One wife and one concubine

  During the intense training of the assault camp, Yuan Jing and Zeng Shan were also not idle. Due to gender differences, Luo Yi did not let them train with the male soldiers, but he also gave them some training requirements. Running, military skills, shooting and other projects, they all had to participate. Zeng Shan used to be just a big sister in the bandit's den, and she had never participated in military training before. However, for these training requirements, she did not have any complaints. Luo Yi said that later on, the assault camp would go out to fight wars, if she wanted to follow him, how could she do without some military skills?

  Apart from participating in training, Zeng Shan and Yuan Jing also recruited a logistics service team consisting of women from the town at Luo Yi's request to provide logistical support for the assault camp. The plum rain season in the south had already arrived, and the training ground was muddy all over, with soldiers crawling on the ground every day, sweating inside and mud outside, and getting soaked all over after a day of training. The logistics service team had to boil hot water every day so that the soldiers could take a hot bath after training and change into clean clothes. The women in the service team took away the dirty clothes, washed and ironed them, and let the soldiers at least start their journey with dry clothes every day.

  In training, the wear and tear of soldiers' uniforms was also very severe. A set of clothes couldn't be worn for long before it became a rag. Luo Yi ordered the clothing factory to guarantee the supply of uniforms for the troops. As soon as a soldier wore out one set of clothes, they could immediately get a new set. No one was allowed to deduct points in training on the grounds of being frugal with clothes. Le Jialin watched as large sums of money were spent on buying fabric, and she felt heartbroken.

  Luo Yi participated in the training as much as others, but among all people, Luo Yi was the most pampered one. Every day after training returned home, Zeng Shan and Yuan Jing would come over to serve him busily. In terms of attitude towards Luo Yi, Yuan Jing seemed a bit reserved. Things that directly served Luo Yi, she made Zeng Shan do, and only took charge of washing clothes and cooking for Luo Yi. Zeng Shan had no scruples, helping Luo Yi change clothes, wash baths, and even when he was extremely tired, helped him wash his face and feet, like a virtuous wife and mother. In the past on the mountain, Zeng Shan and Luo Zi often played together, hugging each other to wrestle and twist was a very normal thing, because Zeng Shan didn't think that having some physical contact with Luo Yi was awkward at all.

  "Ah, having a wife is really great." Every time Zeng Shan handed him a hot towel to wipe his face, Luo Yi would let out this happy sigh.

  Zeng Shan burst out laughing and covered his mouth with a towel: "Who's your wife? How embarrassing."

  "I was just saying it feels like having a wife. Did I say you?" Luo Yi pretended to be stupid.

  "Who are you talking about? Not Xiaojing, right? Your wife Xiaojing is cooking chicken soup for you. Is this wife good or not?"

  "Hey, what about Shuang Yong's situation?" Luo Yi detected a strong sour smell from Zeng Shan's words and quickly changed the subject.

  "Lu Shuangyong seems to have already proposed to Lijuan's family, and Lijuan is busy making new clothes. I guess they'll be getting married soon." Zeng Shan said. Lijuan was the seamstress that Lu Shuangyong had taken a liking to, and Zeng Shan knew her too. This kind of gossip always spread faster among women than among men.

  "So urgent?"

  "Uh, Lijuan said, Shuangyong is a marriage by imperial decree, saying it's your order. So we should hurry up."

  "This kid, won't it be a shotgun wedding?" Luo Yi said with a smile. Seeing Zeng Shan's puzzled expression, he explained: "It's the 'zi' of son, not the 'zhi' of imperial decree."

  "What is 'marrying off a child'?" Zeng Shan still didn't understand, and when she saw Yuan Jing enter with the dishes, she asked Yuan Jing: "Xiao Jing, do you know what 'marrying off a child' means? Luo Zi Ge said it's the 'zi' of son, not the 'zhi' of imperial decree."

  Yuan Jing was taken aback for a moment, then immediately understood, her face turned red, and she glared at Luo Yi with a scolding gaze: "What nonsense are you talking to Shan'er about?" After all, she was an educated person who had grown up in the city, unlike Zeng Shan who had always been living in a mountain bandit's lair. Although Yuan Jing hadn't heard this dirty joke before, she understood it as soon as she thought about it.

  "What does it mean?" Zeng Shan curiously asked Yuan Jing. Yuan Jing couldn't resist her, and whispered a few sentences in her ear. Zeng Shan's face also turned red, and she started punching Luo Yi with her small fists.

  "Murder! He's killing me!" Luo Yi shouted, and in return, he received an even more brutal beating.

  "Ruo Zi, Shan Er, what's going on?" Luo Yi's shout summoned Zhang Furen. Nowadays, Zhang Tianyou and his wife would come to town every now and then to live with Luo Yi in the same compound.

  "Auntie." Zeng Shan called out with a red face.

  "Hehe, Mrs. Zhang, it's nothing, just joking around." Luo Yi said with a smile.

  "Xan'er, Luo Zi is tired after a whole day, why don't you show some consideration for him?" Madam Zhang said with a stern face to Zeng Xan.

  Zeng Shan naturally knew that Mrs. Zhang was just pretending and wouldn't really be angry with her. She coquettishly said: "Auntie, you don't know, he was talking nonsense earlier."

  "What did he say?"

  "He said I murdered..." Zeng Shan suddenly stopped, knowing that the rest of the words were not decent. Yuan Jing also couldn't help but laugh, and the two girls ran out hand in hand.

  Mrs. Zhang watched the two girls run far away, took out a paper package from her arms and handed it to Luo Yi, saying: "Luo Zi, Tian Yu let me bring some Tian Qi back, I'll ask Shan Er and Xiao Jing to buy some wine to soak later, you drink a small cup every day, which helps to relieve blood stasis."

  Luo Yi took over Tian Qi and said gratefully: "Thank you, Mrs. Zhang and Manager Zhang of the mine. You are also very busy usually, I don't even have time to take care of you."

  "No need, no need, you're busy with important things. We have Shan'er and Xiao Jing to take care of us. Besides, we all have hands and feet, what else do we need taking care of?"

  The two of them chatted for a few sentences, and then Mrs. Zhang asked: "Luo Zi, there's something I've been meaning to ask you, but I haven't had the chance yet. Now that those two maids aren't around, I'll take this opportunity to ask you."

  Luo Yi saw Mrs. Zhang looking very serious and hastily asked: "What's the matter? You can ask me anything, I'll tell you everything."

  "Which one of these two girls, Shan Er and Xiao Jing, do you prefer?"

  Luo Yi waited for half a day, and the question he got was actually this one. He couldn't help but become completely red in the face: "Well, Mrs. Zhang, I really haven't thought about it seriously before. I think both of them are pretty good."

  "You, who have studied at a Western school, wouldn't think of having three wives and four concubines, would you?"

  "No, no, I won't do that," Luo Yi hastily shook his head. "I'm a modern thinker, I definitely wouldn't do something like polygamy." However, as he said this, he secretly felt a pang of regret in his heart. Having finally traveled to an era where polygamy was allowed, and having both power and status, not taking advantage of the situation would be a waste. If three wives and four concubines were too much, then one wife and one concubine should be acceptable, right? Both girls were as beautiful as flowers, and he couldn't bear to give up either of them.

  "That's troublesome. I think these two girls seem to have some feelings for you. Shan'er seems more infatuated, while Xiao Jing has something on her mind and probably doesn't have much thought about lifelong matters. However, I think she also has a good impression of you."

  Luo Yi nodded: "Xiao Jing was influenced by Marxism from a young age, and later became a Red Army soldier. In her heart, she only cared about the big affairs of the country, so it seems that she is somewhat slow to react to romantic matters."

  "This is what every girl thinks about," said Mrs. Zhang with a smile, "Xiao Jing is only 17 years old, and it's the age when she starts to have feelings. You should make up your mind as soon as possible, don't waste her youth like this."

  Luo Yi said: "Mrs Zhang, what's your opinion? Who do you think I should choose?"

  Mrs. Zhang said, "You've got me stumped. To be honest, I've known Shan'er for a bit longer and we're closer, so of course I hope you choose her. Shan'er is gentle and kind, devoted to you with all her heart, and if you were to abandon her, she would definitely be heartbroken. However, from the perspective of social status, Xiao Jing comes from a family of scholars and has culture herself, so you may have more common language and perhaps be more suitable together. Now that I've said this, I'm also feeling a bit torn."

  Luoyi said, "Mrs. Zhang is really meticulous in her observation. What you said is basically what I thought of too. However, I didn't have any issues with Xiang'er's cultural background being low, but rather felt that Xiaojing was also quite good, and my heart truly had some difficulty letting go."

  "But you've got to make a decision somehow?"

  "We're all still young, Shan'er just turned 16, Xiao Jing is 17, and I'm only 21. We're not at the age of marriage yet, are we? I think it's better to wait a few more years, maybe they'll find their own soulmates by then."

  "Isn't 21 still young?" said Mrs. Zhang. "At 21 years old, others have already had children."

  "That, that, I myself think I'm still too young." Luo Yi said, this society is changing really fast, at 21 years old you're already considered an older youth. By the 21st century, people at 31 aren't even in a hurry to get married yet. Although it's about adapting to local customs, from Luo Yi's psychological perspective, letting him marry a 16-year-old girl now is really somewhat unacceptable.

  "No matter who you choose in the end, you can't wrong either of these two girls." Mrs. Zhang saw that this topic couldn't be discussed any further and dropped a harsh remark, "I've already acknowledged them as my goddaughters, no matter who you mistreat, I won't agree to it."