Ning Xi quickly got dressed and went to open the door.
As soon as the door opened, Jiang Chengbei’s striking, heroic face came into view.
In his hands was a tray, holding a bowl of plain rice porridge, a white steamed bun, a plate of stir-fried shredded potatoes, and two boiled eggs with the shells already peeled.
“You must be hungry. Eat.”
For the countryside, this breakfast could already be considered luxurious. Who would eat two eggs at once? Ning Xi felt a little grateful and looked up at Jiang Chengbei.
“Eating so well… won’t your family be upset?”
“No.”
Jiang Chengbei’s dark eyes swept over her pale, radiant little face. He couldn’t help thinking: how could someone’s skin be so fair whiter than a peeled egg, pale and soft, dazzling to look at?
He handed the tray to Ning Xi and added:
“Eat without worry. You… were exhausted yesterday. You need to replenish yourself.”
As for why she was exhausted, both of them knew very well.
Ning Xi couldn’t help recalling yesterday. Her delicate, fair face had flushed red from exertion, and her heart thumped as she tried to shut the door but in the next second, the door was blocked by a strong, firm hand.
Jiang Chengbei’s gaze was burning.
“Want to go into town together?”
“No.” Ning Xi shook her head; she still wanted to catch some extra sleep.
Seeing that she wouldn’t go, Jiang Chengbei didn’t press it. He thought about asking if she was still sore after yesterday, but suddenly asking might be rash. He looked at Ning Xi deeply, feeling reluctant to leave.
His legs seemed to have a mind of their own, unwilling to move.
At this moment, the army commander known for his cold, icy demeanor looked like a boy trying to make small talk.
“Is there anything you want? I can buy it for you.”
Ning Xi blinked her long lashes at him and shook her head again.
“No, I don’t need anything.”
“Oh.”
This time, Jiang Chengbei couldn’t find any other topic to talk about. Worried the breakfast would get cold and upset her stomach, he finally started walking out the door, taking long strides but he glanced back at her repeatedly.
Ning Xi found it amusing.
Her heart also felt soft, though she couldn’t explain exactly what she was feeling.
She was about to carry the tray inside when Jiang Yanyan suddenly shot out from the side room, eyeing the food on the tray, swallowing hard, and reaching to grab it.
“Give it to me!”
Her second brother had gone through the trouble of getting up early, kneading dough and rinsing rice, and she, as the only daughter in the house, had never eaten two eggs at once—why should this capitalist young lady get them?
Ning Xi, prepared for this, slapped Jiang Yanyan’s hand hard.
“You’re a beggar, grabbing food whenever you see it?”
Yesterday she called Ning Xi a dog; today she was calling her a beggar. Jiang Yanyan was so angry her features nearly twisted. Losing the argument, she went to call for backup.
When Tian Guilan learned her daughter had confronted Ning Xi again, she felt overwhelmed.
“Why do you always pick on her?”
“I just can’t stand it that Second Brother is so biased toward her! He got up early to make all this good food why should she get it all?”
Jiang Yanyan was both greedy and angry, clutching Tian Guilan’s arm and shaking it.
“Mom, Ning Xi called me a beggar! Go scold her!”
Tian Guilan didn’t dare.
She sighed.
“Your second brother has never been close to me. He’s been away from home for years, and now he’s the most accomplished in our family. Maybe one day we’ll all rely on him. I can’t risk upsetting him.”
Of all her children, Jiang Chengbei was the exception.
The others were clingy since childhood, but he had always been like an untamed wolf cub, never close to his mother.
After joining the army, he even disregarded her completely. Yesterday had already made it clear: if she offended Ning Xi, it would anger him, and their mother-son relationship could be damaged. It wasn’t worth the risk.
“Yanyan, calm down. Don’t make trouble for Ning Xi anymore. Your marriage will still need your second brother’s help. If he doesn’t help you get a good officer in the army, how will you enjoy your later life?”
Old Second Brother was obviously a strict husband-to-be.
If Ning Xi whispered a word in his ear, her daughter’s whole future could be ruined.
Hearing she might have to marry an officer, Jiang Yanyan immediately rejected the idea.
“Mom, this is my business. I don’t want to marry an officer. I want to choose myself.”
Tian Guilan quickly asked, “Have you found someone?”
“No.”
Jiang Yanyan didn’t admit it, but her face flushed red. She begged Tian Guilan for a yuan, changed into new clothes, and secretly rode into town to meet a date.
Forget the stinky soldier she wanted a refined gentleman.
Meanwhile, Jiang Chengbei first went to the post office to send letters for the army, then called his superior. His superior, happy to hear he was getting married, joked about how many young girls would have their hearts broken.
After hanging up, he went to the supply and marketing cooperative.
Though Ning Xi said she didn’t need anything, the household food was bad, and she often didn’t eat well. He bought some peach pastries and biscuits so she could snack if she didn’t feel like a meal, two cans each of canned peaches and hawthorn, a tub of malted milk, three cans of luncheon meat.
Passing the candy counter, he also bought a pound of White Rabbit candy.
He’d heard it could replace a cup of milk. He didn’t know if it was true, but paid without hesitation, making all the young women in the store envious.
Who could be so lucky?
A handsome man, generous with his money.
Another day of everyone’s envy.
He also bought two bottles of white liquor for Old Master Jiang, who had no other hobbies besides a drink.
After leaving the store, Jiang Chengbei went to the hospital before returning home in the afternoon.
Seeing him come back with so many items, everyone’s eyes widened.
Wow, how much did all this cost?
Zhou Qinglian smiled and said, “Our Chengbei is really something, knows how to show filial respect to his uncle and aunt.”
She reached out to take something, but Jiang Chengbei dodged her.
“Aunt, this isn’t for you.”
He spoke so directly, never beating around the bush.
Zhou Qinglian froze, reluctantly withdrew her hand, her eyes flashing with jealousy, and forced out a laugh.
“Then it must be for your parents. You’ve been away so long, you can’t show them filial piety in person, so buying gifts makes up for it.”
Hearing this, Tian Guilan finally felt relieved.
She knew her son still cared about his parents.
But the next second, all the items went to Ning Xi: malted milk, snacks, candy, canned meat, even two bottles of fine liquor for Old Master Jiang.
This… is this fair?!
Tian Guilan felt the sky fall.
Zhang Hongmei felt bitter.
Mother-in-law and daughter-in-law both slumped their faces in unison utterly awkward.
Ning Xi’s lips parted in surprise as she stared at the pile. “All of this… for me?”
“Mm. To replenish yourself.”
Jiang Chengbei repeated his usual line: a wife is meant to be cared for. He loved Ning Xi. If he didn’t treat her well, who else would?
As for his parents, he would still honor them as a dutiful son.
In the evening, after dinner, Ning Xi played in the courtyard with Jiang Xiaoyu.
The little girl was particularly well-behaved, and Ning Xi planned to teach her to read.
She was patient, teaching each stroke carefully. Her serene, radiant profile glowed in the sunset, exuding warmth.
Jiang Chengbei couldn’t help staring, lost in thought.
He imagined that if they had children, Ning Xi would be just as gentle…
The children calling her “Mom” and him “Dad” just thinking about it made his heart soften.
After teaching three words, Ning Xi grabbed a handful of White Rabbit candy from her pocket and gave it to Jiang Xiaoyu, winking.
“Xiaoyu, hide it and eat it yourself.”
Otherwise, Zhang Hongmei would snatch it and take it back to her family.
Jiang Xiaoyu immediately understood, clamping her small hands over her pocket.
Little did they know, Zhang Hongmei had been hiding inside, watching. She snorted. How could a little girl eat such expensive candy? Better to give it to her nephew back home.
The sky darkened gradually.
The courtyard dimmed. Ning Xi yawned; she hadn’t slept well last night. She wanted to sleep early and take a bath. Seeing Jiang Chengbei sitting stiffly beside her, she commanded him to boil water for her.
“I want to take a bath. Guard the door.”
“Okay.”
Without hesitation, Jiang Chengbei stood and was about to go to the kitchen when he remembered something. He dug into his pocket and handed her a tube of ointment.
“Take this.”
Ning Xi looked at it, and when she read the label, her eyes widened with curiosity.
“Erythromycin ointment? Why are you giving me this?”