Chapter 55 Good Days "No one says you can't have physical attraction while being emotionally involved..."
The solemn temple was illuminated by a dim yellow light in the night. Wu Ling carefully placed the candles on the altar, then lit a long incense stick by the candlelight and distributed it to her mother-in-law and younger siblings.
Lin Shuhong, along with her eldest and second daughters-in-law, knelt devoutly on the prayer mats in front of the clay sculpture of the Mountain Goddess.
"Mountain Goddess, my third son, Guangtian, is getting married on the 24th of the lunar calendar, which is the day after tomorrow." Lin Shuhong, holding incense, muttered like a child reporting to an elder, "May you bless the wedding to go smoothly, and may the young couple live a harmonious and happy life in the future..."
Kneeling to her left was Wu Ling, the wife of her eldest son Liu Fushun. She remained silent, holding incense and praying devoutly in her heart, hoping that the Mountain Goddess would bless her two young children so that they could grow up safely and healthily.
Meanwhile, Fan Dani, the wife of Liu Mancang's second son, who was kneeling on the other side, looked up. The statue of the benevolent deity with downcast eyes appeared somewhat indifferent and cold under the dim candlelight. Indeed, it was just a cold and emotionless clay sculpture, so how could it have any tenderness or pity?
Does the Mountain Goddess really exist?
A night breeze stirred, causing the candlelight to flicker slightly.
Zhong Ying raised her hand and placed it in front of the candle so that the flame could ignite the paper in her hand without being affected.
Brown Sugar stared intently at the scissors and red paper hanging in mid-air. Although it had seen clothes floating on the clothesline, folded blankets, and food bowls flying into the chicken coop... its worldview had been reshaped in recent days, it still couldn't help but stare in amazement.
Cao Fang, holding scissors, paused her actions of cutting the character for "happiness." Although she had seen many strange costumes before, she still couldn't help but stare at Li Linshi with surprise.
"This is the first time I've ever seen a man wear clothes of this color..." Cao Fang couldn't help but exclaim, it was truly something she had never heard of or seen before.
Zhong Ying showed an appreciative expression and praised her in the tone of an emperor from a palace drama she had watched, "Pink is delicate and suits your skin tone best."
Li Linshi looked down at his pink shirt and brown trousers, then looked up expressionlessly at the culprit, Zhong Ying, who was playing tricks on him again. But Li Linshi couldn't say no like before, after all, he had said he would let her play as she pleased.
However, Zhong Ying was not teasing him. She had a good eye for beauty. Li Linshi's skin was pale, and the pink color, which was difficult for most men to pull off, softened his coldness against his extremely pale skin, making him look more vibrant, like peach blossoms in spring.
Although it was the first time Cao Fang had seen a man wear clothes of this color, she agreed with her niece's opinion and chimed in, "Yes, but mainly it's because he's tall, broad-shouldered, and young; he looks good in anything."
After offering a word of praise, Cao Fang turned her gaze away and continued cutting out the "double happiness" characters. She didn't want Zhong Ying's help; she cut three large red papers into several equal parts, and each "double happiness" character was cut out by her own hands, each one containing the heartfelt wishes of a mother.
After Cao Fang finished cutting out the last "double happiness" character, she unfolded it and neatly stacked it together with the previous ones. "Yingnier, could you please give this to my little girl?"
“Okay, Auntie, I’ll take it over tomorrow,” Zhong Ying readily agreed.
Cao Fang was about to leave immediately. She wasn't an insensitive elder; she wouldn't have disturbed the young couple's life if she didn't have something to do. Now that the "double happiness" characters were cut and it was so late, she naturally had to leave quickly.
Zhong Ying saw her aunt out of the courtyard and then checked again to make sure the gate was closed properly.
Back inside the house, the stack of "double happiness" characters on the table was still neatly arranged in the distance, and the scattered scraps of paper were gone, having been cleaned up by the snail-shaped ghost.
Zhong Ying approached quietly, trying not to make a sound, and then suddenly attacked from behind, grabbing her slender waist.
She peeked out and saw what Li Linshi was doing. He was holding a miniature "double happiness" character, about the size of his palm, and was gesturing whether to stick it on the wall or the cabinet door.
“I cut it myself using the leftover red paper. The character for ‘happiness’ isn’t hard to cut.” Li Linshi turned to Zhong Ying and said in a casual tone, “But it doesn’t seem quite right to stick it anywhere.”
His mother would occasionally come to this house to bring some daily necessities. If she received an extra willow basket, she would remember to give it to Zhong Ying. She truly took care of this "forced" widowed daughter-in-law as if she were her own daughter.
Li Linshi looked again at the "double happiness" character in his hand, lowered his eyes, and suddenly clenched it into a ball. "...Never mind, it's inappropriate to put it anywhere."
This marriage wasn't really a proper happy occasion. The wedding quilt that Zhong Ying brought with her was pure white without any patterns, so naturally there were no red "double happiness" characters pasted around the house.
Zhong Ying could sense that Li Linshi was still holding a grudge. She turned the ghost around and hugged it from the front.
“Okay, let’s make an assumption.” Zhong Ying looked up at Li Lin. “Well… let’s start from that turning point in our fate. Let’s assume you hadn’t encountered the undercurrent in the river, and you would still be alive.”
Li Linshi couldn't help but let his thoughts wander along with Zhong Ying's words, "But it's a fact that I hugged you in the river."
As he spoke, he reached out and hugged Zhong Ying's waist, saying, "Shortly after we get ashore, my dad should take me to your house to 'take responsibility,' and I will still marry you."
Zhong Ying continued, "But you'll feel resentful, after all, you've been tricked."
Li Linshi frowned, but after thinking about it, he realized that given the circumstances at the time, he would indeed have done so.
“Eight out of ten if we get married, we’ll still be polite to each other but,” Zhong Ying shifted to her own perspective, “I might be happy to see it happen, so I can stay far away from you.”
Li Linshi's brow furrowed even deeper, and he tightened his grip, holding her waist firmly.
Zhong Ying glanced at him. "What? Do you expect me to have your baby if I don't stay away from you?"
Li Linshi choked. He already understood what Zhong Ying wanted to marry him for: he was dead, he didn't breathe, and she didn't have to have children.
Zhong Ying continued to imagine, "I will not tell you about the 'possession' incident, and I will never tell you a word about my original life."
Li Linshi's face turned completely cold, and even his brightly colored clothes couldn't hide the lifeless, chilling aura emanating from him.
"Please, I would only tell others these things if I wanted to die." Zhong Ying said confidently. Looking back now, she realized that part of the reason she dared to tell everyone was because she was sure that since others couldn't see Li Lin, they wouldn't have to worry about her secret of transmigrating and being reborn being revealed.
Li Linshi remained silent. Putting himself in her shoes, he realized that he wouldn't tell anyone either, since those things were all too bizarre.
But when he thought about another possibility, that Zhong Ying's attitude towards him would be distant and secretive... Li Linshi found it unbearable just to think about it.
Zhong Ying comforted her, "So, this is already the best-case scenario."
Li Linshi's brows relaxed, a slight touch stirring within him, but the next second he swiftly pressed down on a restless hand. His emotion instantly turned to helplessness. He looked at Zhong Ying, who tilted her head slightly, her brows unfurrowing, a faint, helpless smile on her face. "I was just a little touched..."
Zhong Ying's hand was still lingering on the action of sneaking under the hem of her pink dress. She was caught red-handed, but she wasn't scared at all and didn't even blink. "Nobody says you can't be physically attracted while being emotional."
Who told this ghost to do nothing but kiss? It's as if everything below the neck is forbidden. But it's human nature to want to do the more you forbid something. Zhong Ying is no exception. Instead, she is increasingly tempted by his conservatism.
Zhong Ying lied through her teeth, "I just wanted to warm my hands." And then, casually, touch her abs.
“...Yesterday was the start of summer,” Li Linshi said.
Li Linshi had never met a girl like Zhong Ying before, so open and frank in expressing her desires. However, he had to admit that her lust for him greatly alleviated his anxiety and insecurity.
Li Linshi leaned down and gently kissed Zhong Ying's lips, his tenderness and affection filling the air. He lingered on her lips, his desire deepening in moments, turning into a sudden, intense kiss. One hand still held her wrist, while the other tightly gripped her waist.
He also had that kind of desire that was almost like "appetite".
only……
Zhong Ying pushed Li Linshi away again. He didn't need to catch his breath, but she did.
Li Linshi didn't straighten up; he remained bent over, forehead to forehead, in an intimate and tender posture. He still held the person in his arms, his low, husky voice carrying a restrained desire as he murmured comforting words, "Just bear with it..."
It was as if he was both coaxing her and admonishing himself.
Li Linshi didn't want to harm Zhong Ying for a moment of pleasure.
——
Firecrackers exploded in front of the wooden door adorned with bright red "double happiness" characters. Zhong Chunsheng led the way, playing a cheerful and upbeat suona horn, as he walked in front of the oxcart carrying the bride. The joyful shouts of children and the smiling calls of adults joined together to create a festive symphony.
The Tonggan production team hadn't been this lively in a long time, and almost everyone came over to share in the joy.
Li Linshi watched the joyous and lively weddings of others, but he remained calm, simply holding the hand of the person next to him, their fingers intertwined.
Zhong Ying tugged at him, gestured in one direction, and, taking advantage of the crowd and the fact that everyone's attention was on the bride, boldly whispered to the ghost beside her, "Your older brother has become the Minister of Rites."
She always managed to say things that Li Linshi didn't quite understand, but luckily he was quick-witted and could usually figure them out. Li Linshi looked in the direction she indicated and saw his older brother, Li Gangshi, being dragged to a table and seated by his cousin, Liu Fushun.
"Help me out, you're the only one in our production team who can read and write," Liu Fushun said, forcibly pressing the man onto the stool.
Although Li Gangshi knew that his cousin was deliberately exaggerating and praising him, and that the Tonggan production team could find several other literate people besides the educated youth, he was still pleased. He reluctantly sat down, picked up a pen, and wrote down the monetary gifts from each family in his notebook, most of which were five cents or one yuan.
Li Linshi watched for a while before realizing what Zhong Ying meant, and he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Bride! Bride—" The children excitedly surrounded Zhong Ni, who was wearing a brand-new red dress, like chattering sparrows.
The groom, Liu Guangtian, was dressed in a grass-green military uniform with a red cloth pinned to his chest, giving him a unique air of energy. He had a smile on his face the whole time. He hurried forward and reached out to help Zhong Ni, who was about to get off the oxcart.
"The groom's getting impatient—" Hu Dating teased loudly, prompting the adults to chime in with their own jokes.
The two young people blushed instantly.
As the leader of the Tonggan production team, Li Ming, the most respected person, stood in the center of the new house courtyard to officiate the wedding for the young people. His usually serious face had a smile on it today. "Comrade Liu Guangtian and Comrade Zhong Ni, today, under the glorious light of Chairman Mao, you are united as a revolutionary couple! From now on, you two must help each other, work hard in production, and strive to become model workers!"
Everyone clapped enthusiastically. Cao Fang stood among them, and even though the others couldn't hear her, she clapped vigorously, her face full of satisfaction and emotion, her eyes smiling as she focused intently on the spirited newlyweds.
Someone raised their hand to their mouth and shouted loudly, "Harmony and happiness!"
Immediately following, another voice chimed in, "May you have a son soon!"
Seeing the bride and groom blush again, everyone burst into laughter.
"That's wonderful," Cao Fang said with deep emotion. For the past seventeen years, her obsession with her daughter marrying a good young man had been to see her daughter married. Now that she had finally seen it with her own eyes, she was both gratified and somewhat melancholy. "After seeing Ni'er return to her parents' home, I should leave."
On the third day after the wedding, the newlyweds visit the bride's parents at her home. This is called "returning to the bride's parents' home," which completes the wedding ceremony. After that, the couple lives their own lives.
Looking at the lively scene before her, with everyone's faces beaming with smiles, Zhong Ying felt a strange, vague unease. It was like an animal's instinctive reaction to danger, or like the dramatic, suspenseful plot twists of a soap opera...
Zhong Ying felt a tightness in her chest, and unconsciously tightened her grip.
Li Linshi felt his hand being squeezed tightly. He thought Zhong Ying had something to say to him again, so he bent down and leaned closer, but he didn't hear her speak.
"What's wrong?" Li Linshi turned to look at her and asked curiously.
Zhong Ying felt this unease was completely unfounded. She suppressed it, shook her head at Li Linshi, and smiled again, "It's nothing."
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Author's Note: Here it is, today's update!
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