"Xiufen, look who's back?"
Cousin Li Xiulan's signature loud voice echoed from the doorway of Li Xiufen's house.
Li Xiufen lifted the curtain and saw a flash of uncontrollable amazement in her eyes.
It couldn't be helped, her daughter-in-law was simply too beautiful! Forget men, even an old woman like her couldn't help but stare.
Truly worthy of being Li Xiufen's daughter-in-law!
Li Xiufen quickly stepped forward, reaching out to take the army green canvas bag from her daughter-in-law's hand.
"Miaomiao, why are you back alone? Why didn't Zhanjun come back with you? That scoundrel! How could he be so at ease letting you come back alone?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Li Xiufen noticed her daughter-in-law's expression was not quite right.
"What's wrong? Did you have a fight with Zhanjun?"
Gu Chunmiao's eyes reddened: "Mom! I want a divorce from Zhanjun..."
"What?!" Li Xiufen and Li Xiulan exclaimed in unison, even their jumping actions were identical.
The two sisters, like a gust of wind, swept Gu Chunmiao into the house.
After a round of "interrogation," Li Xiufen finally understood why her daughter-in-law wanted to divorce her foolish son.
It turned out that Gu Chunmiao, who grew up in the compound, was not Commander Gu's biological daughter!
Back then, Commander Gu's wife, Jiang Hongying, followed the army to the border, and unexpectedly encountered an earthquake while giving birth.
In the chaos of war, even the hospital collapsed. A group of pregnant women were crowded into tents to give birth. Jiang Hongying suffered from severe postpartum hemorrhage, and Commander Gu was in the disaster area for rescue.
Two days later, when she opened her eyes, a fair and tender little daughter was in her arms.
Gu Chunmiao had been a beautiful child since she was young. Everyone in the compound said that Commander Gu and his wife were good at having children. Gu Chunmiao seemed to have absorbed all the essence of the Gu family. From childhood to adulthood, she was as exquisite and beautiful as a doll, and was especially cherished!
Gu Feng and his wife were also very proud, but who knew that not long ago, when the couple went to the border to offer condolences, they suddenly encountered a girl who looked exactly like Gu Feng...
After inquiring, the couple realized they had been switched at birth.
The girl who looked exactly like Gu Feng, and had since changed her name to Gu Sisi, was their biological daughter.
And Gu Chunmiao, who stood out from the crowd like a swan among wild ducks, was neither Gu Feng's daughter nor the child of Gu Sisi's adoptive parents.
No one knew who Gu Chunmiao's biological parents were.
Tens of thousands died and were injured in that earthquake. Perhaps Gu Chunmiao's biological parents had already died in that great earthquake.
Gu Feng and his wife brought their biological daughter back to the compound, originally hoping the two sisters would get along harmoniously.
But Gu Sisi harbored resentment towards Gu Chunmiao for "occupying" her position. She repeatedly instigated trouble and framed her, causing Gu Feng and his wife to gradually grow disgusted with Gu Chunmiao, their adopted daughter.
The last straw that broke Gu Chunmiao was a letter Gu Sisi received two days ago.
A photo was enclosed in the letter. The man in military uniform in the photo was none other than Gu Chunmiao's newlywed husband, Li Xiufen's son, He Zhanjun.
Standing next to He Zhanjun was a fair and delicate girl.
Gu Sisi told Gu Chunmiao that He Zhanjun had actively pursued her and married her only because he valued her as Commander Gu's daughter, which would help his career in the future.
But now, He Zhanjun knew that Gu Chunmiao was not Commander Gu's biological daughter at all; she was an imposter.
And now, before even divorcing, he was impatiently hooking up with the daughter of Director Liu of the military hospital.
In despair, Gu Chunmiao voluntarily returned the job Commander Gu had arranged for her to Gu Sisi, the true daughter.
Carrying her luggage, she headed straight for her husband's hometown, determined to divorce He Zhanjun.
..
Li Xiufen listened as if she were watching a play. After hearing the story, she exchanged a look with Li Xiulan. The two old sisters slapped their thighs and both took Gu Chunmiao's small hands.
Li Xiufen said, "Miaomiao, don't worry. There must be a conspiracy here! I know my own son. The way Zhanjun looks at you is like a starving wolf that hasn't eaten for eight hundred years, wanting to devour you in one bite. How could he possibly mess around with other women in the army?"
There was one more thing Li Xiufen didn't say.
In her entire life, she had never seen a more beautiful girl than Gu Chunmiao.
If her son wasn't blind, he wouldn't possibly get involved with other girls.
If you can eat fine noodles, who would eat coarse flour steamed buns?
Li Xiulan chimed in, "That Gu Sisi, just by her name, sounds like a villain from a propaganda play! Miaomiao, I'm telling you, you can't believe a single word that kind of person says! I think there must be a misunderstanding here."
She then looked at Li Xiufen, "Sister, quickly call Zhanjun back. We can have a face-to-face talk and clear things up, right?"
Li Xiufen slapped her thigh, "I'll go to the commune first thing tomorrow morning and call the army!"
With that, the sisters, leaving the dumbfounded Gu Chunmiao behind, put on their sleevelets and busied themselves in unison.
As the saying goes, "Dumplings upon arrival, noodles upon departure." Since her daughter-in-law had finally come home, she had to make her a bowl of hot egg noodles.
With her son and daughter-in-law away, Li Xiufen hadn't bought noodles for almost two months. She lived alone and usually just steamed a few potatoes or ate coarse grain and wild vegetable steamed buns to get by.
Looking at the flour bin, which was cleaner than her pocket, Li Xiufen remained unhurried.
"Xiulan, hurry home and get me two catties of Fuqiang flour and five eggs. Tomorrow morning, I'll buy more and return yours."
Their decades of cousinly affection meant there was no need for polite formalities.
Li Xiulan didn't hesitate. She turned and went to the neighbor's house next door to get half a bag of Fuqiang flour and a basket of over a dozen eggs, seemingly giving her sister all her household stock.
Li Xiufen didn't stand on ceremony with her sister. She took the items briskly. The sisters worked together, one tending the fire, the other kneading dough and beating eggs. Soon, a large bowl of steaming egg noodles was ready.
The egg noodles, with a few drops of sesame oil added, were topped with two poached eggs and a sprinkle of bright green chopped green onions. The aroma wafted from afar, making it incredibly appetizing.
Gu Chunmiao, sitting on the kang head, felt a sudden sting in her nose for some reason, and her eyes suddenly turned red.
Li Xiufen steadily placed the large bowl of egg noodles in front of Gu Chunmiao, pretending not to see her daughter-in-law's reddened eyes.
"Uh, Miaomiao, you eat first. I'm going to your Second Great Aunt's house to get something."
With that, she pulled Li Xiulan away.
Once outside, the sisters' expressions changed.
"Sister, Zhanjun wouldn't have really become a Chen Shimei, would he?"
In front of her nephew's wife, Li Xiulan would naturally defend He Zhanjun, but in reality, she was also filled with doubt.
He Zhanjun, a common soldier from the countryside, rose to become a battalion commander in just a few years. It was hard not to suspect that it was because he married Gu Chunmiao and became Commander Gu's son-in-law~
Li Xiufen slammed her fist into her palm and said fiercely, "How dare he?! If that brat dares to be a Chen Shimei, to look down on the poor and fawn on the rich, I'll be the first to not let him off!"
Thinking of her daughter-in-law being kicked out of her adoptive parents' home and looking so lost, Li Xiufen felt a pang of heartache.
"Xiulan, didn't the old hen you raised last year stop laying eggs? I'll take it first to nourish Miaomiao, and I'll pay you back later."
Li Xiulan took the chicken, turned, and went home. She boiled a large pot of hot water, repeatedly wiped the cleaver on the edge of the water tank, and with a swift chop, fresh, hot chicken blood landed precisely in the earthenware bowl on the ground.
"Miaomiao! I'll steam rice for you tonight, and stir-fried chicken innards with chili. How about it?"
Gu Chunmiao had imagined countless scenarios of how her mother-in-law would treat her after her "false young lady" identity was exposed.
But she never expected her mother-in-law to ask her—
"Do you want stir-fried chicken innards tonight?"
Was this really about stir-fried chicken innards?!
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