Chapter 11

In the original text, the female lead was almost universally loved, with flowers blooming wherever she went.

Moreover, Qiao Wei had read quite a few transmigration novels, some of which had a setting where the “plot” controlled the characters. In this kind of setting, the “plot” was like the wheel of destiny, rolling over and making the characters, especially the male lead, uncontrollably develop feelings for the original female lead.

If this world followed a similar setting, it would be quite troublesome.

“She looks quite diligent,” Qiao Wei praised, along with Sister Yang.

“She’s not just diligent; she’s exceptionally diligent.” Sister Yang’s eyes lit up. “That girl is incredibly hardworking. Don’t be fooled by the fact that she’s only been here for a few days; she has helped me with so much. She takes care of the house, cooks, washes clothes, and looks after the kids. Since I married Old Zhao, I’ve never had such an easy time.”

“For whoever marries her in the future, they’ll be fortunate!”

Sister Yang looked pleased with herself.

Qiao Wei was an educated person, having completed high school. In the military community, where many were from rural backgrounds, family members often had low educational levels, making her quite rare. She was generally proud and didn’t socialize much with these rural women.

But everyone knew that although Captain Yan had married an educated woman, their lives weren’t going well.

People like Sister Yang believed that, for women, education wasn’t that useful; being hardworking and virtuous was essential. Only with these qualities could a woman properly take care of her husband and family.

Captain Yan ate breakfast at the camp every day, and everyone knew it.

Those who laughed at his wife for being lazy in private were not uncommon.

“Sister, what are you talking about?”

Suddenly, a young girl’s voice sounded at the courtyard gate.

Qiao Wei and Sister Yang looked over, and it turned out to be Lin Xixi who had returned.

She was carrying a plastic woven basket similar to the one Qiao Wei had, and in one hand, she held a little boy. On her back was an even smaller girl.

The image of a hard-working, simple, hard-working, and all-around good woman in the TV series that innocent grandmothers love to watch.

Sister Yang stood up. “Look at her! I said I would take care of the children, and she insisted on taking them with her when she went shopping.”

While complaining, her expression was cheerful.

Captain Zhao’s family has five children, three sons and two daughters, ranging from the eldest son, who is twelve years old, to the youngest, Wu Nier, who is only two years old. Any woman who was surrounded by a group of children every day would be happy when someone freed her from it.

Sister Yang went over to take the basket and asked with concern, “Tired, right?”

Lin Xixi sweetly replied, “There’s still so much work at home. Sister, you haven’t rested for a moment. I’m young; taking care of two children is nothing.”

She emphasized, “Besides, I really like taking care of children.”

Being so considerate and articulate, Sister Yang liked her even more. While helping Lin Xixi take off the cloth bag strapped to her back, she said, “This is Captain Yan’s wife. You met her yesterday, right? You should address her… as Aunt.”

Apparently, after a day of adjustment, Lin Xixi had accepted that Qiao Wei was still alive. She handed the Wu Nier on her back to Sister Yang, smiled, and called out, “Aunt Qiao.”

Her eyes flickered.

Qiao Wei responded with an unceremonious “Hmm” when Lin Xixi untied the child carrier, and at that moment, Qiao Wei clearly saw the relieved expression on Lin Xixi’s face. It indicated that she was definitely not as “young and unwearied” as she claimed.

Wu Nier was two years old and quite heavy. Carrying such a big child, walking to the farmers’ market, and walking back while keeping an eye on the lively little boy, how could she not be tired?

Lin Xixi was creating an image for herself, emphasizing her love for children.

This indicated that even though she saw Qiao Wei was still alive, she had not given up on Captain Yan, a man with such great future potential.

The little boy brought back by Lin Xixi was Sister Yang’s fourth son, Junzi, who was five years old. When he saw Yan Xiang, he let go of Lin Xixi’s hand and ran over, shouting, “Yan Xiang!”

Seeing that Yan Xiang was a whole head taller, he reached out and pulled Yan Xiang, saying, “Come, let’s play!”

Before Yan Xiang could speak, Sister Yang had already slapped him on the head. “Don’t be naughty. Look at how Yan Xiang is dressed. How can you play with him?”

Although there was no malice, her words contained a hint of teasing.

Junzi was wearing a cross-strap vest and shorts, with two bare and dark little arms. There were several places on the vest that had been sewn with needles and threads, and there was also a patch on the shorts.

Even in the family of a cadre with many children, especially boys, it was particularly hard on clothes. After the eldest wore them, the second, then the third, until the last child, that’s when the clothes were considered fully utilized.

Comparing them, Yan Xiang was really fair and tender, and he dressed like a little young master.

Just thinking about it, Lin Xixi laughed and said, “Our Yan Xiang looks like a little young master.”

This was not a compliment. Only the sons of capitalists and landlords were called young masters.

“Comrade Xiao Lin,” Qiao Wei’s face became serious. “I know you just came from the countryside, and you may still yearn for the decadent life of the former landlord class. But you must understand that every stitch and thread we have today is given to us by the country.”

“Captain Yan is the same as Captain Zhao. They both carried it through the rain of bullets on the battlefield, both were shot, and both almost sacrificed their lives for the country. They have the same rank and the same income. Every penny of their salary was earned through bloodshed.”

 “I am by no means exploiting the surplus value of the proletariat like capitalists, nor do I possess the means of production like the old landlords.”

“Remember, we are all descendants of the proletariat, not some young masters,” Qiao Wei emphasized. “Our ability to live well today, to have good food, good drinks, and good clothes, is all thanks to the country and our great leaders!”

Sister Yang was wide-eyed and tongue-tied.

Lin Xixi’s face turned red, attempting to explain, “I didn’t mean to…”

“Enough, don’t say more.” Qiao Wei raised her hand to interrupt her. “Don’t worry, our Captain Yan and Captain Zhao share a bond of life and death. I won’t go around spreading nonsense.”

“But, sister-in-law,” she turned to Sister Yang, “you should teach Xiao Lin not to speak recklessly. Although she’s not a direct relative, she’s still a close one. We shouldn’t hold back Captain Zhao. As military personnel, as officers in the army, political ideology is crucial. We’ve been military dependents for so long, you must understand.”

Love can be stern.

Sister Yang wasn’t well-educated. When the village commune branch conducted literacy classes, she was busy giving birth to children. In the gaps, she learned a few characters roughly, and then she slipped through the cracks. She was a missed target for literacy education.

These days, Captain Yan’s wife, a cultured person, suddenly sought her out and entrusted her with the child. A cultured person, who used to look down on others, was now seeking her help, making Sister Yang feel uplifted.

During the days Qiao Wei was away, she took care of Yan Xiang much more meticulously than her own children. As expected, Qiao Wei came with a token of appreciation.

See, even cultured people know etiquette. Before, she was proud and looked down on others.

Finally, Sister Yang could hold her head high for a while.

Little did she know that the atmosphere was good, and she was praising her niece. Suddenly, the cultured person, “bam bam bam,” said something that left her dumbfounded. Moreover, what she said made sense. Old Zhao had reminded her before, “If you don’t understand, you can keep quiet, but don’t speak nonsense.”

Sister Yang was stunned for a moment before she reacted, hastily saying, “She’s just a child. Sister, don’t mind her.”

Qiao Wei lowered her voice. “I certainly won’t argue with a child. I’m just afraid that others might use it to make trouble and put a hat on Captain Zhao.”

Sister Yang, a traditional woman who regarded her husband as highly as the heavens, was sweating profusely after hearing this, giving Lin Xixi a playful hit: “Dead girl, stop talking nonsense.”

Lin Xixi felt wronged.

She had also come from this era and understood it very well. Clearly, it was intentional to put a hat on Qiao Wei, but it was unexpectedly turned back on her.

She could no longer speak. If she continued, the intention would be too obvious, and there would be no way to defend against it because it was intentional in the first place.

She could only lower her head, clutching the hem of her shirt.

“Don’t mention it anymore. After all, she just came from her hometown, with a short time here and little experience. She’ll understand slowly in the future,” Qiao Wei advised Sister Yang. “Don’t get angry, don’t get angry.”

Sister Yang wasn’t angry originally but was now made to look like she was. She was a traditional rural woman, taking care of the whole family with her husband’s income. No one could influence Captain Zhao’s future!

She fiercely gave Lin Xixi a glare.

After seeing Qiao Wei off, she turned back to Lin Xixi and said, “Be more careful. This is not our hometown; when speaking in the military, you have to be careful. Don’t let people put hats on your uncle.”

Lin Xixi, being her niece, felt a bit distant. She hesitated for a moment before saying, “Aunt, why did she come here?”

Sister Yang’s face lit up. “To bring me a gift.”

Proudly pointing to the meat and the paper-wrapped package on the table, she said, “Look, such a nice piece of meat, and she even bought brown sugar.”

“Oh, you see, this little Qiao is quite courteous. I didn’t think her way of using her nose to look down on people,” Sister Yang grumbled. “She only has a few people in her family, yet she doesn’t even cook every day, always going to the canteen. She really doesn’t know how to manage a household. One day, I’ll talk to her. Don’t rely on being young and good-looking. Men won’t spoil her forever…”

When mentioning eating dumplings, she glanced at Qiao Wei. Qiao Wei didn’t catch on.

For Qiao Wei, going out or ordering takeout was quite normal. In Sister Yang’s mind, however, since there was a woman in the house, how could she be lazy like this? It might be fine for unmarried women or those who had to work, but if you were married and stayed at home, how could you still be like this?

Lin Xixi became even more certain that Qiao Wei had also experienced rebirth.

She returned to the present in the 90s, a time when online novels had not yet become popular, so she didn’t know that besides “rebirth,” there was another situation called “transmigration.”

She was only worried about one thing: the man she liked had a wife, and the wife wasn’t dead. What should she do?

Sister Yang was preparing to cut the meat, and when she turned her head and saw Lin Xixi daydreaming, she asked, “What are you doing? What are you staring at?”

After all, she was her aunt—not blood-related, but still a relative. She paused and said, “I didn’t scold you. Don’t blame little Qiao. After all, she’s a cultured person. I didn’t think there was anything wrong with what you said. Look at how she systematically explained everything to you. And what she said is all correct.”

Lin Xixi pulled herself together and said, “I’ll pay attention in the future.”

But she couldn’t help adding, “She’s really lucky.”

“What?” Sister Yang was puzzled.

“I mean, she married Captain Yan.”

“Yes, Xiao Yan is quite handsome.”

She gave Lin Xixi a meaningful glance.

At seventeen or eighteen, it was the age to get married in the village. This girl came to seek refuge with her uncle, probably to have him introduce a good match for her.

This girl was also good-looking, not inferior to Captain Yan’s wife.

With Captain Yan being such a talent, she probably wouldn’t have any thoughts, right? He was a married man.

“It’s a pity that she’s already married. Otherwise, I would introduce him to you, and your uncle would be happy to help.” She said, “But don’t worry, there’s no shortage of young and talented guys in the camp. Let your uncle pick a handsome one for you.”

Sister Yang thought her niece was pretty, and she might not be pleased if she found an unattractive match for her. Little did she know, Lin Xixi considered Yan Lei’s handsome appearance to be a pleasant surprise, but more than his face, she valued his future prospects.

Lin Xixi was genuinely tired of being poor.

Moreover, Lin Xixi shared a common preference with Yan Lei: she also liked cultured individuals.

Of course, later on, only college graduates could be considered cultured, but in this era, high school students were already considered quite educated.

So she chose her educated young husband. In reality, the man only had a high school education, and the restoration of the college entrance exam later on had no connection with him. He didn’t participate in the exam and remained an ordinary worker.

Lin Xixi only had a brief moment of glory in front of her hometown people when she followed her husband back to the city and changed her rural household registration to an urban one. After that, it was decades of an ordinary life.

In middle age, facing unemployment was too difficult.

She still remembered borrowing money from her aunt and passing by a shop window on the way. Looking at her reflection in the glass, she saw a distressed and aged face. There was no trace of the lively beauty of her village years.

Lin Xixi didn’t want to live that kind of life anymore.

She wanted to be rich and prosperous!

Later on, her uncle’s family, as a cadre family, lived relatively well. However, it couldn’t compare to that person.

That person was already a high-ranking leader—a figure appearing in the news.

When Lin Xixi recalled the past, rejecting her uncle’s suggestion because she heard he was in a second marriage with a child and came from a rural background, she regretted it deeply.

She had missed out on that rich and prosperous life.

No, she had been reborn, which meant that Heaven must have thought that a rich and prosperous life was supposed to be hers. Right? Why else would she be reborn?

Lin Xixi knew her uncle was helping her find a marriage partner.

However, most of those with higher ranks were already married. The young, unmarried ones also didn’t hear of any leaders from the future coming from her uncle’s unit.

Perhaps those who didn’t make it through those years were gone, or they were just as ordinary as her husband. In her husband’s factory, there were also military officers who had transferred, and, though they were in management, they were also laid off.

It was meaningless. Everyone was meaningless!

The wealth she wanted could only be guaranteed by Yan Lei.

In reality, Lin Xixi was puzzled about one thing.

For example, when she came back from the 90s, she came back to life.

Since Qiao Wei also experienced death and rebirth, when did she come back?

As far as she knew, Qiao Wei died on this trip to the provincial capital. Did she come back immediately after her death?

If that were the case, Lin Xixi’s confidence would rise again.

She was a person from the 90s with much more knowledge than this era. What cultural person? Qiao Wei was just a person with a high school education. What could she compare with decades of experience?

Although Lin Xixi’s “decades of experience” were just being a worker’s wife in a third-tier city, it didn’t prevent her from feeling strong confidence and superiority.

Most importantly, she held Qiao Wei’s handle.

What a provincial capital visit, Yan Lei’s original wife… Clearly, she eloped with someone!