"What’s the situation between Xiao Miao and Liang Yuwei?" Perhaps because Shen Chi had seemed to know too much earlier, Lin Xiaoguai couldn’t help but ask.
"Yu Xiaomiao’s husband is just a company commander, and there are so many company commanders in the garrison area, how could I possibly know every one of them? Besides, this is a matter between you women; I don’t have a way to find out," Shen Chi teased his son as he spoke.
Lin Xiaoguai rolled her eyes. No way to find out, then how did you manage to find out so much about Li Kun’s situation in just a few days after arriving?
"By the way, what should I do if Liang Yuwei comes looking for me again?" Lin Xiaoguai suddenly thought.
"Do whatever you need to do," said Shen Chi indifferently, "Just follow your own heart."
"Won’t it affect you?" Lin Xiaoguai hesitated.
A flash of brightness crossed Shen Chi’s eyes as he heard her words; he wondered if Wanwan had noticed that she no longer ignored him like she used to.
"It won’t." Though Li Kun’s family had some influence in Shanghai, he wasn’t afraid at all.
Lin Xiaoguai was reassured.
The next day, Lin Xiaoguai still took Little Niangao to the shooting range to play in the morning. Children’s worlds are simple; in just two days, he had become familiar with Yaya. Their reluctant parting made Lin Xiaoguai feel as if she was a bad parent breaking up a pair of sweethearts.
Unfortunately, the mother taking care of the kids today wasn’t Yu Xiaomiao.
On the way back, Lin Xiaoguai ran into Wu Ermei, who was carrying two baskets of soil.
"Sister-in-law Er Mei, are you filling soil for your vegetable racks? Why didn’t you let Jiang Wei help?"
Wu Ermei put down her carrying pole, gasping for breath, "Exactly, Jiang Wei just finished building the racks for me yesterday when he was called away to the barracks. It seemed really urgent. I was afraid of delaying planting, so I went and carried it myself."
"How much more do you need?"
"Just this last load," said Wu Ermei with a smile. "By the way, I wanted to ask you something. Where did you buy your seeds and seedlings?"
"Why, Sister-in-law Er Mei, are you also looking to buy?"
To her surprise, Wu Ermei shook her head, "No, I have them at home. I’m worried you might get taken advantage of. Seeds and seedlings may not look valuable, but you must be extremely careful when buying them. Never buy from an unfamiliar seller, or you might face all kinds of problems and waste months of hard work."
Lin Xiaoguai was taken aback, then laughed, "No worries, Sister-in-law Er Mei. The seeds are our own, brought over from my hometown, and there’s only one type of seedling, lettuce. I don’t think there’ll be any big problems."
Wu Ermei was relieved. She was just about to pick up her carrying pole when she remembered something else and turned back, "Oh, this afternoon Xiao Shan and Xiao Liang will be at my house. If you have time, bring Little Niangao over to play."
"Sure, I’ll definitely come over, and you’re welcome to bring them to my house to watch TV too," said Lin Xiaoguai, very pleased that her son could have more little friends.
Although Wu Ermei’s family conditions in the Military Family Area were not considered poor, let alone a color TV, they didn’t even have a black-and-white one. To say that they weren’t envious of Lin Xiaoguai’s color TV would be a lie, but they were too embarrassed to impose. It was inappropriate for adults to take advantage, but it didn’t hurt to let the children bask in a little luxury, so she gladly agreed.
Upon returning home, Lin Xiaoguai was surprised to find that Shen Chi was actually lying on the sofa watching TV.
"Why are you at home?" Lin Xiaoguai exclaimed.
Shen Chi loosened his shirt collar, "There’s a three-day emergency drill starting this afternoon, and I have to go as a commanding officer. I came back to let you know."
"Do you need to prepare anything?" Lin Xiaoguai asked, slightly alarmed.
"No need," Shen Chi got up and said, "We’re not allowed to bring anything extra. Don’t worry about it. The thing is, while I’m not at home, you have to take good care of yourself and our son. Leave any hard tasks for me when I get back."
Lin Xiaoguai nodded, "So you’ll eat at home now, right?"
"Yes, don’t bother making anything elaborate; something simple will do," Shen Chi turned off the TV and took his son from her hands.
"So dirty!" he scraped off the grime from Little Niangao’s nose and looked up at Lin Xiaoguai, "You go cook; I’ll change his clothes."
Because Shen Chi had brought back a serving of sweet and sour pork ribs and braised eggplant from the canteen, Lin Xiaoguai decided to make a spicy beef tripe dish, a green vegetable with mushrooms, and a small pot of fish head with tofu soup, after looking over the ingredients in the fridge.
Since it was just the two of them eating, and Little Niangao had a limited appetite, she made small portions, so there wouldn’t be too many leftovers.
"Is this beef tripe?" Shen Chi looked at the spicy beef tripe dish on the table with some surprise; he had eaten it before when dining with senior officers, and it was a rarity in restaurants.