Reborn as a Tough Army Wife

After the incident with the yarn purchase, Fang Pingying and Luo Chun still greeted each other when they met, but it was clear that their relationship was not as harmonious as before.

Fang Pingying's family no longer brought over things to give her, and when they encountered her children in the corridor, they would hand over some food if they had any, but wouldn't go out of their way to fetch something if they didn't.

Additionally, the bakery in town was doing so well that Fang Pingying didn't spend much time in the military compound during the day and didn't bother with these trivial matters.

Initially, the three of them could sell their pastries for the whole morning, but later on, it barely took two hours after opening in the morning for several dozen pounds of pastries to sell out.

Fang Pingying later introduced a variety of cake products, which were not just snacks but also suitable for breakfast.

In the provincial city, having pastries for breakfast was definitely cheaper than eating out, which naturally attracted more customers.

Zeng Weiguo, knowing how well Fang Pingying's pastries sold, proposed to sign a contract ahead of time. He originally planned to package and market Fang Pingying's pastries after the New Year, but now he wanted to settle things right after the New Year.

Because during the New Year period, whether it's for hosting guests at home or visiting relatives in the provincial city, people like to buy pastries, a peak sales season for pastries that certainly couldn't be missed.

Zeng Weiguo had many businesses; in the provincial city alone, he owned several department stores. Putting Fang Pingying's pastries in those places meant she and her partners alone could not keep up with the production due to lack of manpower and capital.

So, Fang Pingying signed a contract with Zeng Weiguo. She provided the recipes, and his factory would produce the pastries. Meanwhile, her bakery would officially open, but Zeng Weiguo would deliver the goods daily, and profits would be split equally between them.

Zeng Weiguo thought this arrangement was better, as he could manage the system systematically and ensure the quality of the products.

To be honest, the pastries they previously made were at best a small workshop. If they supplied to him, he also worried about maintaining quality standards.

Zeng Weiguo agreed, and they signed the contract.

Since the bakery was being planned for a reopening, and they were also waiting for Zeng Weiguo's factory to start up, Fang Pingying's store was temporarily closed to undergo renovation.

With no pastries to make, Fang Pingying, Luo Honglan, and Fang Xiu had a lot more free time.

Fang Pingying was still busy, as she had to shuttle between the military compound, the bakery, and Zeng Weiguo's factory.

Luo Honglan couldn't sit idle and took on the responsibility of cooking three meals a day for everyone, including the workers renovating the bakery, saving money for Fang Pingying.

But Fang Xiu was restless. Having worked for Fang Pingying for over a month, Fang Pingying saw that the business was good and paid her and Honglan two months' wages before the end of the month, which amounted to fifty yuan.

Aside from taking out a few dollars for pocket money, Luo Honglan entrusted all the rest to Fang Pingying for savings, whereas Fang Xiu spent freely, particularly on clothes.

That day, due to the poor weather, with November almost bringing snow, Fang Pingying called Luo Zhiyong and told him she wouldn't return to the compound. Since Luo Zhiyong was off the next day, she asked him to come over and check on the bakery's renovation.

Since she didn't go back, Fang Pingying spent the afternoon in the bakery, watching the workers renovate.

Fang Xiu and Luo Honglan returned from buying groceries outside, and the moment Fang Xiu saw Fang Pingying, she presented her own newly bought cotton clothes with pride and handed it to Fang Pingying, "Big sister, look at the clothes I bought. Do they look nice?"

"How much?" Fang Pingying frowned slightly. Ever since Fang Xiu came here, she's lost count of how many clothes she's bought—completely lacking any sense of saving money.

Fang Xiu, who was reluctant to set the clothes aside, held the garment up against herself as if she had found a great bargain and said, "It's not expensive, ten yuan. They were on discount; the original price was thirty." He$lp us continu&e! by r+ea.d-i$n^g at the source: MV^2+L.E@M-PYR..

Ten yuan—that's almost half of Fang Xiu's monthly salary. Since Fang Pingying came over, she has never bought such expensive clothes, but Fang Xiu didn't even blink before making the purchase.

Although she was spending her own money, after all, she was still her own little sister. Besides, she had been obedient around her of late. Fang Pingying couldn't help but advise her, "Fang Xiu, can't you try to save a little money? Do you have to spend whatever you have?"

Fang Xiu didn't take it seriously, "Isn't the purpose of earning money to spend it? Saving it is still for spending later on; it's all the same."

Fang Pingying didn't want to argue with her and sighed softly, asking, "How about your Zhiming, is he coming over tomorrow? Tomorrow is the weekend."

If her memory served her right, Luo Zhiming used to come more often during the month when Fang Xiu came to the provincial city, after which his visits became sporadic, and it seemed like they would quarrel often when they met.

Most of the time, it was because Fang Xiu would ask Luo Zhiming for money, and he was reluctant to give it, usually ending their encounters with quarrels.

Maybe Luo Zhiming also got tired of it, hence the fewer visits.

When a man no longer even wants to argue with a woman, that's a bad sign, but Fang Xiu was completely oblivious.

"I don't know. He hasn't come over for a while and hasn't called either. I don't know what he's up to." Fang Xiu was reminded by Fang Pingying's mention, and realized she hadn't seen Luo Zhiming for a while; he didn't even come last weekend.

Fang Pingying thought for a moment and then said, "Otherwise, you go to the lumber mill to see him tomorrow. The shop has been closed for these past few days, and with me and Hong Lan here to look after things, think of it as giving you a holiday."

Fang Xiu was very pleased at hearing this, "Okay, then I'll make a trip tomorrow. I'll also bring him some stuff. Looks like the weather is turning; I bought him a quilt and cotton clothes, I'll deliver them together."

"Good."

For some reason, seeing Fang Xiu's extreme happiness, Fang Pingying always felt a bit uneasy, worried that Luo Zhiming might repeat his past mistake and, out of boredom with Fang Xiu, get involved with another woman again.

Otherwise, considering how lovey-dovey this couple was, they'd be together at every opportunity, even if they were fighting one moment, they could be rolling into bed the next.

Even the nearby hostel recognized the couple because initially, when Fang Xiu came, Luo Zhiming would rather come back in the evening and go to the lumber mill during the day, almost making it a point to visit every other day.

At that time, Fang Xiu confided to Fang Pingying that staying overnight at the hostel was too expensive, and she was planning to rent a room nearby once they got paid.

Back then, Fang Pingying felt that Fang Xiu worked relatively well. Although she wasn't as capable as Luo Honglan, she was stronger than expected and hadn't caused any trouble, even promising her that if they really decided to rent a room here, she would contribute two yuan a month towards it.

At that time, renting a single room nearby wasn't too expensive, only about five yuan a month. They only had to pay three to two yuan themselves, which was definitely cheaper than staying at a hostel. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we welcome you to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)