Chapter 47.2

The next morning, Lu Yu had already prepared breakfast. When Jiang Nian walked out, Lu Yu looked up and called out, “Let’s eat.”

Jiang Nian paused for a moment and replied, “Okay.”

After breakfast, Song Bai and Tang Ze arrived. As soon as they entered the yard, they saw Jiang Nian sitting on a bench.

Song Bai smiled and said, “Sister-in-law.”

Tang Ze called out, “Younger sister.”

Song Bai furrowed his brow, jabbed Tang Ze’s abdomen with his elbow, causing him to bend over in pain. Song Bai gritted his teeth, “Who are you taking advantage of?!”

Jiang Nian: …

That elbow hit was not light, she felt the pain for Tang Ze..

Tang Ze frowned in pain, straightened up, and kicked towards Song Bai, who dodged aside. Tang Ze cursed, “I’m not taking anyone’s advantage. I’m older than all of you. What should I call her? Should I call her sister-in-law like you guys?”

Song Bai nodded, “I don’t mind if you call her sister-in-law.”

Song Bai and Tang Ze had been comrades-in-arms for many years, and their relationship was one where they fought and joked. They fought often, and Commander Tang scolded them every time he saw them, but they were like iron brothers after each fight.

“Sister-in-law.”

Song Bai walked over and grabbed a few candies from his pocket, placing them on the table. “Here, have some.”

Jiang Nian looked up in confusion, and Tang Ze explained for Song Bai, “He just bought these for Xiangdong and Xianghong. Have a taste.”

“Thank you.”

Jiang Nian lowered her head, took a candy, and put it in her mouth. Song Bai looked at Jiang Nian’s white fingertips and felt that his sister-in-law’s fingers were as white as candy wrappers, so beautiful.

Lu Yu finished washing the dishes and came out of the kitchen. Seeing several candies on the table, he walked over and said, “Eating too many candies will give you cavities.”

Song Bai: …

Tang Ze: …

Jiang Nian looked at the candies disappearing from the table and didn’t think much about it. She also felt Lu Yu was right, eating too many candies did give cavities. She had suffered greatly from it. In the new century, she was terrified every time she went to the dentist.

Watching Lu Yu disappear through the courtyard gate, Jiang Nian took a long time to regain her senses.

She slapped her cheek, got up, and went back to embroidering in her room. She had only completed a small part of the small embroidery pattern when she noticed a few colors were wrong. She opened the cabinet, pulled out a large piece of embroidery cloth, and when her hand touched it, she frowned.

Sister Zhai had packed it wrong.

Jiang Nian went to the military guard office outside the military camp and called the state-run embroidery shop. It was Zhang Xiao who answered the phone. When she heard Jiang Nian’s voice, she smiled happily, “Sister Jiang, you finally decided to call us!”

Jiang Nian smiled and chatted with Zhang Xiao for a few moments before saying, “Can you ask Sister Zhai if she packed the wrong embroidery cloth for me?”

Zhang Xiao understood the importance of getting the fabric right, each embroidery required different fabrics and colors. He called out to Sister Zhai in the adjacent room, “Sister Zhai, did you mix up the embroidery fabric for Sister Jiang?”

Zhai Peipei’s voice came from the room, “Let me check.”

She opened the cabinet, took a look inside, and exclaimed, “Yes, I did mix them up!”

Zhang Xiao informed Jiang Nian, who replied, “Alright, I got it. I’ll go to the city tomorrow and exchange it.”

After a few more words with Zhang Xiao, she hung up the phone.

When Lu Yu returned home around noon, Jiang Nian had prepared the meal and was sitting on a stool. She glanced at Lu Yu, who was busy eating, and said softly, “I’ll go to the city tomorrow. Sister Zhai had packed the wrong embroidery fabric for me, so I needed to exchange it. It’s also a good opportunity to visit Sister Ge and the others.”

Lu Yu responded, “Tomorrow there’s a purchasing trip to the city. You can take the military district’s vehicle.”

Jiang Nian nodded, “Okay.”

Taking the military district’s vehicle would be better. She didn’t want to squeeze onto a public bus.

The purchasing trip usually departed around four in the morning. At this time, Jiang Nian was still half-asleep. Lu Yu knocked on her door, “Sister-in-law, time to get up.”

Jiang Nian struggled to get up, glanced at the still dark window, quickly got dressed, and went out to wash up. After freshening up, she followed Lu Yu to the military base. The purchasing vehicle was parked outside, its headlights shining brightly ahead.

A soldier got off the vehicle, “Deputy Commander Lu, Sister-in-law.”

Lu Yu nodded, then said to Jiang Nian, “Get in the car.”

The purchasing vehicle was tall, with the front serving as a cab and the back as a cargo area. Jiang Nian grabbed the handle beside the door and was about to exert force when a pair of hands gripped her waist. In an instant, she was lifted and placed into the seat.

Jiang Nian’s body trembled slightly, and she turned to look at Lu Yu, who had withdrawn his hand.

Lu Yu said, “If you get hungry on the way, eat some steamed buns.”

Jiang Nian lowered her head and replied softly, “Okay.”

Another soldier jumped onto the truck’s tailgate, patted the hood, and said, “Let’s go.”

The soldier driving glanced at Jiang Nian. He thought Lu Yu’s sister-in-law really matched the rumors, fair and beautiful. “Sister-in-law, it’ll take four hours to reach the city. If you’re tired, you can take a nap. I’ll wake you when we arrive.”

Jiang Nian nodded gratefully, “Thank you.”

The driver smiled shyly.

The journey continued with Jiang Nian asleep until they reached the city at 8 AM. Following Lu Yu’s instructions, the driver dropped Jiang Nian off at the entrance of the state-run embroidery shop and said to her, “Sister-in-law, we’ll come to pick you up at four in the afternoon.”

Jiang Nian waved her hand, “Okay.”

“Sister Jiang!”

Zhang Xiao heard the rumbling of a car outside, peered out the window, and realized Jiang Nian had arrived. She ran out happily, holding her hand, “I thought you weren’t coming until eleven.”

Jiang Nian smiled, “There was a military vehicle going to the city, so I hitched a ride.”

The two chatted and walked inside. Lu Xiaoqing and Zhai Peipei also came out. After a brief conversation, Zhai Peipei took out an embroidery cloth from the cabinet, “Look at my scatterbrained self, I picked the wrong one.”

Lu Xiaoqing teased, “If you get any older, will you not even be able to see the needle?”

“Pfft.”

Zhai Peipei chuckled and playfully hit Lu Xiaoqing. After chatting for a while, Jiang Nian didn’t see Ge Mei and asked, “Where’s Sister Ge?”

Zhang Xiao said, “She was called away early this morning by the leaders. No idea when she’ll be back.”

Inside, Zhai Peipei and Lu Xiaoqing embroidered. Jiang Nian and Zhang Xiao joined them. Jiang Nian guided Lu Xiaoqing on some stitching techniques to make her work look better and more natural. Then Zhai Peipei said, “Jiang Nian, do you not plan to come to the embroidery shop anymore?”

Thinking of what happened in the city those two months, Jiang Nian also knew that Lu Yu was worried about her. “Not necessarily.”

She feared there might be changes with Lu Yu.

Regarding Lu Yu’s transfer, Commander Song was transferred on the first day of the Dragon Boat Festival, because the plot in the book wrote that Commander Song talked a lot with Lu Yu the day before he left.

Two months until the Dragon Boat Festival. She wasn’t sure if it was this year or next, but she felt it wouldn’t be this year. After all, Lu Yu had just been promoted to deputy commander. To move up further, he would need to wait another two or three years.

Ge Mei returned at eleven o’clock. As soon as she saw Jiang Nian, she hugged her. “You know what, we all felt that the embroidery shop became a lot quieter after you left.”

Zhang Xiao nodded in agreement. “Yes.”

She whispered again, “I can’t even sleep at night without holding onto you.”

Jiang Nian couldn’t help but laugh. “The night I returned, I also couldn’t get used to not holding you.”

Both of them burst into laughter.

Ge Mei said, “Jiang Nian, shall we go for a walk?”

Jiang Nian instantly understood that Sister Ge had something to discuss with her. After a few words with Zhang Xiao and the others, she went out with Ge Mei. Walking on the street, Ge Mei said, “The leaders just had a talk with me.”

Jiang Nian knew, as Zhang Xiao had mentioned.

But she didn’t know what the leaders had said to Ge Mei, so she asked, “Can I listen?”

Ge Mei smiled, her hands in her coat pockets, then sighed. “I’m torn.”

Jiang Nian didn’t speak further, waiting for Ge Mei to continue.

Ge Mei looked at the familiar street. “The leader wants me to go to Yuan City for development. Yuan City is much bigger than our city, and the state-run embroidery shop is also very big. It not only cooperates with Gangcheng, but also seeks overseas embroidery plans. If I go there, I will have better development. If I stay here, I will always be just the director of a small embroidery shop.”

Ge Mei glanced at Jiang Nian. “But my roots are here. My husband, my son, and daughter-in-law are all here. If I leave, I’ll only see my children a few times a year. I’ll be busy all day long, with no time to spend with my family.”

From the first time she dealt with Ge Mei, Jiang Nian could tell that Ge Mei was inherently strong-willed, with ambitions. On the way back that night, Ge Mei asked about her future development, which made Jiang Nian even more certain.

Perhaps Ge Mei already had an answer in her heart, but she couldn’t bear to leave her family.

Jiang Nian said,”If you want to do it, do it to the end and do it to the best of your ability, at least so that you won’t have any regrets when you are old.”

Ge Mei looked at Jiang Nian. “And what about you?”

Seeing Jiang Nian turn to look at her, Ge Mei continued, “If I go to Yuan city, would you be willing to come with me?”

Jiang Nian was stunned for a moment. Before she could respond, Ge Mei laughed, “I’m just teasing you. I’m not leaving for now. I’ll wait for the new director to arrive, and it’ll be about half a year before I leave.”

Jiang Nian smiled lightly.

Back at the embroidery shop, Ge Mei went home to discuss this matter with her husband. Jiang Nian stayed at the shop and chatted with Zhang Xiao. Suddenly, she heard someone shouting outside, “Stop! Stop!”

Curious, Jiang Nian walked to the window and saw a couple running with their child, chased by several police officers. They were caught soon after. The man pleaded with the police to let their family go, but they were still taken away by the police. The woman cried while holding her child tightly, and was shouted at by the police, “Stop making a scene! It affects public order!”

Zhang Xiao sighed, “They’re catching the displaced again.”

Jiang Nian frowned. She hadn’t encountered this during her two months here. She asked Zhang Xiao, “Is it happening a lot these days?”

Zhang Xiao nodded, “They’ve caught seven or eight in the past few days. Now that the weather’s warmer, many people sneak into the city, either to find relatives or jobs without referral letters…”

Zhang Xiao rambled on.

Jiang Nian knew it was a turbulent time. Only half of the past ten years had passed.

When she read period novels before, it was just cold words on paper, without much feeling. Now, these scenes were unfolding before her eyes, making Jiang Nian feel uneasy and complex emotions she couldn’t quite describe.

She sat on the bench with subdued emotions. By noon, she and Zhang Xiao went to the cotton mill cafeteria for lunch. Before they entered, they heard a commotion inside, as if many people were arguing. A female worker rushed out of the cafeteria, and Lu Xiaoqing grabbed her, asking, “What’s happening inside?”

The worker was out of breath. “There’s a fight! The workers smashed up the cafeteria!”

She broke free from Lu Xiaoqing’s grasp, and several male workers kicked down the cafeteria door. The noise inside grew louder.

“You cafeteria people always skim off our food! We pay with ration coupons!”

“We’ve seen your cafeteria workers stuffing their pockets with food and noodles at night!”

“We all earn money, why should we pay for our meals while you eat for free? We want justice!”

“Smash it! Smash the cafeteria!”

Inside, chaos erupted. Jiang Nian saw people running out holding white steamed buns or bags of cornmeal. There were sounds of breaking glass and women screaming. Suddenly, a few wooden benches were thrown out from the cafeteria, narrowly missing Jiang Nian and the others.

Zhai Peipei reacted first, quickly pulling Jiang Nian and Zhang Xiao away. “Let’s go, back to the embroidery shop. This is getting serious!”

Once again, Jiang Nian was stunned by the turmoil before her.

Zhai Peipei led her back to the shop, and suddenly Jiang Nian felt a rush of gratitude towards Lu Yu for the decision he had made for her back then. She felt that living alone in this era might really be too much for her.

Experiencing the incident today and witnessing the cafeteria being smashed up, everyone seemed to be acting like they had gone mad, venting all their pent-up frustrations at once. Jiang Nian remembered the cafeteria auntie’s shaking hands when serving food, and at that moment, she had vaguely sensed that someone would rebel.

She just hadn’t expected the rebellion to be this fierce.

Seeing Jiang Nian standing dazed by the door, Zhai Peipei touched her cold hand. “This child is scared.”

Zhang Xiao’s voice trembled as she spoke. “Sister Zhai, they’re really going at it.”

Zhai Peipei said, “This kind of thing happened once every five years. Last time, cafeterias in all the surrounding mills were smashed, and lives were lost. The mills shut down for a month. I didn’t expect it to happen again after five years.”

Zhai Peipei was older, having truly walked through that era step by step.

Lu Xiaoqing asked, “Sister Zhai, are the other mills around here like this now?”

Zhai Peipei shook her head. “I don’t know.”

She couldn’t say for sure, but if she guessed right, this was another premeditated collective rebellion. They ate cafeteria meals every day, but the amount and quality of food they received with their ration coupons were vastly different from what was served to the cafeteria workers themselves. Even the porridge, whether made from rice or millet, was watery every time without a single grain of rice visible.

The cafeteria had been viciously smashed once five years ago, but these people hadn’t learned from it over the past five years.

At noon, the group managed to scrape together a meal in the dormitory. In the afternoon, as they passed by the cotton mill again, they saw that it had calmed down. Most people had left, leaving behind a few injured individuals.

On their way back to the embroidery shop, they encountered workers from several other mills, all discussing what had happened in their own workplaces. This time, it seemed that workers from several mills had collectively rebelled and smashed the cafeteria of each mill.

Zhang Xiao said, “Sister Zhai, if the mills shut down, where will we eat in the future?”

Zhai Peipei patted her hand. “We can just set up a stove under the dormitory. We’ll cook our own meals, which will be cheaper and better than spending money at the cafeteria.”

Ge Mei came in the afternoon. She also learned about what had happened at each mill and came back to tell Zhai Peipei and the others. She mentioned that this incident might lead to a collective shutdown of the mills for a month, though perhaps it wouldn’t take that long, as many relied on their monthly wages to support their families.

Still, this incident had caused quite a stir, reminiscent of the unrest five years ago.

Ge Mei said, “I’ll go submit an application this afternoon to set up a stove under the dormitory. You can eat there for now.”

At four o’clock in the afternoon, the military’s car arrived at the gate of the state-run embroidery shop. Jiang Nian packed her bundle and bid farewell to the group before getting in the car back to the army. She looked out the window, where the lively streets from this morning were now deserted, with hardly any figures in sight. As they passed by the cotton mill, its gates were already locked, and the gatekeeper sighed frequently.

It was already evening when they arrived back at the army.

Jiang Nian got out of the car and saw Lu Yu standing outside the army. He was in military green uniform, standing straight with a tall and imposing figure. The light bulb on the brick column above him cast a bright light on him, highlighting his handsome and stern face.

“Why are you here?”

Jiang Nian walked over with the small cloth bag in her arms.

Lu Yu glanced at her face, which didn’t look good. “I just got here too.”

As they walked back, Jiang Nian remained silent with her head down. Lu Yu looked at the shadows stretching on the ground. “What happened?”

Jiang Nian pursed her lips and told Lu Yu everything that had happened in the city today.

The man remained silent for a moment, then reached out and held Jiang Nian’s wrist. Her eyelashes trembled, and her gaze remained fixed on his hand. After a while, Lu Yu tightened his grip for a moment before letting go. He said, “It’s over now. Everything’s fine.”

“Oh.”

The place where Lu Yu had held her wrist still felt warm.

The two returned to the family quarters. Jiang Nian put the embroidery cloth in the cabinet and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Lu Yu sat in front of the stove and lit the fire while Jiang Nian cut vegetables on the chopping board. After dinner was ready, the two ate and Lu Yu went to wash the dishes.

Jiang Nian lay on her bed, thinking about the events of today. Surprisingly, she found herself unable to sleep again.

Since Lu Yu had spoken those words to her last night, her heart hadn’t been calm. No matter what she did, his words echoed in her mind—”What if I wanted you to have thoughts of remarrying?”

Ten days later, Liu Qiang’s transfer order came down.

Jiang Nian had just finished planting seedlings in the yard when she squatted by the well to wash her hands. She saw Liu Qiang passing by the gate with a bag on his back. As she lowered her head to wash, she heard footsteps again. Turning her head, she saw Liu Qiang walking in with the bag still on his back.

Jiang Nian stood up and looked at Liu Qiang coldly.

She disliked Liu Qiang because he couldn’t fulfill his responsibilities as a good husband to Xu Yan and as a father, which turned their son, Liu Jianye, into a self-conscious, sensitive, and melancholic boy.

Liu Qiang lowered his eyes and said, “After I leave, please take care of Xu Yan and the children for me.”

Jiang Niang said, “You don’t need to tell me, I will do it.”

Liu Qiang glanced at Jiang Niang unexpectedly. They had been neighbors for nearly half a year, and this was the first time they had spoken alone. He could see that Jiang Niang didn’t like him, and Liu Qiang couldn’t be bothered to think about what opinions Jiang Niang might have of him. After thanking her, he turned and left.

Jiang Nian cleaned her hands and went to the kitchen to cook. Just as she finished chopping the vegetables, she heard footsteps behind her.

She knew it was Lu Yu coming back. Without turning around, she put the vegetables into an enamel basin. “The food will be ready in a while—”

“What is sister-in-law making?”

Lu Yu’s voice suddenly sounded in her ear. Jiang Nian instinctively turned her head, her lips brushing against Lu Yu’s cheek. She hadn’t expected Lu Yu to suddenly approach her and speak with his head lowered, and she felt a warmth from his skin on her lips. Jiang Nian was suddenly flustered!