Chapter 75

Xu asked, “”

She shrugged her shoulders back, pushed up against Lu Yuanzheng, and ordered him with three parts petulance and seven parts shyness, “You take your hand away!”

“You’re pressing so solidly ,” Lu Yuanzheng looked like he was trying to prove how his hand was being pressed by her, moving his fingers upwards

Xu Man’s face turned even redder

She wasn’t him, didn’t have a sturdy chest

In fact, she was as soft as dough, only through a thin layer of pajamas, squeezed into various shapes by his fingers

Xu Wen became anxious and rolled over

This made him face-to-face with Lu Yuanzheng, pressing his arms behind his back

“Like the front?” Lu Yuanzheng raised his eyebrows, with a very negotiable look, “That’s fine”

As he spoke, his hand behind her back went down, probing through the hem of her shirt

Xu Wen’s retort turned into a gasp

Before Lu Yuanzheng’s kiss fell, she only had time to say, “Turn off the lights!”

In the morning, Xu Man was called up by Dongsheng

She still had to give lessons to the soldiers and children

Xu Wen sat up, still a little uncomfortable between her waist and legs, cursed Lu Yuanzheng, put on her clothes and washed up, and took Dongsheng to the camp

In the camp area on the mountain, there is a particularly large house, which is considered an auditorium Usually used for group meetings, it was also Xu Man’s new classroom

The soldiers were waiting early, and the children were also arriving one after another

What surprised Xu Man was that Wang Ying was there

She was supposed to be teaching an open class, so she didn’t say anything when she saw her, even if she was a bit puzzled

Xu Man thought that Wang Ying had come to look for herself, but she didn’t realize that after the class ended, Wang Ying followed the warriors and left together

She raised her eyebrows, and for a while she couldn’t guess what Wang Ying was singing

Even if Wang Ying had failed, it didn’t mean that she needed to attend this kind of kindergarten class for her cultural level

With her confusion, Xu Wen packed up her teaching materials and led Dongsheng out of the classroom

He bumped into Lu Yuanzheng and Shi Lei

When Shi Lei saw Xu Man, it was as if he saw a savior, and he stepped forward with a particularly excited sentence: “Sister-in-law, you’re so powerful, can you think of a way to find a match for our soldiers?”

Xu Wen: “”

“Fuck!” Lu Yuanzheng laughed and scolded, “Are you bewildered? My daughter-in-law isn’t a matchmaker! Besides, she’s on this island herself, where do you want her to turn lesbians into matchmakers for you”

Shi Lei was on the verge of tears, “If it wasn’t so hard, could I have begged my sister-in-law? So many veterans are leaving, but the new recruits don’t want to go to the island If this goes on, not to mention the development of the island, our battalion will also be getting fewer and fewer people”

Xu Man wondered, “How can that be? Aren’t new recruits arranged to come here every year?”

“Iron battalions are like running out of soldiers

This wasn’t a casual remark; every year, there were veterans who were discharged, and new recruits who would fill in

“That’s how it is said! But nowadays, everything is democratic Generally in accordance with the number of veterans discharged on the islands or in accordance with the number of people missing on the islands to sign up to the organization of the organization, the organization department is responsible for personnel transfer comrades, first in each unit to send comrades to call for people to voluntarily sign up Of course, will also leave part of the quota to the new recruits

However, so far, very few people are willing to go to the island They all call us Monk Island!”

Shi Lei let out another long sigh, “There really aren’t enough recruits! It’s definitely possible to transfer Everyone obeys the allocation as well” He scratched his head, “But, it’s not good if it really comes to this”

Xu Wen understood

As the saying goes, a strongly twisted melon is not sweet

It wasn’t just relationships that were like this Occupations were the same

Soldiers were professions in the end

It’s not the same as going into battle, where no one really backs out

They are all comrades in arms who are worthy of their lives

Put into this kind of long-lasting work, we still have the right to choose

The island guard is like one of the positions in a company

If everyone in a company rejects this position and needs the leader to force the order of whoever is guarding the island, then everyone hates this position even more

If you have a bad job in a company, you can quit and jump ship

It’s not as bad as working, you can still go home if you’re not happy, you can still get together with your friends and drink, and you can still go home to your parents and hug your wife and kids

On the island there is nothing, no family, no friends, not even the enemy can be angry

The only thing you can do is get out of the army

In fact, it means the same as resignation

But what Shi Lei and the others couldn’t manage, Xu Man, an amateur, had even less good ideas and could only promise, “I’ll think of something as much as I can”

It was cloudy, the sun wasn’t that poisonous, and the beach wasn’t really that hot

When Mrs Li arrived at the beach, Xu Man was already there

She and Dongsheng were on one side, lying on bamboo chairs under the sun umbrella, each holding a cup of drink with ice cubes inside

Xu Man was having milk tea, and Dongsheng was having watermelon juice

Sister-in-law Li sometimes felt that Xu Man’s style of behavior was particularly puzzling

She said that Xu could not suffer, she can give up the beautiful university life, leave the big city of Beijing to follow the road expedition to the island, live in a tent and sleep in a damp cabin

A woman’s home, all day to pound some heavy iron

It is said that Ms Xu can suffer, right? She enjoys herself more than anyone else

Now, mother and son are enjoying the sea breeze, lying on bamboo chairs, drinking ice-cold drinks

Just like a rich wife

Not only that, there’s no other wooden house on the island

Anyone who looks at it says it’s comfortable

What a paradoxical girl!

Sister-in-law Li smiled and sat down on an adjacent chair a meter away from Xu asked

“Sister-in-law Li, you’re here!” Xu Man said as he raised his foot and touched Dongsheng

Dongsheng sat up, took another enamel cup with a layer of cool water beads on the small table between him and Xu Man, and sent it upside down to Sister Li’s hand, “Aunt Li, here’s some juice for you!”

Mrs Li took it, thanked him, and took a sip

Not to mention! On such a hot day, a sip of sweet and cold watermelon juice was really soothing

Sister-in-law Li followed Xu Man’s example and lay down on a bamboo chair, looking at the sea, “Don’t say it, it’s quite comfortable Why did you call me here when you can’t talk about it at home?”

“The scenery is good! However, it’s a pity that many warriors don’t think so” Xu Man sighed softly

Sister-in-law Li understood the warriors better, “It’s not their fault They’re human beings, not gods They’re not afraid to die when they go to war There’s no hope in guarding the island here They are all young and a bit reluctant Either they want to make great achievements and honor their ancestors, or they want to make money to support their families and their wives and children Here on the island, they can’t do either It’s fresh when you first come here, but after a long time, you can’t stand it in your heart”

“What about you?” Xu Man looked sideways at Mrs Li, “What are your plans?”

Mrs Li shook her head, “I haven’t thought about it yet Before, I was thinking of settling down on this island for the rest of my life But what about my children? We don’t have a school here, so I can’t stop my child from studying, right? Whether or not he can succeed is his business, whether or not I can provide for him is my business

Originally, I was thinking of staying here with Lao Lu But when I saw those young men in the specialists a while ago, I thought that if my child could be like them in the future, I would have to close my eyes to see Old Lu

Besides, Old Lu is gone, and he pays us our pensions on time But I’m still here to eat and drink the army’s food, and I’m still embarrassed

I’ve been thinking about leaving the island for the past few days”

Sister-in-law Li let out a long sigh, “I just haven’t figured out where I’ll go after I go ashore”

Xu Man put the enameled jar back on the small table and sat up, “Sister-in-law Li, I’m looking for you today because I want to discuss this with you I hope you can stay on the island”

“Ah? I can’t help much by staying here” At the very least, for the time being, she could only wash clothes for everyone or something

And with her man gone, occupying the family cabin, eating and drinking, it was inevitable that she would be embarrassed after a long time

Before she went to the island, she was told to be a resident here, but it looked like it would be nice to have people living on this island for three to five years

It wouldn’t do for her to eat and drink for nothing for so long

The troops certainly didn’t bombard her, but she didn’t have the face for it herself

“Who said that? Aren’t I here to ask for your help?” Xu Man smiled and spoke, “Mrs Li, why don’t we partner up and open a kiosk on the island?”

Mrs Li froze, her head shaking into a rattle, “No No way! No way! What kind of person opens a kiosk on an island? How can this be done? Besides, individuals are not allowed to do business”

“This is definitely not allowed on land But there’s always a special case, isn’t there? Sister-in-law, you also know that the cooking class sometimes can’t guarantee that everyone will like to eat, and those who don’t like to eat will have to go hungry Although the labor insurance supplies will be issued by the army, but there are always some daily necessities need to buy their own, right?

Other than that, there must be cigarettes and alcohol, right? You also know that it is particularly inconvenient for them to leave the island If someone opens a kiosk, won’t it be much more convenient for everyone? Personally, I think you’d be perfect I suggest that you don’t move away, but build a bigger cabin between the cabin and the camp, with you and the kids living on the second floor and selling goods on the first floor That way you’ll have an extra income and something to do How’s that?”

Mrs Li was very moved by this, but still had some concerns, “Ask, it’s not that I don’t know what’s good for me! I can’t get my kids to go to school Another thing is, it’s not legal for this person to do business! Can it work?”

“Don’t worry about your child’s schooling With me here, I won’t let them go without school Even if it’s just for the sake of Dongsheng, Lu Yuanzheng and I still have to make the school work, right? Your child is about the same age as Dongsheng, and is still two years away from starting elementary school, so there’s no rush As for what’s legal or not, as long as you agree, I’ll discuss it with Lu Yuanzheng and see if he can apply to the organization for special treatment”

Sister-in-law Li nodded after thinking for a while, “That’s fine! If it can really be done, then ask me how grateful I am to you Alas! You don’t know that I’ve been so worried these past two days that I couldn’t sleep all night Let’s go! I can’t let go of Old Lu I don’t want to go! I’m sorry for my kids and I’m ashamed to stay here I’m thinking that if there’s no more work for me after the New Year, I’ll take the kids and leave the island”

“How can there be no work? Not to mention you, if you’re willing to work, all the other sisters-in-law will have something to do!”

“That’s great!” Sister-in-law Li’s eyes lit up, “We were talking about this yesterday

This guy? Sometimes he’s a bit of an underachiever When I’m busy, I always feel tired, and I can’t wait to sleep for three days and three nights one day when I’m not busy This really have the opportunity to sleep every day, the heart and not have a sense of loss I can’t tell you what it’s like Sisters are thinking about how to open up a farm and plant the land It’s not difficult to open up a farm, but it’s hard to handle the food that comes out of it

How about selling it outside? It’s not enough for the journey How about sending it to the island? They have the discipline not to take a single needle or thread from the people How about selling to the island? We’re all here for nothing, planting the island’s land and earning money for the troops, so you can’t be so thick-skinned

It would be great if you could lead us to do something We do not seek to earn any money, something to do not idle on the line!”

Xu Man smiled, “Then you tell the other sisters-in-law that I’ll take care of this As long as everyone doesn’t think I’m annoying then!”

“No way! We’ve been together for so long, who doesn’t know who? It’s only that Wang Ying who’s the most isolated Speaking of her, she seems a bit off lately” Mrs Li frowned, a bit puzzled, “She used to be like that aggressive hen, always sticking her neck out and wanting to peck at anyone she saw I don’t know what’s wrong with her in the past two days, but she’s been wilting and drooping like she’s lost the war

In the past, he used to write ‘get out of my way’ on his face when he saw anyone from a distance of 10 meters, but these two days, he’s been doing the opposite, giving way to everyone he sees Today I saw something even more frightening”

As if she was about to tell some great secret, Mrs Li sat up straight, looked around, and came close to Xu Man: “On my way here, I saw Wang Ying washing Captain Zhao’s clothes!”

Xu Man was stunned, then cried and laughed: “It was just washing clothes, not so scary, right?”

Sister-in-law Li shook her head, “This is something that would be called normal on any other sister-in-law” Sister-in-law Li glanced at Xu Man, hesitated, and added, “Even if it’s you, it’s still considered normal”

Xu Man: “”

Since it’s normal, why are you so reluctant?

Xu asked: “I don’t know! Most of their family clothes were washed by Lu Yuanzheng

This is not because Xu Man is pretentious, but Xu Man is not very good at washing clothes

In her last life, she relied on high technology, such as the increasingly powerful washing machine and the washing liquid that could clean stains with a single soak

In this life, when she was in the Xu family, she also only had to wash her own clothes

Xu Qiushi and Zhu Meizhen, as well as Grandma and Xu Che’s clothes were washed by Zhu Meizhen

Xu Wen and Sang Xiaoqing’s were washed by Sang Xiaoqing

Xu Wen tried to wash the clothes for the whole family, but after only two times, Zhu Meizhen never used her again

Zhu Meizhen never used her again There was no other reason, she couldn’t clean the clothes

In these days, there wasn’t even any washing powder

The use of pancreas is good, a lot of poor people will wash the oil stained clothes with a little lye, winter cotton clothes will pulp, other times is hard to wash

Put on the rubbing board and rubbed, or use the special washing board laid on the stone and smashed washing

The supplies on the island are more scarce than on land, and washing clothes is also very primitive

Xu Man’s own clothes weren’t too dirty, so she could wash them, but with Lu Yuanzheng’s and Dongsheng’s, it was not possible

Dongsheng was a half-grown boy who spent his days on the wild side and often came back covered in mud and dirt

Ordinary mud could be cleaned, but if it was stained with plant juices, or if it had ear marks from food that had fallen on the clothes, Xu Wen was somewhat helpless

Lu Yuanzheng’s work was even more expensive than Dongsheng’s clothes

At first, Xu Wen thought of being a good wife and mother and washing their clothes properly

But she couldn’t get them clean

At first, Lu Yuanzheng didn’t say anything, and Dongsheng didn’t care much about cleanliness

Later, when Lu Yuanzheng came home, he saw Xu Wen washing clothes

The strength and expression of Xu Man’s rubbing of the clothes was as fierce as that of a father’s murderer

Lu Yuanzheng was supposed to take something and leave, but after looking at her for a while, he stopped, squatted in front of the big basin, held Xu Man’s hand, and spread out her palm

Xu Man’s originally white palm was red, and her fingers were wrinkled from the water, but when she pinched them, they were hard and swollen

Lu Yuanzheng frowned, heartache was unavoidable, but lowered his eyes to look down at the clothes she was washing, his expression instantly a little speechless

After a long time, he said to Xu asked: “Daughter-in-law, everyone has their own strengths and also have their own how hard they can not do things Why don’t you let me do the laundry for our family in the future!”

Xu Wen blinked and waited for Lu Yuanzheng to walk away before realizing what he meant

Disgusted that she still couldn’t clean her clothes despite all her efforts?

Xu Man first puffed out her cheeks in defiance, but after a while, she smiled

What’s wrong with not being able to wash them?

Her man can clean it

So, after Wang Ying, Xu Wen became the second sister-in-law who didn’t have to wash her clothes

However, the few sisters-in-law who frequented the house knew that Xu Man wasn’t being lazy on purpose

That’s why Mrs Li didn’t want to say anything about Xu Man in the first place, but only added a sentence in the middle of her sentence, fearing that Xu Man would think too much about it

Xu Man automatically skipped the second half of the sentence and thought for a moment, “Maybe it’s just because she realized her conscience and felt ashamed of Captain Zhao?”

Sister-in-law Li shook her head, “That’s red rain from the sky, a rare event!”

Xu Wen didn’t say anything

Perhaps, the failure of the list has become a good thing instead?

Lu Yuanzheng, who had gone to the regiment for a meeting, came back especially late

Xu Man, who wanted to wait to talk to him, waited until he fell asleep, but did not wait for anyone

In a daze, he felt a sinking feeling in his side

Xu Man subconsciously rubbed back, rubbing a cool, suddenly awake a few points, vaguely said: “Lu Yuanzheng?”

“Uh-huh” Lu Yuanzheng just finished the bath, the body inevitably with coolness, did not want to disturb Xu Man, deliberately moved to the side of the bed, for fear of cooling her

Who knows that Xu Wen seemed to notice that he was on the bed, directly rolled back and nestled into his arms She woke up with a jolt

Lu Yuanzheng slightly hesitated, raised his hand and patted Xu Man’s back twice, “Go to sleep! It’s still early”

Xu Man shook her head and yawned

With things on her mind, she hadn’t slept soundly, and this tossing and turning woke her up a few more points Rubbing her eyes, she sat up, “What time is it? What took you so long to get back?”

“A little after one in the morning The meeting took a bit longer Next time don’t wait for me like this, it’s weirdly tiring”

“I don’t feel at ease if you don’t come back Besides, there’s something I want to talk to you about”

Seeing that Xu Wen’s entire being had come to her senses, Lu Yuanzheng simply sat up as well and asked her, “What is it?”

“Haven’t you and Instructor Shi been worrying about how to improve the welfare of warriors lately? I have some ideas”

Lu Yuanzheng nodded, “Yes! We had a one-day meeting today just for this issue The discharge rate on the islands is too high this year The regiment is also worried about this, we thought of a few proposals together and submitted them, and we don’t know if we can pass them”

“What did you guys propose? Is this something that can be asked?”

Lu Yuanzheng nodded, “It’s nothing much Just want to get more subsidies for the soldiers guarding the island After all, underneath the military uniform is just an ordinary son, husband, and father In addition to defending the country, they also have to support their families That’s why at our meeting, we all felt that we should give the soldiers on the islands a portion of the subsidy in addition to their allowances They can’t take care of their families and can’t see them, so they have to make their families’ lives a little better, don’t they?

We also applied for military benefits We called on more military wives to bring their children to the island Thinking to see if we can make military wives more motivated to go to the island by giving them a portion of the subsidy

There’s also building a school ”

Lu Yuanzheng pinched his brow as he spoke, other than the extra subsidy being easy to realize, the others were still difficult to do

He sighed softly and asked Xu Qi, “What did you come up with?”

“I want to turn this place into what it looks like on the continent” Xu Wen spoke

“What do you mean?”

“It means thinking of a way to make this place like the land What the land has more than us is popularity, prosperity, and convenience What about popularity! What I say doesn’t count, this has to be figured out by you guys Like you just said, applying for subsidies for soldiers or subsidies for sisters-in-law These are things that your unit has to work out I just have a few ideas to make life a little easier for the soldiers

The first is to open a commissary I talked to Mrs Li about this this afternoon, and she’s very willing As you know, Mrs Li has a very special attachment to this island, and she definitely doesn’t want to leave if she can But if she stays here all the time and can only help you with the laundry and other things, she will feel embarrassed But opening a kiosk will be convenient for the soldiers’ daily needs, and it will also give Sister Li some income After all, the pension is limited”

“This is a good thing I support it” Lu Yuanzheng took a stand

Xu Man sighed, “It won’t work with just your support You also know that individual economy is not allowed now I know that everyone on the island doesn’t care, but in the future, if someone accidentally pokes and prods to the top, I’m afraid that not only will Sister Li be in bad luck, but you guys will also be affected”

The tip of Lu Yuanzheng’s tongue rested against his palate, “This matter is indeed a bit troublesome”

Sister Li’s commissary eventually opened successfully

Shi Lei reported this to the regiment, which also felt that the solution was good and reported it

In the end, the opinion given by the higher-ups was that it was a good approach could be implemented island-wide, but not on an individual basis

Commissary by the battalion to build the goods, sold at an affordable price to the soldiers, but can ask the accompanying sister-in-law to take care of the commissary, pay a salary

Sister-in-law Li was relieved to hear this result and happily agreed to the commissary

Sister-in-law Li was literate and knew simple arithmetic

The organization sent the first batch of goods to the island in a unified manner

Most of them were daily food and clothing

For example, instant noodles and cookies for hunger

The pancreas used for washing clothes and brushing shoes is soap horn

Xu Man also accompanied Mrs Li to the city to buy back some food and games that were not available on the island

On the day the kiosk opened, the island was filled with cheers

The new recruits, especially, swarmed into the kiosk, as happy as children

The children were even happier

Dongsheng and the others went around the kiosk, touching things here and there, excited to no end

Xu Man gave Dongsheng fifty cents to buy his favorite food

However, only this time, in the future, if you want to buy things with pocket money, you have to rely on your own labor in exchange for payment

For example, washing dishes, sweeping the floor, washing their own clothes, etc

In the past, people on the island were a bit too Buddhist, but of course it was also the environment that forced them to do so, and money was almost as good as waste paper on the island

Soldiers from poor families were fine, saving up their allowances and sending them home to subsidize their families

But there are still some officers and soldiers, their own family is very generous, this allowance is not even as much as the pocket money at home

Their greatest hope is to go to war to kill the enemy to protect the country

But nowadays, the environment is peaceful, even on the island, there is no war, just some hard labor daily

Because of this, many of them have been discharged from the army as soon as they are able to do so

Now that money is circulating again, they have more or less found some motivation

The commissary was just the beginning

Xu Man thought that the island could also open a restaurant

The only way to open a restaurant is to be self-employed, and this time there is no good way to do it

The army has a cooking class for meals, so there is no need to open another restaurant

Xu Man gave Mrs Li some ideas

During the weekdays, the soldiers are busy and have no time to come to her to eat, but on weekends when they are off, whoever comes to buy wine, Mrs Li can send two dishes

Of course, you can’t give them away for free, you have to charge for the food

Sister-in-law Li clapped her hands: “You college students have a bright mind! Why can’t I think of such a good idea? However, there are still two problems

My kiosk is too busy to cook for them on weekends Then again, I’d have to go out and buy groceries, and I’d need someone to keep an eye on them

Xu asked and smiled, “You can get other sisters-in-law to help I’ve heard that the sister-in-law of Captain Liu’s family is a particularly good cook”

Sister-in-law Li stomped her foot: “That’s right! Her cooking smells really good! This is perfect, we all have something to do”

Xu Man nodded: “It’ll get better and better” She used the kiosk as the center of the circle and drew a circle around it with her hand, “This place will be a bustling commercial street in the future Anything that’s on land, we’ll have”

The winds are going to pick up next year!

Once the spring winds of reform began to blow, Rainbow Island would also eventually prosper

But, before it becomes prosperous, there is still a way to get people to like the island