Faced with the crowd's questions, the two young men silently put the sewing machine and the bundles into the truck bed.

When he arrived, Zhao Jingyu had already prepared a letter of introduction from his employer.

Xu Qingning's household registration was at the No. 3 State-owned Cotton Mill. Liang Yufeng asked Zhao Jingyu to wait outside while she accompanied Xu Qingning into the office.

Liang Yufeng didn't have a good impression of Zhao Jingyu, thinking he was too much of a scoundrel, but since Xu Qingning was willing, she, as his aunt, couldn't do anything about it.

At least Zhao Jingyu is willing to take responsibility and can give Xu Qingning and the child a legitimate status.

When they reached the office door, Liang Yufeng hesitated again. She pulled Xu Qingning aside and whispered, "Qingning, your aunt was just angry about your father's attitude and acted impulsively. Don't you want to reconsider?"

"Auntie, I've made up my mind." Xu Qingning knew that Liang Yufeng was genuinely thinking of her best interests, and said earnestly, "Don't worry, I will live a good life with him."

As long as Zhao Jingyu is willing to marry her, that's fine.

What more could she want?

"If you ever encounter any difficulties in the future, remember to tell me." Liang Yufeng sighed when she saw Xu Qingning say this. "Although your aunt doesn't have much money and can't help you much, she can at least give you some advice. I heard that Zhao Jingyu has many brothers and sisters. If anyone bullies you after you marry into the family, just tell your aunt."

“Okay, I’ll remember.” Xu Qingning didn’t mind Zhao Jingyu’s family situation. After all, she and Zhao Jingyu had agreed to go their separate ways in three years.

And she wouldn't let her family bully her.

Liu Mingfang, who works in the office, is Liu Yuzhen's cousin. She knows Xu Qingning and finds it strange: "Qingning, aren't you going to work in the countryside in two months? Why are you suddenly getting married?"

"It wasn't sudden, we've been preparing for it for a while," Xu Qingning said calmly. "Auntie, it's my sister who's going to the countryside, not me."

She knew that Jiang Yumei and Tang Wenya had been talking about her going to the countryside at the factory for a while.

Okay, let her shout too!

“Yes, it’s Tang Wenya, not Qingning.” Liang Yufeng nodded repeatedly. She also knew Liu Mingfang and chimed in, “My niece doesn’t like to talk. She can’t argue with those two, so she just lets them gossip.”

"Oh, I was just asking casually." Liu Mingfang was puzzled, but she still gave Xu Qingning a letter of introduction. "Don't forget to invite us to your wedding."

If Xu Qingning doesn't go to the countryside, then it can only be Tang Wenya.

But she heard that Tang Wenya had medical records at the educated youth office, saying that she was too weak to go to the countryside to work.

Of course, she shouldn't meddle in other people's business, and besides, her relationship with Liu Yuzhen wasn't very good. Liu Yuzhen came from a wealthy family and looked down on her.

"I'll treat you all to some now." Xu Qingning was prepared and immediately took out a handful of wedding candies she had bought on the way and distributed them to everyone in the office.

The office erupted in cheers.

With a letter of introduction, getting a marriage certificate is not troublesome at all. Registration and filling out forms can be completed in less than half an hour.

After leaving the Civil Affairs Bureau, Zhao Jingyu took Xu Qingning home.

The family compound of the Oriental Ocean Shipping Company consists of single-story houses, which is like an urban village. The seamen are at sea for several months or even a year at a time, and they take turns on leave.

As a result, many dormitories were left empty, and the Ocean Shipping Company converted some of them into the Oriental Guesthouse.

To facilitate management, the company built several more walls to separate the staff dormitories from the hotel, which over time turned into a series of large, crowded courtyards.

The car came to a steady stop at the entrance of the courtyard. Zhao Jingyu was the first to jump off the car, opened the cargo bed flap, and together with two young men, unloaded the sewing machine and the pigs and sheep from the cargo bed.

Xu Qingning also got out of the passenger seat and followed them into the yard.

The large courtyard of Zhao Jingyu's house housed more than twenty families. A row of water taps was placed in the middle of the courtyard, and several women were washing clothes while chatting and laughing.

The women saw the big red flower tied to the front of the cart and saw so many things being unloaded from the truck bed. In particular, a young and pretty girl also came in.

They teased Zhao Jingyu all at once: "Zhao Jingyu, are you getting married? When did you get a wife?"

Wait, this girl looks familiar. Isn't she Xu Qingning, the younger sister of Tang Wenya, Xiao Tingshen's girlfriend?

I heard that Xu Qingning likes Xiao Tingshen; she used to come here all the time…

"Yes, we just got our marriage certificate today." Zhao Jingyu glanced at Xu Qingning and said to everyone in a serious tone, "We're having a wedding celebration tomorrow, so please come and join us for the feast."

"Really?" the women exclaimed.

When did Xu Qingning and Zhao Jingyu get together?

Why was there no prior warning?

"Of course it's true." Zhao Jingyu took Xu Qingning's hand, and Xu Qingning didn't object, letting him hold her hand as they returned to their dormitory.

They already have children, so shaking hands is no big deal.

He is her partner in raising the child, so she has to treat him well. Even if they can't get along, she has to maintain a superficial relationship.

Once inside, Xu Qingning withdrew her hand, her peach blossom eyes brimming with tears as she looked at him: "Why did you go to such lengths to treat us to a meal? You know I don't mind these things."

“I know you don’t mind, but I’ll be gone for half a year, and I don’t know when I’ll be back. Are you sure you can handle childbirth and postpartum care all by yourself?” Zhao Jingyu glanced at her casually. “I’ll have my mom come and take care of you for a while. You should meet her before I leave, right?”

"I definitely should meet them. You've thought of everything." Xu Qingning smiled and asked him with interest, "I heard you have quite a few siblings. How many people are in your family?"

"You've already got your marriage certificate, and you're only now starting to check your household registration? Isn't that a bit late?" Zhao Jingyu glanced at Xu Qingning with a playful smile. "Don't worry, they're all in the countryside, it won't affect you. It's only three years!"

"That's good." Xu Qingning saw that he didn't want to talk about it, so she didn't ask. She wasn't really interested in their family's affairs; she was just asking casually.

The two young men carefully carried the sewing machine in and asked Zhao Jingyu, "Boss, we've brought all the betrothal gifts downstairs, where should we put them?"

"Leave it outside for now. My mom will be here soon, and she can handle it." Zhao Jingyu looked at the betrothal gifts that had been brought back, a slight smile playing on his lips. He turned to Xu Qingning and said, "I'm taking them to the cafeteria for lunch now. Do you want to come?"

"I won't go. I'm tired. I'll rest for a while. Just bring me the food back." Xu Qingning sat down on the bed. Unlike the hustle and bustle of yesterday, the room was clean and tidy, and even the blankets on the bed were neatly folded.

Zhao Jingyu said nothing and took the two young men to the cafeteria for lunch.

On the way, one of the young men said hesitantly, "Boss, even if you and Xu Qingning did *that* that night, the child might not be yours, right? This is a major life event."

They all knew that Xu Qingning liked Xiao Tingshen, not Zhao Jingyu.

It was shocking that they suddenly came to Zhao Jingyu's door and asked him to take responsibility.

"Exactly, none of us brothers can believe it's true." Another young man agreed, clearing his throat. "What if the child isn't yours? Wouldn't that be a huge loss?"

"No matter what, she did lose her virginity to me that night, and the child is most likely mine. It's only right that I give her a proper status," Zhao Jingyu said calmly. "As for the rest, we'll talk about it later."