After some rummaging, Nie’s mother was left with only a few small cotton jackets for the babies.

Reluctantly, she decided to leave those behind for the second branch’s daughters.

“This daughter-in-law, what’s she like? She’s only been here one day and already trying to take over my house?” Nie’s mother grumbled to her husband after going inside.

“What, the eldest son’s a petroleum worker with such a high salary, and he can’t even leave a few clothes for the second son’s kids? What’s that about?” Nie’s father, who favored the second son, stood up, preparing to go find his son.

“Alright, alright, let her take them for now. But mark my words, this fiery girl hasn’t felt the hardship of raising kids yet. Those three little boys, she won’t be able to handle them. When she can’t stand it at the base, and the eldest son comes crying, asking us to help with the kids, I’ll be able to get my way,” Nie’s mother thought, dreaming of the future.

Meanwhile, Chen Lina didn’t waste time and immediately took a needle and thread to hem the jackets.

Before long, she had adjusted one of the big coats and called out, “Er Dan, come try on your new clothes.”

A little boy with a round face and a head full of energy ran in, making train noises, stretching his arms out, and closing his eyes, waiting for someone to help him put on his clothes.

Chen Lina helped him into the coat, brushed it off, and then patted him on the back. “Alright, go out and play now,” she said, handing him a piece of candy.

“This Yao Po is really nice, she gave me candy!” Er Dan said, crunching on the candy, and then he dashed out of the room like a gust of wind.

Nie Bozhao, still confused, asked, “Why does Er Dan always call you Yao Po?”

Chen Lina raised an eyebrow, wondering if her performance as a “fool” wasn’t convincing enough, and replied, “I don’t know.”

“Are we leaving early tomorrow?” Chen Lina asked as she continued packing her things.

“Yep, early. We need to catch the train.”

Chen Lina walked over to help him, but as soon as her hand touched the clothes he was folding, Nie Bozhao immediately stood up, as if shocked by electricity. “How about you finish packing? I’ll go check on the dry food for the trip.”

Chen Lina thought to herself, Am I a beast? Why’s he acting like this?

Not long after, Nie Bozhao returned, explaining that his mother was sick, and the second daughter-in-law had gone to work, so no one was there to make flatbreads for their dry food.

In those days, when everything required a ticket, food was a big issue, especially on long trips involving a day-long bus ride and three days on the train.

So dry food was essential for their journey.

Clearly, Nie Bozhao had encountered some resistance from his mother and wasn’t eager to lose face in front of his new wife.

He explained, “We don’t need dry food. Once we get to the provincial capital, I’ll buy us some flatbreads and food.”

Just as they were talking, Er Dan suddenly burst in. “Yao Po, Yao Po, someone’s looking for you outside.”

“Er Dan, you should call her ‘Mom,’ not Yao Po,” Nie Bozhao scolded, grabbing his son.

“It’s fine, let him call me whatever. Kids don’t know any better, what’s the harm?” Chen Lina quickly intervened.

In her heart, she thought, These three boys, it’s no surprise that two of them won’t live long, and one will end up in the hospital. With no one teaching them, they’re all wild. Once they’re all mine, I’ll have to straighten them out one by one.

When she stepped outside, she was surprised to see that the person waiting for her was her cousin, Nie Guozhu.

“Lina, you really married into this family? I only joked about it before, how could you actually marry him?” Nie Guozhu, in his military uniform with a buzzed haircut, was a man of some stature in the village.

The whole second branch, along with Nie’s mother and the villagers, gathered around, clearly eager to watch the drama unfold.

Nie Bozhao had heard from his mother that Chen Lina had been engaged to Nie Guozhu before he came along, and they had broken up not long ago. So he said, “Why don’t you come inside and talk?”

Nie’s mother called from behind, “Guozhu, you’re not planning on fighting, are you?”

Nie Guozhu’s face turned pale with anger as he looked up at the towering Nie Bozhao.

It was clear he was ready to fight.

The crowd stirred, excited to see what would happen next.

Chen Lina, sensing the tension, led the way toward the Qishi Riverbank.

There, only a few people followed, while most stayed at a distance, still watching the scene unfold.

“What’s going on? How’s it going with the daughter of the commander? Are you sure you want to marry her?” Chen Lina asked, addressing Nie Guozhu.

Nie Guozhu ran a hand over his short-cropped head. “Lina, there’s this girl who’s been madly pursuing me, but after a lot of internal struggle, I’ve realized that it’s you I want to fight alongside. Sure, you’re not in college anymore, but that doesn’t matter. Once I’m discharged, I’ll return to the village, and we can build a life together.”

“You’re well-fed and well-clothed in the army. The commander probably promised you that once you get married, he’ll figure out a way to keep you in the army and promote you, right? Once you get promoted, you’ll have everything you need. Why would you want to come back to the countryside?” Chen Lina countered.

“The thing is, I don’t like that girl,” Nie Guozhu said. “I still think you’re the one for me.”

Nie Guozhu truly didn’t like the commander’s daughter, who was a female soldier—dark-skinned, chubby, and not nearly as beautiful as Chen Lina.

And Chen Lina, how beautiful she was!

When they were in college, Nie Guozhu often visited her.

Her skin, as fair as milk, was like it had been washed by the Yellow River, and her ponytail flew in the wind.

Just thinking about her soft, fair skin kept Nie Guozhu awake for many nights during his youth.

“I heard you haven’t gotten your marriage certificate yet. Do you really want to get married? I’ll go back and file for my discharge. I still want to be with you, Lina. I’m begging you,” he said earnestly.

Well, now he wanted to be with her.

But once he was back in the army, working hard every day, having to labor and go out in the fields, when life became a constant struggle, he might begin to think back on how good the commander’s daughter was.

“Go back to the army. Old Nie and I are already married. If you keep making a scene, I’ll just bring your breakup letter and take it to your commander,” Chen Lina said decisively, turning to leave.

She heard Nie Guozhu kick a poplar tree, and the leaves rustled loudly in response.

“Cousin, you need to change your temper. The world is changing, and the situation is getting more serious. Staying in the army is better than being in the village,” she added.

“But I don’t like that girl,” Nie Guozhu repeated.

“Marriage isn’t just about liking or not liking someone. Do you remember how you said you liked Ashima? You hated the Hotuobala family because of her, wanted to kill them all, but was that even possible?”

Ashima was a movie that everyone had seen countless times.

In the movie, Ashima was beautiful and graceful, and she could sing folk songs.

Wherever the movie was shown, young men would fall in love with her so deeply they almost wanted to jump into the movie screen.

If Chen Lina had cried a little, saying that she couldn’t live without him, that they had grown up together, and that she secretly loved him, Nie Guozhu would definitely have filed for his discharge and returned to the village to find her.

But she had lived long enough to know better.

She wasn’t the same naive girl who only thought about romance. A few words of calm reasoning, and Nie Guozhu’s resolve crumbled.

Indeed, if he stayed in the army, he would have a salary and could be promoted.

But if he were discharged and returned to the village, he would be just a regular soldier with no job to arrange.

He’d have to farm, right?

Once he thought about it like that, Nie Guozhu’s mind cleared.

He looked back, and there was Nie Bozhao, tall and dressed in a wool coat and big boots, standing by a tall poplar tree.

His eyes looked harsh, staring at him from a distance.

“That man already has three kids and is on his second marriage. If he treats you badly, you come find me. I’ll help you teach him a lesson.”

“I will,” she said.

“I’ll always be your cousin,” he added, thinking back to the days when Chen Lina was little, always running to the river with snacks for him, calling out “Cousin, cousin.”

His eyes reddened, and he couldn’t stop himself from crying.

“Cousin, go back,” Chen Lina waved at him.

She thought to herself, in the past life, her cousin had been a playboy who died in a car accident on a road known for prostitution.

She hoped this life would be completely different for him.

“Is that it?” Nie Bozhao asked, somewhat incredulous.

The girl, who had a slight stutter and whose mouth always twitched, was handling this situation quite decisively.

He clenched his fists, prepared to fight Nie Guozhu if he dared to cause trouble.

“What else should I do? Let’s pack up and sleep well. We’ll leave tomorrow,” Chen Lina said.

Nie Bozhao paused and then said, “If you regret it now, it’s not too late. We haven’t gotten our marriage certificate yet, so we’re not legally married. Also, I didn’t touch you last night.”

At twenty years old, she was a beautiful, curvy woman, though her behavior was a little off, with her mouth twitching from time to time.

“I don’t regret it, never regret it. Let’s go,” she said, turning around and leaving Nie Bozhao to stare at her retreating figure.

Hmph, she wasn’t a woman nobody wanted.

Though no one was interested in her because of her class background, once the reform and opening-up began, no one would care about that.

Behind her, she would have a line of suitors, enough to form a strong unit.

Just wait, Chen Lina thought. How could I not win you over?