Chapter 21

After returning the car to the logistics department, Jiang Manfu took out a candy from his pocket, opened the packaging and threw it into his mouth. The rich milky aroma quickly filled his entire mouth.

So this is what toffee tastes like. No wonder it’s so expensive. Young girls and wives all like it.

Jiang Manfu was so happy that he even hummed an unknown tune.

“Lao Jiang, what are you so happy about? I heard that you went to help the battalion commander today. Did you meet his wife?”

The young soldier came from behind and put an arm on Jiang Manfu’s shoulder.

This is Qian Dachuan, who was from the same commune brigade as Jiang Manfu. Both of them were soldiers under Lu Yunsheng, but Jiang Manfu was in the first company and Qian Dachuan was in the second company.

Without waiting for Jiang Manfu to answer, Qian Dachuan sniffed, looked at him and teased, “Old Jiang, what smells so good? Did you make a fortune on your trip?”

Jiang Manfu took out a candy from his pocket and handed it to Qian Dachuan, explaining:

“What kind of fortune? Today the battalion commander went to buy furniture for his wedding, and I went to help move some things. The battalion commander and his sister-in-law saw how hard I worked and wanted to keep me for dinner, but I had to return the car in a hurry, so my sister-in-law stuffed me with two handfuls of candy when I left.”

Qian Dachuan opened the package and tasted the candy, his eyes widened. “Oh my god, my sister-in-law is so generous. This candy must be 10 cents a piece. Old Jiang, you are getting rich!”

“Vague.”

Jiang Manfu was very proud and walked quickly towards his dormitory.

Is this a handful of candy? This is because the battalion commander and his sister-in-law value him. Jiang Manfu is a good soldier and may have the chance to become a squad leader in the future.

Little guy.

Qian Dachuan was filled with envy. He walked over quickly and put his arm around Jiang Manfu’s shoulder. “Old Jiang, do you have any more? Give me another one.”

“No. There are only a few in total. People in class will definitely want some when they go back. One per person, no more.”

“All right.”

Qian Dachuan felt a little regretful, but he didn’t make things difficult for Jiang Manfu.

“I’m here to inform you that your sister gave birth to a boy last month. Both mother and child are safe. I’m here to give you the news.”

Jiang Manfu showed surprise, “Did your family send you a letter?”

Jiang Manfu has many brothers and sisters. Although he sends his monthly allowance back home, the Jiang family still has little means and is steadily poor.

Qian Dachuan’s situation was better. His family would send him letters from time to time. In addition, the two of them had a good relationship, and sometimes they would also pass on a few words on behalf of the Jiang family.

Handing the page of letter paper with the Jiang family’s message to Jiang Manfu, Qian Dachuan patted him on the shoulder and turned back to his company.

After joining the army, Jiang Manfu attended a literacy class organized by the army, so he can read.

The letter said that the baby boy born to her sister weighed 6.9 jin and was very healthy. Her mother-in-law was also very kind to her and even bought an old hen to make soup.

Today’s harvest is good, so my family can have a good New Year.

After receiving the news from home, Jiang Manfu became even happier and his steps towards the dormitory became much lighter.

Today is a great day.

In the dormitory.

With a bang, the dormitory door was opened from the outside. Everyone looked towards the door and saw Jiang Manfu standing there in a showy manner.

“Comrades, I’m back.”

With a loud bang, a black shadow accurately hit Jiang Manfu’s face, and then a serious voice rang out from the dormitory, “You kid, just come back, what are you doing? Do you want to be beaten again?”

Jiang Manfu grabbed the pillow and chuckled, “Squad Leader, I just want to share my joy with everyone.”

“Look at how proud you are. It’s just that you showed up in front of the battalion commander.”

“What, did you pick up money?”

A young soldier came over and asked curiously, “Old Jiang, tell me, is the battalion commander’s wife pretty?”

“Yes, yes, our battalion commander is a well-known veteran in the regiment. How come he got married all of a sudden? I haven’t heard that he has a girlfriend or anything.”

“Old Jiang, stop keeping us in suspense and tell us what’s going on.”

Jiang Manfu held his waist and turned his neck pretending to be tired, “I’ve been busy all day and my waist and back are sore.”

“Come on, come on, Lao Jiang, sit down.”

“Massage hands, quick, massage, arrange it for our Lao Jiang.”

“Jiang, thank you for your hard work.”

Everyone hurried to serve him. Jiang Manfu said, “I’m a little thirsty. I haven’t had any water today.”

The soldier who was holding the enamel teacup hurriedly handed it over, “Come on, Lao Jiang, have some water. It’s just right for cooling down.”

The dormitory was in chaos. Everyone was busy and looking at Jiang Manfu expectantly, their clear eyes full of curiosity.

“Lao Jiang, what does the battalion commander’s wife look like?”

Jiang Manfu also stopped while he was ahead and recalled carefully, “Our battalion commander’s wife is beautiful, very beautiful. I have never seen such a beautiful girl in my life.”

“And my sister-in-law is a very nice person. She and the battalion commander took me to a state-owned restaurant for lunch. I ate so much that I was full.”

“Overeated? You’re really lucky.”

“What did you eat?”

“What else could it be? It must be two big white steamed buns. Old Jiang loves this.”

“Nonsense. As the battalion commander, he has to order a plate of shredded potatoes.”

Jiang Manfu looked at everyone with disdain, as if to say that you all have no taste, then he held up three fingers in front of everyone’s expectant gazes and said in a light voice: “In addition to shredded potatoes, there are three more dishes.”

“Which three dishes?”

Jiang Manfu paused and deliberately kept the question in suspense, which made the anxious soldiers want to beat him up.

“Old Jiang, hurry up and tell me, you’re really making me anxious to death.”

Jiang Manfu must be eating well to be so proud of him, and everyone became more and more curious.

Jiang Manfu spit out five words proudly, “Scrambled eggs with tomatoes.”

“Wow, meat dishes.”

“Oh mom, I haven’t eaten eggs for half a month, my mouth is dry as hell.”

“My mouth is watering.”

“What else? There are four dishes, what are the other two? Say it all at once, don’t dither.”

Everyone was envious, Jiang Manfu continued: “Red braised pork.”

“What?”

“Braised pork!”

“Oh my god, why isn’t today my day off?”

…

There was a cry of surprise in the dormitory. The soldiers were filled with regret. The chance to eat meat was so close, but they just missed it. What a miss!

Seeing everyone’s regret and envy, Jiang Manfu chose to make matters worse, “In fact, there is another meat dish – fried crispy pork.”

The dormitory was quiet for a moment, and then several of the comrades collapsed.

“Oh my god…he actually ate the crispy meat.”

“Jiang Manfu, you are such a fairy, you actually ate my crispy meat. Oh my god, that was crispy meat!”

“It’s all meat except flour!”

The other soldiers also looked at Jiang Manfu with indescribable expression. His face was not a face, and his nose was not a nose.

Envy and jealousy are self-evident.

“Let’s go.”

“I thought it was something else. It’s boring. It’s really boring.”

The comrade who was massaging behind him suddenly stopped and said sourly, “I can’t even find anyone to massage me, and you still want to enjoy a massage? Get lost.”

Before Jiang Manfu could react, another soldier shouted, “Please stand up. This stool below is mine.”

Jiang Manfu stood up in confusion. The little soldier took the stool away and gave him a proud look.

Then, another older soldier snatched the teacup from Jiang Manfu’s hand and said, “Here, use your broken teacup.”

The massage service was cancelled, the cup in his hand was snatched away, and he was not even allowed to sit on the stool. The enthusiasm he had just had was gone, and Jiang Manfu was completely confused.

You guys change your expressions so quickly, don’t you need to change?

But soon, he snorted, took out a candy from his pocket, waved it in front of everyone, then peeled off the candy wrapper and threw it into his mouth, muttering to himself:

“Alas, my sister-in-law gave me two handfuls of candies when I left. I wanted to come back and share them with you, but it seems that no one likes them, so I’ll enjoy them all by myself.”

Everyone was stunned.

“What?”

“toffee?”

“Where is it?”

“Brother Jiang, we are good comrades. Where is the candy?”

“Oh mom, I told you Jiang Manfu is a good comrade, but you refused to believe me. Look at this, isn’t it enlightenment?”

“Where’s the sugar?”

“Look, look, look at how worthless you are. You can be bribed by just a piece of candy.” The stationmaster Li Hongtu stood up and pointed at everyone with great sorrow.

The young soldier murmured, “Squad leader, that’s milk candy, one dime a piece, and I’ve never eaten milk candy in my life.”

The others also nodded. Those who could serve in the army were basically children from poor families. Many people had heard of or seen a rare item like milk candy but had never eaten it.

The monitor sighed in a serious manner, turned around and looked at Jiang Manfu, “How many candies do you have? Is there enough for everyone to share one?”

Jiang Manfu nodded, walked to the dormitory table, and took out all the candies in his pocket, a total of 13.

There were ten soldiers in a squad, and the squad leader asked him to give one to each soldier present. As a result, Jiang Manfu had only one left in his hand after he had distributed all the pills.

“Hey, that’s not right. There are only ten people in our dormitory, nine of them except me. How come there are three more people?”

Jiang Manfu looked up.

There were three more people in the dormitory, but they were from the next dormitory, or the next class. They heard the commotion here and came over to take a look out of curiosity.

When I heard about milk candy, I stayed a little longer and mixed it with a piece of candy.

The squad leader didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, “When are you three little bastards coming? Why are you so quiet?”

Jiang Manfu was annoyed. He only had one candy left in his handful. He looked at the three comrades standing next to him and said angrily, “Okay, you’re taking advantage. Brothers, let’s get him.”

Everyone rushed forward, and the three young soldiers quickly slipped away, with everyone chasing after them.

The monitor of the next class came back and looked at the “battle” with a confused look on his face. He looked at Li Hongtu who was watching the show at the dormitory door and asked, “What’s wrong with them? Why are they so happy?”

Li Hongtu explained. When the squad leader of the next class heard that Jiang Manfu not only ate so much meat but also got two handfuls of milk candies, he became envious. He looked at the noisy soldiers and smiled and shook his head.