Chapter 29

After finishing breakfast and washing the dishes, Lu Yunsheng left. Jiang Yan slowly washed up and waited for He Hongxiu to come find her.

Half past seven.

He Hongxiu appeared at the door on time, and Jiang Yan had already carried the small bamboo basket and was ready to leave.

After a simple greeting, Jiang Yan locked the gate and followed He Hongxiu out of the family quarters.

According to He Hongxiu, it takes more than half an hour to walk to the town, but last year the city opened a bus to serve the military area and the people along the way.

The bus leaves at 7:30 every morning and arrives at the family compound at around 7:40. The bus’s destination is Zhanchuan City, but it will pass through Baiguo Town, which is their destination today.

The two arrived at the station, where three military wives were already waiting.

Seeing that He Hongxiu was accompanied by a young and beautiful unfamiliar military wife, several people couldn’t help but take a few more glances at her.

“Sister-in-law Hongxiu, this is Captain Lu’s wife, right?”

“He’s really handsome.”

“Oh, you are from the city, no wonder. Look at your skin, it is so tender, just like a peeled egg.”

“Hello, sisters-in-law. My name is Jiang Yan, and I’m Lu Yunsheng’s wife. I’m new to our family compound and I don’t understand a lot. Please forgive me if I don’t do well.”

Jiang Yan greeted everyone with a smile, and He Hongxiu introduced everyone to her.

The military wife who spoke first was called Yuan Sufeng. She had short hair and looked very energetic. The man was the battalion commander of the second battalion, Wu Jinchao.

The second military wife who spoke was relatively tall and strong, with a slightly square but not ugly face, and also had short hair. She was Feng Yingchun, the wife of Xu Lei, the deputy commander of the third battalion.

The other good-looking woman with two pigtails was Zhuang Cuizhu, the wife of the regiment’s chief of staff Gao Shulin.

Although he is not from the city, he also graduated from high school.

Yuan Sufeng was a very outgoing person. She looked at Jiang Yan and asked, “Old Wu said you guys are treating us tonight. Are you planning to go to town to buy something?”

Jiang Yan smiled and nodded, “Yes, but I have never been to the town and don’t know what it is like there, so I asked Sister Hongxiu to show me the way.”

“Oh, sorry, sorry, I’m late.”

Just as Jiang Yan finished speaking, a voice came from a distance.

A woman carrying a bamboo basket came over. She was not tall, but her figure was unexpectedly plump. It was the first time that Jiang Yan saw a fat person in this era.

He Hongxiu whispered beside Jiang Yan, “This is Ye Fengjiao, the wife of Ge Qianjin, the deputy battalion commander of the second battalion.”

After running closer, Ye Fengjiao propped herself up on her thighs and took a few breaths. Zhuang Cuizhu looked at her with disdain and said, “Sister Fengjiao, why are you so late again? If you’re any later, you won’t be able to catch the bus.”

Looking at Ye Fengjiao’s body shape, Yuan Sufeng kindly gave her a few reminders.

“Sister Fengjiao, I noticed that you have gained weight again this month. Although you and Deputy Battalion Commander Ge don’t have children yet, it is a matter of time. You still have to save more money. Raising a child is expensive.”

Feng Yingchun beside him nodded vigorously, “Raising a child is really expensive. Everything from food to clothes costs money, and they are prone to getting sick when they are young. Last time my child had a fever, I spent two dollars to go to the hospital.”

Ye Fengjiao didn’t care. “I eat more to keep healthy. Old Ge is already 33 years old. If he doesn’t want a child, he might not be able to have one.”

Speaking of having children, Zhuang Cuizhu looked at Jiang Yan and asked, “Sister Jiang, your Captain Lu is not young anymore. When are you going to have a child?”

Hearing this, He Hongxiu couldn’t help but frown. Zhuang Cuizhu was really talking about things that were irrelevant. Did she really not know or was she deliberately provoking Jiang Yan? I have to talk to Lao Sheng about this when I get back.

Jiang Yan also heard something and smiled faintly, “Just let it be. It will come naturally when it’s time.”

Beep beep beep!

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of a car horn in the distance, and everyone hurriedly got in the car and found a seat.

Yuan Sufeng and Feng Yingchun sat together, Jiang Yan and He Hongxiu sat behind them, Zhuang Cuizhu sat alone in the last row, and Ye Fengjiao was slow to get on the bus last.

Seeing that there were no empty seats on the bus, Ye Fengjiao came over and said, “Sister Cuizhu, let’s sit down.”

Zhuang Cuizhu felt a little disgusted with Ye Fengjiao and didn’t want to sit with her.

But there was no room left in the car, and she couldn’t drive Ye Fengjiao away, so she had to endure her unhappiness.

The conductor came over.

He Hongxiu reminded Jiang Yan that the bus ticket was 10 cents per person, while the ticket to the city was 30 cents per person.

Just after paying the money, He Fengjiao’s voice came from behind, “Comrade conductor, your ticket is too expensive. It costs ten cents for such a short distance.”

The ticket seller rolled his eyes and rudely retorted, “If you think it’s expensive, you can walk to town. No one is forcing you to sit. Hurry up and pay for your ticket.”

Ye Fengjiao was dissatisfied, “What’s your attitude? I’m a military wife, how can you talk to me like that?”

The conductor was not afraid either, and said contemptuously: “What’s wrong with being a military wife? Can a military wife ride the bus without paying? What? Do you still want to take advantage of the public?”

Taking advantage of the public these days would lead to criticism. Ye Fengjiao immediately became discouraged and said reluctantly, “It’s not that I don’t want to pay. I’m saying that you charge too much.”

The ticket seller was not ambiguous at all and continued, “If you think it’s expensive, ask your officers to report it to the city government. Why are you showing off to me here?”

After collecting the money, the ticket seller turned around and left arrogantly.

Seeing this, Jiang Yan and He Hongxiu whispered, “Sister Feng Jiao looks about the same age as me, why would she marry Deputy Battalion Commander Ge?”

She and Lu Yunsheng are seven years apart in age. Such a marriage is rare in this era, but not uncommon either.

It is rare to find couples like Ye Fengjiao and Ge Qianjin who have an age difference of more than ten years.

He Hongxiu explained in a low voice: “Deputy Battalion Commander Ge is married for the second time. His first wife died of illness in his early years, and he has never remarried in all these years. Fengjiao is the same age as you. Last year, there was a famine in her family, and she couldn’t survive, so she begged to marry Deputy Battalion Commander Ge and came to join the army.”

In other words, Ge Qianjin is 15 years older than Ye Fengjiao.

Those who got married early can be father and daughter at this age.

Hearing the two talking about Ye Fengjiao, Yuan Sufeng interrupted and said, “Although Deputy Battalion Commander Ge is older, he is really good to Fengjiao, otherwise she wouldn’t be so fat.”

Feng Yingchun smiled and continued, “Sister Jiang Yan, your Captain Lu is the strongest in our regiment. Is he also very kind to you? I noticed that your house rarely opens in the morning.”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Sufeng also became interested and asked curiously, “Sister, is your Captain Lu particularly powerful at night?”

It is said that country ladies love to tell dirty jokes. Jiang Yan blinked in confusion. Lu Yunsheng is strong, but she can’t say this! It’s quite embarrassing.

At first, He Hongxiu was worried that Jiang Yan would be sad to hear this, but when she saw her half-smile reaction and saw the red marks under her collar.

How could I not know that the young couple must have been intimate?

He Hongxiu was shocked.

Could it be that Lu Yunsheng has seen a famous doctor and is now cured?

Yuan Sufeng and Feng Yingchun didn’t know that Lu Yunsheng was infertile, and they laughed when they saw Jiang Yan’s reaction.

Yuan Sufeng looked as if she knew the truth, “I knew it, Captain Lu, with his body, how could he not want a woman? He must have just not met the right one.”

Feng Yingchun nodded repeatedly, agreeing very much with Yuan Sufeng’s words.

“People used to say that Captain Lu wasn’t interested in women. I think he just hadn’t met our sister Jiang. Look, isn’t this a taste of it?”

As he spoke, Feng Yingchun also gestured to Yuan Sufeng to look at the red mark under Jiang Yan’s neck. Yuan Sufeng smiled and said, “No wonder? Last night, our old Wu said that Captain Lu was in an unusually good mood these days and went home on time after get off work every day.”

…

The two sisters-in-law laughed and joked. Even though Jiang Yan was shameless and compared herself to a city wall, her face couldn’t help but get hot.

These two sisters-in-law are really bold!

He Hongxiu was still shocked that Lu Yunsheng’s hidden illness had recovered. She just smiled and said nothing as she listened to Yuan Sufeng and the other person chatting, fearing that the fire would spread to her.