Marrying My Bestie's Ferocious Brother - He Calls Me His Baby!-Chapter 21: The Sniveling Villain Delivers a Moldy Quilt!

Chapter 21: Chapter 21: The Sniveling Villain Delivers a Moldy Quilt!

After an autumn rain, the weather in the north suddenly turned cold, and the chill cut through the military district like a knife.

Every household began to worry about getting through the winter, and the women’s conversations couldn’t steer away from cotton ration tickets and next month’s coal briquette quota. The atmosphere in the yard carried a tight anxiety.

Only in the little house of Lieutenant Gu Yanshen, was there an exception.

Inside, a fire burned with dry wood collected from the mountains, and the small stove made the whole room warm and cozy. Lin Wan Yi, wearing a thin shirt, was using fire tongs to pick two roasted sweet potatoes, crisp and aromatic, from the stove.

They were watered with spiritual spring water, not large, but sweet as if coated in honey.

She had just put the sweet potatoes on a plate when the door opened, a gust of cold wind bringing in a tall, upright figure.

It was Gu Yanshen.

He still carried the dust and sweat from the training ground; as he entered, his sharp eyes first scanned the spring-like warm room before fixing on Lin Wan Yi and the roasted sweet potato next to her.

"Back?" Lin Wan Yi broke open one of the sweet potatoes, and the scorching white steam mingled with the sweet aroma instantly emerged. She placed the hot half in a bowl, and handed the other half over, "Try it, just roasted."

Gu Yanshen did not take it, he just stood there, watching her face lightly flushed from the heat. The laughter from the training ground still echoed in his ears, he swallowed and squeezed out two words through clenched teeth: "Nonsense."

His mouth said nonsense, yet his eyes never left the steaming sweet potato.

Lin Wan Yi was not annoyed, she took a big bite herself, her cheeks puffed out as she spoke indistinctly, "If you don’t eat, I’ll eat it all, Site Manager."

The words "Site Manager" had barely left her mouth when Gu Yanshen’s resolute face turned red all the way to the neck. He strode over to the water tank, scooped a ladle of cold water, and splashed it on his face, as if trying to extinguish some fire.

Just then, Sister in law Zhang’s lowered voice came from the doorway.

"Lin, are you home?"

Lin Wan Yi walked to open the door, seeing Sister in law Zhang and Li Xiujuan standing at the door with their necks hunched, faces full of urgency.

"Come in quickly, it’s cold outside."

"No need, no need," Sister in law Zhang waved her hand, swiftly stuffing a cloth bag into her hand, "These are homemade dried radishes, try them. Girl, I need to tell you something, be careful."

Li Xiujuan also leaned in, lowering her voice: "It’s about Mr. Li, who manages supplies in the logistics department, Sister in law Wang’s husband! I heard at the meeting today he mentioned handling things impartially, and specifically brought up your family, saying the lieutenant should lead by example with frugality! I think he’s up to no good!"

Sister in law Zhang nodded repeatedly: "Exactly! Sister in law Wang got the short end of the stick when she came here that day; she must have spoken ill of you at home. Mr. Li is very petty, your winter supplies might get tampered with, you should prepare!"

After a few more cautionary words, the two hurriedly left.

Lin Wan Yi weighed the dried radishes in her hand, then turned back to look at the man inside who was wiping his face with a cold towel, a knowing smile appearing on her lips. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Sure enough, half an hour later, a commotion arose in the courtyard.

Li, from the logistics department, walking with a swagger and a small belly, personally led two young soldiers, pulling a cartload of things gloriously into the yard on a cart.

"Winter supplies distribution! Listen up, every household!" Mr. Li cleared his throat, his voice not loud yet enough to reach all the military wives with ears perked up.

He took out a notebook from his pocket, reading out: "Leader of the third regiment, Gu Yanshen’s home! A first-class new cotton quilt and fifty pounds of special smokeless coal!"

Upon hearing this standard quota, many heaved a sigh of relief, thinking they had overthought.

But Mr. Li then changed his tone, raising his volume, his face bearing an expression of selflessness: "However! As everyone knows, our army’s conditions are tough, supplies are tight! The warehouse in area B leaked the other day, and a batch of supplies was spoiled. In line with the principle of putting officers first, and after unanimous decision by our logistics department, this batch of slightly inferior supplies will be first digested by our leadership cadre families!"

He looked at Lin Wan Yi and Gu Yanshen, who had come out of the house, smiling extraordinarily "kindly": "Commander Gu, Mr. Lin, you are the role models of our compound, with high ideological awareness, surely you can understand the organization’s difficulties and consider the bigger picture, right?"

His words were high-sounding, directly fitting a big cap. If you refuse, it implies not considering the bigger picture and having low ideological awareness.

The yard instantly fell silent; all gazes were focused on Lin Wan Yi.

Only to see the two young soldiers, moving a quilt from the cart, tied with grass rope yet still showing dark mold spots on the surface, with a damp moldy smell noticeable from afar.

Another bag of coal was darker but impure, mixed with lots of dirt and stones, evidently the lowest-grade coal, burning which could choke someone.

Li’s face was full of gloating, waiting to see Lin Wan Yi either fly into a rage or swallow her anger.

Gu Yanshen’s expression had already darkened, the surrounding air pressure frighteningly low, just about to step forward.

But Lin Wan Yi reached out, gently pressing his arm.

She faced all the gazes, without a hint of anger on her face, instead showing a gentle and bright smile.

She walked up to Mr. Li, her voice crisp and pleasant: "Oh, I see. You’re so thoughtful, Mr. Li. Our Yanshen, as the commander, indeed should set an example. We accept this gesture."

She paused, adding, "Thank you, Mr. Li, truly you’ve worked hard."

At this, not only Mr. Li was stunned, even the obliviously watching military wives were dumbfounded.

Just like that... accepted?

Mr. Li looked at Lin Wan Yi’s flawless smiling face, the sense of revenge diminished like a punch into cotton. He hummed, putting on an authoritative air: "Glad Mr. Lin has heightened awareness! Alright, the stuff has been delivered, we’re off!"

He turned, leading his men, proudly heading towards the courtyard gate, expecting to receive other’s admiration and reverence.

However, he had barely taken two steps.

A muffled "thud" was heard.

Mr. Li instinctively turned back, and everyone in the yard also looked over.

Only to see Lin Wan Yi, in full view, casually toss the musty-smelling "first-class cotton quilt" outside her doorstep.

She even stretched out her foot, rubbing the shoe soles of her clean cloth shoes back and forth on the dirty cover, clapped her hands, and, looking at Gu Yanshen inside, said with a smile:

"Honey, come see, Mr. Li is really a good man. We were just missing a shoe-wiping mat, and he delivered it!"