wedding
Lin Bairan is a person full of vitality.
Jiang Moyun clearly sensed this during the countless moments when people were watching him:
He would always meticulously prepare different surprises, not limited to any particular holiday. These ranged from occasional flowers and various gifts to small things like the colorful candies Jiang Moyun would casually find in her pocket; as she unwrapped them and put them in her mouth, a sweet, overflowing feeling would fill her heart. He was always gentle and considerate. Every morning when she opened her eyes, she would find a perfectly warm glass of water on her bedside table. Then, meeting her still sleepy gaze, he would greet her with a smile brighter than the sunlight outside the window, saying "Good morning," and starting her day with a gentle kiss on the forehead. And after washing up, when she went to the dining table, there was always a chair pulled out for her… Lin Bairan, like a gentle spring breeze, gradually permeated Jiang Moyun's life.
"Sister, I like you so much." Lin Bairan always liked to hug her from behind during tender moments, resting his head on her neck, his voice soft and sweet as it rang in her ear.
His warm breath and soft strands of hair brushed unintentionally against Jiang Moyun's sensitive earlobe and neck, tickling her and making her involuntarily flinch. His bright eyes were full of love, like a small hook, gently tugging at Jiang Moyun's heartstrings.
Then Jiang Moyun would turn her head and share a wet kiss with Lin Bairan.
The air was thick with ambiguity, and the dim light cast a shadow under Lin Bairan's long eyelashes, obscuring her expression.
She only saw those rosy lips opening and closing, and heard a pious, almost pleading voice escaping from them, "Sister, will you... marry me?"
At that moment, the air was still filled with the intoxicating scent of roses, which swirled and disturbed the mind, stretching out infinitely in an ambiguous unease, making each breath seem like eternity.
Jiang Moyun turned to the side, and in the thick silence, she unconsciously raised her hand and touched Lin Bairan's face. Her fingers touched a little bit of dampness that was almost dried up as she caressed him.
"Is it sweat, or something else?" Her already unclear thoughts gradually became sluggish in this chaos, but Jiang Moyun thought—from this moment on, she would completely fall in love with this intoxicating rose fragrance in this dim tranquility.
So she turned completely around to face Lin Bairan, brushed the damp hair from his forehead, revealing his moist eyes. She stared at him for a long time, tracing his features with her gaze, her fingers following along, finally stopping at her lips, unconsciously caressing them, her thoughts drifting away.
She suddenly said out of the blue, "Go get a haircut tomorrow, it's blocking your eyes."
As expected, she saw Lin Bairan's expression gradually dim. With a hint of force, she lifted Lin Bairan's head, which had been lowering slightly, forcing him to reveal his embarrassment. She smiled with satisfaction as she carefully examined him, like a young person playing with their most beloved treasure. Then, she lightly kissed Lin Bairan's lips, and slowly said, "Okay, let's get married."
Lin Bairan was initially just stunned, looking rather adorable in his dazed state. Then, his expression quickly lit up like a burst of fireworks, radiating brilliant light on his face.
She held out her hand, teasing him with a smile, "You probably won't be without a ring, right? But it's okay if you don't, I've already promised you, and I won't go back on my word."
Lin Bairan sniffed and answered in a muffled voice, "Of course there will be." He couldn't hide his joy, but he tried to appear calm and composed. He got out of bed, knelt on one knee in front of her, and took out a beautifully packaged ring box, his movements trembling slightly with nervousness.
Jiang Moyun just smiled and didn't expose him. She watched as the ring was slowly slipped onto the ring finger of her left hand and then pushed forward. It looked like the size was just right. She didn't know when he had secretly measured it. The feeling of the whole process was incredibly clear. This moment was solemnly engraved with a unique meaning.
It is said that the ring finger is the least flexible and weakest finger, but because it is directly connected to the heart, people have to use it to bear a lifelong commitment.
This wasn't the first time she'd worn a ring, and although the two occasions were completely different in terms of mood and setting, Jiang Moyun couldn't help but think of the past. "Marriage"—a familiar yet unfamiliar word—made her hesitate.
I was so nervous, I felt like my heart was about to stop.
Her fingers trembled slightly, and she almost wanted to pull them back, but she stopped herself under Lin Bairan's sincere gaze.
He'll be sad, and I don't want him to be sad.
She heard Lin Bairan speak, "You'll have everything. You deserve it all." His tone was earnest, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She stared blankly up at the sea of love in Lin Bairan's eyes. Even though she was long past the age of believing such empty words, her eyes still involuntarily welled up with tears.
Just as the ring was pushed to the end, she heard Lin Bairan say, "Jiang Moyun, I love you."
Then she saw him take her hand, obediently lower his head, and the slight coolness of the ring and the soft touch came together—a gentle kiss fell into the lingering afterglow of love.
Jiang Moyun heard her heart start beating again at that moment.
They prepared to go to the Civil Affairs Bureau the next day.
Lin Bairan stood in front of the mirror, constantly tidying his appearance.
"Don't you want to pick a special day? I thought you would value a sense of ritual." Jiang Moyun smiled and straightened Lin Bairan's collar again. Even though he had done this many times before, and his collar was already perfect, Jiang Moyun did not urge him, but patiently raised his hand to straighten it for him again and again.
“Every day is special.” Lin Bairan turned around and hugged her, lowering his head to sniff her shoulder intensely. Jiang Moyun felt like she was being buried in his arms. “You have given each day of mine a different meaning.”
I love you every single day.
Jiang Moyun was touched, caught off guard by this direct approach. She struggled to raise her hand in his overly tight embrace and patted his back with amusement to comfort him. "Why are you so nervous? Sniffing around like a puppy, you're showing your true nature, huh?"
Lin Bairan didn't care what she said; he was even secretly pleased with himself. He finally straightened up, loosened his grip on Jiang Moyun slightly, and looked at her seriously as he replied, "Because I'm afraid I'm not handsome enough."
His expression was so serious that Jiang Moyun couldn't help but chuckle. She raised her hand and pinched his cheek. "Isn't this handsome enough? If you get any more handsome, everyone will resent you."
Seeing that Lin Bairan was about to retort, she simply reached out and hooked her arm around his neck, stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek, saying in a teasing tone, "Alright, alright, handsome boy, let's go get our marriage certificate. If we wait any longer, someone else might steal such a handsome guy away, what am I going to do?"
After saying that, she turned and left like a gust of wind, but stopped after only a couple of steps and turned back to wave at Lin Bairan, "Aren't you going to catch up, handsome young man?"
"Oh." Lin Bairan nodded, feigning composure, but his brain had already shut down, and he walked forward awkwardly, his hands and feet moving in unison.
Jiang Moyun found it amusing, grabbed his hand, and casually asked, "Did you bring all your documents?"
"I put them all in your bag yesterday."
"Which bag? Don't take the wrong one."
"This white one," Lin Bairan said, holding up the bag in his other hand to show her, "is all inside."
Jiang Moyun raised an eyebrow in surprise, completely unaware of when he had picked up the bag in just a few steps. She suspiciously opened the bag to check and found that all the things she needed for going out were indeed there. "When did you take this? I didn't see it."
"Just now, I've had it next to me the whole time." Lin Bairan touched his nose.
Jiang Moyun, holding onto Lin Bairan's shoulders, stood on tiptoe and peered behind him, trying to find where he had just put the bag. Just as she turned to ask him, she saw Lin Bairan wink playfully, then lean down and quickly kiss her, smiling slyly like a child who had successfully stolen candy. "I just took it from you, and you don't even remember? You were clearly nervous too."
Jiang Moyun finally realized she'd been tricked, but before she could say anything, Lin Bairan's continuous kisses interrupted her thoughts. Finally, annoyed, she covered Lin Bairan's mouth with her hand, turned her head away, refusing to look at his smiling eyes, and said with a mix of embarrassment and helplessness, "Alright, alright, let's go out already, don't drag it out until tomorrow again."
They spent the rest of the journey playfully bickering like this.
Both of them lost their composure and laughed like children on their marriage certificate. Lin Bairan held the two little red books with great affection, looking at them over and over again, and even said he wanted to lock them in a safe.
Jiang Moyun was both amused and exasperated, but she didn't stop him. She had always been indulgent towards Lin Bairan in such matters, even if it sometimes seemed a bit too naive and childish.
But Jiang Moyun was very willing to protect his adorable boyishness.
What followed was six months of intensive preparation, as they wanted to hold the wedding in the sunny spring month of March.
"Sister, let's hold the wedding in the spring. A little past Qingming Festival, the weather will be perfect then, neither too cold nor too hot."
Lin Bairan lay on the bed, studying a small booklet for a long time. Suddenly, he sat up excitedly, held the booklet up to Jiang Moyun's eyes, pointed to a point, and said, "Sister, look! This weather is perfect!"
Jiang Moyun then realized that what he was holding was a Chinese almanac, and the position he was pointing to was exactly the 29th day of the second month of the lunar calendar. Underneath, it was clearly marked as auspicious – the first item under “Suitable” was “marriage”.
She couldn't help but smile and reach out to tap his head. "Didn't you used to disbelieve in these things? Now you've picked an auspicious day?"
"I want a good omen for us," Lin Bairan hugged her from behind again, and began to whine and coax her, "Everything related to my sister has to be good."
Jiang Moyun turned her head and kissed him, "Let's pick a few more days. Didn't you want an outdoor part? It wouldn't be good if it rained at this time."
"No rain allowed!" Lin Bairan muttered in her ear, continuing to look at the almanac in that position.
Jiang Moyun let him mess around, found a comfortable spot in his arms, and continued working.
Lin Bairan suddenly stopped, stared at her for a moment, and asked, "Why are you so busy, sister?"
Hearing this, Jiang Moyun couldn't help but ponder for a moment—she hadn't been this busy before, after all, such a large corporation no longer required her to do everything herself. It was just that recently, she was expanding into new sectors and hadn't found the right person yet, which resulted in this wedding, which was supposed to be for two people, being organized solely by Lin Bairan.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but sigh, but feeling the warmth emanating from Lin Bairan, she felt much more relaxed. So she casually made a little joke, "Yeah, yeah, I'm so tired. How about you come and work two jobs for me? I'll pay you more, okay?"
Lin Bairan's hesitation was palpable; he seemed to be seriously considering the feasibility of doing so. "But what if I don't do it well..."
Jiang Moyun couldn't help but laugh and interrupted him, "Alright, alright, you're just a researcher, just focus on your research, you don't need to think so much. You're a top student I recruited at a high price, so do a good job."
"Yes, sir." He then leaned in to kiss her again.
Jiang Moyun covered his mouth with her hand, while her other hand continued typing on the keyboard. Suddenly, she felt a warm dampness in her palm. When she pulled her hand back, she saw Lin Bairan's grinning face and couldn't help but pat his face lightly twice. "Alright, pick your auspicious day. The wedding decorations are your responsibility. Remember to make them beautiful."
As she spoke, she picked up her laptop and got up, intending to find a different place to concentrate on her work, but Lin Bairan seized the opportunity to steal a kiss on her cheek. Jiang Moyun didn't pursue the matter, and seeing Lin Bairan's smug look, a smile also appeared on her lips.
——
Over the past ten years or so, as he has grown older, Lin Bairan has become much more composed.
His previous quirky and mischievous demeanor has become quite rare.
"Mo Yun." Those eyes still held a smile as they looked over. "I've had the water prepared. Go take a bath and get some rest." It was that familiar gentleness and consideration.
Jiang Moyun was momentarily dazed, and for a long time she did not hear him call her "sister" again.
Perhaps the child had grown up and wanted to establish a new image, so Jiang Moyun suppressed her unease and stopped thinking about it.
I took off my ring while showering; over the years, a ring mark had been left on it.
She carefully put the ring away and thought of another pair of rings that she had prepared.
Initially, they didn't plan for a grand wedding; they only wanted a few close relatives and friends to witness it, with Jiang Ciqing as the flower girl. They didn't want reporters, just a reliable photography team to capture their happiness.
Lin Bairan was primarily in charge of the wedding arrangements, including the venue setup. He offered many ideas, and Jiang Moyun made minor adjustments to some of them, but they were mostly implemented according to his suggestions. However, when asked what flowers he wanted for the decorations, Jiang Moyun, seeing Lin Bairan's continued hesitation, thought for a moment and then had an idea—"Rose as the main flower, but not bright red, choose some light-colored ones. As for the filler flowers..."
"Let's use hydrangeas," Lin Bairan suggested. "Pinkish-purple ones, with a touch of white, how about that?"
The two of them smiled at each other and reached an agreement. After a long period of refinement, they finally finalized all the details.
Time flew by, and the originally scheduled wedding date arrived: the 29th day of the second lunar month.
In April 1999, the rain continued incessantly, and it was difficult to find a dry place anywhere in the country.
Lin Bairan would sit by the window every day watching the rain, constantly muttering "Stop, stop," his back view looking utterly melancholic. Everyone had assumed the rain would definitely be postponed, but unexpectedly, the weather cleared up in the days leading up to it, with plenty of sunshine.
The air still carried the scent of damp grass, and the rich fragrance of roses wafted through the melodious music. The church was adorned with flowers, mingling with the lively chatter of the guests.
"I love you."
She heard Lin Bairan say that.
Jiang Moyun tilted her head back and kissed him.
When it came time to exchange rings, Lin Bairan took the box and discovered it wasn't the plain band he'd used for the proposal. Inside the small red velvet box lay two diamond rings: one featured a rose design, with a red diamond at the center of the largest flower, acting as a delicate bud, surrounded by silver and pink diamonds outlining the petals, extending outwards from the ring like lush foliage; the other ring depicted an adorable Border Collie. Its fur was simulated with white diamonds, its ears were erect, and its tongue was a small red diamond. A touch of black adorned its eyes, and its amber eyes were a perfect match for Lin Bairan's.
These two red diamonds originated from the same place. Experts speculate that they were originally one diamond, but broke apart over time for unknown reasons, becoming two smaller pieces. Their shapes are not as regular, but this has given them a unique beauty. Moreover, red diamonds are extremely rare, yet they still fetched astronomical prices—four months ago, Jiang Moyun received the news and immediately sent her assistant to the United States to bid, instructing the assistant to simply bid and not ask about the price. The wedding was also changed to a much grander scale.
Jiang Moyun personally placed the puppy ring on Lin Bairan's hand. Seeing the tears in Lin Bairan's eyes, she gently touched his face and wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes.
With spring in full bloom and willows swaying gently, we pledged our lives to each other in the blessings of March.
The following spring, in addition to Ciqing, they had another lovely baby, named Lin Xihui.
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