After planting the corn, Lin Ranran went into her space, enjoyed a long, refreshing bath, took a satisfying nap, and finally woke up feeling completely energized before starting dinner.
By the time the Ji family and the educated youths returned from a full day of labor, dragging their tired bodies home, Lin Ranran had already finished preparing the evening meal.
Xia Zhiyuan had volunteered to cook dinner because she wanted the Ji family to finish their meal first, thinking they would surely appreciate her kindness.
But she never expected Lin Ranran not only to have dinner ready but also to have washed every pot, bowl, and utensil until they were spotless.
Even harder for her to accept was the fact that Lin Ranran had cooked meat again!
The rich, mouthwatering aroma filled the entire educated youth compound.
The educated youths kept sniffing the air, mouths watering uncontrollably.
It had been so long since they last tasted meat that many had nearly forgotten what it tasted like.
Who knew when the production team would distribute meat coupons again?
“Ranran, we’re back.”
As soon as Mother Ji stepped into the courtyard, she called out with a smile.
After a whole day working in the fields, she missed her precious grandchild terribly.
“Big Sister-in-law, we’re back!”
The younger siblings also greeted her cheerfully.
“Wife, I’m home.”
Ji Junxiao’s voice carried unmistakable tenderness.
Smiling brightly, Lin Ranran untied her apron.
“You must all be starving. Go wash your hands and eat.”
“Big Sister-in-law is the best!”
The younger ones looked at her with joyful eyes.
A trace of heartache flashed across Ji Junxiao’s face.
“Didn’t we agree that you’d wait until we got off work before cooking?”
Lin Ranran smiled sweetly.
“Cooking is such a small task. You don’t have to worry about it.”
“You’ve worked hard, Ranran,” Father Ji said.
“You’ve all worked much harder than I have. Oh, Father, there’s a patch of wasteland behind the house. Since I had nothing better to do, I planted some corn there. After dinner, could you ask the team leader about it? It seems like a waste to leave the land unused.”
“You even planted corn? Didn’t you tire yourself out?”
Ji Junxiao looked at her with concern.
“It wasn’t much. I treated it as exercise.”
Father Ji nodded.
“Alright. I’ll ask after dinner.”
Meanwhile, Xia Zhiyuan was cooking dinner while suppressing her frustration.
Watching the Ji family happily gathered around the table, laughing and chatting, constantly saying things like, “Ranran, you’ve worked hard. Eat more,” filled with affection and concern, only made the jealousy in her heart burn even hotter.
She let out a cold snort.
“Go ahead and spoil her. Once you run out of food in a few days, let’s see if you can still smile like that.”
As she thought this, she carefully took out the piece of cured pork she had been unwilling to eat at lunch and wrapped it layer after layer in old newspaper.
When the Ji family eventually had no meat left, she would give it to them.
Surely that would win their hearts.
Meanwhile, several male educated youths chatted excitedly while waiting in line for their baths.
“Ji Junxiao’s wife is really beautiful. Just standing there, she’s like a stunning painting.”
One of them spoke with envy.
“Yeah. She has such an elegant presence. No wonder Ji Junxiao is completely devoted to her.”
Another agreed.
“Did you see how inseparable they were in the fields today?”
A third teased with a grin.
“Ji Junxiao really hit the jackpot marrying such a wonderful wife.”
“I wonder why I don’t have that kind of luck.”
One sighed regretfully.
“If I married such a beautiful wife, I’d let her stay comfortably at home every day. She’d only need to stay pretty while I worked in the fields.”
“Keep dreaming. You can’t even feed yourself, and you’re talking about supporting a wife?”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Hearing their conversation, Xia Zhiyuan’s face turned dark with anger.
These men talked about Lin Ranran in the fields.
Now they were still talking about her after coming home.
Was she really that wonderful?
She was just a pregnant woman!
What was so special about her?
At dinnertime, the educated youths abandoned their usual habit of eating in pairs inside their rooms.
Instead, they all gathered in the courtyard.
As they ate, they couldn’t help secretly glancing at Lin Ranran.
After all, they had never seen such an exceptionally beautiful woman before.
When Lin Ranran stepped outside after finishing dinner, she immediately noticed the male educated youths sneaking looks at her.
She assumed they were simply curious about what the famous “lazy woman” actually looked like.
She glared fiercely at them.
Like children caught doing something wrong, they hurriedly lowered their heads and pretended to focus on eating.
Seeing this, Ji Junxiao immediately felt jealous.
He strode over, grabbed Lin Ranran’s hand, quickly pulled her into their room, and shut the door.
These guys were unbelievable.
How could they stare so openly at another man’s wife?
Lin Ranran looked puzzled.
“Husband, why did you close the door? I still have to give Father some fruit for the team leader.”
“I’ll take it.”
His tone sounded awkward.
“Where is it?”
“On the table.”
Ji Junxiao walked over to get the fruit.
Suddenly remembering something, Lin Ranran quickly added,
“Husband, ask Father whether our family can also be assigned a few more pieces of wasteland besides the one behind the house. We can reclaim the land ourselves and grow crops. Actually, never mind. I’ll just tell Father myself.”
She turned to leave.
Ji Junxiao reacted quickly and blocked her way.
“Don’t go outside.”
She looked at him curiously.
“Why not?”
“There are too many men outside eating.”
He answered awkwardly.
“It’s not convenient for you to go out now.”
Lin Ranran immediately understood.
He was jealous.
Looking at his adorably awkward expression, she couldn’t resist teasing him.
“What? Is your wife too embarrassing to be seen?”
“No.”
He grumbled softly.
“I just don’t like them looking at you.”
“I’m not made of gold. What’s wrong with letting people look?”
“The problem is…”
Ji Junxiao’s face reddened.
“Their thoughts aren’t pure.”
Smiling mischievously, Lin Ranran slowly stepped toward him.
“Oh? And your thoughts are pure?”
She teased.
Forced backward step by step, Ji Junxiao’s back finally hit the wall with a dull thud.
His face became crimson.
Even his breathing grew uneven.
What had gotten into his wife today?
She kept teasing him like this.
He wasn’t a saint.
How was he supposed to resist?
Swallowing hard, he spoke with difficulty.
“Wife… you’re pregnant. We… we need to exercise some restraint for now.”
Lin Ranran froze before finally realizing what he meant.
Ji Junxiao had completely misunderstood!
She had only been teasing him.
How had he interpreted it that way?
Then again, if the original Lin Ranran had behaved like this, it would indeed have been a clear invitation.
Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Ji Junxiao said,
“I’ll give the fruit to Father, then go take a bath. Stay in the room and don’t come outside.”
Before she could respond, he quickly kissed her cheek.
Then, while she was still standing there in a daze, he hurriedly fled.
Watching his retreating figure, Lin Ranran couldn’t help laughing.
The male lead was actually pretty innocent.
If he and the original owner hadn’t already spent a loving month together, she would have thought he was still an inexperienced young man.
“Brother Ji, are you drawing water for a bath?”
The moment Xia Zhiyuan spotted Ji Junxiao, her eyes lit up and she rushed out of her room.
Ji Junxiao acted as though he hadn’t heard a single word and walked straight toward the well.
“Brother Ji, could you please help me draw a bucket of water? I’m too weak to lift it.”
She hurried after him with a sweet smile, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness.
Ji Junxiao completely ignored her.
After drawing his own water, he carried the bucket directly to the men’s bathhouse and joined the queue.
Watching his back disappear, Xia Zhiyuan stamped her foot angrily.
He had been her husband in her previous life.
Although he had been cold back then, he had always agreed to whatever she asked.
So in this life…
She would never give up.
The male educated youths immediately changed the subject when they saw Ji Junxiao approaching.
After all, secretly discussing another man’s wife wasn’t exactly honorable.
Ji Junxiao shot them a cold glance.
Everyone suddenly felt as though the surrounding air had dropped several degrees.
Strange…
He was only a former soldier.
He wasn’t even their superior.
So why were they suddenly afraid of him?
Meanwhile, Lin Ranran brought several kerosene lamps to Mother Ji.
“Big Sister-in-law, you even bought kerosene lamps?”
Ji Junyao’s eyes lit up.
“Of course.”
Lin Ranran smiled.
“Otherwise, how would you all study at night?”
Mother Ji smiled gratefully.
“Ranran is truly thoughtful. Yaoyao, call your brothers over tonight. Everyone can study together here.”
“No need.”
Lin Ranran smiled.
“I bought four lamps. Every room gets one.”
A worried look crossed Mother Ji’s face.
“But won’t that waste too much kerosene?”
“Mom, don’t worry about the cost. We can afford this little bit of oil. No matter how hard life gets, we can’t let the younger ones neglect their studies.”
Tears welled up in Ji Junyao’s eyes.
“Big Sister-in-law… I never realized you were so farsighted.”
“Of course.”
Lin Ranran smiled.
“Knowledge changes destiny. Life in the countryside is hard, but that doesn’t mean you stop learning. I’m counting on you and your brothers to get into university.”
Ji Junyao’s eyes turned red.
“In the past, my brothers and I definitely could have gone to college. But with our family’s current situation… we probably don’t even qualify to apply anymore, let alone pass the recommendation process.”
Lin Ranran comforted her.
“Our family is only under observation. We haven’t been convicted of anything. What are you afraid of? Besides, if you’re truly talented, won’t some school accept you? If you ask me, the college entrance examination will be restored before long. Look—I even bought high school textbooks.”
As she spoke, she took out several sets of textbooks and exercise books.
Ji Junyao jumped excitedly.
“Big Sister-in-law, you’re amazing! I’ll go tell my brothers right now. They’ll be thrilled!”
Hugging the textbooks tightly, she ran out like a joyful little deer.
The children of the Ji family all loved studying.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have achieved such remarkable success in the future.
Lin Ranran liked hardworking, ambitious children the most.
Holding Lin Ranran’s hands, Mother Ji said emotionally,
“Ranran, you’ve put so much thought into everything. Thank you on behalf of the children.”
Lin Ranran smiled.
“Mom, we’re family. There’s no need for thanks. By the way, I heard there are lots of ticks in the fields. You must have been bitten quite a few times today.”
The novel mentioned that this area had an unusually large tick population.
Ticks preferred to hide in grasslands, forests, and shrubs, quietly waiting for a host.
Once a person or animal passed by, they would quickly latch on and feed on blood.
After becoming engorged, their bodies would swell to several or even dozens of times their original size before falling off naturally.
The bites caused intense itching.
The villagers were used to it.
But the Ji family would probably suffer.
Mother Ji sighed.
“My skin’s rough enough. A few tick bites don’t matter much. I’m more worried about the children, especially Yaoyao.”
“Mom, this is iodine solution for disinfecting wounds. I also picked some dandelions today. The elders say that washing them, crushing them into a paste, and applying it to the bites can reduce swelling and relieve the pain.”
As she spoke, Lin Ranran took everything out.
Mother Ji’s eyes lit up.
“Ranran, how do you know so much? You’re incredible.”
“Mom, don’t forget I grew up in the countryside. Naturally, I know a little more than you do. Also, tomorrow crush some garlic and put it into these little cloth pouches. Carry them with you. The smell helps keep ticks away.”
She handed over several small cloth bags along with the garlic.
Mother Ji was overjoyed.
“Wonderful. Ranran, you’re truly our family’s lucky star. I don’t know what we’d do without you.”
Sure enough, before long, Ji Junyao came running back in tears.
She had been bitten by several ticks that day.
The bites itched and hurt terribly.
She had scratched them so hard that her skin was nearly broken.
Following Lin Ranran’s instructions, Mother Ji first disinfected the wounds with iodine solution before applying the crushed dandelion paste.
Miraculously, the itching and pain eased almost immediately.
“As expected of my big sister-in-law! Without her, I’d have spent the whole night crying from the itching.”
Ji Junyao burst into laughter through her tears, admiring Lin Ranran even more.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
It was Xia Zhiyuan.
The moment Ji Junyao saw her, her expression darkened, and she immediately reached to shut the door.
“Auntie Ji, I brought some medicine for you. You must have been bitten by lots of ticks today, right?”
Xia Zhiyuan stopped the door with one hand while holding up a bundle of herbs with the other.
In her previous life, the Ji family had frequently suffered from ticks and leeches.
The men could barely endure it.
But Mother Ji and Ji Junyao had cried every night from the unbearable itching.
Later, Xia Zhiyuan had won them over by bringing medicinal herbs, making them completely devoted to her.
Looking at the herbs in Xia Zhiyuan’s hands, Ji Junyao snorted disdainfully.
“We don’t need your fake kindness. My big sister-in-law bought proper medicine for us. It’s much more effective than your worthless herbs.”
Xia Zhiyuan quickly explained,
“This is crushed purslane. Everyone in the village uses it, and it works really well. Buying medicine is such a waste of money. Even if you have money, you shouldn’t spend it like that. Auntie, this isn’t the city. People in the countryside have to learn to save.”
Mother Ji immediately became furious.
“Oh? So you’re indirectly saying my daughter-in-law doesn’t know how to manage a household? Let me tell you—our Ranran can do everything. You can’t even compare to one of her fingers! Get out! Our family doesn’t welcome you!”
Ji Junyao directly shoved her outside.
“Get lost! Stop hanging around our family. Do you think no one sees through your disgusting little schemes?”
Xia Zhiyuan trembled with rage.
This mother and daughter had shown her absolutely no respect.
In her previous life, after she won them over, they had obeyed her every word without question.