Chapter 39.1

As they were eating rice noodles, Jiang Suihan suddenly stared at Xu Zhao’s face intently, making him a bit uneasy.

He wiped his face with his hand. “Is there something on my face?”

Jiang Suihan shook her head. “No, I just realized that you’re quite fair-skinned, even more so than many female comrades.”

Considering he was a soldier who spent a lot of time outdoors and didn’t pay much attention to sun protection, she was surprised he hadn’t tanned.

Xu Zhao paused, setting down his chopsticks with a slightly helpless expression. Being compared to female comrades and being told he was fairer than them wasn’t exactly a compliment he appreciated.

“It runs in the family. My mom is also very fair and doesn’t tan easily. I guess I inherited it from her.”

The Xu family had three children. Xu Zhao had two older sisters, who inherited their father’s genes and had a darker complexion that tanned easily. Xu Zhao’s sisters often complained to their parents about how all the good genes had been passed on to their brother, leaving them with the less desirable ones. They would say it was unfair that their brother, who was a boy, ended up with a fairer complexion than them.

Since childhood, Xu Zhao had always had fair skin. Even during summer, when he spent all day playing outside, other children would tan until they looked like lumps of coal, but he would only tan slightly. While other children would darken by several shades, he would only tan by one, and by the time winter came, he’d be fair again.

Jiang Suihan asked Xu Zhao to stretch out his arm so they could compare their skin tones.

Xu Zhao wasn’t particularly interested in this childish game and felt slightly speechless.

Their arms, one large and one small, were extended for comparison. Fortunately, Jiang Suihan was still slightly fairer.

Satisfied, Jiang Suihan retracted her arm, and an amusing thought suddenly popped into her head. She imagined a group of dark-skinned men with one fair-skinned person standing out among them, like a white glutinous rice ball mixed in with black sesame ones. The more she thought about it, the more amusing it became, until she couldn’t help but shake with laughter.

Xu Zhao was confused. He had no idea what she found so funny.

“What are you laughing at?”

From the way she was laughing, it was clear she had thought of something amusing, most likely related to him.

Jiang Suihan managed to compose herself enough to respond, though still stifling giggles. “I just suddenly thought about how, among a group of men all tanned dark, you’d stand out like a white rice ball among black ones. It’s just really funny.”

The thought of it made her laugh so hard that her stomach started to hurt, so she forced herself to stop thinking about it.

Xu Zhao’s mouth twitched slightly, his expression both helpless and a bit exasperated. He didn’t think it would help if he told her that, as a child, his family elders had given him a nickname—Tangyuan^[1]Rice Ball.

He couldn’t understand the peculiar and whimsical thoughts that seemed to constantly run through the mind of a nineteen-year-old girl. He advised her, “Be careful not to laugh too hard and strain yourself.”

Later, Jiang Suihan specifically asked Wu Guihua for advice on how to cook lamb, so she stewed some that evening. Fortunately, they didn’t live in the apartment complex, and their neighbors were a bit far away; otherwise, everyone would have known they were eating lamb.

Jiang Leyun ate happily, continuously praising his sister’s cooking, saying the lamb was delicious and that he couldn’t get enough of it.

The tender lamb, paired with white rice, was indeed quite tasty. Jiang Suihan considered herself somewhat talented in cooking. Her previous mediocre skills were only because she hadn’t practiced much.

Xu Zhao, who usually had a large appetite, even ate an extra bowl of rice that evening.

Jiang Suihan noticed that Xu Zhao’s appetite seemed insatiable, with no visible change in his stomach, making her wonder if she had been starving him over the past few days.

She also realized that the two men in her household, one big and one small, were both carnivores. If you asked them what they liked to eat, their unanimous answer would likely be “meat.”

They finished the entire pot of rice, though there was still some lamb left, enough for another meal the next day.

After their outing, they were a bit dirty, so Jiang Suihan decided to take a bath and wash her hair while she was at it. The water wasn’t enough, so she asked Xu Zhao to fetch more twice.

By the time her hair was dry, it was already past ten o’clock.

Xu Zhao put his arm around Jiang Suihan’s waist, pulling her into his arms. Sensing her nervousness, he gently said, “Let’s sleep.”

Jiang Suihan’s heart raced, worried that if he wanted to do “that,” she wouldn’t know how to refuse. But to her relief, he just held her without making any further moves.

Alright, she had over thought it. Her face turned slightly red as she realized she had unfairly suspected him of something.

Noticing her silence, Xu Zhao chuckled softly. “What? Did you think I was going to do something to you?”

Jiang Suihan was glad it was dark because if there were any light, Xu Zhao would surely see how embarrassed she was.

Determined not to lose face, she wouldn’t admit that her thoughts had been less than innocent. Feeling guilty, she retorted, “No way, I wasn’t thinking about anything like that.”

In the darkness, Xu Zhao couldn’t help but smile. “What kind of thing?”

Oops, she had given herself away!

Jiang Suihan wished she could go back in time and take back what she had just said. She was embarrassed beyond belief.

She stubbornly refused to discuss this awkward topic any further. “You’re so annoying! I’m tired, don’t talk to me, I’m going to sleep.”

It seemed that once a man had certain experiences, he changed, and flirty words came to him naturally.

Not wanting to push her too far, Xu Zhao leaned down and gently kissed Jiang Suihan’s forehead. “Goodnight.”

It was a soft, tender kiss, and Jiang Suihan felt as though a feather had lightly brushed against her forehead. Clutching the blanket in her hands, she whispered back, “Goodnight.”

The next morning, Jiang Suihan woke up feeling well-rested. She glanced at her watch and saw it was already past nine.

After breakfast, Jiang Suihan took a piece of fabric and some sewing supplies and, along with Jiang Leyun, headed to Wu Guihua’s house to learn how to make clothes.

Wu Guihua carefully felt the fabric, continuously praising it. “This is nice fabric, thick and sturdy. What kind of clothes are you planning to make?”

With so many people in her family, and with boys being so rambunctious, new clothes didn’t last long. After just a few wears, they would tear and wear out quickly, making fabric a precious commodity. Since she also had to send some fabric back to her hometown, their household never had enough fabric ration coupons, and her children hadn’t had new clothes made in over a year.

Jiang Suihan had already made up her mind. “I want to make a set of pajamas for Xu Zhao, but I’m not skilled at sewing. I don’t know how to make clothes. Sister-in-law, could you help me see if this fabric is enough to make a set?”

Yesterday, while organizing clothes, she noticed that most of Xu Zhao’s underwear was torn, and his socks were in the same condition, with large holes in them. Despite his daily appearance in a military uniform looking quite proper, it was clear that he was very careless when it came to his clothing.

Wu Guihua unfolded the fabric and roughly measured its length. “It should be enough to make a set of clothes, and I think there might even be some left over. Do you have Captain Xu’s measurements?”

Someone had started a rumor that Xu Zhao and Jiang Suihan got married because their families forced them, and that there was no love between them. It was even said that Xu Zhao only helped with the laundry because he couldn’t stand Jiang Suihan’s laziness and had no choice but to do it himself.

Wu Guihua had heard these rumors but didn’t take them seriously. She thought the people spreading them were just idle and envious, unable to stand the sight of a happy couple.

Jiang Suihan pulled out a piece of paper. “I took his measurements the day before yesterday. I wrote them all down here.”

The remaining fabric was just enough to make Xu Zhao two pairs of underwear. She suddenly remembered that she’d forgotten to buy elastic bands last time, so she’d have to wait until someone from the army could drive to the county to buy some.

Watching Wu Guihua skillfully sew with her quick needlework, Jiang Suihan couldn’t help but praise her. “Sister-in-law, your embroidery is beautiful, so lifelike. You’re really amazing. I admire people with skills like yours; it’s truly remarkable.”

The saying “masters are hidden among the people” seemed true, and Jiang Suihan felt she was witnessing it firsthand.

Wu Guihua blushed slightly and smiled modestly. “It’s just embroidery; I’m not as skilled as you say. My grandmother used to be a maid in a landlord’s house and became close to an embroiderer there. She learned embroidery for a few years. My needlework was taught by my grandmother, but compared to her, my skills are nothing.”

After the landlord’s family fell into decline, Wu Guihua’s grandmother and the other servants were dismissed. She had been sold into the family at a young age and couldn’t even remember her hometown. Later, she met Wu Guihua’s grandfather, who didn’t mind her lack of family connections, and they got married.

Wu Guihua had once seen an embroidery piece left behind by her grandmother’s godmother, and it was so lifelike that it seemed you could smell the flowers’ fragrance just by looking at it. Only then did she understand why her grandmother always said she wasn’t gifted. True talent in embroidery imbues the work with spirit, while her own skills could barely fool those unfamiliar with the craft.

Jiang Suihan was genuinely impressed. “That’s different. Your grandmother had many more years of experience than you. Besides, you’ve been held back by your family responsibilities. You’re busy every day, taking care of the children, so you don’t have time to focus on embroidery. To have reached your current level is already very impressive.”

“Sister-in-law, you’re just being modest. Look at me—I can’t even do a simple stitch properly. Compared to you, my fingers might as well be stiff. If I tried to embroider, I’d probably create something that looks nothing like it should.”

Jiang Suihan believed that Wu Guihua was indeed talented, but as the saying goes, “a child from a poor family grows up quickly.” Wu Guihua didn’t have the luxury of dedicating herself to honing her skills. She had married early, had children one after another, and spent her time taking care of the household, leaving her with no extra time to think about embroidery.