As they entered the family compound, Lin Qingqing said to Lu Cheng, “Lu Cheng, you take Haici home first. I’m going to Sister Xiuyao’s house for a bit. She brought about two hundred jin of ingredients today, and I want to check it out.”

“Are you going to bring some back to stew?” Lu Cheng asked. “I’ll go with you to get it.”

It wasn’t that he looked down on her; it’s just that even a twenty jin winter melon would be too heavy for her, let alone two hundred jin of pig intestines.

Lin Qingqing replied, “I won’t bring it all back. I’ll divide it evenly based on how many people are washing it, and assign it to a few homes for stewing. I still need to come back later to prepare the seasoning. If I can’t carry it, I’ll call you again.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Cheng agreed, “Alright.”

When Lin Qingqing arrived at Yu Xiuyao’s house, Xiuyao was chatting with several military wives.

Lin Qingqing had come over after finishing up at the cafeteria, so naturally, she arrived later.

However, they were probably waiting for her.

“Lu Cheng’s wife is here!”

“Qingqing is here!”

“Vice Regiment Leader’s wife has arrived!”

Everyone greeted Lin Qingqing.

“Hello, everyone,” Lin Qingqing said with a smile.

Including Xiuyao, there were four people here, all of whom were those that had taken her to the hospital that day.

So, Xiuyao had arranged it well by inviting all the people who had accompanied her.

Yu Xiuyao said, “You finally made it! I was just wondering whether I should go call you.”

“I just finished up at the cafeteria, so I came right over,” Lin Qingqing replied. “Have you arranged everything for the sisters?”

Yu Xiuyao responded, “It’s all set. We divided it into four portions, fifty jin each. I had Dawang write it down. I told them that cleaning, firewood, and making the marinated food would all be done at their homes, and each person will get one cent per jin. The Cui family has a bicycle, so the Cui girl and I will deliver the goods together, and we’ll give them an extra two yuan a month.”

Lin Qingqing said, “Then we’ll go with what you arranged, Sister. I’ll go home and get the seasonings.” This way, she wouldn’t need to prepare the marinated dishes at her own home.

…

When Lin Qingqing returned home, Lu Cheng was standing in the yard.

Seeing Lin Qingqing carrying the seasonings but no ingredients, Lu Cheng said, “Was it too heavy? I’ll go with you to get it.”

Lin Qingqing replied, “No need. I’m just going to prepare the seasonings. We’re not cooking at our house today. Sister Xiuyao invited the three sisters who accompanied me to the hospital last time, so with her, the work will be split among four families, and they’ll marinate it at their homes. I’m not too worried about the other stuff; I’m just afraid they won’t clean it well. But I think Sister Xiuyao should…”

“That’s reliable. If we can invite them, they will definitely pay attention to hygiene,” Lu Cheng said.

“They’re all good people. When I was on missions before, they often looked after Haici. On the day I returned, they were the ones who told me that you had a conflict with the wife of Colonel Qin. They also urged me to treat you well…” At this point, Lu Cheng paused.

He couldn’t bring himself to say that they were an old couple; he simply refused to acknowledge that he was getting older.

“What did they say?” Lin Qingqing asked curiously, noticing he had stopped talking.

“They said you are a good comrade.” Lu Cheng quickly changed the subject without blushing or losing his breath.

But because he felt a bit guilty, he didn’t dare look Lin Qingqing in the eye.

Lin Qingqing didn’t suspect anything about his words.

How would she know that the seemingly serious Lu Cheng would lie?

So when she heard what he said, she felt quite happy.

Who doesn’t like to be praised? “You should take a nap.”

“I’ll go get the ingredients ready.”

Lu Cheng naturally didn’t leave; he stood at the kitchen door watching her prepare the ingredients.

Fortunately, soy sauce, salt, and sugar were supplied by the cooperative, and they didn’t need a ticket for star anise and other seasonings.

Otherwise, just buying soy sauce would require a lot of tickets.

Making braised dishes consumed the most soy sauce.

With soy sauce in the mix, less salt was used, and not much sugar either—just enough to enhance the flavor.

“Isn’t oil needed for this?” Lu Cheng noticed that Lin Qingqing hadn’t added any oil, even though the cooperative had sent over several pounds of oil.

Lin Qingqing replied, “No oil is needed, but I told the cooperative I would need oil. I just didn’t want them to figure out my recipe. However, while oil isn’t necessary, I do need doubanjiang (fermented broad bean paste), so the money for the oil offsets the cost of the doubanjiang.”

Lu Cheng responded, “Well, we won’t be short on oil at home.”

“I made arrangements with the carpenter’s wife that we can exchange oil for whatever we need… Oh no! I just remembered I forgot to get sesame powder. I need to stop by the carpenter’s house later,” Lin Qingqing recalled about the sesame powder.

“I’ll go,” Lu Cheng offered. “I’ll also swing by the county town to buy your high school books.”

Lin Qingqing thought it was a good idea, “But will you have time to come back this afternoon?”

“I’ll have time,” he assured her.

“Then thank you, Lu Cheng.” Her tone was grateful, and her bright eyes looked at him as if they could speak.

She was different; at least, that’s how Lu Cheng felt.

It wasn’t just because she was his wife; it was her personality that set her apart.

She was good at interacting with people, but sometimes she acted like a child.

“You…” Lu Cheng wanted to ask.

After being away on business for half a month, she hadn’t..

“Did you bring it up because you were angry?” But after thinking about it, she decided to ask him later in the evening. “I’ll take my leave now.”

“See you!” Lin Qingqing watched him walk away from the kitchen door.

When she turned her gaze back, she found herself staring blankly at the prepared seasonings on the floor.

What should she do?

Being alone in this world made her feel a bit anxious and scared.

If there was someone by her side who had good qualities in every aspect, especially a nice character, and who was also a handsome and warm man, she couldn’t say she was overly moved, but her heart would certainly be touched.

Perhaps it was because being alone in this world made her feel somewhat tense and fearful, which led her to desire someone to rely on.

Maybe it was because she felt lonely and desolate after her grandmother passed away, and she wished for someone who could accompany her just like her grandmother did.

But that person couldn’t be Lu Cheng; he was someone else’s husband.

However, it also seemed that this person couldn’t belong to anyone else, because in terms of identity, she was Lu Cheng’s wife.

This contradictory relationship left Lin Qingqing feeling quite helpless.

After thinking it through, she realized she couldn’t keep avoiding things, nor could she continue interacting with Lu Cheng in this way.

If she were to use this marriage to find comfort for a few years, it would be unfair to Lu Cheng.

But if she accepted Lu Cheng with open arms, what if the original owner of this life came back?

Lin Qingqing wasn’t a hesitant or indecisive person.

After pondering for a moment, she made a decision in her heart.

Once she had decided, she no longer wanted to dwell on the matter.

She grabbed the prepared seasonings and went to marinate the pig intestines.

Four households, each with their pig intestines seasoned and ready to be cooked.

Lin Qingqing explained the cooking time and temperature to everyone, and they began to wait for the marinated dishes to finish cooking.

Everyone took this work seriously, especially since Yu Xiuyao knew their characters well, so they didn’t do anything to make Lin Qingqing uncomfortable.

For instance, when Lin Qingqing checked their kitchens, they were all kept very clean.

Hygiene is crucial when handling food.

Before the marinated dishes were ready, Lu Cheng returned.

When he came back and saw the house was empty, he went to the Qin family and found Lin Qingqing sitting there chatting with Yu Xiuyao.

“You’re back,” Lin Qingqing said upon seeing Lu Cheng, greeting Yu Xiuyao before leaving.

Lu Cheng waited for her at the entrance of the courtyard, and then they walked out together side by side. “I brought the sesame powder and the books you asked for. I also checked with the high school you mentioned. The teachers there said you can take the exams at the end of each semester. As long as you pass each subject, they will issue you a high school diploma after the end of your senior year.”

Lin Qingqing felt relieved upon hearing this. “That’s wonderful! Thank you for all your hard work today.”

This statement made Lu Cheng feel a bit distant.

Or rather, he felt that at this moment, Lin Qingqing made him feel very distant.

Lu Cheng was a perceptive person, a trait developed from his profession.

Once he had this feeling, he began to search for reasons.

But… he couldn’t find any.

When they got home, Lu Cheng decided to ask directly, “Are you mad at me lately?”

“Not at all.” Lin Qingqing was a bit confused by the question; she couldn’t find anything about him that would make her angry.

She handled all the household chores, washed her own clothes, and although she used to wash the dishes, now that they were eating in the cafeteria, that task was eliminated.

However, the fact that he could do laundry made Lin Qingqing think he had many good qualities.

“Then you…”

Lu Cheng hesitated, his handsome face slightly flushed with embarrassment as he struggled to ask.

“What?” Seeing Lu Cheng’s expression, Lin Qingqing became curious. “Why do you think I’m mad? Am I showing that I’m angry every day? Not at all! In fact, I feel pretty happy every day and think my life is fulfilling now, which is different from when I was a streamer. Back then, I was talking to a dull camera, and even though I interacted with fans, it still felt like I was talking to myself through a screen.”

Now, however, it seemed she had found another kind of joy in life.

Every day, she woke up to the morning call and went to work with the comrades from the cooking team.

She would explore ways to make the limited ingredients more delicious, trying to ensure that everyone in the cooking team enjoyed their meals.