"No!"
Zhan Zeyi interrupted Tang Qiyue's guess with certainty.
"He doesn't have the face to come looking for trouble with you!"
After Tang Qiyue left yesterday, some people from the fishing village had come to the military camp—not to complain, but to apologize.
They knew better than to fight soldiers. Even though the man Tang Qiyue beat up was a bastard, the villagers couldn't blindly support abuse. Right and wrong still mattered.
Zhan Zeyi knew Tang Qiyue hadn't suffered a loss, but he was disgusted by the domestic abuser. Learning that the fishing village had long considered beating one's wife "normal," even he looked down on them. He discussed it with Political Commissar Wu and arranged for Zheng Hongxia, in charge of women's affairs, to go and educate the villagers.
He didn't let Tang Qiyue go at the time simply because he feared she would run into trouble again.
Tang Qiyue understood that Zhan Zeyi wasn't brushing her off, so she didn't push the topic. Instead, she planned to visit Xu Qiuju later to discuss vegetables.
Zhan Zeyi left with his lunchbox, still tied up with training duties. He simply reminded her not to wander off.
Tang Qiyue didn't rush to Xu Qiuju. After he left, she checked her system. She had no points left, and there were too many things she wanted to redeem, so she needed to earn more.
Scanning the crabs and octopus in the wooden bucket, she discovered they could be exchanged for points.
Though worthless to the islanders, fresh seafood was a luxury in this era with limited transportation.
With just half a bucket of crabs and octopus, Tang Qiyue earned fifty points. She had originally planned to redeem them for vegetable seeds, but she didn't have enough points. In the apocalypse, seeds were extremely valuable, so she settled for exchanging them for seasonings instead.
After tidying up, Tang Qiyue went to find Xu Qiuju. Outside the door, she saw Xu Qiuju's three children chasing each other in the yard while she scolded them with a headache.
"Sister-in-law, come inside! Don't mind these rascals—they make me anxious!"
Xu Qiuju beckoned her in. The island was safe, so she wasn't worried about the children.
Inside, Tang Qiyue realized her own house was far too tidy. Children made a huge difference. Though Xu Qiuju and her husband, Hu Peng, slept in the main house, the three children had their own room—but the youngest was too small, so Xu Qiuju still had to sleep with him.
The house was messy, with clothes tossed from chairs onto the bed. Tang Qiyue didn't hesitate to start tidying up.
"Raising children is so stressful! I regret having so many. If I weren't worried about them starving, I wouldn't have joined the army!" Xu Qiuju sighed.
She and Hu Peng had married young, lived with his in-laws, and each year Hu Peng would add a new child to her care. Pregnancy was hard, but the in-laws helped. A disaster years ago had forced everyone to struggle, and Xu Qiuju's brothers had left their children with her, adding to her burden.
Food was scarce. Hu Peng's allowance helped, but barely enough for three children and the in-laws, let alone additional nephews and nieces. She decided to join the military post to survive.
Now, military dependents could eat well, but three mischievous children were a lot to manage alone.
Tang Qiyue felt sorry but didn't suggest involving Xu Qiuju's in-laws—she guessed they had their reasons.
Hu Peng mentioned that the children would soon go to school and only be picked up once a month, relieving her daily exhaustion. Xu Qiuju's eyes lit up. She believed sons shouldn't be spoiled too much, so this was a relief.
"A school will be built on the island?" Tang Qiyue asked.
"There aren't enough children for that. The school is at the previous military region. Any child of age can go there," Xu Qiuju explained.
"But there will still be a childcare class on the island to help take care of the little ones, so no one is busy all day. We can do things we like too," she added.
This was great news, and Tang Qiyue felt optimistic. Thinking about the fishing village, she wondered if some of their children would be recruited—it would ease the women's burden.
Tang Qiyue then mentioned vegetable seeds. Xu Qiuju slapped her thigh in excitement.
"I knew you wouldn't have prepared any! I brought some!"
A countryside native, Xu Qiuju had brought plenty to save on food tickets. She laid out loofah seeds, beans, and cucumbers, explaining planting times and methods. Tang Qiyue listened carefully—this would make her long-term survival much easier.
If not for a soldier calling for help, Tang Qiyue and Xu Qiuju could have chatted all day.
Xu Qiuju was surprised when Tang Qiyue prepared to cook herself. While she could cook for the children, Tang Qiyue's meal would have been exhausting otherwise. She could have eaten at the canteen, but her circumstances were unique.
Tang Qiyue planned octopus pancakes and steamed the three leftover crabs. Firewood was delivered, and she lit the fire to start cooking.
Just as she brought the food inside, someone called her from the doorway. Crabs didn't taste good cold, and though she didn't want to move, the commotion was strange enough that she had to get up.