Besides, in this era very few households used flush toilets; most relied on pit latrines.
She really wasn’t used to it—if only there were a toilet, that would be perfect.
But after taking a round through the supply and marketing cooperative just now, she hadn’t found any.
A thought suddenly struck Su Su—she could have one custom-made!
Smiling, she asked Wang Guping, “Do you know where someone can fire porcelain?”
Wang Guping’s face flushed slightly, but sensing the gaze behind him, he immediately felt a prickle down his back. “A friend of mine from the south does that kind of work. He’ll be coming to Heicheng soon.”
Su Su’s smile widened. She casually picked up a pen and began sketching the shape of a toilet on paper. When she finished, she handed it to Wang Guping and said,
“I’d like to have this custom-made. Could you pass it to your friend for me? This is the deposit.”
As she spoke, Su Su directly took out two hundred yuan.
Wang Guping hurriedly tried to refuse. “That’s far too much!”
Su Su pushed the money into his hand. “It’s not much, really. After all, firing something new takes effort—it’s all cost.”
Only then did Wang Guping accept it. He nodded. “Alright! When my friend arrives, I’ll talk to him.”
Since they had bought quite a lot of furniture, Wang Guping drove it straight to the gate of the military family compound. He also called a few people to help carry the furniture into the new house, while the lumber was stacked in the yard.
With that, everything was fully prepared.
Next came the major task of thoroughly cleaning the new house.
Just as Su Su was lamenting that this was no small project, Qin Xutao had already taken off his jacket, revealing a black tank top underneath.
Holding a hoe with both hands, he first cleared all the weeds from the yard, then carried over the rose bushes and grass seeds they had bought at the supply cooperative and looked at Su Su.
“Where do you want to plant these flowers and grass?”
Su Su immediately pointed to the corner by the wall. Qin Xutao nodded, quickly dug a hole with a shovel, and placed the rose bush into it.
“Come help me hold it steady.”
Su Su hurried over and held the rose sapling with both hands.
Qin Xutao filled the soil back into the hole, then connected a hose to the tap and thoroughly watered the rose.
Next came the bare ground. For grass seeds to sprout well, the ground needed to be soaked first, then the seeds scattered casually on top. Once the weather warmed up, a layer of green grass would grow.
Knowing what she had in mind, Qin Xutao immediately picked up the shovel and dug a pond of just the right size in a suitable spot.
After thoroughly mixing cement and gravel in proper proportions, he sealed the bottom of the pond to prevent leaks.
Next was building a pavilion.
Qin Xutao first sawed off the excess parts of the lumber, then dug four holes beside the pond to mark the pavilion’s approximate position.
He poured the remaining cement into the four holes, set the wooden posts upright in them, and braced them with thinner pieces of wood.
After waiting for it to set, he used the remaining lumber to build the pavilion’s frame.
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Qin Xutao said to Su Su, “When we have time, we can haul some bamboo back from the mountains and lay it on the roof—that’ll do it.”
Su Su looked at him in amazement. “How do you know how to do all this?”
Without stopping his work, Qin Xutao replied, “All the houses in our family were built like this.”
While waiting for the cement at the bottom of the pond to dry, Qin Xutao quickly leveled the land in the backyard as well.
He took a sip of water Su Su handed him and said, “The weather is still a bit cold right now, not suitable for planting. Once spring comes, you can plant the fruits and vegetables you like.”
Su Su nodded, a trace of sweetness rising in her heart.
So he remembered everything she had said.
While Qin Xutao worked on the yard, Su Su didn’t idle either.
She took out a silk scarf and wrapped it around her face to keep from inhaling dust.
After taking these precautions, she moved all the smaller old pieces of furniture outside, fetched a large bucket of clean water, swept through the two bedrooms and one living room inside and out, then mopped everything once over.
By the end, Su Su felt as though her waist no longer belonged to her.
Qin Xutao, on the other hand, looked completely unfazed.
Comparing people really could make one angry!
Qin Xutao frowned as he looked at Su Su, feeling that her body was truly too weak—she needed more nutrition.
“It’s getting late now. I’ll finish the rest tomorrow. You go back to the dormitory and rest for a bit—I’ll head to the canteen to get some food,” he said.
Su Su could only nod.
On the way back, they passed a building in a secluded spot—the one she hadn’t chosen.
But now it seemed someone new had moved in and was cleaning.
A man in military uniform was standing on a stool, straining to pull down the ivy on the wall.
But the ivy had grown too thick. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t pull it down and nearly fell off the stool instead.
Qin Xutao reached out and steadied him.
Seeing Qin Xutao, the man said gratefully, “Thank you, comrade.”
Su Su handed him the remaining half bottle of pesticide and said, “You can pour this on the roots of the ivy.”
The man took it and smiled. “Thank you so much! Comrades, my name is Lin Feihe. I’ve just been transferred here.”
Su Su smiled as well. “You’re welcome. We’ve just moved here too. My name is Su Su, and this is my fiancé, Qin Xutao.”
At that moment, a complaining female voice came from inside the house.
“This place is so rundown—how are we supposed to live here?”
Lin Feihe smiled apologetically and explained, “That’s my fiancée, Shen Baifeng. She’s originally from the capital. She came to Heicheng for my sake and probably isn’t used to the environment yet.”
Shen Baifeng?
Why did that name sound so familiar?
As they spoke, Shen Baifeng came out of the house, her face full of anger as she scolded Lin Feihe directly,
“I don’t want to live here! Take me to a hotel in the city to stay for a couple of days first.”
Lin Feihe looked troubled. “Baifeng, it’s already late. Let’s make do for one night in the dormitory building. Tomorrow, once I’ve cleaned this place up, we can move in.”
Shen Baifeng pouted unhappily, about to say more, when she suddenly noticed Qin Xutao nearby. Her eyes lit up.
She subconsciously raised a hand to tidy her hair, then extended her hand toward Qin Xutao and said softly, “Hello, my name is Shen Baifeng. I’m from the capital.”
Qin Xutao only gave a slight nod, then turned to Su Su and said, “I’m going to the canteen now. Is there anything you want to eat?”
Su Su smiled and said, “I’d like some stir-fried vegetables. I’ve been eating too much meat these past few days—it’s making me feel a bit overheated.”
Qin Xutao responded with a brief “Mm,” then turned and headed toward the military canteen.
Shen Baifeng was left standing there awkwardly, only withdrawing her hand after a long moment.
She comforted herself—Qin Xutao simply wasn’t familiar with her yet. It was normal for him to be distant.
But sooner or later, he would definitely be hers!
Shen Baifeng’s expression returned to normal. Just as she was about to turn away, she saw Su Su standing nearby.
How was this possible!
Why was she here too?!