Widow Remarries in Sixties

The next day, Jiang Mingchuan brought back a large stack of newspapers. Jin Xiuzhu asked her two children to help her write down the addresses of the newspaper offices while she folded the finished drawings and placed them in envelopes. Each envelope contained two drawings, one in pencil and one in brush pen.

Each drawing was unique, to prevent people at the newspaper offices from recognizing them if they discover them.

Fu Yanyan flipped through the newspapers, found the addresses, and handed them to He Yan, who copied them onto paper.

In the end, they collected eleven newspapers, plus the one recommended by Fang Min, making it twelve in total. Jin Xiuzhu put her best drawings in envelopes from the largest newspaper office, sealed them, and affixed stamps.

Early the next morning, Jin Xiuzhu took her daughter to the gate of the military camp, where there was a mailbox. Usually, postal workers would come to deliver mail, and they would also take any outgoing mail. All they had to do was inform the duty officer at the gate.

Jin Xiuzhu placed the twelve letters and money on the table next to the duty room at the gate, greeted the person on duty, and left.

On the way back, they stopped by the military supply and marketing cooperative to buy vegetables.

Fu Yanyan followed behind and couldn’t help but ask, “I overheard what Aunt Qian said yesterday.”

She mentioned that Jin Xiuzhu’s job was reported by Liu Hongyue.

In her memory, there were no such things in her past life. It should be that the “Jin Xiuzhu” from her past life didn’t give Liu Hongyue any reason to be jealous.

Although she was curious, why was there another Jin Xiuzhu in this world? She could do so many things — cook delicious food, embroider, paint, write…

Fu Yanyan didn’t want to think too deeply. In her heart, the world she was in now and the world she had come from were separate. “Jin Xiuzhu” was two different people.

Perhaps this ‘Jin Xiuzhu’ secretly learned from the skilled elders in the village when she was young. After all, she was so diligent and hardworking.

When Jin Xiuzhu heard this, she knew the child was thinking too much again, afraid that the child was holding a grudge in her heart. So she explained, “Don’t worry, Mom knows what to do.”

Fu Yanyan looked at her without saying anything.

Thinking that Fu Yanyan was underestimating her, Jin Xiuzhu couldn’t help but say in annoyance, “I’m not that easygoing either. How can I let her bully me? But I can’t just impulsively go to her door and argue with her…

What’s the use? She’s not dumb; she might just make herself angry for nothing. It’s better to leave things to patient people.”

In the past, Jin Xiuzhu would definitely have run to Liu Hongyue’s door, crying and begging for her forgiveness, to win sympathy from many people.

But now she was no longer a concubine in the Hou Mansion; she was Jiang Mingchuan’s legal wife, and every move she made concerned Jiang Mingchuan and the reputation of the whole family.

If people found out, they would definitely gossip. Some who didn’t know might think she was afraid of the other party. She wouldn’t do something that was more trouble than it was worth.

Fu Yanyan nodded vaguely, not quite sure what Jin Xiuzhu meant by “opportunity.”

In the days that followed, Jin Xiuzhu focused on painting at home, quickly noting down the new address of the newspaper and persistently sending her drawings.

He Yan went to school, and the house became much quieter. But soon he came back and said he had made a new friend.

His new friend’s last name was Wei. “His mom and dad went to work far away, so his grandma brought him here to live. He already completed first grade in his hometown, and now he’s in second grade here. We sit together in class. But he doesn’t talk much; he always reads books. He loves reading more than my mom and sister combined.”

Upon hearing this, Jin Xiuzhu didn’t think much of it and praised, “Xiao Yan is really capable. He made a new friend so quickly.”

He Yan continued excitedly, “He’s really handsome, with very fair skin. He talks about things I don’t even know.”

Then he turned to ask Jiang Mingchuan, “Dad, what’s a rocket? And what about a space station? Do we have one in our country?”

Jiang Mingchuan replied, “We have rockets, but our country doesn’t have a space station yet. But we will definitely have one in the future. It’s something that’s built in space. I’m not sure about the specifics.”

He Yan nodded and then pouted, “So there really is such a thing. I thought he was lying to me. He called me stupid, so I told him I’m the dumbest in the family. If he’s so capable, he should go tell my sister.”

“…,”

Fu Yanyan looked at him expressionlessly. What did it have to do with her?

Jin Xiuzhu chuckled at this and said, “When you have time, bring him home to play. Mom will make delicious food for you guys.”

He Yan happily agreed, “Okay.”

This was the first good friend he had made on his own.

Whether it was because of Jin Xiuzhu’s encouragement or not, He Yan brought his new friend home over the weekend.

Then he asked He Yan, “Is this the little sister you were talking about?”

He Yan felt a bit uneasy hearing this question, but he still straightened his back and said proudly, “Don’t underestimate her just because she’s young. She’s really smart.”

Yesterday, he invited Wei Ningqing to come over, but Wei Ningqing didn’t agree. He Yan taunted, “Are you afraid my sister will outshine you?” After that, Wei Ningqing agreed to come.

Fu Yanyan couldn’t be bothered to respond to He Yan. She looked at the two of them with a look of contempt. Anyone who believed He Yan’s words couldn’t be that smart.

After Jin Xiuzhu made them barley milk, she let them play by themselves and went to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

He Yan took his new friend to his room and then went to the kitchen to ask Jin Xiuzhu if he could show Wei Ningqing her drawings.

Jin Xiuzhu agreed, so He Yan went to the main room and took out a few of Jin Xiuzhu’s drawings to show off. “These were all drawn by my mom. My mom knows how to do a lot of things. She can even write poetry. Our neighbor, Auntie Fang, always praises her writing.”

“Let me tell you, my mom never went to school. She learned everything from literacy classes. If she had gone to school, she would definitely have gone to college. Look, these are the flowers my mom embroidered. Aren’t they beautiful?”

Fu Yanyan sat at the table, slowly scooping up her barley milk. It was cool and refreshing, and Jin Xiuzhu didn’t let her eat too much.

She listened quietly as He Yan blabbered about everything at home, but fortunately, he wasn’t too stupid to mention that Jin Xiuzhu had sent her drawings to the newspaper.

Wei Ningqing, who usually didn’t smile much, gradually became serious. He looked carefully at the drawing paper in his hand and then at the embroidery in He Yan’s hand. His small eyebrows furrowed tightly, and then he said, “Your mom is very talented.”

He Yan beamed with pride, “Of course.”

At noon, Jin Xiuzhu made a table full of delicious dishes: braised pig’s trotters, sweet and sour ribs, stir-fried vegetables, fried vermicelli, and tofu soup.

All the children ate their fill, played for a while after lunch, and then Wei Ningqing went home to take a nap. Jin Xiuzhu asked He Yan to accompany him downstairs.

After he left, Fu Yanyan reported to Jin Xiuzhu, “He Yan has been talking to others about everything at home.”

Jin Xiuzhu laughed when she heard this. She had also heard He Yan’s big mouth. “It’s okay. That child’s family conditions are obviously good, and he has a decent character. He won’t have any bad intentions.”

Fu Yanyan frowned. She felt that the person seemed familiar.

Then, it dawned on her. Wasn’t this the man who was holding Tang Ying at the hospital in her previous life?

Although he looked young now, she wouldn’t mistake those similar features.

A meaningful smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. She found it quite interesting that these two had become friends in this life.

When He Yan returned, he had a smile on his face. Jin Xiuzhu was tidying up in the kitchen, and Fu Yanyan couldn’t help but ask, “How did you become good friends with him?”

What she really wanted to say was that it didn’t seem like they were that close.

He Yan proudly said, “Other people talk to him, and he ignores them. But when I talk to him, he responds.”

Fu Yanyan looked at him unexpectedly and asked, “What did you say to him?”

“I said, ‘You’re two years younger than me. Shouldn’t you call me big brother? That way, you’ll have one more sister. Isn’t that great?'” 

“…”

He Yan continued, “He told me to stop talking because it was noisy. But he did talk to me, right?”

“…”

Fu Yanyan listened expressionlessly, then turned and walked away, leaving him with just her back.

It turned out she was the silly one, expecting him to say something impressive.

He Yan was still immersed in his own happiness. The warm welcome from his parents today made him feel that he’s very loved, and he felt super happy.

***

Wei Ningqing returned home with a bag of pastries.

He didn’t live on the side of the family housing area but headed towards the old house on the other side of the main gate. This area used to have a cafeteria and family housing, but they were demolished later. The cafeteria and family housing were moved, leaving only a few standalone cottages.

Wei Ningqing walked towards one in the middle, pushed open the courtyard door, and saw his grandmother tending to the flowers and plants in the yard. Seeing him return, she looked up, her face showing a kind smile. “You’re back? Did you have fun?”

Wei Ningqing nodded, “Yes, I had a great time. Auntie also let me bring back some pastries she made.”

However, there was no expression on his face.

Mrs. Chen smiled helplessly, put down the shovel in her hand, and then turned to wash her hands in the bucket of clean water nearby. “What did you have for lunch? How is Xiao Yan’s family?”

“We had pig trotters, ribs, vermicelli, vegetables, and tofu. Auntie also made ice cream, and soaked some milk powder. He Yan also showed me the painting his mom made…”

Wei Ningqing recounted all his experiences at He Yan’s house.

Although his tone was flat, Mrs. Chen could still feel the attention and seriousness that He Yan’s family showed him. She could also imagine that it was a very loving family; otherwise, they wouldn’t put in so much effort to prepare all these things.

Jiang Mingchuan and his wife didn’t know who their grandson’s family was, but Mrs. Chen knew that He Yan was the child of Jiang Mingchuan and Jin Xiuzhu. It was because of this that she encouraged her grandson to play more with He Yan.

Mrs. Chen didn’t know much about Jiang Mingchuan, she had only heard the old man mention him once or twice. On the other hand, she knew more about Jin Xiuzhu. Since the literacy classes began, she had never missed a class, even when she was sick with a red-hot fever, she would still come to class, diligently taking notes, always sitting in the front row.

Because of the child’s tireless attitude toward learning, she had changed her initial teaching approach and slowly introduced some more profound content.

Originally, she had only planned to teach some basic calculations.

He Yan’s sister was also very well-behaved. She never cried or made a fuss during class, sitting obediently on her mother’s lap, listening. She even had the feeling that this little girl learned better than most of the military spouses in the class.

With such a good family, He Yan shouldn’t be bad.