Chapter 14: Settling Down

Ran Jinnian’s mind was in a mess, and she didn’t have the energy to think about adding anything to the house.

Lu Jinyuan was tongue-tied and didn’t know what to say.

He was extremely anxious.

Just then, a ball flew over.

A large group of seven- or eight-year-old children came barreling toward them, and it looked like they were about to crash into Ran Jinnian.

Lu Jinyuan immediately stepped in front of her: “Hey, kids, watch out for people!”

“Hehe.”

The children giggled.

Their joyful laughter brought Ran Jinnian back to her senses. She looked at the chubby little kids in front of her.

Her mood gradually lifted. She had already arrived at the military zone, discovered her anemia during the prenatal checkup, and had already identified the problems—now it was time to solve them.

Ran Jinnian lifted her bright face: “Hubby, there are quite a few things to get for the house. Let’s make a list when we get back. By the way, aren’t you returning to duty tomorrow?”

Seeing her mood improve so quickly, Lu Jinyuan thought women’s feelings really changed fast.

“There are people going to town every day. I’ll have them bring what we need back.”

“Isn’t that taking advantage of the military?” Ran Jinnian asked, slightly worried.

“It’s not military procurement,” Lu Jinyuan patiently explained when he saw her misunderstanding. “The military zone is so big, there are many people going to town every day. So the zone arranges vehicles to make it convenient for everyone to travel.”

Ran Jinnian suddenly understood.

“There’s one trip in the morning, one in the afternoon,” Lu Jinyuan said, pointing to a square. “You take the vehicle from over there.”

Ran Jinnian, heavily pregnant and anemic, wouldn’t go to town alone.

On their way home, they passed by the training grounds.

“Commander Lu!”

“It’s Commander Lu and his wife!”

“Let me see!”

A regiment was resting. Someone must have been sharp-eyed enough to spot Lu Jinyuan, and everyone gathered around to look.

They saw the cold-faced commander holding his wife’s hand, rubbing it, and grinning foolishly.

This was the cold-faced Yama—Lu Jinyuan!

Heavens.

They couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

After rubbing for a while, Lu Jinyuan finally warmed his wife’s hand.

“Commander!” came excited voices.

He turned his head to see people climbing all over the walls, their sparkling eyes watching him.

Lu Jinyuan: “……..”

He waved them off, telling them to get down quickly and not scare his wife.

“Sister-in-law!”

They all shouted in unison.

Ran Jinnian looked at them. These were the passionate young soldiers: “Hello, everyone.”

“Don’t mind them. Let’s go,” Lu Jinyuan said, pulling her forward.

“Sister-in-law, wait for us!”

Everyone waved enthusiastically.

“The commander has a beautiful wife and doesn’t pay attention to us anymore!”

“My wife is so beautiful. I wouldn’t pay attention to you smelly brats either.”

“Go away!”

They teased each other a little, then immediately ran to assemble at the whistle.

Ran Jinnian and Lu Jinyuan returned to the military housing area.

Every household was starting to cook lunch, and the air was filled with the rich aroma of food.

“Commander Lu, you just came back yesterday. The house probably isn’t prepared yet,” said a plump sister-in-law, holding a basket of vegetables. Lu Jinyuan looked and said, “Wife, this is Sister Zhou. The vegetables this morning were picked from her field.”

“Thank you for the vegetables, Sister Zhou,” Ran Jinnian said sweetly.

Zhou Hongying glared at Lu Jinyuan: “What are a few vegetables for you to thank me? Come have a meal at my place.”

“Sister Zhou, no need.”

Zhou Hongying directly called the children forward: “Why are you still being polite with Sister? Come inside, the food is almost ready.”

The couple couldn’t resist her enthusiasm and were pulled inside by the kids.

Ran Jinnian took a few pieces of candy from her bag and handed them to the children.

“Thank you, Auntie!”

The kids were delighted.

Ran Jinnian then looked around the house. It had one more room than their previous place. Although there were many things, everything was neatly arranged.

“Sister-in-law, I’ll help you,” Lu Jinyuan said, heading to the kitchen.

“No need, sit down. Daya, come help bring the dishes,” Zhou Hongying called in a loud voice, and the eldest daughter ran into the kitchen.

Lu Jinyuan stood at the kitchen door: “Brother Zhengguo hasn’t come yet?”

“Not yet. Should be soon.”

Zhou Hongying moved quickly and soon had several dishes ready: a plate of shredded potatoes, a plate of greens, and a large plate of pickled vegetables with fried pork—though not much pork.

She took out a bottle of Erguotou: “Commander Lu, do you want a drink?”

“No, Sister. My wife is pregnant,” Lu Jinyuan waved his hand repeatedly.

Zhou Hongying handed chopsticks to Ran Jinnian: “Little sister, if it doesn’t suit your taste, just tell me.”

“I’m Ran Jinnian. You can call me Xiao Ran, or Jinnian is fine,” she replied warmly to the cheerful Zhou Hongying.

“Your name is really unique,” Zhou Hongying said as she served the three children.

Ran Jinnian smiled: “My grandfather was a private school teacher. He chose it.”

“People with education really name kids differently. Ours are just Daya and Erya,” Zhou Hongying said, surprised that Ran Jinnian’s family was exceptional.

Most of the military wives in the housing area came from rural families.

“Daya, Erya, come sit closer,” Ran Jinnian said, seeing the two girls sitting a little far, and gave each a plate of food.

Zhou Hongying held the youngest and fed him while chatting: “You’re seven months along, right?”

“Almost,” Ran Jinnian nodded.

“We live so close. When Commander Lu isn’t around, if you need anything, you can come to me,” Zhou Hongying said, thinking of Ran Jinnian being alone.

Ran Jinnian replied without hesitation: “Of course, if I need anything, I’ll definitely ask for your help.”

After the meal, Ran Jinnian and Lu Jinyuan returned home.

“Sister Zhou is really nice. When I’m alone, I often eat at her house,” Lu Jinyuan said.

Hearing this, Ran Jinnian felt a deeper sense of familiarity.

“Wife, rest at home a bit. I’ll go get your family ID,” Lu Jinyuan said, taking out their marriage certificate and other documents.

Seeing him leave, Ran Jinnian grabbed a broom and cleaned the house.

When she finished, she wasn’t sleepy, so she took out paper and pen to write down what needed to be purchased.

Soon, more than half a page was filled.

When Lu Jinyuan returned, he saw Ran Jinnian leaning over the table, writing.

He put down the things in his hands: “Wife, the lighting here isn’t great. Be careful not to hurt your eyes.”

“Hubby, there’s quite a lot we need to get for the house,” Ran Jinnian said, handing him the list.

Lu Jinyuan glanced at it. He didn’t pay much attention to what they needed—he just thought his wife’s handwriting was really beautiful.

“We don’t have enough pots, and we need a few more basins. The wardrobe is a bit small; we should get a bigger one,” Ran Jinnian said. Although she had everything in her space, since they had just arrived at the housing area, buying these things now would be obvious.

“We also need to buy some fabric. Children’s clothes and shoes—we need to make more.”

“This window needs covering too, otherwise everything is exposed,” Lu Jinyuan said, looking at the bare window.