In the north, people are particular about eating dumplings. Su Yiyi decided she might as well knead some dough and make more dumplings.
It was snowing heavily outside. After thinking it over, Su Yiyi figured she could find a simple box and bury it in the snow pile—wouldn’t that be a natural refrigerator?
Although things stored in her space wouldn’t spoil anyway, she still needed to be careful. Especially that man, Gu Zhenyang—who knew when he might suddenly come back? At least this would give her an excuse if needed.
Once she made up her mind, she immediately got to work. Dumplings weren’t hard to make, but they did take time. While the dough was rising, Su Yiyi went to find a small box. She had plenty of these in her space, so it wasn’t any trouble.
She lined the inside of the box with paper to keep it clean and hygienic.
After testing it, she found it could indeed be completely buried in the snow. Just in case, she shoveled more snow over it herself.
Actually, people in the northeast often just use bamboo trays to store dumplings directly in the snow in winter, and they would freeze quickly.
But Su Yiyi, coming from the future, still felt that wasn’t very hygienic.
After finishing the box, the dough was almost ready. She began rolling out the wrappers and making dumplings.
She was very good at cooking. Even though in her previous life she had reached a level where she didn’t need to cook herself, unless necessary for business dinners, she still preferred cooking on her own. It felt more like real life.
Even something as simple as dumplings, she handled carefully. The filling was fragrant, and the dumplings she made were plump and neat, with beautiful pleated edges like silver ingots.
Dinner was dumplings. She only boiled ten and already felt full. With her specially made dipping sauce, she could have eaten more if she hadn’t been too full.
The rest of the dumplings were frozen, along with some meat. As long as no one looked closely, no one would know she had hidden so much food in the yard.
She also took a pear from her space and buried it in the snow. This was a local way of eating it—once the skin turned dark, it was ready to eat. It would taste sandy and sweet.
Life was peaceful and comfortable for Su Yiyi. She spent several days at home thinking about what to eat each day—until a letter from the newspaper broke the calm.
The letter was delivered directly by a guard soldier. The young soldiers were very warm-hearted, and whenever someone in the compound received mail, they would usually deliver it personally.
Su Yiyi smiled and thanked him, even giving him a handful of fruit candies.
The soldier was a bit embarrassed. “Sister-in-law, it’s nothing, just a small favor.”
“It’s fine. You work hard standing guard. Have something sweet, especially since it’s almost New Year.”
Unable to refuse, the young soldier thanked her repeatedly before running off with a red face.
Most of the soldiers guarding the compound were very young—this one looked only sixteen or seventeen.
Seeing the sender’s address, Su Yiyi smiled.
Since there was a reply, it meant her article had been accepted. Otherwise, they wouldn’t bother sending a letter back.
Back in the main room, she sat cross-legged on the heated brick bed and opened the envelope.
As expected, her article had been selected. They praised her fresh ideas and good writing. Inside the envelope was also a money order.
When she saw the amount, Su Yiyi was stunned—one hundred yuan.
In this era, some workers only earned fifty yuan a month. And she had earned that much just from one article.
She was naturally happy. This meant she now had a legitimate way to earn money. Whatever she brought out in the future, she could explain its source.
Otherwise, as a military wife relying only on ten yuan a month from her husband, it would be difficult to justify using the space’s resources freely.
Now that she had a proper income, she would never have to wrong herself again.
More than that, Gu Zhenyang’s monthly allowance was only a little over one hundred yuan. If she wrote three or four articles a month, she could easily surpass an entire battalion commander’s salary.
That was worth celebrating.
Just as she was preparing ingredients, Gu Zhenyang came back.
It had been a while since she last saw him, and Su Yiyi was slightly surprised.
“Is your body recovered?” That was the first thing Gu Zhenyang asked.
Su Yiyi immediately understood what he meant.
“Yes.”
“When should we go submit the divorce report?” he asked directly.
It sounded like a question, but more like urging her to hurry.
“Anytime. As long as you’re free,” she replied calmly.
She wasn’t dragging it out. Without Gu Zhenyang bringing her to the army office, she couldn’t get in anyway.
“Then tomorrow. I’ll come back to pick you up,” he said.
Su Yiyi nodded, thinking this man was really quite impatient.
But she herself also wanted the divorce.
“After the divorce, what are your plans? Do you need me to help you find a job, or go back to your hometown?”
Even if they weren’t real husband and wife, since they had been married, Gu Zhenyang felt he should still offer some help.
“No need. I already have a job. I just need to rent a place. My parents don’t know about this yet, so I don’t want them told for now,” Su Yiyi said.
Both families valued this marriage highly. She hadn’t figured out how to tell them yet.
“You have a job?” Gu Zhenyang was surprised. He had no idea.
Su Yiyi nodded and took out the money order she had just received.
The original owner had ruined her reputation, but she wouldn’t keep that label. She had to clear it.
“I’ve been submitting articles to the newspaper. I’ve saved up some money already. Otherwise, why do you think I kept going to the post office before?”
Of course, the truth was that the original owner went there to contact that educated youth—but Su Yiyi refused to admit that. She wasn’t going to carry that reputation with her.