Feng Qingxue found the situation both annoying and amusing when she found out why.
"The door was locked from the inside, which means someone is at home. All you had to do was call out and someone would open the door for you. Why would you climb the wall? What would you have done if you fell? Plus, the wall is densely studded with thorns, weren’t you afraid of getting hurt?"
His clothes were already ragged, and the scratch from the thorn made it even worse.
Lu Jiang touched the top of his head, "It was snowing so heavily, I didn’t want you to freeze when you opened the door."
A thorny bush was a piece of cake to a man who had fought in the tropical rainforest!
Feng Qingxue glared at him, couldn’t help but soften at his look, pulled him out of the bedroom, and poured hot water from the kettle into the enamel basin, "You wash your face and hands first, and change out of your outdoor clothes. There are your old military uniforms and the clothes I made for you in the trunk. I’m going to stir-fry a dish and boil a pot of hot water in the meantime. After dinner, you can take a good bath and apply medicine to your wounds."
Lu Jiang happily obeyed his wife’s command with each instruction bringing about a new action.
After washing his face and changing his clothes, he finally looked a little more presentable.
At this moment, Lu Tianjun and Guan Cheng brought Lu Jiang’s old military coat and baggage in, and placed them on the floor, "Auntie, I’m going to call Grandpa for dinner. If Grandpa knows Uncle is back, he would definitely be overjoyed."
Old man Xu and his wife usually cooked on their own and only occasionally ate with them, so they didn’t come over often.
Lu Tianjun went to call people, Guan Cheng carried the food with his brother and Feng Qingyun and served it to the room.
Feng Qingxue cut off a couple of garlic sprouts, quickly stir-fried an egg, and filled the large pot with clean water.
Lu Jiang followed her back and forth, helping to build the fire.
"You start by filling up your stomach." While busy, Feng Qingxue didn’t forget to take a hot and juicy roast chicken leg from the space and gave it to him, then disposed of the chicken bones by throwing them into the stove.
After she stir-fried the egg and cleaned the pot, she added two clusters of shrubs to the bottom of the large stove to simmer.
The couple returned to the hall with the eggs, and Lu’s father had arrived.
Seeing his son’s appearance, Lu’s father nearly shed tears. He rubbed his eyes and said repeatedly, "It’s good that you’re back, it’s good that you’re back!" It looked like he had gone off to war, and his daughter-in-law had been holding back from telling him. It was tough on her. For him, he didn’t expect any illustrious future for his son; all he wished was for his son to be safe.
"Dad, I made you worry!" Lu Jiang confessed guiltily.
Lu’s father waved his hand, "I’m your father, you don’t need to talk to me . The ones you owe most are your wife and Xibao. You weren’t home when they needed you the most. Have you seen Xibao? She weighed seven jin and two liang at birth, it’s rare in our Wanglou Brigade! Every time we carry him out, he’s so chubby and cute, everyone who sees him likes him!"
Fearing that Lu’s father would evoke Lu Jiang’s guilt towards his family, Feng Qingxue hurriedly interjected, "Dad, let’s eat first. Ah Jiang rushed back all the way, on a snowy day, he had to walk all the way from the station to home, he must be tired and hungry."
"Yes, yes, let’s eat first, eat first!"
Lu’s father started picking up his chopsticks, and the younger ones followed suit, all enjoying their meals.
"Ah Jiang, how long can you stay at home this time?" Lu’s father asked.
"Twenty days." Lu Jiang didn’t stop eating his food, but swallowed it down smoothly, "I was not supposed to have vacation this year. But Yong brother told me that I was not at home when Xibao was born, and that the father and son hadn’t even seen each other. If they see each other in the future, they won’t recognize each other. So he gave me his home leave. Besides, he and his wife are in the military, so their father always told him to prioritize national affairs, and every time he went home, his father was unhappy with him."