Chapter 22 p1
Many in the 350th Regiment had been disciplined by He Qiming, and they both feared and respected him.
They all knew he was married with children, but he had never applied for his family to join him at the base. Everyone speculated that his wife was old and ugly, which was why he had never let her join him.
Unexpectedly, he had suddenly submitted an application this year and had even personally gone back to pick up his wife and children. Seeing his eagerness, everyone felt that the rumors were wrong.
For a time, the regiment was divided into two factions. One insisted she was not good-looking, while the other believed the rumors were false and that Regiment Commander He’s wife was very beautiful.
In the end, neither side would back down, and they started a bet. The losing side would have to wash the winner’s socks for a month. They even found those who hadn’t participated to be their referees.
This bet was very high, so everyone was distracted from their training today, waiting for Wang Heng to bring Regiment Commander He and his wife back.
Meanwhile, because Ye Qingzhi was prone to carsickness, she sat in the front passenger seat. He Qiming sat in the back with the children, and they also gave Li Jinfeng and her two children a ride.
As for Zhang Dama and her daughter-in-law, the car was only so big and couldn’t fit them. They could only wait for the base’s logistics procurement vehicle.
Knowing that He Qiming was a deputy regiment commander and thus Zhang Xuewen’s direct superior, Zhang Dama had no objections at all.
She was now afraid that Ye Qingzhi held a grudge against her for the argument on the train. If she instigated He Qiming to make things difficult for her son, she really wouldn’t have any tears left to cry.
“The procurement vehicle will be here soon. You can just wait here. We’ll be going now,” Wang Heng said, then got in the car and drove away.
In both her past and present life, this was Ye Qingzhi’s first time in the Northwest. Influenced by movies and TV shows, she had always thought of the Northwest as vast, desolate, dusty, and lacking water.
However, He Qiming had said there was a pasture near the base. She had thought that the place where their base was stationed at least had water, so life wouldn’t be too bad.
When she actually arrived, she found that although it couldn’t compare to the water towns of Jiangnan, it had mountains and water, and the scenery was pleasant.
“Wow, Mama, look! So many sheep! They’re different from the sheep Grandpa raises,” Ye Anjie shouted, pointing at the flock of sheep in the distance.
The smell of this small car was not as strong as the bus, and with the windows open, Ye Qingzhi didn’t feel as uncomfortable.
She followed the direction Ye Anjie was pointing and her expression slowly relaxed. They were indeed different. The goats in their hometown were mountain goats, while these were sheep.
“The mutton here is very delicious. After the sisters-in-law have arrived, you can have the Regiment Commander and Battalion Commander Li trade for some from the herdsmen’s homes,” Wang Heng said with a smile.
He was a very talkative person. On the way, they passed a small river and a mountain, and he could tell a legend about each.
She didn’t know about the adults, but the few children were already captivated by his stories.
“Wow, Uncle Wang, are there really wolves in the mountains?” Ye Anjie was the most lively and also the boldest, directly peeking over to ask.
“Of course. Every year, we organize a hunting party. Because there are too many wild wolves, they will come down from the mountains to eat the cattle and sheep raised by the herdsmen, and even people. So you have to be careful and not run around,” Wang Heng said. He wasn’t trying to scare them; the wild wolves here really did eat people.
The few children all nodded, especially Li Jinfeng’s two daughters, who were so scared their faces turned pale.
“Don’t be afraid. You’ll be fine as long as you don’t run around,” He Qiming said, worried that the children would be scared.
“That’s right, that’s right. You’ll be fine as long as you don’t run around,” Wang Heng nodded.
It was only a little over half an hour from the town to the base. With the talkative Wang Heng around, Ye Qingzhi felt they had arrived in no time.
She got out of the car and looked up. Her first reaction was that this place was vast. Even though there were mountains, they were not particularly high. And with the yellow mud wall surrounding the base, it did have a bit of a Northwest feel.
“Qingzhi, come on. The family compound is just ahead. I’ll take you to rest for a bit first,” He Qiming said with a heartache, seeing that Ye Qingzhi’s face was a little pale.
Ye Qingzhi didn’t try to be strong. After such a long car ride, she was now dizzy and just wanted to find a bed to lie down on. Anyway, they had already arrived at the base. There would be plenty of time to look around later.
The few children were very curious, but they were also very sensible. They put on their baskets and followed them obediently.
“Sister Jinfeng, are you coming with us or waiting for your husband here?” Ye Qingzhi asked politely.
“I’ll wait for the children’s father here. You go on ahead,” Li Jinfeng said, waving her hand.
As soon as Ye Qingzhi entered the military camp, she felt that many people were looking at her. When she looked up, they all pretended to be very serious about their work. This act of “no silver here” only exposed them.
A slight smile touched her lips. “Are these all your soldiers? They’re very cute.”
He Qiming’s lips curved slightly. They couldn’t even manage a basic disguise. It seemed their training was not up to par. They would start extra training tomorrow.
The few soldiers who had sneaked a look at the Regiment Commander’s wife felt a cold wind blow past, a chill running down their backs. When they saw the look the Regiment Commander shot at them, their vision went black. Damn, this King of Hell seems to be angry. We’re done for tomorrow.
“Let’s go.” He Qiming led Ye Qingzhi to the family compound.
There were no multi-story buildings here, only single-story small courtyards built with mud walls.
The small courtyard assigned to He Qiming had three rooms. The front yard was over a hundred square meters, and so was the backyard, much larger than their house back home.
“This area is vast and sparsely populated, so every family’s yard is very large. There are two apple trees at the back door of our yard. I remember you said you like to eat fruit, so I specially chose this yard,” He Qiming said, carrying their things and explaining why he had chosen this yard.
“Apple trees?” Hearing that there were two apple trees in the backyard, Ye Qingzhi’s dizziness lessened considerably.
She took the few children and ran to the backyard. Seeing the red apples hanging on the trees, her jaw dropped in shock.
“Wow, Mama, so many apples!” Ye Anmin exclaimed.
Ye Anjie and Yangyang were even more excited, circling the apple trees and shouting, “Mama, apples, apples…”
Seeing the expressions of his wife and children, He Qiming’s lips curved into a slight smile, his eyes full of mirth. He knew they would like it.
“This is the first time I’ve ever seen an apple tree,” Ye Qingzhi said, coming back to her senses, her voice filled with joy.
Ye Qingzhi was a southerner in her past life, and she was from the same city as the original host. They had many fruits there, like oranges, bayberries, plums, peaches, and watermelons, but no apples.
“These apples are already ripe. The weather will get colder soon. After we’ve settled in, we can pick the apples and store them in the cellar. We can eat them until next year,” He Qiming said, putting his arm around Ye Qingzhi’s shoulder. “The Regiment Commander’s yard has jujubes. I know you like jujubes. We can trade some with him later.”
Ye Qingzhi’s eyes lit up. “Can we grow jujube trees here?”
Then she thought of the large jujubes from Xinjiang. They were both in the Northwest, and the climate was similar. If they could be grown there, they could surely be grown here too.
“Our yard is so big. Let’s plant two as well. Then we won’t have to trade with others when we want to eat jujubes,” Ye Qingzhi said, grabbing He Qiming’s arm.
This was not a difficult matter. He could easily find many jujube saplings in the nearby villagers’ homes. He would just ask them for two later.
Although Ye Qingzhi was amazed by the apple trees, she herself was not particularly fond of apples. Or rather, people in later generations didn’t seem to like them that much.
But the few children liked them. Look, Ye Anjie and Yangyang were pestering the tallest, He Jingyan, to pick apples for them.
As for He Jingyan, he looked reluctant, but there was a hint of helpless doting in his eyes.
Ye Qingzhi lowered her head and smiled faintly. Indeed, who could resist a lively, cute, and sunny little brother?
“What’s wrong?” He Qiming asked with concern, seeing Ye Qingzhi lower her head and fall silent.
“Nothing. Let’s go tidy up the rooms first. Otherwise, we won’t have a place to sleep tonight,” Ye Qingzhi said, pulling He Qiming into the house and letting the four brothers spend some time together.
There were three main rooms. The front half of the middle room was the living room, and the back half was the kitchen. The left side was a suite, with the outer room being a study and the inner room being her and He Qiming’s bedroom. There was a heated brick bed that could sleep five or six people without a problem.
The layout of the right side was the same as the left, but the study had become a storage room. Ye Qingzhi planned to put two desks there for the children to do their homework in the future.
Overall, it was alright, but the toilet was outside. Although there was a toilet bowl, it still felt a bit inconvenient.
“Qiming, can we build a bathroom at the back of the room?” This way, she wouldn’t have to scrub the toilet bowl every day, and it would also be convenient for her to take a shower in the summer.
That’s right, this was farm manure. She could plant vegetables in the backyard later, and it would be convenient to fertilize them.
“Alright. You think about how you want to build it, and I’ll find someone to do it,” He Qiming nodded.
Ye Qingzhi had originally thought the house would need to be wiped down, but it turned out to have been cleaned inside and out. They could sleep just by laying out the quilts.
“It must have been cleaned by the service squad. You sit and don’t move. I’ll make the bed now,” He Qiming said, taking a new quilt from the cupboard.
The mattress and the quilt were both made of new cotton. The bedsheets and quilt cover were also new, and in a festive red color. They smelled faintly of soap and sunshine.
Ye Qingzhi’s eyes sparkled. These must have been prepared by He Qiming before he went back to pick them up. She hadn’t expected him to be so meticulous.
She didn’t just sit there. She helped pull the corners of the quilt, put on the pillowcases, and handed him things. But overall, it was He Qiming who did the work.