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

By July, the weather in the Northwest was already very hot. Fortunately, Qiao An brought two electric fans with her when she came.

Put one in the children's room and one in your own room; at least you won't sweat as much overnight.

Joan is five months pregnant, and her belly looks even bigger.

She was afraid she would develop stretch marks, so she asked Mo Yuxuan to buy her a lot of essential oils and applied them every day.

Huo Jiyun would hold her while sleeping at night, and he could always smell a faint fragrance.

Life was uneventful. Qiao An would call Shan Cuilan, who was far away in Beijing, every week to chat for a while, and also mailed her a lot of special products from Northwest China.

Feng Sanqiang would also call her every week to report on how business was going in Jinshui Town.

There were seasonings and freeze-dried vegetables left by Qiao An in the cafeteria, and everything seemed normal.

They would make a trip to the provincial capital every other day to sell dried goods, and their income was quite good.

But now the dried goods are almost gone.

Qiao An asked him to take Xiao Lei or Da Bao to Guangyun City.

I'm going to buy some dried goods and electronic products, and also make a trip to the Sanhe Garment Factory.

If we use all of her commission this month to buy clothes, then the business will be revitalized.

She no longer needs to use her personal savings.

These two businesses in Jinshui Town bring in one or two thousand yuan every week.

Feng Sanqiang would go to the savings bank on weekends to wire her money.

She explicitly told Feng Sanqiang not to send her the money this month, but to save it for purchasing goods in Guangyun City.

After making the arrangements remotely, Qiao An left the phone booth. On her way home, she suddenly felt a strange pain in her stomach.

She felt like there were small fish swimming inside her stomach.

Joan touched her belly and could feel a slight tremor.

Is this fetal movement?

It's incredible.

When Huo Jiyun returned that evening, Qiao An shared the good news with him.

Huo Jiyun, however, did not show any sign of smiling.

"What's wrong?" Joanne reached out and smoothed his brow.

"Honey, we've received a notice that we need to go to the neighboring area for an exercise. The third and fourth regiments are all setting off, and this trip might take a month."

Huo Jiyun held Qiao An in his arms and gently touched her belly.

"What? Can't bear to part with your wife, kids, and warm bed?" Qiao An teased.

"Of course I can't bear to part with it."

"You have to go, even if you don't want to. You're a soldier, not a lazy bum."

Joan poked the tip of his nose.

"I know, I'm just saying a few words."

"While I'm away, take good care of yourself at home. Let the children do the chores."

"If you can't do it yourself, ask Sister Baohua. Everyone in the compound likes you, and they will definitely help you."

Joanne laughed and said, "I'm not some weak and frail woman. You underestimate me too much."

"I know..."

The next day, the Third and Fourth Regiments set off as a whole. Qiao An got up early in the morning and stuffed a bunch of homemade mushroom and meat sauce into Huo Jiyun's bag.

Actually, bringing beef jerky would be the best option for such a long-distance exercise, but Qiao An only has pigs in her space, not cows.

She now regrets that she has become lazy since arriving in Amutu and should have bought some calves and lambs to enrich her livestock area.

After Huo Jiyun left, Qiao An didn't feel empty.

She can then have more time to tidy up the space.

In the afternoon, Xia Xiaoyun came to my house. "An'an, can I bring my daughter to your house for lunch and dinner recently?"

"Did Guo Caifeng make things difficult for you again?"

Xia Xiaoyun looked helpless. "Yes, Fu Shun just left this morning, and she started asking me for money. When I didn't give it to her, she started cursing at me and even my daughter."

"I really don't want to be at home; my chest hurts whenever I see her."

Qiao An was just enjoying the quiet at home. "Come on in," she said. "It's just me and the kids at home anyway, it'll be more lively eating together."

"An'an, I'm due this month. Although you're only five months along, your belly isn't much smaller than mine. It looks like this baby will be a big, healthy boy," Xia Xiaoyun said with a smile.

"It doesn't matter to me whether it's a boy or a girl," Joan thought for a moment. "Actually, I prefer a daughter; daughters are more considerate."

Xia Xiaoyun sighed, "Actually, I'm the same, it's just that Fushun and his mother... sigh."

"But then again, sometimes I also want a son. It's not for any other reason than that I feel that women suffer too much in this world, and I don't want my daughter to suffer in the future."

Xia Xiaoyun's words make a lot of sense; in this era, the preference for sons over daughters is the norm.

Daughters are considered outsiders in most families, but Joan is able to treat them all equally because she has a forward-thinking mindset.

However, there are very few mothers like her in this world.

As the two were talking, Xia Xiaoyun casually made clothes for Qiao An's future child.

In fact, Qiao An hadn't prepared any new clothes at all. She originally planned to have Mo Yuxuan buy a few ordinary, unremarkable outfits before giving birth.

We told everyone we bought it from Guangyun City, since nobody had ever been there anyway.

But Xia Xiaoyun insisted on making clothes for Qiao An's child. These days, her relationship with Qiao An has become better and better, and they can talk about almost anything.

She was truly grateful to Joan; Joan would always sneak in some of her own freeze-dried vegetables whenever she bought them.

Add some shrimp or some dried abalone.

Moreover, when you come to Qiao An's house, you can always drink delicious juice and eat dried fruit that you've never eaten before.

She has to do something.

The canteen staff would come to the compound once a week to sell vegetables and dried seafood.

Lin Wan and the others could only look, not buy.

Gradually, they were isolated by everyone in the compound.

When people saw them, their eyes were filled with contempt and disdain.

Lin Wanxin was proud and arrogant; she had never been treated like this before.

Not only her, but Fan Tao was also affected.

The children in the yard all liked to play with him, saying his mother was a chatterbox.

Fan Tao felt both angry and anxious seeing other people enjoying a life of luxury while his family ate the same three things every day.

"Mom! I don't want potatoes! I want mushrooms! I want bamboo shoots! I want meat!"

Fan Tao started shouting as soon as he entered the door that day.

Lin Wanzheng was chatting with Shi Man and Zhao Chunxia.

Hearing Fan Tao speak, she inexplicably began to feel irritated.

"Eat, eat, eat! All you do all day is eat! You're like a pig, get out of here!"

Fan Tao muttered a couple of words and walked away.

"Now look at me like this, everyone in the compound thinks I'm all 'ugly ducklings' and 'no good,' even my husband Lao Guo is criticizing me." Zhao Chunxia cracked sunflower seeds and spat the shells on the ground.

"Your Lao Guo is the regimental commander, after all. You don't know, but Song Wei's attitude towards me has become much colder lately. He said I messed with someone I shouldn't have."

Shi Man raised her slanted eyes, looking sharp and sarcastic. "I'm just wondering, why is Qiao An targeting us? Guo Caifeng said those things, what does it have to do with us?"

"Besides, it's not just us who's talking about her. She's like a mad dog, biting people and refusing to let go." Lin Wan rolled her eyes.

"Speaking of her, I suddenly remembered that you guys have seen her belly lately. It looks like she's about to give birth. It's definitely not normal!" Shi Man leaned forward.

"That month just doesn't look right. Huo Jiyun is a complete idiot. He's practically a cuckold himself, yet he still treats Qiao An like a treasure."

Lin Wan's eyes lit up. "Isn't there a free medical check-up next month? We can..."

"Great idea! Let's skin her alive in front of everyone, and see how she'll ever stay in this compound again!"

"Given Huo Jiyun's temper, wouldn't he beat her to death?"