WRS – Chapter 76

The four of them headed back that afternoon. They had been out for quite a while, and after so long, they really started to miss home.

They took an overnight train. When they transferred trains in the middle of the night, Liuliu was already asleep. Jin Xiuzhu and Yanyan carried the luggage, while He Yan held the little sister.

Thankfully, He Yan was with them. A boy’s strength really made a difference—he held his little sister in one arm, carried things with the other, walking ahead to clear a path for them. He was tall and sturdy, so no one dared to bother them.

The train went straight from the neighboring provincial capital to G Province. This time they had a sleeper. Jin Xiuzhu slept in the middle bunk with Liuliu, Yanyan took the top, and He Yan slept on the bottom. He was worried about safety at night and thought it’d be easier for him to get down quickly if something happened.

The four of them spent two full days and nights on the train. They finally arrived at the provincial capital of G Province on the morning of the third day. Then they transferred again to head to their city. There were few trains to the city, so they switched to a bus instead, arriving at the station a little after 3 p.m.

Once they got off the bus and saw the familiar surroundings, everyone felt a bit lighter.

Liuliu was the happiest. “We’re home!”

Fu Yanyan couldn’t help asking, “You’re that excited?”

Liuliu looked completely innocent. “Of course! I get to see Dad.”

Fu Yanyan smiled faintly.

Liuliu added, “I used to really like our old home, but after going back this time… it’s not as nice as I remembered. I like it here better now.”

He Yan chimed in, “It’s always like that. When we move somewhere new later, you’ll feel the same way.”

Liuliu huffed, not caring—right now she liked this place the most.

Jin Xiuzhu led them home. On the way she even took a detour through the street market, bought lots of groceries and fruit, then headed back.

Once they got home, Jin Xiuzhu didn’t feel like cooking. She sent He Yan to the state-run restaurant to buy a few steamed buns and two dishes.

He Yan left, and by the time he returned with the food, Jin Xiuzhu and Fu Yanyan had already finished cleaning the whole house. They ate a simple meal, and then Jin Xiuzhu went to the kitchen to heat up a big pot of hot water.

They hadn’t bathed properly these past few days, and after sitting on trains for so long, they all felt grimy. When the hot water was ready, the four of them took turns washing up and washing their hair. Then they went to the well in the yard and washed two big basins full of clothes.

Lunch had been quite late, so none of them were hungry. Dinner was cooked later than usual, and by the time Jiang Mingchuan came home, it was only halfway done.

Jin Xiuzhu hadn’t expected Jiang Mingchuan to come back that evening. She thought that since they had been away for several days, he would just stay at the base.

Jiang Mingchuan was surprised to see them. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back?”

Jin Xiuzhu put down what she was holding and went to greet him. “We got back around three or four. Then there was washing hair, bathing, cleaning… by the time we finished it was already dark. I thought I’d call you tomorrow morning. Why are you home?”

Jiang Mingchuan pushed his bicycle inside. “I figured you might return tonight, so I’ve been coming home to sleep these past few days.”

Jin Xiuzhu nodded. “Sit down and rest a bit, you’re drenched in sweat.”

Liuliu, playful as always, started climbing onto the bicycle after her dad parked it.

Fu Yanyan saw and warned her to be careful.

It was already dark outside, but still very hot. They had an electric fan running in the house.

Jin Xiuzhu was burning some herbs in an old metal basin to drive away mosquitoes. They’d been gone for days, and Jiang Mingchuan never paid attention to such things, so when she came back, she noticed the house was swarming with mosquitoes.

Jiang Mingchuan poured himself a cup of water and asked about their trip.

Jin Xiuzhu told him, starting with Bai Jingzhi’s wedding preparations. “Everything’s almost ready. We agreed to return to the capital together after the New Year. Jingzhi has never gone back with us before, so this is a good chance.”

“She said Ji Ling’s side is easy—he can decide things on his own. He can take twenty days off for the New Year, which is plenty.”

Jiang Mingchuan made a sound of acknowledgment and then asked about the old military housing area.

So Jin Xiuzhu told him about Wang Ling and Qian Yufeng’s family, and also about Wu Xiaojun’s injury. “According to Sister-in-law Wang, he can’t be a soldier anymore. I told her that having a permanent job can make up for not being able to join the army, but it can’t cure the knot in his heart. I told her to keep him busy—when someone has work to do, they won’t sit around worrying.”

“When we left, I kept feeling that Xiaojun was too quiet. He didn’t say a single word. I thought he was sad about his grandmother passing, but it turns out there was more to it. If this goes on, something might happen sooner or later.”

Jiang Mingchuan frowned. “Xiaojun did well. Even if he can’t serve in the army anymore, he saved someone. Being a soldier is about protecting the people—he already lived up to that.”

“You did the right thing telling Sister-in-law Wang to look after him. It’ll help him find more paths forward.”

“Exactly. I told Xiaojun that if he could learn even half of what Sister-in-law Wang knows, he’d never have to worry about making a living.”

Jiang Mingchuan’s expression softened. He felt she was exaggerating a bit, but what she said wasn’t wrong. People needed to look ahead.

He just hoped the boy could figure things out sooner rather than later.

Jin Xiuzhu sighed. “You don’t know—when we parted, Xiaojun’s eyes were red. He even thanked me.”

She couldn’t help adding, “Qian Yufeng and her husband care too much about appearances. They treat outsiders well, but their two kids… not so much. When Xiaojun was the only son, they favored the younger one. Now that he can’t serve in the army and the eldest daughter has good grades, they favor her instead. They have two rooms. One is for the daughter. Their salaries aren’t low—why can’t they rent another room? And even if they can’t, they could at least partition a space for Xiaojun.”

Qian Yufeng and her husband were good, reliable people as friends—but as parents, they weren’t very fair.

Jin Xiuzhu knew she was meddling, so she hadn’t brought it up to Qian Yufeng directly. She only mentioned it now because she saw Jiang Mingchuan.

Hearing this, Fu Yanyan glanced at Jin Xiuzhu. If she hadn’t brought it up, Yanyan would’ve forgotten entirely. She had only felt happy for the eldest daughter earlier. She hadn’t thought that everything Wu Xiaojun was going through now was exactly what the girl had gone through before.

She had long known that not all parents loved their children equally—they favored the ones who seemed more promising.

Jiang Mingchuan knew Jin Xiuzhu cared deeply for children and found it hard to watch parents play favorites.

But from his perspective, favoritism was everywhere. Many military wives who followed their husbands didn’t bring all their kids—some left the older ones or the less-favored ones with grandparents or relatives. Compared to that, Qian Yufeng and her husband were already doing well.

Jin Xiuzhu knew she was being stubborn. In her previous life she’d had no children, so now she held onto this belief that parents should treat their children well.

“Forget it, let’s not talk about them. The political commissar might get promoted by the end of the year or next year. He told you to work harder.”

Jiang Mingchuan laughed. “It won’t be that fast. Even if I work harder, I can’t catch up to him.”

That night, He Yan made three dishes and a soup. All five of them ate until they were stuffed.

Jiang Mingchuan washed the dishes and left the four of them in the living room to do homework and draw. After he finished, he went out into the yard and took a cool rinse.

He directly scooped up a bucket of well water and poured it over himself. Hearing the commotion, Jin Xiuzhu shouted toward the yard, irritated, “Do you think you’re made of iron? When you get old and your joints can’t handle it anymore, let’s see who’s going to take care of you!”

Jiang Mingchuan felt guilty. He turned his back to her and hurried to rinse himself quickly.

When he finished and came back into the living room, Jin Xiuzhu didn’t even bother to look at him, keeping her head down as she continued drawing.

Jiang Mingchuan glanced at his son. He saw He Yan grinning mischievously, even mouthing silently, “Dad, you’re done for.”

Jiang Mingchuan: “…”

His son was truly annoying.

With a towel in hand, Jiang Mingchuan wiped his hair as he sat next to Jin Xiuzhu and tried to start a conversation. “Did anything interesting happen these past few days?”

Jin Xiuzhu slowly turned her expressionless face toward him. “What did you promise me?”

Jiang Mingchuan rubbed his nose. “It’s too hot here.”

“So because it’s hot, you can take cold showers? While I wasn’t home, have you been doing this every day? Don’t you know your own body? Don’t you remember how many injuries you’ve had? Your leg was broken—when I nursed you back, I told you to keep warm and avoid the cold. You can’t control this during training, fine. But even at home you can’t manage something this simple? What can you manage?”

Jiang Mingchuan lowered his head and stayed silent.

Seeing him like this only made Jin Xiuzhu angrier. She put away her brushes and went back to the bedroom.

Jiang Mingchuan glanced at the three kids who were clearly enjoying the spectacle. He straightened his face and pretended to be serious. “Go to bed early.”

Then he stood up and hurried after her. Just as he reached the door, it slammed shut with a loud bang.

He turned around to see the kids staring at him with wide eyes. He cleared his throat, trying to save face. “Your mom just cares about me too much.”

Then he urged them to return to their rooms.

He Yan and Fu Yanyan tried hard not to laugh. They got up and started cleaning before heading back to their rooms.

As they were leaving, Liuliu asked curiously, “Daddy, why aren’t you going in? Did Mommy not let you?”

Jiang Mingchuan: “…”

This child was also annoying.

Fu Yanyan almost burst out laughing. She hurriedly pulled her sister away. “Mom and Dad are just playing.”

Liuliu nodded. “Okay. Mommy and Daddy are so cute. I’ve never played games like that.”

Once the kids were gone, Jiang Mingchuan tried turning the doorknob—it was locked from inside. He instinctively checked his surroundings, and seeing no one around, tapped lightly on the door. “Honey, open the door. I was wrong, okay?”

Inside, Jin Xiuzhu fanned herself. Hearing him, she let out a cold laugh. “What exactly were you wrong about? Since you like cold showers so much, go soak in the well tonight. Why bother sleeping?”

Jiang Mingchuan rubbed his nose again, lowering his voice. “Honey, I really know I was wrong. I won’t do it again.”

Jin Xiuzhu didn’t answer.

Jiang Mingchuan thought for a moment, then added, “I promise I’ll take hot showers every day from now on.”

Hearing that, Jin Xiuzhu’s anger flared again. “You take hot showers because I heat the water for you! How old are you now? I still have to watch over something this small? Do you think I’m trying to harm you?”

“No, I know you’re doing it for my sake.”

“Then why do you still act like this?”

“I was just being lazy. I won’t do it again. I’ll listen to you from now on. I really know I was wrong.”

“Honey, let me in. There are a lot of mosquitoes out here.”

“Baby, I haven’t seen you in days. I missed you a little.”

Inside, Jin Xiuzhu stiffened when she heard that. Her ears warmed instantly. She spat toward the door, annoyed—shameless man! Who was he calling ‘baby’?

“Baby—”

Jiang Mingchuan was still calling outside. Worried the children might hear, Jin Xiuzhu finally opened the door. As soon as it swung open, she saw him standing there. His face lit up instantly, and he squeezed past her quickly.

The moment he entered, he wrapped his arms around her.

Jin Xiuzhu smacked him with her fan, annoyed. “Aren’t you hot?”

Jiang Mingchuan kissed her forehead. “Not hot.”

Jin Xiuzhu pushed him away and glared at him. “Stop fooling around. If you dare do this again, just wait and see how I’ll deal with you.”

“Okay, I’ll listen to everything you say.”

Jin Xiuzhu snorted and went to the bed.

Jiang Mingchuan followed and lay down beside her. Seeing her turn her back to him, he scooted closer. She felt hot and pushed him away, so he could only place his hand on her waist.

Jin Xiuzhu must have been exhausted—she fell asleep quickly. When her breathing evened out, Jiang Mingchuan quietly inched closer and rested against her before closing his eyes.

Early the next morning, before dawn, Jin Xiuzhu felt as if a mountain was pressing on top of her. Before she could react, she felt light kisses falling all over her skin.

After Jiang Mingchuan left, it was still dark outside. Feeling drained, Jin Xiuzhu picked up the fan that had fallen to the floor, waved it a few times to cool down, and when the heat faded, closed her eyes to rest for a bit longer.

Breakfast was probably cooked by He Yan. She heard his heavy footsteps outside, followed by the two girls’ voices.

Jin Xiuzhu didn’t get up until late morning. He Yan was gone; Yanyan and Liuliu were doing their summer homework in the living room. When they saw her come out, Liuliu immediately said, “Mommy, you’re a big sleepyhead today too!”

Usually when Liuliu got up late, Jin Xiuzhu would say that to her. Who knew the child would hold a grudge.

Jin Xiuzhu smiled.

Fu Yanyan reminded her, “Brother left food for you in the kitchen.”

“Where is he?”

“He went to school to study.”

Jin Xiuzhu nodded and went to wash up. She came back out carrying the breakfast He Yan had prepared, then sat down to eat.

In the morning, she stayed with the two girls while they did their homework. After they woke up from their afternoon nap, the three of them went out to buy groceries and stopped by the post office to check for letters.

Sure enough, there were some for her. Besides the manuscript payments, there were letters from Fang Min and Zhong Xue.

A few days ago at Fang Min’s place, Fang Min had mentioned she sent her a letter and asked if she’d received it yet. This must have been the one.

The content was about the marriage matters between their two families. Some things Zhu Ying hadn’t explained clearly. Commissar Zhu, worried his sister might mishandle things, felt it safer to ask more questions.

As for Zhong Xue, Jin Xiuzhu was quite surprised. They had kept in touch, but not frequently. She wondered if something had happened, so she opened her letter first.

The first part was all greetings. Zhong Xue said she only recently found out they had moved. She had been busy lately. The department store wasn’t as crowded as before; many counters had closed, and as a department head, she felt a lot of pressure. Her parents were planning to get her a different job, but she hadn’t decided yet. She heard the South would have good development in the future and was thinking of going to take a look.

After saying all that, she mentioned one more thing: her family had introduced a man to her. He was two years younger than she was and had also been married before, though he had no children. His ex-wife had been his childhood sweetheart, but she had passed away due to illness. His family’s conditions were slightly worse than hers. The two of them had interacted for a while, and in all aspects, they could only be considered barely able to talk to each other, but it definitely wasn’t “liking.”

She wanted to ask Jin Xiuzhu whether she should continue. On one hand, she felt there was no need—her life as it was now was already quite good. On the other hand, her family wanted her to find a partner again. They said that once the children grew up and started their own families, it would be too late for her to look for someone, and she would end up all alone.

Zhong Xue understood her parents’ intentions, but she didn’t want to force herself. Recently, she had been troubled by these two matters. After thinking for a while, she simply wrote a letter to ask for advice—more or less grasping at straws.

Because she interacted with Wang Ling often, and Wang Ling always told her that whenever she had troubles, she could talk to Jin Xiuzhu, who would help her think things through. Zhong Xue remembered that.

When Jin Xiuzhu returned home, she wrote back to her. Normally, with Jin Xiuzhu’s personality, she didn’t like interfering in such matters—if her advice worked out, fine, but if it didn’t, she might be blamed later.

But thinking about how Zhong Xue had written to her, she figured the woman truly had no one else to turn to. Jin Xiuzhu had always been softer-hearted toward women.

She didn’t directly give her an answer. Instead, she wrote about herself, Jiang Mingchuan, and the three children—some small things that happened in their daily life. Then she mentioned accompanying Bai Jingzhi to S City a few days ago, seeing the gifts Ji Ling had bought for her, and visiting Wang Ling, Qian Yufeng, and Fang Min.

Qian Yufeng had bought her a watch, saying she finally had the confidence to wear such a thing. Back then, when she saw Jin Xiuzhu buy a watch, she bought one too, and her family didn’t understand.

Finally, she wrote a single sentence: Make decisions according to your own heart. Don’t care about what others think. Look at yourself—your life is yours to live.

While Jin Xiuzhu wrote the letter, both daughters leaned against the table, tilting their heads to read.

Fu Yanyan understood—she nodded as she read.

Jin Xiuzhu laughed. “You really understand? Why are you nodding?”

Fu Yanyan pursed her lips. “What is there not to understand? Mom is trying to show Auntie Zhong Xue what a happy family looks like, and then compare it with Auntie Qian’s situation—what it’s like to marry a man who doesn’t love you.”

Then she couldn’t help adding, “But Mom, not everyone is lucky enough to find someone who loves them and whom they also like.”

Jin Xiuzhu was silent for a while, then said, “If you can’t find such a person, then don’t get married. Why must you get married? If you don’t like someone or can’t find the right one, then just live your own life. It’s not the old society anymore—women can support themselves.”

After she finished, she smiled at her two daughters. “Mom just hopes you can live a happy life, not marry a random man and suffer unnecessary hardships.”

Fu Yanyan was shocked. She had never imagined Jin Xiuzhu would say something like that.

She knew that in her previous life, many parents stopped their children from dating in school, but as soon as they graduated, they pressured them into blind dates. In her past life, she had even seen a girl who was cornered into attempting suicide. The girl first attempted at home and was saved by her parents, but after recovering, the same pressure resumed, and she tried again.

She had been standing nearby when that girl cried her heart out. Back then, her thought was: If I were still alive, Jin Xiuzhu would probably push me into blind dates just like that girl’s parents.

She was glad she died early.

In the end, the girl survived. Fu Yanyan didn’t know how she had managed it, but at the moment the girl jumped, she followed and jumped too, cushioning the fall.

For a brief moment, their bodies seemed to overlap. The girl seemed to see her—her eyes widened.

That was the only time in all her years as a wandering soul that someone had seen her.

Fu Yanyan had actually been happy then. She hadn’t thought too much—she simply didn’t want that girl to end up like her. If one couldn’t die cleanly but had to drift alone forever, then living—even painfully—was still better.

When the girl was discharged, she secretly went to the rooftop and burned paper for her, thanking her for saving her life. She also promised she would live well and never do such a foolish thing again.

Fu Yanyan had been comforted.

That matter had happened long ago—so long that she had nearly forgotten. Only because of Jin Xiuzhu’s words did she suddenly remember. But now, Jin Xiuzhu was telling her that whether they married or not didn’t matter, as long as they were happy.

Jin Xiuzhu looked at her daughter’s stunned expression and smiled. “Don’t worry. Mom will definitely prepare plenty of money for you three. You won’t need to worry about such things.”

In Jin Xiuzhu’s mind, women of Great Jing married because they needed men to survive. But here, things were different. Women were no weaker than men, so why worry?

Fu Yanyan nodded.

Liuliu tilted her head. “Then I won’t get married either. I want to stay with Mom and Dad forever.”

Jin Xiuzhu patted her little head. “Alright, whatever you want.”

On September 1st, the three children returned to school.

By now, Jin Xiuzhu was getting familiar with people in the area. When she shopped for groceries, she could even chat with them a bit.

One evening, Jiang Mingchuan came home and told her that a military wife lived next door. If she had time, she could visit her.

Jin Xiuzhu asked what the situation was. Jiang Mingchuan wasn’t too sure—apparently the young couple had argued, and the wife wanted to leave. Her husband simply rented a place in the city for her to stay in.

Jin Xiuzhu was baffled. “How bad was it that they had to live separately?”

Jiang Mingchuan shook his head. “I don’t know the details. Battalion Commander Tan came to ask me specifically. He said his wife is in a bad mood, and asked if you could talk to her and comfort her.”

Jin Xiuzhu snorted. “They won’t even explain what’s going on, and they want me to comfort her? How am I supposed to do that? Don’t tell me he did something shameful and doesn’t dare admit it. I’m not going. I’m not as silly as Sister-in-law Wang, taking on every troublesome, thankless job.”

Jiang Mingchuan nodded. “Alright. I’ll ask again tomorrow.”

He didn’t understand marital issues either. He had just been thinking that Jin Xiuzhu must get bored staying home all day, and since someone was living next door, they could chat.

Now hearing this, he realized he had probably oversimplified things.

He said, “Never mind. Best not to get involved.”

Jin Xiuzhu agreed.

But unexpectedly, the next day while she was home, the woman from next door came to visit on her own.

She was very polite and brought a bag of fruit. “Hello, you must be Captain Jiang’s wife. My name is Li Yun—I live next door.”

She didn’t mention she was Battalion Commander Tan’s wife.

Jin Xiuzhu instantly understood—the woman didn’t want to discuss her husband.

Jin Xiuzhu said, “Hello, nice to meet you.”

She invited her in.

As the woman sat down, she subconsciously touched her stomach. Jin Xiuzhu noticed—she was probably pregnant, but not very far along. She didn’t say anything and simply made her a cup of floral tea. “I didn’t see anyone next door before—did you move in today?”

Li Yun shook her head. “I moved in two days ago. I’ve just been staying inside. It was too boring, so I thought I’d go out for a walk. I heard about you before, so I came to visit.”

Jin Xiuzhu washed some fruit for her. “That’s wonderful. I also don’t have many people to talk to. Staying home is boring.”

Li Yun smiled. “Thank you. I just wanted someone to talk to.”

Jin Xiuzhu asked about her job, her hobbies. Li Yun answered one by one. They didn’t talk long—after finishing tea, Li Yun left, but before leaving, they agreed to go grocery-shopping together the next morning.

The next day, around nine, they went out. On the way back, Li Yun was smiling and chatting—until she saw a woman standing at her door. Her face immediately changed color.

She didn’t go home. She grabbed Jin Xiuzhu’s wrist tightly, forced a smile, and said, “Sister-in-law, can I stay at your place for a bit?”

Jin Xiuzhu glanced at her door and nodded. She gently patted the back of her hand and said softly, “Come on. Stay for lunch. I’ll let you try my cooking.”

Li Yun tugged the corner of her mouth, trying her best to smile.

Jin Xiuzhu: Feels like a huge piece of drama is unfolding.

Jiang Mingchuan: Weren’t you the one who said you aren’t like Sister-in-law Wang, nosing into everything?

He Yan: You still don’t know her? When has she ever not chased gossip?

Fu Yanyan: Dad still doesn’t understand Mom at all.

Liuliu: Mom, Dad said he doesn’t love you.

Jiang Mingchuan: “…”