Starting a new chapter in life

"I wasn't planning on cooking. The thermos is empty, so I was thinking of boiling some water to fill it up so you'd have some hot water when you get back," Jingxian said with a hint of coquettishness in her voice.

Jingyan couldn't bear to look and said, "Third sister, did you really not see me and fourth sister? These three grown women are standing here."

Upon hearing the sound, Jingxian quickly looked towards the door and exclaimed in surprise, "Jinghuan, Jingyan, Xiaohai, what brings you here? You didn't even write to me beforehand, I could have picked you up at the station!"

"Jingyan said you have two children to take care of, so it wouldn't be appropriate for you to pick them up. She said it shouldn't be difficult to find us using the mailing address you gave us, so she didn't want to bother you," Jinghuan replied with a smile.

"Why did you suddenly come here?" Jing Xiancai realized.

“Oh, my boyfriend’s job was transferred to Jiang City. I’m newly married, so I came along. My fourth sister and brother-in-law brought me here to help me settle in. After they got their letters of introduction sorted out, they had some time to come and see you. It’s been more than six years since we sisters last saw each other, hasn’t it?” Jing Yan replied to her calmly.

"Your partner? You're only twenty and you're already married? And Jinghuan, when did you and Xiaohai get married? Why didn't you tell me?" Jingxian felt like he had missed out on so much.

"Are we just going to stand here and talk?" Jing Yan glanced at her.

"Alright, alright, you've always been good at finding fault since we were little. Let's go inside and talk," Jingxian said coquettishly.

"Sijun, cook a couple more dishes for dinner," she added. Li Sijun nodded, "Go inside and keep the girls company. I'll take care of dinner."

After the sisters entered the house, Peng Chunhai put the bundle in the inner room and said to Jingxian, "Third sister, I'm going to help brother-in-law."

Jingxian waved his hand: "No need, your brother-in-law can cook for himself. You come and sit down too. I just wanted to ask how you two have been doing these past few years. How did you and Jinghuan get together? And Jingyan, how old are you to be getting married?"

Jinghuan smiled and said, "After our mother passed away a few years ago, Jingyan and I lived together. Later, a construction corps came and was stationed near our home. The canteen there needed two temporary workers, and Jingyan and Chunlai were selected. They earned ten yuan a month. It was there that a technician from the construction corps took a liking to her. He specially asked his parents, who lived far away in Yangzhou, to come and meet her before bringing her up at our door. Jingyan also had a good impression of him, so it was settled."

Chunhai and I were arranged by my eldest brother last year, and we got married this May. We're currently living in our mother's house, so we're basically living separately. Jingyan got married at the end of August this year. Before the Lunar New Year, the Production and Construction Corps moved to Jiang City, and Chunhai and I brought Jingyan here to settle in. We happened to have some time, so we came to see you. It's been so many years since we last saw each other, and I've always been worried about you, Third Sister.”

Jingxian glanced at Jingyan: "Fifth brother, you're something else, you found someone in the military, so you're going to be a military dependent accompanying someone in the military?"

Jing Yan shook her head: "His rank is not high enough to bring military dependents with him. I used to work in the canteen, so this time I'm considered an unofficial staff member of the canteen. I found a house to rent in a community near the military base, and I'll be working in the canteen after the New Year."

Jingxian frowned: "Not considered a military dependent? Then why did you follow him all the way here? You silly girl, do you know how tiring it is to be alone out there? Marrying such a person is not as good as marrying me. At least I can take care of you a little."

Jingyan smiled and said, "Third sister, we are in a military marriage."

Jingxian glared at her: "You've got a good idea. You'll regret it later."

"Sister, I never felt that I needed to rely on a man to take care of me to live. I married him because his job required him to travel all over the country. It's good that I can broaden my horizons by following him. Sister, you don't know how difficult it is for ordinary people like us to go on a long trip. Isn't this a win for me?"

"Besides, his family said he'd stay here for three years. If he can't get transferred back after three years, his family will pull strings to get him back. Yangzhou, sister, you've never been that far in your life, have you?" Jingyan said cheekily.

Jingxian hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What will you do when you get pregnant and have a baby?"

“Third Sister, I’m only twenty years old this year. I got married because I wanted to follow him. Military marriages are still protected. As for children, I plan to have them after I’m transferred back to Yangzhou in three years. At least then I’ll be closer to my in-laws’ home, and they can lend a hand. Don’t worry, I’ll consider all of this carefully. But Third Sister, I remember you wrote that you had two sons? Where are the children?” Jingyan asked.

Jingxian snapped out of his daze: "Oh, the eldest son, Ronggang, has lived with his grandparents since he was little. He's their eldest grandson, so he only comes back during holidays. The second son, Rongqiang, is three years old. Today, our neighbor, Xiao Chen, took his child out to play and brought Rongqiang along too. He should be back around dinner time."

Jinghuan frowned: "Third sister, don't tell me you've been married for six years and still haven't learned to cook?"

Jingxian said with a self-righteous expression, "Sijun can cook. He's the one who cooks at my house."

"Sis, you have to learn to do it at least a little bit. Putting aside everything else, what if your husband isn't home one day? You can't let yourself go hungry."

"Hey, there's a canteen in the company even if he's not home. If he doesn't come back, I'll just go to the canteen to buy things. Anyway, I won't go hungry." Jingxian said nonchalantly.

"My third brother-in-law is so good to you," Jinghuan said with difficulty.

Looking at her third sister's innocent and carefree face, the two sisters didn't know what to say.

Before Jing Huan could speak, Jing Yan tugged at her sleeve and shook her head. Jing Huan suppressed the words of persuasion she was about to say.

"I'll go get you some water. It's so hot today, wash your faces and cool off. There are only two rooms in this yard, one for the men and one for the women tonight. You two can put your change of clothes in the east room. Xiao Hai, you can stay in this room with your brother-in-law tonight." Jing Xian left cheerfully.

Jinghuan glanced at Jingyan: "Why didn't you let me try to persuade her? I'm afraid that if Third Sister keeps acting like this, she'll fall down sooner or later."

“Don’t you know what kind of temper Third Sister has? If she could be persuaded, she wouldn’t have stayed away from learning to cook forever. Besides, can you be sure that Third Sister can do any job and there won’t be any unforeseen changes in the future? Instead of worrying about these things, it’s better to live in the present. At least Third Sister hasn’t suffered much in the past six years,” Jing Yan said.

Jinghuan thought for a moment, sighed, and ultimately did not continue.

Jingyan looked at Jingxian's back in the courtyard through the open window and sighed softly: "Her third sister's last life was not because of domestic matters such as whether she could cook or not, but because the man, after thinking he had everything, got arrogant and provoked the wrong woman."

However, in her previous life, aside from the difficult six months immediately following her divorce, her life had gotten better and better. Even if she followed the same path in this life, she could still get through it. Moreover, this time, she would strive to lend a helping hand when her third sister needed it, rather than just being there for her…”

Pulling themselves out of their thoughts, the three of them washed their faces under her guidance, feeling much better. When it was time for dinner, their neighbor, Xiao Chen, brought the children back. Although the second nephew was young, he looked very clever and greeted his two aunts politely. He also acted like a grown-up while eating.

Jingyan's eyes were very kind. Rongqiang was a perceptive child. Although his fourth aunt also liked him, it didn't seem as intense as his aunt's. He could feel that his aunt really liked him, so he became familiar with Jingyan first.

After the family finished eating together, there was no rule against talking while eating. They chatted as they ate. When Li Sijun heard that Jingyan had married a soldier, he couldn't help but ask a few questions out of curiosity. Although he was a little disappointed that her brother-in-law was a skilled worker, he was happy for her. Being a military spouse is not something anyone can do. It's so honorable to be a soldier these days!

After dinner, everyone tidied up. Rongqiang slept with his father, and the three sisters finally lay on the same kang (a heated brick bed) for a sisterly chat again after six years.

They chatted until midnight, and when they woke up the next morning, they were all a little tired. But the autumn harvest was busy, and Jingxian also had to go to the fields to earn work points. After discussing it, the sisters decided that Jinghuan would stay at home to clean the house, cook, and take care of the children, while Peng Chunhai and Jingyan would go to the fields with their third sister to help her earn some work points.

After the three men wrapped their heads and faces, they went to the fields with sickles and ran into their neighbors from the company. Everyone greeted them warmly: "Little Zhang, is this your sister who came all the way from your hometown to visit you?"

Jingxian smiled and nodded: "This is my fifth sister, and this is my fourth sister's husband. My fourth sister helps with cooking and taking care of the children at home. My fourth sister came from our hometown. My fifth sister married a soldier and just arrived in Jiang City. She had some time to come and visit me."

"Oh my, you sisters have such a good relationship. They're here to help you with the work." Many people in the company expressed their envy, saying how precious the productivity during the autumn harvest was.

Although Jingxian is beautiful and delicate, she is also very strong-willed at heart. The work in the fields is hard, but when she works, she is completely different from her usual delicate self. She wields her sickle with great speed, and Jingyan has to keep up with her speed without slacking off at all. Clumps of golden wheat are cut down and laid on the ground. The two sisters bend down to cut the wheat, while Peng Chunhai follows behind with hemp rope to tie it up. They carry a large bundle to the oxcart at the edge of the field.

The three worked together seamlessly, and everyone watched helplessly as they gradually left the others behind. Helpless, they could only work even harder. The autumn harvest only lasted about half a month, and if they didn't work harder, they would be far behind when it came time to distribute grain and meat at the end of the year.

Halfway through the afternoon, everyone dragged their tired bodies back to their homes. Jingxian had already prepared lunch and cooked a big pot of mung bean soup. Everyone was so tired that they didn't even want to talk. Jingyan just wanted to cry. She was so tired that she felt like she had sunburnt bald.

After lunch, Jingxian said, "Let's take a nap and rest until 2 p.m., when the sun won't be so strong. Then we can work until about 6 p.m. and that'll be enough for today."

Jingyan's already aching back became even more painful.

And so, what was originally a simple wish to visit her third sister turned into working in the fields. Jingyan secretly thought to herself, "I will never visit my third sister during the autumn harvest again. This life is so hard!"

The autumn harvest season in the Great Northern Wilderness wasn't long. After the grain was harvested, there were chores like drying it. At this time, Jingxian didn't need their help. Jinghuan was in charge of tidying up the house and cooking, while Jingyan helped pick vegetables in the yard and played with Rongqiang.

Peng Chunhai helped turn over the vegetable garden. The deeper the soil in the garden is turned over, the better the vegetables will grow the following year. Third Sister is not very strong. In the past, it was already difficult to turn over half a hoe's depth. But unlike him, he can turn over a whole plot of land with one stroke of his hoe, quickly and deeply.

Jingxian has been so happy lately. She doesn't have to do housework, meals are always ready, and someone helps take care of the garden. All she has to do is go and earn work points. She's living a wonderful life and is always smiling when she goes to and from work.

The autumn harvest officially ended, and Jinghuan and the others were preparing to leave and return to Jiang City. Jingxian was reluctant to part with her younger sister. They had grown up together since childhood. Although they always bickered and fought, well, it was she and Lao Wu who always bickered and fought, while Lao Si watched the fun from the sidelines, their years of affection were genuine. She was truly reluctant to let her younger sister leave, and she turned the house upside down in a frenzy.

Her family was small, and her in-laws didn't need them to give her any food. They still had a lot of rice and flour to spare. She packed out two bags of fifty-pound flour, one bag of fifty-pound rice, and some dried mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and other mountain products. It was a big bag in total. Jingyan looked at it with a headache: "Third sister, we can't carry all of this. We can take the mountain products."

Li Sijun walked in from outside: "Don't be so polite with your sister. I've already applied to the company. Once the train tickets are bought, I'll borrow the tractor and take you directly from Jiamusi to the train station. Once you get to Jiangshi, you can figure out your own way. Don't worry about me here. I won't mistreat your third sister."

Jinghuan hesitated and looked at Jingyan. Jingyan nodded: "Then thank you, Third Brother-in-law. I'll give these to Fourth Sister to take back. I have enough subsidies from Zhijun to eat on my own. Fourth Sister can share some rice and flour with my eldest and second brothers when she goes back. This is all from Third Sister and Third Brother-in-law."

"Third brother-in-law, are train tickets easy to buy? Zhijun said if it's hard to get tickets back, just call him and he'll ask his comrades here for help," Jing Yan asked again.

"Tickets are not easy to buy, but I have a comrade-in-arms here, and I have asked him to help me buy them," Li Sijun said with a smile.

Li Sijun, being the company commander, had to go back to continue his work after giving his instructions. Jing Yan dragged Jing Huan and Jing Xian to the east room, took out a red checkered handkerchief from her luggage, and opened it to find a pile of red and green bills inside.

"Third sister, these were all sent by my mother-in-law. They're valid nationwide. I see you don't lack food here. I'll leave the grain coupons for fourth sister, and you two can share the sugar coupons, oil coupons, cloth coupons, and meat coupons." Jingyan said, dividing the large handful of coupons one by one.

Jingxian really wanted these coupons. There was no shortage of food here, but coupons were indeed scarce in those planned economy years. But she was more worried about her younger sister: "If you leave all the coupons to the two of us, what will you do? Will you not eat or drink? Besides, you just got married and you're already sending things back to your parents' home. That's a big no-no for living. You're getting sillier as you get older."