After finishing their meal, Qin Fang said, “I’ll be on duty the night of the 18th until early morning on the 19th, so I can go home on the 19th. I’ll have two days off on the 20th and 21st. I’d like to treat everyone to dinner on the 20th. Does that work for you?”

In this camp, dinners were typically held in the evening since not everyone had the same days off, even among the ranks.

However, military camp holidays weren’t too strict; if something urgent arose, they could call people from the family quarters in no time.

The government built family quarters near the camp to a large extent to reassure the soldiers.

Yang Haiyan readily agreed, “How many people will be there?”

Qin Fang replied, “Captain Ao and nine other captains—ten people in total.”

“I understand. Don’t worry; I’ll make the arrangements,” Yang Haiyan assured him.

Qin Fang added, “Just don’t do the heavy lifting. Wait for me to return before tackling that.”

Yang Haiyan smiled sweetly, “Okay.”

Qin Fang stole a glance at her before quickly looking away, his ears turning red.

That day, Qin Fang woke up around noon, preparing to wait at the back gate of the camp for his wife.

On the way, he ran into Captain Ao.

Captain Ao looked at Qin Fang and said, “Little Qin, let’s go eat at the mess hall together.”

Captain Ao had a good opinion of Qin Fang, valuing his skills and daring spirit, especially since Qin Fang had a cool demeanor that resonated with the soldiers, unlike Han Zhen, who appeared too delicate.

Qin Fang replied, “I’ve seen Captain Ao. I… I…” His face flushed.

Even though Yang Haiyan had been bringing him lunch for over ten days, he felt sweet yet shy when mentioning it.

Captain Ao inquired, “What’s wrong? A real man shouldn’t be so coy—speak up!”

Nearby soldiers chimed in, “Captain Ao, Qin Fang isn’t eating at the mess hall because his wife brings him lunch every day!”

“Ever since he got married, his wife has been delivering his meals.”

“Of course he wouldn’t want to eat with you, Captain Ao, when he has his wife’s lunch box!”

Qin Fang glanced at them.

Captain Ao burst out laughing, “Looks like you’re quite happy with your marriage! Good, good!” He then walked away.

Before they knew it, it was the 19th.

Qin Fang finished his shift early in the morning, and if it had been before, he would have eaten at the mess hall.

But today, Yang Haiyan told him to come home for breakfast, so he skipped the mess.

This month, he had already saved five jin of the thirty jin of monthly grain given last month, as Yang Haiyan brought enough food each day.

Normally, he would have needed to supplement his grain with silver, but now he was saving it.

Moreover, they had received the monthly grain and one tael of silver yesterday on the 18th.

Since he worked the day shift this month, he could eat breakfast and dinner at home and take his lunch with him.

“Qin, are you ready?” Lu Zhide called out from the entrance of the tent.

“Ready!” Qin Fang replied.

As they stepped out, they bumped into Han Zhen, and the three of them walked back to the family quarters together.

Yang Haiyan had told Qin Fang the day before that he should come home for breakfast after his shift, so she kept the breakfast warm on the stove.

She had just finished preparing the soap liquid and was pouring it into the wooden molds.

She chose to make it today not only because it was a good day but also because she didn’t want to hide this from Qin Fang—some things needed to be discussed together.

When Qin Fang arrived at the door and saw smoke wafting from the chimney, as well as freshly washed bed linens hanging in the yard, the once-empty space was now filled with a sense of home.

Qin Fang steadied his heart, suppressing his excitement, and called, “I’m back.”

Then he saw his wife come out of the kitchen. “You’re back? Come eat breakfast first. After breakfast, take a warm bath, then rest for a bit. I’ll make you something delicious for lunch.”

Qin Fang’s cold brows softened as he replied, “Okay.”

The thought of having someone waiting for him at home, someone who cooked and cleaned for him, made his heart swell with warmth.

Qin Fang walked closer to the kitchen.

It was different from his hometown; in the countryside, they had a hall, but here there was just one kitchen and three empty rooms.

Meals were eaten in the kitchen.

Although the kitchen was small, it was enough for a young couple, and even with two children, it would still be spacious enough.

He placed the thirty-five jin of grain down and exclaimed, “What’s that smell? It’s so fragrant.”

He noticed two wooden boards on the table. “What’s this?”

Yang Haiyan served him a bowl of bone porridge and placed it on the table, pointing to the soap molds, “Is it this fragrance?”

Qin Fang nodded, “Yes, what is it?”

He took big gulps of the porridge.

Although the bones had little meat, the nutrients had been stewed out, making it very flavorful.

Haiyan replied, “This is soap, like lye and soap pods. You’ll know when you use it for your bath later.”

She continued pouring the remaining soap liquid into the molds, “I made this to trade for money at Yongji.”

Qin Fang was astonished, “You… you can make soap pods? That’s incredible!”

Yang Haiyan explained, “I learned how to do it after coming here. When I was in the Yang residence, I saw the method in a book but never tried it. Once, I saw a foreign merchant selling this on the street for twenty wen each. That’s when I thought of trying to make it myself, and it actually worked.”

“Twenty wen?” Qin Fang echoed, surprised.

That was more expensive than a jin of meat!

But he didn’t dwell on it.

As a man, providing for the family was his responsibility; he never thought about using Yang Haiyan’s earnings—if she made money, it was hers to keep.

Yang Haiyan noticed his expression and felt satisfied seeing his surprise but not greed. “But I’m selling it to Yongji at a bulk price of eighteen wen each, delivering a hundred pieces at the start of every ten days.”

She knew this was something she couldn’t hide from Qin Fang.

In the original novel, the former host was not very forthcoming, yet Qin Fang never blamed her, even when they had not consummated their marriage.

This showed his character.

Besides, she planned to build a life with Qin Fang, so she should be honest with him.

The shopkeeper had also investigated her and knew she was Qin Fang’s wife, so keeping it a secret would be even worse.

Qin Fang was stunned. “So that’s one thousand eight hundred wen every ten days? That’s nearly two months’ worth of my salary!” Knowing his wife was so capable made him feel motivated to work harder.

Yang Haiyan added, “Actually, I could make more each ten days, but if I produce too much and buy materials in bulk, people might suspect what it’s made from. So I limit it to this amount and told the shopkeeper that I had help.”

Qin Fang said, “You make the decisions. But we can say we made it together, as long as you share the method with me.” He didn’t want to get caught.

Yang Haiyan smiled, finding him clever.

After he finished his first bowl of porridge, she served him another, saying, “Good. Take your time eating.”

She then took the soap molds to the empty room.

Curious, Qin Fang followed her, holding the porridge.

This room was meant for guests but would eventually be a nursery when they had children.

For now, it was empty since they had no kids or guests.

Yang Haiyan had tidied it up, using it as a storage room.

Qin Fang checked the other two rooms.

The bedroom was furnished with a wardrobe, cabinets, and tables.

There was even a shoe rack at the door—some cabinets he hadn’t seen before, but the room exuded warmth.

He moved to the other room, which was set up as a study, complete with shelves—though the shelves were empty.

If this had been a month ago, he would have thought their possessions were few.

But now, his heart raced with a mix of emotions, a bittersweet feeling filling him up.

Although it felt somewhat sour, it also brought him joy.

After finishing the porridge, he washed the bowl and pot, then noticed there was half a bucket of water left.

He grabbed two large wooden buckets and went to fetch more water.

By the time he returned, Yang Haiyan had already poured hot water from the pot into a wooden tub designated for bathing.

“Go wash up. Your clean clothes are in the basket in the bathing room,” she instructed.

“Alright,” Qin Fang replied.

While bathing, he curiously tried the soap Haiyan had put in the water.

To his surprise, it lathered up nicely and cleaned off a lot of dirt.

Soldiers often didn’t keep clean; between duty and training, it was mostly men, and after a long day, they’d just crash without thinking about daily baths.

Even when they did wash, it was usually a quick rinse; the dust never fully washed away.

Today, Qin Fang took a refreshing bath and even used the soap to wash his hair.

The scent was delightful, and he found it incredibly pleasant.

After bathing, he went to grab some clean clothes and froze. “What is this?”

He looked at the black cotton undergarments, his face turning bright red.

He understood how to wear them, and just the thought made him feel a bit embarrassed.

These were even more form-fitting than regular pants.

Curious, he slipped them on, and once they were on, he felt flustered and shy.

Yet he couldn’t deny how comfortable they were.

They fit perfectly, offering support and stability.

Especially with his… well, he felt a mix of pride and bashfulness.

This was just part of being a man, after all.