Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

Liu Xiangyang's smile remained: "You don't need to worry about the New Year's goods." He said, "You can discuss carefully what you want to buy. I'll go to the county town tomorrow and buy everything you've decided to buy. I'll take care of the tickets."

Several girls looked up at him. Jiang Xiaowen's eyes lit up: "Really? Brother Liu, that...that's so embarrassing."

"It's nothing. Bingbing said it herself, it's more lively to celebrate the New Year together." Liu Xiangyang looked at Xue Bingbing. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be lively enough if it were just the two of us. You just need to decide what dishes to cook."

Roland buttoned up his clothes, his expression returning to normal: "Then I'll have to trouble Xiangyang. The money and tickets..."

"No need for now." Liu Xiangyang waved his hand. "Consider it a loan from me. You can talk about it again after the New Year when you have it." He said this cleverly, so that they wouldn't feel that he was giving them charity, and he could avoid the trouble of refusing them right now.

He Xiaoqin whispered, "Thank you, Brother Liu." Zuo Qingqing looked at him happily.

Xue Bingbing then turned around, her face bearing her usual gentle smile: "Then it's settled. Tomorrow, Xiangyang will go shopping, and the rest of us will stay home and tidy up, decorating our rooms to make it look like New Year's."

"Yes, paper cutting! I can cut the character '囍' (double happiness) and plum blossoms." Jiang Xiaowen perked up again.

"I also cut a lot of paper-cut window decorations," He Xiaoqin said softly.

"Then I'll go and help our dear Sister Bingbing, and follow her instructions." Roland stretched and looked at Xue Bingbing with a double meaning as she spoke.

Upon hearing Roland's words, Xue Bingbing nodded, "That's great! Welcome, welcome! I'm Han Xin, the more soldiers the better. Xiangyang, now I have soldiers to use!"

Liu Xiangyang watched the two of them exchanging barbs and gave them a thumbs up.

Zuo Qingqing quickly ran to Xue Bingbing's side, took her hand, and twisted her waist as she said, "Bingbing, I'm yours too."

"Yes, yes, you're all my people, haha!" Xue Bingbing proudly raised her head to Liu Xiangyang: "Xiangyang, I have one more person under me now."

"I'm ignoring you." Zuo Qingqing blushed.

Everyone started making plans again, and Liu Xiangyang stopped participating in the discussion, just watching them talk back and forth.

It was almost dark when the girls finally went home, chattering all the way about what dishes they were going to cook.

"Bingbing, let's write a letter home tonight to Qiqi and Yaoyao. Those two are really something, they've been back for a month and haven't sent a letter yet," Liu Xiangyang complained about Leqi and Leyao.

"I'll also go to Uncle Lu's house to deliver the New Year's gifts. Uncle Lu helped me get this patrol officer position."

"Yes, we should thank Uncle Lu properly. Xiangyang, how about we send a bottle of wine, a pound of beef and mutton, and half a pound of white sugar? Is that enough?" Xue Bingbing said.

"That's enough, that's enough. Any more and Uncle Lu will start to suspect me, and he might even scold me."

"Then I'll prepare the meat, and you can take it with you tomorrow."

After dinner, Xue Bingbing prepared a gift for Lu Dajun, and the two of them sat down on the kang table to write a letter. After finishing the letter, they took a shower and went to bed.

That night, with the beauty as the paper and herself as the brush, Liu Xiangyang painted several pictures, including oil paintings and Chinese landscape paintings. Xue Bingbing was painted in all of them.

After finishing, Xue Bingbing cleaned herself up and lay on top of Liu Xiangyang, brushing her hair against his chest: "Xiangyang, do you think Qiqi's parents will be alright?"

"I hope it's good news."

Early the next morning, Liu Xiangyang set off with several letters and New Year's gifts for Lu Dajun, and arrived in the county town.

He went to the post office first, bought stamps, carefully sealed the letters he and Xue Bingbing had written the night before, affixed the stamps, and dropped them into the dark green mailbox.

The addresses on the envelopes included those in Beijing, Suzhou, and Haicheng.

Stepping out of the post office, the streets of the county town already had the bustling atmosphere of the upcoming holidays.

Riding his bicycle, Liu Xiangyang arrived at Lu Dajun's house. Lu Dajun's son, Lu Xiaojun, opened the door and happily called out, "Hello, Brother Xiangyang! Come in quickly! Mom and Dad, come on in! Brother Xiangyang brought some delicious food!"

Lu Xiaojun happily pulled Liu Xiangyang into the house: "Brother Xiangyang, what delicious food have you brought again?"

"You brat, you have no manners at all! Go get your brother a glass of water." Lu Dajun came out of the study, a cigarette between his fingers, and pointed at Lu Xiaojun, laughing and scolding.

At this moment, Li Cuihua also came out. When she saw what Liu Xiangyang was carrying, she complained, "Xiangyang, if you keep doing this, your aunt really won't welcome you."

Liu Xiangyang thought to himself, "I'm so grateful to Uncle Lu for introducing Chen Jie to me. Such a wonderful woman, and now I'm getting a good deal."

"Uncle Lu, Auntie, hello. I managed to get some beef and mutton this time. It's almost Chinese New Year, so I thought I'd bring some over for Xiaojun to enjoy."

Li Cuihua was about to decline when Lu Dajun spoke up: "This is a small token of Xiangyang's appreciation, so please accept it. Hurry up and cook, Xiangyang and I will have a good drink together at noon."

During lunch, Liu Xiangyang told Lu Dajun everything except for his conflicts with Chen Jie and the man surnamed Qian.

"Not bad, you're lucky to be able to participate in such an important operation. It'll make your file look better."

"When you return to the city, it will be good for your work and for joining the army. I will have lived up to Brother Wu's trust," Lu Dajun said with satisfaction.

Liu Xiangyang drank with Lu Dajun for a while, then stopped drinking and talked about buying couplets and New Year's goods.

As they were at the door, Li Cuihua whispered, "Xiangyang, go directly to XX Alley later. There are quite a few things there that don't require receipts. You can go and take a look."

Liu Xiangyang glanced at Lu Dajun, who remained silent and expressionless, and understood. "Thank you, Auntie. I'll go check on him in a bit."

As people passed the supply and marketing cooperative, a long queue formed at the entrance. People hunched their shoulders, put their hands in their pockets, and exhaled puffs of white breath as they inquired about the quantity of ribbonfish and the quality of the brown sugar this year.

The air was filled with the aroma of fried dough sticks and stewed meat from the state-run restaurant, making one's stomach rumble.

Liu Xiangyang didn't squeeze into the long queue at the supply and marketing cooperative. He already had all the New Year's goods. He just needed to buy some red paper for writing couplets, and some melon seeds and peanuts. That would be about it.

He meandered through the streets, familiar with the area, and entered a relatively quiet alley on the edge of the county town. There was a "market" here, but it was of a different kind. Several people wrapped in thick cotton-padded coats, with their hands tucked in, were either squatting or standing against the walls, their eyes warily scanning the occasional passerby.