Back To The 80s-Chapter 193: Love (Seeking Monthly Tickets)_1

Gu Xiaobei sighed, realizing that it all boiled down to poverty; nonetheless, devising an escape from their impoverished small mountain village seemed nearly impossible.

Having finished washing the sheets, Gu Xiaobei went downstairs to hang them up to dry.

While Gu Xiaobei was preparing lunch, Lu Zhanguo came back with Qin Ximei. Gu Xiaobei disliked Qin Ximei very much - if not for Yuan Ye and his group, Jin Cheng wouldn’t have gotten into trouble, and Qin Li wouldn’t be heartbroken.

Upon noticing Gu Xiaobei’s thinning patience, Qin Ximei sourly said to Lu Zhanguo, "It’s only a meal at your house, isn’t it? There’s no need to be so begrudging."

Gu Xiaobei heard her but didn’t bother to respond. After all, how big could someone’s conscience grow? She went so far as to meddle in other people’s affairs despite her own daughter’s transgressions.

Understanding why Gu Xiaobei was upset, Lu Zhanguo softly squeezed her hand after seating Qin Ximei in the room.

Amused by Lu Zhanguo’s gesture, Gu Xiaobei chuckled and whispered, "I’m not angry at you, I just feel upset thinking about Qin Li when I see her. Maybe you should go inside, or else she might start picking a fight."

Only then did Lu Zhanguo enter the room, where Qin Ximei was seated on the bed, inspecting the knit sleeve of the sweater Gu Xiaobei had knitted for Lu Zhanguo, sneering, "Good heavens, how shoddy! These days, what young lady doesn’t know how to knit?"

Lu Zhanguo frowned disapprovingly, poured a jar of water, and set it on the table. "Aunt Yuan, here’s some water for you."

Qin Ximei put down the sweater and began nagging again, "Zhanguo, if your mother knew about Tantan’s situation, she definitely wouldn’t have ignored it. She dearly loved Tantan, even more than she loved your sister. If she knew about Tantan’s trouble, she’d be heartbroken..." She began to sob quietly.

Lu Zhanguo sat as stoically as an old monk while Qin Ximei rambled on.

Listening from outside while cutting vegetables, Gu Xiaobei grew curious about what kind of person her mother-in-law was, especially after hearing about Xiangmin’s mother-in-law from Li Fengmei. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

After veiling her tears for a while, Qin Ximei, seeing a negligible effect, stopped crying.

After lunch, Lu Zhanguo took Qin Ximei to the local guest house for a rest.

Once the children went to school and Gu Xiaobei finished tidying up, she quickly got to work translating texts. Recent events had eaten up a lot of her time; it was now imperative to get back to writing and saving up for the children. Who knew when they would be able to leave the small town for the city? There, business prospects might be more abundant.

For now, Gu Xiaobei’s only means of making money was through writing — thankfully, she had learned various survival skills.

She managed to produce a substantial number of translated works that afternoon, kneading her stiff neck and wondering what they should have for dinner. She thought about the winter stores of radishes, cabbages, and potatoes and decided to venture out to the cellar.

Since it was inconvenient to go to the cellar every day, she preferred to gather a few days’ worth of radishes and potatoes in advance and store them in a basket along with a head or two of cabbage. This way, she would only need to go to the cellar once every two or three days.

On her way back home with her basket, she ran into Xiangmin who was also on her way to get vegetables. This was her first time seeing Xiangmin after everything that had happened. Xiangmin looked haggard, her stomach noticeably swollen. Stripped of her usual pompous demeanor, she seemed lifeless — no doubt a result of being scared witless.

Upon seeing Gu Xiaobei, Xiangmin shot her a disdainful glance, blaming her for all her misfortunes. Wasn’t it Chi Xiaoyue’s intention to get back at Gu Xiaobei by getting close to her?

Gu Xiaobei simply ignored her. By disregarding her, Xiangmin would likely be more hurt than if she had retaliated.

Sure enough, Xiangmin became even more furious when she saw Gu Xiaobei calmly walking past her without even a glance, stomping her foot before heading to the cellar.

In the evening, Gu Xiaobei made some fried potato cakes, cooked some porridge, and stir-fried half a head of cabbage.

By late October in the Northwest, even on sunny days, it quickly grew cold as soon as the sun set.

The cold-sensitive Li Fengmei had already started heating the bed. However, Gu Xiaobei felt they could bear it a little longer, as if they started the stove too early, the room would become unbearably stuffy.

Nowadays, it got dark early, and it was too cold outside. After dinner, everyone stayed at home. Some of the more lively villagers would gather to play card games akin to modern Dou Dizhu.

Having no interest in such things, Gu Xiaobei assigned Lu Zhanguo to proofread the day’s translations for typographical errors. Sometimes, another person’s perspective was more effective than looking through it a few times by herself.

The original text Gu Xiaobei was currently translating was Hemingway’s "A Farewell to Arms," which depicted the cruelties of war, the insignificance of life, and the desperation of love. Today, she was translating the part where the protagonist, Henry’s wife Catherine, dies in childbirth.

Lu Zhanguo carefully read it, then proceeded to review the rest of the translation completed prior.

Watching Lu Zhanguo’s concentrated expression, Gu Xiaobei walked over, sat down on the edge of the bed, and laid her head on his shoulder from behind, "I want to be like Catherine. Brave and kind."

Lu Zhanguo put down the manuscript, clasping the small hand on his shoulder. He spoke with emotion, "I don’t wish for you to be anyone else. Just being you is enough." He didn’t favor Catherine, for she ended up dying in despair.

"Hehe, are you telling me that out of all the flowers in the world, you love only Gu Xiaobei?" Gu Xiaobei whispered in his ear.

"You, always so unserious," Lu Zhanguo laughed as he embraced her from behind. He was not accustomed to romantic banter.

"Because I like it, someone only behaves this way with the person they like," Gu Xiaobei embraced Lu Zhanguo’s neck and spoke seriously. "I admire Catherine. She was mature, brave, and kind-hearted. Even in hardship and displacement, she never lost sight of her initial intent. I hope I can mature in the same way."

"You’re fine just as you are," Lu Zhanguo said in a determined voice, hugging her back.

Gu Xiaobei lowered her eyelids and remained silent for a while before speaking, "When I act impulsively and make mistakes in the future, you should remind me instead of quietly cleaning up my messes." Gu Xiaobei was addressing the issue of Lu Zhanguo being investigated, a matter that had been weighing on her heart for a long time. The recent tragedies had made her more contemplative.

Lu Zhanguo stroked her head, "I want to be your pillar. You’re already doing great."

Leaning her face on Lu Zhanguo’s neck, her eyes welled up with gratitude, "Hehe, you’re spoiling me too much."

"Enough, it’s cold. You should get some sleep. I need to go to the barracks and do a round." Lu Zhanguo gently patted her back.

"Alright, I need a few more days to finish knitting the sweater. You don’t mind, do you?"

"Of course not, you’ve done a great job with it. On Sunday, I’ll go to the city. Do you want to come with me to see Qin Li?"

Gu Xiaobei felt a pang in her heart upon hearing Lu Zhanguo mention Qin Li, "Let’s go see her. She mentioned wanting to go to Dazhao Temple. We don’t know if she went. Let’s bring Jiujiu along; Qin Li seems to like her a lot. Maybe seeing her will cheer her up."

"Alright, I’ll head out now. If your hands get cold, stop knitting and go to sleep."