Xu Xi was loosely draped in a floral-patterned nightgown. The collar, probably because she had just gotten up and hadn’t tidied it properly, revealed a small patch of fair skin.
Zhou Yue’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly. His hand, holding the lunchbox, froze mid-air. His originally stern jawline tightened even more, and the tips of his ears quietly flushed with a faint red.
Ever since Xu Xi arrived on the island, he felt she was constantly tempting him.
Xu Xi didn’t notice his expression; instead, her attention was completely captured by the aluminum lunchbox.
In a foodie’s eyes, there is only food.
“Did you come to bring me breakfast?” Xu Xi took the lunchbox and looked up at him. “Thank you, Zhou Yue. You’re so kind.”
As she said this, her eyes sparkled, looking particularly sincere.
Zhou Yue’s right hand, hanging at his side, unconsciously clenched. He suppressed the urge to help her straighten her collar, his tone carrying a hint of awkwardness and low restraint.
“First, put your clothes on properly.”
Startled, Xu Xi looked down. Wasn’t it just one button undone? How was she not properly dressed?
Faced with the rigid and serious man, Xu Xi still buttoned her collar all the way up.
Today’s breakfast actually had pickled vegetables. After becoming pregnant, Xu Xi had developed a craving for sour and spicy flavors. Paired with porridge, it was especially appetizing.
While she was eating breakfast, Zhou Yue leaned against the doorway and said to her, “The family housing application has been approved.”
Hearing that the house was ready, Xu Xi’s eyes brightened even more.
“What kind of house was approved?”
“A two-bedroom, one-living-room bungalow with a yard.” Zhou Yue pursed his lips and continued, “But we’ll have to wait until this afternoon to move in. After I return from my patrol at sea, I’ll go clean it up.”
Xu Xi was pregnant, so he couldn’t let her do the cleaning. Zhou Yue thought about it and decided to do it himself.
Although he didn’t like Xu Xi, as a man who had married her, he had to take responsibility.
Xu Xi was quite satisfied. “I really like the idea of a yard. We can plant flowers and vegetables, and even sun-dry the quilts. It’s spacious and quiet.”
It was a common obsession among Chinese people: if you had the means to buy a house, it had to come with a yard. In her original world, Xu Xi had lived in a small villa her parents bought for her, with a huge garden.
But in this era, she didn’t dare plant flowers. What if she was labeled as having capitalist tendencies? That would be the end of her.
After hearing her words, a flicker of surprise passed through Zhou Yue’s dark eyes.
Could Xu Xi and the word “quiet” ever be associated?
Based on his impressions and the villagers’ descriptions of her, she was a loud, brash, and malicious country woman. Otherwise, why would no one have dared to propose to her even at the age of twenty?
But after interacting with her, Zhou Yue realized that aside from drugging him and willfully sneaking onto the island, Xu Xi didn’t seem to have any other serious issues.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back to the barracks.”
Just as Zhou Yue was about to leave, Xu Xi suddenly grabbed him.
His brow furrowed slightly as half a cornbread was shoved in front of him by Xu Xi.
“I can’t finish this. You help me eat it. We can’t waste food.”
She really wasn’t used to coarse grains. After nibbling on half a cornbread, she didn’t want to eat anymore.
Back in the village, she would sneak into the Spatial Dimension every day to cook for herself, eating vegetables and fruits, which had made her lose weight.
Seeing Zhou Yue staring at the other half of the cornbread, Xu Xi thought he was disgusted and explained, “I haven’t touched this half. I broke it off with my hands.”
Zhou Yue’s thin lips pressed together slightly. He reached out, took the one and a half cornbreads, and left without saying a word.
Xu Xi couldn’t help but complain about him: “So rude.”
After breakfast with nothing to do, Xu Xi didn’t know which family housing unit she had been assigned, so after a simple tidy-up, she decided to go out for a stroll.
The island in the 1970s was quite different from the resort-like islands of later times.
The houses on the island were mostly built from stone, crowded closely together in clusters, their walls rough and thick, weathered to a pale gray by the sea wind over the years.
The gaps between the stones were filled with yellow mud and oyster-shell lime, looking crude but remarkably resistant to wind and moisture.
Not far away was the sea, where the fishing brigade was organizing everyone to catch fish and shrimp.
Seeing this scene, Xu Xi, as an art student, felt her fingers itch, suddenly wanting to sketch.
But she had no brushes or rice paper, so it was hopeless.
Xu Xi also spotted a familiar figure fishing by the shore, who seemed to notice her too and waved excitedly.
Wang Liya, her two braids swinging, jogged over. “Comrade, it’s you again!”
Xu Xi smiled. “What a coincidence.”
Wang Liya scratched her head. “Yeah, ever since I arrived on the island, I’ve been wanting to find you to thank you, but I forgot to ask your name.”
Since they were both on the same island, Xu Xi relaxed her guard and told Wang Liya her name.
“My name is Xu Xi, and I’m the wife of the battalion commander of the First Battalion in the island camp area.”
Wang Liya instantly understood. “So you’re a military spouse, here to accompany your husband! No wonder you’re a soldier’s family member, Comrade Xu—you’re both beautiful and have a strong sense of justice.”
Xu Xi was praised so beautifully she couldn’t suppress the corners of her mouth.
Back in the village, everyone called her ugly, but since coming to the island, she’d only heard compliments, which lifted her spirits considerably.
Wang Liya only chatted with Xu Xi for a few more sentences before heading back to the brigade to work.
Just as Xu Xi was about to turn back, she saw Zhou Yue’s orderly, Zhao Heping, jogging over.
“Sister-in-law, Battalion Commander Zhou needs to see you about something. He asked you to come over.”
Xu Xi was surprised. “He finished his sea patrol and came back so quickly?”
Zhao Heping replied, “If nothing unexpected happens, a sea patrol only takes a little over an hour.”
While answering Xu Xi’s question, his eyes kept glancing at her from time to time. He’d heard it was her who drugged the battalion commander, forced herself on him, and that was why the commander had to marry her.
This girl looked so thin and frail, yet she had such nerve, daring to scheme against their battalion commander.
Truly, appearances can be deceiving.
Xu Xi followed Zhao Heping back to the camp area and was led to a jeep.
Seeing her arrive, Zhou Yue got out of the car. “The family housing unit has nothing in it. I’ll take you to get some things first.”
Xu Xi: “Okay.”
Zhou Yue drove her to the military service store. To make it easier to carry things, he had specifically borrowed a vehicle from the army.
The assigned house was completely empty, so there were many things to buy: pots, bowls, ladles, basins, toilet paper, brooms, dustpans, fire tongs, water vats, and so on.
The kitchen had an earthen stove, so they also needed to buy a stove. It wasn’t easy to get straw and firewood here, and besides, Xu Xi wasn’t very good at using an earthen stove.
She was responsible for picking out the items, while Zhou Yue handled the payments.
As they bought more and more, Xu Xi noticed Zhou Yue’s hands were full and he couldn’t carry everything.
She tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Maybe we should stop here for today. If we’re missing anything, we can buy it later.”
Zhou Yue’s expression remained indifferent. “No need. I’ll put the things in the car first. Let’s finish buying everything in one go. I won’t have time to come to the military service store with you later.”
He genuinely had no time; he had even taken leave at noon to help Xu Xi with her errands, and he still had to return for training in the afternoon.
In Xu Xi’s eyes, it was clear he didn’t want to go shopping with her.
Xu Xi pouted. When Zhou Yue brought her breakfast this morning, she thought their relationship might have thawed a bit. Who would have guessed he was still as cold as ever.