Qiao Lanshu wanted to work at the food factory, and naturally, Qin Yuanzheng couldn't refuse.
The young lady wanted to find a job and go to work every day; this was a good thing.
Otherwise, having no relatives or friends here, staying at home every day wouldn't be good for her.
So, he nodded and said, "Alright then, Cousin, Weijun, I'll have to trouble you to take good care of my Xiao Qiao."
Yang Wenyan waved his hand and said, "No trouble at all, we're all family, why are you being so polite?"
However, Deng Xiaozhen's younger brother, Deng Weijun, was startled by Qin Yuanzheng's words.
He was just an ordinary worker. Usually, if he wanted to say even a couple of extra words to Commander Qin, he would be extremely cautious.
Now, for the sake of Comrade Xiao Qiao, Qin Yuanzheng actually used the word "trouble" with him. Frightened, he quickly stood up and said somewhat bashfully, "Commander Qin, don't worry! You can safely leave Comrade Xiao Qiao in my hands. With me around, I definitely won't let anyone bully her."
Deng Xiaozhen looked at her somewhat foolish younger brother, simply not knowing what to say.
Qin Yuanzheng, however, held up his wine glass, stood up, toasted Deng Weijun, and said, "Then thank you very much."
Everyone was a bit surprised seeing Qin Yuanzheng act like this. Even Staff Officer Lin and Young Company Commander Yang looked at each other in dismay.
It seemed that this Comrade Xiao Qiao held an unusual place in Commander Qin's heart.
Commander Qin was like an old house catching fire—he was truly smitten.
By the time the meal was over, it was already one o'clock in the afternoon.
Yang Wenyan told Qiao Lanshu to report to the food factory in a couple of days, saying he would help fill out the application form on his end.
Then everyone dispersed and went their separate ways to work.
Seeing that it was still early, Qin Yuanzheng took Qiao Lanshu to buy a bed.
Nowadays, many beds had to be custom-made. Of course, there were also ready-made ones, but there wouldn't be much choice in terms of style.
Qin Yuanzheng and Qiao Lanshu took a look around the furniture section on the first floor of the department store. There weren't many ready-made beds; most were wooden beds that required assembly.
Moreover, the beds weren't large, all being 1.5 meters wide.
Qin Yuanzheng reached out and pressed down on the bed board, his brows furrowing slightly.
Qiao Lanshu felt that the beds here weren't as nice-looking as the ones back in Yangcheng.
The wooden furniture in Yangcheng often featured beautiful, intricate wood carvings, whereas the ones here were much simpler and less complex.
However, the wood quality was still quite good. She looked at two of them and thought they were alright.
Watching Qin Yuanzheng pressing on the bed board with a frown, she asked softly, "What's wrong? Is this one no good?"
Qin Yuanzheng asked in a low voice, "Do you like it?"
Qiao Lanshu shook her head. "I wouldn't say I like it, I just think it's okay?"
Because there wasn't much to choose from here anyway.
Qin Yuanzheng, however, was dissatisfied. He whispered to Qiao Lanshu, "This bed won't do. It's not sturdy enough."
He was strong and physically robust; he was afraid this bed wouldn't be able to withstand rough use.
Qiao Lanshu naturally had no idea about the little thoughts running through his mind.
Anyway, Qin Yuanzheng was very reliable when handling things, so she decided to just listen to him completely.
She said, "Then let's look around some more."
Qin Yuanzheng simply took her hand and led her out of the department store.
He said, "Forget it, let's just go back and build a kang."
There was no bed sturdier than a kang. No matter what they did, they wouldn't have to worry about it making noise, much less collapsing.
However, he certainly couldn't say that to Qiao Lanshu. He coughed, hiding his secret thoughts, and told her, "The wooden beds here are only 1.5 meters wide, which is too narrow. I'm a big guy, and I'm afraid I'd crowd you. Besides, that bed isn't sturdy; the wooden boards creak and are prone to termites. It's not worth buying."
But speaking of building a kang, the rooms in the apartment building didn't have flues, so the kang would just be a place to sleep and couldn't be heated with fire. It wasn't like no one in the courtyard had built a kang; when the time came, he could just build one exactly like the others.
Qiao Lanshu didn't know all this; she just needed to listen to him.
She nodded. "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Wrapped in a red scarf, Qiao Lanshu's exposed nose tip was red from the wind, and she looked at him with bright, dark eyes.
Qin Yuanzheng's heart softened. He couldn't help but reach over and pull Qiao Lanshu's scarf up a bit to cover her nose.
He said softly, "It's getting dark, let's hurry back."
Having married a wife, Qin Yuanzheng finally applied for leave for the first time.
And it was marriage leave, at that.
However, because the recent construction in the mining area and the building of the highway both required Qin Yuanzheng to follow up, his superiors only approved seven days of leave.
They hadn't even done anything yet, and a whole day had already passed.
Qin Yuanzheng drove the car, bringing Qiao Lanshu to the entrance of the Construction Corps Headquarters building.
Qiao Lanshu recognized this place; opposite the headquarters building was the train station.
Looking at the train station across the street, Qiao Lanshu felt a bit emotional.
Qin Yuanzheng told her, "Wait for me in the car, I'll be down within ten minutes."
Qiao Lanshu nodded and didn't ask what he was going up for.
Qin Yuanzheng was here to get grain.
He had bought ten catties of sweet potatoes and ten catties of rice.
These ten catties of rice were produced locally. Due to the climate, the rice yield was extremely scarce.
In the entire Longcheng City, there was only a small area where it was planted. Because that place had a natural spring, spring water was used to cultivate the rice.
Qin Yuanzheng wanted to buy his wife the rice she loved to eat. Not only did he search everywhere for Northeast rice, but he also sent a letter to a comrade in Shanghai, asking him to mail some rice back.
Then, he went straight to his superior, Commander Li, to ask him for rice.
Commander Li was rendered speechless. He pointed at Qin Yuanzheng and said, "My own monthly rice ration is barely a few catties, I'm not giving it to you."
Qin Yuanzheng, with incredibly thick skin, said, "Didn't you say before that as long as I get married, you'd give me a big gift? Now I've come to ask you for it. I just want rice, nothing else."
Commander Li: "..."
Commander Li had to concede to his thick skin. He said, "You can have the rice, but let your little wife come up and let me have a look. I haven't even met her yet."
He really wanted to see what kind of heavenly beauty could move a man as hard as stone like Qin Yuanzheng.
Qin Yuanzheng hesitated for two seconds before saying, "Let's wait a bit longer. Comrade Xiao Qiao is timid, and you might scare her."
Commander Li: "..."
Commander Li pointed at the door and said, "Get out!"
Qin Yuanzheng smoothly got out, then went to the logistics department next door. He collected Commander Li's ten catties of rice and ten catties of sweet potatoes, carrying one bag in each hand, and came out of the headquarters building.
Qiao Lanshu saw him come out, so she raised her arm and checked the new watch on her wrist.
Hmm, it really had taken exactly ten minutes.
Qin Yuanzheng placed the rice and sweet potatoes in the back seat, then opened the car door and got in. Looking at Qiao Lanshu, he asked, "Did you wait long?"
Qiao Lanshu shook her head and asked him, "What did you go get?"
Qin Yuanzheng started the car and left the headquarters building. He smiled and said, "I went to get some rice for you."
Qiao Lanshu's eyes lit up, and she turned her head to look in the back.
Qin Yuanzheng had actually gone out of his way to buy rice for her. How wonderful.
She wanted to hug him, but since he was driving, she just kept staring at him with bright, sparkling eyes.
Qin Yuanzheng couldn't withstand her gaze, and the tips of his ears slowly turned red.
When the car drove into the military residential compound and he parked downstairs, he finally turned his head, looked at Qiao Lanshu, and asked in a low voice, "Why do you keep staring at me?"
Qiao Lanshu smiled shyly and said, "Commander Qin, you are so good to me."
After a brief pause, she asked, "Can I call you Brother Zheng?"
Calling him Commander Qin felt rather distant.
Qin Yuanzheng stared at her cherry-red lips for a few seconds before nodding. "You can," he replied in a hoarse voice.
Never mind calling him brother, calling him husband would do just fine.
