Moonlight was bright, stars were few, and everything was silent.
Two figures quickly walked toward the family compound.
At a fork in a small alley, they split up.
Qin Mu easily climbed over the wall and entered. After landing, he first went to the bathroom.
After taking a shower, he pushed open the door.
The temperature in the bedroom was slightly lower than outside. Qin Mu had excellent night vision. He saw a large basin with a smaller basin inside it on the floor and lightly touched it with his hand.
!
It was ice!
Still wondering why there was ice at home, he looked toward the bed.
Jiang Yao was lying there spread-eagled, wearing only a thin camisole. Her belly button was exposed, and she was wearing very short shorts.
If he hadn’t seen a familiar edge of fabric, he would have thought the girl wasn’t wearing underwear at all.
When he wasn’t home, this was how she slept.
No wonder she didn’t get cold.
He sat down on his side of the bed, gently pulled out the blanket she had been lying on, then lifted a corner to cover her stomach and lower abdomen.
With ice in the room, sleeping really was more comfortable. Qin Mu fell asleep not long after lying down.
The next morning, Jiang Yao was woken up by voices outside.
“When did he come back?”
“Last night.”
“We made dumplings yesterday. They’re frozen in the ice bucket. We can cook dumplings for breakfast.”
Jiang Yao yawned and sat up. Hearing this, Qin Mu was back?
She scratched her hair, got dressed, and walked out—just in time to see Qin Mu carrying a tray of dumplings.
“You’re back?”
“Mm.”
Qin Mu briefly looked her over. She used to be so thin you could faintly see her bones, but now her face had a bit of flesh on it and looked much healthier.
Her skin was also a little whiter.
“Go wash your face. The dumplings will be ready soon.”
“Okay.”
Jiang Yao pushed her hair back and was about to go wash up when she suddenly remembered the time.
“Don’t you go to work today?”
Qin Mu: “I can go a bit later today.”
Who gave her the idea that soldiers had to go to work on time after completing missions?
At the dining table, having an extra person made Jiang Yao feel a bit uncomfortable.
Song Yulan, however, was very happy. Still, she didn’t forget to make a bowl of brown sugar eggs.
“Grandma, I don’t need this right now.”
Brown sugar eggs were a rare treat in the village. Even though they were now in the military compound, they couldn’t be eaten every day.
But Song Yulan wouldn’t listen.
“Yao Yao, eat it. After today, you won’t eat it tomorrow.”
She had calculated the days—it was Jiang Yao’s last day of her period.
Jiang Yao still couldn’t win against her and ate the bowl of brown sugar eggs.
Qin Mu knew brown sugar eggs were for nourishment. He asked if Jiang Yao was unwell.
“Just menstrual cramps. It’s much better now. Nothing serious.”
She had no shame about mentioning menstruation, and since they were at home, it didn’t matter.
Song Yulan said, “You ate ice pops and ended up like that. Your body still hasn’t recovered properly.”
“Xiao Mu, find time to buy some brown sugar and red dates and keep them at home. Now that there’s a woman in the house, these things must be prepared in advance. Otherwise, you’ll be in a panic when you need them.”
“It was only because Sister Erni next door had some that I was able to exchange for them. Otherwise, I really wouldn’t have known what to do.”
She knew very well how much suffering Jiang Yao had endured before. Jiang Yao was used to not taking her body seriously, but she would not allow it.
Not only for easier childbirth in the future, but even if she never had children, she still couldn’t allow her to ignore her health like before.
Jiang Yao felt moved.
【Grandma is so good!】
Brown sugar must cost quite a bit of money. When she earns more later, she’ll buy it from the mall and quietly bring it home little by little.
Qin Mu heard her inner voice and said seriously, “Alright, I’ll go to the city in a couple of days and take a look.”
After saying that, he got up and went to make her a cup of malted milk drink.
Song Yulan was satisfied.
In a marriage, if there’s anything wrong with the body, it should be said clearly. Only then can the other person take care of you properly.
After the meal, Qin Mu went to wash the dishes on his own, while Jiang Yao accompanied the old lady to the backyard vegetable garden.
The northwest was dry, so more watering was needed when it got hot.
This was the first time Song Yulan had grown vegetables here. She had asked several military wives for advice, and now she checked the vegetables three times a day.
Fortunately, her efforts were not wasted—the green vegetables looked fresh and tender.
“Grandma, I think they’ll be ready to eat soon.”
Song Yulan nodded.
“Yes. When Xiao Mu comes back from his mission, the housewarming meal has already been delayed for so long—it’s time to have it. We’ll use these vegetables.”
“After these are harvested, we’ll plant cabbage. After October, we can pickle sauerkraut. We’ll also plant potatoes and radishes. We need to store more vegetables for winter.”
Jiang Yao didn’t really know the details of preparing for winter, so she just followed Grandma’s instructions and learned step by step for now.
That morning, Chen Yuzhi and Ling Xue came over.
After discussion within the family compound, it was decided that each household would give ten jin of cabbage in winter in exchange for the ice-making method.
Ten jin of cabbage meant about two heads. With more than forty households, that would be over eighty cabbages in total.
Jiang Yao thought it was acceptable.
Xiao Hei: 【Sister Yao, there is nitrate in the back mountain. You can take them to collect it. Some households live in buildings and don’t have any nitrate.】
Jiang Yao: 【……Then why did you make me scrape nitrate from home?】
Xiao Hei: 【Brother-in-law said you’re not allowed to go up the mountain.】
Jiang Yao almost couldn’t breathe from anger. If there were no people in front of her, she would have already gone into the space and knocked it on the head.
She first explained the method, then said to Ling Xue, “Sister-in-law, there definitely isn’t enough nitrate. There is some in the back mountain. I can take you to collect it.”
“Alright. I’ll go back and make a list. We’ll set a day to go to the back mountain together.”
The nitrate issue was resolved. Ling Xue was in the best mood she had been in since sending Lin Shu away, so she specially cooked a meat dish.
When Lin Yuanchao came back, he joked, “Why is dinner so rich today?”
Ling Xue gave him a piece of meat.
“You’ve been busy lately, so I didn’t get a chance to tell you. Qin Mu’s wife made ice.”
“Ice?” Lin Yuanchao paused. “Is that true?”
“Of course. Everyone wanted the method after hearing about it, so Sister Yuzhi and I decided to give her some benefit. We agreed each household would give ten jin of cabbage in winter. Ten jin is about two cabbages. That exchange isn’t a loss.”
“What exactly is the method? Can you tell me?”
Ling Xue raised an eyebrow.
“Then you have to ask me as a family member now.”
“Then as family.”
Ling Xue ate a piece of meat and said, “It uses nitrate to make ice. Add nitrate to water and it turns into ice. She also said if it’s not enough, we can go to the back mountain of the military area to find more.”
Lin Yuanchao’s expression became serious.
“Do you know what nitrate can be used for besides making ice?”
Ling Xue asked casually, “What else can it do?”
Lin Yuanchao said three words.
Ling Xue quickly drank water and swallowed the meat in her mouth.
“Gunpowder?”
“Yes. Gunpowder.”
After so many years in the army, Lin Yuanchao had some knowledge of this. Most black powder is made using nitrate. If there really is nitrate in the back mountain…