Chapter 161: Xia Yan Nearly Suffered Social Death

Lin You irritably pinched Xia Yan’s ear and gave it a thirty-degree twist. “You’re still bragging about yourself? If I hadn’t been here today, what would you have done if you got the short end of the stick after hitting someone?”

“I was just anxious. My son got bullied, how could a mother have time to think about anything else?”

Xia Yan laughed playfully, turning Lin You’s seemingly reproachful gesture into one of affection.

On the way back, they passed a grocery store.

Lin You suddenly remembered something and hurried inside. When he came out, he was holding a wax paper bag.

“What did you buy?”

“I got you some plums. If you feel car sick on the way back, you can eat one.”

Xia Yan hadn’t expected Lin You’s sudden urgency to be about buying plums for her.

This man was becoming more and more thoughtful, more considerate.

They got back on the bus, which was even more crowded than before because everyone had shopping bags, and some even brought live chickens and ducks on board.

Since they arrived late, the family couldn’t get seats. Xia Yan felt like her feet were barely touching the floor as her two sons kept pushing people around, trying to make as much space as possible for their mother and younger sister.

“Hey, who do you little brats think you are, squeezing in like that? Don’t you see I’m carrying eggs? If you break them, you’ll have to pay!”

“Everyone’s squeezing; how do you know it was me?”

Lin Hongzhuo didn’t care about the scolding; he just wanted his sister to stand comfortably without being pushed.

The bus driver then stood up and said, “Move further inside, there are still people waiting to board at the door!”

This caused a lot of complaints, especially from the woman with the eggs. Xia Yan could even hear the sound of eggs breaking. Judging by the noise, most of the eggs in that basket were ruined.

Their destination was the last stop, so as the bus emptied, seats became available.

As soon as Xia Yan sat down, she immediately popped a plum into her mouth. She had almost vomited several times during the ride.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, feeling better now.”

Xia Yan’s face was pale. “When we have money, I’m going to buy a car!”

“Mom, when will we have money?”

Lin Hongzhuo reached out and took a plum too.

“It will be soon! You have to trust Mom.”

Nearby, the woman who had been carrying the eggs looked at her broken basket with pity. “Half of them are smashed! I should’ve bought them in town.”

“Mom, I want to eat plums too.”

A chubby little girl beside her stared at the plum in Lin Hongzhuo’s hand, swallowing hard. With her size, she must be well-nourished.

The woman recognized Lin Hongzhuo as the boy she had scolded earlier and, feeling a bit embarrassed, just glared at her daughter and said, “Why do you have such a greedy mouth?”

Lin Hongzhuo wasn’t holding a grudge and handed a plum over. “Here, take it.”

The little girl glanced at her mother, then eagerly grabbed the plum with her chubby hand and popped it into her mouth. The sweet and sour taste made her eyes squint with delight.

The woman, now somewhat embarrassed, said, “Sis, how much are these plums? I want to buy some.”

“No need, sister. It’s just a single plum for the kids’ snack. Are you also going to Yong’an Town?”

Yes, since only one stop remained—Yong’an Town.

“Right. My husband is in the army, so I live in the military families’ compound.”

“What a coincidence, me too. This is my husband, from the First Regiment, First Battalion.”

Xia Yan pointed to Lin You sitting at the front.

“The First Regiment? That’s the one stationed up in the mountains, right?” The woman knew quite a bit.

“Yes.” Xia Yan nodded. “Since it’s the New Year, they all came down the mountain together.”

The two women quickly got into conversation. The woman’s name was Sun Xiaofen, wife of the Third Regiment’s instructor.

Xia Yan found her quite nice, though a bit fiery in temperament.

She was also very straightforward.

“Sis, your husband is famous all over the military district. I’ve been here so long and this is the first time I’ve seen him. He’s really quite handsome.”

Sun Xiaofen appraised Lin You with a gaze that made even the big man feel a little uncomfortable.

Then she looked at Xia Yan’s three children and whispered in her ear, “Sis, your husband’s amazing. Not only is his unit always first every year, but he’s also great at making babies. Look at these two handsome boys!”

Xia Yan’s face flushed deeply as memories of Lin You’s past ‘achievements’ floated into her mind.

“But you’re impressive too. Look at you—three kids and still in such good shape. I only have one daughter and I’m already this fat. But you’re a bit too thin; how do you have enough milk?”

Xia Yan was about to explain when Sun Xiaofen went on, “Sister-in-law, let me tell you, the places that need massaging should be massaged by your man more often. Remember that? You can easily have three or four more kids at your age.”

“Cough, cough, cough…”

Xia Yan nearly choked on her own spit.

Luckily, there were only two families on the bus and the noise was loud; otherwise, if Lin You heard that, she’d be mortified.

When the bus stopped, Sun Xiaofen even went to Lin You’s home to introduce herself, promising to take Xia Yan around during the day and introduce her to other families in the compound—wives of regiment commanders and battalion chiefs.

Xia Yan finally understood why the women in the military family compounds often gathered together—there was always a ‘leader’ like Sun Xiaofen.

Once inside their home, Lin You earnestly said, “I can already picture you at the compound gate, chatting and cracking sunflower seeds with a group of women.”

“What’s wrong with that? Isn’t that nice?”

“I’m not saying it’s bad. I think it’s good for you to join them sometimes.”

Lin You smiled as he took the bag from Xia Yan and headed inside.

Xia Yan playfully scolded him and followed along. After dinner, she gave the shirt she bought to Lin Ling, her younger sister-in-law.

Lin Ling couldn’t believe it; she hadn’t expected her sister-in-law to buy her a gift too.

“Sis, how much is this? I’ll pay you back.”

Lin You spoke up, “Keep it. This is a token of her kindness.”

Taking advantage of the moment, Xia Yan handed the bag to Lin Ling with a smile. “Keep it. We’re family; no need to talk about money.”

Lin Ling looked at the gift bag. It was exquisite, though she wasn’t sure what was inside; the bag felt light.

“Sis, open it quickly! I’m curious what Mom bought for you.”

Lin Hongzhuo, now wearing the new clothes they bought today, admired himself in the mirror for a while. Seeing Mom gave a gift to sister-in-law, he came over curiously.

Lin Ling eagerly unwrapped the gift bag and took out two finely crafted shirts in a pale moon-white color, with a row of double buttons and delicate floral embroidery on the collars.

“Is this…?”

“Dacron?!”