Chapter 144 Extra 1

"Milk candy." Wei Li paused for a moment.

Zhao Xiheng lowered her head, her curly hair pointing at him, her snow-white skin glowing in the sunlight, as she fiddled with the oil paper bag.

She looked strangely sweet, and Wei Li inexplicably felt that she was a perfect match for milk candy.

Zhao Xiheng took out a piece and gave it to him.

Wei Li raised her hand, indicating that she didn't have her hands free.

He held a freshly opened Coca-Cola in his left hand and a registration form in his right, clearly unable to free his hands.

Zhao Xiheng didn't think much of it, and casually unwrapped the candy and stuffed it into his mouth.

Wei Li's pale cheeks gradually flushed red, and she lowered her eyes, not daring to look at Zhao Xiheng, her heart pounding like a little rabbit.

The milk candy melted in his mouth; it was so sweet it was almost cloying. He didn't think milk candy had ever been this sweet before.

His mouth tastes cloyingly sweet, and he feels uncomfortable all over.

How come Zhao Xiheng is so well-behaved? Even though she can't even do the simplest thing like fetching water and is always arguing, she's so cute, it's probably okay, right?

Wei Li wondered to himself, if he didn't look at her, would she think he was shy?

He's not shy at all.

Wei Li bit the candy into his back teeth, forced himself to look up at her, and after thinking for a long time, stiffly said, "It's quite sweet."

It was clearly just making conversation, and Zhao Xiheng didn't know how to respond. Isn't sugar supposed to be sweet?

A fight broke out inexplicably in front of us.

"I want to eat candy and drink soda too."

"What kind of candy and soda are you eating? They're so expensive! We're almost at the front of the line, can't you just wait a bit?"

The women in front of them were getting parched from waiting in line. Watching Zhao Xiheng and Wei Li share snacks, they couldn't help but complain. The men in line were also getting impatient, and the two of them started arguing, their voices getting louder and louder.

When Zhao Xiheng heard what the two had been arguing about, she suddenly felt the bag of snacks in her hand was burning hot. Her face and ears turned red, and she wished she could dig a hole and disappear into the ground.

She buried her head and unconsciously rubbed the ground with her toes.

Wei Li was smug. He was really wicked. He felt that the louder the two people behind him were arguing, the more different he seemed from that man, whose dog didn't seem to care about its wife.

As if afraid the fire wasn't big enough, he stirred things up, saying, "That woman in front, he treated you like this before he got married, who knows what he'll do after he gets married? Why don't you reconsider?"

It just so happens that he left, making room for him.

The woman had only wanted to hear some comforting words, but they ended up arguing for no reason. She was furious and really upset. The man was also angry, so the two of them simply left the group and decided not to get married that day.

Zhao Xiheng blushed even more. Seeing the gazes coming from those around her, she covered her face with the oil paper bag. Wei Li nudged her with his elbow, his tone light and even a little boastful, "Give me another piece of candy, hurry up."

Zhao Xiheng ignored him; it was too embarrassing.

"Number 145, number 145~" the staff member shouted from inside.

Wei Li looked at the number in his hand, 148. The number 147 before him had left; he wasn't getting married today. So it would be his turn soon.

"Quick, drink this Coke. It's not good to bring it in with the cap open." He put the Coke in Zhao Xiheng's hand.

"I can't get any." It's such a big glass bottle.

"Drink as much as you can."

Zhao Xiheng drank almost half a bottle in one gulp, then let out a small burp, "I can't drink anymore."

Wei Li took the bottle and gulped it down in two big gulps before stuffing the glass bottle into the trash can at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau.

Zhao Xiheng clutched the oil paper bag, her eyes fixed on the ants on the ground. She had blushed more than usual today.

She just drank from that Coke; it still has her lipstick stain on it.

But since he'd already finished his drink, it seemed awkward and pretentious for her to remind him again, as if she cared so much. Coke is so expensive; of course she couldn't waste it if she couldn't finish it, as if he hadn't done anything wrong.

Ugh, but why didn't he wipe it off before drinking it?!

How strange!

"Number 148".

She didn't hesitate for long before Wei Li grabbed her arm and pulled her inside.

She was still holding a paper bag full of snacks in her hand. Apart from Wei Li eating a piece of candy, no one else had touched the contents. It was heavy, and she shook her hand.

Wei Li glanced at her, took the oil paper bag, and distributed the dried fruit, biscuits, and milk candies inside to the staff of the Civil Affairs Bureau.

Milk candy and peach shortbread are not cheap, and since they were given out on someone's wedding day, they were all tinged with joy, so everyone accepted them happily.

Many newlyweds brought melon seeds and candies when they came to register, and the table at the reception desk was already piled high with bright red candies and peanuts.

The process went smoothly.

Zhao Xiheng would sign whatever the staff handed her, sometimes stopping to wait for Wei Li in a daze because he wrote too slowly.

She didn't really know why it took him so long to write a name.

When Wei Li wrote his name, she glanced at it and saw that he was born on May 1, 1950, while she was born on November 30, 1952. The two were two years apart.

His pen-holding posture was stiff, and his handwriting was ugly. She looked away and didn't laugh at him. Few people in the village could graduate from primary school. He also had to earn money to support himself, so of course he didn't have much time to go to school.

Survival is the primary concern.

Finally, they were taken to a small house, where the two sat in front of a red cloth and took wedding photos side by side.

The staff kept emphasizing, "Get closer, be even more intimate."

Wei Li turned her head and fiddled with the curly bangs on her forehead. "Look at my hair."

It was already quite good, but Zhao Xiheng still raised her hand and symbolically straightened his hair, saying, "Okay."

Her heart was beating a little fast. In front of the bright red curtain, she seemed to truly feel that she was about to form a new family with another person.

She barely spoke a few words to this person, didn't know his personality, and seemed quite disliked. She had no idea what the future held for him.

The staff member couldn't help but smile at the two of them. "Come on, don't blink."

"Click." The camera clicked.

The last step in obtaining a marriage certificate is reciting vows. When the long vows were handed to the two of them, Zhao Xiheng clearly felt Wei Li's body stiffen.

She tentatively asked, "Can I not study?"

The oath-taker shook his head solemnly, "Young comrade, what's wrong with you? How can you skip steps in something as important as getting married?"

When the Civil Affairs Bureau was preparing for the oath-taking ceremony, they had actually considered the couple's educational level. Most of the time, the oath-taking officer would lead the reading. However, this young couple did not seem to be uneducated or illiterate, so he naturally assumed that the young officer was being lazy.

Zhao Xiheng tugged at Wei Li's sleeve and whispered, "Then will you read after me?"

Wei Li nodded.

For Zhao Xiheng, although she married Wei Li to get money for her mother's medical treatment, she still planned to live a good life with Wei Li.

Getting married is a once-in-a-lifetime event, a very solemn and sacred occasion.

For Yu Weili, he never thought he would marry such a beautiful young girl in his life. He had never thought about this before. He was doing quite well on his own, living a carefree life and having enough money to spend.

But whenever she saw Zhao Xiheng, she always wanted to look at her more, wishing she were at home. On impulse, she got a marriage certificate with her and not only did she not regret it, but she also seemed to be looking forward to the future.

The bright red booklet was tucked in his pocket, feeling a little hot. Wei Li kept touching his pocket as he pulled Zhao Xiheng out of the Civil Affairs Bureau.

He had never felt ashamed of his lack of education before.

He earns more than those educated civil servants and teachers in the city.

But Zhao Xiheng only has a high school education. What should one learn in high school? Probably some profound knowledge that he has never even heard of.

He only knew bits and pieces of the characters, and now he suddenly felt his face burning.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

"A little." She didn't eat any of the snacks.

"Come on, let's go eat at the state-run restaurant." Wei Li naturally grabbed her hand and walked towards the town center.

"Save your money, it's so expensive." Zhao Xiheng calculated that he had spent about two hundred yuan today.

What a spendthrift! How much money can afford such a joke?

Wei Li flicked her forehead and teased her, "What's wrong with you? You just got your marriage certificate and you're already controlling my money? I can support you, you're always worrying about nothing."

She flicked him hard, without any restraint. Zhao Xiheng gasped in pain, her forehead turning red. She angrily shook him off and walked away.

Wei Li hadn't expected the girl to be so inexperienced, so he quickly chased after her and grabbed her arm.

He was shaken off by Zhao Xiheng, then grabbed her again, only to be shaken off once more. He could only clutch her skirt and say, "Eat more meat later, and you'll make up for it, okay?"

Meat? Zhao Xiheng hasn't eaten meat for months.

She unconsciously salivated and slowed her pace.

According to Zhao's mother, Zhao Xiheng's cooking skills are terrible. The food she makes is not fit for human consumption. Not to mention that she hasn't eaten meat for several months, she has basically never eaten anything with a normal taste. It's just that it's cooked and barely edible.

Seeing that she was interested, Wei Li chased after her, tilting his head to look at her, "Braised pork? Pork and scallion dumplings? Braised carp?"

Zhao Xiheng swallowed hard, finding it increasingly difficult to maintain her composure.

"Let's run faster so we can get a good seat. It'll get crowded soon." Wei Li smiled, revealing a set of sharp white teeth, and grabbed her as they jogged.

However, state-run hotels do not allow customers to order food; they can only choose from a few dishes depending on what the chef is making that day.

Fortunately, there were plenty of meat and vegetables: braised beef, sweet and sour pork, and beef and onion dumplings. Wei Li and she sat in a corner, and Wei Li pointed to these dishes. "Let's add a plate of cold noodles and two bottles of orange soda."

Once all the dishes were served, he asked someone to set some aside to pack and take home for Zhao's mother later.

Zhao Xiheng's upbringing over a decade has barely maintained her ability to eat slowly and deliberately.

I'm so touched to be able to eat meat again after several months.

She had only eaten half her meal when Wei Li suddenly said, "Let's move there tonight."

Zhao Xiheng choked.

"You probably didn't bring much either, right? There are two rooms in the house, one for the two of us and one for Mom."

Even the meat in her mouth didn't taste good anymore, but Zhao Xiheng had no reason to refuse, so she could only nod in agreement. It would be strange if they didn't live together after getting married.

Seeing Wei Li's extravagant spending, Zhao Xiheng couldn't believe that this bare-walled place was his home.

The house was a brick and tile house with water pipes, a well in the yard, and incandescent light bulbs hanging from it. The walls were plastered white, and the house was one of the best in the village.

Apart from the Party Secretary's family, no one in the village uses lamps.

But it was completely bare, no table, no chair, no mirror, not even a calendar. The emptiness was so great that it echoed, which was kind of scary.

How do you usually eat?

"Eat squatting by the stove."

Zhao Xiheng is now starting to miss the broken, crippled table in her dilapidated house.