Chapter 61 : Shen He in the Army

The rumors about the family compound turned out to be true!  

The woman in front of her had flawless skin, shiny black hair, a pair of watery eyes, a straight nose, and red lips so beautiful that people couldn’t take their eyes off her.  

For a moment, Liu Hong felt a mix of emotions, and her original sense of superiority as a city dweller had long vanished in front of her. However, she didn’t show any of it on her face and instead said with a hint of surprise, “Oh, so you’re the new deputy head’s wife.”  

As if she had just noticed her presence, the contempt in her tone was hard to ignore.  

But Su Ranran didn’t take such harmless words to heart and simply replied, “I am Shen He’s wife.”  

She didn’t introduce herself further, nor did she ask who Liu Hong was.  

When had Liu Hong ever been treated so coldly? She felt displeased.  

She discreetly glanced at Su Ranran’s simple clothes and finally found a little sense of superiority in her heart.  

After a pause, Liu Hong said, “I’m Liu Hong, from Beijing. I heard you’ve been working in the countryside for quite a while. No wonder you’re so confident. You must have learned a lot of farming skills in the countryside, right?”  

Her sarcastic tone made it obvious that she was implying Su Ranran was nothing more than a village girl.  

Hearing this, Su Ranran wasn’t annoyed but instead replied proudly, “We educated youth responded to the Chairman’s call to go to the countryside to support construction. We must not disappoint the Chairman. Not only can I grow vegetables, but I’m also good at growing rice.”  

Her proud expression made it seem like she had accomplished something great, and she showed no shame in working in the countryside.  

Liu Hong was left speechless.  

Could she dare say that working in the countryside wasn’t an honorable thing?  

Before Liu Hong could respond, Su Ranran curiously looked at the basket in her hand.  

“Are you here to grow vegetables too, sister-in-law?”  

Unlike others who carried dustpans or backpacks, Liu Hong’s basket was intricately woven and could easily serve as a decorative bag.  

Under Su Ranran’s clear gaze, Liu Hong felt a little uncomfortable.  

Thinking about how some people had suffered for being too bourgeois, she subconsciously hid the basket behind her.  

“I’m just here to take a look,” she said.  

How could she admit she was here to pick vegetables?  

Her vegetables were the worst in the entire garden small, yellow, and riddled with insect bites.  

“Oh.”  

Su Ranran responded lightly, making it difficult to tell what she meant. “Then I’m going to plant vegetables. Sister-in-law, take your time watching.”  

With that, she picked up the rapeseeds in her hand and scattered them.  

Somehow, such a simple action of scattering seeds appeared graceful and poetic when she did it, smooth and pleasing to the eye.  

It was clear at a glance that she wasn’t planting blindly.  

The three people present were stunned.  

Who would have thought that farming could look so artistic and picturesque, with no trace of artificiality, as if she was born with such elegance?  

Liu Hong watched the beautiful scene unfold before her and felt deeply uncomfortable.  

No wonder Shen He protected her after just one sentence.  

With a woman like this, it didn’t matter if she was born in the city or the countryside, any man would cherish her.  

Thinking of Liu Meng’s words, Liu Hong suddenly felt uneasy.  

Su Ranran, however, didn’t bother with her feelings. Toward someone who was obviously hostile, she naturally preferred to keep her distance.  

Maintaining surface-level politeness was enough.  

Zhong Juhua and Lin Qiulian remained silent the entire time. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to speak, but Liu Hong clearly had no intention of paying attention to these military wives from the countryside.

After several attempts to stir up trouble, they were too lazy to speak anymore.  

Now, it was clear that the wives of the second and third in command of the garrison on the island were at odds. If they got involved now, wouldn’t they just be cannon fodder?  

Liu Hong, dressed in a stylish dress, was left awkwardly standing aside. In the end, no one even noticed when she left.  

Su Ranran’s hands were not very large to begin with, but she had been doing such tasks for a long time and worked quickly. Before long, she had finished planting.  

“Come on, Ranran, I’ll take you to the sandy land. It’s still a good time to plant sweet potatoes,” Zhong Juhua said after seeing that Su Ranran had finished.  

“Okay, wait for me.”  

Su Ranran packed up her tools and responded.  

Although she had been allocated land in the family compound, she still wasn’t sure which plot was hers.  

Lin Qiulian, with nothing else to do, decided to tag along.  

She took the opportunity to tend to her own sandy land, pulling out weeds where they grew and cultivating the soil where they didn’t.  

The three of them left Wanwan Base and headed directly to Nandao Base.  

Nandao Base was a few hundred meters away from Wanwan Base, and to Su Ranran’s surprise, the sandy land assigned to her was quite large, about two or three acres.  

Perhaps because no one had taken care of it, the land was overgrown with weeds.  

“Ranran, do you want to plant sweet potatoes? If you do, come over to my place and cut some seedlings,” Zhong Juhua said as she neatly pulled up sparse weeds along the edge of her own field.  

By some stroke of fate, her plot of land was right next to Su Ranran’s.  

“Thank you, Juhua. I’ll come to your place to get some after I finish tilling the soil,” Su Ranran said gratefully.  

Sweet potatoes grown in sandy soil were very sweet, much tastier than those she used to grow back in Shuiqiao Brigade.  

Even though she wasn’t particularly fond of sweet potatoes, she found herself eating a couple more at every meal. However, she planned to use only half of the land for sweet potatoes and wanted to plant other crops in the remaining area.  

It seemed that the sandy soil here was more fertile, as the weeds grew more densely compared to other places.  

If she wanted to plant anything, she had to get rid of the weeds first.  

Su Ranran, being well-versed in farming, pulled out the weeds that could be removed by hand and used a hoe for those that couldn’t.  

These tasks weren’t too strenuous for her, and since she didn’t feel tired, she had no plans to head back anytime soon.  

Once the other two finished pulling most of the weeds from their own plots, they came over to help her.  

The three of them worked together, pulling weeds without realizing how much time had passed.  

Suddenly, a loud command echoed from a distance.  

This was followed by synchronized shouting of slogans.  

Su Ranran was startled by the familiar voice.  

Looking in the direction of the sound, she saw a team dressed in military green, marching in perfect order along the road outside Nandao Base.  

And the tall figure leading the team, who else could it be but Shen He?  

This was the first time Su Ranran had seen him in his military element.  

His expression was serious, his eyes sharp and focused, and his uniform was already soaked with sweat.  

Even from such a distance, his masculine charm was undeniable.  

Su Ranran couldn’t take her eyes off this man brimming with strength and determination.  

At that moment, the man who had been staring straight ahead suddenly looked in her direction.  

That firm and determined gaze, she had never seen it like this before.  

Su Ranran’s gaze grew more intense, and her face completely resembled that of an infatuated fangirl.