In their first private, everyday interaction, the two spent a long time studying the menu, but knowing nothing about each other's preferences, they were at a loss for what to do.
Mia, growing impatient, said, "Stop dawdling. If you don't know how to choose, I'll help you put together a list!"
"Thank you, Sister Mia," Xiang Lan said obediently.
The dishes served were very refreshing, consisting of one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and a soup.
Fangzi had already served her a bowl of soup, a very ordinary radish and pork bone soup. She smelled the oil in the soup and forced herself to take a sip. But her throat felt like it was shut off, she couldn't open it or swallow it down. In the end, she couldn't hold back her nausea and covered her mouth to vomit.
He dropped his chopsticks, ran out, and asked with a pale face, "What's wrong?"
"nausea."
"It doesn't taste good?"
Xiang Lan looked up at him, her eyes reddening again, and silently hugged him.
Fang Zi was at a loss, not even knowing how to comfort him. He began to realize that his doctoral degree was not enough to cope with the current situation.
In the end, Xiang Lan only ate half a bowl of white rice with stir-fried bok choy, which was only because her maternal instincts kicked in.
After finishing their meal, the two held hands and walked around Mirror Lake twice before returning to their dormitory.
Xiang Lan used to laugh at the young couples who lingered at the dormitory entrance, saying they were being too fussy. But now she immediately understood that clingy feeling of not wanting to part with her lover, and she clung to his arm, not wanting to leave.
Fangzi let him hold her for a while, and passersby kept turning their heads to look at him. He patted her head and said, "Xiang Lan, you should go upstairs and rest."
"I want to be with you, I don't want to be apart." Xiang Lan shook his arm. "Or how about I move all my things to your apartment?"
"The apartment's facilities are too basic; it's inconvenient to use anything," Fang Zidu comforted her. "After we get the marriage certificate tomorrow, I'll find a more suitable place, okay?"
"good."
"Go upstairs quickly, I'll call you later." Fang Zi couldn't help but soften his voice; he loved this feeling of being coaxed.
"Then kiss me." Xiang Lan looked at him.
He cleared his throat, looked around at the people, and seemed a little embarrassed.
"Hurry up, give me a kiss," Xiang Lan urged.
He lowered his head and quickly pressed his cheek against hers.
Xiang Lan said with dissatisfaction, "Is this considered a relative?"
Fangzi blushed, "Don't be a pervert now, wait until it's just the two of us—"
Xiang Lan smiled. "I'm going up now. Goodbye."
"Tomorrow morning at eight o'clock."
Xiang Lan pushed open the dormitory door, but the room was empty; Deng Yifan had vanished again. She dropped her backpack, opened the wardrobe, and picked out all her seasonal clothes, matching them one by one and hanging them on the edge of her bed for inspection.
After fiddling around for two hours, I came up with six or seven sets, took photos of them all, and sent them to Fang Zidu.
Which one looks better?
Are you picking out clothes?
"I need your opinion, preferably something that matches your clothes." Xiang Lan felt ashamed even typing this, but the feeling was absolutely amazing.
"Can you change into it and show it to me?"
"Of course." Xiang Lan noticed that the recipes in the text messages were more open-ended.
As she struggled to change her clothes, she began to feel the tightness around her waist and abdomen.
"How about it?"
"A pink inner layer paired with a white coat, this outfit looks good."
"Why?"
Fang Zi blushed as she typed, "It makes your skin look fair and your lips red, which is beautiful."
Xiang Lan immediately blew her a kiss back.
After finishing the important task of choosing clothes, Xiang Lan washed up and climbed into bed. She exchanged some text messages with him on her phone and gradually became sleepy. In her half-asleep state, she was still thinking that Yi Fan had actually stayed out all night.
The next morning, Xiang Lan was awakened by the sound of the door opening. She opened her eyes groggily and saw Deng Yifan sitting by the window in a daze.
"Honey, you're back? Where did you go gallivanting last night?" She sat up, yawning.
Deng Yifan glanced at her and said, "I thought you would stay with Fang Zidu."
"His apartment isn't in good condition, so I'm going back to sleep first." Xiang Lan took out her phone to check the time; it was almost 6:30, time to get up and do her makeup properly.
"No separation breeds new love?" Deng Yifan glanced at her sideways. "That's not normal!"
Xiang Lan blushed. Her uncle's gift was still in her bag, but with a baby in her belly, neither of them dared to make a move, risking the stigma of being pregnant out of wedlock. She silently got up, washed up in the bathroom, put on the outfit Fang Zi had chosen, sat by the window, laid out her full set of cosmetics, and began her work.
"Want the full package today?"
"Um!"
"Should we still go to America?"
"I'm not going." Xiang Lan chuckled, applying lotion, sunscreen, foundation, and eyeliner. She looked at herself in the mirror from left to right, but still felt it wasn't perfect enough.
"Has the misunderstanding been cleared up?"
There was no misunderstanding to begin with.
"Then what are you making a scene about?"
Xiang Lan glanced at her, "You like it, don't you—"
Deng Yifan sighed, leaned on the table, and watched her perform the complicated wall-painting work. He said, "I'm so jealous of you—"
"What's wrong with you? Are you feeling romantic?" Xiang Lan took out a lipstick bag, a shade popped out, she tried it, felt it was a bit light, and picked another one.
"Li Xingda has agreed to help me take the film."
"A happy occasion? Why are you looking so gloomy?"
"We need a female lead, are you interested?"
Xiang Lan looked at her bright red lips with delight and shook her head, "No, I'll be very busy later."
"Busy dating? You're such a womanizer who neglects your friends—"
"At the beginning of life, human nature is inherently good—" Xiang Lan hadn't had any nightmares last night, and her mental state had finally returned to normal, allowing her to joke around again. "Darling, I feel like I've been reborn. I feel like my body is a black hole, and a brand new universe is about to be born—"
Xiang Lan was about to continue speaking when her phone rang. She glanced at it, her expression immediately changed, and she said to Deng Yifan, "Honey, I'm going to tell some harmless lies later, so please don't make a fuss."
Deng Yifan lazily did the OK, cleared her throat, and answered the phone.
"sister in law--"
"You're up?" Hu Li asked quickly. "Are we about to leave?"
"Yes, we're already on our way to the airport."
"Off you go?" Hu Li asked in surprise. "So soon? Your brother insisted that I send you some things."
"What's the point of giving him anything? He's just making things difficult for you. Don't bother, I have everything I need."
Where are you now? I'm coming to find you!
"Good sister-in-law, really, no need." Xiang Lan racked her brains, trying every possible reason, and finally came up with one. She said, "There are many people going together, all of them adults. It would be so embarrassing for me to be the only one who needs to be driven! People don't dare to let me go on business because they know I'm still breastfeeding."
"That seems to be the case." Hu Li laughed on the phone. "It's nothing, your brother asked me to send you some pocket money."
"Oh, my dear sister-in-law, you can express your love for me just as well as you do with a mobile phone transfer!"
"Okay, I'll transfer it to you later."
After hanging up the phone, she said to Deng Yifan, "Honey, absolutely do not tell my family this secret!"
"You have so many tricks up your sleeve."
Almost immediately, 10,000 yuan was transferred into her account. Xiang Lan jumped up, bought herself a small pink bag, and skipped out the door.
Xiang Lan came downstairs at 7:30. They had arranged to meet at 8:00. She planned to walk to Qionglin Garden to pick up Fang Zidu, but as soon as she got downstairs, she saw him leaning against the flower bed next to the dormitory. His well-fitting clothes and relaxed posture made him a sight to behold.
She jogged over, and he stood up to greet her.
She stood in front of him, smiling at him. She wore a dark overcoat over her suit, looking both simple and stylish.
Xiang Lan tugged at his collar, and he could only indulge her as she bent down. She tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek, exclaiming, "You look absolutely stunning today!"
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Chapter Twenty-Three
Thanks to advanced logistics and efficient courier services, Fang Zidu received his household registration certificate before noon, and the two happily headed to the Civil Affairs Bureau.
It wasn't a holiday, and the date didn't have any special meaning, so there were very few people getting their marriage certificates. They only waited in line for a few minutes before it was their turn. Filling out the forms and taking photos went incredibly smoothly. The couple's marriage certificate photos were so beautiful that the photographer insisted on keeping a copy for them as an example. After submitting all the documents, Xiang Lan stared intently at the staff member, watching him stamp the certificate with his seal, a sense of relief washing over her.
She held Fang Zidu's hand, her palms were covered in sweat.
Fang Zidu grasped her hand in return, looked down, and smiled at her.
She immediately calmed down, and the two held hands, took their marriage certificate, and thanked the staff.
Xiang Lan held the marriage certificate up to the sun and said incredulously, "So getting married is this simple? The adult world is so strange."
Fang Zidu reached in and took the two certificates, putting them in his bag. "You can keep them here."
"Mmm!" Xiang Lan looked at him with a smile, liking him more and more, and couldn't help but want to kiss him.
Seeing that he was about to refuse again, she said with dissatisfaction, "We're legally together now—"
Fang Zi couldn't help but laugh, and bowed her head to accommodate her, "Shall we go out for a nice meal to celebrate?"
"What do you want to eat?" Xiang Lan licked his face, and feeling unsatisfied, bit his lip again, completely satisfied.
"I don't know, I'm completely unfamiliar with this city." Fang Zidu looked around. "I'll follow your arrangements today—"
"From now on, you'll have to listen to my arrangements." Xiang Lan said smugly, skipping and hopping along the sidewalk with his arm linked with his. "Do you want spicy food? Chinese or Western?"
"Chinese food, just a little bit spicy."
Xiang Lan hailed a taxi and led him to a Dai restaurant. Halfway there, Fang Zidu received a phone call.