Chapter 171: Military Wives Come to Help
Pingping remembered exactly what his father had drummed into him the previous night: No matter what anyone asks you about Aunt Gu, just say you don’t know.
His father had made it clear that when visiting someone else’s house, it was incredibly bad manners to talk too much about the host’s private business.
As for other people begging him for a share of his food, Pingping had already developed his own foolproof strategy. Whenever he and his little brother managed to get their hands on a delicious treat, their father explicitly instructed them to tell everyone it was the absolute last portion. If they didn’t, people would assume their house was bursting with luxury goods and try to snatch everything away from them.
Now, whenever a stranger pried into his snacks, he immediately parroted his father’s advice. The habit was ingrained deep in his bones, and the excuse had become his ultimate catchphrase.
When Captain Wu’s wife heard Pingping’s smooth rebuttal, she didn’t believe a single word of it. Captain Gu had only just married and set up house; with only two mouths to feed, there was absolutely no way their pantry was down to just two stray pieces of candy.
“Mom! I don’t care, I want candy right now!” her son whined, yanking at her sleeve.
“Alright, alright, stop crying. I’ll make sure Auntie hands over some sweets for you in a little bit,” Captain Wu’s wife soothed, instantly giving in. When it came to her two sons, she would gladly try to pluck the moon right out of the sky if they demanded it.
She was convinced that Sheng Wanyan wouldn’t dare refuse the children in front of a crowd. If the girl couldn’t even spare a few pieces of candy for a pair of boys, she would look incredibly small-minded and lose face entirely.
Standing right behind her in the doorway, Regimental Commander Fang’s wife listened to the exchange, a look of profound disgust washing over her face.
“Oh, please. If your precious boys want candy so badly, why don’t you actually spend your own money to buy them a bag?” she scoffed loudly. “Aunt Gu isn’t their mother.”
She looked down at the two Wu boys, her voice dripping with open contempt. “What’s the matter? Are you two trying to get Aunt Gu to adopt you or something?”
Commander Fang’s wife didn’t hide her utter disdain. These country folks were truly shameless; they had absolutely no dignity or manners whatsoever.
Zhang Zhaodi’s face flushed a violent, blotchy crimson at the public humiliation. She opened her mouth to snap back, but the words died in her throat. She simply didn’t dare offend Commander Fang’s wife. Her husband’s entire military career rested directly in Regimental Commander Fang’s hands; if she caused a scene with the commander’s wife, her man would practically skin her alive the moment they got home.
Twitching the corners of her mouth, she managed to choke out, “How can Sister-in-law Fang say such awful, nonsense things right in front of the children?”
Xu Guihua let out a cold, biting sneer. “You country folks really have thick skins. Utterly shameless.”
Without waiting for a response, she swept past the woman into the courtyard, ushering her three children ahead of her and leaving behind a proud, rigid back.
Zhang Zhaodi stood frozen, her face turning an ugly shade of mottled grey as she stared after her with pure, murderous hatred. The intense hostility radiating from her mother was so palpable that her two sons fearfully unclasped their hands from her thighs, taking a synchronized few steps backward to give her space. The two young daughters shuffled quietly in the rear, not daring to utter a syllable, let alone beg for sweets.
The only reason the girls had even been allowed to tag along to Aunt Gu’s house today was because their father had explicitly ordered their mother to bring the entire family. The children loved nothing more than shadowing their father to neighborhood dinner parties, because those rare occasions were the only times they were actually permitted to eat until they were full.
Standing off to the side, Deputy Company Commander Feng’s wife, Qiao Hehua, kept her mouth shut, terrified of getting caught in the crossfire. Xu Guihua was absolutely not someone a low-ranking wife could afford to cross. Her family background was remarkably solid; rumors around the compound claimed her biological brother was a high-ranking squad leader within the Bing City Public Security Bureau.
Feeling the awkward silence, Qiao Hehua stepped forward to offer a quiet, placating word to Zhang Zhaodi. “Sister Zhaodi, please don’t take it to heart. Sister-in-law Fang has always had a sharp tongue. Just let it go.”
Trapped precisely in the middle of her two superiors’ wives, Qiao Hehua felt thoroughly stressed. If she had known the arrival would turn into a political minefield, she would have sprinted over an hour early just to avoid the tension.
“Hmph. You think I actually care what she thinks?” Zhang Zhaodi hissed, rounding on her. “She’s just using her precious city background to insult my boys, trying to make it sound like my son is begging to recognize some stranger as his mother!”
She shot Qiao Hehua a venomous look. “It’s easy for you to stand there and tell me to calm down when your own toes aren’t being stepped on. You’d better watch your own back, or your man might just get seduced right out from under you by one of these loose, flashy city bitches.”
Before Qiao Hehua could even process the insult, Zhang Zhaodi snatched her two sons by their arms and dragged them into the house, completely ignoring her.
Within seconds, the raucous, piercing voices of the Wu boys began echoing loudly from the front yard.
“Mom! Look, a bicycle! A brand-new bicycle!”
“I want to ride it! I want to take it back to our apartment right now!”
“Alright, alright, stop shouting. I’ll have your daddy ride you around on it later,” Zhang Zhaodi promised automatically.
Out on the path, Qiao Hehua’s face turned completely dark, any trace of her cheerful mood evaporating in an instant. Her stomach churned at the vicious words left behind, though she quickly forced herself to breathe. She shouldn’t be surprised; Zhang Zhaodi’s aggressive, combative attitude was legendary, and she put on a similar, screaming tantrum inside the tube building practically every single day.
“Mama…”
Her two-year-old son wrapped his tiny arms tightly around her neck, buried his face into her shoulder, and whimpered in fear.
“Goudan, it’s alright. Don’t be scared,” Qiao Hehua murmured, gently patting her son’s back to soothe his trembling frame. “Be a good boy. Daddy will be here very soon.”
Goudan was barely two, still struggling to form full sentences or walk steadily on his own, making him exceptionally dependent on his mother’s embrace.
“Papa…”
“Yes, Papa is coming. The moment he gets here, he’ll lift you up high into the air.”
“Yay!” At the mention of his favorite game, the little boy’s distress vanished, his face splitting into a bright grin. Coaxing him softly, Qiao Hehua carried him through the courtyard gate.
Inside the house, Wanyan heard the sudden influx of voices and knew her guests had officially arrived. She quickly wiped her hands on a clean kitchen towel, ladled out a few large glasses of sweet sugar water onto a tray, and carried them out to the living room.
“Welcome, sisters-in-law. Please, come in and take a seat,” she greeted them warmly.
The moment the three newly arrived wives stepped onto the threshold, their eyes locked onto her custom sofa, widening in pure, unadulterated shock.
Inhale!
A collective gasp echoed through the room. What on earth was this luxury setup?
Xu Guihua stepped forward and gingerly lowered herself onto the cushion, only to instantly bolt back upright with a startled gasp. Her face was a portrait of utter bewilderment. How… how is a wooden bench this soft?!
“What… what did you put inside this frame? Why is it pillowy?” she pressed, her fingers carefully prodding the fabric. This couldn’t possibly be what she thought it was, could it?
“I just stuffed the inner covers with a layer of cotton batting to make the seating a bit more comfortable,” Wanyan explained smoothly, setting the tray down. “Please, have some water, everyone.”
As Wanyan arranged the glasses on the low coffee table, the women couldn’t resist casting covert glances around the beautifully styled living room. The moment their eyes swept over the exceptionally tall, elegant log-style dining set and the organized wooden shoe rack near the entryway, a distinct sense of insecurity settled over them. Standing in this room, they felt an undeniable, sophisticated boundary separating Wanyan’s lifestyle from their own.
Qiao Hehua felt particularly self-conscious; when she finally sat back down on the plush sofa, she braced her feet firmly against the floor, not daring to put her full weight back into the cushions lest she ruin them.
“Sister-in-law Gu, I’m Commander Fang’s wife,” Xu Guihua introduced herself, her tone shifting into a much more respectful register. “You can just call me Sister Guihua from now on.”
“And I’m Deputy Company Commander Feng’s wife. My name is Qiao Hehua,” the younger woman offered softly.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both. Please, just call me Wanyan,” she replied with an easy, welcoming smile.
As for Zhang Zhaodi, she remained silently slumped on a stool near the corner, offering no introduction. Given her previous public hostility at the logistics cooperative, there was no need to force a fake greeting anyway.
“Sister-in-law Gu, we brought over a few fresh eggs from our own hens. Please don’t look down on such a simple gift,” Qiao Hehua said, carefully lifting a small basket from her arm and handing it over, her movements a bit stiff with nerves.
Wanyan accepted the offering with a bright, genuine smile. In this era, fresh livestock products were strictly rationed and incredibly valuable; for a deputy company commander’s household to gift five whole eggs was a gesture of immense generosity. How could she possibly look down on it?
“Why would I ever look down on these?” Wanyan countered warmly. “In fact, our pantry is nearly out of eggs today, so your timing is absolutely perfect. I was actually just about to ask my old Gu to swing by the logistics depot after his shift to purchase a few more.”
Hearing her enthusiastic acceptance, Qiao Hehua’s shoulders instantly dropped, and she let out a long, relieved breath.
“Wanyan, my Old Fang managed to hunt a wild rabbit up in the foothills a couple of days ago,” Xu Guihua chimed in, stepping forward to present a neatly wrapped parcel of fresh game. “I brought it along so you can add another dish to the table.” She was a proud woman, and she had no intention of letting her family eat a lavish feast for free.
Wanyan accepted the rabbit with a graceful nod. While Commander Fang’s wife carried a distinct, aristocratic edge, her grasp of social etiquette was flawless. One look at her poised demeanor confirmed she had been raised in a well-to-do urban household.
“Thank you so much, Sister Guihua. Come, everyone, please sit down and have some sweet water while it’s fresh,” Wanyan smiled, gesturing toward the table.
