Lin Hongying immediately responded, “I’m a member of the farm—this is what I should do!”  

She saluted Yu Liang. “My husband is also a soldier. Everything I have belongs to the motherland. If the country needs me, I won’t hesitate to step forward!”  

With a smile, she added, “But I do have a request—”  

“Please strictly follow my plan for rectification! Although it will cost money, every penny will be worth it!  

“Moderately and severely ill pigs require a different treatment plan. Also, I’ve observed that many pigs in our farm are not only infected with swine fever but also suffer from multiple complications. Herbal medicine alone is too slow—I need a laboratory for preparing medications!”  

Yu Liang returned her salute with a crisp military gesture. “Comrade Lin, no problem.”  

“I had no idea you were a military spouse!”  

He then asked in detail about her husband’s unit and brigade.  

Lin Hongying replied, “The 23rd Army Field Force, now the 23rd Army Liberation Force.” Yu Liang clapped his hands and laughed. “That unit has a heroic combat history!”  

“But Comrade Lin, commuting to work must be inconvenient for you. Your garrison is in the neighboring county, right?”  

Lin Hongying sighed. “I applied to work at the Heping Farm in our area, which grows rice, but the Agricultural Bureau assigned me here instead.”  

Commuting was indeed a hassle.  

Waking up an hour earlier in the dead of winter for work was exhausting, no matter the era!  

By the time Lin Hongying finished dinner, it was already dark—well, in Heilongjiang, winter nights came early. The sky darkened around 4 p.m., and now it was nearly 7 p.m.  

Yu Liang arranged for Liu Xinmin to drive Lin Hongying back to Lan County in his personal car. It was his official vehicle, but tonight, he would stay at the pig farm, waiting to see if the pigs made it through the night!  

The Zhenhua Pig Farm was in the neighboring county, making the commute tough. Many workers had to wake up early and take long bus rides across counties. Eager to have Lin Hongying start as soon as possible, Yu Liang instructed Liu Xinmin, “Xinmin, tomorrow morning, you’ll be responsible for picking up Comrade Lin and bringing her to Zhenhua Farm.”  

Liu Xinmin was Yu Liang’s assistant.  

……  

Passing by the People’s Hospital, Lin Hongying remembered Xia Hai. She asked Liu Xinmin to stop, saying, “Let me drop by here for a moment—I need to see a friend.”  

Counting the days, a week had passed, and the food she had given Xia Hai earlier was likely running low.  

Now that she had some extra resources, she could bring him more supplies.  

Xia Hai’s attending physician, Dr. An, was delighted to see Lin Hongying. “What brings you here today? Visiting Comrade Xia Hai?”  

Lin Hongying nodded. Dr. An said, “After you left, Xia Hai had a high fever for a few days. We had to persuade him hard to stay. Fortunately, after the fever broke, he’s been much calmer.”  

“The noodles you gave him helped a lot. He’s been eating them daily—about two or three ounces per meal—and has recovered quickly. He can almost walk now, but I recommend keeping him under observation for another week before discharge.”  

Lin Hongying felt relieved and took out more noodles from her bag.  

“Same as before—seven pounds for Xia Hai, two pounds for you.”  

Even though Dr. An had experienced this once before, seeing Lin Hongying produce noodles again still made her breath quicken.  

But Lin Hongying didn’t stop at noodles—she also pulled out several cans of yellow peach preserves!  

Yellow peach preserves were undisputed luxuries, rare in winter when fresh fruit was scarce. Processing them required tin, making them expensive. With tin production extremely low at the time, these were practically unobtainable on the open market.  

They were reserved only for high-achieving cadres and foreign guests visiting China!  

Seeing Dr. An’s wide-eyed astonishment, Lin Hongying smiled. “I recently got a job as a technical advisor at the farm. These were gifts from my superiors.”  

Dr. An knew Lin Hongying was no ordinary person, but she hadn’t expected her to be a technical advisor earning a 21st-grade salary!  

A position where others would address her as “Master”—and such a young expert at that, no wonder she could produce these items so casually.  

Lin Hongying casually handed over the preserves. Yu Liang had given her eight cans, and she took out all eight.  

At the same time, she used her resentment points to exchange for another eight cans to keep for herself.  

She specifically reminded Dr. An, “When Old Xia eats these, make sure he does it discreetly, away from others.”  

Mainly to avoid misunderstandings.  

“Of course, of course,” Dr. An nodded immediately without asking questions.  

She assumed the eye-catching preserves needed to be eaten in secret, especially since Xia Hai was still under labor reform due to his background. She didn’t want him dragging Lin Hongying down!  

Dr. An watched as Lin Hongying left. Peering out the office window, she saw Lin Hongying being driven away in a Hongqi limousine—a car reserved for high-ranking officials.  

She had known Lin Hongying was capable, but not this capable. And she was still so young!  

……

Residential Compound.

By the time Lin Hongying returned to the residential compound, it was already 7 p.m.  

They had only been married for a few days, and Shao Qingfeng had been too busy to move his belongings—or himself—into their home. Today was the day he was finally moving in.  

When she opened the door and saw Shao Qingfeng, she was momentarily taken aback.  

Han Weidong was the first to greet her. “Hey, little sis-in-law! First day at work—how’d it go?”  

Lin Hongying stepped inside and noticed some changes in the house: a new sofa set, a recliner, an extra washbasin, and a shoe rack by the door. A few pairs of large men’s shoes—clearly Shao Qingfeng’s—were neatly placed on it.  

She nodded faintly. “It was alright.”  

Shao Qingfeng said, “I bought a new sofa today. I didn’t see anything suitable at the department store before.”  

The sofa was clearly expensive—plush, upholstered in pine-green leather, and likely custom-made rather than store-bought. Just the materials alone must have cost hundreds. It was obvious Shao Qingfeng had high standards for his living conditions.  

Lin Hongying could already imagine herself lounging on it, listening to the radio, reading newspapers or books, and pondering over problems.  

She held up the lunchbox in her hand. “Have you eaten yet? I brought back some food. Let’s eat together.”  

Han Weidong perked up at the mention of food. “Not yet! Perfect timing, sis-in-law!”  

He opened the lunchbox Lin Hongying had brought.  

His eyes widened. He had expected “some food” to mean simple dishes like winter melon, cabbage, or pickled vegetables—maybe some minced meat with vermicelli if they were lucky.  

But inside were four boxes of fragrant, tender iron-pot braised goose, another box of braised pork, and yet another of sweet and sour crispy pork.  

Han Weidong blinked in surprise and joked, “Sis-in-law, did you… rob a state-run restaurant? This is a feast!”  

Some of these dishes were nearly impossible to find this season. Sweet and sour crispy pork, for instance, required generous amounts of oil and sugar—luxuries in this era. And geese took a long time to raise, usually only appearing on dinner tables during the New Year. Normally, no one would dare indulge like this.  

Lin Hongying replied casually, “There was a problem at the farm. I fixed it, so the director had the canteen chef make these.”  

What kind of problem would warrant the director ordering such extravagant dishes?  

Han Weidong gave Lin Hongying a surprised look.  

The braised goose was fall-off-the-bone tender, infused with a subtle, crisp aroma of liquor—rich and deeply flavorful.  

The sweet and sour pork was perfectly balanced, crispy on the outside and juicy inside, its deep-fried crust carrying an intoxicating aroma.  

And the glistening, jewel-like braised pork, its thick, glossy sauce clinging to each piece, was a decadent celebration of fat—unforgettable after just one bite.  

“Which farm do you work at, sis-in-law?”  

Shao Qingfeng answered for her. “Zhenhua Farm.”  

“Zhenhua… No wonder,” Han Weidong murmured in understanding.  

He had heard of Zhenhua Farm—it was a major player in pig farming, producing tens of thousands of pigs annually. Along with its sister farms, it could supply the entire city’s pork demand. Every factory wanted to stay on its good side.  

But even Zhenhua, despite its scale, must be struggling in these tough times.  

A meal of this caliber was clearly meant for honored guests.  

Han Weidong had a growing suspicion—Lin Hongying was definitely no ordinary employee!  

Even as a regiment-level officer, he had never been treated to such lavish meals during official visits.  

But when Shao Qingfeng served the rice and dug in without hesitation, Han Weidong stopped overthinking it.  

“Well then, sis-in-law, I won’t hold back!”  

The two men attacked the meat like wolves, their eyes practically glowing with hunger. Men their age had stomachs of steel—bottomless pits that could devour food at alarming speeds, as if every meal were a battlefield.  

Shao Qingfeng’s eating style appeared refined, but his chopsticks moved just as swiftly. Compared to Han Weidong’s ravenous wolfing-down of food, there was an inexplicable elegance to it.  

His lightly tanned hands were well-defined, his fingers long and clean as they held the chopsticks. His Adam’s apple bobbed occasionally as he ate—a subtle, captivating motion.  

Just sitting there, he was like a magnet, drawing the eye effortlessly.