Forced to marry a disabled man in the countryside? I'll repay you tenfold!

There was no way to hide this, so Su Wanqing could only say insincerely, "Yes, I suggested to Leader Jiang and Director Li that winter might come early this year and the snow would be heavy, and I hoped they would make arrangements as soon as possible to minimize the losses."

For the sake of the merit reward in the space, she had to accept this.

Qin Xiao's mouth gaped open, and it took him a long time to close it. He had a new understanding of Su Wanqing—he had thought his sister-in-law was just a highly skilled doctor, but he never expected that she could also make suggestions to her superiors, and that those suggestions would actually be adopted and implemented! How much influence and ability did she have? His gaze towards Su Wanqing suddenly held more respect.

Lin Tingting snorted coldly and said sarcastically, "Don't listen to some people's bragging! How can they have such a big influence, making the higher-ups do whatever they want? This involves mobilizing resources from the entire Ili Prefecture! We followed them around for ten days, witnessing firsthand how much grain and coal was transferred from above, just because of her word? Besides, it's winter months in advance, why don't you say it snows in June? This resource mobilization must have been planned from the beginning!"

While eating, Zhou's mother casually chimed in, "Tingting, this might really be related to Su Wanqing. I was in charge of the warehouse a while ago, and there was a lot more stuff in there. Secretary Liu bought dozens of tons of sweet potatoes and potatoes, stockpiled a bunch of coal, and even got cotton delivered. She told me personally that it was all her suggestion." She paused, a hint of resentment in her voice.

"I wish she didn't have that much influence, but your uncle was able to get the grain ration smoothly because of Su Wanqing."

He seemed to be saying, "There's nothing I can do, but she does have that kind of influence."

Lin Tingting retorted stubbornly, "That's her making a mountain out of a molehill! How terrible can a blizzard be? Because of this, Brother Qin has been running around for over ten days, and some people in the counties just wouldn't believe it and refused to stockpile food. You, on the other hand, can do it with just a word, while we've been running around like crazy trying to persuade you. Do you know how many cold shoulders Brother Qin has endured these past few days trying to complete his mission?"

Qin Xiao's face darkened: "Comrade Lin Tingting, watch your words. I'm willing to do anything that benefits the country and the organization, and that can help prevent disasters. If you feel wronged working as my assistant, you can submit a report to leave at any time."

"Fine, I won't say anything more!" Lin Tingting snorted, glaring fiercely at Su Wanqing. "You're really something."

Su Wanqing smiled and touched her belly. Before she could even speak, Zhou Yanshen frowned and began to scold Lin Tingting. Su Wanqing hid behind him and watched Lin Tingting quietly. Lin Tingting was furious at Su Wanqing's smug look.

Not content with Zhou Yanshen's reprimand, Uncle Ding then tapped the table:

"Tingting, our whole family is hoping for the best. Don't you know how much your sister-in-law has done for the troupe and the family? Without her, would our family be like this now?"

She's not asking for anyone's thanks, so stop being sarcastic. Can't you even have a peaceful meal? What kind of talk is this? Eat if you can, otherwise go home right now!

The whole family pitched in, forcing Lin Tingting to apologize to Su Wanqing.

Finally, with red eyes, Lin Tingting reluctantly said "I'm sorry," and then angrily ate three bowls of rice.

She simply couldn't understand why, after being away for so long, her entire family would start attacking her the moment she returned and only said a few words to that woman! What had she done wrong?

Seeing that her uncle and Zhou Yanshen had both dealt with Lin Tingting, Su Wanqing didn't know what else to say, so she changed the subject:

"By the way, Secretary Liu said that once the grain rations are replenished, people have to be assigned to work. There's a substitute teacher position available now, but it's not a permanent one. It's ten work points a day plus a small amount of ration coupons, but there are no official grain coupons, cloth coupons, or border subsidies. If you don't want to, you'll have to work in the fields."

Gu Yuan was genuinely surprised this time.

He knew how precious the teaching position was—the quota was extremely tight, with a few spots reserved for locals, a few for educated youth, and ordinary people having no chance at all. Out of over a hundred educated youth in the 65th Regiment, only two could become teachers, which showed how rare the job was.

He's an unregistered resident, and he's already a teacher after just getting the necessary connections? Is Dr. Su his biological daughter?

Zhou's mother clapped her hands in delight: "Wanqing, you've done a great job! Your Uncle Gu is a scholar, and I was worried about finding him a warehouse job, but being a teacher is much better than that!"

Gu Yuan understood that his former high status was a thing of the past. His whole family was stuck in a labor camp, and he was already content to be a teacher. He would take this job as a temporary refuge, and it would also allow him to openly take care of his parents. He would figure out a way to bring them back next year.

He thanked her earnestly, "Xiao Su, thank you. I'm very satisfied with this arrangement; it's my blessing to be a teacher. If there's anything you need me for in the future, please don't hesitate to ask."

Su Wanqing ate her rice, thinking to herself that she would be grateful if they could move out and live their own lives as soon as possible.

Seeing her aunt and that "pretty boy uncle" being so grateful to Su Wanqing, Lin Tingting pouted, feeling extremely resentful.

Su Wanqing brought up the matter of adding a house to the plantation again, and said that she would pay for another one to be built for Zhou's mother, and that they could move in in about ten days.

Zhou Yanshen looked at her, his eyes filled with apology: "Thank you for your hard work, Wanqing."

Zhou's mother, however, was displeased: "That brick house is only ten or twenty square meters per room, and it's all empty. I want a stove and a toilet, but there's no toilet, and I also want a place to take a bath. It's not as convenient as this small courtyard..."

Zhou Yanshen pressed her down: "Mom, you move over first, I'll take care of the courtyard and the rest of the house for you slowly."

Only then did Zhou's mother calm down.

In short, Zhou's mother was willing to move out and not get involved with her daughter-in-law, and everyone would live separately. Zhou Yanshen was also willing to compromise a bit. In the past, it was just his mother, so he always had to take care of her. Now that his mother was getting married, it would be better for them to live separately from now on.

After dinner, Zhou Yanshen drank with Qin Xiao for a while. Zhou Yanshen's face didn't flush when he drank, but Qin Xiao's face turned as red as Guan Yu's, and he eventually lay down and fell fast asleep.

Gu Yuan diligently cleaned up the dishes, and his efficiency made Uncle Ding wonder: Was this person faking it or was he really that diligent?

Lin Tingting complained to Zhou's mother about the past few months in the military compound, while Qin Xue stared longingly at the oysters in the backyard, pestering Su Wanqing that she wanted to eat them that night. Su Wanqing, whose space was almost overflowing with them, nodded.

She went back to her room to change her clothes and prepared to go out.

"Going out?" Zhou Yanshen's breath still smelled of alcohol, but his eyes were clear.

Su Wanqing nodded: "Go see Director Li, and while you're at it, go to the county town to buy some clothes and other things. My belly is getting bigger and bigger, and I can't fit into some of my clothes anymore. You should take a nap after you've had your drink. I'll take a tractor; it's very safe."

She really needs to buy some clothes. Although she makes them herself now, she doesn't know how, so she has no choice but to buy them.

She didn't know the exact date the blizzard would arrive, but according to Gu Zhixing, it should be soon, probably in a few days. She needed to take the opportunity to buy more visible items.