A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

The Northwest Army is preparing for war, and even those who remain at headquarters cannot afford to be idle.

There's no time for any happy occasions.

Seeing their confusion, Aunt Lin smiled and said, "It's not a happy occasion like a wedding, it's that Zao Hua has given birth to twins, a boy and a girl, and the babies are one month old today."

"You two have a knack for picking dates. You can come with me to share in the good fortune."

Jujube blossom? Gu Xixi recalled the appearance of a woman with fair skin, a slightly plump round face, and eyes like crescent moons when she smiled, which was very endearing.

I remember when we were harvesting the epilepsy grass, Zao Hua was wearing a loose-fitting blouse, and her lower abdomen was slightly protruding.

Gu Xixi smiled sincerely and said, "We are fortunate to have met Sister Zaohua on her big day, so of course we must come and offer our congratulations."

Aunt Lin said, "Speaking of which... you should be the one to meet those two children."

Gu Xixi didn't think of anything else, and only said, "Twins of opposite sexes are indeed rare, they must be very cute."

He Jinglan said, "I've never seen twins before. Can a boy and a girl look so alike, like twins?"

Aunt Lin smiled and said, "Whether it looks like it or not, you'll see it just a few steps away."

Gu Xixi asked He Jinglan and Aunt Lin to wait there while she went inside to rummage through her belongings.

Because Gu Xixi had helped deliver a baby in the village before, she, who never paid attention to such matters, was well-prepared before coming this time.

She had five hollow silver locks in her bundle, all of which she bought from Madam Meng.

The silver lock has "Long life and a hundred years" on the front and "Wealth and prosperity" on the back. Although the words are common and ordinary, the workmanship is very exquisite. The whole lock is shaped like a lock with bat patterns on the four corners. The front has a gourd with intertwined branches, and the back has a peony with auspicious patterns.

All the patterns are exquisite and lifelike.

These silver locks are only the size of walnuts and don't weigh much.

But it was Gu Xixi who made the decision after much thought.

She was not related to the military dependents.

When giving a baby's full moon celebration gift, something too casual is not presentable, while something too expensive can put pressure on the recipient and even be perceived as giving charity.

This little longevity lock is just right.

Equality, trust.

That night, when everyone went to put out the fire together and shared the hardship, the way Gu Xixi cooperated with the dependents' village was established.

At Zao Hua's house, the courtyard was already bustling with activity.

Now that everyone's husbands are away, they can't invite outsiders in.

So it all depended on the women in the village to make arrangements themselves.

Washing vegetables, slaughtering chickens, cutting meat, moving tables and benches, starting a fire to cook noodles...

As soon as Gu Xixi and the others crossed the threshold, they attracted everyone's attention.

Everyone reacted similarly to Aunt Lin, with a mixture of surprise and delight, and greeted her warmly.

Gu Xixi and He Jinglan smiled and agreed, just like travelers returning home.

Someone handed them freshly boiled red eggs, still warm.

Then came two bowls of noodle soup.

He Jinglan quickly waved her hand, "I ate breakfast before coming, so I can skip the noodles, I really can't eat any more."

Gu Xixi also said, "We'll each eat a red egg; that'll be enough to show our appreciation."

In the Northwest, when someone has a wedding, the celebration starts before dawn. They provide at least two meals. The morning meal is simple, usually long noodles with bone broth. The broth is sour and topped with scallions, making it very refreshing and appetizing.

The formal banquet began in the afternoon.

He Jinglan quickly peeled the eggshell, and when she glanced at Gu Xixi, who had only peeled half of it, she couldn't help but feel a little smug.

Do you want me to peel it for you?

As Gu Xixi continued peeling the eggs, she said casually, "Do you want everyone to know that you only learned you had to peel the eggs yourself when you stayed at my house recently?"

He Jinglan choked, then scolded, "Gu Xixi, don't you think you're becoming more and more like a different person?"

Gu Xixi's smile froze.

"I did not think."

"Eat your eggs."

As soon as Aunt Lin entered the door, she walked away, saying she was going inside to call Zao Hua.

After Gu Xixi finished eating an egg, Aunt Lin and Zaohua each came out carrying a child.

The two walked straight up to Gu Xixi.

Gu Xixi exchanged a few pleasantries with Zao Hua first.

Driven by curiosity, her attention quickly fell on the two swaddled babies.

Before I could even see the child's face, the person in my field of vision suddenly plummeted.

Gu Xixi looked down in surprise. She saw Zao Hua kneeling in front of her, holding the child.

Aunt Lin also handed another child to Zao Hua.

Gu Xixi, a modern person, would naturally be at a loss when suddenly someone kneels before her.

She hurriedly bent down to help Zao Hua up, "Sister Zao Hua, what are you doing? Get up quickly."

He Jinglan also came over and looked at her curiously.

Zao Hua insisted on kneeling there and refused to get up.

Aunt Lin said, "Boss Gu, you saved Zao Hua and her two children's lives, so you should be bowed to by them."

"A life-saving grace?" Gu Xixi asked, puzzled. "I wasn't in the village when Sister Zaohua gave birth, so I didn't help much."

Zao Hua smiled, but her eyes were filled with tears. "I only found out I was having twins when I gave birth, and then I had the misfortune of a difficult delivery."

"After being tormented like this for a whole day and night, I had resigned myself to my fate and thought I was going to die."

"Fortunately, Aunt Lin remembered the pills she brought back from the army. She dissolved them according to the instructions on the note and gave me a bowl to drink."

"I thought, what use could a pill possibly be? But to my surprise, it had a miraculous effect shortly after I drank it!"

"I quickly regained some strength, gritted my teeth and pushed, and the baby just slipped out!"

The other military dependents in the courtyard all stopped what they were doing.

As women themselves, they felt the same way, and some were even moved to tears.

Gu Xixi said with emotion, "Sister Zaohua has suffered so much, it's really not easy for her."

"Although I sent the pills through someone else, they were not made by me. They were made by my master, Doctor Jiang, who heard that the women in the village were having a hard time giving birth and worked over several days to make them."

"So it was a miracle doctor who bestowed the medicine," Aunt Lin exclaimed, nodding in admiration. "Truly, a doctor's heart is full of benevolence."

Zao Hua looked at the child in her arms, then smiled at Gu Xixi, "I am grateful for Doctor Jiang's kindness, but if it weren't for Boss Gu's thoughtfulness in sending the miraculous medicine to the village, my child and I, along with the two children, would have lost our lives that day!"

She said solemnly, "Therefore today, please accept my and my child's three bows."

"If you refuse to accept it, when the children are a little older, I'll chase them to your house and make them kowtow to you three times!"

That last joke made everyone present laugh.

Gu Xixi looked at everyone helplessly, and they all smiled at her.

"Alright, it would break my heart to make those two little ones kowtow. Let me, as their mother, suffer a little and take their place for now."

Everyone burst into laughter upon hearing this.

With a smile on her lips, Zao Hua held the twins and bowed three times to Gu Xixi.

Gu Xixi quickly helped her up and took out two gifts wrapped in red cloth, "Longevity locks for the two children."

“If you refuse to accept it, you will alienate the children from me.”

Zao Hua swallowed her words of refusal and, in front of everyone, hung the longevity lock on the child.

"It's beautiful, it's beautiful."

The atmosphere was warm and harmonious.

A woman rushed in, panting, "There's movement at the military camp!"