AYLS – Chapter 54

On the day she was going to the provincial capital, Lin Qiao put on her military coat—it was simply too cold.

As soon as she wore it, Li Ermei’s eyes practically glowed with envy.

“Where did you get that?” she asked.

“Gu Huayuan got it for me,” Lin Qiao replied.

Li Ermei felt a sharp pang of jealousy—real jealousy. At her home, Old Chen wouldn’t even let her wear a secondhand military coat; even an old military uniform had to be sent back for his brother to wear!

Su Weizhen was a little envious too. Xu Yuanzheng treated her well as well and even got her a military coat, but it was a men’s one.

In certain ways, Comrade Xu Yuanzheng was a bit careless.

She hadn’t expected Gu Huayuan to be so thoughtful. Su Weizhen decided to remind her own man when she got back—make him take notes.

Because it was snowing, they purposely took a vehicle used by the logistics team for supply runs.

Yunxi Province, where Suiyuan County is located, had already started snowing. And it wasn’t just a light dusting—looking out from the vehicle, the flat land stretched in a pure, white expanse.

Lin Qiao had used to enjoy snow, but now she had no desire to appreciate the scenery, shivering in a tight bundle.

Li Ermei jabbed, “Even wearing all that and you’re cold? You’re too weak.”

Lin Qiao thought to herself that Ermei’s temper would never change—always making people want to scold her. But since she would be leaving tomorrow and probably never see her again, she lost the desire to argue.

She wanted this memory to be a pleasant one.

She advised Ermei, “You really need to work on your temper in the future. Only I can tolerate your stubborn streak. Honestly, compared to Zhenzhen, you’re the one I worry about the most.”

Hearing these sincere, heartfelt words, Li Ermei got goosebumps.

“You two better not quarrel in the future. Even if you just become strangers, don’t fight again. Just thinking about it makes me uneasy.”

Su Weizhen looked at her curiously. “Why do I feel like you’re not planning to come back? Are you thinking of staying in the capital?”

She knew that Gu Huayuan’s home was a small villa in the military district, a very comfortable environment.

It was possible that Lin Qiao might choose not to return.

But even if she left, Su Weizhen planned to keep in touch, reminding her about Gu Huayuan’s father’s actions when necessary.

To prevent certain things from happening in the future.

Lin Qiao shook her head. “No, I won’t stay in the capital.”

Li Ermei asked, “Then why are you saying all this?”

Lin Qiao sighed. “Nothing, just felt like saying it.”

Su Weizhen wanted to ask more but noticed there were still soldiers driving and shopping, so she didn’t press further.

When the vehicle arrived in the county, they thanked the soldiers and headed straight to the bus station.

Lin Qiao went directly to the ticket counter and bought her ticket. “Don’t be polite with me,” she said; there was no use holding onto money anyway.

Li Ermei didn’t argue—she didn’t have much money to begin with.

Su Weizhen also didn’t; she thought she could pay for her return ticket and cover the meal later.

While Lin Qiao was buying tickets, Li Ermei had secretly gone to buy sunflower seeds and returned.

The three of them sat in the simple red-brick waiting room, cracking seeds and chatting.

Since it was cold, there weren’t many travelers; the waiting room was almost empty.

Finally, Su Weizhen found a chance to ask, “Are you a bit unhappy? You seem weighed down with thoughts—not like a bride-to-be.”

Lin Qiao asked, “What’s a bride supposed to be like?”

Before Su Weizhen could answer, Li Ermei spoke up. “Of course, happy! When Old Chen and I got engaged, I was cheerful for a whole month. The night before the wedding, I didn’t sleep a wink, I was so excited.”

Lin Qiao and Su Weizhen said in unison, “…Was that necessary?” They hadn’t realized Instructor Chen had that much charm.

Li Ermei said, “You don’t get it. Old Chen was the most promising guy in our area. Our family was poor, but he had allowances—not like earning points in the production team. I’d get to enjoy the good life too!”

She glanced at Su Weizhen. “Don’t laugh at me. I don’t believe someone wasn’t happy on their wedding day.”

Su Weizhen pursed her lips. “I was happy, but not for that reason. I was marrying Xu Yuanzheng, and of course I was happy.”

Then she blushed a little. “Just a bit of anticipation, excitement, and a touch of shyness.”

It wasn’t embarrassing for girls to feel that way before marriage.

She looked at Lin Qiao. “How about you? How do you feel?”

Lin Qiao didn’t have any of those feelings—she just felt reluctant to leave everyone behind.

Reluctant to leave this place.

But staying here wasn’t an option she wanted, so she had to go.

She said, “Maybe I’m just not used to it.”

Li Ermei said, “What’s there to not get used to? Life goes on the same as before.”

Lin Qiao felt a deep sadness—this feeling of being unable to share her emotions was truly hard. No one could understand her mood.

Su Weizhen was considerate, thinking Lin Qiao might have pre-marital jitters. Usually normal, but showing up a few days before the wedding.

After all, in this era, marriage was seen as a lifelong commitment and carried a lot of pressure. She kept sharing little happy moments from her own wedding to give her encouragement.

Li Ermei listened from the side, feeling so envious that she couldn’t bear it.

They’re both married—so why is there such a big difference in how they live?

Lin Qiao, being comforted, didn’t feel comforted at all. Instead, she was touched by the love story between the female and male leads. This really was a story of love after marriage.

No wonder they could stay together for a lifetime.

She didn’t know if such a life existed in reality.

She used to believe it, but ever since her father betrayed her mother and had an illegitimate child, she no longer did.

Feeling emotional, she held Su Weizhen’s hand. “You two have to live well, okay?”

Su Weizhen: “……”

Finally, the car arrived, and they didn’t continue talking about personal marriage matters. Instead, they chatted about what good things they might find in the provincial capital.

When women discussed this topic, time seemed to fly.

They chatted while resting, and it wasn’t until nearly noon that they arrived at the provincial capital. First, they went to a nearby restaurant for a meal. By coincidence, there was lamb available today. The three were pleasantly surprised and immediately ordered three bowls of lamb soup, accompanied by meat-stuffed buns.

Su Weizhen paid for the meal. Lin Qiao hadn’t had the chance, so she paid for the tickets first.

Lin Qiao didn’t argue. After all, there would be plenty of chances to spend money later.

Li Ermei looked on enviously, feeling a little… embarrassed.

So during the meal, she boasted that once she earned money, she would definitely treat them in return.

Lin Qiao sighed, “I’m afraid I won’t live to see that day.”

Su Weizhen laughed happily.

Li Ermei: “……”

The three ate steaming hot food, then headed to the largest department store.

Since the New Year was approaching, many new items had arrived at the mall. As soon as they got off the car, they saw sale notices posted on the department store.

For example, the latest clothing from the coastal city had arrived, a new batch of soap had come in, and another batch of cotton fabric…

Seeing these notices, the three were thrilled.

Lin Qiao and Su Weizhen, having seen the world, were able to keep their composure, but Li Ermei was almost stunned. “So this is the big department store in the provincial capital… it’s huge!”

She had passed through the provincial capital before but had never shopped there.

It was truly bustling.

Lin Qiao smiled. “Let’s go shopping! Don’t be polite with me today. Whatever I buy for you, just accept it. If you refuse, it means you look down on me.”

Su Weizhen nodded with a smile.

Li Ermei also nodded excitedly; only a fool would refuse.

At most, she would later take out the set of sheets saved for her wedding to give to Lin Qiao as a gift.

When women were together, their “combat power” was slightly stronger than when with men; they dared to push into any crowd.

Li Ermei, strong, led the way, pushing through while shouting, “Excuse me, excuse me, there’s a pregnant woman here!”

The people nearby really stepped aside.

Lin Qiao and Su Weizhen admired her as they pushed along behind.

At the counter, Lin Qiao didn’t even need to look—she shouted, “Two boxes of snow cream!”

Su Weizhen said, “Aren’t you going to use them yourself?”

“I… don’t need them, I still have some.” Buying them would just be a waste.

The sales clerk handed over the snow cream. Lin Qiao paid, giving one box each to Li Ermei and Su Weizhen.

Li Ermei, having never used it before, carefully opened it and smelled it—it was wonderfully fragrant.

After buying the snow cream, Lin Qiao also bought each of them a pair of leather boots.

Su Weizhen said, “That’s enough, isn’t it?”

Li Ermei also felt they were spending too much.

“It’s fine. I told you, don’t be polite. If I don’t spend all my money today, I won’t go home.”

“……”

Lin Qiao didn’t actually have that much money, but she hadn’t had time to shop in the provincial capital before, so she rarely spent anything. She had been saving her salary for months to buy snow cream for herself. Now it was useless…

After buying the boots, she also got each of them a pair of gloves, and some wool yarn for Sister Wang, who had taken good care of her. She didn’t dare buy too much, afraid it would look like she was deliberately giving gifts and cause trouble for Gu Huayuan.

Passing by the watch counter, Lin Qiao looked longingly. She wasn’t really envious—she just thought giving a watch as a gift was quite nice. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much time and she couldn’t afford it.

She sighed to the two, “You missed the best time. Otherwise, I would have bought you whatever you wanted.”

In the real world, she could afford any watch she wanted.

Su Weizhen and Li Ermei: “……” Somehow today, Lin Qiao seemed strange.

They each bought a scarf and then finally stopped.

There was no choice; most of the money was spent. The rest had to be kept for the return ticket.

She had originally wanted to buy something for Gu Huayuan, but thought that, after all, she was an ex; leaving a gift might affect Gu Huayuan’s future relationships, and the girl might not be happy. So she decided not to leave anything.

Thinking like this, she decided to clear out her room after returning home.

“I still have some clothes and shoes in my room. If you don’t mind, I’ll sort them out for you when I get back.”

Su Weizhen exclaimed, “Lin Qiao, what’s gotten into you?”

Lin Qiao said, “Out with the old, in with the new.”

Li Ermei marveled, “So smart! Why didn’t I think of that? Later I’ll hide all my clothes and pants—I don’t believe my Old Chen can make me go out empty-handed.”

Lin Qiao: “……”

When leaving the mall, apart from Lin Qiao, the other two were carrying large bags. They were fully loaded and felt a little embarrassed.

Li Ermei had already decided to give Lin Qiao the set of sheets she had saved for her wedding. They were embroidered with pomegranates; sleeping on them for a year would guarantee twins.

If she hadn’t been too reluctant to use them herself, she would have had children long ago.

Earlier, Su Weizhen had bought Lin Qiao a red wool sweater while taking a bathroom break. The wool was thick and real, feeling warm to the touch. When Lin Qiao returned to the Capital Madam’s house, she could wear it; with the stove on inside, she’d be warm and wouldn’t feel awkward taking off her coat.

Because Lin Qiao had to register her marriage the next day, they had to catch the afternoon bus back.

On the way back, Li Ermei gritted her teeth and bought the tickets. After all, they had received so many things…

Lin Qiao still had a few coins left for the ticket, but this time she didn’t argue with Li Ermei. Forget it—once they got back, she could save it to give Huzi and the others their early New Year’s money.

On the way there, it had felt cold, but looking at all the stuff they were carrying on the way back, their excitement made them forget about the chill.

Watching them so happy, Lin Qiao felt quite satisfied herself.

The money hadn’t been wasted.

Even if Ermei and Zhenzhen argued in the future, whenever they thought of the joy of shopping together today, their quarrels probably wouldn’t be too serious.

By the time the bus arrived in the county town, it was already pitch dark.

The three of them had originally planned to stay at a guesthouse, but as soon as they got off the bus, they saw three well-dressed men waiting outside.

Seeing them get off, the men all came over.

Li Ermei was overjoyed. “Ah, Old Chen came to pick me up!” She ran over excitedly. “Old Chen, look at all the things I bought today!”

Su Weizhen also walked toward Xu Yuanzheng. “Today, Lin Qiao took us shopping. We bought quite a few things. I even bought you some yarn so I can knit you a towel when we get back.”

Lin Qiao, meanwhile, looked at Gu Huayuan, unsure of what to say.

Gu Huayuan walked over, noticing she only had a few small items in her hands, and frowned. “Why didn’t you buy anything?”

“I didn’t feel like it,” Lin Qiao said. “Just wandered around a bit.”

Gu Huayuan smiled. “When we go back to the capital, I’ll take you shopping. The malls there are even bigger than in the provincial city, and they have some foreign-exchange goods. We can buy things then.”

Hearing Gu Huayuan’s comforting words, Lin Qiao didn’t feel happy; instead, her eyes grew a little misty.