She didn’t act coy or modest by saying she wasn’t good-looking or that her appearance was just average.

If she was pretty, then she was pretty. Since others had sincerely complimented her, she should graciously express her thanks.

The car slowly came to a stop, and after about twenty minutes, they arrived at the Northwest Military District.

Their arrival was noticed by many of the military wives.

Everyone knew that the “Handsome King of Hell,” Sheng Zexi, had brought his rural wife back!

Sheng Zexi had always been the center of attention in the Northwest Military District, and now that he had married, and to a rural girl at that, it sparked even more heated discussion.

“What do you think Battalion Commander Sheng’s wife looks like?”

“What else could she look like? A rural girl—she’s probably dark-skinned, either as thin as a bean sprout or stout and broad-shouldered. She’s likely uneducated too.”

After all, the rural girls they had seen were all like that.

“Why do you think Battalion Commander Sheng married a rural girl?”

“Getting married doesn’t mean he was willing. I’ve heard that rural folks are quite savage and have many tricks up their sleeves. Maybe she used some scheme to trap Battalion Commander Sheng.”

“I think so too. She must have schemed her way into making him marry her.”

“Poor Battalion Commander Sheng.”

And so, as soon as Sheng Zexi and Gu Jianing got out of the car, rumors about them began to spread like a gust of ill wind throughout the military district.

As the rumors spread, they morphed into the story that Sheng Zexi had been tricked into marrying his rural wife, who was described as extremely ugly, with dark, rough skin and pockmarks.

The handsome battalion commander had married an ugly woman! How pitiful, truly pitiful!

Gu Jianing had no idea that others were spreading rumors about her being an ugly woman who had trapped Sheng Zexi through underhanded means.

At that moment, the car had stopped in front of their home, a single-story house that Sheng Zexi had applied for.

As she got out of the car, the cold wind forced Gu Jianing to put her hat back on and pull her scarf up.

Looking around, she saw several rows of neatly arranged single-story houses. The one Sheng Zexi had applied for was in the front row, with several more rows behind it.

Next door was Zhang Shuwan’s family.

Sheng Zexi had mentioned that the houses in the front row were the best because they had yards, private bathrooms, and even wells.

The houses in the back rows didn’t have yards, and they were often missing certain amenities.

However, the back rows were sparsely populated, with many empty houses.

The reasons for this were twofold.

First, the Northwest was extremely cold, with snow falling almost constantly in the winter. When the snow was heavy, the roads would be blocked for at least two months, leading to shortages of supplies.

As a result, many family members were reluctant to come and live with the soldiers.

Second, most of the family members who did come preferred to live in the apartment buildings.

So, the apartment buildings in the family quarters were more densely populated.

Gu Jianing, however, thought that these single-story houses with yards were better. They were more spacious, whereas the apartments were too small, with many shared spaces and little privacy.

After Sheng Zexi fetched the keys and opened the door, Lin Xing helped carry their luggage inside before returning to his own home next door with his wife and daughter.

“After I got the approval for this place, I had some soldiers come and clean it thoroughly. Take a look—it’s quite tidy, isn’t it?”

Gu Jianing looked around. It was clear that the soldiers had done the cleaning—the place was spotless, and everything was neatly arranged. It reminded her of Sheng Zexi’s perfectly folded “tofu block” blankets.

“Let’s take a look around together.”

And so, the young couple began to explore their new home.

The house had a living room in the center, with two rooms on either side. The east side had a kitchen and a storage room, while the west side had a bathroom and a shower room.

A three-sided yard surrounded these rooms.

It wasn’t huge, but it was spacious enough, especially with a well in the yard.

Gu Jianing knew all too well how important and convenient having a well and private bathroom and shower room was in this day and age.

But…

“Isn’t there too little water in the well?” Gu Jianing asked.

The water in the well was clear, but it was almost at the bottom. Would there really be enough water?

“The Northwest is quite short on water resources, especially in the winter. This is actually considered good for this time of year. Plus, with winter temperatures often dropping below minus ten degrees Celsius, people here don’t bathe often—sometimes only once a month. Otherwise, bathing in such cold weather could easily make you sick.”

Sheng Zexi first lit the heating stoves in the living room and the master bedroom, then fetched water and placed it on the stove to heat. After that, he grabbed a broom and quickly swept away the snow that had accumulated in the yard.

Even though someone had cleaned the place a couple of days ago, it snowed every day, so the yard would always have some snow.

When Gu Jianing heard that people only bathed once a month, she was shocked.

“Will I have to bathe only once a month too? Can I even bathe today? I feel like I’m starting to smell.” Gu Jianing’s voice carried a hint of grievance. Huaihua Village was in the south, where it never snowed in the winter. Gu Jianing was very particular about cleanliness, and even in the coldest winters, she bathed every day.

“You can,” Sheng Zexi assured her. Then he leaned in and whispered a couple of things in her ear. Gu Jianing’s eyes lit up, and she grabbed his arm in excitement. “Really?”

“Really. I’ll take you there this afternoon.”

“Okay, it’s a deal.”

“So, what should I do now?” Although Gu Jianing was a bit lazy and didn’t like doing chores, seeing Sheng Zexi busy working alone made her feel a little guilty. After all, this was their home.

“Go and organize the luggage. Put the smaller items away. I’ll go to the cafeteria to get some food once I’m done here.”

“Okay.”

And so, the couple got to work—one inside the house, the other outside.

Gu Jianing placed the food her family had sent in the kitchen cabinets. There were quite a few preserved meats, such as cured rabbit, smoked chicken, and smoked pork, as well as some pickled vegetables made by her mother, Yao Chunhua.

Originally, her family had wanted her to bring rice, flour, and other grains, but Gu Jianing had refused. In these times, every household was short on food, so how could she take theirs? Besides, the journey was long, and those items were heavy.

With her exchange system at hand, where food, clothing, and other daily necessities were cheap, she could find a time and opportunity to exchange for some grains later.

After putting away the food, Gu Jianing went to the master bedroom she shared with Sheng Zexi and looked at the heated brick bed (kang) with curiosity.

In the south, there were no kangs, and Gu Jianing had never slept on one before.

In this era, there was no modern heating, so the only way to stay warm was to heat the kang.

Gu Jianing touched it. Perhaps because it hadn’t been heated for long, it wasn’t warm yet.

She placed the blankets on the kang, carefully spreading them out, and then arranged the pillows and other items.