Daily Life in the 70s-Chapter 148 After Dinner

Yiguang had prepared four corn pancakes, four steamed buns, and a bowl of thin porridge; he knew exactly how much Min could eat, which was certainly more than a little cat.

He brought the food over to where his comrades were, effectively bringing Min over to make an appearance.

Thankfully, people back in those days were honest and simple, and they didn’t tease them too harshly.

After a few words, Yiguang and Min sat down to have breakfast.

In fact, Min didn’t have much of an appetite; she just wanted to join him for the meal, sipping her porridge in small sips.

Yiguang suggested she eat a corn pancake with her porridge.

She shook her head, "I can’t eat anymore."

Yiguang frowned slightly and asked in a gentle voice, "How can you eat so little? Are you feeling unwell?"

Min pushed her leftover porridge towards him, her intent clear without words.

"Then at least eat a corn pancake."

Yiguang was like a parent coaxing a child to eat, and Min watched him with a smile, "You should eat quickly, don’t be late for your meeting."

Seeing her playfully resist with a smile, Yiguang felt a mix of love and frustration. He couldn’t understand how children from the same tough times, who grew up in households short on food and clothing, relished the rare occasions to eat something dry, yet his wife was so picky and nonchalant about her food.

"Yiguang and his sister-in-law are having breakfast." Another person came over to greet them.

Many people had greeted him warmly that day, and by now Yiguang was used to it, but upon hearing this familiar voice, he turned his head with joy, "I was wondering when I’d see you again." It was Shao Hui, his old comrade-in-arms who had gone on special training a while back.

Shao Hui patted him on the shoulder, "I went home after the training and didn’t come back with the team. Look at the understanding between us brothers; today we both have our spouses with us. Is this your sister-in-law? Let me introduce you, this is my wife, Du Juanjuan."

Standing next to him was a woman in her twenties, dressed elegantly in a brown women’s suit, with her hair up, a delicate face, and a somewhat haughty demeanor.

Min greeted the Military Wife, "Hello, Sister."

Du Juanjuan nodded coldly in response.

Casting a subtly awkward glance at his wife, Shao Hui made an embarrassed apology to Yiguang, "We’ve just arrived and picked up breakfast on the way. We won’t disturb you and your sister-in-law any longer; once we’re settled in, let’s have a meal together."

Yiguang readily agreed.

After they left, Yiguang shared a bit about his comrade with her, "He joined the army at eighteen and was in the same battalion as I was. Shao Hui excels in both strategy and combat, and we’ve completed many missions together... he’s an old war buddy."

"He married his wife the year before last. They live in the residential building next to ours; they are well-matched, as both come from good families. His wife is currently a high school teacher in the city center and usually comes back on weekends. She appears a bit proud, and if we can’t get along with her, it’s best just to greet her in passing..."

Yiguang knew that Du Juanjuan looked down on people like them from rural backgrounds, and would usually walk past with her head held high without sparing a glance for them. Of course, this description came from some of the other soldiers. He was just giving Min a heads-up that Shao Hui’s wife wasn’t the same kind of person as them and that it wasn’t worth bothering to pay any mind.

After breakfast, Yiguang saw Min back to the dorm to catch up on some sleep, but he had to return to the military region building for a meeting.

Min didn’t wake up until noon, roused by someone knocking at the door.

Thinking it was Yiguang, she quickly got up to open the door.

Outside was Xiao Xu, who had driven them back yesterday. Seeing her, he immediately saluted and said, "The boss got called in for arrangements and won’t be coming back for lunch. This is the meal I’ve brought for the Military Wife."

Min asked him if Yiguang had eaten.

Scratching his head and grinning, Xiao Xu said, "Military Wife, don’t worry. The boss won’t starve; his comrades are helping to deliver food to him. Well, I should get going now."

Min quickly let him go; it seemed Xiao Xu was busy and had just squeezed in time to bring her food.

The meals from the canteen were nothing to rave about. These large pot meals could hardly be cooked well, just ensuring they were fully cooked was the goal, so taste was hardly a concern.

In the lunchbox was eggplant and green beans, along with three or four slices of lean meat, paired with mixed grain rice.

After rinsing her mouth and washing her face, the splash of cold water fully revived her. Drying off, she ate the meal.

Perhaps Yiguang had noted her small appetite; she only had half a lunchbox of rice, so there was no waste at this meal. ƒreewebɳovel.com

Feeling refreshed after eating, she took off her light jacket, rolled up her sleeves, picked up two buckets, and prepared to go downstairs to wash clothes. There was no running water in the room; the water for last night’s bath and this morning’s face wash had been fetched by Yiguang from a tap at the end of the corridor. But the idea of carrying water back and forth to wash clothes in the dorm was a bit more physical labor than she felt up for.

She rummaged through the things at home, finding a bar of soap on the bed frame. Thankfully, Yiguang had thoughtfully prepared all these commonly used daily necessities for her.

The sun was nice today. Maybe washing clothes at this time wasn’t the wisest choice, but the weather was great. If she washed them now, they’d be half-dry by evening.

She only brought two sets of clothes, and if they didn’t dry or got wet again, she would have nothing to change into.

After lunch, she thought there would be nobody near the water tap downstairs. Looking down from the second-floor corridor, she saw that there were still people, in twos and threes, washing their dinnerware.

Everyone who saw her arrival greeted her warmly.

"Little sister, are you going to wash clothes?" It was a Red Army wife. They weren’t strangers, as it was already their third encounter.

Min nodded toward her, "Yes, I lay down for a bit and felt better, so I decided to get up and wash my clothes. With the sun out, I want to hang them up to dry quickly."

"Do you get carsick?" asked the Red Army wife, as she moved aside from the tap for Min, shifting her pots and pans a bit and continued chatting while washing them. "I can’t stand the smell of riding in those cars either. Remember when I came here from my hometown? I was so sick for two days before I felt better. Everyone teased that I’m destined to be a hard worker, so I can forget about any good opportunities that involve traveling by car and just stay home and work hard."

Min smiled.

Another Military Wife joined in, "You must be Camp Commander Shen’s wife, right? No wonder the Red Army wife said you looked like a fairy. We didn’t believe her at first, but now we see you, and you surely put us in the shade."

Min glanced at her. She was around thirty, spoke with a delightful sense of humor that drew people into the conversation, but the implication... Whether it was intentional or not, it was odd how she put herself down to compliment Min. Did the others mind it?

It wasn’t that Min was being oversensitive; sometimes you can tell whether someone is being sincere or not by the way they speak to you.