Font Size:
**“I really think life here is good. Truly. And marrying you, I don’t regret it for a second. I want to build our little home together with you.
Honestly, I’m shallow. I look at the face and the body. Luckily, you’ve got both. You’re exactly my type.”**
Momo’s words were direct. Xingchen, for the first time, was grateful for his good looks. If they were enough to win his wife’s heart, then that was his greatest fortune.
As for his physique, well, that spoke for itself. He trained daily, his muscles firm and defined. Even last night, riding the bicycle, his wife’s hands had wandered with great appreciation.
The two of them lay side by side under the quilt, chatting idly about anything and everything, until Momo finally drifted off to sleep. Xingchen held her in his arms, breathing in the faint sweetness of her scent, before falling into deep slumber himself.
But in the middle of the night, he woke. He had overestimated his self-control. Normally disciplined, he now lay sweating.
In his arms, Momo was warm and soft, one leg and one arm draped over him, her face tucked into the hollow of his neck, clinging tightly to him.
It was bliss. It was torture. He had promised not to let her conceive too soon, not before they had proper protection. So he endured, silently reciting famous quotations in his head to calm his racing blood.
At dawn, the bugle call sounded. Momo stirred awake. The space beside her was already empty. She rubbed her eyes, slipped on her shoes, and padded into the living room.
“Wife, it’s only five. Why don’t you go back to sleep?”
**“It’s fine. I went to bed early last night, so I’m not that tired. I can nap in the afternoon.
But why are you up so early? Did you already go out for food?”**
“I always wake at this time. I’m used to it. From now on, I’ll cook breakfast. By the time you get up, you can just sit down and eat.”
Breakfast wasn’t complicated: porridge or steamed sweet potatoes and pumpkin with some pickles, maybe an egg. That much Xingchen could manage.
“Good. Then I’ll save myself the trouble. Yesterday I only woke up early because I’d gone to bed too soon and because it was a strange bed. Otherwise, I’d never have gotten up.”
“When you go to the village with Sister Xu today, be careful. If you buy too much, leave it at the village chief’s place. I’ll pick it up this evening.”
“All right. I won’t tire myself out. Tonight I’ll cook you a nice dinner.”
“Thank you, Momo.”
They ate breakfast together. Afterward, Xingchen washed the bowls, then pulled her close to plant a kiss at the corner of her lips before leaving.
It was still too early to disturb Sister Xu. Likely, she was still resting. So Momo busied herself instead: she dug out Xingchen’s old clothes from the wardrobe. Wherever she found a tear, she patched it neatly. A surgeon’s stitches were always precise, even grape skins had been sewn in her practice; a bit of cloth was nothing.
When she was done, it was already eight o’clock. She hung the clothes back in the wardrobe and frowned. Xingchen had so few outfits. Apart from his uniform, he had almost nothing—just two undershirts, both riddled with holes.
She’d need to learn the sewing machine quickly to make him clothes. Winter would require padded trousers, sweaters, and woolen undergarments. She couldn’t knit yet, which meant a whole new skill to tackle.
The list of things to learn was long. Still, she couldn’t neglect her medicine and languages—those were her foundation. In her space, she had stowed away medical texts and language books; every day, she resolved, she would set aside time to study.
Carrying her water flask, she headed to Sister Xu’s house. The gate was open, and she saw the older woman tending her vegetable patch.
“Sister Xu, I’m here.”
“Momo! Sit down a moment, I’ll just wash my hands.”
“No rush, Sister. Your vegetables look wonderful. I’ve never grown any myself. I’ll have to rely on Xingchen.”
“It’s simple. I’ll teach you the method you’ll manage fine. The first time is the hardest; the second is easy.”
Sister Xu was a seasoned farmer, her patch flourishing with greens as proof of her skill.
“You don’t have a basket, do you? Take one of mine. I have plenty.”
“Thank you, Sister. I’ll trade for two in the village later. We’ll need them.”
“Better get a carrying basket too. It’s handy for gathering wild greens in the hills. This season’s perfect for it. From April onward, you can find fiddleheads, water celery, dandelion greens, and wood ear mushrooms. In autumn, mushrooms too. By mid-October, the snow falls, so you’ll want to stock up before then.”
Talking as they went, the two women rode their bicycles into the village. Yesterday, when Momo had passed through at dusk, the streets had been quiet. Now the place bustled with people heading to the fields.
And while she looked curiously at them, they looked back at her. A woman this beautiful was bound to draw stares.
The village chief’s house was a handsome brick-and-tile home at the entrance to the village.
“Sister Chen, I’m here.”
“Ah, Xu! And who’s this pretty girl? A relative of yours?”
“No, this is Deputy Commander Lin’s wife. She just arrived yesterday. They’ve nothing in the house yet, so we’ve come to you.”
“Hello, Sister Chen. I heard from Sister Xu that your seeds are the best, so I came to trade for some. And we’re short on almost everything, eggs, and vegetables. I’ll need quite a lot.”
It would take a month or two for new vegetables to grow. In the meantime, they still had to eat.
“All right. Come with me to the storeroom. The seeds are there.”
Packets of seeds lay wrapped in paper, each labeled by hand. Momo chose enough for their little yard.
“This will be plenty. The yard isn’t big, and some are out of season anyway.”
“I’ve plenty of vegetables too. What do you want?”
“Sister Chen, please give me two carrying baskets and fill them both with vegetables, whatever you have. I’m not picky. And I’d like fifty eggs. I’ll come back when we need more.”
“Fifty? Can you carry that much? You don’t look like you could lift a finger. Your hands are softer than scallions!”
Her doubt was understandable.
“I’ll take half back now. My husband will fetch the rest tonight.”
“All right. These two baskets are yours. They’re used, but take them as a gift—they’re not worth much. I’ll go collect the eggs. Only twenty left today.”
She bustled off, leaving Momo and Sister Xu to harvest vegetables. Xu taught her what to pick and how to choose, and Momo, quick and sharp, remembered everything after just one demonstration.
They gathered some of every kind in the garden. For the ones harder to reach, they’d wait for Sister Chen to return.