After washing, before Lu Zhanguo had a chance to borrow food from the kitchen squad, Li Fenghua walked in smiling, carrying two plates of dumplings. "Brother Zhanguo, eat dumplings. My mother made meat dumplings today." She then turns her gaze toward Gu Xiaobei, reluctantly calling her sister-in-law.
Gu Xiaobei pretended not to notice her resentment, enjoying a meal is above all petty matters. She quickly took a seat at the table, with an eye gleaming at the sight of the two large plates of dumplings. Not having eaten at noon, she was already starving, and hunger compounded by pregnancy, though she felt no particular difference. She called Gu Xiaobei in haste, "Lu Zhanguo, I want to eat some garlic too."
Lu Zhanguo, bringing the bowl and chopsticks, passed the chopsticks and bowl to Gu Xiaobei, and said to Li Fenghua, "Sit down and eat together." He then turned to fetch the garlic.
Li Fenghua left, saying lightly on her way out, "I'll go home and eat, we have plenty of them at home." Gu Xiaobei squinted her eyes watching Li Fenghua leave. When Lu Zhanguo came back, he saw Gu Xiaobei, her face enigmatic, looking at the door. He handed her the garlic, saying, "Let's eat quickly, aren't you hungry?"
Gu Xiaobei snapped back to reality, picked up a dumpling and took a half bite. The more she chewed, the more disappointed she felt. At this time, every household had tight conditions. It could be a pork dumpling, but it's most likely made with pork fat, diced and cooked down, and the leftover scrapings are used to mix with lean meat to make dumplings. These dumplings would taste bad, and after a few, they would feel greasy. However, in this era, many people in remote rural areas still lack oily food. The occasional meal like this, especially during festivals, was considered quite delicious.
Gu Xiaobei took a bite of garlic and a bite of dumpling. After reluctantly finishing half a plate, she couldn't eat anymore. She put down her chopsticks. Then, she poured half a pot of hot water from the thermos on the table, and poured another pot for Lu Zhanguo.
Lu Zhanguo took the water, and asked, "Why don't you eat more? You skipped lunch. Eat up." Gu Xiaobei took a sip of water and said, "Maybe I worked off my hunger. I'm not so hungry now." If she truthfully said that the dumplings were not tasty, Lu Zhanguo would likely give her a severe look.
Lu Zhanguo did not say much, soldiers eat fast. Watching Lu Zhanguo eat one dumpling at a time, Gu Xiaobei found that even though he ate fast, he was not sloppy, in fact, it made him look wildly attractive. Then she recalled the bad medicine Chi Xiaoyue gave her in the morning. It was all romantic novels clichés.
After the meal, Lu Zhanguo took the initiative to clean up the dishes. Gu Xiaobei did not move, she liked this kind of considerate man. When Lu Zhanguo finished washing the dishes and came back to clean the table, Li Fenghua who had borrowed the room, came back.
Gu Xiaobei said in her mind: Eating and going to sleep right away, not afraid of indigestion. But she said seriously to Lu Zhanguo, "We both ate garlic tonight, we have to brush our teeth well later. Otherwise, sleeping in the same quilt and smelling each other would be unpleasant."
Lu Zhanguo slipped his hand brushing the table when he heard this, this girl always says everything that comes on her mind. Li Fenghua, who just walked in, hesitated and looked dark, "Finished yet? My mother does not feel well today, I thought to turn in early. That's why I came back right after eating."
Gu Xiaobei was laughing inside, about to cough up blood, right? This was meant to annoy you, vixens. She said with a smile, "Good, we were planning on washing up and going to bed too. There's nothing to do when it's cold, besides, it's warmer in bed."
Li Fenghua was silent. After Lu Zhanguo and Gu Xiaobei finished washing up and went into the room, she pulled the curtain, lay on the bed and sulked. But she also felt pain in her heart.
After a harmonious time last night, Lu Zhanguo and Gu Xiaobei felt less restraint. As Gu Xiaobei undressed and slipped under the quilt, she asked, "Where are we going to buy food tomorrow?"
Lu Zhanguo picked up a book leaning on the headboard, "In town, we take the troop's ration truck."
Gu Xiaobei, playing with her hair, said "Oh. I want to take a bath. Where's the bathroom for women?"
Lu Zhanguo glanced at Gu Xiaobei, "Wait until we get back tomorrow, you can go first and I'll watch outside." She used to go to town to bathe on her own, why isn't she going now?
Gu Xiaobei curiously looked up to find that Lu Zhanguo was reading an English book, filled with annotations. Seeing her peeking, he quickly closed the book. Gu Xiaobei spotted "internal material" on the cover. So, it's confidential. But she couldn't help saying, "I just saw a translation error. It should be: AN/TPQ-37 Firefinder Radar. Your annotation was wrong."
Lu Zhanguo was completely stunned, staring in surprise at Gu Xiaobei. Although Lu Zhanguo went to military school, it came right after a decade of ****, when everything was being restored. English was not a priority. This internal information was kept internal and could only be roughly translated by those who know a little about it, and the plan was to discuss it together at the Provincial Military Region when they had the opportunity.
Lu Zhanguo was not expecting Gu Xiaobei to spot a mistake with just one glance. He got serious, "Xiaobei, you have to promise not to tell anyone about what you saw today!"
Seeing the seriousness on Lu Zhanguo's face, Gu Xiaobei realized this was not a joke. She sat up, raised her hand, and vowed, "I swear not to tell anyone about what I saw today, not even my closest family." Inwardly she thought, I am closest only to you in this world.
Lu Zhanguo knew that it was wrong to bring the material home tonight. He never imagined that Gu Xiaobei could speak English so well. He wondered how she, who had not gone to college, could know such obscure and uncommon English words.
As a graduate of English studies in the 21st century, working in international trade in a foreign firm after graduation and dealing regularly with foreigners, Gu Xiaobei found it trivial. Seeing Lu Zhanguo's troubled expression, Gu Xiaobei suggested softly, "Maybe I can help you translate. Write down the words you don't understand. I'll translate them for you."
Lu Zhanguo thought it was a good idea. He fetched a pen and paper from the dressing table, wrote down the unfamiliar words, then sat on the bed and began a quiet discussion with Gu Xiaobei.
Gu Xiaobei's pronunciation of the American English was very standard, and her voice was soft. Lu Zhanguo looked up at Gu Xiaobei's hair, casually tied up at the back, her head slightly lowered, showing a slender, porcelain white neck. Black strands of hair sticking to it giving off an irresistible allure. The low whispering by the ear caused an irresistible throbbing in his heart.