Raising Adorable Kids on Coconut Island [The Sixties]

The Little Cook at the Steel Mill in the Sixties, A Beauty's Struggle in the Gobi Desert, Please Bookmark

He Zhixiang was transmigrated into a novel set in the past while still in the womb. She grew up in a crowded residential compound and became a full-time worker at a cotton mill when she turned eighteen.

She also had three close friends.

Their parents were close, and they all lived in the same compound. Even their names had been chosen to sound alike.

The cotton mill held a matchmaking event with a military corps on a certain island.

There were four handsome, courteous soldiers who happened to take a liking to He Zhixiang and her three sisters.

As it happened, the four girls shared their feelings one night.

He Zhixiang: "I like the one who never looks at people when he walks."

Xi Zhiyu: "The one with the springtime smile is nice, too."

Hua Zhilan: "Did you notice the one who doesn't smile, but has a really nice face?"

Yu Zhiyan: "The one who treated me to braised pork. I've been wondering what I should treat him to tomorrow."

The cotton mill's leaders thought that surely at least one couple would come out of the matchmaking event. Otherwise, they would be worried sick.

But it wasn't one couple who got together. It was four.

The men were handsome, the women beautiful, and all the girls came from the same residential compound. They were as close as sisters.

After the four sisters followed their husbands to Coconut Island, where they were stationed, life carried on in a simple, peaceful way.

He Zhixiang decided to take up her old hobby from her previous life: growing melons and vegetables. From time to time, she brought her sisters watermelons, coconuts, and sweet peppers.

Xi Zhiyu spent every day sewing clothes at home. Her garments, trousers, skirts, and shoes were all fashionable and eye-catching, though she could only wear them at home.

Hua Zhilan wasn't fond of sewing. She became a teacher on the island, spending her days with the children and marking homework with her sisters after school.

Yu Zhiyan cooked at home. They had dishes like chopped chili fish head, coconut chicken, and spicy hot pot, all fragrant and deliciously spicy at every meal.

Later, the four sisters had children one after another. They looked after the little ones every day, and the children catching shrimp and fish on the beach became a beautiful sight on the island.

Synopsis of The Little Cook at the Steel Mill in the Sixties:

Yu Shuiyan was the daughter of the steel mill director. It wasn't until she was eighteen that she remembered she had been born into this world from another life.

At that point, she had two choices. She could pack up and go to university, but two years later she'd be sent to the countryside as an educated youth.

Or she could go back to work at the steel mill and find someone to marry, because she really didn't want to end up in some remote village.

Yu Shuiyan chose the second option.

Sure enough, after she returned to the steel mill and got her father to arrange a job for her in the kitchen, he was sent away to the countryside.

Her mother went along to look after her husband, entrusting Yu Shuiyan and her two younger sisters from her own family to Master Liang, the steel mill's head chef.

Master Liang was Yu Shuiyan's mother's senior fellow apprentice. They had both learned their cooking skills under the same chef.

Yu Shuiyan promptly became Master Liang's apprentice, giving her a foothold at the steel mill.

But before long, Master Liang was due to head to the Third Front, carrying an iron wok on his back to lend support.

Before leaving, Master Liang was especially worried about Yu Shuiyan's love life.

He introduced her to two men.

One was the son of Master Liang's ex-wife. This man, Meng Shanguang, was good-looking and sturdy, but had a whole family to support: a long string of younger siblings and nephews. He was also unrelated to Master Liang by blood.

The other was Master Liang's sister's son. He was decent-looking and about to graduate from university as a trainee technician.

The people in the steel mill's residential compound were sure Yu Shuiyan would choose the technician.

But no one expected her to marry Meng Shanguang instead!

The people in the compound thought Yu Shuiyan was in for a hard life. Her future husband had so many children in his family, and she also had to support her mother's two younger sisters. With so many mouths to feed, the household would surely be short on money and full of chaos.

But unexpectedly, before Master Liang left, he gave Yu Shuiyan the position of head chef in the steel mill cafeteria.

Yu Shuiyan rose to become the cafeteria's top chef. She took on several apprentices every day, who followed her around and waited on her. With her skills, Yu Shuiyan was the one and only big sister to them all.

Meanwhile, Meng Shanguang, who had married Yu Shuiyan, did the laundry, cooked, and looked after the children at home. He did a decent job of bringing up that whole string of kids.

Meng Shanguang also started out as a steelworker at the mill. He was determined to work hard and improve himself so he wouldn't embarrass his wife.

Besides, Yu Shuiyan was the head chef. She could bring home some food and ingredients from the cafeteria, so none of the children went without. At least they all managed to eat their fill.

Later, the trainee technician who had been about to graduate was also sent to the countryside, and Yu Shuiyan breathed a sigh of relief.

She also knew that in the future, he would abandon his wife and children in the countryside, return to the mill, and try to seduce her, the director's daughter.

But Yu Shuiyan would never give him the chance. She just let her husband, Meng Shanguang, handle him while she enjoyed a quiet life.

*

#The heroine just wants to be a cafeteria cook#

#The hero has to do laundry, cook, look after the kids, do housework, and earn extra money during the day, then study skills and knowledge at night in case his wife gets fed up with him and kicks him out one day#

Synopsis of Beauty's Struggle in the Gobi Desert [Fifties]:

As soon as Wu Jiuzhi transmigrated to the 1950s, she took her whole family to seek refuge with relatives.

They had meant to go to the city, but they took the wrong road and were captured.

Fortunately, someone rescued them. She heard that the person had gone to the Gobi Desert to reclaim wasteland.

Wu Jiuzhi figured there was something to love at first sight after all. She went after him not to repay her debt, but to stay by his side for the long haul. If he ever ran into trouble, she'd rescue him once, and then they'd be even.

After becoming one of the group, Wu Jiuzhi came up with plenty of ideas.

She worked alongside them to dig cave dwellings in the Gobi Desert, cook for them, build houses, plant and harvest wheat, build a reservoir, plant and pick cotton, and plant and pick fruit.

She also treated the sick and gave blood transfusions, tended injured animals, taught literacy classes, and earned plenty of merit.

Later, Wu Jiuzhi met her paternal uncle, who had been away from home for many years. He had no children and wanted to adopt her as his daughter.

Her uncle told Wu Jiuzhi that she ought to find someone to look after her, and introduced her to one of his capable subordinates: Mu Qinlai, who was just as determined to overcome any challenge in the work of building the country.

Wu Jiuzhi: "It's been a while. I hardly recognize you."

Mu Qinlai: "You saved my life. Shouldn't I repay you by marrying you?"

Her uncle gave them his blessing: "May you enjoy a happy marriage for a hundred years."

*

After Mu Qinlai rescued Wu Jiuzhi, she asked around everywhere to find out where he had gone. When she finally found him, he said he didn't know her anymore.

Many years later, Mu Qinlai reminisced about the past with his grandchildren.

He said, "I've rescued more than thirty girls in my life. At first, they all said they wanted to marry me. I played dumb and said I had a bad memory. Later, I introduced them to my relatives, friends, buddies, and neighbors..."

"But your grandma was the only one who never said she wanted to marry me. Instead, she said she was coming to be my superior, to suppress me and exploit me, making my path through life winding and full of twists and turns, yet somehow letting me keep overtaking people on the bends..."

"And what happened after that?" the children gazed eagerly at him, wanting to hear more of Grandpa's wisdom.

"After that, she became the top leader of our household. When she tells me to stand, I wouldn't dare sit. When she sits, I wouldn't dare lie down..."

Wu Jiuzhi had happened to hear all of this.

Wu Jiuzhi smiled faintly. "Comrade Mu Qinlai, I'll give you one chance to rephrase that."

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