Chapter 35.2

She tugged at He Chunhua’s arm, applying a bit of force.

Finally, He Chunhua responded.

He Cuixiang smiled and said, “I’m tired from standing here. Sister Lin, you all chat. I’m heading home.”

“Go ahead, go ahead.”

He Cuixiang left quickly. As soon as she closed the door behind her at home, her smile faded.

“He Chunhua, what exactly are you thinking?”

She frowned, full of frustration.

“Are you being shameless, trying to steal someone’s man?” The more she thought about it, the tighter her frown became. “If you have such thoughts, just go back to the village. I can’t afford to lose face!”

He Chunhua’s eyes were filled with tears as she shouted, “He was originally mine!”

She should be the commander’s wife!

Hearing this, He Cuixiang felt the situation was getting serious.

“No,” she stood up, “I’ll ask your brother-in-law to buy you a ticket and go back tomorrow.”

He Chunhua became anxious when she heard this.

“Sister, how could you do this?”

After finally coming to the army, how could she return to the hard life of farming? If she went back to the village, her parents would certainly find her a match, and those people couldn’t compare to being in the army.

Marrying someone from the village meant a lifetime of rolling in the mud.

“Why can’t I do this?” He Cuixiang said, her chest heaving with anger. “What was that look you had just now? If I hadn’t stopped you, would you have rushed in?”

“I can’t afford to be embarrassed!”

Those army wives were very perceptive. If she had shown even a hint of weakness today, her reputation would have been ruined.

He Chunhua could go back to the countryside, but what about her?

She would only be left to face the scorn of everyone in the military family compound!

He Chunhua bit her lower lip stubbornly, tears welling up and falling one by one.

“He’s the regiment commander, and brother-in-law is the captain. You’re just afraid of angering him and getting my brother-in-law into trouble. As long as I become the regiment commander’s wife, I can—”

A loud smack cut off He Chunhua’s remaining words.

He Cuixiang was trembling with rage, taking a deep breath.

“How could I have such a shameless sister?” Seeing He Chunhua staring at her with wide eyes, He Cuixiang continued, “Don’t talk about whether you have the chance or not. Even if you had, I wouldn’t let you do something so disgraceful!”

Although He Cuixiang had little education, she understood basic principles.

She was also straightforward and generous.

Otherwise, Wu Gang’s mother wouldn’t have chosen her at first sight.

“Go inside,” He Cuixiang said, pushing He Chunhua into a room. “Tomorrow morning, I’ll have your brother-in-law send you back to the village.”

He Chunhua, inside the room, was on the verge of collapse.

She pounded on the door, shouting, “Sister, let me out! Sister, let me out…”

He Cuixiang was too angry to listen to He Chunhua’s pleas.

“Sister! Let me out!”

“Let me out…”

After calling for a while with no response from outside, He Chunhua was truly frightened.

“Sister, I was wrong. Please let me out…”

“Sister, I’m sorry!”

He Cuixiang ignored her.

She had heard similar words before, but this time she was determined to send He Chunhua away.

No one’s words could change her mind!

*

The furniture was delivered, gradually filling the empty house.

Ruan Mingfu felt a sense of satisfaction.

The house finally felt like a home.

After the movers left, the army wives in the family compound dispersed slowly as there was no more excitement to watch.

Hu Wanning looked at the transformed house and the newly redecorated living room. “Sister-in-law, how did you come up with such beautiful furniture?”

When making the furniture, Ruan Mingfu had also referenced design trends from fifty years in the future.

She had directly implemented the designs she liked.

The living room was a combination of leisure and function, unlike most homes at the time. It appeared more spacious and bright.

Sitting on the sofa, Hu Wanning was even more impressed.

“I almost don’t want to leave.”

Ruan Mingfu brought over some water. “Then don’t leave.”

Although the furniture was now in the new house, it was still empty inside. Fortunately, Ruan Mingfu had previously made a list and had Xu Zhu buy everything on it.

At the moment, there wasn’t even water to drink.

Xu Zhu’s ears perked up. “That won’t do. My wife has to stay with me.”

“By the way, when are you going to start cooking?” Hu Wanning ignored him. “I’ll come and cook for you.”

If Ruan Mingfu had to cook, they’d probably be waiting a long time for a meal.

As expected, Ruan Mingfu’s eyes lit up.

“Sister-in-law, you’re so kind. I was worried about this.”

Ruan Mingfu didn’t know how to cook and was considering going to a state-run restaurant instead. But that wouldn’t be the same as having a proper meal at home.

She also felt embarrassed to ask Hu Wanning directly.

Just as she was about to discuss it with Xu Zhu, Hu Wanning took the initiative to offer.

“It’s just cooking a meal. What’s the big deal?” Hu Wanning waved her hand.

Old Xu had helped them before; it was just a small favor. Besides, she and Ruan Mingfu got along well.

Ruan Mingfu’s eyes sparkled. “Sister-in-law, what would you like to eat? I’ll have Old Xie buy it.”

Xie Yanzhao heard this name: “…”

His feelings were mixed. They hadn’t even had their honeymoon yet, and they were already like an old married couple.

He sat there seriously and nodded, “Yes!”

Xu Zhu: “…”

So it begins with the wife and husband supporting each other?

Tsk tsk, it’s really unbearable to watch.

They were all close friends, so Hu Wanning didn’t bother to be polite with them.

“There should be meat, and maybe some bones for soup.”

“Let’s buy a fish too,” Ruan Mingfu said, licking her lips. “Sister-in-law’s fish is so delicious.”

Remembering the fish she had tasted at the Xu family, Ruan Mingfu’s mouth watered again.

“Alright.”

Hu Wanning agreed immediately.

The cleaning of the room was done by the four of them together.

Halfway through, a young soldier ran over and, after talking to Xu Zhu, turned to Ruan Mingfu and said, “The stuff has arrived. I’m going to go to the entrance and check.”

At first, Ruan Mingfu was a bit confused, but then she realized.

“Go ahead.”

The sewing machine and refrigerator had arrived.

When the large truck arrived, those who had still been lingering around widened their eyes even more.

“My goodness, how much did Commander Xie buy today?”

“Ugh—so extravagant. A wife like this should be sent back to her parents’ home.”

“Let’s calculate carefully; all these things together must be close to a thousand, right?”

“Oh my goodness, these spendthrift women… If it were my family, I’d definitely send her back to her parents.”

“How could an ordinary person afford to support such a delicate wife…”

Sister Lin glared at these people, “No matter how much money Comrade Ruan spends, it’s not your money. Why are you so concerned?”

“Exactly,” Sister Wang chimed in, “The wife of Commander Xie looks like a precious person. She must be quite wealthy. These things are probably all bought by her herself.”

Bought by herself?

Hearing this, others gasped in shock.

Is this new wife a golden doll, and she bought these things herself?

Where would she, a young woman, get so much money?

The others didn’t believe Sister Wang’s words. Some sisters with straightforward temperaments couldn’t help but argue with her.

“She’s not a young lady… How could she buy them herself? Are you trying to fool us?”

“Isn’t it all money from Commander Xie? Why act so pretentious?”

“Already speaking up for the new mistress…”

“Alright, let’s all stop talking,” an older sister intervened, calming everyone down, “They’re not spending your money, so why worry about it?”

The older sister wanted to say more but was stopped by someone nearby.

Ruan Mingfu was unaware of the jealousy behind her back. Even if she did know, she wouldn’t care.

There would be plenty of opportunities for them to be jealous.

The manager personally came to supervise the moving of the large items.

“Comrade Xie, please check them.”

He uncovered the cloth on top, revealing the items to everyone. The crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted into excited chatter.

“This is a sewing machine, right?”

“Commander Xie is really generous… What’s that iron box next to it?”

“That iron box is a refrigerator. I saw it at the supply and marketing cooperative. It’s said to cost a thousand yuan.”

“What?! A thousand yuan!!!”

The sister who said this was shocked, her voice rising.

But she couldn’t care less, “A thousand yuan?! For a piece of rusty iron? Why is it so expensive?”

“You don’t understand,” a more knowledgeable sister explained, “This is a domestic refrigerator. It can freeze water and keep food fresh for several days. It’s very useful.”

“Really? You make me want to buy one.”

“Do you have that kind of money?”

“…”

Sister Wang and Sister Lin couldn’t help but be intrigued, wanting to see the refrigerator for themselves.

The manager arranged for workers to bring it inside.

“Comrade Xie, the refrigerator needs to be left for a day before it can be used,” the manager handed over a piece of paper, “I’ve written all the instructions here. Just follow the steps one by one.”

Xie Yanzhao took the paper, and Ruan Mingfu peeked at it out of curiosity.

The paper was filled with dense writing.

Ruan Mingfu found it a bit overwhelming and decided to give up.

“Alright, I understand.” Xie Yanzhao put the paper away, “Thank you.”

The manager smiled and said, “It’s my duty. No need to be polite.”

After sending the manager and others away, Hu Wanning looked at the iron box with delight, “Is this the refrigerator?”

Sister Wang and Sister Lin stood aside, not daring to touch it.

A thousand yuan! What if it got damaged?

“If you like it, we could go buy one too.”

For Xu Zhu, the refrigerator wasn’t anything special. With his family background, buying one was no big deal.

“Go away,” Hu Wanning glared at him, “A thousand yuan, I need to see if it’s good before deciding.”

“Sister-in-law, why suddenly buy a refrigerator?”

Ruan Mingfu looked at Xie Yanzhao.

He replied in a low voice, “It’s a wedding gift.”