Ger, So Proud

Chapter 100

He Ze, this rascal, dragged Lin Yu around causing a ruckus until the sun was well up before finally getting up. During the tea ceremony, faced with the sly smiles of Dad Li and He Youcai, Lin Yu blushed with embarrassment, wishing he could kick He Ze a few times hard.

With the marriage ceremony concluded, the He family finally completed a major event. With the help of the villagers, the leftover chores from the wedding banquet were cleaned up within a day. He Youcai couldn’t sit idle and, after discussing with Dad Li, notified the helpers in the shop to reopen. Lin Yu wanted to help, but the two elders insisted they rest at home for a few days as newlyweds.

What a joke! They still wanted to have grandchildren soon!

“Did you hear? Dad wants us to rest well~”

At sunset, the golden evening glow stained half the sky and earth. The gentle breeze rustled the reeds, causing waves that alternated between green and gold. Delicate swallows landed on newly sprouted branches, chirping softly. The entire He family village was picturesque, smoke curling up from the chimneys.

He Ze reclined halfway in the rocking chair in the backyard pavilion, feeling exceptionally content.

The flower shop would open the next day, and Dad Li took He An with He Youcai to clean up and prepare breakfast for them. On the second day of their marriage, only the two of them remained in the courtyard.

He Ze smiled knowingly, the word “rest” carrying a deeper meaning as he said it.

In these short two days, Lin Yu’s face had also been tested, and now he stood stiffly, holding the clothes he had just hung out to dry.

“Xiao Yu~”

No response.

“Wife~”

Still no response.

“My dear, I’m sorry—”

When He Ze entered the kitchen, Lin Yu was washing dishes. He circled behind Lin Yu, wrapped his arms around his waist, and buried his head in Lin Yu’s shoulder, as if they were conjoined twins.

“What are you doing! It’s daytime!”

“It’s fine, it’s just the two of us at home today.” He Ze rubbed his nose against Lin Yu’s neck and took a deep sniff. It smelled of soapberry and… a scent unique to Lin Yu, very pleasant.

“You’re incorrigible~”

Lin Yu was tickled by his actions and couldn’t help but laugh, then playfully nudged him with his elbow.

“By the way, what do you want to eat tonight?”

Since yesterday, he was supposed to be the one cooking at home, but Dad Li insisted he only assist. Although he was particularly clumsy at household chores, he could cook. In the past, when Dad Zhang was often too weak to get out of bed and had a poor appetite, he had to come up with various delicious dishes for him. Therefore, his culinary skills were quite commendable.

Thinking that He Ze hadn’t yet tasted his cooking, Lin Yu suddenly became interested. “What do you want? I’ll cook it for you.”

He Ze looked at Lin Yu expectantly, his eyes curved, which softened He Ze’s heart completely.

“Um… since it’s just the two of us at home, how about we have some sizzling pork slices and braised cabbage? Will that be alright?” These two dishes were often made by Dad Li and tasted very good.

“Of course.” Lin Yu proudly raised his head. “You go wash the vegetables for me.”

“Yes, sir, Madame!”

As it turned out, Lin Yu’s culinary skills were indeed excellent, not a bit inferior to Dad Li’s, though his style was slightly lighter.

To please his beloved wife, He Ze purposely ate two extra bowls of rice. After dinner, without digesting yet, he dragged Lin Yu out for a walk, claiming they were stargazing.

But things were different now than before. In the past, whenever they met at night, it was all sneaky and secretive, like thieves. Nowadays, they walked hand in hand openly, which felt exceptionally… refreshing!

He Ze looked up at the sky; the black canopy had a moon with a chunk missing, the stars were sparse, and their shadows on the ground merged together, as if they were one.

He tightened his grip on the hand of the person beside him. Suddenly, he felt like being sentimental and wanting time to freeze at this moment.

“What’s wrong?”

Lin Yu played with He Ze’s fingers, pinching them gently.

“Nothing. Look over there,” He Ze pointed to a broken roof. “Do you remember last year’s Mid-Autumn Festival? It was right there… hmm…”

Right there, they leaned against each other closely, almost getting caught.

“I remember… time flies.”

“Yeah, in the blink of an eye, Xiao Yu became my rightful wife.”

He Ze smiled and leaned over to nuzzle Lin Yu’s face. Hand in hand, they walked around the He family village before finally returning home.

The third day was the day they returned to Lin’s family. This time, He Ze didn’t fool around; he and Lin Yu got up early. After all, he couldn’t afford to give a bad impression to Dad-in-law. The things they needed to bring were prepared by Dad Li the previous day, and they arrived at Lin’s house just past the hour of the snake.

Before they even entered, Wang Ji happily ran over, barking enthusiastically and jumping on them.

Dad Zhang was drawn out by the dog’s barking and smiled broadly when he saw them. It was evident he had been eagerly waiting for them, as the chicken was already simmering on the stove.

As the new groom entered, the young couple knelt to kowtow to Dad Zhang as per tradition, leaving him unable to contain his joy. While the two gers were chatting in the kitchen, He Ze conveniently split the firewood in the courtyard and filled the water tank.

After lunch, fearing Lin Yu might be reluctant to leave, He Ze stayed until the afternoon before they finally departed.

“If you’re worried, we can bring Dad over earlier? After all, we have plenty of rooms at home. We had already planned for it when we built the house.” The “Dad” referred to naturally was Dad Zhang.

Along the way, He Ze noticed Lin Yu’s distracted look and couldn’t help but speak up.

“I talked to Dad, but he doesn’t want to.” Lin Yu’s mouth drooped slightly. “Actually, we’re still in the same village, not far apart. I’m not really worried.”

This short journey could be made ten times a day and still be very convenient.

“What were you thinking just now?”

“Well… sigh…”

“You reluctant to leave? Not used to it?”

“A little bit.” Lin Yu stared at He Ze and made a gesture with his hands.

“It’s okay. We’ll come back often in the future. I’ll accompany you back, and we won’t be afraid of gossip. How about that?”

“Um.” Lin Yu nodded heavily, then smiled again. “Did you notice earlier? Dad added jujubes to the chicken he stewed, they were colla jujubes. It’s similar to the taste of the ones Uncle Xu brought over before.”

“You mean…”

“If it weren’t for this, I would have wanted to bring Dad over. Without me around, I’m afraid he wouldn’t take care of herself well. But now Uncle Xu lives nearby, without me, he doesn’t have those concerns. Maybe…” Lin Yu chuckled mischievously.

“You’re quite clever, Xiao Yu!” He Ze reached out and flicked Lin Yu’s nose. “Okay then, let’s wait for good news from Dad and Uncle Xu. It’s been more than ten years already, we can’t afford to waste any more time!”

Xiao Yu had married him now, and these two elders were like lonely bachelors. With a foundation of more than ten years of relationship, they helped each other with chores daily. If Uncle Xu couldn’t handle it, He Ze would really look down on him.

Leaving that aside, on the fourth and fifth days, He Ze and Lin Yu, who were “exiled,” were bored to death. In a good mood and with good weather, each carried a bow and arrow and headed towards Xiangyang Mountain.

It had been a long time since the last time they went up the mountain together. Dad Li had repeatedly urged them to be safe and come home early, but since both were skilled hunters, he didn’t stop them.

“Let’s have a competition today.”

Lin Yu walked ahead of He Ze in sturdy attire, in high spirits.

“Sure, what are we competing in?” He Ze followed him leisurely, as if taking a casual stroll.

“If I win, for the next month, you have to listen to me. For example, you sleep in bed when I say so, otherwise, you sleep in the recliner.” Lin Yu clenched his teeth as he spoke.

“And if I win, you’ll sleep in bed when I say so, and in the recliner when I say so. How about that? Of course, my dear husband, I won’t mistreat you. I promise to share weal and woe with you.”

“Alright—”

Before Lin Yu could finish saying “alright,” he suddenly stopped, as if thinking of something. His face flushed like a palette, and finally, unable to restrain himself, he snapped off a twig and threw it at He Ze.

“Hahaha…” He Ze couldn’t help but laugh heartily. “You just agreed to it all. If you win, I promise to listen to everything you say. Forget about the recliner, you can sleep on the floor.”

“Then, no cheating!” Lin Yu’s eyes flashed. If He Ze used his mysterious and unpredictable abilities, there was no way he could win.

“Of course not.”

Since it was a competition, naturally they would go their separate ways, agreeing on a time and place to meet later. He Ze reiterated several times about safety issues to Lin Yu before letting him go.

“You too, wait for me to win later!”

After walking a few meters, Lin Yu suddenly brushed aside a branch beside him and turned back, his face proudly shining like the sun in the sky.

“Alright, I’ll wait for you to win.”

He Ze indulgently replied, watching Lin Yu’s figure disappear into the woods before finding a path to leave.

Around half past noon, on the eastern peak, Lin Yu carried a nearly full basket cautiously, kneeling behind a clump of grass, breathing as quietly as possible.

In the distance, a gray rabbit was circling a patch of fresh green grass, nibbling on it occasionally, completely unaware of the impending danger.

“Shoo!”

An arrow shot through the air, its sharp tip cutting through the rabbit’s ear and slanting through its body.

Hit!

Lin Yu suddenly stood up, annoyed as he touched the arrow still on his bow. He turned and saw He Ze calmly emerging from behind a tree.

“Just a coincidence, can’t blame me.” The time and place they agreed to meet was still a while away, and not here.

After picking up the plump rabbit and tossing it into the basket, He Ze reminded with malice, “My dear, time is running out~”

Lin Yu glanced back at He Ze, seeing that his basket was almost equal to his own, his heart suddenly relaxed halfway, and he snorted, “There’s still time. I’ll definitely beat you!”

“Yes yes yes, I’ll wait for you to win me.”

He Ze simply stayed put, following behind Lin Yu, watching him search for prey. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on their side, and by the time they reached the agreed time, they hadn’t encountered another animal.

Lin Yu sat dejectedly by the roadside, unloading the basket and handing it over to He Ze. “Here, you count.”

“One mountain chicken, two mountain chickens, one rabbit, two rabbits, one squirrel, one dove…”

Lin Yu was listening intently when He Ze suddenly stopped counting. Unable to hold back, Lin Yu turned his head. “Why did you stop counting? Who won?”

“Uh, my dear is more skilled. You won.”

“Really?”

“Of course it’s true. Well, looks like I’ll be sleeping on the floor tonight.” Seeing Lin Yu’s happy smile, He Ze pretended to sigh.

“Haha, don’t sleep on the floor, it’s cold there. Sleep on the chair, I’ll prepare a thicker blanket for you.”

Clearly, winning this bet had put Lin Yu in an unusually good mood for the next few days, and He Ze had no choice but to go along with it.

Ah, but thinking back in the middle of the night, the hands that added the rabbit to his wife’s basket were truly sneaky!