A domineering country girl flirts with her son, and Commander Huo can't resist.

"Sanqiang, you need to broaden your horizons. The black market in Jinshui Town is fine for small-scale trading, but if you really want to make big money, you have to go to the county town or the provincial capital."

Qiao An crossed her legs and tapped her fingers lightly on the table. This was a habit she had in her past life, and it felt very natural to do it.

But in Feng Sanqiang's eyes, Qiao An's aura was something that a hundred mice couldn't match.

She just sat there, like a great Buddha, and no matter what she said or did, Feng Sanqiang felt it was all right.

Before leaving, Qiao An left some food for Feng Sanqiang and the others; there were a total of fifteen meat pies.

The young man ate a lot, and Joan was generous with her food.

That evening, Feng Sanqiang cut a piece of meat pie for his grandmother. Grandma Liu smelled the aroma of wheat on the pie and sighed.

"Sanqiang, you should follow Qiao An closely. This girl is no ordinary person."

"Grandma, I know. Big Sister is good to us. We'll work for her for the rest of our lives," Feng Sanqiang said with a silly grin.

Grandma Xu looked at her silly grandson, who still didn't understand the meaning behind her words.

Well, sometimes fools are lucky. Feng Sanqiang and his gang have a powerful backer now, so she, as their grandmother, won't have to worry about them anymore.

As soon as Qiao An entered the house, Huo Ning pounced on her, kicking his legs.

"Mother!"

"Hey!" Qiao An picked up Huo Ning and felt that she seemed a bit heavier.

"Mom, when are we going to town to play?"

"I think you just want to spend your pocket money, don't you?" Qiao An kissed Huo Ning's cheek.

Huo Ning's eyes widened, and she clutched her tummy. "Mommy, how did you know? Are you a worm in my tummy?"

"Mommy crawls into your tummy every night to see what Aning is thinking."

Huo Ning hugged her neck. "Then I'll sleep at Dad's tonight and won't let Mom crawl into my belly."

Huo Jiyun leaned against the door frame, looking at Qiao An and Huo Ning, and couldn't help but chuckle.

"You're back?"

"Yeah, I got back a little late today. I went to the machine tool factory and the black market."

Qiao An didn't know why she explained it to Huo Jiyun, but she just felt she should tell him.

"What are we having for dinner? My injury is almost healed, I'll help you with the cooking."

After saying that, Huo Jiyun began to roll up his sleeves.

Go into the kitchen? No way!

If he were to assist, wouldn't he be unable to produce any of his strange and unusual seasonings?

Joan quickly pushed him back into the house.

"No, no! You suffered a gunshot wound; it takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. For the next two months, you're not allowed in the kitchen."

Upon hearing this, Huo Jiyun's eyes held a playful smile. "Then I won't do any work. I'll just stay by your side and keep you company."

Qiao An became even more anxious upon hearing this.

This won't work either!

"I'll cook. I'm not used to having other people around. You don't need to go. Just stay inside with the kids."

"If you're really bored, go tutor Fangfang with her homework, but whatever you do, don't go to the kitchen."

Huo Jiyun stopped teasing her and said with a doting smile, "Alright, alright, the kitchen is your territory, I definitely won't go there, okay?"

"That's more like it."

Joan tied on an apron and went into the kitchen, locking the door behind her.

Huo Jiyun showed no displeasure upon witnessing this scene.

He believed that one day, Joanne would tell him everything.

During dinner, Huo Jiyun mentioned Qin Lili.

"Did you mention Qin Lili's murder to Chief Jiang?"

"I told him about Qin Lili being a victim of domestic violence, but Director Jiang clearly didn't think in that direction. I think I'll wait until tomorrow to see."

Huo Jiyun served food to Qiao An, saying, "After all, words are not enough; only by finding the body can we make a judgment."

"But if her husband hid the body and refused to say anything, the police probably wouldn't be able to find any clues."

Qiao An certainly knew this, otherwise so many women wouldn't have disappeared without a trace in this era.

So she decided that if Qin Lili's husband didn't tell the truth, she would use the [Truth Talisman].

"Hopefully, Director Jiang and the others can get some useful clues out of them." Qiao An didn't continue the topic.

"The Lunar New Year is just around the corner. I have time off next week, so let's take the kids to the city."

"Okay, let's go shopping for New Year's goods together."

Huo Jiyun felt excited at the thought of his family of five going out shopping; the warmth of family was something he had never experienced in all these years.

These days, Huo Jiyun feels like the happiest man in the world, with such a wonderful wife and adorable children.

He even wished time would slow down; for the first time, he felt the holiday was too short.

Qiao An also told Huo Jiyun about the machine tool factory's idea of ​​having her take over the canteen window service.

Huo Jiyun thought this was a good thing, as it showed that Qiao An was capable and was sought after by everyone.

"I think it's great. If you really take over the canteen window, when I go back to the army, you can rent a house in the machine tool factory and stay away from those people in Lianchi Village. I'll feel more at ease."

Qiao An didn't expect that Huo Jiyun thought the same way she did.

Moreover, Huo Fang will be starting junior high school next year. The junior high school in town is a day school, so she has to travel to and from Lianchi Village every day, which is quite tiring.

"And living in town will make sending and receiving letters much faster in the future," Huo Jiyun said, her face slightly flushed.

Qiao An didn't notice; her mind was now completely occupied with how to run the cafeteria's food stalls in the future.

The next day, Qiao An waited for Aunt Liu and Dong Mei at home and mentioned the canteen window at the machine tool factory to them.

If we're going to contract out the window, we'll definitely need someone to help us. I trust Aunt Liu and Dongmei.

To put their minds at ease, Qiao An brought up the topic of wages.

"Aunt Liu, if you are willing to work for me at the machine tool factory in the future, I will give each of you 30 yuan a month plus three catties of wheat flour."

Aunt Liu was still a little hesitant, after all, the machine tool factory was not close to her home.

But upon hearing the salary, she immediately nodded, even making the decision for her daughter-in-law, "Okay! Dongmei and I will both go!"

"Aunt Liu, don't you need to go home and discuss it with Uncle Tian?"

Aunt Liu waved her hand dismissively, "Discuss what? With such high wages and even flour, dare he object to a single thing?"

Qiao An laughed heartily, and that was the agreement she made with Aunt Liu.

"By the way, Aunt Liu, the Armed Forces Department and the machine tool factory both want to increase production. Before the New Year, could you help me find two or three more reliable people to come and work at my place? Just consider it as earning some money for the New Year."

Aunt Liu patted her chest and said, "That's great! Who doesn't want to have a good New Year?"

"Alright, then I'll leave it to you."

Qiao An pushed her cart out the door and rode it for a few hundred meters before she saw the Huo family.

Perhaps because her bicycle was stolen, Shen Xiufang, who didn't usually have to work in the fields, was now forced to go dig ditches with Huo Jifeng in the dead of winter.

Qiao An flashed past them, and Shen Xiufang spat on the ground.

"Pah! How could I see her with my filthy eyes so early in the morning?"

Wang Shuyun glanced at Shen Xiufang and said, "It's this dirty-eyed woman who's raising your daughter. I saw Huo Fang yesterday; she was wearing new clothes and had gained quite a bit of weight."

"Don't mention that little beast to me, I have nothing to do with her!" After saying that, Shen Xiufang touched her stomach.

"Have you noticed that Aunt Liu and Li Dongmei haven't been digging the ditch these past few days?" Wang Shuyun changed the subject. "I heard they went to Qiao An's house to help out."