Chapter Eight: Husband and Wife United
Over the weekend, we planned to go to the department store to buy a bicycle. Suddenly, a question occurred to him: "Can you ride a bike? I was so focused on the convenience of riding a bike that I forgot about that. You're not in the right state to learn to ride one right now."
Although she didn't experience morning sickness, she seemed lethargic, either preferring to sit still or suddenly craving something to eat—she was definitely pregnant. She couldn't learn to drive at this time; a fall wouldn't be a joke.
"I can ride it."
"Really? I've never seen you ride one." They lived next door, so he saw her often. She mostly walked to and from work; even for him, who was fast, it took him almost half an hour, while her commute was forty minutes each way. The Sun family did have a bicycle, but it belonged to Sun Yaozu.
"A 28-inch bike is hard to ride, it's too tall. I learned to ride a 26-inch bike by using a colleague's bike." In her previous life, all the way up to the 1970s, she bought her daughter a 26-inch bike, and that's when she learned to ride.
"Oh, as long as you can ride, that's fine. You're not ready to learn to ride a bike right now. If you're not good at it, don't ride yet. Take the bus this year and we'll talk about it next year."
"good."
When they arrived at the store, the two first led her to the women's clothing counter. There weren't many ready-made clothes available at that time; most were handmade. However, the ready-made clothes in the store were quite nice, just a bit pricey.
"I have clothes to wear."
"Hurry up and pick one. You should buy new clothes for your wedding anyway. My previous fabric coupons were useless, but now they'll finally come in handy. Pick a couple of outfits to wear alternately."
"Just buy one, no need for so many. We can buy an autumn outfit when it gets cooler."
"Don't worry about picking, we'll buy autumn clothes later." My wife is so beautiful, she should dress appropriately.
She smiled, her lips pursed. The admiration and doting on his face were so obvious that it was clear to everyone. No girl dislikes buying new clothes, especially two outfits at once.
Blouses were very popular at the time. He pointed to two hanging skirts and asked her what she thought. She chose the orange and white checkered skirt; the belted design accentuated her feminine curves, and it looked youthful and beautiful on her.
"Yes, it looks good."
I bought a skirt, and then I bought a pair of dark blue pants to wear with a white shirt. This combination looks very neat and is suitable for work.
"Don't change, just wear these." Her clothes were all very old, patched with all sorts of patterns by her skillful hands. But old is old, and it can never be as bright and fresh as new.
He picked out a Phoenix brand 26-inch women's bicycle for her. He rode it around for a bit and thought it was good, then found a quiet spot and let her get on and try it out herself. He parked his own bike nearby and stood there, ready to go.
She started riding, and he stayed right beside her, protecting her. With his arm strength, no matter which way she fell, he could react in time. Whether he grabbed her or caught her, it was no problem.
He was all prepared and followed her for quite a while. But it was no use; she rode very steadily and turned very smoothly. Not fast, but she turned steadily and rode towards him.
"How is it?" she asked playfully, one foot on the ground.
"Great." He gave a thumbs up, his praise genuine.
"Then I'll ride my bike to work tonight."
"No. It's too late at night, it's not safe for a woman like you to be out alone. I'll take you on your night shift, and you can take the bus back, it's just as convenient."
"Okay." A bittersweet feeling welled up inside her, making her want to cry. What she had once envied and fantasized about was now actually happening in her life, and his care and love made her want to smile every time.
Since they didn't have to work on the weekend, the two rode their bikes home. They ran into many neighbors at the gate, all of whom envied her new car.
"Oh dear, Station Master Su, is this a wedding gift?"
Su Xiangdong nodded: "Yeah. That's true and that's not true. This is just a means of transportation I bought for my wife. Forget about betrothal gifts, what's mine is hers."
"Haha, oh my, Shu Yao, you're so lucky. Station Master Su is very wealthy."
"Shu Yao, are you really in charge now?"
Shu Yao smiled, genuinely experiencing the happiness of newlyweds being teased. She had nothing when she married Sun Yaozu; even her clothes were from last year.
Furthermore, her mother-in-law disliked her getting close to outsiders, saying she was afraid she would be misled and deceived. Looking back now, the Sun family was afraid she would suddenly realize the truth. They prevented her from getting close to outsiders and talking to them, keeping her immersed in the world the Sun family had created. She felt deeply indebted to the Sun family and should therefore serve them like a slave for life, even unto death.
Sun Yaozu returned from outside and immediately spotted the two in the crowd. Both were wearing dark blue trousers and white shirts, their faces beaming with the same bright smiles. At that time, the concept of matching outfits didn't exist, but the couple dressed identically, looking youthful and vibrant, were a striking sight on the street.
He gritted his teeth, staring at her with eyes blazing with fury. Shu Yao was truly beautiful; her smile was like a blooming rose in the yard. A rose in full bloom, its blossoms dazzling. He'd heard others praise her beauty before, but he'd never thought much of it. She was someone he could easily possess, someone always by his side; he'd never considered her anything special.
But now that she's someone else's wife, he finally realizes what a precious treasure he's lost. He suddenly discovers how beautiful she is, with a slender figure and stunning looks. And she's incredibly capable; with her around, the house is always impeccably organized.
Only after the couple entered the Su family's gate did he slowly emerge from the corner and head home. He was already in a bad mood and felt so disappointed that he wanted to die. Seeing the mess in the house when he entered made him even more annoyed, and anger rushed to his head.
The table was covered in dust, the bed sheets were dirty and hadn't been changed, and the clothes that had been taken off were piled up untouched. Lunch was a complete mess of mushy mush.
"Mom, how are we supposed to eat this?"
Upon hearing this, the old woman covered her face with a handkerchief: "I'm old, and I still have to serve you. I've never cooked in my life, and it's already difficult enough that I can cook something well. You didn't even see that my hands were burned, and you're just complaining."
His father closed his eyes briefly; he was exhausted from all the arguing these past few days. He just ate whatever he could manage, what else could he do? Food was rationed these days; if he fell a few times, he'd go hungry a few times.
"You—" She forced herself to eat a few bites, but couldn't resist any longer. "When Shu Yao first came home, she was also delicate and couldn't do anything, but she quickly learned to do laundry and cook. How can you be so stupid? It's been days, and you've still made the food worse than pig swill."
"You're complaining about me again," the old woman continued to cry. "When have I ever done anything like this in my life? I had servants at my parents' home, and I had maids after I married you. Then came Shuyao... It's all Shuyao's fault. She was bought by our family, how could she run away? Now that she's gone, how are we supposed to live?"
Sun Yaozu stood there, on the verge of tears, not knowing what to do. They'd already worn out all their clothes, and if they didn't wash them soon, they'd have nothing left to wear. They couldn't go out in dirty clothes, but his mother didn't know how to do laundry.
"Alright, Mom, could you please wash my clothes first? My colleagues at work are all laughing at me."
"You—" the old woman cried, covering her face with a handkerchief, "Why am I so unlucky? I thought that raising my children would bring me happiness, but now I still have to wash my son's clothes. God, open your eyes and take me away."
His mother's crying left him no choice but to take it out and wash it himself. But in all his years, he had never washed anything before. And he didn't know how.
The aroma of food wafting from the Su family next door made his own food seem even more like pig slop. He lathered his clothes with soap, seething with anger, wishing he could snatch Shu Yao back. That was his intention all along; he had to win her back no matter what. But how could she have married someone else, and someone they absolutely couldn't afford to offend?
Su Xiangdong didn't care how much the Sun family regretted it; he was overjoyed, for he was now a married man. The couple was eating in the yard when suddenly a figure ran in.
"Brother Su, your cousins and your third uncle are coming to your house. Be prepared."
The teenager finished speaking, turned around, and ran away. Before Shu Yao could react, Su Xiangdong had already quickly gotten up and gone into the house. She followed him and saw him carrying his blanket and pillow, quickly placing them next to her blanket in the inner room.
“They’ve all heard I’m sick and are waiting to take advantage of me. We can’t let them know about our situation, or you won’t be able to stay in this house anymore.”
She nodded quickly, but didn't panic. She knew his illness was a misdiagnosis. In his past life, he had lived a perfectly good life, except he hadn't married. With him in the family, no one could interfere in anything.
They arranged their pillows and blankets neatly, making them look like newlyweds. The couple went out to eat, and just as they finished, uninvited guests arrived. Several people came, filling the room to capacity.
She got up to pour water, and her third uncle asked Su Xiangdong, "Did you really marry the wife from the Sun family next door?"
"She's my wife now." This statement had a double meaning, both answering his question and reiterating his mistake. She's no longer Old Sun's wife; she's my wife.
"Foolish." Uncle San glared at him sideways, about to continue his lecture, but was interrupted by him raising his hand. The old man's words were stuck in his throat, and his face turned pale with embarrassment.
“Third Uncle, my father separated from you thirty years ago. If you have a bad memory, I’ll tell you again. This family is mine, left by my father. I’m an adult, and it’s none of your business what I do. If you can’t stand me, then let’s sever ties. From now on, I, Su Xiangdong, will have no relatives like you.”
"You—" Uncle San glared angrily, while his cousins exchanged bewildered glances. He had been formidable before, but never this ruthless.
"Fourth brother, don't be impulsive. We can't be two people named Su; we're the ones connected by blood..."
"Shut up," he interrupted his cousin. "It's all about this yard of mine, why make it sound so high and mighty? Let me tell you, this house is mine. Now that I'm married, my wife is the first heir. Don't even think about any underhanded tricks. Even if we don't have children, this house still belongs to my wife, it has nothing to do with you."
One by one, they come to my door, bringing their kids. Don't think I don't know what you're up to. I may have a terminal illness, but I'm not giving it to you.
Seeing that he had spoken so frankly and without any reservations, I stopped pretending. "Fourth brother, that's where you're wrong. We all share the same surname, Su, so we're family. We were thinking of giving you a son to adopt, so that we could mourn you after you're gone."
"That's right, otherwise you wouldn't even have a descendant..."
"Shut up," he interrupted again. "Get out of here. From now on, I, Su Xiangdong, have nothing to do with you. Whether I live or die is my own business."
"Xiang Dong," Uncle San wanted to say something more, but was interrupted by him waving his hand.
"How do you know he has no offspring? I'm a living, breathing person." Shu Yao stood to the side, her voice gentle but firm. "Don't worry, these are not your concerns. We, as a couple, will live our own lives. You should raise your own children. If you can't raise them, it's best not to have them at all; it would be a sin."
"You, you little wife..."
Su Xiangdong stood beside her, adopting a completely protective and supportive stance: "This is my home. Be polite when you talk to my wife, or my fists won't discriminate."
The group exchanged bewildered glances, completely unprepared for his attitude. He'd always been relatively mild-mannered with his family; his parents were gone, and they were his closest relatives. Why was he so ruthless this time, even threatening physical violence?
"Fourth brother, don't let yourself be fooled by a woman."
"I'd like to."
My third uncle was so angry with him that he left through gritted teeth. With the old man gone, no one else could stay. They were all vying to have their sons adopted by him, but they heard he had liver cancer and wouldn't live much longer. Once he died, the house would be theirs. But then, unexpectedly, he got married. His young wife was beautiful and had a really sharp tongue.
"Thank you for earlier," Su Xiangdong said with a smile, feeling very comforted. He hated those people treating him like a dead man, but before, he really didn't have anyone closer to him. Now that she was by his side, he had someone to rely on.
"It's okay, we're husband and wife."
A note from the author:
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