“What do you mean by Liu Hanzhong was shot? I remember when he got out of the car, he was fine.”

A few days after returning to the base, such a news shocked Chen Lina.

That night, Sun Xiaohai was captured, and Sun Dabao was killed.

All the people involved in the escape at the farm, in such a strict era, couldn’t possibly escape punishment.

However, since the incident began at the mine, they would have to undergo education and serve their sentence within the mine area.

But Liu Han was fine when he left, how could he have been shot?

“The well-trained security officers, when they saw the large truck charging towards the gate, didn’t harm the people inside the truck, but they definitely aimed at the driver’s cabin.

You and the children were lucky, of course, because you were lying low. Liu Han, on the other hand, was shouting and had the window open, so the pellets hit him.”

The pellets generally don’t cause death due to their small force, but they can cause severe infections.

Liu Han was shot in the waist, and after the pellets were removed, he died from the subsequent infection and complications.

“Does that make him a martyr?”

“Chen Lina, do you know what ‘the dead cannot speak’ means? Before Sun Xiaohai was executed, she kept blaming Liu Han, pushing all the crimes onto him.

If it wasn’t for the armed department finding strong evidence and capturing her superior at the Hazikzi border, wiping out the spy network, Sun Xiaohai would have likely pinned all the blame on Liu Han.

But even so, the crimes she accused him of were enough to prove that he was a Soviet spy, not a martyr. It’s already good that the two children aren’t involved in his mess.”

“So what will happen to those two children?”

“Liu Han’s father came and took Liu Xiaogang with him. As for the little girl, he refused to take her. A family from the No. 3 mine is interested in adopting her, and they are negotiating with the leaders right now.”

“What’s their last name? What was their name again?”

“The man’s last name is Song, Song Jin. He’s a well-digger, and his wife can’t have children, so they want to adopt.”

“Old Nie?”

“Yes?”

“I think you look especially handsome today.”

“Comrade Chen, don’t try to flatter me. I have no interest in raising someone else’s child. Besides, the little girl is quite delicate, and we only have two beds at home. Let me ask you, if we adopt her, will she sleep with you, or with Wei Min and the others?”

“So you’re saying you think I want to adopt Liu Xiaohong?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I have to tell you something. That little girl will eventually be executed for drug trafficking, but according to a small, unreliable newspaper, the drugs were planted on your son, and she took the blame for him, confessing to the drugs and accepting the death penalty for him.”

“Which kind of drugs are we talking about? Ice, heroin, opium paste?” Nie Bozhao removed his glasses before going to bed.

“There are many kinds of drugs. After the opening up, there was a period when they flooded the market.

It wasn’t until the Republic’s Ministry of Public Security cleaned up and cracked down that the situation calmed down, but it still harmed a large number of young people.”

“Did Weimin ever deal drugs?” Alright, the old cadre took this matter seriously, as if it had already happened.

Chen Lina explained: “They were just small-time thugs in the city, collecting protection money on street corners. As for whether they dealt drugs, I’m not sure.”

“If they really did that, they deserved to be shot. Lin Zexu burned opium in Humen, and the alarm bell still rings less than a hundred years later. It seems the opening up wasn’t all good,” Nie Bozhao said bluntly.

“I’m not saying I want to adopt the little girl. I just remembered that the newspaper said this child was from an oil field family, but because of a lack of proper discipline, she went down the wrong path. And I read somewhere that her adoptive father’s last name is Song, and her former name was Song Jingnian.”

“Pan Jinlian, Song Jinlian. What an interesting name change.”

“What I mean is, no matter how much things have changed, Liu Xiaohong will eventually have an adoptive father named Song.

This means in her past life, she was still adopted by Song Jin. That’s why she didn’t study properly in his home and entered society at a young age, becoming a mistress at fifteen or sixteen.”

In fact, the text doesn’t mention it, but Liu Xiaohong had been sexually abused by her adoptive father since childhood, which is why she went out into society at such a young age.

Considering Nie’s serious and upright nature, Chen Lina chose to leave this part out.

“So what do you think we should do?” Nie Bozhao thought for a moment and said, “I don’t have a habit of raising someone else’s child, but if you really want your own child, how about we have one ourselves?”

“We’ll have one? Are you willing to give up your balloons?”

“Comrade Chen, using protection is to protect your body. Having children is a complicated matter, and both parties must agree. For example, I agree now. If you want, we can have a daughter.”

“No thanks. You want one, but I don’t. I’m the brightest flower at the base, and I’m the most beautiful and successful farm manager among the two hundred farms in the frontier. Why would I have a child?”

“You don’t love me? If you love me, shouldn’t you want to have a daughter with me?”

“Old Nie, I think we should have a clear understanding of ourselves. Don’t you think that if it weren’t for that Old Nie from the past life, I wouldn’t have come here to suffer the wind and rain, let the sun ruin my skin, and worked hard to raise children for you?”

“Looks like I really owe it to him. Alright, the apricot tree fork beat me. He’s a hero, a monument, unbeatable. But you should do your duty now, Comrade Chen.”

“Old Nie, I’m asking for a proposal, I want romance, and you haven’t given me any of that. There’s no obligation to fulfill, just go to sleep.”

“Does the watch count?”

“Barely, but can you stop wearing that balloon? If you keep wearing it, I won’t agree. I’ve told you I can’t get pregnant, and you keep blowing it up. It’s like wearing a raincoat while taking a shower.”

Looking at the reusable cover, Nie Bozhao thought her description was spot on.

Well, from now on, he had figured it out.

Since she said she couldn’t have children, then it must be true.

“It’s the middle of the night, aren’t you going to sleep?”

“Try taking a bath naked, is there something wrong with that? Plus, today’s the once-a-month sex life day.”

…

“Old Nie, don’t tell me this is the first time you’re not wearing a condom.” In the darkness, Chen Lina seemed a little incredulous.

The man seemed extremely excited, very, very excited, with his head resting on her chest.

After holding back for who knows how long, he said, “This is the second time in my life.”

…

The next morning, Chen Lina had planned to take a day off to take her three kids to the mining area.

But when she had just finished getting ready, her parents came over.

He Lan’er was carrying a basket of fresh cucumbers, with flowers hanging on them.

“AuntHa, want some cucumbers? They’re from our farm,” Chen Lina asked as she saw Aunt Ha standing by the wall, offering her two cucumbers.

Aunt Ha took the cucumbers and said, “Ah, my cucumbers are just starting to bloom, and these from your farm are already on the market. Little Chen, you’re doing a great job as the farm manager!”

“Aunt Ha, I laid down the soil film, the soil has enough heat, and there’s plenty of moisture. That’s why the cucumbers grow faster. Tomorrow, you can go to the mining area’s supply and marketing cooperative and buy some soil film too, and it’ll help the vegetables sprout quickly and grow well.”

“I’ve heard of soil film before, but we don’t know how to use it,” said Wang Jie, poking her head from the other side of the wall.

Chen Lina gave her two cucumbers as well. “Well, our farm will have a special session at the plastic factory today to teach everyone how to lay and use soil film. You should go take a look.”

The soil film they used wasn’t the advanced kind that would come from Japan in the future, which would better lock in moisture and heat, but for agriculture, it was already a huge leap forward.

While other farms hesitated and wondered whether to use it, Chen Lina was the first to go to the plastic factory and grab the first batch of soil film.

The vegetables grown with it had already been put on the market.

“Lina, take a break at noon, let mom cook for you.”

“Mom, where did this fine white flour come from? It’s not from my brother-in-law, is it?” Chen Lina asked when she saw her mother with the fine white flour, smelling the aroma of wheat.

He Lan’er quickly shook her head. “I was afraid people would think he got his position through connections. He eats what others eat; we eat the same 85-flour, steamed buns.

This fine flour, I’ve been saving it since the farm gave it to us during the New Year, just storing it. Today, I’ll make a cold cucumber noodle dish for you, how about it?”

“Grandma, what’s cold cucumber noodles?” Erdan, chewing on a big cucumber, ran over.

He Lan’er laughed and said, “It’s just cold noodles with cucumber in it. On a hot day, a bowl of cold noodles is so refreshing. I’ll make you some fine noodles you’ve never had before.”

As for He Lan’er’s noodle-making skills, even Chen Lina couldn’t match them.

However, He Lan’er didn’t come just to make noodles for her daughter today.

Seeing the three children playing with a little golden treasure and Chen Tiantian by the water faucet, she said, “Lina, raising three kids must be tough, huh?”

“If they have enough to eat and wear, it’s not that tough.”

“I see you carrying the little one San Dan all the time. When you get to the farm, you have to carry and hold him. The kid can’t even get a sip of warm water, sometimes just sleeps in your arms. Not only do the kids suffer, but you’re also managing the farm and raising the kids. That’s really tough.”

“I don’t mind. I’ve gotten used to carrying him, and it’s like he’s a part of me. I don’t feel the weight,” Chen Lina said.

Although her mother had told her not to work, Chen Lina still had to hurry and slice the cucumbers before the kids could finish eating them.

Cold noodles with cucumbers, and some fried eggs, were naturally delicious.

Recently, Nie Bozhao had been at the base and hadn’t eaten fine noodles for a while.

Chen Lina thought for a moment and called Nie Weimin. “Weimin, go check if there are any wild duck eggs left in the small storage room. I need to fry some wild duck eggs today.”

“You said the water at Baiyang River is deeper now, and you didn’t want us going near the river. Why do you want wild duck eggs? There aren’t any left now.” Nie Weimin replied.

“Oh, there are wild duck eggs! Big Brother picked a lot, and he’s hiding them.” Erdan said.

“See? I told you not to go, but did you listen?” Chen Lina asked.

“I just didn’t want to make you worry, and I also knew you’d always crave wild duck eggs, so I secretly saved some for you. Is that wrong?”

“Not wrong. But, Nie Weimin, what do you mean by ‘I crave’? Isn’t it you three who are the ones craving?” Chen Lina, who often found herself unable to counter her eldest son, always felt both convinced and helpless.

When you don’t manage the household, you don’t realize how expensive things are.

Before she became the farm manager, Chen Lina was quite generous.

Now that the warehouse accounts were all in her hands, knowing exactly what was inside and how long the tough days would last, she couldn’t afford to waste.

But when making a good meal, of course, she had to be a bit heartless—adding a spoonful more oil to slide things along, and a fluffy, light scrambled egg would be served up.

“Lina, your dad and I are coming over today because we have something to discuss with the son-in-law. He’ll be home soon, so I just want to give you a heads-up. Then, we’ll all ask him together. What do you think?”

“What’s this about?” Chen Lina was stunned, because her mother looked so serious, and her father was standing in the kitchen doorway, looking a little awkward.

He Lan’er said, “It’s like this: Your sister’s been to the mine hospital, seeing the local doctor, taking shots, and medicine for a long time, but she still can’t get pregnant. Your family has so many sons, right? Why don’t you give her one? It’s still your family’s child, she’d just be helping you take care of it for a while.”

“Mom, what are you saying? What do you mean ‘give her one, it’s still mine’?” Chen Lina immediately raised her voice.

Chen Bingcang said, “You have three sons, right? If you think one isn’t good, just let your elder sister take one for a while, let her raise it, and later, we’ll send it back to you.”

“Yes, the second one, isn’t he a glutton? I see he eats the most at the farm. We barely feed him. Besides, your sister doesn’t have any sons. If he goes there, it might be better than staying here. If she can raise a child, we’ll send him back to you later.”

“Raising a child” was an old tradition.

In some families, when a couple couldn’t have children for a long time, they would borrow a child from another family, raise it, and sleep with it.

After some time, the couple would have their own child, and the borrowed child would be sent back.

“Mom, enough. I know what you’re here for today.” Chen Lina grabbed the rolling pin and started to roll out the dough herself.

“She’ll have her own child in the future, just not right now. You don’t need to rush this. And as for wanting a child, don’t bring it up with Old Nie. I’ve already refused here, and it’s not happening.”

“Why? Are you afraid your sister won’t treat your kids well? Lina, she’s your real sister, you know her character. She’s a little confused sometimes, but her heart is just as kind as yours.”

“Mom, it’s not about being kind or not. My kids are not for giving away.”

“Even your real sister?” He Lan’er was displeased.

Now, Chen Lina finally understood the audacity with which Sun Ainan wanted to give her child away.

Children were not like spouses in the eyes of these elders; they seemed like something you could share or give away at will.

“Not even my real sister. Those kids are mine. I won’t give them to anyone. Don’t even talk about giving them away for a day, not even for one day.”

He Lan’er covered her mouth, turned, and walked out.

She left immediately.

Chen Bingcang sighed and said, “I told Hong Bing about adoption, but your mom and sister insisted on coming and asking. If you ask me, they just need a good scolding from you.”

Just then, Nie Bozhao came home after work.

He was puzzled when he saw his mother-in-law leaving in a hurry, and even more confused when he saw his father-in-law.

He heard it was about wanting a child, and Nie Bozhao wasn’t happy either.

Why were they all so fixated on his three sons?

Did they think he couldn’t afford to raise them?

“Alright, I’ve already turned them down. I made it clear. My sister will probably be upset for a while, but she’ll be fine soon.” Chen Lina tried to comfort Nie Bozhao.

“You did well. The sons of Nie Bozhao will never be given away to anyone.” He had grown up with his adoptive parents, who treated him very well, but being sent away always made him feel like he wasn’t good enough, always wondering if he did something wrong, which made his parents give him up.

He was always afraid that his adoptive parents might one day abandon him again.

Nie Bozhao never wanted his sons to experience that.

There was a loud clatter from the kitchen, and Chen Lina suddenly slapped her head. “Ah, how did I forget? If I don’t add oil to the cucumbers, they’ll turn into a puddle of water.”

When she entered the kitchen, she saw that Er Dan was stoking the fire, Weimin was fishing out noodles, and San Dan, the youngest, was holding a bowl and scooting closer to his older brothers.

He Lan’er had rolled out some long noodles, and they were so long that you could pick up a single strand with a chopstick.

The little one was struggling to catch up with his older brothers.

“Er Dan, aren’t you usually the laziest? Why are you working so hard today?”

The three kids turned around, all smiling but not speaking.