Daily Life in the 70s-Chapter 170 Mood

Even though Luo Dahua had done everything to comfort her, Yang Peimin’s heart was still restless.

After seeing her out, Yang Peimin returned to the dormitory, sat down at the table, and couldn’t pretend nothing was wrong.

Looking at the makeup products still lying around, she felt uneasy again. Had she just been dolling up the future for her man?

Thinking this, she gathered all those things, stuffed them into a cloth bag, and out of sight was out of mind.

Then she cleaned the house again. While pouring dirty water into the shower area, she realized last night’s clothes were still unwashed and that sight was another irritation.

But she couldn’t just not wash them, her clothes were still in there. The sky had darkened, looking like it was about to rain. With that, she hurriedly grabbed the washboard and tossed it into the bucket and headed downstairs.

The women downstairs had shifted from a laundry brigade to a vegetable-washing brigade. Seeing her coming down with clothes, they bantered, "Slept in?"

"Why so late? We were about to start cooking."

"Sister-in-law, you’re lucky your mother-in-law isn’t here; otherwise, you might have gotten a good nagging, like those sisters-in-law our mother-in-law wakes up at five in the morning just to serve," said Kong Ya scornfully, with a half-smile as she glanced sideways at Yang Peimin.

Yang Peimin was in a bad mood as it was. What did it matter to her whether her mother-in-law was here or not?

"Sister-in-law looks so filial. Why didn’t she bring her own mother-in-law over? Instead of being envious here, if you really can’t contain your filial piety, why don’t you go take Gao Hong’s place? Help her serve her mother-in-law? It would ease your longing for a mother-in-law, and I bet your man would be very pleased," she finished without further engaging.

"Look at this, young people these days can’t even be spoken to," Kong Ya said, infuriated, especially seeing that most others tried to suppress their laughter.

A Red Army wife pulled her aside and advised, "Just say less."

Kong Ya spat secretly towards Yang Peimin, picked up her washed vegetables, and turned back.

The Red Army wife came over and said to Yang Peimin, "Sister-in-law, we see each other often in this compound, she didn’t mean any harm. Don’t hold it against her. We’re new here, and while we’re not yet familiar with everyone, we shouldn’t joke like this rashly. You saw Kong Ya got upset. Next time you see her, just say a few humble words, and let it pass."

Yang Peimin touched her forehead. The Red Army wife was genuinely kind to her, often came to help, but she tended to be preachy, and Yang Peimin felt somewhat helpless.

"Sister, do you think she has something against me? Otherwise, why would she talk about me like this as soon as I came down? I know I’m not food, can’t make everyone like me, but what I want to say is, if she doesn’t like me, I won’t push myself to please her. Don’t bother persuading me, it might just be what people call fate."

The Red Army wife shook her head helplessly at her stubbornness, "I can’t convince you, but I still hope you can get along with everyone."

Yang Peimin was also somewhat speechless. Seeing the sky getting even darker, she urged her to hurry back.

Everyone else, noticing the sky, quickly finished up and left one by one.

Only Yang Peimin remained, struggling to clean Shen Yiguang’s dusty military uniform.

The rain came quickly.

A thunderstorm in May, not a light one.

Yang Peimin found herself caught in it, thoroughly soaked.

Dragging the hastily washed clothes, she headed back to the dormitory.

"What happened, sister-in-law? Look at you, not even dodging the rain. Hurry back and change your clothes, don’t catch a cold."

Meeting other military wives, she was met with surprised looks.

Yang Zengmin cracked a slight smile and nodded in agreement.

Upon returning to the dorm, she placed her laundry bucket to one side, feeling utterly miserable at that moment.

She had no clean clothes left to wear, as the two sets from yesterday had not yet dried, and today’s clothes had just been soaked. She only had the option to wear the dress she had bought last time at the shopping mall, dried her hair, pulled out her stuff, and organized everything again. It was still raining, and she didn’t plan to go out to the canteen for food, so she grabbed some dried fruits available in her room to eat.

Fortunately, she wasn’t very hungry, and after gulping down several cups of water, she felt full.

She took out her set of review materials and began studying.

But as she read, she felt agitated again and longed for someone to talk to. The dorm seemed extraordinarily quiet, aside from the sound of the rain outside; it felt as though she could even hear time passing by.

But whom could she turn to?

The military wives, she hadn’t yet found any of them with whom she could share her inner thoughts—Qiao Ying? Definitely not; she was busy.

Suddenly, she missed Zhang Minghua terribly. She knew Zhang Minghua would willingly listen to everything she had to say and offer her unconditional support, and she would eventually find solace under her wing, sleeping away her troubles.

When Shen Yiguang returned, he surprisingly found his little wife asleep.

He had come back a bit earlier today due to the rain, close to five o’clock.

Although the room was darkened by the rain, he could still see through the mosquito net the slightly bulging quilt on the bed; his wife’s long hair gently sprawled across the pillow. He frowned slightly and hurried over in a few strides, reaching his hand in to check her forehead.

She wasn’t feverish.

Shen Yiguang sighed in relief but couldn’t be entirely at ease.

He called her softly, "My wife..."

Yang Peimin opened her eyes, still somewhat puzzled due to the remnants of her dream.

Shen Yiguang held her hand, "Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

His voice was so soft and gentle, it felt like a feather brushing through her ears, magically soothing the remnants of the nightmarish unease.

Suddenly feeling very aggrieved, she said, "I had a nightmare!"

The worry in Shen Yiguang’s eyes turned to barely concealed amusement as he pulled her up, "Alright, alright, you’re awake now; there’s nothing to worry about, I’m right here." Saying this, he pulled her into his embrace.

Yang Peimin calmed down after a while.

Pushing him away, she said, "Turn on the light."

Shen Yiguang walked over and turned on the light.

Yang Peimin squinted a little under the bright light.

"Why are you sleeping so late today? Or are you feeling uncomfortable?" Shen Yiguang observed her complexion, which still had the rosy flush of someone just woken, but overall, she appeared a bit listless. He poured her a cup of brown sugar water.

"I’m feeling upset."

Shen Yiguang sat on the edge of the bed, adopting a posture of attentive listening, "Did someone upset you, or is it some trouble you encountered?" Life here was simple and tranquil, with worries usually limited to spousal conflicts or minor disputes among neighbors.

He had ruled out the first possibility, leaving only the latter.