Her long lashes fluttered. “What do you mean?”
“Just now,” Fu Ruichen said, turning his face slightly as he stared at the bowl in front of him. The tips of his ears were faintly red. “You’re used to behaving that way in the city, but things are different here. If people see us, they’ll gossip.”
It took Jiang Ni a moment to understand what he meant.
In this era, men and women were expected to keep their distance, even married couples. They couldn’t be openly affectionate in public—no holding hands, hugging, or anything of the sort.
Just now, in front of Zhang Zhiqi, she had asked Fu Ruichen to massage her arm and had even wiped the sweat from his face. To him, that was clearly inappropriate.
Jiang Ni secretly laughed.
She had done it on purpose. She simply wanted to tease him.
Although that was what she was thinking, she obediently lowered her voice and said, “I know. I’ll be more careful from now on.”
To Fu Ruichen’s ears, her soft, delicate voice and slightly dejected tone sounded as though she had just been scolded.
His heart suddenly tightened.
Had he been too harsh with her?
After they finished eating, Fu Ruichen took the initiative to clear away the dishes.
Jiang Ni had worked hard all morning, so she had no qualms about leaving the cleanup to him.
Fu Ruichen didn’t have a habit of taking afternoon naps. Once he had tidied up the house, he headed back to the military base.
Jiang Ni, on the other hand, had been accustomed to taking afternoon naps in her previous life.
As usual, she slept for a solid hour.
After waking up, she entered her spatial realm.
She wanted to see how the seeds would grow inside.
The black soil in the space remained perpetually moist thanks to the irrigation from the spirit spring water.
Jiang Ni planted wheat, corn, celery, and chive seeds in the soil.
According to the instructions, wheat and corn would take half a month to mature, while vegetables and fruits would only need three days.
Jiang Ni decided to come back and check on them three days later.
The things she had bought that morning were still piled up in the living room, so Jiang Ni spent two hours sorting everything out.
She then took out some more spirit spring water.
She planned to make a few shredded-potato pancakes and bring them to Aunt Fang.
As for the other families in the military compound, Jiang Ni planned to wait until Fu Ruichen came home and have him introduce her around so she could get acquainted with everyone.
After all, they lived in the same military family compound. There were certain social courtesies she still needed to observe.
Jiang Ni took three potatoes and a carrot and shredded them. She added cornstarch, spirit spring water, a little salt, and chopped green onions, then mixed everything together.
Next, she poured some of the lard she had rendered earlier into a pan. Once the oil was hot, she added the shredded potato mixture and spread it out evenly.
She fried it until both sides were golden brown, then sprinkled some black sesame seeds over the top.
Crispy, fragrant potato pancakes were ready.
After that, she started preparing dinner.
There were still several steamed buns left from lunch, so the staple food was already taken care of.
There was also some pork belly left.
Since Fu Ruichen couldn’t eat spicy food, Jiang Ni decided to make pork stir-fried with cauliflower—a simple dish that would go perfectly with rice or buns.
She also stir-fried a seasonal vegetable and made a seaweed-and-egg-drop soup.
Two dishes and a soup, with both meat and vegetables. That would be more than enough.
Once everything was cooked, she left the dishes covered in the pot to keep warm.
Jiang Ni took out a basket and placed the shredded-potato pancakes inside.
Then she headed toward the compound on the western side.
The military family compound was located at the foot of a mountain, with three rows of houses in total. Fu Ruichen’s home was in the middle row.
It was evening now, and every household was busy preparing dinner.
Against a backdrop of blue skies, white clouds, and lush green mountains, wisps of white smoke curled from the chimneys. The entire place was peaceful and serene.
Jiang Ni absolutely loved this kind of tranquility, far away from the hustle and bustle of the city.
But after she had only walked a short distance, she passed one of the courtyards and heard voices whispering inside.
“Dingding, have you seen Regiment Commander Fu’s wife?”
“How could I not? She came back this morning with an entire carload of things. There was so much stuff, I thought the car wouldn’t even fit it all. I wonder how many ration coupons she had to spend to buy all that.”
“I heard she’s from the city. She really is pretty.”
“Pretty? I think you’re much prettier, Qingqing. She looks like a fox spirit. She seems like the kind of woman who can’t sit still.”
“What do you mean, Dingding?”
“Let me tell you. My younger brother is from Haicheng, and he’s heard all about this spoiled young lady. Apparently, she does nothing but eat, drink, and have fun, living off her family. Even after marrying Regiment Commander Fu, she’s still been fooling around with other men.”
“What? She’s that shameless? Does Regiment Commander Fu know?”
“I have no idea. Regiment Commander Fu is really unlucky. He actually married a woman like that.”
Jiang Ni’s temples throbbed.
So even a military family compound couldn’t escape gossip.
Didn’t these people know that walls had ears?
Anger simmered inside her. She walked straight up to the door and knocked loudly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Who is it?”
“Jiang Ni!”
The conversation inside abruptly stopped.
A moment later, the door opened.
Two young women stood in front of Jiang Ni.
They looked to be around twenty years old.
Both were wearing olive-green Type 65 military uniforms, the style worn by women in military cultural and performing troupes.
The woman on the left looked quiet and plain, with a gentle appearance.
The woman on the right wore an unmistakably arrogant expression.
Jiang Ni looked at them.
“Are you the two who were saying that I’m fooling around with other men and that I’m shameless?”
The two women froze.
The woman on the right lifted her chin. “We were just saying a few things. It’s not like you lost anything.”
Jiang Ni was so angry that she laughed.
They had been caught gossiping about someone behind her back, yet they didn’t even have the slightest hint of shame.
“What are your names?”
“She’s Yu Qingqing, and I’m Huang Dingding!”
The moment she heard the name “Yu Qingqing,” Jiang Ni’s gaze sharpened.
Yu Qingqing was the female protagonist of the original novel!
Jiang Ni carefully studied her for a few moments.
Yu Qingqing wore her hair in two long braids. She had an oval, delicate face, fair skin, and small, dainty features.
She was certainly attractive.
But compared with the original Jiang Ni’s beauty, she was still far behind.
More importantly, she was already talking behind someone’s back.
Her character was questionable at best.
At that moment, Yu Qingqing was also silently studying Jiang Ni.
She had been reborn.
In her previous life, after Fu Ruichen’s wife died, her brother-in-law, who was a political commissar, had wanted to introduce her to Fu Ruichen.
At the time, she had worried that Fu Ruichen was a second-time husband and that his family had been sent away for reeducation, leaving his future uncertain. So she had turned around and married a driver from her hometown instead.
Unfortunately, only a few years later, her husband died tragically in a traffic accident, leaving her a widow.
She had raised three children alone in the countryside, struggling through life until she finally died from exhaustion at the age of fifty.
As for Fu Ruichen, according to what her older sister had told her, he had risen from regiment commander to division commander in just a few years. His family eventually had their official positions in the capital restored as well.
In the end, Fu Ruichen had been transferred back to the capital and become a high-ranking official.
In this life, Yu Qingqing had made up her mind.
Once Fu Ruichen’s wife died, she would agree to be introduced to him.
She didn’t want to experience the hardships of her previous life again.
She wanted to marry Fu Ruichen!
According to how things had unfolded in her previous life, Fu Ruichen’s wife should have died within the next few days.
But what had Yu Qingqing seen today?
Not only was Fu Ruichen’s wife still alive, she had actually come to the military family compound!
What was she supposed to do now?
Jiang Ni narrowed her eyes.
“You spread rumors about me behind my back. Do you have any proof? If you don’t, apologize to me. Otherwise, I’m not letting this go today.”
Yu Qingqing forced a smile.
“Jiang Ni, don’t be angry. We were just chatting among ourselves. We weren’t planning to spread it around.”
Jiang Ni immediately disliked the way she phrased it.
“What do you mean, you weren’t planning to spread it around? Don’t try to twist your words. You two were spreading rumors about me. That’s slander!”