Chapter 37

Lin Guodong picked up a pair of chopsticks and picked a small piece of snail meat from the opened bottle.

As he ate, he was somewhat surprised. He didn’t expect Ning Shu’s homemade snail meat to be so delicious.

He almost forgot that when they had just gotten married, her cooking skills were quite good.

But when he went home last March, what she cooked was barely edible. At that time, he stayed at home for a few days and ended up cooking for a few days himself.

The problem was… he wasn’t good at cooking either. They had been eating in cafeterias since they were young, from elementary school, middle school, high school to university, and then in the military.

Until last year, when he stayed at home for a few days, it was a rare opportunity for him to be in front of the stove.

Eating this snail now reminded him of when they had just gotten married.

At that time, his feelings towards Ning Shu were still very complicated. Although he hadn’t thought about what his wife would be like, he had never imagined it would be someone like Ning Shu.

If it wasn’t for his little sister who drugged him, he would have sent Ning Shu to prison no matter how shameful it was.

But since it was Xiaojing who drugged him, he couldn’t bear to send his own sister to prison.

So he swallowed this loss.

When the holiday ended, he couldn’t wait to return to the army, never even thinking about her, until he received the letter from home, saying that Ning Shu was pregnant.

He had to face Ning Shu and their relationship.

He didn’t think for long, just one night, and he figured it out.

Even though their start was so unbearable, now that they had a child, he had to take this marriage seriously and not harm the child.

So every time he received his salary, he would send back meat coupons, sugar coupons, and vouchers beneficial for pregnant women.

When he heard that formula was especially good for health, he even asked for formula vouchers.

Finally, last year, when he had leave, he joyfully returned home. When he saw Yi Bao and Er Bao, his heart melted.

The joy and pride of becoming a father for the first time made his eyes turn red with excitement.

When he saw Ning Shu again, he also had a moment of disbelief. Was this fair-skinned, delicate-featured woman really Ning Shu? In his memory, Ning Shu was skinny, dark, and short.

He wasn’t a saint. Although he didn’t look at passing girls more than necessary, naturally, he also hoped his wife would be a beautiful girl.

Isn’t the first impression between people based on appearance? Would anyone consider inner beauty hidden beneath a layer of skin?

So when he saw Ning Shu, he felt his decision was not wrong. Whether it was about marriage or her, he sincerely accepted it.

But he didn’t expect this woman to be insane, drugging him again.

Said too much, he, a man of firm character, felt like shouting injustice.

“Sergeant, how’s the taste?” Lin Guodong tasted it, and others also wanted to taste it one after another.

Lin Guodong glanced at them and said, “It doesn’t taste good.”

Everyone knew Lin Guodong was lying. Someone even boldly said, “Since the Sergeant thinks it doesn’t taste good, then give it all to us. We don’t mind.”

“Yeah, we don’t mind.”

“Sounds great,” thought Lin Guodong. He realized they would need extra training in the afternoon, or else they’d have excess energy with nowhere to use it.

“These three bottles are for you. It’s snail meat fermented in wine, tastes somewhat like tofu cheese.”

In total, there were 6 bottles of snail meat and 2 bottles of tofu cheese. He planned to take 1 bottle of snail meat and 1 bottle of tofu cheese to give to Commissioner Zhang’s family.

Although the bicycle ticket and watch ticket were exchangeable, he still appreciated their kindness.

At the same time, he had something to inquire about.

Originally, Lin Guodong hadn’t thought of giving anything. He saw Ning Shu giving something to Meng Jie, so he felt he should give something to Commissioner Zhang’s wife too.

One soldier hurriedly asked, “Sergeant, did Auntie mention how much this costs?”

“Yeah, we can’t just take Auntie’s stuff for free. She sent it to the Sergeant to improve his health.”

“Sergeant, last time we already took advantage of Auntie. Not this time. We should pay.”

Auntie… Auntie… Auntie…

Listening to their clamor of “Auntie”, Lin Guodong couldn’t help but think of Ning Shu’s delicate face, unable to reconcile the two.

He finally couldn’t hold back and said, “It’s not your aunt who made it, it’s your sister-in-law.”

“What?” Everyone was shocked.

Lin Guodong picked up 1 bottle of snail meat and 1 bottle of tofu cheese and stood up. “Keep chatting, training this afternoon will be tripled.” Then he left.

As soon as he left, there was silence in the dormitory, followed by lively discussions.

“Just now, the Sergeant mentioned sister-in-law? Is it the sister-in-law I’m thinking of?”

“Did the Sergeant get married? Or is it his fiancée?”

“I’ve never heard the Sergeant got married, have you?”

“I’ve never heard the Sergeant mention having a fiancée either.”

“Li Zao, you tell us, did the Sergeant really get married? Or does he just have a fiancée?”

Li Zao, as Lin Guodong’s guard, naturally knew the situation. “The Sergeant is already married, and he has three children at home.”

These soldiers were new in the past two years, so it’s normal for them not to know that the Sergeant was already married.

And Lin Guodong naturally wouldn’t disclose his situation to everyone he met.

At the Army Family Compound:

The soldiers’ dormitory and the family compound were not together, so it took Lin Guodong about 15 minutes to reach the family compound.

He was going to find Lu Hong. Before he reached Commissioner Zhang’s house, he saw Lu Hong and several other women talking in the small park of the family compound.

“Sister-in-law…” Over there were all military wives. Lin Guodong didn’t approach, but called out from about five meters away.

“Captain Lin…” When Lu Hong saw it was Lin Guodong, she walked over a few steps. “Captain Lin, are you looking for me? Are you going to exchange something today?” They usually didn’t interact much.

Although Old Zhang was the political commissioner of their regiment, she didn’t have much contact with Lin Guodong.

It’s just that Old Zhang had mentioned many times that Lin Guodong was promising, a graduate of a military academy, not only diligent on his own but also being observed by higher-ups, and there were people backing him up.

It was Lin Guodong’s first time giving a gift to someone, so he felt a bit awkward. His wheat-colored face had a slight blush, but it was covered by his stern expression. “Sister-in-law, thank you for the bicycle ticket last time. My… my wife has already bought a bicycle, and she likes it very much. These are tofu cheese and snail meat she made herself. Take them to add to your family’s dishes, as a token of gratitude.”

When he mentioned “my wife”, it was the first time he described Ning Shu like this, feeling somewhat unfamiliar.

Lu Hong naturally knew that Lin Guodong was already married, but she only knew about the marriage, not the details. Now, hearing Lin Guodong mention it, she joked, “I thought you were going to exchange bicycle tickets for something else. It turns out it’s for your wife. If we talk about being kind to one’s wife, it must be Captain Lin.”

As she spoke, she also took the tofu cheese and snail meat.

“Since it’s made by my younger sister, I won’t be polite. Next time when my younger sister lives in the army, I’ll take good care of her.”

Hearing Lu Hong say he was kind to his wife, Lin Guodong felt a little embarrassed. Did he really dote on Ning Shu?

He didn’t think so. Apart from giving her 30 yuan every month, he only gave her the bicycle ticket and money this time.

When she was giving birth, when she was taking care of the child alone, he wasn’t there.

So, when Lu Hong said he was kind to his wife, he felt ashamed. “I can’t say anything else, but this tofu cheese and snail meat taste really good. However, there are two ways to eat snail meat: one is to eat it directly, and the other is to steam it before eating. My wife said it’s even more delicious when heated.”

When he called Ning Shu “my wife” for the second time, he was less restrained than the first time and seemed more relaxed.

“That’s great, let the children taste it tonight.”

Although Lu Hong didn’t know what snail meat tasted like, she knew fermented bean curd.

New foods were often hard to come by at the supply and marketing cooperative.

She was lucky to have bought it once and found it very appetizing.

However, it wasn’t cheap; a small piece cost five cents, equivalent to a jin of sweet potatoes.

She had only bought a few pieces and couldn’t bear to buy more.

“Well. Sister-in-law, I also want to know if there are any vacant houses in the family courtyard here?”

Lin Guodong, upon seeing Ning Shu’s mention of Zhang Qinfang instigating Yi Bao and Erbao incident, He had the idea of bringing them along with the army.

Last year, this idea was frightened away by Ning Shu’s.

This year, he decided to go back and take another look.

He was away from home, leaving Ning Shu and her son at home, thinking that with Lin’s family around, plus Ning Shu’s character, they shouldn’t be bullied.

But he didn’t expect his own family in the Old house to criticize them first.

So, he wondered if there were others bullying them behind his back.

The thought of someone bullying his wife and children behind his back filled him with anger.

Because of this, he once again thought about bringing them along with the army.

Lu Hong asked, “Do you want a building or a bungalow with a courtyard?”

“Bungalow with a courtyard,” Lin Guodong replied almost without hesitation.

He didn’t dare to say he understood Ning Shu very well, but she would definitely prefer one with a courtyard, spacious and with more space.

“I’ll keep an eye out. If there’s one available, I’ll let Old Zhang pass the message to you.”

Lu Hong was still somewhat surprised. Last year, Captain Lin had inquired about the family courtyard from her.

At that time, she thought he was going to bring his wife with the army, but it didn’t happen.

This time, he asked again, so the probability of bringing his wife with the army should be higher.

Of course, people like Captain Lin, young and already a company commander, were rare, especially since he graduated from a military academy.

Those classmates who graduated from military academies, leaders, which one didn’t have connections?

So, despite Captain Lin coming from the countryside, he couldn’t hide his potential.

That’s why those in the army who didn’t know he was already married all inquired about him.

After hearing that Lin Captain was already married, who knew how many people were disappointed?

“Thank you, sister-in-law.” Lin Guodong naturally didn’t know her thoughts. He thanked her and left.

Lu Hong didn’t go straight home either. Holding two bottles of something, she returned to where she had been.

As soon as she passed by, the military wife sitting there couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Lu, are these your relatives?”

Lin Guodong rarely visited the family courtyard, so he didn’t know many of the army wives there.

“This is Captain Lin under Old Zhang. Last time I exchanged bicycle tickets with him, and he brought food to thank me.”

This was also the reason why Lu Hong didn’t go home immediately.

When Lin Guodong brought something, everyone saw it. To avoid gossip, she returned to the group of army wives, knowing someone would ask, she took the opportunity to explain.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t look good if someone spread rumors about her receiving things.