CHAPTER 14

Lu Zhi and Chen Chunni walked and chatted on the way to the market.

Chen Chunni sighed, “Tell me, why can’t my Old Li be more like your Old Zhou?”

“Old Zhou”…?!

The way she said it didn’t seem strange to Chen Chunni, but Lu Zhi visibly paused for a second.

Chen Chunni continued, “He even wants your Old Zhou to learn from him. Honestly, it should be the other way around.”

Then she suddenly seemed to have a revelation!

Right! This was all about building a better, more harmonious family through mutual effort and personal growth!

Li Changyuan had to learn from Zhou Cheng’an!

Maybe her man couldn’t cook, but surely he could at least peel some shrimp?

Step by step, eventually her Old Li could learn to help out at home and be thoughtful too.

With that realization, Chen Chunni felt completely refreshed.

Looking at Lu Zhi, she beamed even more brightly. Cheerfully, she linked arms with her, and the two of them looked like the best of friends.

Chen Chunni said, “Why didn’t you marry your Old Zhou sooner? Then I could’ve met you earlier!”

They finally reached the market.

It was crowded at this hour, and the stalls were packed—especially with seafood.

Lu Zhi was craving mantis shrimp again, but not the steamed kind this time—she wanted the marinated version.

As a former food blogger, Lu Zhi definitely knew how to make that.

When she saw bright red dried chili peppers, she couldn’t help picking some up.

Chen Chunni was surprised. “You like spicy food too?”

Lu Zhi nodded. “I like spicy food too.”

Chen Chunni said, “No wonder we’re friends—I love spicy food too. But unfortunately, Old Li doesn’t eat it, and the kid doesn’t either.” Then she asked, “What about your Old Zhou? Does he eat it?”

Since she and Zhou Cheng’an hadn’t had spicy food together after getting married, Lu Zhi wasn’t sure either.

She answered honestly, then added, “But I want to eat it. If he doesn’t, I can just make something else for him.”

Chen Chunni grinned. “Then I’ll have some too!”

Lu Zhi bought some eggs and potatoes. She also wanted to get cabbage, but it was too heavy—better to wait and buy it when Zhou Cheng’an could come with her.

When they got home, Zhou Jun ran over to help carry things. Lu Zhi gave him the eggs, which weren’t heavy, just for show.

Lu Zhi said, “Let’s have lunch at the cafeteria today, and tonight we’ll eat marinated mantis shrimp!”

She wasn’t sure if Zhou Jun could eat it, but if not, she could make something else for him.

Seeing all this, Chen Chunni looked even more determined as she carried her things home.

Not only did Old Zhou have to do chores—her kid needed to learn from Zhou Jun too.

After all, one becomes red by being near cinnabar and black by being near ink. From now on, her kid had to play with Zhou Jun.

….

There was a water tap in the yard, perfect for washing vegetables. Lu Zhi brought over a small stool, sat down in front of the tap, and started washing the mantis shrimp.

Zhou Jun obediently sat beside her on a little stool as well.

After washing them clean, Lu Zhi prepped the shrimp, made the marinade for the pickling, and added the shrimp in—tossing in some cilantro at the end for freshness.

The dried chili peppers were top quality, so she ground them into chili powder.

She had bought a lot of dried chili, so it was quite a bit of work.

Zhou Jun climbed up onto the stool, waving his little arms to help out, looking both serious and proud.

What a good day—it was another day he could help his sister-in-law with chores!

Hearing movement outside, Lu Zhi peeked out the kitchen window and saw that Zhou Cheng’an was back. She walked outside.

With a bright smile and an upbeat tone, she called, “Old Zhou?”

Zhou Cheng’an couldn’t help but smile when he heard the new nickname.

And when Zhou Cheng’an smiled in his uniform—he looked even better!

Lu Zhi’s eyes curved into crescents like moonlit slivers.

Zhou Cheng’an asked, “Did Sister-in-law Chunni come by today?”

Lu Zhi replied, “We went to the market together and bought mantis shrimp. I made marinated ones—next time I’ll do a spicy version. I also bought dried chili and just ground it into powder.”

Zhou Cheng’an took off his jacket. “Next time, tell me. I’ll do it.”

After changing clothes and washing his face and hands, Zhou Cheng’an came out to help.

While Zhou Cheng’an cooked, Lu Zhi leaned against the doorframe, watching him in his white shirt and trousers. With his belt on, his waist looked especially slim.

Zhou Cheng’an asked, “How about egg drop soup and dry-fried potato slices?”

Lu Zhi nodded eagerly. “Yes! Just make sure the potatoes are fried nice and dry.”

With the marinated mantis shrimp, that should be more than enough for the three of them.

Lu Zhi asked, “Zhou Cheng’an, do you eat spicy food?”

Zhou Cheng’an replied, “I do.”

“What about marinated mantis shrimp?”

“I eat that too. It’s pretty good.”

Zhou Cheng’an turned to look at her. Their eyes met, and there was a trace of a smile on his face as he continued cooking.

….

That evening, Lu Zhi finally got to eat the marinated mantis shrimp she had been craving.

Just like pickled crab goes great with rice, the marinated mantis shrimp was perfect too. Rich and fresh, paired with hot rice—it was absolutely delicious.

Lu Zhi finished a bowl of rice and even wanted more, so she scooped herself half a ladle more.

Zhou Cheng’an placed some mantis shrimp into her bowl. “I’ve got a few days free—let’s go to the kindergarten together. He still needs to attend.”

Zhou Jun, in the middle of shoveling food into his mouth, froze for a second, then quickly shook his head like a rattle drum.

He didn’t want to go to kindergarten!

He didn’t want to study!

He wanted to stay home and play with Sister-in-law, and help her with chores.

Lu Zhi coaxed gently, “Didn’t you say you wanted to be a primary school student? If you don’t go to kindergarten, you won’t learn the basics. Then how will you be a primary schooler?”

Zhou Jun blinked—ah, that’s true!

He immediately declared, “I want to go to kindergarten! I’ll go!”

Crisis averted, Lu Zhi was pleased and went back to eating.

Mmm, Old Zhou’s dry-fried potatoes today were pretty good—tasty and fragrant with rice.

After dinner, Zhou Cheng’an cleaned up the table while Lu Zhi played with Zhou Jun in the yard.

Lu Zhi said, “Old Zhou, let’s plant some vegetables and fruits in the yard over the next few days.”

Zhou Jun burst into laughter like a little roly-poly. “Old Zhou! Old Zhou!”

Lu Zhi pinched his chubby cheek. “Alright, little kindergartener, that’s enough giggling.”

Zhou Cheng’an looked at the pair—one big, one small—and asked, “What kind of vegetables?”

Lu Zhi wasn’t too experienced. “I’ll go to my second sister’s place tomorrow and take a look. She has a garden too.”

Zhou Cheng’an nodded. “Okay.”

….

At the Li house—

Chen Chunni looked at the father and son in front of her. Li Changyuan and Li Weidong exchanged confused glances.

Chen Chunni snapped, “What are you looking at? What, you two can’t do anything? Old Li, when you tell others to stay humble and learn, you should take your own advice. From today on, our family is eating mantis shrimp every day for a week!”

Because Li Changyuan had to be like Zhou Cheng’an now.

Li Changyuan gazed up at the sky in defeat. Zhou Cheng’an had really set him up this time.

What he didn’t know was—Zhou Cheng’an had double standards. How he treated his wife and how he treated others were two completely different things.

From now on, she would never study with Zhou Cheng’an again.

Chen Chunni: “I’ve realized I really, really like Lu Zhi. From now on, I definitely need to spend more time with her—she’s my favorite friend.”

Friend???

This morning, before heading to the military camp, Li Changyuan had even reminded Chen Chunni to visit Lu Zhi. Lu Zhi had just moved in as a military spouse—how had they become “friends” so quickly?

Wait a second—what did his wife just say?

Aaaaahhh—Zhou Cheng’an, your double standards are getting out of hand. Don’t you think you’re going too far?

Li Changyuan: “I—what are you even talking about?”

Chen Chunni: “What are you talking about?”

Li Changyuan: “Nothing, nothing.”

….

Lu Zhi was playing in the courtyard with Zhou Jun. Although they hadn’t planted anything in the yard yet, it was still fun—just sitting in the shade was enjoyable.

When they went back inside, Lu Zhi went to take a shower.

As she came out, Zhou Cheng’an went in. The steam from the bathroom billowed out and caught him off guard for a second.

By the time Zhou Cheng’an came out, it was nearly lights-out.

Lu Zhi was already half-asleep, just about to doze off.

These days, Lu Zhi had a very healthy routine. She went to bed early—of course, going to bed early was one thing, but she was also someone who loved sleeping in.

Outside, it had started raining.

Lu Zhi heard the patter and asked, “Zhou Cheng’an, is it raining?”

Zhou Cheng’an: “Yeah, it is. Go ahead and sleep.”

It’s raining… If it’s still raining in the morning, she could probably sleep until noon, right?

….

When she woke up the next morning, it was already past ten.

Lu Zhi pulled back the curtains and saw the world outside was still damp—it looked like the rain had just stopped.

Downstairs, Zhou Jun was playing.

He ran over. “Sister-in-law, my brother told me to tell you that he went to the camp. He brought breakfast back from the canteen—it’s on the table.”

Lu Zhi: “Have you eaten?”

Zhou Jun: “No, I was waiting for you.”

Lu Zhi checked the breakfast—it was porridge, vegetable pancakes, and a cold seaweed salad. The seaweed salad today was the spicy and sour kind.

Since Zhou Jun hadn’t eaten yet, Lu Zhi heated up the food. The two of them sat down together for breakfast.

Lu Zhi said, “After we eat, let’s go to Second Sister’s place.”

Yes, Lu Zhi and Zhou Jun’s second sister. They’d drop by to visit their little nephew too.

Zhou Jun sat up very straight, looking every bit the serious little uncle. “Okay!”

….

With Zhou Jun in tow, Lu Zhi set off to find Lu Yue.

Lu Yue’s home was quite a walk away, but neither Lu Zhi nor Zhou Jun was in any rush—they took their time.

Neighbors passed, seeing she was a newly-arrived military spouse, greeted her warmly or stopped to chat.

“You’re from Deputy Commander Zhou’s household, right?”

“So pretty.”

“This must be Deputy Commander Zhou’s younger brother?”

“I know you—your sister’s mentioned you before.”

By the time Lu Zhi arrived at Lu Yue’s place, more than ten minutes had passed.

Lu Zhi: “Sis, I’m here.”

Lu Yue was inside soothing the baby. When she heard Lu Zhi’s voice, she came out holding little Tuantuan. “Zhi Zhi, you’re here!”