Day Fifteen

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It was a little after ten in the morning.

Regimental Commander Zhao had brought his wife, Sister-in-law Ge, their three children, and Geng Xiangyang to the shore to meet the newcomers.

They had received a telegram earlier and, counting the time, figured that Geng Xu and the others should be arriving today.

Sister-in-law Ge watched her youngest daughter and second son chasing one another around. After calling out to them several times, she glanced at the silent Geng Xiangyang beside her and asked Commander Zhao, “Old Zhao, do you know what kind of background Geng Xu’s sweetheart has?”

Commander Zhao had a dark, weathered face and thick brows. With his hands clasped behind his back, he looked at her and said, “Why are you being so nosy?”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re not nosy? Then who was it that said at home yesterday that he had no idea what kind of celestial beauty Geng Xu’s sweetheart was, to think she could even outshine Commander Chen’s daughter?”

Commander Zhao looked awkward for a moment, but soon pretended nothing had happened. “Who knows what’s going on with Old Geng’s sweetheart? At first, everyone said she was Brigadier Lin’s daughter, but that fell through. We all thought Old Geng was going to come away empty-handed. Who would have guessed he’d get married without making a sound? That boy really does love his lightning campaigns!”

“Then she must be a pretty good person, right?” Seeing Geng Xiangyang secretly prick up his ears, Sister-in-law Ge hurriedly pressed him. “Geng Xu’s judgment is usually reliable. He wouldn’t go and find someone narrow-minded.”

“How would I know? Besides, wasn’t it Brigadier Zeng’s wife who asked you to join the Women’s Federation? You refused. Why are you suddenly worrying about all this now?”

Commander Zhao was thoroughly puzzled.

Sister-in-law Ge was nearly driven mad by him. Usually, he was quite good at reading the expressions of his superiors. How had he suddenly become so dense?

Why else would she be asking? Naturally, she was thinking of Geng Xiangyang.

Geng Xu was busy every day and had troops to lead. Wouldn’t the household, inside and out, have to be managed by the woman of the family? If he happened to marry someone narrow-minded who could not tolerate children, how could Geng Xiangyang possibly have an easy life?

“Mom, the ship’s here! The ship’s here!”

Her eldest son, Zhao Yonggang, shouted at the top of his lungs.

The steamer gave a series of hoots. Countless seagulls scattered into the air above the shore as the vessel gradually approached land.

Zhao Lina was afraid of the little gangplank. She walked across it like a stiff little zombie. Wen Congyin noticed and said to Geng Xu, “I’ll carry the suitcase. You take the child down. Let’s not block the people behind us.”

Zhao Lina looked flustered. Geng Xu glanced at her, handed one of the suitcases to Wen Congyin, and without another word scooped the girl up. He was remarkably strong. Even with something in both hands, he could still carry a child off the ship.

“Old Geng, Old Geng! You’ve really made good use of your talents!”

Commander Zhao’s family had already come forward to greet them.

Zhao Yonggang came over to take the suitcase from Wen Congyin, while Sister-in-law Ge looked Wen Congyin up and down with a broad smile.

“So you’re Little Wen? What a beauty. Geng Xu certainly struck it lucky.”

She nudged Geng Xiangyang forward.

The boy’s eyes lit up when he saw Geng Xu. He called out, “Uncle!” Then, after hesitating when he looked at Wen Congyin, he added, “Auntie.”

Wen Congyin smiled and gestured for Geng Xu to put the child down. “You must be Xiangyang. You look exactly as your uncle described—such a fine, spirited boy. This is my niece, Zhao Lina. She’s two years younger than you. Lina, say hello to your big brother.”

Zhao Lina looked at Geng Xiangyang. She did not hesitate, calling out crisply, though without much emotion.

When Commander Zhao noticed that there was also a niece, he froze for a moment, then bumped Geng Xu with his shoulder. “What’s the story with this child?”

“Old Zhao, the wind’s so strong by the sea. Whatever it is, let’s go back and talk.”

Sister-in-law Ge cut him off in a loud, cheerful voice.

The Zhao family had driven over in a jeep to meet them. During the ride, Wen Congyin held Zhao Lina in her arms while listening to Sister-in-law Ge introduce the buildings on the island.

The island was fairly large; otherwise, it could not have housed so many stationed troops. Even so, its various functional areas were clearly separated: the barracks, the residential district, and the production brigade.

According to his rank, Geng Xu had been assigned a two-story house with a large courtyard below. The Zhao family lived right next door.

When they got out of the jeep, Sister-in-law Ge said to Wen Congyin, “Little Wen, this is your home. Your belongings were delivered yesterday. I had Yonggang and the others carry everything inside for you. Get yourselves settled first. And don’t you dare refuse lunch—you’re coming to our house to eat!”

“Thank you, Sister-in-law Ge.”

Wen Congyin thanked her openly and graciously, without the slightest trace of coyness.

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There was no way for her to be overly formal even if she had wanted to. Along the way, she had already noticed that the island had no state-run restaurants.

That made sense. The island was populated by soldiers and ordinary civilians. The civilians generally could not bear to spend money eating out, while the soldiers had the army mess hall. Even if a high-ranking officer wanted a private meal, there were cooks assigned specifically for that purpose. Why go to the trouble of setting up a state-run restaurant?

Wen Congyin and Geng Xu entered the house with the two children. It had clearly been cleaned and was not particularly dirty. Her luggage had been placed near the front entrance—seven or eight large, solid wooden trunks.

When Wen Congyin noticed Geng Xiangyang tracing the carved pattern on one of the trunks with his finger, she smiled. “Xiangyang, would you like to know what’s inside?”

The boy jumped and quickly withdrew his hand. In the past few days, he had heard people talking about how his uncle had married and that he now had an aunt. Several older relatives, whether out of kindness or malice, had warned him to be clever at home and not offend his aunt.

Although Geng Xiangyang believed his uncle would never mistreat him, he was still somewhat afraid.

“Auntie, I didn’t mean to,” he said awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head.

Wen Congyin did not know whether to laugh or cry. She coughed lightly and said, “I bought new quilts for all of us. They’re probably in this trunk. You two young men, give me a hand and move the trunks on top aside.”

Geng Xiangyang immediately grew interested. He “helped” Geng Xu move the trunk resting on top. Sure enough, there were two thick quilts inside—one with a blue cover and the other with a pink floral cover.

“This blue one is yours, and the pink one is Lina’s.”

Wen Congyin carried the quilts out. They were indeed substantial; each must have weighed at least five or six pounds.

“Xiangyang, you and Lina can sleep on your own, right?”

Zhao Lina nodded and reached out to touch the quilt cover. Her eyes filled with delight. Geng Xiangyang, meanwhile, was overjoyed.

“I can! I’ve been sleeping by myself for ages!”

Wen Congyin helped the two children carry their quilts upstairs. Both bedrooms were on the second floor, and a bed had clearly been made not long ago in Zhao Lina’s room.

Geng Xu carried the trunks upstairs and looked around Lina’s room. “We’ll leave it like this for now. If you need a wardrobe or anything else, I’ll find someone to make them later.”

Wen Congyin murmured in acknowledgment. She glanced at Geng Xu, seeming about to speak, then stopped.

“My room…”

“Oh,” Geng Xu said. “Our room is on the left. There’s already a wardrobe inside, but no dressing table or anything like that. Write down whatever you need, and I’ll have it all made at the same time.”

That wasn’t what she meant.

Not at all.

Wen Congyin hesitated for a long while before deciding to bring it up another time. In the end, merely putting away everything they had brought took quite a while.

Next door, at Commander Zhao’s house, Sister-in-law Ge was frying radish balls. She had mixed the balls with crushed steamed-bread crumbs, then fried them a second time until they were crisp and delicious.

The three children stood guard by the kitchen door, reaching in from time to time to snatch one and stuff it into their mouths whenever their mother was not looking.

“You little monkeys! Some of these have to be saved for Little New Year’s Eve!”

When Sister-in-law Ge turned around, she saw her second son stuffing a radish ball into his mouth while still remembering to share it with his older brother and younger sister. Half angry and half amused, she reached out and twisted his ear.

“If you eat them all now, what do you think you’ll have on Little New Year’s Eve?”

The boy grimaced in pain but did not stop chewing. “Mom, at worst we’ll just eat less on Little New Year’s Eve. Besides, Dad said we’re entertaining guests today. Why are you being so stingy? Why save them until then?”

“What do you know?”

Sister-in-law Ge tapped him on the head.

Pork was supplied to the island in limited quantities. Even with Commander Zhao’s fairly high rank, she still had to budget carefully. Otherwise, when guests came during the holidays, were they supposed to serve them nothing but vegetables?

Commander Zhao wandered over and, hearing this, said carelessly, “Their mother, just let the children eat. If we run short of meat coupons later, we can borrow some from Geng Xu. That fellow has plenty.”

Geng Xu had once been a bachelor who only had to feed himself. Even after taking in Geng Xiangyang, the two of them usually ate at the mess hall, so he often had grain and meat coupons left over. His colleagues and subordinates benefited greatly from that.

Sister-in-law Ge said, “Old Geng is married now. He has a family of four. He may not have any to spare later. I’m not as optimistic as you are. Instead of standing around here doing nothing, go next door and invite them over for dinner.”

Speak of the devil, and he appears.

Before Commander Zhao could answer, Geng Xu had already arrived with Wen Congyin and the two children.

After entering, Wen Congyin set down her things and rolled up her sleeves. “Sister-in-law, let me help. What still needs to be done?”

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Sister-in-law Ge hurriedly waved her off. “No need. You’re the guests. Go sit outside. Everything’s almost ready. You children, go pour tea for the guests and bring out the snacks.”

She gave her eldest son, Zhao Yonggang, a meaningful look.

As the oldest, Zhao Yonggang was fairly quick-witted. He ushered Wen Congyin and the others into the sitting room, then brought out sunflower seeds, peanuts, candies, and other treats he had bought the day before.

“Uncle, Auntie, Xiangyang, Lina, help yourselves. Don’t be shy.”

Zhao Yonggang welcomed them with easy confidence.

Geng Xu smiled. “Yonggang’s grown up. He even knows how to entertain guests now. Old Zhao, I’d say this is all your wife’s doing.”

Commander Zhao had a thick skin. “Isn’t that what they mean by husband and wife being of one mind? Our Sister-in-law Ge learned her generosity from me.”

Sister-in-law Ge was scooping the fried balls out of the pan when she heard this and could not help rolling her eyes.

She had the children carry all the dishes out and set them on the table. Then she said to Wen Congyin, “Little Wen, listen to this man. He has no shame. I’m the one running around doing everything, and somehow it all becomes his achievement.”

Wen Congyin laughed. “Sister-in-law, if you ask me, Commander Zhao’s greatest achievement was finding such a capable wife. I’ve heard all about it from Geng Xu. When he was busy before, Xiangyang was well cared for thanks to you. This time, we brought a small gift for you. You must accept it—don’t be polite with us.”

She handed the gifts they had brought to Sister-in-law Ge.

The bag felt surprisingly heavy in her hands. Sister-in-law Ge was delighted, though she still put on a show of politeness.

“Little Wen, really, you shouldn’t have brought gifts. You’re treating us like outsiders. Take them back, quickly, take them back.”

Wen Congyin obligingly played along, tugging the bag back and forth with her. “Sister-in-law Ge, it’s precisely because we don’t consider you outsiders that we brought them. There’s nothing particularly valuable inside, just some local specialties. If you don’t accept them, we’ll feel too embarrassed to come here and eat your food for nothing today.”

Hearing this, Sister-in-law Ge looked toward Commander Zhao.

Commander Zhao coughed. “If they’re just local specialties, then accept them. We’re all family here.”

Only then did Sister-in-law Ge accept the gifts with feigned reluctance.

Sister-in-law Ge was an excellent cook. The braised pork with pickled cabbage and the fried radish balls were perfect with rice, and there was also a dish of steamed fish. It was a truly generous meal.

After eating and drinking their fill, Wen Congyin and the others sat at Sister-in-law Ge’s house for a while before finally getting up to leave.

The moment they were gone, the youngest daughter, Zhao Yonghong, and the second son, Zhao Yongzhi, rushed over to the bag of gifts. They tore it open together, then cried out in delight.

“Chocolate, White Rabbit milk candies, and powdered milk! Mom, there’s even Snowflake cream for you!”

Sister-in-law Ge was not especially interested in the food, but the moment she heard about the face cream, she hurried over.

“Oh my, Friendship-brand Snowflake cream! This is from Shanghai!”

Commander Zhao watched as mother and daughter happily rubbed the cream onto their faces. Taking a sip of tea, he shook his head.

“Look at the two of you. All this excitement over a jar of face cream…”

“Dad, there’s also a bottle of liquor here. It says Maotai. What kind of liquor is that? I’ve never heard of it.”

Zhao Yonggang picked up the bottle and examined it from every angle. It looked unfamiliar to him.

Commander Zhao, however, sprang up like a carp and snatched the Maotai from his son’s hands.

“My goodness, it really is Maotai! Old Geng is a true friend. I hear this liquor is incredibly expensive.”

Sister-in-law Ge could not help rolling her eyes again.

What a man.

As she looked at the gifts, her favorable impression of Wen Congyin rose rapidly. Their family was not so poor that they could not buy a jar of face cream themselves. It was simply that people rarely gave such things as gifts, especially when they took women’s needs into consideration.

Sister-in-law Ge could tell that the gifts had definitely been chosen by Little Wen herself.

What a thoughtful girl!