Transmigration: On the Gossip Front
Chapter 231 True or False First Love 31_1

Chapter 231: Chapter 231 True or False First Love 31_1

Zhou Lina was only able to move her things to Gu Wei’s house with the help of the neighbors.

By evening, these items still needed to be transported, so she was too lazy to tidy up, preferring to wait until they were moved into her own place before doing a proper clean-up.

Looking at the time, well, there’s no point in going to the market at this hour, there’s definitely nothing good left.

"Let’s just have cold noodles for lunch." Although Gu Wei rarely cooked, the variety of seasonings here was truly plentiful.

She was able to make delicious cold noodles, which were perfect for a hot summer day.

Zhou Lina quickly prepared lunch, then sliced some cucumber and carrot strips. "Tastes good."

If conditions permitted, topping it with some braised meat would absolutely make the flavor fabulous.

Regrettably, in those days wanting to eat meat really wasn’t an easy matter, although black markets existed where one could sneak around to buy some.

But with neighbors all around, how often could the diet be improved?

Eating meat every other day, don’t think the neighbors aren’t watching. Who knows when they might make a little report.

The source of the meat was indeed a big issue, which is why even the meat Zhang Shifen bought in secret was shaved into strips to be boiled in soup.

The main reason was that Zhou Dajiang’s cooking was done in the corridor, making what each family ate transparent to all.

Cooking in such circumstances was truly depressing, but fortunately those days did not last long.

Whether it was their original home, or the Gu Family’s, both had independent kitchens; you just needed to close the doors and windows properly to prevent others from easily finding out what you were cooking.

In any case, once work started, the diet still needed to be improved a bit for good health.

Estimating the time, she packed up the cold noodles. Not long after, Zhang Shifen and the others also returned home, one by one.

Zhou Xuan was in an exceptionally good mood today, "Sis, I’m sure I did very well on the exam."

Zhou Lina and Zhang Shifen were confident in Zhou Xuan’s ability to score well on the exam.

Zhou Lina was surprised that the usually low-key Zhou Xuan was so excited, a rarity indeed. Was it because he knew they were moving into a bigger house?

But on second thought, the likelihood seemed low; the kid was not the type to care about such things.

"Xiao Xuan is so great." Regardless, when a child says such things, they deserved proper praise.

"Sis." Zhou Xuan knew that Zhou Lina didn’t quite grasp what he was trying to express, but it didn’t matter.

"If I can score well on this exam, sis, you can surely score well too."

Zhou Xuan vividly remembered that if Zhou Lina didn’t pass the recruitment exam, being without school or a job meant she’d have to go to the countryside as a ’sent-down youth.’

Even as a child, he was aware of the hardships, the difficult field work, and the inadequate food. Life would be incredibly tough.

Zhou Xuan didn’t want Zhou Lina to work the fields, so he had always prayed that she would pass the exam.

Seeing the anxious Zhou Xuan, Zhou Lina smiled, "Don’t worry, you know how good your sister’s grades are."

"Unless something unexpected happens, it would be a huge upset if I didn’t pass the exam."

It wasn’t arrogance from Zhou Lina; she was standing on the foundation of the original owner of the body and was intelligent. She had studied well and was indeed confident about the exam.

"Mom, Aunt Gu, Xiao Xuan, wait for my good news."

"When I pass the exam and get my first month’s salary..." Zhou Lina originally wanted to say she would buy them all a gift.

But on second thought, in that era, finding a gift that would satisfy them was a challenge.

There is a lot of stuff that you could only buy with both ration coupons and money, and even after going to work, where they’d distribute industrial coupons every month, it just wasn’t enough.

Zhou Lina thought about it and then decided, forget the gifts, she might as well give something more practical.

"When the time comes, I’ll pay the money, and trouble you, Mom, to get some good stuff, and I’ll cook a nice meal for everyone."

"By then we will have moved back to our own place, cook whatever delicious food we want, don’t mind what others might say," said her mother.

Although Gu Wei’s place had an independent kitchen, the kitchen window faced the corridor and pedestrians passing by could peek inside when the window was closed.

It was better back at her own home, with one elevator serving two households, and all windows facing the outside.

Gu Wei kept nodding and said, "Actually, I quite enjoy eating, but look at my kitchen."

"Whenever I make something delicious, everyone passing by will see it."

"Even if I close the window, they’ll still stare through the glass."

Gu Wei really detested such neighbors, always saying sweet nothings under the guise of being friendly, but actually lacking a sense of personal space.

No matter how dissatisfied she was, she had to endure it; after all, you can’t just start arguing with neighbors over such trivial matters.

"Eventually, I just got too lazy to cook and would eat in the cafeteria instead, occasionally going to the state-run shop to have something better."

Of course, there were always those who gossiped behind her back, saying she never considered the future and the like.

Thankfully, no one ever said these things to Gu Wei’s face, because she would definitely have snapped back, not having consumed anything of theirs nor used their things, what right did they have to nag her?

Luckily, she would soon have a fixed place to improve her meals, and what mattered most was that absolutely no one would be there to nag in front of her.

Zhou Lina kept nodding, regardless of whether Zhang Shifen would object, at least she had found an ally.

Zhang Shifen continued to eat her cold noodles with big bites, which were much tastier than what they served in the cafeteria.

After swallowing the last bite, she mused, "Could it be that your cooking skills just aren’t good enough?"

Gu Wei wasn’t concerned about how people criticized her culinary skills, she admitted that her cooking just wasn’t up to par.

But she wouldn’t openly belittle herself in front of her child in such a careless manner.

"Zhang Shifen, are you saying I don’t care about losing face?" Gu Wei looked at Zhang Shifen with discontent. Humph, she must be jealous of Zhou Lina’s close relationship with her.

Gu Wei’s lack of cooking skills was evident, although Zhang Shifen hadn’t mentioned it previously, her hands were plump and well-cared-for, which hinted that she wasn’t one to do household chores.

Those who didn’t do housework often lacked cooking skills, and that wasn’t a problem.

"Aunt Gu, no worries, it’s okay if you aren’t good at cooking, you have excellent medical skills, and everyone has their strengths," Zhou Lina reassured her.

Looking at Aunt Gu’s hands, Zhou Lina felt that they were soft and plump, "Aunt Gu must be from a wealthy family."

"Maybe in the future, Aunt Gu could hire a housemaid for the chores."

Right now a doctor’s salary was only somewhat better than average, especially given Gu Wei’s excellent medical skills.

Zhou Lina believed that once everything returned to normal, it would be Gu Wei’s time to soar, and she would no longer stay at the steel plant hospital.

A good doctor’s salary isn’t low, and if they take some private work on the side, the income is absolutely impressive.

Hiring a housemaid? That wouldn’t be a problem, it could be sorted out in minutes.

Rich and able to hire housemaids? Gu Wei looked at Zhang Shifen in surprise.