The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

After returning, Gu’er and the others rested for two days before they started getting busy.

At the start of the month, Yong Jian’s people vacated the building. Gu’er went to inspect it and found that many parts of the interior needed to be changed. It was a considerable amount of work.

The crew Sun Jiaming had hired was already on site, and Gu’er was kept busy for several days as well.

Although she’d said she would leave the renovations to Sun Jiaming and Liu Yuan, Gu’er couldn’t possibly stay completely uninvolved. She had to explain her ideas and opinions to the construction crew. She also had to visit the site regularly to check on their progress and make sure any mistakes were corrected early on.

During the renovations, Gu’er and Li Zhi took another trip to Guangzhou and Wenzhou and shipped a large quantity of goods back.

In addition, Gu’er also took a trip to the Soviet Union with Dingzi. She found Marina and had her help find a local business owner to learn how to make Soviet Dalieba bread and Gewasi.

These products were sold in Harbin, but not in their own city. If they wanted to sell them, they couldn’t possibly carry them back from the Soviet Union; they’d exhaust themselves and still not be able to bring back much. As for shipping from Harbin, Gu’er had researched the market and run the numbers—there wasn’t much profit to be made. That was why Gu’er decided to learn the recipes and produce the items herself. Of course, she paid for the recipes she learned.

The recipes for these two items weren’t difficult, nor were they hard to make. As long as they had the ingredients and equipment, they could produce them.

As soon as Gu’er returned, she had someone purchase all the necessary supplies. To make the Dalieba bread, they needed an oven, but they didn’t have one. So, Gu’er had someone in the village build a traditional brick-and-clay oven. The village had an abundance of wood—birch and pine were all over the mountains. Firewood was the one thing they would never run short of.

She planned to test the recipe first to see if she could make the bread successfully. If she could, she would then teach the skill to people she trusted and have them make it for her. She would pay them a salary or, in time, give them a share of the profits. She would sign contracts with them stipulating that the Dalieba they produced could only be supplied to her. If the recipe was leaked, they would face a hefty penalty. She couldn’t possibly spend all her time making bread herself. But when it came to others, the allure of profit was strong, and she worried someone might leak the recipe. That’s why signing a contract was essential.

Gu’er crumbled the starter, soaked it to dissolve, and began mixing the dough. In addition to flour, she added salt, beer, maltose, and fresh milk. Lastly, she added water and some oil.

Once the dough had risen, Gu’er removed it from the bowl. She kneaded it briefly, cut it into two pieces, punched the air out, and then shaped them into rounds.

Sun Jiaming stood nearby, watching Gu’er knead the dough. Her movements were light and graceful, and as her head swayed with the rhythm of her body, she possessed an ineffable beauty.

Sun Jiaming took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the sweat from her forehead and the tip of her nose.

"Whoops, I didn’t see a thing!"

Li Zhi called out, covering his eyes as he appeared at the kitchen doorway.

"What are you yelling about? We weren’t doing anything."

Gu’er shot him a glare, but her cheeks flushed slightly. She had originally wanted to come back with just Sun Jiaming, but Li Zhi and Dingzi had insisted on tagging along, leaving Liu Yuan all alone in the city to oversee the renovations. Liu Yuan had been complaining about it ever since they arrived.

"I came to get Jia Ming. Gu’er is busy in here, so what’s a big guy like you doing in the kitchen? Come on, let’s go. I heard there are fish here. Take us fishing! We’ll catch a few big ones and have Gu’er stew them for us later."

Li Zhi came over to pull Sun Jiaming away.

"Brother Jia Ming, you should take them. I don’t need any help here."

Gu’er knew Sun Jiaming felt uneasy leaving her alone and wanted to help, but with Li Zhi and Dingzi around, it was fine to let them go out and have some fun.

Sun Jiaming left with Li Zhi and Dingzi, leaving Gu’er alone in the kitchen.

As Gu’er worked the dough, her mind drifted to the events of their return earlier that day.

Li Zhi had driven them. The moment their car entered the village, it drew a crowd of onlookers. When people saw her and Sun Jiaming, they all greeted them warmly.

Gu’er spotted several members of the Zhou family. They looked at her and Sun Jiaming with envy, but no hatred. ’They must feel we’re not on the same level anymore,’ Gu’er thought. ’That’s why they just greet me warmly and don’t try anything else.’

She saw Zhou Mei, who gave them a couple of glances before walking away. Gu’er had heard that Zhou Mei was supposed to be married off to someone in another village, but the engagement had fallen through for some reason.

Quite a few people asked her about Li Hua. Gu’er just smiled and said nothing.

A large crowd of people walked them to the Sun Family home. She and Sun Jiaming had brought back plenty of candy and other treats, which they shared with everyone. The villagers were overjoyed, saying the two of them had struck it rich. They urged them not to forget the folks back home and to visit whenever they had time. They also offered to help if Gu’er and Sun Jiaming ever needed it. Sun Jiaming and Gu’er agreed, but politely declined the offers of help, and the crowd finally dispersed.

However, Gu’er had already heard what was going on with the Zhou family.

Li Hua and Zhou Mazi’s divorce had been the talk of the village for some time. Opinions were divided. Some said Zhou Mazi was inhuman, that he beat his wife mercilessly and no woman should have to live with a man like that. Others called Li Hua cruel for abandoning even her own children to enjoy a comfortable life in the city. But no matter what they said, the villagers were just outsiders who could only gossip, not interfere.

As for the Zhou family, Zhou Mazi had been beaten up a few days prior. He couldn’t repay a debt, so his creditors had given him a harsh beating and then came to his house. They hauled away anything that could be sold. Now, apart from the heated kang bed they slept on, the Zhou family didn’t even own a wooden chest, let alone anything else.

After the beating, Zhou Mazi was laid up on the kang for several days. The ones who truly suffered, however, were Zhou Feng’er and Zhou Duo’er. The two girls had to wait on him hand and foot, yet Zhou Mazi still either beat or cursed them, taking out all his frustrations on them.

With Li Hua gone, Zhou Feng’er and Zhou Duo’er finally realized they had been living in paradise. Now, they were responsible for everything, inside the house and out in the fields. If they didn’t work, Zhou Mazi would beat them, so they could only grit their teeth and carry on, crying from exhaustion every day. Even then, it was never good enough. Even Zhou Cai would curse or kick them if a meal was late or not to his liking. If the sisters dared to fight back, Zhou Mazi would join in with his fists. Their lives became unbearably bitter. Only now did they understand that their mother, Li Hua, hadn’t been useless at all. When she was around, they had been the ones enjoying a life of ease. But even if they regretted it now, it was too late.

They had also gone to the Li Family to beg for help, but the Li Family felt the three children were too vicious and refused to intervene. They were Zhou Mazi’s children, after all; he wasn’t likely to beat them to death. The Li Family decided to let the two sisters suffer, so they could finally understand the kind of life their own mother had endured.

Hearing about the Zhou family’s circumstances, Gu’er couldn’t quite describe how she felt. It wasn’t exactly satisfying, but she couldn’t bring herself to feel any sympathy either. ’As long as Li Hua isn’t involved, let the Zhou family self-destruct however they want,’ she thought. ’It has nothing to do with me.’

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A note from the author: Thank you to Li Xuexiang and cxw33 for the peace charms, and thank you to Melody Ranran and Tian Gongnan for the monthly tickets! Thank you all for your support. I just got back; there will be another update tonight.