All three of them were startled by the sudden voice.
Jiang Si looked up and saw two bare-chested, barefoot children.
The two boys were struggling to carry a giant wild grouper, wobbling unsteadily as they entered the yard.
"Mom—"
"Come out quick and see! We caught a huge fish!"
The brothers shouted excitedly for their mother, completely forgetting the promises they'd made to Hu Meili that morning.
They had agreed: first, not to go play in the ocean without permission, and second, not to get their clothes dirty.
But now, not only were they covered head to toe in mud, they were down to nothing but their underpants!
Hu Meili saw them and nearly fainted from rage.
Immediately, she grabbed a wooden stick and launched into a game of "eagle catches chicks" with the boys.
Realizing they were about to get a beating, the brothers took off running.
"You little brats, stop right there!"
"I swear I'll break your legs today! How dare you sneak off to play in the water? How dare you disobey me?"
"Do you have to drive me to an early grave to be happy?"
"Mom, I'm sorry! I won't do it again!" Xiao Weidong, the older brother, cried out.
Xiao Weimin, the younger one, chimed in, "Mom, can you not hit our butts? We're in second grade now!"
If Little Hong, Little Lan, Little Hua, or Little Mei from their class saw this, they'd never hear the end of it.
From a distance, Jiang Si could still hear Hu Meili's shrill voice:
"Now you’re worried about embarrassment? Where was that earlier? Stay right there—!"
Xu Mingjuan had seen scenes like this countless times.
Noticing Jiang Si’s gaze fixed outside, she explained, "Honestly, you can’t blame Sister Hu for being so upset. Last month, there was an accident in our residential area."
"Some kids went swimming at the beach at noon and got swept out to sea. Five of them drowned."
"Three were from the same family. The mother was so traumatized she barely leaves the house now, just wanders around in a daze."
"They say she tried to hang herself a couple of days ago. Luckily, someone found her in time, or else..."
Xu Mingjuan sighed heavily. "Sister Hu is just terrified of losing them."
Jiang Si nodded in understanding—which was why she hadn’t stepped in to mediate earlier.
Children this age couldn’t fully grasp danger, and the ocean was unpredictable.
Going to the beach recklessly was incredibly risky.
So this beating? Absolutely necessary.
As they spoke, Hu Meili returned, dragging the boys by their ears.
"Stand against the wall! Nobody moves for an hour!"
"And tonight, each of you writes a 2,000-word self-criticism. Hand it to me first thing tomorrow."
"What?!"
The brothers groaned in unison. They were only in second grade—did they even know 2,000 characters?
"'What' nothing? Use pinyin for the words you don’t know! No sleeping until it’s done, and if it’s not finished by morning, no school for you!"
The threat of missing school shut them up immediately.
They obediently lined up under the corridor, facing the wall in silent repentance.
No school meant no education. No education meant the army wouldn’t take them when they grew up.
How else were they supposed to fly planes like their dad?
"These two rascals never give me a moment's peace," Hu Meili wiped the sweat from her forehead, feeling rather embarrassed.
They had been chatting happily just moments ago, but the interruption from those two boys had completely ruined the mood.
Seeing her flustered expression, Xu Mingjuan changed the subject.
"It's not so sunny now—why don’t we take Sister Jiang Si for a walk around the residential compound?"
Hu Meili nodded immediately, then turned to Jiang Si as if remembering something.
"Sister Jiang, have you bought all the household supplies yet?"
Earlier, she had only glanced briefly and noticed that the truck seemed to be loaded mostly with furniture.
"Not yet, Sister Hu," Jiang Si replied.
"Tingzhou said things like pots, pans, and dishes are all available at the military service center. Once he’s done moving the furniture, we’ll go together to take a look."
"Waiting for him will take forever. Come on, I’ll take you there now," Hu Meili insisted.
"Once we’ve got everything, I’ll have the service center send it over with a cart."
Jiang Si thought it sounded reasonable. Since she had nothing else to do at the moment, she might as well get the shopping done early and save Huo Tingzhou the extra trip.
With the decision made, the three women stepped outside.
While they had been talking, the two boys had been eavesdropping intently.
Unfortunately, they were standing too far from the window to see anything.
Now, as Jiang Si emerged, their eyes lit up with excitement.
Was this Uncle Huo’s wife?
She was so pretty!
She looked like the kind of mother who would never hit children!
Influenced by Hu Meili, the brothers were also serious admirers of beauty.
Without waiting for their mother’s permission, they chirped in unison,
"Auntie, hello~"
Jiang Si smiled and pulled out a handful of White Rabbit milk candies from her pocket.
"Here, take some."
Though mischievous, the boys had been raised with manners.
Only after Hu Meili gave the nod did they accept the treats, sweetly adding,
"Thank you, Auntie!"
"Just remember," Hu Meili warned, "too much candy will rot your teeth. One piece a day at most."
Huo Tingzhou was hosting a housewarming dinner that evening, and Hu Meili had already heard about it from Old Xiao.
Before leaving, she made sure to remind her boys,
"Once you’re done with your punishment, don’t forget to take that grouper fish over to Huo Tingzhou’s place. It won’t keep long in this heat."
With that settled, the three women headed straight for the military service center.
Located on the east side of the residential compound, it was less than a ten-minute walk away.
At this hour, the service center wasn’t crowded, and with Jiang Si’s handwritten shopping list, the process went quickly.
The only complication was the sheer variety of items. To avoid missing anything, the sales clerk double-checked with Jiang Si.
"Let me confirm your order, comrade:
1 coal stove, 1 fire tongs, 1 large iron wok, 1 steel pot, 1 earthenware jar, 1 kettle for boiling water.
1 cleaver, 1 pair of scissors, 1 cutting board, 1 soup basin, 1 wooden basin, 1 set of chopsticks, 2 bamboo baskets.
2 metal-cased thermoses, 10 fine porcelain bowls, 10 round plates, 10 soup spoons, 10 Double Happiness cups, 30 wooden clothes hangers.
Lastly, 1 bag of salt, 1 bottle each of soy sauce and vinegar, and small packets of Sichuan pepper, star anise, and dried chili peppers."
"Oh, I almost forgot—there's also one bundle of toilet paper. Could you check if that's correct?"
Jiang Si nodded. Her grain ration relationship hadn't been transferred yet, so she couldn't purchase staples like rice, flour, or oil.
Fortunately, Huo Tingzhou had already sent He Ping to the military aircrew canteen the day before to withdraw his food ration for the upcoming month in advance.
Otherwise, she really would’ve been like a housewife with no rice to cook.
Since alcohol wasn’t allowed in the military compound, Jiang Si asked the shop assistant for two cans of lychee preserves and a dozen bottles of soda.
"Alright, just remember to bring the empty soda bottles back for a refund—each one can be returned for five cents."
Jiang Si nodded in agreement. But when it came time to pay, she suddenly noticed something odd.
The metal thermos—it seemed like it hadn’t been added to the bill.
And she hadn’t even bought an enamel washbasin, yet the shop assistant had given her two!
Jiang Si didn’t believe the shop assistant would make such a basic mistake, but Hu Meili didn’t give her a chance to speak.
"Little Li, later, get a couple of people to deliver these things to Colonel Huo’s place. His home is right next to mine in the next building."
"Got it, I’ll arrange for someone to take them over soon."
Once they pulled Jiang Si out of the service center, Hu Meili got straight to the point.
"My Old Xiao told me you two aren’t planning to hold a wedding banquet. Mingjuan and I didn’t know what to get you, so we just added a little something. Don’t think it’s too little."
Jiang Si shook her head—how could she possibly think it was too little?
"Glad you don’t mind. No need to say anything else. Let’s take you around to get familiar with the residential compound first."
When they had arrived earlier, the three of them had come from the east side. Now, on their way back, they deliberately took Jiang Si on a detour through the west side.
Thanks to the wives’ introductions, Jiang Si gained a general understanding of the military residential compound.
To be honest, it was much better than she had imagined. Aside from the service center, the compound also had its own nursery, elementary school, middle school, bathhouse, hospital, sports field, swimming pool, barbershop, and a small cinema.
It couldn’t compare to the bustle of Shanghai, but it covered all the basic necessities.
Additionally, every morning at seven, the military supply truck would head into town to purchase goods.
If anyone wanted a ride, they could just wait at the residential compound’s main gate.
There was also a shuttle bus to the provincial capital every other day, also departing at seven in the morning.
As the three of them chatted and laughed while passing the military hospital, a group of nurses in white coats walked out.
Unsurprisingly, Jiang Si immediately spotted a familiar face among them—
