Lu Xinran stopped walking, looked up at him, and said, “Yanfeng, I don’t want to work right now. But don’t worry. My parents have always given me spending money, and I’ve been saving it. I won’t spend all your money.”
In her previous life, she had already spent several years working herself to the bone.
Now that she had only recently transmigrated into this novel, the last thing she wanted to do was work. There were so many other things she wanted to do.
Still, she was afraid Li Yanfeng wouldn’t agree.
“You don’t have to. If you don’t want to work, then don’t. My salary is enough to support you. Keep your own spending money. You won’t need to use it.”
Li Yanfeng said it in an utterly domineering manner.
It was very much the attitude of a real man.
Lu Xinran was about to say something when the courtyard gate suddenly opened.
“Oh my, Yanfeng, Xinran, you’re here! Why aren’t you coming in? What are you standing at the door for?” Xu Aihua greeted them with a laugh. Her voice was indeed quite loud.
Lu Xinran pulled herself out of her thoughts and decided not to bring it up for now. She would talk about it when they got home.
Some things were better discussed when the two of them were alone.
“Hello, Sister-in-law. We were just about to knock,” Lu Xinran said, taking the initiative with a faint smile.
“Then I came at just the right time. Come on in. Dinner’s almost ready.”
“Okay.”
Li Yanfeng and Lu Xinran walked inside.
Two boys were squatting in the courtyard playing. One looked about ten years old, while the other was around eight.
“Da Mao, Er Mao, come over and greet them,” Xu Aihua called.
“Hello, Uncle Li. Hello, Auntie,” the two boys said in unison, their voices still carrying the innocence of childhood.
“Xinran, these are my two sons. They’re quite the little troublemakers!” Xu Aihua said, though the affection in her eyes was impossible to hide.
“They’re at an age where being a little mischievous is normal. As long as they don’t cause trouble for other people, it’s fine.”
“Da Mao, Er Mao, nice to meet you. Here, this is for you!”
As she spoke, Lu Xinran reached into her shoulder bag, grabbed a handful of White Rabbit milk candies, and gave several to each child.
All children loved candy. The only sweets available here were usually hard candies. White Rabbit milk candies were expensive and rarely seen, and most families simply couldn’t bear to buy them for their children.
The children might not understand the significance, but the adults certainly did.
“Thank you, Auntie,” the two boys said in unison.
Seeing this, Xu Aihua laughed. “Oh my, Xinran, why did you give them such expensive candy? What a waste!”
“I brought it from home. I like eating candy too,” Lu Xinran said casually.
Of course, she couldn’t tell them she needed sugar because of low blood sugar. They probably wouldn’t understand anyway, so she kept her explanation simple and straightforward to avoid any awkwardness.
Li Yanfeng, standing nearby, silently took note of this.
“Oh my, you’re still like a little girl. Yanfeng, remember to buy Xinran plenty of candy in the future,” Xu Aihua teased.
“Mm.” Li Yanfeng agreed.
“All right, let’s go inside and eat. The wind is too strong out here.”
“Mm.”
Inside, the dining table was set in the middle of the main room, with dishes already laid out.
“Come on, everyone, sit down. Eat while it’s hot.”
There was a pot of lamb stewed with radishes, a plate of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried potatoes with meat, a plate of wild greens, and a dish of peanuts.
There was also a pot of lamb spine stew, which was the most substantial dish of all.
They certainly didn’t eat like this every day. They had prepared such a spread specifically because they had guests today.
Before long, Zhou Meifang and her husband, Director Yang from the military district’s Political Department, arrived as well.
Their family also had two children, a son and a daughter. They were about the same age as Xu Aihua’s boys, perhaps a year or two older.
The house immediately became lively.
“Come on, everyone, sit down. We have steamed buns and rice. Eat whatever you like,” Xu Aihua called out.
In fact, their family didn’t eat rice very often either.
Today, they had prepared it mainly for Lu Xinran, knowing that she was from the south.
Lu Xinran sat beside Li Yanfeng, looking a little awkward. Colonel Li had already served his wife a bowl of rice.
“Xinran, you’ve pretty much finished getting your new home settled, right?” Xu Aihua asked with a smile.
“Mm. We also went to the supply and marketing cooperative this afternoon and bought some things. We have pretty much everything now.”
“Oh, you went to the supply and marketing cooperative?”
“Mm. It was still early, so we went ahead and bought what we needed.”
“Good. If you’re missing anything later, just go buy it.”
“Have you been to the military service store yet?” Zhou Meifang asked.
“Not yet. I’ll go when I have time.”
“Xinran, if you want to go, just ask Sister Xu to take you. She works there as a sales clerk. If there’s anything you’re missing, you can tell her. If it’s inconvenient for you to go over yourself, just have her bring it back for you,” Zhou Meifang said.
“Your Sister Zhou is right. I work at the military service store,” Xu Aihua said with a smile.
Although the two women loved bickering with each other, they were genuinely close.
Lu Xinran nodded seriously.
“Okay. I understand.”
“Then where do you work, Sister Zhou?” Lu Xinran asked curiously.
“I work in the Logistics Department,” Zhou Meifang answered honestly.
“Mm.”
They chatted while eating. The men didn’t say much, occasionally exchanging a few words.
“Yanfeng, how many days off did the commander give you?” Director Yang asked.
“Just two days. Today and tomorrow. On Monday, I’ll have half a day to go register the marriage,” Li Yanfeng answered honestly.
Director Yang nodded without saying anything.
Then Zhou Meifang said, “Xinran, Yanfeng is usually very busy, and he occasionally has to go on missions. If you need anything, just come to us.”
“I’ll take you to my workplace sometime. The Logistics Department is also inside the family compound.”
“I understand. Thank you, Sister-in-law,” Lu Xinran replied calmly.
“Oh, don’t be so formal. Now that you’ve come here to join your husband, we should all look out for one another.”
“We often have water shortages here, so whenever the water supply comes on, make sure you fill a couple of extra buckets to keep in reserve.”
“Mm, Yanfeng reminded me about that.”
It was already past seven when Lu Xinran and Li Yanfeng finished dinner at Xu Aihua’s house and headed home.
It was completely dark outside.
Their home was located deep inside the compound, where there weren’t even any streetlights.
It was pitch-black.
Lu Xinran had trouble walking in the dark.
They had barely gone a few steps after leaving Xu Aihua’s house when she caught her foot on something and nearly fell.
Fortunately, Li Yanfeng had been keeping an eye on her the whole time. He reacted quickly and caught her, preventing her from falling.
“Be careful. I forgot to take the flashlight out earlier,” Li Yanfeng said in a low voice.
Lu Xinran bit her lip and softly hummed in response.
After that, Li Yanfeng kept holding her hand as they walked.
Li Yanfeng had spent years handling guns, training, and helping with farm work whenever he returned to his hometown. His hands were covered in calluses.
Lu Xinran, on the other hand, was completely different. Her hands were fair, smooth, and incredibly soft.
Holding her hand felt like holding a handful of cotton. He didn’t even dare squeeze too hard.
He was afraid the calluses on his hands would scratch her.
He had never paid much attention to personal grooming before.
But at that moment, for the first time in his life, he actually found himself thinking that he should ask one of his old comrades what he could put on his hands to make them smoother.
He had to admit, holding her hand felt incredibly comfortable.
He was reluctant to let go.
Lu Xinran had no idea what was going through his mind. At that moment, she just wanted to get through the darkness as quickly as possible.
Fortunately, it wasn’t far. They reached home within a few minutes.
Only after they got inside did Lu Xinran realize an even more serious problem.
She was going to sleep with Li Yanfeng tonight!