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When Ning Shu went to the department store, she was worried that she had walked there for nothing, without a bicycle.
However, although there were more bicycles in the big city than in the small county, she didn’t see any bicycles where they were usually parked when she arrived.
Ning Shu approached a nearby saleswoman and asked, “Excuse me, are there no bicycles available now?”
The saleswoman, a chubby young woman who looked well-off, smiled and replied, “Hello, there are no bicycles available this month. If you want, you can reserve one for next month. There are still slots available.”
Ning Shu had no choice but to reserve one for next month.
She said, “I am a resident of XXXX stationed here. I would like to reserve a bicycle for next month. Should I pay in advance or how should I proceed?”
It was common knowledge among the city’s residents that there was a military district stationed here, and military personnel with qualifications to follow the army had ranks.
When the saleswoman heard Ning Shu’s words, her eyes lit up. “Are you following your husband here with the army?” she asked.
Ning Shu nodded. “Yes, my husband is the regimental commander and has the qualifications to follow the army,” she said with a slight smile.
The saleswoman became even more enthusiastic. “Comrade, my name is Sun Yulan. My uncle is the director here. Actually, there is still a bicycle left this month that hasn’t been taken. I can make an exception and give it to you first. But I would like a sewing machine ticket in return. Could you ask around in the army for me? Don’t worry, I will pay for the ticket.”
The saleswoman, Sun Yulan, decided to give the bicycle to Ning Shu upon hearing that Ning Shu’s husband was a regimental commander.
She did so partly to make a new friend and partly because she was about to get married herself.
However, she had not been able to find a sewing machine ticket.
Hearing that Ning Shu was in the army, she thought that there might be more people there and that someone might have a ticket.
However, the bicycle was not reserved by anyone, and it was left there by her uncle on purpose.
In case someone with status came later to reserve it, they wouldn’t run out of bicycles. Her uncle could also sell it to someone good.
Every month, her uncle would leave one bicycle out of the allocated ones for such needs.
A few days before the bicycles for the next month were to be distributed, he would take it out and sell it.
However, the regimental commander’s rank was already quite high.
Even if there was no sewing machine ticket, Sun Yulan thought it was good to make friends with someone like the regimental commander’s wife.
So, giving the bicycle to the regimental commander’s wife, Sun Yulan felt it was worth it.
Ning Shu raised an eyebrow. “That’s great. My name is Ning Shu. I haven’t been with the army for long, and I don’t have many friends here. I’m glad to make friends so quickly after arriving. Thank you for the bicycle today. I can ask around about the sewing machine ticket for you.” Regardless of the other party’s reasons for making friends, she had obtained the bicycle, so she had gained the benefit.
She would deal with the rest later.
“Wait here,” Sun Yulan said as she ran off to find her uncle.
Ning Shu thought that since she was already at the department store, she would go to the fabric section to have a look.
There was plenty of fabric, although the variety and colors were limited.
However, the rows of fabric still made her happy.
As the weather was gradually getting warmer, she wanted to make a few sets of spring and autumn clothes for her children.
Previously, they had been wearing her clothes for autumn in their hometown.
Besides the camouflage outfit, they hadn’t worn any other new clothes.
Unfortunately, she didn’t have a fabric coupon.
Ning Shu thought for a moment and decided to write a letter to Lin Xiaojing, asking if there were any defective fabrics in the clothing factory that needed to be disposed of.
If there were any, she would ask her to help buy some.
After looking at the fabric, Ning Shu returned to where she was buying the bicycle, and Sun Yulan was already there.
When Sun Yulan saw Ning Shu approaching, she said, “Comrade Ning, the bicycle has been brought here. You just need to go over there to pay with your ticket and money.”
Ning Shu replied, “Comrade Sun, please wait a moment.” She hurried to pay the money, then came back and picked up the bicycle from Sun Yulan.
“Comrade Sun, thank you so much. You are the first friend I’ve made since coming here. I’ll come find you next time I’m in town. I haven’t had a chance to explore here properly yet, so I’ll need you to be my tour guide. By the way, do you need any eggs? There’s a battalion near our station, and we can exchange eggs.”
Sun Yulan’s eyes lit up. “If I could get some eggs, that would be great. We hardly get any eggs in the city. My family is big, and we barely have one or two a month. We’re really short on them.” Indeed, selling the bicycle to Ning Shu was the right decision.
If Comrade Ning could occasionally bring some eggs when she comes to the city, that would be wonderful.
Ning Shu said goodbye to Sun Yulan and rode the bicycle back home.
She continued to check her app in the deserted area by the mountain road.
Today, the app had five good food options:
Ning Shu naturally bought everything, but unfortunately, the 6-pound durian couldn’t be eaten in the army.
However, she wasn’t worried.
When she was alone and back home, wouldn’t it be delicious to eat it behind closed doors?
As for the watermelon, she couldn’t eat it now and had to wait until summer.
Regarding the rest, she withdrew them all from the app and then took out some fruits she had bought before.
After some consideration, she ultimately chose apples.
In the army, she couldn’t bring out anything too fancy, so apples were the most suitable.
The nursery school finished early, so as soon as the children were released, the three children took Da Mao and Tie Dan home.
Erbao was a bit downcast because he didn’t get to eat the little bread and felt like he had no energy to do anything.
“Brother, I won’t play games next time,” Erbao sighed.
“Yeah,” Yibao was also thinking about the little bread, “you can continue playing next time, but don’t use little bread, use something else.”
Erbao’s eyes lit up. “What should we use then?”
Yibao thought for a moment. “Use sweet potato crisps.”
“Right, there are plenty of sweet potato crisps. We can use sweet potato crisps.” Erbao thought his brother was really smart.
He would definitely prefer sweet potato crisps over little bread because there were so many sweet potato crisps.
Sanbao listened to the two brothers talking, and he rummaged through his little bag with his small hands.
Then, he pulled out his little bread and broke off a small piece.
“Brother, eat,” he handed it to Erbao.
Erbao was extremely touched. “Sanbao, you’re so kind.” He took it and even sniffed it. It smelled so good.
Smelling the fragrance of the little bread, he felt even more unwilling to let it go.
Sanbao smiled obediently and tore off another small piece, saying, “Big brother, eat,” as he handed it to Yibao.
“Thank you, Sanbao” Yibao took it and ate it.
The three brothers always ate together whenever there was food, so Yibao and Erbao didn’t think it was wrong to eat Sanbao’s little bread.
“Twins… Twins, wait a moment…” a little boy behind them called out as he ran towards them.
The three brothers stopped and looked at the approaching boy.
He was the boy they had been playing games with just now, and he had won their little bread.
“Twins, where did your little bread come from?” the boy had just eaten some and found it delicious, so he wanted his mother to buy some too.
Erbao proudly said, “My mom bought it.”
“Where did your mom buy it from?” the boy asked.
Erbao thought for a moment. “I don’t know. You’ll have to ask my…”
“Woof, woof, woof…”
Before Erbao could finish saying “mom,” Da Mao and Tie Dan barked and ran off in the other direction.
The three children turned around to see Ning Shu returning.
“Mom…”
The three children approached Ning Shu.
Ning Shu had walked to town in the afternoon, so it was already past two o’clock when she returned.
Thankfully, she had a bicycle, or else she wouldn’t have been back so quickly.
Da Mao and Tie Dan barked around Ning Shu.
“Mom, what did you buy?” Erbao stared at the basket in front of the bicycle and the sack hanging behind it.
“Mom, eat,” Sanbao tore off another small piece from the unfinished little bread and handed it to her.
“I’m not hungry. You eat it yourself,” Ning Shu refused the third child’s offering, as his hands were not very clean.
She then turned to the Yibao and Erbao and asked, “I bought some apples. Are you hungry?”
Thinking that he hadn’t eaten apples in a long time, Erbao nodded. “Mom, I’m hungry.”
Ning Shu took off the sack and took out three apples from inside.
She noticed a little boy standing nearby with the three children and asked, “Is this your friend?”
Erbao explained, “We played games together in the afternoon. Our team lost, and I lost my little bread to him.”
Hearing this, Ning Shu took out four apples from the sack. “Then try harder next time and win it back.”
She handed the four apples to the eldest child. “Share them with your friend.”
“Okay.” Yibao divided the four apples among Erbao, Sanbao, and the little boy.
The little boy was somewhat surprised and touched.
He scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed, with a shy smile on his face.
“It’s okay. Our children have just arrived at the family compound and haven’t made any friends yet. I hope you can play together and be friends,” Ning Shu said with a smile.
The little boy immediately patted his chest and assured, “Auntie, don’t worry. I will play with the twins and the little brother, and we will be friends.”
Ning Shu replied, “Thank you. Yibao , Er Bao, you keep playing. I’ll go back and make dinner.”
Yibao and Erbao responded, “Okay.”
After Ning Shu left, the little boy said to Yibao and Er Bao, “Thank you for the apples. Tomorrow, I’ll treat you to some cookies. My mom bought some really delicious ones.”
Er Bao replied, “Okay, sounds good.”
At this moment, some other kids came over.
They had seen Ning Shu with the apples earlier but were too shy to approach.
Now that Ning Shu had left, they gathered around.
“Twins, was that your mom just now?”
“Twins, your mom is really pretty.”
As they spoke, their eyes were fixed on the apples in the twins’ hands. In fact, they had come for the apples.
…
When He Ling finished work and returned home, she heard her mother-in-law say, “Xiao Ling, there’s a letter for you from XXXX Army.”
Upon hearing that it was from the XXXX Army, He Ling hurriedly said, “That’s from my friend.”
She remembered Ning Shu mentioning accompanying the army in her last letter, so a letter sent from the army must be from Ning Shu!