Chapter 69.2

As they left the bridge, the blush on Jiang Nian’s face finally faded. She glanced at Lu Yu’s thin sweater and asked, “Aren’t you cold?”

Lu Yu replied, “No.”

But Jiang Nian felt cold just looking at him. Despite the arrival of spring, the temperature still dropped significantly at night. Their palms, clasped together, were slightly sweaty. Lu Yu took her to the Red Star Hotel for dinner before escorting her back to her dormitory. At the dormitory entrance, he ruffled her hair and took his coat back. “I’ll watch you go in.”

Jiang Nian smiled, “Okay.”

She turned and ran to the stairs, glancing back to see Lu Yu still standing outside the dormitory. Hesitating, she ran back and said quietly, “Bend down, I want to tell you something.”

Raising an eyebrow, Lu Yu bent down, and Jiang Nian’s lips brushed his cheek before she dashed off.

Lu Yu chuckled, his eyes full of affection.

Jiang Nian returned to the dormitory and knocked on the door. Shu Xue’s voice came from inside, “Who is it?”

“It’s me, Jiang Nian.”

The door opened quickly. Shu Xue and Su Na saw Jiang Nian’s flushed face and slightly swollen lips, making her look especially beautiful.

Su Na, having been through similar experiences, immediately knew what had happened and smiled knowingly.

Jiang Nian, feeling embarrassed, changed the subject. Shu Xue asked, “What did you do this afternoon?”

“We went to the movie theater,” Jiang Nian replied.

Shu Xue perked up, “Which military district’s commander is your boyfriend? Is he from our city’s military district?”

The city was large and also a province. If he was a commander from there, it was a big deal. Despite being an embroiderer, Shu Xue’s grandparents had notable histories, and she understood the significance. If Jiang Nian’s boyfriend was a commander, his future was bright.

Su Na also looked at Jiang Nian curiously.

Jiang Nian hesitated before nodding, “Yes.”

Shu Xue was more excited than Jiang Nian, “When are you getting married? You should hold on to a man like that. You can’t let him go.”

Jiang Nian: …

She took her enamel basin and hurried out, “I’m going to wash up.”

In the washroom, she saw Yu Xia, who looked away and hurried off without a word. Yu Xia, the same age as Zhai Peipei, had children likely older than Jiang Nian. Today, she had been humiliated and was sensitive about it.

Despite Yu Xia ignoring her, Jiang Nian greeted her, “Sister Yu, are you done washing up?”

Yu Xia: …

“Yes,” she replied, keeping her head down and quickly leaving. Back in the dormitory, she closed the door. Dong Shu, already in bed, noticed Yu Xia’s embarrassed expression and asked, “Sister Yu, what’s wrong?”

Yu Xia shook her head, “I almost slipped while washing my face.”

Dong Shu warned, “Be careful. We’re not young anymore. Getting hurt isn’t a small matter.”

Yu Xia put her basin under the bed and crawled under the covers. Thinking about Jiang Nian’s boyfriend, she felt embarrassed about her earlier behavior. She turned to Dong Shu, “What do you think of Jiang Nian’s boyfriend?”

Dong Shu snorted, “They’re just dating. Who knows if it’ll last? That Commander Lu is handsome and a commander, but he might just be trying things out with Jiang Nian. They might not be compatible and could break up. Look at Jiang Nian’s prickly attitude. Who can stand her?”

Yu Xia felt a bit relieved after hearing Dong Shu’s words.

She thought of her own daughter, who had finally married a city guy, but the boy’s family was found to have problematic conduct, and the whole family was sent down to the countryside to farm. Now they barely see each other for a year and can only communicate through letters.

Her two sons have been living in the countryside and are leading a good life, but her daughter causes her a lot of worry. She buys some things for her daughter and mails them to her every month, for fear that she has been wronged over there. She dares not tell her two daughters-in-law about this, for fear that they will make a fuss if they know.

Considering her daughter’s plight and looking at Jiang Nian, Yu Xia felt conflicted.

She asked Dong Shu, “How’s your child doing?”

Dong Shu, half asleep, was startled and replied, “Just the same.” Then, she went back to sleep.

The dormitory was quiet. Jiang Nian returned with her enamel basin, finding Shu Xue and Su Na still chatting. They pulled her into the conversation before going to bed. Jiang Nian tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Her mind was in a mess. As soon as she closed her eyes, all she saw was Lu Yu.

In the middle of the night, a loud “thud” woke Shu Xue and Su Na. They saw Jiang Nian rubbing her head, having fallen from the bed. She patted her clothes and climbed back into bed.

Su Na: …

Shu Xue: …

Did she fall out of bed while sleepwalking?

The next morning, Shu Xue remembered the incident and asked Jiang Nian about it. Embarrassed, Jiang Nian lowered her head and mumbled, “I wasn’t paying attention and rolled off.”

The dormitory erupted with Shu Xue and Su Na’s laughter.

Jiang Nian: …

The three of them went to the textile factory’s cafeteria for breakfast, choosing a seat near the edge. They were chatting when they heard a middle-aged woman’s scolding voice from a nearby table, “Eat your food quietly! This is the textile factory, not your home. Behave yourself.”

They were close enough to hear clearly. Jiang Nian looked up and saw Jia Yuan and her mother-in-law sitting diagonally opposite them. Jia Yuan kept her head down, gripping her chopsticks so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Her mother-in-law sat across from her, looking domineering. If no one had been around, she probably would have poked Jia Yuan in the forehead with her chopsticks.

Behind them sat Fan Shan and her husband, talking quietly and smiling, clearly happy, in stark contrast to Jia Yuan’s situation.

Jiang Nian was reminded of what she had seen at the cinema yesterday. She asked Su Na quietly, “What’s Jia Yuan’s husband’s name?”

“His name is Tong Gang,” Su Na replied. “He’s the team leader of the first group in the textile factory.”

After Jia Yuan and her mother-in-law left, Su Na whispered, “That family pretends to be loving in public. The mother-in-law protects the daughter-in-law, and the husband dotes on his wife. Many people say Jia Yuan married well, but that’s not true. I’ve seen her mother-in-law scold her to the point where she can’t lift her head. Despite that, Jia Yuan still boasts to us about how well she lives at home.”

Jiang Nian didn’t say anything and went to the embroidery shop with them after breakfast.

She had taken half a day off yesterday but hadn’t fallen behind on her embroidery work. She opened the partition door and went inside, seeing Yu Xia and Dong Shu talking in low voices. They ignored Jiang Nian when she entered. After what happened yesterday afternoon, Yu Xia didn’t even bother pretending to be nice anymore. Since Yu Xia had shown her true colors, Jiang Nian didn’t bother with false pleasantries either.

Sitting on the bench, Jiang Nian looked at her embroidery, which was only one-third done. If she worked quickly, she could finish it in about twenty days.

Shu Xue said, “Jiang Nian, you’re so fast.”

Fan Shan happened to walk over and, hearing Shu Xue’s comment, looked at Jiang Nian’s work. She was surprised. Jiang Nian’s embroidery, both in stitching and technique, was flawless. Some imperfections in the design were perfectly covered up.

Fan Shan even thought Jiang Nian’s skills might surpass Dong Shu’s, but she kept this to herself. Dong Shu already disliked Jiang Nian, and praising her in front of Dong Shu would only lead to further isolation. Fan Shan preferred to embroider peacefully and avoid factionalism.

Jiang Nian smiled, “It’s okay.”

Dong Shu, sitting in front, sneered, “What’s the use of being fast? If you don’t pay attention to details, it won’t pass inspection no matter how fast you are.”

Throughout this, Dong Shu and Yu Xia didn’t bother looking at Jiang Nian’s work. To them, a young woman like Jiang Nian couldn’t have any real skill—just flashy, superficial work.

Shu Xue, annoyed, wanted to retort but didn’t know what to say. Jiang Nian shook her head at Shu Xue, silently mouthing, “It’s okay.”

Jia Yuan arrived half an hour late and ran into Ge Mei, who only gave her a verbal warning. Ge Mei checked the embroidery and thread, mentioning that there would be visitors in the afternoon, including higher-ups. The city secretary would inspect the shop and the textile factory in a few days, so no mistakes could be made.

Jia Yuan was distracted all day, barely responding to Dong Shu and Fan Shan’s attempts to talk.

Jiang Nian wondered if Jia Yuan had discovered her husband’s infidelity.

The past few days had been tough for Jia Yuan, and Ge Mei scolded her again, prompting an argument. Ge Mei sternly warned, “The city secretary will visit in three days. Do you want our shop to be criticized, or do you want to leave now?”

Jia Yuan immediately fell silent.

Ge Mei continued, “We’re all here to work. I expect everyone to have a positive attitude, not a negative one. No one wants to be singled out for criticism when the city secretary arrives.”

After Ge Mei’s talk, Jia Yuan’s attitude improved. Yu Xia and Dong Shu were also quieter. At dinner, Jiang Nian asked Su Na to get her food so she could continue embroidering and teach Shu Xue a new technique.

Over time, Jiang Nian found Shu Xue’s personality similar to Zhang Xiao’s.

Jiang Nian worked late into the evening. On the way back with Shu Xue, they encountered Jia Yuan, who snorted at Jiang Nian and walked past her.

Jiang Nian: …

Shu Xue said, “Ignore her.”

On the second floor, they saw Wu Youshan coming out of a dormitory room.

Wu Youshan: ???

Jiang Nian: ???

Enemies meet on a narrow road?

Wu Youshan ignored Jiang Nian, closed the door, and left. Jiang Nian asked Su Na, “Did the neighbors change?”

She remembered another couple living there before.

Su Na explained, “They just moved tonight. The new couple didn’t like the noise from the nearby food factory, which disturbed the pregnant woman, so they applied for a switch. They’re still moving in.”

Jiang Nian: …

This would surely upset Sun Ying.

But it wasn’t her concern. She only cared about her own well-being.

Jiang Nian and Shu Xue went to the washroom to clean up. After washing her face and preparing to brush her teeth, Jiang Nian saw Dong Shu and Jia Yuan enter. No one spoke. Jiang Nian turned to leave and heard Jia Yuan’s mocking voice, “Just because she’s dating a commander, she thinks she’s something special. He might just be toying with her. She’s nothing important.”

Dong Shu, recalling what Yu Xia had said that night, replied, “Exactly.”

Jiang Nian ignored them and left. Shu Xue, furious, followed her and muttered, “They’re too much!”

Jiang Nian said, “Don’t bother with them.”

It was better to focus on her own work than to waste words on those people. As they approached their dormitory, they saw Wu Youshan and Sun Ying coming up the stairs. The three of them froze. Sun Ying, holding her belly, snorted coldly and walked past Wu Youshan into the neighboring dormitory. Wu Youshan hurriedly followed her.

Jiang Nian: …

Shu Xue frowned in confusion. “Jiang Nian, why does it seem like that person is hostile to you?”

Jiang Nian replied, “I don’t know either.”

Back in the dormitory, Shu Xue, curious, said, “Why didn’t Jia Yuan go home? Why is she here?”

She took off her shoes and soaked her feet, asking Su Na to hand her a towel. Jiang Nian was also soaking her feet, the water making her skin look even fairer. Su Na gave Shu Xue the towel and whispered, “When I was getting your meals today, I saw Tong Gang and Jia Yuan arguing outside the factory. I overheard that Tong Gang’s mother was upset because Jia Yuan hasn’t had a child after several years of marriage. That might be the reason for their recent troubles.”

Jiang Nian: So there’s more drama?

She suddenly thought of the woman at the cinema. Could this turn into a scenario where the mistress uses pregnancy to force the wife out?