Hearing that Guiying was pregnant, Hualing’s complexion changed multiple times. She and Chen Shouwang had been married for quite some time, yet they had no children to speak of. It was strange, considering they had never deliberately practiced contraception.
When Chunhua mentioned that children should be born earlier rather than later, Hualing could not restrain herself, pointing the finger at Cheng Su, who was also childless.
"Cheng Su doesn’t have one either. When her mother-in-law visited, she was fussing over the neighbor’s kid Egg as if he were her own precious child!"
Indeed, shot while lying down.
Cheng Su silently rolled her eyes and said, "Old Qi and I have agreed not to have children for the next two years. Besides, I am too busy with other things to even think about taking care of a child."
Hualing pursed her lips disdainfully.
"What about you, Hualing? I remember, you and Platoon Leader Chen got married even before Guiying did, didn’t you?" Chunhua pressed on.
Hualing answered vaguely, "You know, family planning and all. We might have just one child nowadays, so of course, we have to plan it well. We’re not in a rush."
Chunhua seemed unconvinced but said no more.
Hualing also felt the atmosphere had cooled since her arrival, which made her uncomfortable; just as she walked in, the warmth dissipated—what was that about?
Carrying her pot of rice back to her room, Hualing felt utterly dejected.
Her relationship with the neighbors was anything but warm, and at home with her husband, it was a minor quarrel every three days and a major one every five, with each day seeming worse than the last.
As for having a child...
Hualing touched her stomach; perhaps it was time to get a check-up?
...
Waiting for Qi Taiguo to return, Cheng Su also brought up the incident with Doctor Chiang criticizing Deputy Battalion Commander Dong, asking, "Everyone’s saying Deputy Battalion Commander Dong is pursuing Chiang Qing, is it true?"
Qi Taiguo stalled for a moment then said, "They’re spreading that rumor?"
"So what do you think? There’s no smoke without fire. She wouldn’t make such claims if it weren’t for his egregious behavior, would she?" Cheng Su sneered lightly.
After pondering, Qi Taiguo said, "Take what I say for what it’s worth and don’t spread it further. I heard from Old Gao that Deputy Battalion Commander Dong might indeed have such intentions."
"Really!" Cheng Su’s eyes widened.
Qi Taiguo nodded his head.
"Wasn’t it said before, his father-in-law’s family has quite the clout? Would he dare to change hosts?" Cheng Su had some understanding of the intricacies behind Old Zhou’s inability to compete with Dong Jun, which was due to Dong Jun having his father-in-law’s support.
But he hasn’t been in this position for long, and now he’s stirring up trouble?
"It’s rumored that his father-in-law will step down this year," Qi Taiguo said hesitantly.
Cheng Su gasped, covering her mouth in shock, "So he’s switching his pursuit to the highly sought-after Doctor Chiang?"
Could it be, this realistic, this scummy?
This was completely overturning her values.
He hadn’t even finished the rice in his bowl, and he was already eyeing another meal?
Isn’t this man just disgustingly shameless?
"It’s being said, but who knows the truth? Just listen but don’t meddle in others’ affairs," Qi Taiguo advised.
"I got it, geez, this Deputy Battalion Commander Dong, isn’t he afraid of being completely exposed?" Cheng Su clicked her tongue in dismay, "Scumbags are a dime a dozen these days, but this year seems exceptionally rife."
Qi Taiguo didn’t find it particularly surprising; he had a low opinion of Dong Jun’s character as well, but refrained from making direct criticisms.
Gossip damaging one’s image, as it turned out, only grew more rampant, leading to an order within the military not to give in to rumors and to avoid disturbing military discipline.
But Dong Jun had truly lost face, even being summoned by his superiors for a stern talk about maintaining a proper distance from female colleagues, not to tear down the Great Wall he was part of, and to avoid tarnishing the collective image of the military—venting his anger on his subordinates to the point where running fifty kilometers shirtless became part of their training, heightening everyone’s grievances even more.