It took Yao Zhi half an hour to prepare more steamed rice, a bowl of braised pork, and a pot of egg drop soup. When she was done, she packed all the food into a layered bamboo basket.
Wang Shen watched her but said nothing. When they were ready, Yao Zhi locked the door before they walked to the military barracks.
The compound where the soldiers’ families lived was only three miles away from the military barracks. Due to her poor physical fitness, it took her more than an hour to reach the barracks.
While she was panting like a dog, Wang Shen’s breathing was still steady. Besides a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, no one would have guessed she had walked so far in the sweltering weather.
Seeing this, Yao Zhi realized how bad her current body’s condition was.
Even if she liked to squeeze her chubby hands, she couldn’t continue living like this. Not to mention the risk of developing the three-high illnesses, she couldn’t afford to faint from exhaustion after walking for an hour.
While Yao Zhi was resting, Wang Shen walked to the guard and greeted them, "Sir, can you please inform my son, Squad Leader Xiao Wei of the sixth regiment? I’m bringing his lunch."
Hearing this, the soldier nodded. But before he left, Wang Shen added, "Also, please inform Squad Leader Fu Chen’an of the third regiment that his wife is here to deliver lunch."
The moment the soldiers heard this, they turned to look at Yao Zhi. As soon as they saw a woman with a figure bigger than their Vice Commander, their eyes widened in shock.
They never expected Squad Leader Fu to have such a heavy taste in women, ah! No wonder he despised those fragile women.
After the guards regained their composure, one of them quickly went to inform Xiao Wei and Fu Chen’an. When the guard found them, the two of them were sleeping in their tent.
Inside the tent, there were eight more Squad Leaders. With one tent shared by ten people, everyone was full of curiosity when they saw the guard coming.
"What’s going on?" one of the Squad Leaders asked.
The guard saluted him and replied, "Squad Leader Min, I came to inform Squad Leader Xiao that his mother is sending lunch."
This was not the first time for Wang Shen to send lunch to her son, so everyone didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary after hearing this. But the guard’s next words shocked them.
"Squad Leader Fu’s wife is also waiting outside. She came to send lunch," the guard added.
The moment they heard this, everyone was shocked. They knew that Fu Chen’an had taken leave to get married two months ago, but until today, no one had ever seen his wife.
Driven by curiosity, they woke up Fu Chen’an and said, "Brother Fu, wake up. Your wife is waiting for you outside."
Hearing this, Fu Chen’an woke up with a frown. Sitting on his bed, he stared at his brother-in-arms and asked, "What did you say?"
"Your wife is here. You should go out and see what’s going on."
Fearing that she might have met with trouble again, Fu Chen’an quickly tidied up his clothes and went to meet her. He glanced behind him and saw his brothers following.
Although he didn’t feel embarrassed for marrying Yao Zhi, he didn’t know if she would be unhappy being stared at by a group of rough men. After a while, he stopped in his tracks and said, "My wife is shy. Don’t scare her."
When they heard his words, everyone knew what he meant and stopped following him. Even if they were curious, they still understood boundaries and wouldn’t stare at their brother’s wife.
Ten minutes later, both Fu Chen’an and Xiao Wei reached the gate. As soon as he raised his gaze, he saw his wife waiting for him by the roadside. She was busy fanning herself with her chubby hands while sitting on the boulder.
Seeing her clothes drenched with sweat while her face turned rosy due to the heat, the corners of his lips lifted. In such hot weather, she still walked so far just to send him lunch.
’She still has me in her heart.’ At this thought, his heart warmed.
Meanwhile, Yao Zhi was imagining her husband. She saw lots of people in the family compound and understood the average level of looks in this era.
Perhaps due to the harsh environment and lack of nutrients, the people here were short and thin. Their skin was an unhealthy yellow, and their teeth were either rotten or yellowish. Even the appearance of the soldiers guarding the gate were below average.
After she reached that conclusion, she didn’t have high hopes for her husband. As long as he was not too ugly, she would harden her heart to live a good life with him.
It’s not that she couldn’t survive alone, but in this ancient era, the restrictions on women were too heavy, not to mention the danger of bandits or rogues. Rather than putting herself in a dangerous situation, it was better to choose a safer option.
As for the so-called wife’s duty of giving birth to her husband’s child, she would have to negotiate with him. According to the neighbors’ gossip, her body was only sixteen years old, too young to bear a child.
If he was willing to wait at least until she was twenty years old, she would give birth to his child. Otherwise, she would take in a concubine for him and let her continue her husband’s lineage.
After all, their marriage was not based on love. So, she didn’t mind to respect each other like guests. She watched lots of ancient era drama and understood that she wouldn’t be able to change the deep rooted tradition by herself.
Since that’s the case, it’s better to find the best way to live a good life. As an orphan, she had lived her life all alone. She used to be alone, so love between men and women was never her priority.