A nearby auntie overheard his words and couldn’t help but speak up for Gu Xiaoxi. “This girl just fixed the rice mill for our village!”

“The rice mill just got soaked in water. It didn’t need much fixing—just needed drying. This tractor is different.”

The auntie was still optimistic. “What if she fixes it?”

It was broken anyway—trying to repair it wouldn’t hurt anything!

Just as the soldier was about to say something, another soldier ran over. “Deputy Battalion Commander Mo, Battalion Commander Lu and the others are harvesting in the northern valley.”

Gu Xiaoxi, busy at work, suddenly heard the words “Battalion Commander Lu” and immediately looked toward the source of the voice.

When she saw Deputy Battalion Commander Mo, she quickly searched through the interpersonal relationships that Lu Jiansen and her two sisters-in-law had explained to her. It didn’t take long for her to recall—this was Liu Meihua’s husband, the deputy battalion commander of the Fourth Battalion..

Seeing Gu Xiaoxi looking at him, Mo Desheng spoke sternly, “You’re a military wife, not a professional mechanic. You can’t use the people’s property as a test subject. A tractor carries the hopes and hard work of farmers. What you’re doing is destruction…”

Gu Xiaoxi couldn’t be bothered to listen to his lecture. She simply lowered her head and continued working on the repair.

Mo Desheng saw she was treating his words like air. Feeling disrespected, he walked over.

Just as he reached the tractor, about to continue scolding her, Gu Xiaoxi gestured to the village chief.

“Village Chief, it’s fixed! Have someone try it out to see if there’s still any issue.”

The village chief didn’t care what rank Mo Desheng held. He immediately pulled a man from the crowd. “Dagangzi, go try it out!”

“Alright! On it!” Dagangzi stepped forward and, in passing, shoved Mo Desheng aside. “Move, don’t block the way!”

Mo Desheng was so choked up with anger he couldn’t even breathe properly—neither in nor out.

These villagers had no sense at all!

A tractor wasn’t some simple machine—not everyone could fix it. Even people at the agricultural machinery station couldn’t always repair one.

He was waiting to see if Lu Jiansen’s wife could actually fix it or if she’d just embarrass herself.

While he was thinking that once the tractor failed to start, he’d go give Gu Xiaoxi a proper political lesson, the tractor suddenly roared to life with a put-put-put-put.

The villagers, seeing the tractor move, quickly stepped aside, delighted.

Dagangzi drove the tractor about fifty meters away, then stopped, waving excitedly at the village chief.

“Village Chief, it’s good! The tractor’s fixed! Runs great…”

The village chief was overjoyed and hurried to thank Gu Xiaoxi. “Girl, thank you so much! You’re a great benefactor to our village!”

Gu Xiaoxi humbly waved it off. “No, no, the tractor wasn’t badly broken. It was pretty easy to fix.”

Mo Desheng: “……”

Watching Gu Xiaoxi be treated like an honored guest by the villagers for fixing the tractor, he clenched his teeth and turned to leave.

Lu Jiansen’s luck really was something else. He avoided danger on that last mission, and now he’s married to someone so young, pretty, and even capable of fixing tractors!

When Gu Xiaoxi returned to the village’s grain drying yard, the villagers already saw her as one of their own and were completely at ease with her.

At noon, the village chief personally brought her two jin of freshly milled rice and a catfish weighing at least three jin.

One of the aunties even gave her two eggplants and a bowl of pickled vegetables.

Gu Xiaoxi had been wanting to test her cooking skill, so she invited Feng Xia to join her and set up a stove at the First Battalion’s station to make some fish congee.

Feng Xia was in charge of lighting the fire and rinsing the rice, while Gu Xiaoxi began handling the fish.

When Feng Xia turned around and saw Gu Xiaoxi’s masterful knife skills, she froze for a moment.

How could someone wield a knife so deftly?

It felt like she had just spaced out for a moment, and the fish was already fully prepared.

Looking at the fish slices—thin, uniform, and beautiful—she was amazed.

Gu Xiaoxi was quite pleased with her handiwork. She turned to Feng Xia and said, “Sister-in-law, let’s make fish fillet congee. The leftover fish head and extra meat, we can stew them with eggplant—how about catfish stewed with eggplant?”

Feng Xia nodded blankly. “Okay, I’ll follow your lead!”

Watching Gu Xiaoxi cook the congee, she just knew today’s fish congee was going to be delicious.

And she was right!

Thirty minutes later, after taking her first bite of the congee, she felt the fish’s freshness practically melt her tongue.

She had never tasted such delicious congee!

When she got back, she would definitely try making it herself!

When the soldiers from the First Battalion returned, they could smell an enticing aroma from a distance. Upon arriving at camp and hearing that the battalion commander’s wife had cooked fish congee, they all craned their necks.

Those standing closer inhaled the aroma deeply, swallowing their saliva.

Seeing Lu Jiansen walk over, Gu Xiaoxi immediately handed him a portion of fish congee that she had set aside earlier.

“The village chief gave me over two jin of freshly milled rice. I used it all to cook congee. There’s not enough for everyone, so just take a small taste!”

Lu Jiansen, noticing the special treatment, had a warm look in his eyes and asked softly, “Did you eat yet?”

Gu Xiaoxi nodded. “Sister-in-law Feng Xia and I ate right after it was done—it turned out really well!”

Yes, she had eaten first because she was curious about how the congee would taste now that her congee-cooking skill had reached a small mastery.

And it really was delicious!

The congee was soft, smooth, and glutinous; the fish was tender, fresh, and flavorful. The taste lingered in the mouth and warmed the stomach.

Lu Jiansen took a bite and nodded slightly. “It’s delicious.”

Gu Xiaoxi looked around and didn’t see her brother, so she asked, “Didn’t my brother come back with you?”

Lu Jiansen sipped his congee and replied, “He didn’t have the luck to enjoy this. He’s escorting a wounded soldier to the hospital.”

Gu Xiaoxi felt her brother was truly unlucky and added, “There’s also catfish stewed with eggplant in the pot. You should try it too.”

“Okay!” Naturally, Lu Jiansen wouldn’t pass up food made by his girl. Still, since he already had the fish congee, he only tasted a little of the stew and left the rest for the others.

Since there wasn’t enough fish congee to go around, the soldiers shared small portions among themselves.

Those with quick reflexes ran ahead to the kitchen squad to get steamed buns and sweet potato rice, then came back to scrounge some catfish and eggplant stew.

Li Kun was extremely satisfied after eating and couldn’t help but sigh, “If only sister-in-law could work in the military district’s cafeteria!”

Immediately, several others chimed in, “Yeah! Sister-in-law’s cooking is amazing!”

But Lu Jiansen said, “No.”

His girl didn’t actually enjoy cooking. Making a meal occasionally was fine, but there was no need for her to work in a cafeteria—he could support her.

Gu Xiaoxi had never thought about working in a cafeteria either. Seeing Lu Jiansen say that, she nodded in agreement.

“Right, I won’t go!”

She actually preferred making pastries to cooking meals—and she loved eating them too!

But in this era, there just weren’t enough ingredients or conditions for people to eat so delicately or refined.

Li Kun wasn’t disappointed that she didn’t want to work in the cafeteria. He was already thinking about getting closer to Company Commander Gu in the future, so he could score more chances to eat at the battalion commander’s place.