One benefit of going to the leader’s house was that it gave her an understanding of the living conditions and environment of people of a certain rank at this time.

She probably had a standard in her mind.

Yan Lei was puzzled, “What’s inappropriate in our house?”

“Just our cool bed, recliner, and some cushions,” Qiao Wei said.

Yan Lei was even more puzzled, “What’s wrong with them?”

Aren’t those common in rural areas? It’s only in the town; it’s considered rustic in the city.

“What about those cushions?” Qiao Wei asked again.

“What’s wrong with them?” Yan Lei said, “Today, Old Zhao even asked me if we were short on money.”

Qiao Wei: “?”

“He said if you’re making a backrest, you should match it with the same color fabric, and one was off in color. It looks untidy,” Yan Lei said. “Then what?” Qiao Wei chuckled.

“I said it’s just for decoration,” Yan Lei said, “He also asked why there’s a rice pounding rack in the yard, why not put a mortar under the pounding hammer?”

Qiao Wei couldn’t stop laughing, “What did you say?”

“I said that’s for you to wash clothes, saves effort. He said you’re quite resourceful. But he couldn’t hold it in and said after a while, this is a bit silly, and that pounding hammer doesn’t look light either. Using this to pound clothes won’t save much effort.”

Qiao Wei laughed and rolled into his arms, “You didn’t tell him it’s for spinning, not pounding?”

Yan Lei grabbed her, “He was nagging about how I finally stopped washing clothes and now I’m washing dishes again. I didn’t bother telling him.”

Qiao Wei kissed him on the cheek, “Don’t mind him, he doesn’t understand your good points, I do.”

She kissed him passionately.

But Yan Lei held her waist and suddenly said with some regret, “Was a pity today, wasn’t it?”

Qiao Wei: “Huh?”

“I should have dressed you more decently before taking you in front of Captain Pan,” Yan Lei lamented, “But Old Zhao and his wife were both there, and I didn’t have the heart to ask you to change clothes again. After all, it’s not our business.”

He returned home today and saw Qiao Wei wearing the new clothes he had just picked up from the tailor yesterday.

After cleaning up, the clothes felt comfortable and loose.

Qiao Wei liked them very much.

Qiao Wei chuckled, “Do you think my new clothes look bad?”

“At first glance, they seem like something worn by an old lady in the village, but upon closer inspection, they’re quite nice,” Yan Lei admitted. “It’s just that they’re too plain, I feel like it’s unfair to you. Plus, when you go before the leaders, I want you to look presentable.”

“Simplicity is good,” Qiao Wei’s eyes sparkled mischievously. “As proletarian communist fighters, why should we care about looking flashy? Your petty bourgeois vanity is showing.”

Yan Lei didn’t argue with her, just kissed her on the back of her head.

If you talk about petty bourgeois thoughts, she used to be the heaviest. Anything related to the countryside, she looked down upon and disdained.

She has really changed now.

The new addition of a bamboo bed, bamboo chair, and earthy fabric cushion in the house all exuded a rural charm, making him feel incredibly comfortable. Actually, when he came home today and saw her sitting on the bamboo bed wearing the new earthy fabric clothes, he felt very relaxed.

Compared to the trendy clothes that accentuated the waist and hips made of flashy fabric, he preferred her wearing this new outfit.

Because relaxation is the state one should have when returning home.

Zhao’s family, Captain Zhao and Sister Yang also lay down.

Captain Zhao said, “Why don’t you…”

Sister Yang: “Hmm?”

“Why don’t you give those skirts back to Xiao Qiao?”

“I was thinking the same thing. How did she end up wearing earthy fabric again? That’s not right. Yan isn’t short of money either.”

“Indeed. I’ll ask him tomorrow…”

That night in the military compound, someone saw Captain Fan following behind Captain Pan’s bodyguard towards the deeper part of the compound while taking a stroll.

That’s the area where senior cadres reside. Is he going to see Captain Pan?

When they finished their stroll and were preparing to return home, they saw Captain Fan hurrying back home, his expression could be described as extremely unpleasant.

When Captain Fan’s bodyguard found him, his wife had taken the child for a walk, and no one had told him what had happened or why he was going to see the battalion commander. He went there puzzled and returned angrily.

When it was time to sleep, neighbors heard noises of crying and quarreling coming from the Fan household.

Early the next morning, Qiao Wei’s Thursday morning run was interrupted again.

Fortunately, because she had mentioned about Xiang Xiang’s breakfast to Yan Lei, he made breakfast for Xiang Xiang before leaving in the morning.

Yawning, Qiao Wei walked out of the house and stretched lazily in the morning light. She twisted her body left and right a few times to loosen her muscles and bones, then turned her head: “…”

How many times has it been? Every morning, the three cushions on the bamboo bed would change positions.

She remembered clearly that last night before going to bed, she went to the bathroom and arranged them: natural color, natural color, blue.

Now, once again, it had become: natural color, blue, natural color.

For the past few days, every morning when she woke up, the blue cushion would be sandwiched between the two natural ones.

Neat and tidy, straight and proper.

She didn’t need to think to know who did it.

Qiao Wei could probably understand.

She vividly remembered her mother telling her about something, saying that when she was young and watched TV, the scene with the host sitting behind the desk, the logo on the front of the desk would be placed squarely in the center.

Emphasize on center, emphasize on proper.

However, by the time Qiao Wei started elementary school, the program’s name logo was even cut into two halves, with the front half in the upper right corner and the back half in the lower left corner, creating a kind of dislocated and casual aesthetic.

Of course, this was because with the development of the country’s economy, aesthetics had also been upgraded.

But unfortunately, Captain Yan Lei’s aesthetic sense still seemed to be stuck at the stage of “central, symmetrical.”

Qiao Wei sighed.

On that day, Captain Pan seriously criticized some cadres at the meeting for their lack of ideological consciousness, emphasizing that they couldn’t progress together with their families. He suggested launching a new campaign for spiritual civilization construction, urging cadres to set an example, actively restrain their family members, and lead them to progress together.

The specific measures included each cadre first engaging in criticism and self-criticism, then going home to educate their family members properly.

Furthermore, the propaganda department was tasked with printing a batch of posters, with illustrations and text, to be posted on the propaganda boards in the military dependents’ living areas, educating them on what constitutes civilized behavior and what does not.

The image of the army couldn’t be tarnished by a few family members with low quality.

Additionally, the results of the salary rating have also been released, with several senior cadres advancing one level, increasing their salary by a whopping 14 yuan. It equaled half a month’s salary for ordinary workers.

Captain Zhao was on the list, his salary increased.

Captain Fan was not selected.