A stunning beauty arrived on the island; she invented everything from childcare to babysitting.

The thin woman, who was picking vegetables by the pool, suddenly trembled and her nails dug heavily into her fingers, leaving a deep nail mark.

She whirled around to look at the messenger: "What did you say?"

When the others saw her reaction, they burst out laughing: "Xiuying, you haven't given up yet? We've already said, your man isn't good enough, he can only live in an apartment building."

She turned her head back and said in a muffled voice, "It's none of your business."

"Actually, it's not surprising that Xiuying has this idea. There's a precedent over there! If Xiuying's family can get approved, why can't hers?"

Someone raised their chin and pointed in a certain direction.

"Even if there are precedents, it still requires approval from above. Now that those who have the qualifications have already gone in, what can you do?"

"Wei Hong, you saw them go in, do you recognize who they are?"

The military wife, who had come with a lot of gossip, shook her head upon hearing this: "I don't recognize her. The woman was in her early twenties, quite pretty, with a little girl with her. She was a complete stranger."

Have you heard of any battalion commanders applying for their families to accompany them to the military?

"Hey! There are only so many battalion and division commanders. If someone was planning to apply, how could they have kept it a secret until now?"

While these military wives were gossiping about An Ning's situation, some proactive individuals had already come to greet him as soon as Yan Fei left.

"Young lady, you just arrived at the army base? Why didn't your husband come to pick you up? I'm Zhao Xuemei, and I live next door. This place has only been empty for about a month, but it's still quite dusty. Let me help you clean it!"

Zhao Xuemei was a kind-hearted woman. She wasn't just pretending to be polite with An Ning. After finishing her conversation, she picked up the broom and rag by the door and came over to help.

Once inside, she saw the little girl sitting obediently in the chair and showered her with compliments.

Xiao Ni'er was always the one being scolded in the Song family before, she's never been praised like this before.

For a moment, I was at a loss.

Anning quickly came to her rescue: "Sister-in-law, please stop praising her. Ni'er is shy, she'll get embarrassed later."

Zhao Xuemei smiled and naturally continued the conversation about the child: "So your name is Ni'er. What's your full name?"

Although Song Xiaoni was a little flustered after being praised, she was very happy.

But her mood instantly soured after hearing the question from the aunt who had praised her.

She doesn't have a formal name.

Song Dabao has a formal name, Song Yaozu.

She also wanted a proper name, but her grandmother said she was a worthless child who couldn't be buried in the ancestral grave, so there was no need to give her one.

Therefore, she did not have a formal name.

However, An Ning answered without hesitation, "Changle, Shen Changle. I hope she can always be happy in the future."

She had already considered this issue on her way here. Little Ni'er was already five years old, and she couldn't keep using her nickname forever. So she racked her brains and came up with a name for her, but she hadn't found a suitable opportunity to tell the little one.

I had planned to tell her this after we settled down, but since it was brought up now, I'll just say it directly.

"What a lovely name! It sounds like a lively and cheerful little girl."

Zhao Xuemei praised him again, but in her heart she was wondering if there was a battalion commander surnamed Shen under Commander Li.

Little girl... no, she should be called Shen Chang Le now.

Her heart burst into bloom like brilliant fireworks, and a smile involuntarily spread across her face.

Hey!

She has a name!

Her name is Chang Le, Shen Chang Le!

Like her mother, she has the surname Shen!

It sounds a hundred times better than Song Yaozu's name!

After cleaning, Zhao Xuemei warmly invited An Ning and Xiao Chang Le to her house for dinner.

An Ning couldn't refuse any longer and finally agreed.

From Zhao Xuemei, she learned a lot about the situation here, including that the other party had a child studying at a primary school in the army. Before leaving, Anning gave her a handful of crushed biscuits that she had bought at the department store in the county town.

The cookies have become a bit soggy after being stored for so long, but there aren't many snacks available these days, and kids don't care about that.

Zhao Xuemei accepted it with a smile.

After returning from Zhao Xuemei's house, Anning pondered what she needed to buy.

She is planning to divorce Song Wenyuan, so she won't stay here for long.

However, Song Wenyuan didn't know when he would be able to finish his mission and return, so she had to take into account his food and sleep during this period.

The bed and stove in the house were bare, but quilts, pots and pans, daily necessities, and food were still provided.

She had just asked Zhao Xuemei about these; the military service center had them, but the problem was that she needed a ticket.

Anning has money, but no tickets.

Back when she was in the county town, she traded some things with someone, but now that she needs to buy so many things, it's simply not enough, so she has to find someone to trade with.

But who should we trade with?

Who could possibly produce so many tickets at once?

The first person she thought of was that stern-faced regimental commander.

If she really intends to continue living with Song Wenyuan, she will definitely shamelessly ask for help, and at worst, she can repay the favor later.

The problem is that she doesn't plan to live with Song Wenyuan, so it's not appropriate for her to look for someone else.

While he was pondering, Yan Fei's voice rang out from outside again.

"Sister-in-law, are you there? I brought you something."

"Yes, the door's open, come in."

Then, a group of young men in military uniforms came carrying things over, including many things that Anning could use, as well as a bag of grain.

An Ning stared blankly: "What are you doing...?"

Yan Fei scratched his head and smiled: "The regimental commander said that you and your daughter had nothing here, so he asked me to bring you Company Commander Song's things. Oh, right! These are his tickets for this year, they're all here too."

Yan Fei was about to leave after delivering the items when An Ning stopped him.

"Xiao Yan, do you know roughly when Wen Yuan will be back?"

Yan Fei still smiled sheepishly: "I don't know, sister-in-law. We keep our missions secret. We'll come back as soon as we've completed them."

Well, that's as good as saying nothing at all.

After Yan Fei left, An Ning took stock of the things he had brought: a mattress, a pillow, a quilt, a basin, and a kettle, all of which were military-grade.

There was also a square table and four stools that I don't know where they came from. The table and stools were worn, but they were very sturdy and could be used as a dining table.

There were 20 feet of cloth coupons, 300 catties of grain coupons, and also a number of oil coupons, meat coupons, soap coupons, and industrial coupons.

That's great, she only needs to buy one more set of pots and pans and everything will be ready.

The next morning, Yan Fei brought breakfast to Anning and Chang Le. Anning asked him for help and got on a bus to the county town to buy things.

It's hot on the island, and she and Chang Le don't have any suitable clothes.

Making it yourself takes time, so it's better to buy two ready-made outfits to wear first, and then prepare fabric coupons to ask someone to help make it. That way, when the clothes are finished, you can change out of the ones you're wearing and wash them.

In addition, Anning also wanted to get a bicycle.

The military unit is too far from the county town; she can't possibly hitch a ride on a military vehicle every time she goes out, can she?

Bicycles are a good thing; even if she gets divorced and leaves the island, she can easily sell them.

Moreover, the province of Guangdong is just across the sea, which will soon become a key economic zone for national development, making it her preferred development area.

Even if she doesn't sell it to someone else, she can take the car on the boat and use it on the other side.

Buying a bicycle requires a bicycle ticket, which ordinary people don't have. If she wanted to exchange it, the only place left for her was the black market.

Therefore, Anning did not bring Chang Le with her on this trip, but instead asked Zhao Xuemei next door to help look after her for half a day.

The country hasn't fully opened up the market economy yet, and local governments are very strict about it. So, people go to places like the black market secretly. In Anning, it's very difficult for an outsider to find a place in such a large county without a local guide.

It took her a lot of effort to find out the specifics.

The black market was located in the opposite direction from the police station, and the entrance was guarded by two slovenly young men.

Before Anning arrived, she had already disguised herself with gray and covered her face with a scarf to avoid being recognized.

However, she had only been inside for a short time when someone grabbed her arm.

She looked up and saw a familiar handsome face—the crew member who had helped her with her luggage on the peninsula.

Without saying a word, the other person pulled her outside: "Come with me."