Transmigrated into a child bride, she punishes scumbags, raises children, and marries a soldier.

Old Man Yang cut to the chase: "You've seen the situation. Bei Chen can't take good care of the two children. I see you like them quite a bit and take good care of them, better than... better than my husband. Why don't you just keep them?"

Seeing that Zhou Chuan was listening attentively, the old man continued, "If you go back, you'll just be farming anyway. It'll be hard work every day, and you won't make much money at the end of the year. You might as well stay here."

"Staying here, at least I can take care of myself and don't have to worry about being bullied. As for daily life... the food and drink are the same as now, and I still get paid every month. It's much more comfortable than farming back in my hometown!"

Zhou Chuan, having learned the old man's purpose, leaned back in his chair with a relaxed air: "Who said I'd go back to farming? I have money now, why would I farm? I'll buy a house in the county, find a job, and live an easy life. Why would I farm? Are you out of your mind? I've farmed all my life, why would I farm again?"

Old Yang was stunned. What she said made perfect sense. She got five hundred yuan from Sun Jun. Others might not know, but he personally signed the note. How could he not know? She's rich! Richer than him!

"Well," Old Yang said awkwardly, "what you said is true, but you still haven't thought it through. Think about it, you're a woman, without children, settling down in the county. What if you're targeted by bad people... To put it bluntly, what if you're bullied by some hooligans? What do you think you'll do?"

Old Yang cited some examples he had heard in the past, saying, "Nothing is better than staying here. You can take care of the two children, do some cleaning, and have no worries about food or drink. You also get paid, and no one in our army would dare to bully you. Isn't that great?"

Zhou Chuan looked at Old Man Yang with some strangeness: "How little confidence do you have in the new society? Aren't these things things that only happened in the old society? What, now that we're liberated, are there still hooligans daring to bully female comrades? If that's the case, then the new government is a bit... well, don't you think?"

"Cough cough cough," Old Man Yang coughed for a while, and after coughing he kept patting his chest, "That's not what I meant, you, you, never mind, Comrade Zhou Chuan, this old man can't argue with you."

Zhou Chuan kindly pushed the water glass in front of him: "Have some water. I'm not trying to be mean, but at your age, why are you meddling in other people's business? And what's worse, what you're saying is so vague and unhelpful, I can't stand listening to it anymore."

The old man choked and felt terrible, but he didn't care about saving face. He gulped down the water in his glass, put it down, and let out a long sigh. Finally, he felt better. He looked at Zhou Chuan helplessly and said, "Do you think I wanted to come? I had no choice but to come because of that good-for-nothing. Sigh, I'm stuck with this situation."

Zhou Chuan didn't react to his affectionate words. Did he expect her to applaud and sing praises of their father-son-like relationship? Don't be ridiculous!

Seeing that the man remained silent, Old Man Yang had no choice but to speak again cautiously: "Comrade Zhou Chuan, I know you suffered a lot of injustices before, including my wife's, but that should be over now."

“My wife, I scolded her when I got home that day. Xiao Ma, he doesn’t dare to do it now. Teacher Qiao next door, I’ve already talked to her. She shouldn’t be bothering you anymore recently. As for Bei Chen, he doesn’t dare to do it again. Actually, he just has a bad temper, but he’s not a bad person.”

When it comes to Xiao Beichen, the old man loses his confidence. What good is a good person if they have a bad temper? But since he's one of his men, he has to help him.

"You just arrived recently, and we don't know each other very well yet, which led to some misunderstandings. We've all changed now, and we promise that what happened before won't happen again. So... why don't you stay for the sake of the two children?"

Seeing that he was almost dry from talking, Zhou Chuan kindly poured him a glass of cool boiled water: "Old man, you're quite the talker. Here, have some water."

Old Yang was utterly dejected, feeling that all his talk had been completely ignored. He took a sip of water and laid his cards on the table: "Fine, I won't beat around the bush anymore. Comrade Zhou, what do you want to do to stay? Just name your terms."

Zhou Chuan sat leisurely and said, "I'm just a country bumpkin. I've never been to school and I'm not very good at talking. The child probably won't learn anything good in my hands. You should find someone else. Last time I went to the next village, there were a lot of idle rural women there. If you just spread the word, I guarantee they'll be eager to do it."

Old Yang immediately waved his hand upon hearing this: "No, no, those people all have children at home, and they live so close by. They always steal grain to take home for their children to eat. They've been caught several times before. We absolutely cannot keep people like that."

Zhou Chuan had never heard of this before, but after thinking about it, she could understand: "No wonder," no wonder Political Commissar Ma had introduced this good opportunity to her; it turned out there really was no one else available.

"If all else fails, try contacting the families in the opposite residential compound. If you're worried about the taboo of superiors and subordinates, just avoid contacting your direct subordinates. There's always a solution. Think about it some more, it'll definitely work."

"Sigh!" Old Man Yang was truly at his wit's end. "Bei Chen's temper... no one wants him. Comrade Zhou Chuan, don't offer any more suggestions. If I had a better solution, would I be begging you here?"

Once Old Man Yang said that, he simply let loose. He pointed to his old face and said, "Give this old man some face. The man's son has come to me for help. I can't just watch him lose his wife and his own son abandon him..." Wouldn't that mean his family would be torn apart?

Zhou Chuan then frowned: "I already gave you face last time, why should I give you face again this time? I feel like I can't afford to!"

"We can afford it, we can afford it!"

Although his reputation is becoming increasingly worthless, he still has to swallow his pride and ask for favors. The other man's father is waiting for his message outside, and if he can't get it done, he'll have to keep bothering him, which is even more troublesome than this one.

“We really have no other choice. Sigh, you're a woman, so you probably don't know what's going on outside. Let me tell you today. The common people only know that we drove Chiang Kai-shek away, but what they don't know is that although Chiang Kai-shek was defeated and fled, he left behind a lot of remnants of his army, plus the bandits left over from the previous war…”

“We bear a heavy and arduous burden. Now is not the time for us to enjoy the fruits of victory. We can only sacrifice our own families for the greater good. Comrade Zhou Chuan, I know you are a good comrade with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. You were able to make shoe soles and donate herbs for us back then. Now I would like to trouble you again to help our soldiers look after their children so that they can go to the battlefield with peace of mind and without any worries!”

"My God! You're exaggerating so much!" Even nationalistic sentiments are being brought up. "What kind of soldier is Xiao Xiao Beichen? He's a regimental commander, not a soldier!"

Old Yang said in a serious tone, "On the battlefield, everyone is a soldier, especially the people's officers trained by the organization. They always take the lead and lead from the front. You don't need to doubt this. If we hadn't taken the lead and charged forward, the War of Resistance Against Japan and the War of Liberation would not have been won!"

"I know, I know," Zhou Chuan, as an ordinary citizen, had no right to doubt them. But this old man was very cunning. When he couldn't persuade him, he used this trick. "So, I can't leave? If I leave, it will affect your soldiers going to the battlefield. If something unexpected happens, how much of a crime will I commit? Is that what you mean?"

Old Yang quickly denied it: "I was just discussing it with you. Think about it, after we've dealt with all of Chiang Kai-shek's remaining troops and wiped out the remaining bandits, achieving a complete victory, you'll have a share in the credit. What an honor that would be..."

Zhou Chuan interrupted him before he could finish: "Give me a break. Back when Sun Gousheng and I were still husband and wife, we didn't get any honors. Now that I'm a nanny, what honors can I expect?"

She could tell that Old Man Yang was determined to keep her here today. As for all this nonsense, he probably just wanted to pay less. The old man was very shrewd; if she hadn't been quick-witted, she might have been fooled.

Actually, after that commotion a few days ago, she's living a pretty comfortable life now. Apart from the fact that the people in the family compound don't really like her, everything else is fine for her, and she doesn't have any objection to staying.

"What's the point of honors? They can't put food on the table. The key is that I have no children and no one to pass them down to. What's the point of having that stuff? You might as well give me something practical. How much money are you offering? What other benefits are there? If you give me the right terms, I'll think about it and maybe I'll agree."

Old Man Yang took a deep breath. It wasn't enough for her to just give money; she also had to offer benefits. And even then, the person would still have to think it over, and even then, they might not agree.

He was really holding it in. He wanted to get up and go out right now to give those two good-for-nothing bastards a good beating. If he didn't have the ability, why did he provoke them in the first place? He couldn't handle it properly and had to swallow his pride to clean up their mess.

Old Yang let out another sigh of relief. He still had to face it: "I'm old and a rough old man. I really don't know what you women are thinking. Why don't you just say what you're thinking? As long as your request isn't excessive, I'll agree to it."

He was very nervous. He regretted giving her fifty yuan last time. Giving her so much money at once had made her greedy. What if she took advantage of Xiao Ran's dependence on her and insisted on that price? Wouldn't that have harmed Xiao Beichen? Sigh, what a nuisance!

Zhou Chuan chuckled: "You want me to bring it up? How can I bring it up? Would you agree if I asked for a hundred? I don't even know how much money that guy surnamed Xiao makes. If I ask for too much, you won't agree. If I ask for too little, I'll be at a disadvantage. How can I possibly bring it up?"

Want her to reveal her hand first? No way!

“If you’re sincere, just name a price. If it’s suitable, I’ll consider it. If it’s too far off, I’ll pack my things. It’s that simple. Don’t make it so complicated.”

When Old Man Yang heard her say one hundred yuan, he felt a chill run down his spine even in the sweltering heat. That was too cruel! Hearing what she said next, he was both angry and anxious, but fortunately, he was experienced and managed to keep his composure.

“If that’s how you put it, then I have to say something fair. Don’t even mention a hundred, he doesn’t even have fifty. Bei Chen is just a regimental-level cadre. How much does he earn in a month? He has to send money back to his parents in his hometown to support them, and he also has to take care of the children of martyrs… all of that costs money!”

"It's over. I still have to feed and clothe the three of you. After this round, there's not much left. I paid the fifty last time, it has nothing to do with him. If you want to ask for that, Bei Chen can't afford it!"

After the old man finished speaking, he stared at the person, afraid that he might anger them and they would immediately flip the table and go back to their room to pack their bags and leave. Fortunately, the person did not flip the table.

"Then name your price!" Zhou Chuan was still somewhat aware of the situation; she knew that fifty yuan was simply impossible, as she had gotten a good deal last time.

Old Yang considered it for a moment: "Twenty?" He had already inquired before coming. The contract she signed with Xiao Beichen stipulated a monthly salary of fifteen. Now he was asking for twenty, which was a five-yuan increase, which was already quite high, more than the salary of a newly hired nurse.

Zhou Chuan remained silent with a stern face. She decided to give him a little nudge, so she got up to go to the kitchen to get a cucumber to eat. But as soon as she stood up, the old man opposite her couldn't sit still anymore.

"Twenty-five!" Old Man Yang pressed Zhou Chuan, who had just stood up, down again. "That's the most you can do. Bei Chen isn't having an easy time either. He has to pay for you guys to eat chicken. If you take all the money, you'll be starving."

Zhou Chuan had a sullen face and looked very unhappy. She was indeed very unhappy; she wanted to eat cucumbers.