Chapter 44: “Wife, Your Handwriting is So Beautiful”

Niu Guifang waved her hand dismissively. “There’s no need to thank me. We’ll be neighbors from now on, and there will be plenty of times when we’ll need to help each other out!”

Su Ruanruan completely agreed with this sentiment.

As the old saying went: “Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors.” There was definitely some truth to that.

As the two of them were chatting, Fu Wenjing walked over from a distance.

Seeing him, Niu Guifang greeted him cheerfully. “Seventh Fu, you’re back! You sure are something—quietly went back home and returned with a beautiful wife! When are you inviting us over for a wedding banquet?”

Fu Wenjing smiled and replied: “Sister-in-law, don’t worry, the wedding banquet is definitely happening. We just arrived in the middle of the night, so we’ll tidy up the house over the next couple of days, prepare some things, and then invite everyone over for a meal.”

Niu Guifang was not one to stand on ceremony. “Alright then, we’ll be waiting! If you need any help, just let us know. You’ve been busy all night, so I won’t disturb you anymore. Hurry up, eat something, and get some rest!”

Niu Guifang lived next door, with only a wall separating their houses. She only had to take a few steps before entering her own courtyard.

Watching Niu Guifang leave, Su Ruanruan and Fu Wenjing then stepped into their own courtyard, closing the door behind them as they walked into the house.

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Inside the eastern room, they sat down at the square table, and only then did Fu Wenjing open the two food containers.

Both containers were quite large. One was filled with golden-yellow corn porridge. As soon as he lifted the lid, the sweet aroma of corn spread through the air.

Su Ruanruan hadn’t felt particularly hungry before, but as soon as she smelled the porridge, her stomach let out an involuntary growl.

At that moment, Fu Wenjing opened the second container, which was packed with large steamed buns—lined up neatly, a total of six.

“The food container wasn’t big enough to hold any side dishes, so I figured we’d just have some buns. Let’s keep breakfast simple.”

The buns were made from white flour, each one even bigger than Su Ruanruan’s fist.

The bottoms of the buns were slightly oily, and the combined fragrance of dough and meat was enough to make anyone’s mouth water.

Su Ruanruan looked at Fu Wenjing with utmost sincerity and said: “How is this a simple breakfast? This is amazing!”

During her time with the Fu family, she had never had any meat in the mornings. She had never even seen buns like these. She had been longing for them for quite a while.

The buns were still steaming hot, and the skin wasn’t too thick. One bite in, and she had already reached the filling—it was stuffed with pork, vermicelli, and cabbage.

Taking a few bites of the bun and then sipping the corn porridge, Su Ruanruan closed her eyes in bliss.

It was just too delicious!

The buns were so large that Su Ruanruan was completely full after eating just two.

Without saying a word, Fu Wenjing finished off the remaining four buns and drank up the last drop of porridge.

“I washed the lunchbox; you don’t need to worry about it. Hurry up and go to sleep.” Fu Wenjing urged Su Ruanruan.

Su Ruanruan rubbed her belly. “Just ate and now sleeping? I’ll definitely get fat.”

Fu Wenjing laughed. “It’s good to gain some weight. You’re too thin.”

Su Ruanruan completely agreed with this statement.

The Original Owner was great in every way, except that she was too thin. Standing nearly 1.7 meters tall, she probably weighed only around 90 pounds. Fortunately, her body was still decent, or else she would have looked like a bamboo pole.

In order to gain weight as soon as possible, Su Ruanruan rinsed her mouth, returned to the eastern room, and lay down on the heated brick bed. Not long after, she fell asleep.

Although the bed had been changed, Su Ruanruan was not at all bothered by it and slept soundly.

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When Su Ruanruan woke up, she was still alone on the bed.

She picked up her watch and saw that it was already past twelve.

Just as she rubbed her eyes and sat up, the door was pushed open from the outside. Fu Wenjing walked in with a smile. “You’re awake? I just brought back lunch. Wash your face and you can eat.”

“Didn’t you sleep?” Su Ruanruan asked.

“I slept for four hours. When I woke up, I went to get lunch.”

Su Ruanruan stared at Fu Wenjing, noticing that he looked full of energy, showing no signs of fatigue at all.

He was full of spirit!

Lunch was rice with two dishes: braised pork and stir-fried shredded potatoes.

The dishes were placed directly on top of the rice, making it a rice bowl with topping. The two lunchboxes were just enough for two people.

But they couldn’t keep doing this forever.

After taking a few bites, Su Ruanruan asked Fu Wenjing: “Is there a Supply and Marketing Cooperative around here in the Military Unit?”

“There is one, but it doesn’t have a full range of items. I was thinking, after we finish eating, we can take a bus to the nearby town. They have more variety, and we can buy everything we need.”

Hearing that they could go shopping, Su Ruanruan immediately became interested. “What kind of bus are we taking?”

“A public bus. There’s one that goes to the town every day, passing by our Military Unit. If you ever want to go to the town or the county, you can take this bus. I’ll show you the route after we finish eating.”

Su Ruanruan nodded repeatedly. “I’ll make sure to remember it well!”  

The braised pork had a rich, glossy red color and was stewed to perfection. The fatty meat melted in the mouth, while the lean meat was tender and not dry at all.  

She mashed the braised pork into smaller pieces and mixed it with the rice. The aroma was simply irresistible.  

If it got a bit too greasy, she took a bite of the shredded potatoes. They were tangy, slightly spicy, and delightfully crisp, perfectly balancing out the richness of the pork.  

By the time she finished, the lunchbox was completely empty—she hadn’t left a single grain of rice behind.  

She was definitely full, but her mouth still felt a little lonely.  

If only she had some fruit or snacks to munch on after the meal, that would be perfect!  

Even though she didn’t have any now, Su Ruanruan firmly believed that in just a few days, she would.  

Fu Wenjing was going to the Military Unit tomorrow, so he wouldn’t be able to accompany her all the time.  

Once that happened, she could close the door and eat whatever she wanted!  

Just imagining her future days filled with delicious food made Su Ruanruan’s eyes curve into a smile.  

“So happy?”  

Fu Wenjing’s sudden question didn’t startle her at all. Instead, she nodded. “Of course!”  

“I’ll wash the dishes. You grab the money, and we’ll head out soon!”  

Hearing this, Su Ruanruan immediately understood—Fu Wenjing thought she was simply excited about going shopping.  

Well, that was indeed something to be happy about.  

Since they needed to buy quite a few things today, Su Ruanruan took about a hundred yuan and gathered all the ration tickets.  

To make sure nothing was forgotten, she walked over to Fu Wenjing’s desk, grabbed some paper and a pen, and started writing down everything they needed.  

Dishes and chopsticks were essential—after all, they had to cook at home. She also noted down a few spoons.  

Then came the seasonings: oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise—everything had to be bought. Staple foods like rice and flour were also a must.  

One by one, she listed them, and soon, half the page was filled.  

At that moment, Fu Wenjing walked over, glanced down at the paper, and sincerely praised: “Wife, your handwriting is really beautiful.”  

When she heard this, Su Ruanruan’s expression turned slightly complicated.  

The Original Owner had graduated from junior high school, but her handwriting was only average.  

Su Ruanruan, on the other hand, had seriously practiced calligraphy. Her neat, standard script was truly elegant.  

Fortunately, Fu Wenjing had never seen the Original Owner’s handwriting before, so Su Ruanruan wasn’t worried about being exposed.