Back To The 80s-Chapter 57 - 56: Traceless_1

As they were about to arrive at the family quarters, they ran into Fengmei playing with two kids in the courtyard. "You haven’t been back for a while," Fengmei said warmly.

"I’ve been busy with my job in the city," Gu Xiaobei paused to chat with her. Seeing the women in conversation, Lu Zhanguo felt out of place standing by and left after greeting Xiaobei, leaving her to talk with Fengmei while he went upstairs.

"I heard you’re working at the same company as Li Juan’s brother?" Fengmei lowered her voice to speak to Xiaobei.

"Yes, I am," Xiaobei didn’t see anything notable in this.

"There are talks in the yard that you’re working with the man you used to fancy and that you flirt with him all day long," Fengmei quickly shared this with Xiaobei, feeling that the woman before her was unrecognizable from her former self.

Hearing this, Xiaobei felt a surge of anger, her expression darkening, "Who’s spreading such nonsense? I’d like to teach them a lesson."

"I’m just giving you a heads-up so you can be careful," Fengmei warned.

"I see, thank you." Xiaobei lost any interest in chit-chat. These times were intensely conservative. Even the smallest rumor or speculation could ruin a person’s reputation.

When Lu Zhanguo saw Xiaobei come in the house with a sullen face, he immediately rose from the bed he was making and rushed over, "What happened? Who upset you?"

Xiaobei held Zhanguo’s waist and said, "No matter what happens, will you trust me?"

"I trust you," Lu Zhanguo comforted her by patting her back. Xiaobei knew despite their affection for each other, they have only known each other for just over three months. How much deep understanding could they possibly share? And how could they blindly trust each other?

Xiaobei sniffed and said, "You have to trust me because I’m going to stick with you, for life."

Lu Zhanguo chuckled at her childish remark. He patted Xiaobei’s back and said, "Alright, go wash your face and lie down for a bit. I need to go see Guo Huaqiang."

"Alright." Xiaobei admitted that the day’s events had worn her out. After washing her face, she thought about the fact that she didn’t bring any clothes with her. The clothes she was wearing were dirty, and she had nothing else to wear for tomorrow. So, she pulled out one of Lu Zhanguo’s army green shirts from the cabinet.

Lu Zhanguo was tall, so his shirt looked like a dress on Xiaobei, who’d barely crossed five feet.

Xiaobei was quite pleased with herself. With a giggle, she thought, this could turn into a uniform temptation tonight. She left her dirty clothes to be washed later when it was darker and fewer people were around. Considering the warm weather, she could hang it outside to dry overnight. Now, she was just too tired and decided to take a nap.

That day was both emotionally and physically exhausting. Xiaobei fell into a deep sleep.

By the time Lu Zhanguo returned from his work conversation with Guo Huaqiang, it was almost evening, and the sky had darkened. Seeing Xiaobei sleeping peacefully under a thin blanket, he picked up the laundry basket and went out to wash the clothes.

There were a few other army wives doing their laundry. When they saw Lu Zhanguo washing his wife’s clothes, they didn’t dare to tease him due to his usually cold demeanor. They communicated silently through looks of both envy and jealousy.

After finishing the laundry and hanging it to dry, Fengmei arrived with a basket of vegetables. Lu Zhanguo decided to cook some simple tomato and egg noodles for dinner. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Just as Lu Zhanguo finished the meal, Xiaobei slowly woke up. After a refreshing sleep, she got up lazily at the scent of food wafting from outside the room.

Just then, Lu Zhanguo entered the room and saw Xiaobei sitting there lazily, her soft hair falling over her shoulders. Unlike the popular style of shiny black hair, Xiaobei’s was soft and delicate, making her look even more fragile.

But the real killer was the sight of her wearing Lu Zhanguo’s shirt, buttoned up to her chest. Because of her movements in sleep, the collar had slipped to the side, revealing her delicate collarbone.

A lump formed in Lu Zhanguo’s throat at this sight. This rogue girl was oozing deadly charm in every corner.

Upon noticing Lu Zhanguo standing still with blazing eyes locked onto her, Xiaobei playfully thought: "He’s such a blockhead. In this scenario, he should’ve pounced on me by now." She then spoke up, in a spoiled tone, "Hubby, my arm is numb from sleeping. Can you rub it for me?"

Lu Zhanguo swiftly sat by the bed, and Xiaobei instantly threw herself into his arms, tenderly wrapping her slender arm around his neck. Zhanguo held her tight and said in a husky voice, "You little vixen."

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By the time they composed themselves, the noodles had clumped together. Zhanguo awkwardly held up the noodles for Xiaobei, saying, "Shall I make a fresh batch?"

Xiaobei burst into laughter and replied, "No need, just add some water to heat them up, we can make do with that." In those times, white flour was a luxury, not everyone could afford it. Wasting food was considered a sin.

Xiaobei was probably hungry; she didn’t find the clumped noodles too unpalatable. They actually reminded her of a lumpy soup.

After a satisfying meal, Xiaobei laid in bed, thinking about resigning at the end of the month. This would give her exactly two months at the job. By then, the publishing company would probably have some translation work for her, which she could focus on at home. After all, all she wanted was to have a home of her own.

Lu Zhanguo entered the room after cleaning up and seeing Xiaobei laying in bed, as lazy as a cat, he felt a warm feeling in his heart.

"How many days off do you have this time?" Noticing Lu Zhanguo lay down, Xiaobei nestled into his arms and asked.

"About fifteen days." There was an indescribable difference in the feeling of Xiaobei’s warm, soft body in his arms this time compared to the previous times. But Lu Zhanguo couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.

"That long? Great!" Xiaobei felt like she could already see the beautiful days ahead.

The next morning, Xiaobei rubbed her sore waist and glared at Lu Zhanguo, she only fondled his abs last night.

Lu Zhanguo affectionately stroked Xiaobei’s head, "Let’s go, we have to catch the supply truck to get to the town soon. We can have breakfast in town, and then take the bus to T City."

"Ok." Xiaobei looked around the room and packed the fresh vegetables Fengmei had given her into a cloth bag for Lu Zhanguo to carry. She lamented, "With these we don’t have to buy any vegetables for two days once we reach the city. I should’ve woken up earlier and picked some more vegetables."

Lu Zhanguo couldn’t help but laugh at her regretful expression. He reassured her, "When we get to the city, I’ll give you money to buy what you want."

Suddenly, Xiaobei remembered something, "Didn’t you only have a few bucks on you? Where are you going to get the money from?"

"I received my bonus. I’ll withdraw it all for you when we return." As Lu Zhanguo said this, he picked up the cloth bag and led Xiaobei out the door.

Xiaobei, not being a fool, knew where the bonus came from. It was earned with life on the line. Tears welled up in her eyes as she said resolutely, "This money needs to be saved, we can’t spend it."

Without saying a word, Lu Zhanguo looked deeply into her eyes. His gaze was profound.