Su Man slowly made her way to the courtyard gate, in no hurry to open it.
She peered through the crack in the door.
A young woman was standing outside.
She was dressed in a fashionable Bolaji-style dress, the waist cinched tightly. On her feet was a pair of little leather shoes—an extremely rare sight in this era.
Her hair had been permed into the popular curls and tied with a red silk ribbon. A light layer of powder adorned her face.
In her hand was an exquisite bamboo basket filled with several bright red apples.
In an era dominated by shades of gray, blue, and green, her outfit made her look like a flamboyant peacock that had wandered into a flock of chickens.
Su Man quickly searched through her memories of her previous life.
Lin Wan’er.
The star performer of the cultural troupe, the undisputed “military flower” of the compound, and also Lu Zhan’s most passionate pursuer.
It was said that before Lu Zhan was injured, their two families had even intended to bring them together. Lu Zhan, however, had never agreed.
Now that Lu Zhan had suddenly registered his marriage, this “future daughter-in-law” probably couldn’t sit still anymore.
The corners of Su Man’s lips curled into a cold smile.
So she’d come here to show off?
She slid back the bolt and pushed the door open.
“Who is it?”
Su Man leaned against the doorframe, her tone lazy, her eyes carrying a hint of indifference.
Lin Wan’er clearly hadn’t expected the person opening the door to look like this.
She had originally assumed that the rural woman Lu Zhan had married would be some dowdy, timid village girl.
But the woman standing before her…
Although she wore nothing more than a simple white shirt and black trousers, with no makeup or jewelry, that face was so fair it seemed to glow, her features exquisite as though she had stepped straight out of a painting.
Especially those alluring, slightly upturned eyes, which carried an irresistible charm.
What made Lin Wan’er even more jealous was the confidence and effortless composure that seemed to radiate from Su Man’s very bones.
How did she look anything like an inexperienced village girl?
She had even more presence than a star performer like herself.
A flash of jealousy crossed Lin Wan’er’s eyes, but it was quickly concealed beneath a perfect fake smile.
“You must be Comrade Su Man?”
Holding the basket, Lin Wan’er didn’t wait for Su Man’s permission before casually walking into the courtyard.
Her manner was as though she were the mistress of the house, while Su Man was merely the servant guarding the door.
“I’m Lin Wan’er, from the cultural troupe.”
Standing in the middle of the courtyard, Lin Wan’er glanced disdainfully at the muddy ground and carefully stepped around it, afraid of getting her leather shoes dirty.
“Brother Lu and I have known each other for years. We grew up together in the compound.”
“I heard that Brother Lu suddenly got married, so I came especially to have a look.”
She deliberately emphasized the word “suddenly.”
The implication was obvious: A woman of unknown origins like you isn’t worthy of Lu Zhan at all.
Su Man closed the door behind her and folded her arms as she watched Lin Wan’er put on her little performance.
“Oh, so you’re Comrade Lin.”
Su Man gave her a faintly amused look.
“If you’re such an old acquaintance, why did you walk in empty-handed? Anyone who didn’t know better might think you were a leader here to inspect the place.”
The smile on Lin Wan’er’s face stiffened.
She raised the basket in her hand. “Didn’t I bring apples? These are specially supplied. They’re very difficult to buy under normal circumstances.”
“Brother Lu loves them. Every time I used to visit his dormitory, he’d peel them for me.”
So she was showing off their past relationship?
Su Man found it amusing.
Lu Zhan was such a straightforward man. Would he really peel an apple for a woman?
Unless the sun had risen in the west.
“Is that so?”
Su Man walked over, casually picked up an apple, rubbed it against her clothes, and took a loud bite.
Crunch.
The crisp sound echoed through the courtyard.
“Mmm, it is pretty sweet.”
Chewing the apple, Su Man said indistinctly, “But Zhan-ge doesn’t like these anymore. He says they’re too sour and make his teeth ache. Looks like your information is a little outdated, Comrade Lin.”
Lin Wan’er stared at the apple with a bite taken out of it, her heart aching.
Those apples had cost her a small fortune to obtain through connections!
She had originally bought them for Lu Zhan, and now this country bumpkin had ruined one!
“You…”
Lin Wan’er took a deep breath and suppressed her anger.
She turned around, and her eyes landed on several military uniforms hanging from the clothesline in the courtyard.
They were Lu Zhan’s training clothes from yesterday, which he hadn’t gotten around to washing yet.
Lin Wan’er’s eyes lit up. She felt that she’d found her opening.
“Oh my, why haven’t these clothes been washed yet?”
Lin Wan’er exclaimed dramatically as she walked over and touched the muddy uniform.
“Comrade Su Man, you’re really not very considerate.”
“Brother Lu works so hard during training, yet he can’t even come home to clean clothes?”
She turned around and looked at Su Man with an air of superiority.
“As military wives, our job is to take good care of our husbands and handle everything on the home front.”
“You’ve just come from the countryside, so perhaps you don’t understand these things yet.”
“Forget it. I’ll do it.”
As she spoke, Lin Wan’er actually rolled up her sleeves and reached for the washbasin.
“Brother Lu’s uniforms are made of special material. You can’t just scrub them however you like. You have to use the right amount of force.”
“When he was living in the dormitory, I used to wash his clothes for him. He could only get used to clothes washed by me.”
Her words were dripping with suggestiveness.
If Su Man had been a timid woman—or one who lacked confidence in her own husband—she probably would have been furious by now, perhaps even in tears.
But Su Man only found it amusing.
This green-tea routine wasn’t even very sophisticated. It was all the same old tricks.
“Wait.”
Su Man strode over and pressed a hand firmly against the edge of the washbasin.
She still had half an apple in her mouth, but the look in her eyes had turned cold.
“Comrade Lin, did you get something wrong?”
“This is the Lu family’s home, and I’m Lu Zhan’s legal wife.”
“My husband’s clothes—since when is it an outsider’s place to wash them?”
Su Man deliberately emphasized the word “outsider.”
Lin Wan’er’s expression changed. Her eyes immediately reddened, and she put on an expression as though she had suffered some enormous injustice.
“Comrade Su Man, that’s a very hurtful thing to say.”
“I just feel sorry for Brother Lu and wanted to help.”
“We’re all revolutionary comrades. What’s wrong with helping each other? How can you be so narrow-minded?”
“Helping each other?”
Su Man let out a cold laugh.
“All right. Since Comrade Lin is so kind-hearted and so eager to help…”
“I happen to have a piece of clothing here that I’ve been worrying about because I don’t know how to wash it.”
“Since you’re so skilled, and you’re Brother Lu’s ‘old acquaintance,’ why don’t you do me a favor and wash it?”
When Lin Wan’er heard this, she thought Su Man had backed down. She immediately straightened her back, a smug smile appearing on her face.
“That’s more like it.”
“Bring it here. No matter how dirty or difficult it is to wash, I can get it clean.”
“I’m a professional.”
Su Man tossed the remaining apple core into the corner of the courtyard and clapped her hands.
“Wait here.”
She turned and went inside.
Lin Wan’er stood in the courtyard and straightened her skirt, secretly pleased with herself.
Hmph. Rural girls really were easy to handle.
A few words were all it took to put her in her place.
Once she washed the clothes and Lu Zhan came home to see it, he would surely think Su Man was lazy and incapable, while she was gentle and virtuous.
The contrast would speak for itself.
Before long, Su Man came back out.
She was carrying an enamel basin covered with a towel.
She walked up to Lin Wan’er, her expression seeming to smile yet not quite smile, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
“Comrade Lin, catch.”
“This is Zhan-ge’s most intimate clothing, so be sure to use the ‘right amount of force’ when washing it.”
Lin Wan’er confidently took the basin.
“Don’t worry. Leave it to me.”
She lifted the towel.
The next second—
The smile on Lin Wan’er’s face instantly froze.
Then it cracked apart inch by inch.
She stood there completely rigid, as though she’d been struck by lightning.
Inside the basin…
Lying there quietly was a man’s large pair of briefs.
Military green.
And not only that, there were also certain… indescribable stains on them.
They were the ones Lu Zhan had changed out of last night.
“Ahhh—!!!”
Lin Wan’er let out a shriek and threw the basin onto the ground as though it were a red-hot coal.
“Su Man! You… you have no shame!”
Her face turned beet red, and she was so humiliated she wanted to die.
She was an unmarried young woman. Although she had her heart set on Lu Zhan, it had always been limited to superficial gestures like washing his outer clothes and bringing him fruit.
How could she possibly have seen something so… so private?
Su Man, however, looked completely innocent as she picked up the basin and dusted it off.
“What is it, Comrade Lin?”
“Weren’t you the one who said you wanted to help? Didn’t you say Brother Lu could only wear clothes washed by you?”
“Could it be that in the past… you even washed this for him?”
Su Man pretended to cover her mouth in shock.
“My goodness! So your relationship had already reached this stage?”
“You’re talking nonsense! I didn’t!”
Lin Wan’er was so frantic she was practically on the verge of tears.
If word of this got out, her reputation would be completely ruined!
Just then—
A burst of noisy footsteps and voices suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate.
“Commander Lu, your regiment did an excellent job in this exercise!”
“Not at all. It was all thanks to the soldiers.”
That familiar voice drifted over.
Lu Zhan was back.
And judging from the noise, he wasn’t alone.
Lin Wan’er’s face went deathly pale.
She looked at the pair of briefs on the ground, then at the people about to push open the gate.
She was finished.