He wasn’t sure if it was due to that moment of experience in his past life, but his memories of this life felt like they were behind a thin veil, he had to concentrate to recall them.

What left a strong impression on him was that the woman loved to spend money and was quite lazy.

He had thought about being a real husband to her for Qiuqiu’s sake.

But the way that woman acted, she thought he ignored her because Qiuqiu wasn’t his biological child, and she would either scold Qiuqiu or secretly pinch her, believing he didn’t know.

As for her laziness, in over five years of marriage, she had never worked in the fields or cooked. Many times, her clothes needed to be washed by his mother. When she traveled with the army, her clothes piled up, and either he would have to wash them when he returned or she would pay someone else to do it. Later, after being talked to by the military leaders, she made Qiuqiu wash her clothes.

Even during mealtime, she was too lazy to go to the cafeteria and had Qiuqiu fetch her meals.

A three-year-old child, carrying two lunchboxes to get food, would be scolded if she came back late.

Her feet had never looked like this, covered in blisters before.

But the woman in front of him, knowing full well that Qiuqiu wasn’t her child, was willing to take on her responsibilities, working hard for Qiuqiu.

He had gone back once and knew that it was her idea to bring Qiuqiu back.

She really didn’t need to go to such lengths.

She helped resolve the issues of Su Dazhi’s family and only needed to leave part of the compensation for Qiuqiu. According to what he had arranged before going to the battlefield, as long as there were no more incidents like Su Dazhi’s family, Qiuqiu could live well in the village.

She could have easily followed the example of that woman and remarried in the city, her life would be much easier.

At least she wouldn’t be struggling under pressure to earn money, resulting in her feet ending up like this.

Qiuqiu said she had become really wonderful.

And she truly was a thousand times better than that woman.

“Sorry, I should have sent you word earlier that I’m still alive…” Su Cheng sighed softly, apologetically.

If he had shown up earlier, she wouldn’t have to struggle so much.

“Hmm?”

Just as Ji Meng had adjusted to the hot water and had both feet submerged, feeling a comfortable tingling throughout her body, she closed her eyes to enjoy it for a moment. Suddenly hearing Su Cheng’s words, she opened her eyes and looked over, her watery eyes showing a hint of confusion before she regained her composure.

“Oh, it’s okay. You have your own considerations.”

Her response wasn’t very heartfelt, but Su Cheng didn’t mind. He glanced at Qiuqiu, who had initially pretended to be asleep, but probably because she was too tired and hadn’t taken a nap during the day, she had genuinely fallen asleep now, her little mouth slightly open, exuding an indescribable cuteness.

Not wanting to disturb his daughter’s sleep, Su Cheng fell silent and sat down at the low table.

This low table had been newly added by Ji Qinghe, like the cabinet in the room, it was made of elm wood and had been lacquered. The lacquer was smooth and even this time, and it came with four round stools, which Qiuqiu usually used for her painting.

Su Cheng looked around the room and noticed that most of the furniture was new. He felt relieved that they had the support of her father, otherwise, if he had returned late, they would have suffered even more.

“Now that you’re back. So, does that mean the compensation needs to be returned?” Ji Meng, soaking her feet, suddenly raised her head to ask.

She had just thought of this. Since he had come back alive, the compensation should no longer exist and should be returned, right? Also, there was Su Cheng’s salary savings book, which should contain all his savings, and she felt she should return that to him.

Ji Meng couldn’t help but be thankful that she hadn’t touched that money.

“Your salary savings book has been converted into a bank draft, but I haven’t used it yet. I’ll give it to you later.”

Su Cheng didn’t expect Ji Meng to bring this up. He paused for a moment before saying:

“When I went back, Mom gave me the savings book. There hasn’t been a specific discussion about whether it needs to be returned, but since I accomplished something significant this time, even if I have to return it, the bonus I receive should be enough.”

“You don’t need to give me the bank draft, take it out for your own use as living expenses.”

Now it was Ji Meng’s turn to be stunned. That was two thousand yuan, Su Cheng’s entire savings, just like that given to her as living expenses—he was being too generous…

Ji Meng couldn’t help but look at him, meeting his deep, ink-black eyes, and her heart suddenly raced for no reason.

“I don’t really need any money right now, that’s your savings. You should keep it,” Ji Meng hurriedly averted her gaze and said.

Su Cheng paused for a moment before responding, “How about we use this money to buy a small television and some kitchen appliances? I noticed Dad’s family doesn’t have those.”

Now it was the late 1970s, and many families in the county had started buying televisions and using rice cookers.

The Ji family didn’t have those, they were still using steamers to cook rice. While steaming rice was delicious, it wasn’t as convenient as a rice cooker.

Also, with the weather getting hot soon, it could be unbearable in the provincial capital. The Ji family seemed to lack electric fans as well, so Su Cheng added,

“Let’s buy two electric fans too, it’s going to get hot soon.”

“Um…”

To be honest, Ji Meng was tempted, these were some of the things she wanted to buy most right now.

Especially the television—since Qiuqiu started school, she had made a lot of friends in the neighborhood, and many families had televisions.

The little girl had already gone to other people’s homes to watch TV several times over the past twenty days.

Sometimes she would go right after school, or sometimes she would ask Ji Qinghe to take her after dinner, and once she got there, she didn’t want to come back home.

Going to other people’s houses to watch TV could be annoying, and Ji Qinghe suggested buying one, but she stopped him, saying she would buy one next month.

However, the few thousand yuan she had earned earlier had been invested in purchasing new materials from Yangcheng, so she might not be able to recover that money until next month.

“Buying these things requires coupons, right? We don’t have any coupons,” as television coupons were quite scarce.

“I have a comrade who retired two years ago and is now in the appliance business, I’ll ask him.”

Su Cheng thought for a moment and said, then suddenly paused as if he had thought of something. He lightly traced the surface of the table with his hand and continued, “There’s something else I want to discuss with you.”

“Mm? What is it?”

Su Cheng hadn’t originally intended to discuss this with her, considering their current situation resembled that of nominal spouses. But since they had just talked about buying things and she seemed open to conversation, he felt it was necessary to share this with her.

After all, in front of outsiders, they were still a married couple.

“I’m planning to transfer to civilian life,” Su Cheng looked at Ji Meng, feeling a strange urge to see her reaction.

“Um.” Ji Meng was momentarily taken aback.

Transferring to civilian life was a significant matter.

Su Cheng was currently in the army, where the prospects were quite good. Transferring meant starting over, as most of his connections were still within the army.

However, personal choice was more important. From what he had learned from Ji Meng’s memories and Qiuqiu’s descriptions, Su Cheng was a reliable person.

He wouldn’t make a decision without reason, and he must have thought this through carefully before bringing it up.

“Oh, if you’ve thought it through, then go ahead and transfer.”

Her straightforward reply seemed like the response she would give.

Su Cheng couldn’t help but chuckle lightly, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and his expression relaxed.

“Don’t you want to ask why I want to transfer?”

“You must have your reasons.”

Ji Meng wasn’t particularly curious, she just felt that they hadn’t reached that level yet. For now, they were still in the realm of sharing a life together, though that was her one-sided perception.

Unexpectedly, Su Cheng replied seriously:

“We won the Vietnam War this time, and the borders will be much more stable in the future. After my incident in the regiment, the leaders have made arrangements for a dedicated person to take over my duties, so now is the best time for me to transfer.”

There was no need to disrupt the existing arrangements or worry about hindering anyone’s opportunities.

Moreover, since he had achieved something significant this time, he could raise this matter and possibly secure other opportunities for himself and for everyone involved.

Most importantly, “Mom is getting older, and Qiuqiu has to go to school. If I transfer, I’ll have more time to take care of them.”

When he was younger, he was full of passion and wanted to make a name for himself, fighting bravely on the battlefield.

After that life-and-death moment, he knew that the situation would become more stable in the future, with more talented individuals emerging, which was nothing to worry about.

In this new life, he thought more about taking care of his mother and looking after the child.

Besides, transferring to civilian life could offer other avenues to contribute to society and serve the country, couldn’t it?

Ji Meng seemed to understand and nodded, “Hmm, as long as you’ve thought it through, that’s fine for me.”

“Then what kind of job will you be assigned if you transfer? Where will it be?”

If it was back in his hometown, did that mean she would have to take Qiuqiu back there?

To be honest, she wasn’t keen on that.

She had just taken over the collective farm, so it would be hard to leave this place. Plus, it was clear that the provincial capital had much more potential.

Maybe she should discuss it with him: she could keep the child in the provincial capital while he went back alone and visited whenever he had the chance?

As Ji Meng pondered this, Su Cheng seemed to guess her thoughts, locking his gaze on her as he said, “I will try my best to get assigned to this area.”

“The higher-ups will consider multiple factors. Since both you and Qiuqiu are settled here, applying for this won’t be too difficult.”

“That would be great.” Ji Meng smiled at the words, if that was the case, she wouldn’t have to worry.

“Hmm.”

Su Cheng nodded slightly, glancing at her feet. After soaking for a while, a pink ring had formed just above her ankles, contrasting sharply with her glowing white calves. He then asked, “Are you done?”

“Hmm?” Ji Meng looked down, her feet were already flushed from soaking, and the water wasn’t very hot anymore. She lightly curled her toes, and after a moment, she nodded, “Yes, I’m done.”

Su Cheng got up and went to fetch a towel from the rack behind the door, handing it to her.

“Dry your feet, I’ll go pour out the water.”

It felt quite nice to have someone waiting on her.

Suddenly, Ji Meng found that having a partner in life didn’t seem so bad after all, he wasn’t annoying.

She took the towel and dried her feet, noticing Su Cheng’s gaze on her feet. Looking down, she saw the ugly marks on her toes and instinctively pulled her toes back into the towel, feeling a bit self-conscious as she said,

“I’ve been walking a lot lately, the new shoes don’t fit well, and they’ve blistered a bit. It looks a bit ugly.”

“It doesn’t look ugly.”

Su Cheng replied softly, noticing her discomfort. He politely looked away and asked,

“Do you need any medicine for that?”

“No need, it’s almost healed,” Ji Meng replied without thinking.

Ji Qinghe had prepared some ointment for her, but it had a strong smell, and Ji Meng didn’t want to make the bedding smell medicinal. Unless it was absolutely necessary, she wouldn’t apply it.

“Hmm.” Su Cheng acknowledged, glancing at her now-dry feet. He took the towel from her hand, then bent down to carry the basin out.

After washing the towel she used for her feet, Su Cheng returned to find Ji Meng already lying on the inside of the bed.

Qiuqiu was sound asleep, her doll no longer in her arms, just nestled under her armpit. Worried it might be uncomfortable, Ji Meng gently reached over to pick up the doll. Looking at the little girl’s soft, fair face, she couldn’t help but lean in and kiss her.

Su Cheng walked in just in time to see this and heard a loud smack.

“All done?”

Caught kissing her daughter, Ji Meng felt a bit embarrassed but not too much. She placed the doll at the foot of the bed against the wall, pretending nothing had happened as she casually asked.

Su Cheng closed the door and nodded.

It was nearly nine o’clock, and it was about time to sleep. Su Cheng hesitated for a moment at the bedside but then remained still.

Ji Meng found it strange and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Su Cheng didn’t know how to respond. If he didn’t go to bed, he would need to explain, if he did get into bed, he was honestly afraid of taking up her time.

He wanted to ask if she had any feelings for that man from the afternoon, if she did, he would be willing to support her.

But bringing that up would imply suspicion on his part.

Caught in a dilemma, he finally shook his head, “It’s nothing.”

“Then you should get some rest, it’s late.”

As Ji Meng spoke, she covered her mouth and yawned.

She was really tired, she wasn’t made of iron. After a whole day of busying about and exhausting herself, she had woken up early that morning to prepare the ingredients, and now she was worn out.

After soaking her feet and relaxing, she felt even sleepier.

She reached over to pull the blanket covering Qiuqiu and lay down.

Once she lay down, she yawned, clearly feeling drowsy. Su Cheng didn’t know what else to say, so he lightly clenched his palm and reached to turn off the light, finally got on the bed.

The bed wasn’t large, and when Su Cheng got on it, it noticeably sank, waking Ji Meng from her drowsiness.

For some reason, she felt a surge of nervousness, her heart racing wildly in her chest.

Calm down, Ji Meng. Qiuqiu is in between, just pretend it doesn’t exist. You’re still sleeping next to Qiuqiu.

With her eyes closed, Ji Meng tried to reassure herself. After a moment, she exhaled lightly and remained still.

But for some reason, she still couldn’t fall asleep and felt a bit stuffy in her chest.

Ji Meng gently turned to the side.

Su Cheng lay down beside her. He wasn’t asleep yet. In the small bed, he could sense everything. The darkness of the night amplified one’s perceptions, and despite Ji Meng’s minimal movements, Su Cheng could still clearly feel them.

He wanted to ask her but was afraid of making her uncomfortable, so he pretended not to notice.

After some fidgeting, Ji Meng finally realized what was wrong—she hadn’t taken off her bra.

When Su Cheng wasn’t around, she didn’t wear a bra after her shower.

At this moment, her bra didn’t have underwire, but the elastic was quite average, making it feel constrictive when sleeping.

She would be busy again tomorrow, she had received many design drafts for summer clothes that needed to be finalized quickly, along with contacting the materials. Therefore, getting a good night’s sleep was essential.

After hesitating for a while, Ji Meng reached inside her dress and quietly unfastened the clasp.

Since she was covered by the blanket, no one would notice if she didn’t wear it.

Sure enough, when she unclasped it and pulled it out, she instantly felt relieved. With Su Cheng deliberately lowering his breath and reducing his presence, Ji Meng lay beside Qiuqiu, inhaling the faint scent of milk on her, and quickly fell asleep.

Su Cheng listened to the gradually deepening breaths behind him and felt relieved.

He opened his eyes to take a look, the room was dimly lit, with only a sliver of light from the waning moon streaming in through the window, quiet and serene.

He hadn’t experienced such a calm mood in a long time. Thinking about the daughter lying behind him, along with the changed version of her, he felt inexplicably at peace and content.

After a moment, he closed his eyes and soon fell asleep as well.

Before dawn, at around five, Su Cheng suddenly felt a weight on him, waking him up.

He opened his eyes to see, in the dim light filtering in from the window, a bright white leg resting against the top of his thigh.

“……” Su Cheng turned his head slightly, and the woman sleeping soundly on the inside pushed away the blanket covering her. The long leg pressing against him was resting on the blanket.

Su Cheng couldn’t help but laugh. He didn’t expect her to have such poor sleeping posture.

In the end, he reached out and carefully pushed the leg back to its original position through the blanket.

However, at this moment, the woman shifted again, turning from her side to her front, completely uncovering the plain, floral-patterned blanket.

Ji Meng wore a cotton dress with a Hong Kong-style design, it had a shallow V-neck cut for comfort, and it was intentionally a size larger for sleeping. The front was relatively loose, so it didn’t feel problematic while standing or moving, but when lying down, it could expose a bit too much.

As she turned, the strap of her loosened bra slipped out, revealing a snowy white expanse beneath the delicate white strap.

In an instant, Su Cheng felt his throat tighten and nearly awkwardly turned his head away.