Back To The 80s-Chapter 87 - 86: Undercurrent_1

The two arrived at the post office entrance, to find Shen Heng and Yuan Tan already waiting under the shade of a tree.

Upon reaching them, Gu Xiaobei didn’t let go of Lu Zhanguo’s hand, instead gripping it even harder. Lu Zhanguo knew this little spitfire was getting jealous again.

Shen Heng looked at the hand-in-hand duo, his eyes nearly popping out. Was this really the detached, aloof, and guarded Lu Zhanguo he knew?

Yuan Tan looked at the clasped hands, her face freezing and heart slightly sour.

Shen Heng noticed the injury on Gu Xiaobei’s face and curiously asked, "Sister-in-law, your face..."

"Had a fight with someone." Gu Xiaobei made no attempt to hide it, after all, Shen Heng knew about all the unfortunate incidents that had happened lately.

Shen Heng was stunned, this small and delicate woman actually did such astonishing things. He couldn’t help but laugh, "Your life is certainly exciting, sister-in-law."

Gu Xiaobei raised her eyebrows modestly and said, "It’s okay." There were so many things happening recently, and none of them were caused by her, so she couldn’t be blamed.

Yuan Tan disdainfully looked at Gu Xiaobei. As expected, she was a coarse woman, even fighting like a shrew.

Gu Xiaobei naturally noticed Yuan Tan’s contemptuous look, but she currently didn’t have the energy to bother with her.

There was only one decent restaurant in the small town with four tables inside. However, with plentiful fresh vegetables in summer, several small dishes could easily be ordered.

Shen Heng poured tea for everyone and said, "We’ll stay at the guest house tonight and leave tomorrow."

"Yes, there’s a morning bus to the city once a day. You guys can take a support vehicle to town tomorrow morning to catch the bus," Lu Zhanguo nodded and said.

"Brother Zhanguo, I’d like to stay a few more days. I am not busy anyway. Is it okay?" Yuan Tan asked in a coquettish manner.

Gu Xiaobei lowered her head to drink water, indifferent. After all, it wasn’t her business whether this lady’s legs went limp; whether Lu Zhanguo agreed or not, she was likely to stay anyway.

Lu Zhanguo frowned, "We’re pretty busy lately, with a military drill coming soon. Your sister-in-law is also unfamiliar with the surroundings."

Yuan Tan had already predicted he would refuse her. Pouting, she said in a hurt voice, "It’s fine, I’m an adult, I won’t get lost, right?"

Suddenly, something occurred to Lu Zhanguo, he softened his tone and said, "Alright, you can stay if you wish." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Shen Heng remained silent, there was nothing he could do about Yuan Tan’s headstrong character.

Suddenly Yuan Tan asked Gu Xiaobei, "Sister-in-law, why did you quit your job all of a sudden?"

Gu Xiaobei leisurely chewed on her food, and only after swallowing, she replied, "Zhanguo said he’s getting old and wants a child." Gu Xiaobei was territorial about her food. You could like the food in my bowl, but if you reached into my bowl to grab food, that was certainly not allowed!

Lu Zhanguo nearly choked on his food. What did she mean by ’he’s getting old and wants a child’?

Yuan Tan’s face stiffened, she laughed fakely and said, "True, Auntie Lu is eager to hold her grandson. And sister-in-law doesn’t have a formal job, so she could just focus on raising a child after having one." Yuan Tan sneered inside, she was good for nothing, besides staying at home giving birth, what else could she do?

Gu Xiaobei sipped her water leisurely and said, "Yep, it’s better for women to get married and have children earlier; otherwise, it’s hard to regain body shape and you age faster." Yuan Tan was only few years younger than Lu Zhanguo, she should be around twenty-seven or eight now.

Shen Heng listened to the invisible verbal swordplay between the two women, full of admiration.

Lu Zhanguo acted as if he hadn’t heard anything. After all, his spitfire had always known how to protect herself, so he wasn’t worried. Plus, he found Yuan Tan’s behavior extremely displeasing. He was straightforward by nature and naturally disliked such twisted manipulations.

Yuan Tan, not getting the slightest advantage in the verbal duel, fell silent and simply ate in peace.

After lunch, the four had no choice but to walk back as there was no transport to the barracks.

The afternoon sun was scorching, Gu Xiaobei wilted under its heat, reminiscent of a deflated balloon.

However, Yuan Tan was in high spirits, peppering Lu Zhanguo with questions as she walked beside him.

Gu Xiaobei, feeling as if she was about to melt under the sun, was too lethargic to bother about Yuan Tan and trailed lazily behind.

Shen Heng also slowed down to walk with Gu Xiaobei, asking, "Sister-in-law, can I ask you a question?"

Gu Xiaobei grunted, "Ask!"

"You are so fearless, is there anything you are afraid of?" Shen Heng wanted to ask another question but seeing Yuan Tan turning her head, he changed his question swiftly.

Gu Xiaobei looked at Shen Heng with a "are you crazy" expression, then squinted at Lu Zhanguo and Yuan Tan in front of her. She snorted and said, "I’m afraid that Lu Zhanguo will run away with someone else!"

Shen Heng stumbled. This woman had a savage spark in her!

Lu Zhanguo, who had always had excellent hearing, heard this and his eyes twitched involuntarily, slowing his pace unconsciously.

Gu Xiaobei knew Lu Zhanguo had heard her, so she laughed sheepishly, feeling a little guilty.

"Should we rest where there’s shade?" Looking ahead, both sides of the road were croplands. Farmers were scared the crops wouldn’t grow under shade, so there were no trees along the way, leaving them entirely exposed to the sunlight.

"Okay." Gu Xiaobei had always been scared of heat, and after her cross-over, she still was.

"Sister-in-law can’t even take this little heat? The real summer hasn’t even arrived yet," Yuan Tan mocked.

"I’m not a camel, why wouldn’t I feel hot?" Gu Xiaobei retorted.

Unable to gain an upper hand in the verbal exchange, Yuan Tan turned her head and walked ahead quickly, cursing under her breath about how sharp-tongued Gu Xiaobei was.

Gu Xiaobei, on the other hand, found the exchange amusing. Indeed, life was all about fighting with others, and it was endless fun.

The guesthouse was located outside the barracks and consisted only of single-story buildings because Lu Zhanguo and his team belonged to a special, highly confidential unit, there were no two-story buildings or higher around the barracks.

Upon seeing the guesthouse, Yuan Tan was displeased: "The accommodations are too shabby. There’s no bath inside, and even for the restroom, we have to use the public toilet in the yard."

Lu Zhanguo didn’t respond. He had anticipated that Yuan Tan would dislike such living conditions. Shen Heng kindly advised her, "Just bear with it for one night, and you can go back to the city with me tomorrow."

Yuan Tan pouted and kept silent, neither agreeing nor declining.

Gu Xiaobei couldn’t help laughing, she had no idea the guesthouse accommodations were this bad. Well, it was pretty much the same as their living quarters.

After arranging their accommodations, Lu Zhanguo told Shen Heng, "You take Yuan Tan to the guest house cafeteria for dinner tonight. I have a meeting this afternoon, it’s going to be a late one."

Yuan Tan was a bit resentful, "Isn’t the sister-in-law going to be at home?"

Lu Zhanguo gave her a faint look but said nothing.

They arrived at the entrance of the military camp. Lu Zhanguo entered the duty room and left some instructions with the on-duty soldier. Then he said to Gu Xiaobei, "You go home first. I’ll go straight to the camp."

Though it was a Sunday, things were different in the military. When they said there was something to do, there was something. Gu Xiaobei understood this, didn’t ask further, and simply headed home.

Upon reaching the entrance of the family quarters, she saw Li Juan leading a pair of elderly people in their sixties. It was indeed a small world.