Chapter 202: Play

The next day, Yu Xiangnian and the others took Commander Yang’s car and returned to Sucheng.

This round trip had already delayed Commander Yang by three days, and there were many matters at the command center awaiting his return.

He arranged for the driver to take Yu Xiangnian and the others around Sucheng for a few days, but Cheng Jingmo politely declined.

His vacation had only lasted a month, with half a month still remaining. He wanted to take Yu Xiangnian and Xiao Jie to have some fun and experience different customs and cultures.

In the end, Commander Yang had the driver take a box of Sucheng specialties from the trunk and gave it to Yu Xiangnian and the others.

These specialties were originally intended for Yu Xiangnian at Cheng Jingmo’s house, but since he didn’t get the chance to give them, he brought them back.

After Commander Yang and his people left, Cheng Jingmo and the others first sent the specialties to Nancheng, then looked for a guesthouse.

“You all rest for a while. I’ll go see if I can still buy tickets to Fengcheng.”

Yu Xiangnian asked, “Why are we going to Fengcheng?”

“Didn’t we agree last night to go have some fun for a few days before heading back?”

“Oh…” Yu Xiangnian scratched her head. Did they mention going to Fengcheng last night?

Thinking about last night, Yu Xiangnian’s face turned red.

In the darkness, visual stimuli faded, while tactile sensations intensified.

She had no idea where Cheng Jingmo learned those techniques. Her whole body went limp, like someone drifting in the ocean, tightly holding onto a piece of driftwood, rising and falling with the waves.

Seeing the flush on Yu Xiangnian’s cheeks, Cheng Jingmo also remembered last night and suddenly felt a slight ache in the bite marks on his shoulder.

She had trembled, leaving several imprints of her own on his shoulder.

Suddenly, Yu Xiangnian glared at him, “What are you looking at me for? Hurry up and go!”

She remembered begging him for mercy last night.

How embarrassing!

Cheng Jingmo, of course, remembered this too. He smiled lightly, “Alright, I’ll go right away.”

Luck was on his side, and Cheng Jingmo managed to buy tickets for the next day.

The train ride from Sucheng to Fengcheng would take just a day.

While Cheng Jingmo was out buying tickets, Yu Xiangnian took a long nap.

When she woke up, Cheng Jingmo was copying her manuscript under the lamp.

Cheng Jingmo seemed to have endless energy.

He had exerted himself last night, hadn’t rested all day, yet he was still so full of life.

“Cheng Jingmo…” Just waking up, Yu Xiangnian’s voice was slightly hoarse, sounding softer than usual.

Cheng Jingmo turned around, “You’re awake? I bought some buns for you. They’re still warm. Want some now?”

“I’m not hungry. What time is it?”

“Eight in the evening.”

Yu Xiangnian: “…” Others are getting ready for bed, and she’s just waking up.

Cheng Jingmo put away the manuscript paper and came over to sit by the bed. “I bought the tickets. We’ll set off tomorrow morning.”

Yu Xiangnian rested her head on his lap and raised her hand to touch his chin. “Mm.”

The bracelet on her wrist gleamed with a faint golden light under the lamp.

“Cheng Jingmo, you’ve been planning to give me this bracelet for a long time, haven’t you?”

For so many years, Cheng Jingmo had been unwilling to return home. The last time she mentioned it, he agreed right away. He must have been planning to go back and get this bracelet.

Cheng Jingmo stroked the back of her hand. “I want to give you the best of everything, but I have nothing. This bracelet is the best thing I have.”

Yu Xiangnian smiled contentedly. “Isn’t there still the jade pendant?”

“I’ll go home and get it for you,” Cheng Jingmo said. “You can wear it around your neck.”

“I’ll only wear it if it looks good!”

“I think it looks pretty good.”

Yu Xiangnian: “…” Then she definitely couldn’t wear it!

The next day, the three of them embarked on their sweet journey.

They first climbed the Great Wall. Xiao Jie looked at the towering walls of the Great Wall, his face full of astonishment.

“Aunt, isn’t the Great Wall in Beijing?”

Xiao Jie now had a habit of asking Yu Xiangnian whenever he had a question.

He knew that Yu Xiangnian was knowledgeable and could answer almost anything he asked.

Of course, there were times when she didn’t know the answer, and she would just make something up on the spot.

Whenever this happened, Xiao Jie would helplessly shake his head.

Yu Xiangnian began to educate the two men about the Great Wall again.

The two men looked at her with admiration, unable to stop themselves from uttering “Oh” and “Wow.”

It turns out the Great Wall spans so many provinces and has so many passes.

It turns out that the Great Wall they read about in books was the Badaling section in Beijing.

Over ten days, they visited many places.

Like a family of three on a trip, they left behind happy smiles and memories everywhere they went.

Sometimes, when Yu Xiangnian got tired and couldn’t walk anymore, Cheng Jingmo would carry her on his back.

Xiao Jie thought to himself that when he gets married in the future, he wouldn’t want a wife like Yu Xiangnian—so delicate, while he was just fine, she couldn’t even walk anymore.

After a while, he changed his mind.

No, he definitely wanted to marry someone like Yu Xiangnian. Even though she was a bit delicate, a bit lazy, a bit forgetful, and a bit quirky… well, she had a lot of flaws, but she was just so lovable!

Just look at his uncle—he only ever smiled happily when he was with her, never any other time.

By the time they returned to Nancheng, it was already the end of April. The temperature here was nearly ten degrees higher than in Sucheng.

As soon as they got off the train, they could feel the warm embrace of Nancheng.

Yu Xiangnian and the others took off their coats, leaving only their sweaters on.

Since they had called ahead, Yu Xiangyang drove to the train station to pick them up and take them home.

When they left, his leg was still injured, and he was limping. But now, he was hopping around and ready to spar with Cheng Jingmo.

The moment he saw Cheng Jingmo, he was eager to throw a punch.

Cheng Jingmo, carrying a suitcase and wearing a backpack, dodged the first punch but couldn’t avoid the second, taking a hit on his shoulder.

Only then did Yu Xiangyang take one of the suitcases from Cheng Jingmo’s hand, saying, “I told you to bring Xiangnian back early. You didn’t help me, so don’t expect me to help you!”

Cheng Jingmo replied, “I don’t.”

The two men then spent a good while muttering to each other, with Yu Xiangyang occasionally waving his fist in complaint.

Yu Xiangnian couldn’t help but wonder if she was getting in the way of their bromance.

The family quarters had been unoccupied for a long time and were sure to be covered in dust, requiring a thorough cleaning before they could settle in.

They first went back to Yu Xiangnian’s own home.

Everyone except Yu Jiashun was there.

Zhao Ruozhu welcomed Cheng Jingmo with her usual enthusiasm, “You must be exhausted from such a long journey. Put your things down and rest for a while.”

“Mom, I’m not tired.”

“Then have a seat; dinner will be ready soon.”

After saying that, Zhao Ruozhu turned to give Yu Xiangnian a once-over. “I thought you had so much fun that you didn’t want to come home.”

“How could that be? I was thinking of you all every day while I was out! Hey, where’s Dad?”

Zhao Ruozhu gave her a skeptical look. “He had something to do at the base and left early this morning. He’ll be back this afternoon.”

“Oh.”

“You look thinner. Was the food not to your liking out there?”

“No, the food was pretty good,” Yu Xiangnian replied. “I think I just got tired from all the fun.”

Running around during the day and keeping Cheng Jingmo company at night—how could she not be tired!