Back to the 60s: The Struggle Career of a Charmed Wife
Chapter 501 - 0501: Can’t Visit Family 4_1

Chapter 501: Chapter 0501: Can’t Visit Family 4_1

Feng Qingxue lifted the basket onto the table to prevent Little Fatty from knocking it over and breaking the eggs. Simultaneously, she urged Chen Xueniang to enter the house to change clothes, giving her her old cotton and linen clothes. "Sister Xueniang, please, don’t always bring something over every time you come. If it’s not eggs, it’s meat, or cookies, candies, and fruit cakes."

Now, Chen Xueniang is the most popular guest in their house.

Children’s hearts are the most sensitive, and food has always been of paramount importance in their lives.

Feng Qingxue didn’t go into the city and seldom took food from her space to avoid arousing suspicion. Hence, Chen Xueniang’s visits were the moments the children looked forward to the most. Even if she brought just one piece of candy, they could be cheered up for half a day.

After Chen Xueniang had changed her clothes and hang them out to dry, she said, "You know me. I never go hungry. I never lack money as I make over thirty yuan a month. I can eat whatever I want in the cafeteria. If I feel like eating something good, I go to the state-run restaurant. I can eat meat and vegetables there without a Grain Ticket, as long as I have money."

Chen Xueniang never shortchanged herself and continued, "The last two times I came, there was nothing left in the grocery store. But today, before I came, I went to have a look. I bought some pork intestines and a few ribs. You can make a rib soup for Xibao; it would also be good to make noodles."

As the weather got warmer, the meat could spoil if kept for too long, so the two of them started preparing the meat. Chen Xueniang also distributed the peanut brittle she brought to the children.

First they stewed the ribs, then they cleaned the pork intestines. The highlight of the evening’s dish was stir-fried pork intestines.

Feng Qingxue first scooped out a big plate and asked Guan Cheng to bring it to Uncle Xu and Aunt Xu, and also to call Father Lu home for dinner.

"Auntie, grandpa said that he will have dinner with Grandpa Xu and Grandma Xu, so he won’t be coming over tonight." This was an intentional avoidance on Father Lu’s part upon knowing Chen Xueniang was visiting, to avoid any gossip.

Feng Qingxue nodded, not making a fuss of it, and called everyone to start the meal.

Their family and Uncle Xu’s had long not differentiated between what’s mine and yours. Sometimes, if Father Lu did not want to come over, he would eat in the cattle shed with them. After all, they had plenty of food.

At night, the two sisters shared the same bed, with a well-fed and sound asleep Xibao sandwiched between them.

The window was wide open with a cool breeze blowing in after the rain, and the scent of mugwort filled the air.

There were a lot of mosquitoes in Summer, especially after the rain. So, Feng Qingxue lit bundles of wild mugwort in each room to repel mosquitoes before going to bed, resulting in a marked improvement.

"Don’t you miss Xibao’s dad since he’s been away for such a long time? Don’t you guys keep in touch?" Chen Xueniang asked.

"I miss him, of course, I do!" Feng Qingxue responded without hesitation, a hint of longing flashing in her eyes. "But, I have to suppress all my longing deep inside my heart, to prevent others from thinking that my longing is a sign of dissatisfaction towards Ajiang’s border defense assignment. As for keeping in touch, we can only do so through letters. There’s no other way."

Even with the letters, she only received the first one two or three months after Lu Jiang left. The second letter arrived a few days after Chen Xueniang returned to the city, along with two parcels. These parcels were filled with the local medicinal materials that Lu Jiang had purchased from the locals.

The letters were full of Lu Jiang’s concerns about his family, particularly whether Xibao could call him ’dad’ now. As for Feng Qingxue’s repeated queries in several letters about bringing Xibao to visit him at his army base, he gave a firm no in the end. Visiting was not possible for two reasons: One, the journey was long and the plateau region’s environment was harsh. Two, the conditions at the army base were tough, and it was not possible to accommodate visiting family members.

.. Haha, no mistakes today. Can’t update at noon, will update in the afternoon.