Hu Lili watched the two of them act so intimately right in front of her, so furious she wanted to march over and tear them apart.
Lu Xiao led Su Tang into the family compound with Zhang Cui following behind. As they passed, Zhang Cui shot a look at Hu Lili.
"Well, now. They say a good dog doesn't block the road. Why are you always in the way?"
"Our Sister Su is beautiful and cultured. Brother Lu is a lucky man indeed."
Zhang Cui's words were laced with venom, each sentence a dagger twisting in Hu Lili's heart.
Afraid Hu Lili might actually die of anger if Zhang Cui continued, Chang Jia quickly grabbed Zhang Cui's suitcase and helped her inside.
"Sister Zhang, Brother Wang is probably waiting for you. Let's hurry inside."
At Chang Jia's urging, Zhang Cui couldn't be bothered with Hu Lili any longer.
A few years ago, Zhang Cui hadn't been qualified to live on the base with the troops, so she could only visit her husband every so often.
She had known for a while that Hu Lili had feelings for Lu Xiao, but she figured Lu Xiao would never be interested in someone like her.
Later, she heard from her husband that Lu Xiao had gotten married—and to the daughter of a professor from Shanghai, no less.
To be honest, Zhang Cui didn't have a great impression of those "pampered young misses."
But back when she didn't know who Su Tang was, Su Tang had not only helped her but had also been humble and polite.
She was completely different from the spoiled, arrogant young miss Zhang Cui had imagined.
Compared to Hu Lili, Zhang Cui definitely preferred Su Tang.
Su Tang followed Lu Xiao to the last house in a row. He took out a key, unlocked the door, and went inside.
The room's furnishings were simple. Besides daily necessities, there was nothing else.
A pile of new toiletries and daily necessities sat on a nearby table, which Lu Xiao must have bought ahead of time.
"Professor Su wrote to me before. Once things have settled down, if you want to go back to Shanghai, I'll take you."
"The family compound is full of my comrades' families. It takes all sorts. If you find you don't get along with them, you can just stay in and read."
Lu Xiao bent down, set Su Tang's suitcase on the floor, and poured her a cup of water from a thermos.
Hearing this, Su Tang nodded.
'He's right. It takes all sorts in the family compound. Besides, this is a special period, so people's impression of me probably won't be very good.'
'That Hu Lili from just now is a perfect example, isn't she?'
'I don't want to go looking for trouble.'
"Um, about our marriage..."
She took a step forward, wanting to clarify something beforehand.
'After all, we're a legally married couple now. There are certain... obligations to be fulfilled.'
'But she barely knew Lu Xiao, and she didn't even know if she could ever go back. So, she wasn't ready for... that sort of thing.'
However, Lu Xiao seemed to have already sensed her thoughts, and his eyes darkened.
"I'll sleep on the sofa."
Then, he added, "The houses in the family compound don't have many rooms, so there's no spare one for you. You sleep in the bedroom; I'll be fine out here."
Lu Xiao knew that joining him on the base hadn't been Su Tang's idea.
'It was her father, afraid she would get implicated, who had insisted she come to the Northwest.'
'If it weren't for this whole situation, he probably wouldn't have even gotten to see her.'
The woman before him was poised and graceful, her features lovely. Her fair skin looked as soft and supple as tender tofu.
Her clear, amber eyes were as beautiful as gemstones.
'To be honest, if it weren't for these special times, he likely never would have been able to marry Su Tang.'
'She could have had a much better life.'
"I'm sorry. I'm just not ready yet. But Lu Xiao, you're a really good person. Thank you for taking me in."
Seeing the look on Lu Xiao's face, the ever-polite Su Tang knew he had misunderstood.
So she quickly tried to explain, but her words might have been better left unsaid.
Lu Xiao grunted in acknowledgment and glanced at the clock on the wall. "I have something to do. I'll bring you back some dinner tonight."
With that, he left.
Only after he was gone did Su Tang let out a slow breath and sink into a chair.
Su Tang's belongings had been packed and sent over ahead of time.
There were four large boxes in total, filled with her favorite books, clothes, personal items, and so on.
Su Tang eyed the boxes piled in the corner, rolled up her sleeves, and went to drag one over.
After slicing the box open, Su Tang discovered that the original owner of this body had studied clinical medicine in the UK.
'Well, what do you know,' she thought. 'Isn't that a perfect professional match for this place?'
'She'd have to blame herself for not reading the book carefully enough to notice that detail.'
Seeing these familiar things, Su Tang's mood finally improved a little.
She took a look at the bedroom. It wasn't large, containing only a double bed and a desk.
On the desk were some of Lu Xiao's books, but they were just basic primers.
'Su Tang knew Lu Xiao wasn't highly educated, but to have climbed to his current position through sheer effort was incredibly impressive.'
She brought her books over and placed them on the bookshelf, stacking the ones that didn't fit off to the side.
Lu Xiao must have changed the bedding beforehand; it was clean and carried the faint scent of soap.
Su Tang opened the remaining three boxes, hung her clothes in the wardrobe, and spread a tablecloth over the desk while she was at it.
Only after spreading it out did she remember that it wasn't a good idea to display such things during these times. She reluctantly pulled it back off.
"Sister Su, you in there?"
The room was already spotless and didn't need any tidying. Su Tang was just about to lie down for a rest when she heard Zhang Cui's voice.
She went and opened the door to let Zhang Cui in.
"It really is different having a woman around. Look how clean this place is!"
Su Tang felt a little embarrassed hearing this. The room had already been clean; she wasn't the one who tidied it.
"Sister Zhang, what is it?"
"Brother Lu just told me he's on duty tonight and might not be back. He asked me to take you to the cafeteria for dinner and show you the way."
After Zhang Cui finished, Su Tang nodded. 'Lu Xiao really is very thoughtful.'
'He didn't forget about me. Otherwise, I might have starved to death here.'
"Okay, I'll go get my tickets."
At her words, Zhang Cui grabbed Su Tang's arm. "Brother Lu already gave the ration tickets to me. Let's go, I'll take you. If we're any later, all the good food will be gone."
Zhang Cui pulled Su Tang out of the house. Su Tang grabbed her key and a bowl, locked the door, and followed Zhang Cui to the cafeteria.
The cafeteria wasn't too crowded when they arrived, but the aroma of the food was so fragrant it seemed to spread for miles.
Having eaten nothing but a few steamed buns for the past two days, the smell made Su Tang's mouth water.
The two of them got in line for food, with Zhang Cui telling Su Tang amusing stories as they waited.
After Zhang Cui, who was ahead of her, got her food, it was Su Tang's turn. The person serving glanced at her, then put the lid on the pot.
"Comrade, you haven't given me any vegetables yet."
Her bowl only held two steamed buns; she hadn't gotten a single scrap of the stewed cabbage.
"There aren't enough vegetables. We have to save them for others."
Hearing this, Su Tang finally understood. It wasn't that there weren't enough vegetables; he was deliberately targeting her.
Zhang Cui, who had already started to walk away, saw the scene. When she noticed the person serving was Hu Lili's brother, she immediately understood what was going on.
"I paid with a ration ticket. Why won't you give me any vegetables?"
"If you won't give me any vegetables, then give me my ration ticket back."
Su Tang couldn't be bothered to argue with him and simply held out her hand for the ticket.
"You've already eaten the steamed bun, haven't you? I can't give it back."
The man was even more shameless. Looking at the steamed bun from which Su Tang had taken a couple of bites, he started playing the scoundrel.
"So you're sure? You won't return my ration ticket, and you won't give me any vegetables, is that right?"
"Like I said, there aren't enough vegetables. I can't give you any."
Hearing this, Su Tang nodded. Without another word, she went to the suggestion box on the side and grabbed the paper and pen.
"What are you doing?"
"Giving feedback. I'm going to inform the leadership how you bully a soldier's family. I'll ask you one last time: are you giving it back or not?"