Fang Pingying’s sofa might be nothing special in the city, and even within this military dependents’ courtyard, there are many households with better sofas, but some people still feel jealous.
Just like that time when Gao Hongmei gossiped about Fang Pingying, seeing Fang Pingying coming from the same rural background as herself, but somehow, after a few years, she was still like a country bumpkin, and her house had nothing new—whatever was in the military quarters was all her family had.
But Fang Pingying hadn’t been there for half a month before she bought a sofa, and her clothing didn’t resemble that of someone from the countryside at all. Whenever the women in the courtyard saw Fang Pingying wearing a new outfit, they had to compliment her, and it made Gao Hongmei feel extremely uncomfortable.
So, while Luo Zhiyong was asking the men in the courtyard to help carry the sofa upstairs, she stood at the bottom of the building and said to Fang Pingying in a weird tone of voice,
"Sister-in-law, does your Camp Chief Luo earn more than the rest of us here? How can you afford such nice things?"
"That’s quite an accusation, do you think the military is an unfair place, that even the wages should be doubted?" Fang Pingying had been in the courtyard for a while and had come to understand the nature of these women, knowing that Gao Hongmei was one to stir up trouble. She replied with a half-smile that didn’t quite look genuine, "Then you should go and ask the leadership."
"You..." Gao Hongmei didn’t expect Fang Pingying to be even more hot-tempered than Xiao Juzi, unable to hide her displeasure.
Since Fang Pingying usually didn’t interact with her and didn’t want to say more, she cut her off, "My two younger sisters have come, I won’t chat with you now, I have to go back and tidy up."
After saying that, Fang Pingying led Luo Honglan and Fang Xiu upstairs.
Watching their retreating figures, Gao Hongmei sneered at the bottom of the building, "What’s so great about that, it’s just a sofa, as if nobody else could afford it."
No sooner had Gao Hongmei finished speaking than some women in the courtyard immediately replied, "Sister Gao, we really can’t afford it. The Luo family has nice things, and it’s not just about Camp Chief Luo’s salary; sister-in-law earns her own money too. I heard someone say the other day that sister-in-law used to do business back at home."
"No wonder, I always thought Luo Family’s sister-in-law was not like the rest of us women here, she indeed has more abilities," a few women in the courtyard said with blatant envy.
"What abilities? A soldier’s wife going out and showing her face, she’s not afraid of being talked about," Gao Hongmei was dying of jealousy, yet her mouth was full of disdain.
"That’s not right, the military hasn’t stipulated that family members can’t do business or anything like that. If I could do it myself, I would too. In these times, who wouldn’t want to earn more money? Even if it’s a little, it could still help provide for the children," said Qiu Lian, who was taking her child downstairs for a walk. She overheard their discussion about Fang Pingying and joined in.
"Right, that’s how it is."
After Fang Pingying went upstairs with Luo Honglan, the men from the military had already helped carry the sofa inside, and because Fang Pingying had made space the night before, the sofa was already placed properly.
Several comrades, seeing that Luo Zhiyong’s family had guests, didn’t stay long and left after greeting them.
Fang Pingying let Luo Honglan and the others set their things aside to rest while she and Luo Zhiyong removed the packaging from the sofa and wiped down the sofa and its matching coffee table with a rag.
After cleaning, the bright yellow sofa and the small coffee table placed in the living room gave off a comforting vibe.
As Fang Pingying was wiping the sofa, Luo Honglan and Luo Zhiyong were helping alongside her, while Fang Xiu had started to look around the house as soon as she came in, dropping off her bundle. She had grown up in the countryside and hardly ever been to the county; now that she was in the city for the first time, she found everything wonderful.
Even Fang Pingying’s household’s white-tiled bathroom seemed incredibly nice in her eyes.
In fact, in terms of this provincial city, the military dependents’ compound wasn’t considered anything special; it was below average in the city.
But she thought it was great. After making a round through the house, Fang Xiu came out and said to Fang Pingying with envy, "Big sister, your life here in the city must be so nice. Look how clean even the bathroom is. It’s tough for us in the countryside; our bathrooms reek."
"I’ve lived in the countryside myself; I know what our home is like," Fang Pingying replied while continuing her chores, glancing at her, "It’s true that the city has some better conditions than our village, but it’s not as great as you think it is. Things here are expensive; just buying groceries for the two of us costs a fair amount each month."
Right after Fang Pingying finished speaking, Fang Xiu suddenly came out of the room and called out, "Oh right, big sister, speaking of money, I remember mom told me to ask you if you’ve sent home the money for this month."
"Not yet. I’ll send it in a few days; your big brother only got his salary not too long ago." These past few days, Fang Pingying hadn’t gone out to the city either; with so much going on today, she forgot, which was later than usual.
"Hmm, mom said you can’t send less. Whatever amount you used to send from home, you have to send the same now; otherwise, you’ll have to make it up when you go back for the New Year. Mom even complained about you back at home," Fang Xiu said and then cautiously glanced at Luo Zhiyong, as if afraid that Luo Zhiyong would get angry.
For some reason, Fang Xiu and the others were somewhat afraid of Luo Zhiyong; they didn’t like to talk to him much, feeling a sense of pressure around him.
Hearing her words, Luo Zhiyong slightly furrowed his brow and said to Fang Pingying, "Don’t mind my mom. Do as you’ve said before at home; just send enough for the two of them to live on. Now that Fang Xiu and Hong Lan are both out here, just sending ten yuan back this month will do."
Seeing Luo Zhiyong also saying so, Fang Xiu didn’t hold back anymore and chimed in loudly, "Right, big sister, honestly, ten yuan might even be more than enough for them. How much can two people eat at home? It’s all just mom wasting money."
Although what Fang Xiu said was true, it wasn’t quite appropriate for the two sisters to speak ill of his mother in front of Luo Zhiyong, so Fang Pingying didn’t continue the topic and simply said,
"You two stay here for the night today. Tomorrow I’ll take you to the shop; we have to get ready there. We’re opening for business in a few days. After that, you’ll stay at the shop. I’ll come over during the day, and in the evening, I’ll come back here."
Fang Xiu’s intention in coming to the provincial city wasn’t really to work; she just wanted to spend time with Luo Zhiming. Hearing Fang Pingying mention the shop, she didn’t ask details, thinking Fang Pingying had just found some work for them to do together in a shop somewhere, without realizing the shop was owned by Fang Pingying.
She frowned, "Big sister, so we’re starting work tomorrow? I haven’t even seen Zhiming yet."
Remembering that the couple hadn’t seen each other for a while, Fang Pingying looked at Luo Zhiyong and suggested, "Wait a bit, I’ll have your big brother drop by later and see if—since it’s the weekend—Zhiming can come over. Then you can meet."
"Okay." As soon as Fang Xiu heard this, she immediately took over the cleaning cloth from Luo Zhiyong’s hand, who was helping Fang Pingying with the sofa, and urged him, "Then big brother, go now. Hong Lan and I will help big sister tidy up."
Seeing that it was already past five o’clock, Luo Zhiyong thought it was nearly time for Luo Zhiming to finish work. He informed Fang Pingying and went downstairs to borrow a bicycle from Huang Lin’s house and headed towards the timber mill.
(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we welcome you to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets at Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)