Although it was just a grocery shopping trip, it was the first time the two of them had ever shopped for groceries in Shanghai, so Xu Aipiao took it very seriously and spent a long time choosing a dress.

How about this one?

She picked up a light pink long dress and compared it to herself.

Li Xian nodded seriously: "It looks good."

Xu Nuo felt it was too ordinary and was not satisfied, so she picked up a white cheongsam dress: "How about this one?"

Li Xian nodded blankly: "It looks good."

After asking about seven or eight items, the answer was always that they were beautiful. Xu Nuo said unhappily, "Then which one should I choose? Pick one for me."

Li Xianfei quickly pointed to the piece with the most fabric and said without hesitation, "This one."

"Hmm..." Xu Nuo pouted and shook her head, rejecting his choice: "It feels too hot."

After much deliberation, she chose a fitted black dress to match Li Xian's black outfit.

It was a shipment from the port that I bought on the black market with Liu Meixiang a few days ago.

Her waistline was perfectly cinched, and the white pearl embellishments made her look like a noble mermaid.

She even drew her eyebrows, which were as dark as distant mountains, her lips as black as lacquer, and her eyes as bright as stars.

It's so beautiful you can't take your eyes off it.

Okay.

She was getting ready at her vanity, and her husband didn't show the slightest impatience, which put her in a great mood. She turned around with a bright smile.

Li Xian stood up, pulled the person closer to him, and hugged him tightly.

Xu Nuo, whose eyebrow was almost rubbed off, asked, "Huh?"

"Nuonuo." Li Xian looked down at her, declaring his ownership: "She's mine."

Xu Nuo was secretly laughing to herself, and reached out to hug his waist, retorting in a soft and coquettish voice, "You're clearly mine."

Li Xian lowered his head and touched the top of her head. "Mmm."

Because they didn't get up early, it was already 10:30 a.m. when the two of them got ready and left.

The two went to the black market in Shanghai.

The resources in the big city are far superior to those in Lu County. There is everything you could want to eat, play, and wear. It has become a small shopping center.

Xu Nuo even saw the full score of Mozart's Don Juan on the black market.

She picked it up with great interest and flipped through it; it was indeed the original Italian version.

"Comrade, how much is this?"

The other person could tell from Xu Nuo's expression that she genuinely wanted to buy it, and gestured: "One yuan."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the money was handed to the stall owner, who readily accepted it.

Xu Nuo, holding the book with a delighted expression, asked, "How did you know I would buy it? You were so quick to pull out your wallet."

There was a section of the ground that was broken. Li Xian carefully helped her to the side and said in a low voice, "I'm glad you saw this book."

Li Xian rarely tries to figure out what others are thinking, and he doesn't know if he is sensitive to emotions, but he always pays attention to Xu Nuo. He knows her likes and dislikes, and how much she likes or dislikes something, even better than she does.

He held out his hand to her: "I'll take it."

Xu Nuo gave him the book.

The black market was a mixed bag, and there were quite a few people at this time. The two, one cold and the other sweet, had extraordinary temperaments. Almost every time they passed a stall, an enthusiastic stall owner would try to sell them to them: "Comrade, would you like to buy some melon seeds?"

Xu Nuo stopped and pointed her white fingertips at the white-skinned pumpkin seeds: "I want these, um... I'll take a pound."

"Alright." The stall owner weighed out a pound quickly, took the money from Li Xian's hand, and couldn't help but laugh, "Lady, your husband treats you so well, you're so lucky."

Li Xian recalled their agreement and pursed his lips. Unexpectedly, he heard her sweet voice: "Yes."

He was somewhat incredulous, and suddenly turned to look at her, his heart pounding violently.

Xu Nuo smiled at him.

Li Xianwei subtly curled his lips.

The two bought meat, eggs, vegetables, and a large bag of white rice.

Xu Nuo was looking at too many things and wanted to help carry some sunflower seeds or snacks, but Li Xian grabbed them in his hand and wouldn't even let her carry a book, saying, "I'll do it."

Xu Nuo gave him a strange look, sensing that he was in an unusually good mood today.

Her usually expressionless face now showed something that seemed to radiate joy.

On the way back, she walked slower than on the way there because Xu Nuo's new shoes were rubbing her feet. When they reached a deserted alley, Li Xian stared at her feet with an inscrutable expression.

Xu Nuo warned him again, "No, no, you can't come over and hug me."

She didn't want to be criticized or lectured in front of everyone.

Li Xian quietly withdrew his outstretched hand, pursed his lips, and obediently nodded.

When they arrived at their doorstep, Xu Nuo looked around to make sure no one was there, then threw herself at Li Xian. The moment her arms reached around his neck, she was lifted up.

He weighed it in his hand.

Xu Nuo asked, "Have you gained weight?"

"You've lost weight."

He unlocked the door, carried her inside, and gently scolded her, "You didn't eat properly."

Xu Nuo was unconvinced, so she reached out and pinched his cheek, pouting as she said, "Then have you been eating properly?"

Li Xian's expression froze for a moment.

No.

He lifted her onto a chair and knelt down to take off her leather shoes.

A red mark appeared on the fair instep.

Li Xian looked up and discussed with her, "I won't wear it anymore."

Xu Ai Piao Liang, who always wanted to strike a pose, firmly shook her head. What were red marks? She had even bled her heels for the sake of looking pretty. However, seeing Li Xian's sinister gaze as he stared at her pretty shoes, Xu Nuo cupped his face and gave him a serious warning: "Don't touch my pretty shoes! Girls' high heels are all show and no substance. Red marks are nothing."

Li Xian gave a muffled "hmm," which was taken as an agreement.

He got up to boil water, and after a while he brought over a basin of warm water for her to soak her feet.

"I'm going to the kitchen."

Xu Nuoxiang kissed him and said, "Go ahead."

Although the kitchen has never been used, someone used to come and clean it regularly, so apart from some dust, it wasn't particularly dirty.

Xu Nuo sat in a chair flipping through a book, completely forgetting that her feet were soaking in water. It was Li Xian who came in just in time, took a towel, and dried her feet.

Her long hair wasn't tied up; it was loose on both sides, and when it blocked her view, she simply reached out and brushed it aside.

A pair of hands gathered her long hair and tied it up in two quick strokes.

He cupped her fair cheek in his palm and asked, "Are you hungry?"

Xu Nuo turned to the second act of the opera and was reading the recitative. She rubbed her soft cheek against his palm and looked up at him adorably: "Aren't you hungry yet? Should I help you?"

"No need, you should read your book."

Xu Nuo didn't actually read the book properly; she ran barefoot over when she smelled the aroma of stir-fried dishes coming from the other side.

Li Xian's tall figure stood in front of the stove, looking both incongruous and inexplicably handsome.

His gaze fell on her feet, and he quickly kicked off his slippers for her.

"Nuonuo, put on your shoes."

Xu Nuo put on his slippers as usual, his toes playfully curling up inside the huge slippers.

These are the slippers the two bought on the black market, one large and one small, a matching couple's style.

She put both feet in and found that they fit perfectly.

Li Xian glanced at the food as he was rummaging through the dishes and saw her staring at the shoes with a silly grin, saying to him, "Hehe, Li Xian, your shoes are so big."

The girl's heart melted; a smile played on her lips as she reached out her hand: "Come here."

Xu Nuo put on her shoes and walked over, hiding behind him, reaching out to hug his waist, and pressing her face against his firm back.

She rubbed her cheek against him and noticed that he had lost weight.

I didn't have much meat to begin with, and I've lost even more weight lately.

So the two of them each had their own thoughts, and they were both plotting how to fatten each other up.

Xu Nuo walked slowly in ill-fitting shoes, like a little duck with big webbed feet. Li Xian picked her up and put her on a chair, then took out her own little slippers and put them on for her.

Seeing her legs fidgeting restlessly, he sternly reminded her, "Don't kick them off."

"Oh." She nodded pitifully.

He patted my head.

The meal consisted of four dishes and a soup. The soup was Xu Nuo's favorite seaweed and pork rib soup, and the dishes were her favorite sweet and sour pork tenderloin, braised chicken with chestnuts, blanched bok choy, and steamed egg with minced meat.

Li Xian always remembered her preferences clearly.

Xu Nuo was overjoyed, but when she saw the white rice Li Xian handed her, she protested with a wry smile, "You gave me so much again, I can't eat it."

"Give me more if you can't finish it."

"Hmm." She took the spoon and obediently replied, "Okay."

Li Xian blew on the steamed egg to cool it down for her. Xu Nuo smelled the familiar aroma and felt her eyes inexplicably well up with tears.

She liked the texture of steamed egg with minced meat, so Li Xian would always chop the meat into small pieces, mix it with local eggs, and then put the bowl in a pot to steam until cooked.

But every time, I forget to make one for myself too.

A spoonful of steamed egg was offered to her mouth, and Xu Nuo smiled and ate it, explaining, "I wasn't daydreaming, I was thinking about something."

Li Xian simply picked up the bowl and fed her, saying gently, "Think about it after you finish eating."

Xu Nuo ate half of the steamed egg and then said she wouldn't eat anymore. Then she watched Li Xian finish his food, and seeing that his complexion wasn't very rosy, she decided to give him more herbal water and more tonics to help him recover quickly.

Li Xian washed the dishes and came in. Xu Nuo hadn't gone for her afternoon nap yet and was holding a cup, waiting for him. Li Xian knew what was in it and shook his head: "I'm all better now, I don't need to drink that."

That substance originated from her body, and Li Xian had even seen her turn pale from overdosing on it, so he didn't want her to use even a single drop more.

"Be good." Xu Nuo pushed the cup in front of him, rubbed her head against his chest, and started to whine again: "Drink it quickly, drink it quickly, I want to sleep after I finish drinking, I'm so sleepy, I have to go to school for rehearsal later."

Li Xian, unable to bear her pestering him any longer, took a sip from his cup. On the second sip, staring at her incessant chattering, he held her chin with one hand and lowered his head.

Well, she drank most of the herbal water he gave her.

shy.

So Xu Nuo shyly began to take a nap.

After waking up, the little man, still half asleep, looked in the mirror and angrily punched Li Xian.

Caught off guard by the sudden violence, Li Xian didn't even have time to wring out the towel: "What happened?"

“Look.” Xu Nuo pointed to her face and started sobbing.

My eyes, which were swollen from crying last night, haven't completely gone down yet, and now my mouth seems swollen too.

Li Xian carefully and cautiously examined her beautiful face for a long time, then blurted out, "Beautiful."

Xu Nuo: "..."

She then received another playful punch from him, a gesture of affection.

Li Xian held the irritated Xu Nuo and coaxed her for a while, calming her down from her morning grumpiness. He then obediently boiled some hot eggs for her to apply to her eyes.

With a flawless face, Xu Nuo asked pitifully, "Is there any hope for my face? Is it still pretty?"

Li Xian was both annoyed and amused. In his eyes, she was never not pretty. Even when she was upset and vented her anger on him, she looked pitiful and whined, as soft as cotton when he hit her.

He couldn't help but laugh out loud, his deep voice filled with boundless joy: "Beautiful, you are the most beautiful."

Xu Nuo puffed out her cheeks: "Then please use two lines of classical Chinese poetry and ten idioms to describe my beauty."

The man, who seemed capable of everything from farming and cooking to making money, froze, his mind going blank for a moment: "..."

"...Beautiful, so beautiful, very beautiful..."

It's really scary to be uncultured.

"Hahahahaha." Xu Nuo laughed so hard she collapsed into Li's arms.

Rehearsal was scheduled to start at 2:30, and Xu Nuo walked into the rehearsal room right on time at 2:29.

Wherever she went, she was like a spotlight. Liu Meixiang spotted her immediately, ran over happily, and looked at her face suspiciously: "Why do you look a little different today?"

Xu Nuo reflexively touched her eyes. Were they still terribly swollen?

Waaah, it's all Li Xian's fault. He made her cry so much yesterday.

But the thought of what happened to her Li Xian makes her want to cry.

I need to hug her little darling more when I get home tonight.

Liu Meixiang had no idea what she was thinking, or why she had such an... well... indescribable expression. She leaned closer and asked mysteriously, "What's making you so happy? Your eyes are practically blooming with joy!"

Xu Nuo smiled, her eyes narrowing, and said sweetly, "It's my little secret."

"Hey, is there a little secret today? Could it be some good news? I was wondering why you looked so beautiful today."

Xu Nuo brought her big eyes close to hers and asked earnestly, "Pretty?"

Liu Meixiang was stunned by her beauty and said with envy, "Beautiful. Look at your big, watery eyes and your skin, it's as white as an egg."

"You have no idea, my grandma kept praising you and then complaining about me." Liu Meixiang touched her face and imitated her grandma's tone: "That little girl, she's so fair and tender and smells so good, she's really pretty. Look at you, you're as dark as a monkey from the sun."

Liu Meixiang has good features, but she's a bit tanned. Xu Nuo said, "You should apply the face cream I gave you carefully. After a while, you'll be fair-skinned again and will be a fair and fragrant girl."

The two were talking intimately when Lu Minghui, who had come over to talk to Liu Meixiang, paused.

Liu Zhao was transferred to the Central Military Commission in Shanghai, where he became the direct superior of Lu Minghui's father.

Knowing that Lu Minghui and Liu Meixiang were classmates, Lu's father urged her to cultivate a good relationship with Liu Meixiang.

Lu Minghui didn't go over, but walked to the piano and sat down.

…

Li Xian disappeared from the hospital for one night, and apart from Ke Mei and Chen Jinfu who were worried about him, no one else paid much attention to it.

Ke Han scoffed, "He probably went to see that female student."

After sending Xu Nuo to rehearsal, Li Xian came to the Ke family.

Ke Chongshan smiled kindly: "Are you feeling better?"

Li Xian nodded: "Alright."

Ke Chongshan nodded. "Liu Zhao wrote you a letter? Asking you to come to Shanghai to find him."

Li Xian nodded calmly: "Yes."

Ke Chongshan could hardly show his joy: "I suppose it's because the Liu family is a close friend of our Ke family that they're looking out for you. Go ahead, and remember this."

Ke Chongshan said, "Perform well."

Li Xian glanced at Ke Chongshan, "Okay."

Before his death, Li Xian told Li Chengyan that if he ever encountered any unavoidable difficulties in the future, he could go to Comrade Liu Zhao of the 37th Company.

He also told him some stories about his past with this Mr. Liu.

Cheng Liyan said, "That was my dad's best friend."

It seems that Ke Chongshan was unaware of this matter.