The moment Gu Shaoyuan saw Qiao Yu, his anxious heart finally settled.
He pressed his lips into a straight line, strode quickly to Qiao Yu, and fixed his dark eyes on her.
“Where did you go?” he asked, trying to keep his tone gentle.
Qiao Yu looked up at his stern face and couldn’t help but complain inwardly—so fierce.
“I went out with the procurement team to buy some things.”
As she spoke, she glanced back at Yang Zhongcheng. “See, everything’s right here.”
Yang Zhongcheng grinned. “Regiment Commander Gu! I happened to run into Sister-in-Law on the road and thought I’d help bring her things over.”
Gu Shaoyuan nodded. Seeing Qiao Yu’s small face flushed from the sun, with strands of hair at her temples damp with sweat clinging to her skin, he pursed his lips and couldn’t resist reaching out to brush away the fine beads of sweat on her forehead.
The moment Gu Shaoyuan’s hand touched her forehead, Qiao Yu froze.
His gesture of wiping her sweat… felt so natural.
Watching from behind, Yang Zhongcheng’s eyes lit up. Their regiment commander had finally caught on—he knew to help his wife wipe her sweat!
Since they were still in the alley of the family compound, Qiao Yu felt embarrassed and pulled his hand down.
“Let’s go back.”
Gu Shaoyuan: “Alright.”
But after just two steps, Gu Shaoyuan noticed something off about Qiao Yu’s walk.
He lowered his voice and asked, “What’s wrong with your foot?”
Qiao Yu looked up at him, her eyes glistening, and said pitifully, “I walked too long. The shoes are rubbing.”
These little leather shoes were expensive and pretty—she had bought them new in Shanghai and brought them over. Today was the first time she wore them.
New shoes worn for too long naturally chafed the back of her heels.
If not for wanting to maintain her image, she would have taken them off and walked back barefoot.
Gu Shaoyuan looked at her heels—they were truly reddened, even broken in spots.
His brow furrowed tightly. Just as he was about to step forward and pick up his wife, he caught sight of Yang Zhongcheng watching with gossipy interest out of the corner of his eye.
“Yang Zhongcheng, put the things in my room, then you can go back.”
Yang Zhongcheng let out an “ah.” “Regiment Commander Gu, I haven’t eaten yet. Can I stay for a meal?”
“I’ll treat you to a meal another time. For now, hurry back.”
Right now, Gu Shaoyuan was only concerned about his wife’s feet—he had no mind for anything else.
“Got it!” Yang Zhongcheng swiftly placed the things in the courtyard and quickly left.
He understood their regiment commander’s meaning and didn’t dare stay to disturb their alone time.
Qiao Yu was dragging her feet painfully toward home when suddenly she felt her feet lighten.
By the time she realized what was happening, she was already securely held in Gu Shaoyuan’s arms.
Qiao Yu couldn’t help but gasp—he was carrying her again!
Gu Shaoyuan carried her with steady strides into the courtyard, set her down on a bamboo chair, and made her sit properly.
He knelt before her and carefully helped her take off her leather shoes.
Qiao Yu instinctively tried to pull her foot back, but the man gripped her ankle like a clamp.
Gu Shaoyuan said gently, “Let me see.”
The back of her left heel was swollen and reddened the worst, even broken in spots. The other foot was better, just a bit red.
Seeing her delicate feet rubbed raw like this, Gu Shaoyuan’s brows knitted together.
“Sit still.”
He stood up, went back inside, and fetched a bottle of medicinal powder for abrasions, gently applying it to the back of Qiao Yu’s heels.
Qiao Yu lowered her gaze, watching him bow his head and carefully apply the medicine for her. Her heart softened.
“It’s fine, just a bit of chafing. It’ll be better in a couple of days.”
She wasn’t a real delicate young lady, after all, and not that fragile.
Gu Shaoyuan pressed his lips together and said, “Still, you should be careful.”
Qiao Yu changed into slippers and, seeing the two fish in the basin, asked in surprise, “Did you bring these back?”
“Mhm, we’ll have fish for lunch today.”
Worried she might be hungry, Gu Shaoyuan carried the basin to the kitchen and began skillfully cleaning the two fish.
Qiao Yu wasn’t idle either. She found a small shovel and decided to plant all the seeds in the soil right away.
She huffed and puffed as she loosened the soil. Having never done farm work before, she now felt as if she had unlocked some hidden talent.
Today, luck was on her side—she had managed to buy tomato seedlings.
Stir-fried tomatoes with eggs were perfect with rice. Once they bore fruit, she was determined to make that dish.
After burying all the seeds, while Gu Shaoyuan was still busy cooking in the kitchen, Qiao Yu quickly slipped into the Spatial Dimension and scooped out a ladle of Spirit Spring Water.
She mixed the Spirit Spring Water with water from the pool and poured it over the soil, hoping the seeds would grow faster.
As for the chicks and ducklings, she kept them in a bamboo cage for now. Once Gu Shaoyuan fenced off an area in the yard, she would let them out.
Gu Shaoyuan finished cooking quickly and walked into the yard to find Qiao Yu already tidying up the shovel.
Frowning, he walked over and took the shovel from her hands.
“From now on, leave these chores to me.”
Qiao Yu nodded absently, washed her hands, and could already smell the mouthwatering aroma of stewed fish wafting from the kitchen.
It had to be said, Gu Shaoyuan was quite skilled at cooking.
The dishes were a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate.
Qiao Yu took a bite of the tender fish, and it was so delicious she couldn’t help but squint her eyes in delight.
When she lived alone before, she always ordered takeout. The food was heavily seasoned and not very clean, so she easily grew tired of it.
Later, she could only order meals from the community canteen.
Now, with Gu Shaoyuan coming home to cook, Qiao Yu’s happiness soared.
…
After the meal, Gu Shaoyuan had to get busy again. It seemed he had come home just to cook for Qiao Yu.
Qiao Yu entered the Spatial Dimension to check on the piglets, lambs, and calves she had bought that day.
They were crying hungrily.
Qiao Yu picked some cabbage leaves and fed them with a single click. Thankfully, she had planted plenty of vegetables, or there wouldn’t have been enough to feed them.
Now, in the Spatial Dimension, the left side was for livestock, and the right side for growing melons and vegetables. Qiao Yu no longer had to worry about food.
With just a click, she could cut and slaughter them—it was incredibly convenient.
It had to be said, this Spatial Dimension was far more advanced than the ones she had read about in novels. She didn’t have to lift a finger.
Remembering she wanted to give her two sisters-in-law some snowflake cream, Qiao Yu went to the area where the original owner’s belongings were stored and took out two jars.
She would give these two jars as gifts to her sisters-in-law. There were still over a dozen jars left, all taken from Qiao Xiang and Liu Shuhong’s rooms.
Qiao Yu also thought that if she ran out of skincare products, she could return to Shanghai to restock.
Wang Guilan and Zhao Jinhua’s homes happened to be right next to hers. Qiao Yu couldn’t help but wonder if Gu Shaoyuan had chosen the location on purpose—
to be closer to his brothers.
After giving the two sisters-in-law the snowflake cream, they warmly gifted Qiao Yu a pile of fruit in return—mangoes, coconuts, plantains…
Living on the island, there was never a shortage of fruit to eat.
Wang Guilan added, “If you ever run out, just come find me. I’ll make you a fruit bowl—sweet and refreshing. My Niuniu loves it.”
The fruit bowl was Wang Guilan’s own creation: fruit cut into pieces, served with chilled rock sugar syrup.
It was cooling and delicious.
Qiao Yu replied with a smile, “Alright, thank you in advance, sister-in-law.”
The two stood talking in the courtyard when Wang Guilan suddenly paused, realizing she hadn’t heard her daughter’s voice for quite some time.