1970s: My childhood sweetheart ran away, and I turned around and married the wildest chief.

"Honey, aren't you tired? Why are you digging?"

Qiao Wanqing was working hard, her head covered in sweat, her face flushed. Hearing this, she looked up and smiled, "It's alright. I want to tidy up this area and plant some vegetables."

Springtime! It's the season for planting.

Having struggled for half her life, Niu Ma loves this kind of pastoral life the most. Although she was born into a wealthy family, she has to act like a well-bred lady. There are too many things to learn every day. She can only occasionally grow some flowers to satisfy her cravings. If she does too much, her grandparents will think she is not doing her proper job.

That won't do. In a large family, one must be favored by the head of the family in order to obtain more resources and wealth. Qiao Wanqing was well aware of this. There was no other way but to strive to be an outstanding young lady from a prominent family. After returning to China, she soon joined the army and had to train every day.

Now that she finally has some free time, she's completely letting loose.

Lu Mingzhou took off his coat and put it aside, then walked over and took the shovel from her hand. "Let me do it. Go wash your face; you're all sweaty."

Qiao Wanqing obediently went.

As Lu Mingzhou turned over the soil, he said, "We don't lack money for groceries, why are you wasting your energy like this? The Qiao family has pampered you so much, and now you're going up the mountain and digging in the ground. I'm really afraid you'll look exhausted soon enough. When my in-laws see this, they'll probably scold me to death."

Qiao Wanqing chuckled, "No, I like it myself. I used to live too tensely, so now I want to relax and enjoy a rural life. Besides, I'm hardworking, capable, and frugal."

Lu Mingzhou: "..."

Qiao Wanqing washed her face and went to turn over the mushrooms and wood ear fungus drying on the side. Lu Mingzhou turned over the ground beside her, and the two chatted casually.

"By the way, who lives next door? I haven't seen anyone for the past few days, just a few kids, I think."

She's been cooking at home every day for the past few days, and the aroma of her food wafts out. Sometimes she can see the neighbor's child passing by, peeking into the house.

Lu Mingzhou replied, "As for Deputy Division Commander Lin's home, he should not be home. As for his wife, it seems she has gone back to her hometown. There are currently four children in the family, two teenagers and a pair of twin boys who are about seven or eight years old, all of whom are in school."

There is also a canteen in the military family area. If the family members don't cook, they usually eat in the canteen. So sometimes when the adults are busy or not at home, it is common for them to leave their children at home for several days. The Lin family's children are all in school and can take care of themselves.

Qiao Wanqing nodded, now understanding why she hadn't seen her neighbor. "I understand. Do you know Sister Lin? What's she like?"

"She's alright. I've met her a few times, but I don't know her very well. She's a very straightforward person, and she has a job in the city."

Qiao Wanqing understood.

There were only a couple of days left in the month; their wedding was just around the corner. The couple worked while discussing the wedding details. It wasn't until Lu Mingzhou finished turning over the patch of land in the corner that he washed his hands and went to eat.

Lu Mingzhou's appetite has increased a lot recently. Since having a wife, he feels that his energy has also increased. He used to have many hidden injuries on the battlefield, but these days he feels much more relaxed. He doesn't know if it's just his imagination.

However, Lu Mingzhou is quite satisfied with his current life. Now, whenever he comes home, he not only has a lovely wife but also delicious food. It's simply wonderful.

Qiao Wanqing's side is also getting ready. With the wedding approaching, relatives from both sides will be coming, so they need to prepare more food. Although they can buy food at the canteen, they can't just leave the house uncooked.

With so many people, if both families are here, there must be at least a dozen. It's quite an achievement to have so many people eating.

Moreover, judging from his appearance, Lu Mingzhou seems to have a very good relationship with his parents. They must be very supportive of him. Since he's come all this way, she should prepare some local specialties for them to take back. And then there's her aunt; her uncle has already called, saying that her aunt will be bringing her second brother to the wedding, so she should also prepare some things for them to take back.

That day, Qiao Wanqing planted vegetables in the corner of the wall. With nothing else to do, she simply rode her bicycle to the dock. They weren't near the sea, but they weren't too far away either. A river ran through the area, and there was a fairly large dock on the riverbank where ships would dock every day, bringing in seafood.

Buy directly at the dock; the price is cheaper, and you can also barter. Sometimes, if you're lucky, you can even buy some from private individuals.

These days, farmers' markets have always existed, and the trading of agricultural and sideline products is not strictly regulated.

The dock was quite large, with people coming and going. Qiao Wanqing pushed her bicycle, searching for the goods she wanted; those that had just come from the sea were the freshest.

Seafood at the pier is free as long as you don't overeat. There are plenty of all kinds of fish, shrimp, shellfish, etc. In this era, the ocean is not polluted, and some seafood is quite large and tastes much better.

Qiao Wanqing planned to buy more and store them in her spatial storage.

Blue crabs, sea bass, lobsters, and even a lot of abalone and sea cucumbers, all of which were quite large – a real surprise!

Aside from fish, not many people liked the other things, so there were fewer restrictions. Qiao Wanqing spent twenty yuan to buy more than a hundred catties of various kinds.

I happily carried it home, and as soon as I got there, I cooked myself a seafood feast, the aroma filling the entire residential compound.

These past few days, she hadn't actually eaten anything special, but unfortunately, her family was hosting guests, and with the fish, pheasants, and rabbits they had, the house was constantly filled with delicious aromas. Normally, the military officers in her neighborhood are all of relatively high rank, and most of them have good living conditions, but today the wind was strong, carrying the aromas far away.

It just so happens that school is out today, and many children are playing in the family quarters. Smelling this irresistible aroma, many of them are tempted to tears. Among them are Sister Xu's youngest son and the child of Deputy Commander Lin next door.

The two older children were fine, but the younger twins couldn't manage; they stood under the courtyard wall, constantly gasping for breath.

"It smells so good! Do you eat meat every day?"

"How is that possible? My parents both get paid, but they can't afford to eat meat every day. We don't have enough meat coupons."

"It smells so good! I've been smelling it for days, it smells good every day, and it smells good with every meal!"

The other child fell silent because he had also smelled it.

The older siblings went to the cafeteria to get food, leaving only the two of them at home. The two little kids had been holding back for several days, but finally couldn't resist and wanted to go see them.

In this day and age, no child doesn't crave meat. Two identical little ones ran to Qiao Wanqing's courtyard gate and craned their necks to look inside. Qiao Wanqing happened to come out of the kitchen and saw the two identical heads at the gate.

so cute!

"Children, what brings you here?"

Human babies, especially twins, are quite lovable when they're not being naughty.