Gossip Can Kill

After dinner, Lu Yu boiled another pot of warm water. After scooping some out for Jiang Nian, he went outside.

Having traveled all day yesterday and slept on the train overnight, and then being squeezed in the crowd upon arrival, Jiang Nian felt sticky and uncomfortable. She took a thorough bath and felt completely refreshed.

She touched her hair and decided that no matter how much her wound hurt tomorrow, she had to wash her hair. Otherwise, she really couldn't bear it.

After she finished bathing, as usual, Lu Yu went to empty the bathwater for her.

The night was still a bit warm. Although the door was closed, the window remained wide open. Jiang Nian lay on the bed, using her hand as a fan to cool herself. The buzzing of mosquitoes echoed near her ears, and with a slight lapse in attention, a red bump appeared on her arm.

Slapping sounds occasionally echoed in the room as she swatted mosquitoes.

Jiang Nian scratched the bite and forced herself to sleep. Having not slept well on the train the night before, she quickly fell asleep. In the middle of the night, she heard the sound of splashing water outside again.

Jiang Nian thought she was dreaming. She sat up dazed, about to look out the window, when she suddenly remembered Lu Yu had bathed in the yard the night before. Terrified, she threw herself back onto the bed.

That was close. She almost peeked at him bathing again.

After a while, the yard fell silent, followed by the sound of footsteps entering the southern room. Only when the door closed did Jiang Nian dare to breathe a sigh of relief. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning, a loud bugle call shattered the silence.

Jiang Nian frowned, got up, and looked out the window, seeing Lu Yu already in his military uniform, opening the door and walking out.

Having been bitten by mosquitoes all night, with several bumps on her neck and arms, she couldn't sleep anymore. She got up, went to the yard to scoop water, and washed her face. When she went into the kitchen to cook, she saw a hot breakfast on the table: a plate of stir-fried eggplant, half a bowl of pickled vegetables brought by Sister Feng yesterday, two white flour buns, and a bowl of porridge.

Jiang Nian gasped slightly. She felt the author's character design for the male lead was truly too good!

But even so, to her, the people and things here were still illusory, just stories in a book.

After eating breakfast, Jiang Nian had just finished washing the dishes when Feng Mai arrived.

"Deputy Regiment Commander Lu's wife, let's go."

"Coming."

Jiang Nian came out of the kitchen and walked out of the yard with Feng Mai. She walked quietly beside Feng Mai, listening to her introduce who lived in which house, talking about the west house then the east house. She was indeed a very talkative person.

"Don't keep your head down like that, it's not good for your neck over time." Feng Mai was talking enthusiastically when she turned and saw Jiang Nian walking with her head down again. She nudged her gently. "You look so pretty when you smile. You should smile more."

Jiang Nian: ...

She didn't want to be like this every day either, but the original owner had been like this since childhood. She was afraid a sudden change in personality would make Lu Yu suspicious. She nodded. "I understand." Saying this, she gave Feng Mai a gentle smile.

Jiang Nian didn't expect to meet Zheng Hong today. She was leading her son from the opposite direction, holding a package of peach kernel cakes. She walked normally, not looking like she had a sprained ankle at all.

Zheng Hong also saw Feng Mai and Jiang Nian. Her gaze lingered on Jiang Nian's face for a few seconds, feeling secretly astonished. When they met yesterday, Jiang Nian had kept her head down, looking poor and rustic. She had thought she was just a dark, rural wife, but she didn't expect her to be so fair and delicate.

If strangers saw her, who would believe she was a widow? They would think she was an unmarried young lady.

Zheng Hong thought about how she hadn't been able to follow the army after marrying Lu Guosheng, staying at her parents' home instead. The allowance Lu Guosheng sent back every month was hidden by her mother, who said it was to save up for her brother's wedding. She had to cook and work in the fields to earn work points, and finally, unable to bear it, she went to Lu Guosheng. Lu Guosheng personally went to her parents' home to bring her and their son to the unit.

Although she didn't have to work in the fields or be exposed to the sun in the family quarters, her skin was only slightly better than two years ago. She was no longer as dark, but she was still far from Jiang Nian's complexion.

Zheng Hong had disliked Jiang Nian at first sight, and seeing her today made her dislike her even more. But she didn't show it, walking over with a smile to look at Feng Mai. "Sister Feng, where are you going?" Her voice was gentle, her face radiant.

Feng Mai smiled and replied, "This is Deputy Regiment Commander Lu's newly arrived wife. I'm taking her to see the vegetable plot, otherwise buying food every day is too expensive."

Zheng Hong smiled. "Sister Feng is indeed kind-hearted. Anyone who knows you is truly blessed." Saying this, she looked at Jiang Nian. "Deputy Regiment Commander Lu's wife, am I right?"

Jiang Nian saw the disdain and sarcasm flashing in Zheng Hong's eyes. She sneered inwardly and nodded slightly. "Yes."

Hearing this, Feng Mai's smile grew even brighter. "We are all military wives, and it's not easy for anyone. We help where we can. I'm not as good as you say, but you are the one who has it hard..."

She turned to Jiang Nian. "You don't know, Battalion Commander Lu is often away on missions, leaving Zheng Hong alone with her child. It's so hard for a woman with a young child. She's only close to Battalion Commander Liu, and asking him for help with matters big and small is normal. Although Battalion Commander Liu once went on a blind date with Zheng Hong but it didn't work out, that was eight years ago. Yet Xu Yan keeps arguing with him because of his help to Battalion Commander Lu's family, giving everyone a headache."

Jiang Nian: ...

She realized that Regiment Commander Song's wife was also someone who couldn't see things clearly and was easily swayed, becoming lost after a few flattering words from Zheng Hong.

Zheng Hong's eyes turned red, looking aggrieved. "Sister Feng, it's my fault for causing Xu Yan and Battalion Commander Liu to argue. It's mainly because Guosheng is often away for training, and Battalion Commander Liu's house is close to mine, and we knew each other before, so I asked him for help."

Jiang Nian: ...

She had truly never seen anyone so thick-skinned. Clearly, she was causing the couple to argue daily, yet she blamed Xu Yan for making trouble.

Jiang Nian hadn't wanted to alter the plot, but seeing Zheng Hong's act, she really couldn't hold back. She looked at Feng Mai, who was sympathetically comforting Zheng Hong, and her eyelids twitched. "Sister Feng, hearing you say this, I'm reminded of a story from my village. The situation was very similar to Battalion Commander Lu's and Battalion Commander Liu's families."

Feng Mai, being a gossip lover, immediately asked curiously, "What happened?"

Zheng Hong frowned at Jiang Nian, wanting to see what she could say.

Jiang Nian recounted, "Those two families lived at the entrance of our village, right opposite each other. The Li couple was just like Battalion Commander Liu's family, often helping the wife opposite. The husband of that family worked in the coal mines and only came home once a month. Because of this, Mr. Li's wife argued with him every day, blaming him for always running to another's house. The wife opposite would call Mr. Li over for help with matters big and small. The neighbors around initially blamed Mr. Li's wife for being unreasonable..."

At this point, Jiang Nian saw Zheng Hong let out a cold sneer. She looked at Feng Mai, just in time to hear her say, "Exactly, they are neighbors, what's wrong with helping out? It seems Mr. Li's wife was just like Xu Yan, very overbearing and unreasonable."

Jiang Nian shook her head and sighed, "Sister Feng, I thought so too at first, but who knew a major incident would happen later."

Feng Mai widened her eyes. "What incident?"

Zheng Hong's expression also turned unsightly, sensing that what Jiang Nian was about to say wouldn't be anything good. Sure enough, her premonition was correct.

"The wife opposite was alone at home every day, and Mr. Li ran over there daily. At first, people didn't say anything, but then gossip started to spread. The villagers said Mr. Li and the wife opposite had an affair, and someone even saw Mr. Li running back from her house at midnight without his pants on, chased out by his wife. In the end, it became such a mess that the village chief had to go to the Li house to lecture Mr. Li."

"Finally, the village chief called the husband opposite back. When he found out, he beat his wife black and blue. This matter became the laughingstock of our village. The children of both families were ridiculed when they went out, not daring to lift their heads."

Feng Mai immediately stared wide-eyed. "Are they even human? Doing such a thing, how can he face his wife? That wife opposite deserved to be beaten. I think beating her to death wouldn't be enough, causing a couple to argue and ruining a family."

Zheng Hong's face grew increasingly unsightly.

Jiang Nian shook her head, her clear eyes full of sincerity. "I don't know if it was true or false, after all, I didn't see it with my own eyes. But in my opinion, people should still keep their distance, otherwise gossip can really kill."

Zheng Hong shot a cold glare at Jiang Nian. How could she not hear that Jiang Nian was implying something about her? She had truly underestimated this widow who had supposedly brought misfortune to her husband!

Jiang Nian met Zheng Hong's gaze, seeing the anger she couldn't hide in time, and smiled. "Sister Zheng Hong, I'm sorry, I didn't mean anything else. I just heard Sister Feng talk about your two families, remembered the story from my village, and blurted it out. Please don't take it to heart."

The corners of Zheng Hong's mouth tightened. Especially seeing Jiang Nian's "good person" act, she wished she could throw the package of peach kernel cakes straight at her head. It would be best to smash her to death!

After parting with Zheng Hong, Feng Mai led Jiang Nian to see the vegetable plot. On the way, Feng Mai smiled at Jiang Nian. "Deputy Regiment Commander Lu's wife, I see you're not as timid today as you were yesterday."

Jiang Nian smiled shyly. "Sister Feng, don't tease me. I'm just a bit slow to warm up."

"But hearing you say that just now, I also feel Zheng Hong and Battalion Commander Liu keeping this up is indeed not good." Feng Mai sighed. "I have to tell my Old Song to remind Battalion Commander Liu not to run to Zheng Hong's place for everything."

She seemed to recall something, not sure if she was telling Jiang Nian or murmuring to herself, "That Zheng Hong is something else. Every time she carries water, she has to ask Battalion Commander Liu for help. Battalion Commander Liu carries more water for her house than his own. Zheng Hong is also from the countryside, I don't believe she doesn't have the strength to carry a bucket of water?"

Jiang Nian walked with her head down, saying nothing more. Some words were best said in moderation; saying too much would have the opposite effect.

Arriving at the vegetable plot, both sides of the field were planted with vegetables, with an empty space full of weeds in the middle. Feng Mai said land here was scarce; each family was only allocated two tenths of a mu, but each house's yard also had three tenths of a mu, so people mainly grew vegetables in their yards, leaving only small paths. In these times, food was scarce, and each family had many children. Some families of eight relied on these plots, making life very hard.

There were many weeds on the plot. Feng Mai bent down to pull a handful. "Pull the weeds, then hoe the soil to plant vegetables. In this hot weather, we'll have vegetables to eat in no time."

Jiang Nian also bent down to pull weeds, looking up at the two plots before her. Although she grew up in the city, growing vegetables didn't stump her. Her father, thinking market vegetables weren't fresh, had grown his own in the backyard, and she had learned from him.

By the time they returned from the vegetable plot, it was almost lunchtime. Jiang Nian washed her hands, scratched her mosquito bites, and went into the kitchen to prepare food. She started the fire with straw, and once it caught, she added corn cobs and firewood. Using a wood stove for the first time made her a bit clumsy.

Lu Yu had bought cucumbers yesterday, so Jiang Nian made minced meat noodles, with shredded cucumbers sprinkled over the sauce, emitting a delicious aroma. Just as the food was ready, footsteps sounded outside.

The light at the kitchen door was blocked by a tall figure, followed by a deep, powerful voice: "Sister-in-law."