After He Lingyun left, Luo Zhiyaolooked at her swollen “steamed bun” ankle. It seemed to have gone down slightly.
Sigh… it’s already like this. I’ll just have to take it slowly.
Ding. Host, the master has decided to compensate you with 10,000 points, and provide you with one tube of anti-swelling pain-relief ointment, one fertility pill (for twins), and one postpartum recovery pill.
“What the—what does that mean? A fertility pill? And for twins?”
Host, you will need it!
“Hey, what’s going on? Speak clearly!”
No matter how Luo Zhiyaoshouted, the system did not respond. The items appeared in front of her. She kept the anti-swelling ointment and stored the rest in her space.
“I’ll need it? Fertility? What nonsense!”
Regardless, she had received compensation—10,000 points—and didn’t have to go to work anymore. That was simply too good!
At noon, Captain Wang and his wife came to the educated youth compound to visit Luo Zhiyáo.
“Comrade Luo, take good care of your injury. Don’t worry about work points—I’ve reported it as a work injury on my end. You’ll get at least 5 points per day, enough to guarantee your food supply!”
“Thank you, Captain Wang. Sorry for troubling you and Auntie!”
“No trouble at all!”
“Captain Wang, how’s the housing situation?”
“At the moment, only an empty room at Old Master He’s place is available. Would you like to go take a look?”
“How many days until the new batch of educated youths arrives?”
“Three days.”
“In that case, I’ll go take a look tomorrow. If it’s suitable, I’ll move in the day after tomorrow.”
She really didn’t want to stay in this place with nothing—no kitchen, no bathroom, not even a window. Without lights or an open door, it was pitch dark inside.
Captain Wang’s wife said, “Alright. If you need help moving, come find me—I’ll arrange for people to help you.”
“Thank you, Captain and Aunt Liu!”
No matter what, Luo Zhiyaohad to express her gratitude—they had helped her find housing.
“In a few days, I’ll arrange for someone to build a house for you. Do you want to design it yourself, or follow our plans?”
“Captain Wang, I’ll design it myself. I’m not sure how much building a house will cost—could you estimate it for me?”
“Adobe houses are made from soil dug from the back hill, so that doesn’t cost much. You’ll mainly pay for labor. Each worker gets half a jin of coarse grain per day. Also, will you provide meals? If not, you’ll need to pay extra grain.
As for land, just give a little for the plot—it all goes to the brigade.”
“Captain Wang, I’ll give five yuan for the land. Also, I can’t provide meals, so I’ll pay in grain instead. Do you know anyone who sells bricks? I want to build a brick house.”
Hearing five yuan, both Captain Wang and his wife were astonished. This young educated youth really had money—she spent several yuan at a time without hesitation.
“I don’t have connections for that. Maybe you should ask Third Young Master He. He’s in the military—he should have some contacts.”
“Alright then.”
Luo Zhiyaohad several thousand yuan on hand, more than enough to build a brick house.
After thinking it over, she decided to ask Captain He—hopefully he had a way to procure red bricks.
“Alright, get some rest. Don’t worry about work.”
“Thank you, Uncle. Thank you, Auntie!”
Luo Zhiyaobegan thinking about how to ask He Lingyun about sourcing bricks.
Since she would be living here for seven or eight years, she definitely couldn’t compromise on her living conditions.
Even if she got married, the house could later serve as her bridal home.
She took out paper and a pen and started drawing a floor plan. Since it was her own house, it had to be comfortable.
She didn’t expect that once the house was built, she wouldn’t live in it for long before following a certain “big tail wolf” into military housing.
After an hour of effort, she finished the layout. Although she wasn’t trained in design, she had seen many floor plans online in her previous life—it wasn’t too difficult to sketch one.
Considering she would live alone, she designed a simple one-bedroom, one-living-room layout, plus a kitchen and a bathroom.
At around four o’clock, He Lingyun came to her room again.
“Comrade Luo!”
“The door’s not locked—come in.”
Seeing the medicinal wine in his hand, Luo Zhiyaosubconsciously pulled her foot back. The pain from noon was something she didn’t want to experience again.
“Comrade Luo, how are you feeling?”
“Captain He, I feel much better. Do I still need the medicinal wine massage?”
“Afraid of pain? Hmm?”
His tone rose slightly at the end, carrying a hint of allure that seemed to seep into her heart.
“N-no!”
That single “hmm” made Luo Zhiyáo’s face flush. She didn’t dare look at him.
Seeing her embarrassment, He Lingyun chuckled softly. His low, magnetic voice reached her ears, making the faint blush on her face even more vivid.
“Comrade Luo, let me apply the medicine for you.”
She said nothing and silently extended her foot, allowing his calloused fingers to massage her skin.
Compared to noon, the pain this time was much milder.
“I heard you’re planning to go check out my grandparents’ place?”
“Yes. I’m not used to living with others, and this place has no windows—it feels very stifling.”
“Don’t worry, my grandparents are easygoing.”
“Mm.” Whether they were easygoing or not didn’t really matter. It was just a temporary stay—she didn’t plan to build a close relationship.
He Lingyun looked at her for a moment, then gathered his courage to reveal his own limitation.
“Zhizhi, when I said I like you, it was love at first sight—and also a matter of interest. You know people like us in the military—there’s always a chance we might die on the battlefield. What I said yesterday was sincere. I like you, I want to marry you, and spend my life with you.
I understand your concerns. My parents have already agreed, and I don’t want to hide anything from you. Some time ago, I was injured in battle—my abdominal injury resulted in a very low chance of having children. I don’t know if you mind this. If you do, then you can pretend you never heard what I said before.”
Only then did Luo Zhiyaorealize why the system had given her a fertility pill.
So the male lead couldn’t have children.
Seeing her remain silent, He Lingyun felt a sense of disappointment.
Indeed, no one could easily accept this condition—being unable to have children for life was hard for any woman to accept.
He quietly finished massaging her ankle and stood up to leave.
The earlier tenderness and emotional tension had been completely cooled.
It seemed he would remain single for the rest of his life.
“Wait…”
Luo Zhiyaosnapped back to her senses and realized he had already reached the doorway, so she quickly called out to him.
He Lingyun stopped at the door but did not step back in, waiting for her answer.
“What are you leaving for? I didn’t say anything yet.”
Hearing this, He Lingyun was overjoyed. “Zhizhi, so you don’t mind?”
Luo Zhiyaowas speechless. She hadn’t said she minded either, okay?
Well…
She really didn’t mind.
Or rather, she didn’t mind that much.
If the system hadn’t given her the fertility pill, she might have had some hesitation.
But if their feelings deepened and they built a solid relationship first, she wouldn’t mind.
As a modern person, many women choose not to have children.
She could understand it—and accept it.