As soon as the car left the military dependents' compound, Yun Tangyin was jolted and swayed. Fu Yucheng quickly reached out and pulled her into his arms: "Hold on tight, the road ahead is difficult to travel."
"Mmm." Yun Tangyin snuggled closer to him, her nose brushing against the fabric of his military uniform, carrying a faint scent of soap and sunshine.
She suddenly remembered something, took out an oil paper package from her bundle, opened it to reveal two round tea eggs, and said, "Here, these are what you said you wanted to eat yesterday."
Fu Yucheng took a big bite, and Yun Tangyin reached out to wipe the crumbs from the corner of his mouth. Her fingertips accidentally touched his chin, and the stubble prickled her fingertips, making them itch.
He suddenly grabbed her hand, brought it to his lips, and gently bit her fingertip: "It smells even better than a tea egg."
Yun Tangyin's face flushed red instantly. She pulled her hand back and pinched his arm: "You're so unserious, we're on a bus."
"Don't worry, I'm here."
He took a small cloth bag out of his pocket and handed it to Yun Tangyin, saying, "This is for you."
Inside the cloth bag was a silver hairpin, the tip of which was carved with a small plum blossom, shimmering softly in the sunlight.
Yun Tangyin held it in her hand, gently stroking it with her fingertips: "It's so beautiful, when did you buy it?"
“I saw this in the supply and marketing cooperative’s counter when I went to the county town for a meeting last time, and I thought it would suit you perfectly.” Fu Yucheng looked at her, his eyes warmer than the sunshine. “Shall I put it on you?”
Yun Tangyin nodded and turned her face to the side.
His fingertips gently parted her hair, and as the silver hairpin passed through her hair bun, it accidentally touched her earlobe. She shrank her neck, which made him chuckle softly: "Tickled?"
"No, I didn't." Yun Tangyin retorted stubbornly, but her ears turned bright red.
After driving for about two hours, an apricot grove appeared by the roadside, with pink and white petals scattered all over the ground.
Fu Yucheng stopped the car: "Shall we get out and rest for a bit?"
The two sat in the apricot grove, Yun Tangyin leaning on his shoulder, looking at the distant green mountains: "I didn't expect the sky in the Northeast to be so beautiful."
"I'll take you to see the maple leaves in autumn; they're even more beautiful than this." Fu Yucheng took a water bottle out of his bag and fed her a sip. "Are you thirsty?"
"A little." Yun Tangyin had just handed the water bottle back when he took her mouthful of the spot where she had just drunk from, and her cheeks immediately burned. "You..."
"Your water is sweet." Fu Yucheng smiled like a child who had stolen candy, and suddenly pulled out a bunch of wildflowers from behind him as if by magic. The flowers were blue, purple, and yellow, and they looked very lively together. "These are for you."
Yun Tangyin took it and put it in her hair. Fu Yucheng looked at her with eyes so tender they could melt your heart: "My wife is getting more and more beautiful."
"You're such a chatterbox," Yun Tangyin said reproachfully, but the corners of her mouth curved into a crescent moon.
After resting enough, we continued our journey and finally arrived at the Songhua River in the evening.
There was a small hut by the river for fishermen to rest. Fu Yucheng had already made arrangements with Lao Zhang. The hut was clean and tidy, and the kang (a heated brick bed) was covered with a newly changed mattress.
Old Zhang brought in a pot of freshly stewed fish, and the aroma instantly filled the small house: "Try it, it's freshly caught fish from the first day of the river."
The fish stewed until it turned milky white, sprinkled with bright green scallions, Yun Tangyin picked up a piece with her chopsticks, and almost swallowed her tongue because it was so tender: "It's so delicious!"
Fu Yucheng picked out a boneless piece of fish for her and put it in her bowl: "Eat slowly, no one will take it from you."
He turned to Old Zhang and said, "Brother Zhang's skills are getting better and better."
"That's right, you don't even know whose wife is here." Old Zhang smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits. "I won't disturb you two young couple any longer. I'll come and call you to go fishing first thing tomorrow morning."
Only the two of them were left in the room. When Fu Yucheng was clearing away the dishes, Yun Tangyin came over to help, but he pressed her down to sit on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed): "Sit down, I can do it."
While he was washing the dishes, Yun Tangyin hugged his waist from behind, pressed her cheek against his back, and listened to his strong heartbeat.
He turned around and pulled her into his arms: "What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, I just think it's nice this way." Yun Tangyin looked up at him. Moonlight shone through the window and fell on his face, softening his sharp features. "Fu Yucheng, thank you."
"Thank me for what?"
"Thank you..." Yun Tangyin thought for a moment, "Thank you for marrying me."
Fu Yucheng chuckled softly and kissed her forehead: "I'm the one who should be thanking you. Marrying you is the greatest blessing of my life."
The next morning, Old Zhang came to call them to go fishing.
Fu Yucheng found Yun Tangyin a small stool, moved a rock to sit next to her, and helped her bait the hook: "Be careful, don't get hooked."
"Okay." Yun Tangyin threw down her fishing rod and sat there motionless, her eyes fixed on the float on the water.
Seeing her serious expression, Yu Cheng couldn't help but smile. He quietly moved his fishing rod closer to hers. "If you don't catch anything, I'll give you two rods."
"No way, I can catch it myself." Yun Tangyin had just finished speaking when the float suddenly sank. She quickly lifted the rod and caught a palm-sized crucian carp, which was jumping around on the bank. "Look! I caught one!"
Fu Yucheng helped her put the fish into the fish basket and ruffled her hair: "Great job, my wife is amazing."
The two fished all morning, and their baskets were full of fish. Fu Yucheng picked out the biggest one and said to Lao Zhang, "Brother Zhang, let's stew this one for lunch."
At lunchtime, Old Zhang brought out a large pot of stewed fish, along with cornbread stuck to the side of the pot.
Yun Tangyin was munching on a pancake when she suddenly remembered something: "By the way, you said you'd teach me how to shoot a gun, when are you going to teach me?"
"I'll teach you when we get back." Fu Yucheng placed a piece of fish belly on her plate. "But we have to agree on this first: you're not allowed to hit me."
"Who wants to hit you?" Yun Tangyin rolled her eyes at him. "I just want to learn how to protect myself."
"With me here, you don't need to protect yourself." Fu Yucheng held her hand, his eyes exceptionally serious. "I will protect you for the rest of my life."
Yun Tangyin's heart skipped a beat. She lowered her head and picked at the rice in her bowl, her voice barely a whisper: "Who wants you to protect me for a lifetime..."
Even so, the corners of my mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.
In the evening, the two sat by the river watching the sunset. The setting sun dyed the river surface golden red, and the shimmering waves looked like gold scattered all over the ground.
Fu Yucheng hugged her from behind, resting his chin on the top of her head: "Yinyin, let's have a baby."
Yun Tangyin stiffened, but remained silent.
He added, "Someone with big eyes like you, and as strong as me, we'll teach him to fish, to shoot, and to be a good person."
"Who wants to have a child with you?" Yun Tangyin turned around, her cheeks flushed. "I haven't had enough time with you yet."
“That’s perfect. Let’s enjoy some time alone together first, then some time together as a family.” Fu Yucheng smiled and hugged her even tighter. “Anyway, I’m sticking with you for life.”
As the sun gradually sets, stars begin to appear one by one.
Yun Tangyin leaned against Fu Yucheng's chest, listening to the rushing sound of the river, and felt very at ease.
She knew that no matter what storms the future held, as long as this man was by her side, she would be fearless.
Because he is her husband, her support, and the warmest light for the rest of her life.
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