Chapter 16 : Really Want to Kiss Him

Shen Zheng was carrying a huge pile of bags, big and small, without letting Fang Xiaoluo do any of the heavy lifting.

Looking at the pile of things on the bike’s handlebar and backseat, Fang Xiaoluo jokingly asked, “Do you think we’ll end up with no money for food?”

Shen Zheng suddenly smiled, and his smile dazzled Fang Xiaoluo.

This man was annoyingly charming. She really wanted to kiss him right there.

But unfortunately, they were on the street.

“No, I’ve saved up for this,” Shen Zheng replied seriously.

He had been in the army for eleven years, then went to military school after earning merit and returned to the forces. Over the years, he had saved most of his earnings, and sometimes there were bonuses.

His mother’s living expenses mostly came from his late father’s will, though he still sent her some money every month, which she hardly ever spent.

For this wedding, his mother had taken out all the money she had.

As for the three kids, he had only brought them back last month, and there hadn’t been much spending on them yet.

“We’ll have a meal, and then in the afternoon, we’ll go take some photos,” Shen Zheng continued.

“Photos?” Fang Xiaoluo asked. “You mean wedding photos?”

Fang Xiaoluo hadn’t expected Shen Zheng to think of this.

In this era, taking photos was rare, and for Shen Zheng to remember to take her for wedding photos was incredibly thoughtful of him.

“Yes,” Shen Zheng nodded. “I heard from the female soldiers in the cultural troupe that nowadays, girls like to take wedding photos as mementos.”

The cultural troupe?

Fang Xiaoluo casually asked, “Is the cultural troupe also in your military district?”

“Yes,” Shen Zheng looked at her expression, “If you don’t like taking photos, we don’t have to go.”

Shen Zheng was all about respecting Fang Xiaoluo, and whatever she said, he would follow.

“I like it. Let’s take more photos!” she responded.

After lunch, they headed to “Changqing Photography Studio.” When Fang Xiaoluo arrived, she realized that Shen Zheng had already made an appointment in advance.

Fang Xiaoluo changed into a red dress, and the photographer’s assistants styled her hair and added a plastic red flower hairpin.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Not to brag, but she did look pretty, festive and vibrant. Just looking at herself made her feel happy.

She walked up to Shen Zheng and said, “I’m ready.”

The girl before him had skin as smooth as jade, bright and charming. Shen Zheng felt his heart skip a beat. Before meeting Fang Xiaoluo, he had never imagined that such a beautiful woman existed.

Even when female soldiers walked by in the army, he would only notice the gender difference, never thinking any of them were particularly good-looking.

“Good.”

Fang Xiaoluo, in her red dress, and Shen Zheng, in his military uniform, looked like a perfect match, one delicate and beautiful, the other strong and heroic. Together, they looked like a couple made in heaven. In the photos, they could have easily been stars from a movie.

Last Friday, Xu Yaqiu and Zhou Yanwen had already registered their marriage.

Zhou Yanwen hadn’t wanted to register at all, but Xu Yaqiu wasn’t willing to wait. She wanted the marriage certificate in hand before she could feel at ease.

But they were already engaged, so registration was inevitable, and neither Zhou Ping nor Qian Haixia would let Zhou Yanwen avoid it. He couldn’t resist them alone.

The couple had also planned to take wedding photos that afternoon.

Zhou Yanwen had been kicked out of the Fang household and was furious, but in the past few days, Xu Yaqiu had been coaxing him, which softened his anger.

They had even secretly tried to be together twice, and Zhou Yanwen had come to realize that Xu Yaqiu was quite creative, which helped ease the resentment he had felt from the Fang family.

Plus, the Xu family had promised a substantial dowry, making him feel like he hadn’t come out too much behind after all.

As soon as they entered the photography studio, Xu Yaqiu noticed that the sofa by the window was piled high with things.

These clothes, skirts, and shoes were clearly newly bought, and the receipts from the department store were visible, showing they weren’t cheap.

“Are these new arrivals?” Xu Yaqiu casually asked.

The staff at the photo studio smiled and replied, “No, these are what the bride and groom just bought for their photo session.”

They pointed to the couple inside.

From outside, they could only hear the photographer speaking, but the situation inside was unclear. Xu Yaqiu couldn’t help but exclaim, “Buying so many things all at once, what a big spender!”

“Yes, the groom treats the bride very well,” the staff agreed.

Xu Yaqiu felt a little envious. “They must have a great relationship. The groom is willing to spend money on the bride. This girl is really lucky.”

She wasn’t just envious, she was also saying this for Zhou Yanwen’s benefit.

Aside from the betrothal gifts from the Zhou family, Zhou Yanwen hadn’t even bought her a hair tie, let alone spent money on her. He seemed unwilling to spend a single penny.

And yet, she had tried to make him feel comfortable.

Zhou Yanwen, however, didn’t catch the meaning behind Xu Yaqiu’s words.

Want him to spend money? In your dreams! He didn’t want to do any work, didn’t want to attend class, and didn’t care about anything. As long as his parents were supporting him, he had no intention of working hard.

“Bridal makeup time! The photo session inside is done,” the studio staff called out.

“Okay.”

Just as Xu Yaqiu stood up, the curtain to the inner room was lifted, and a man and a woman walked out, almost like two beams of light that blinded her eyes.

Fang Xiaoluo didn’t expect to see Xu Yaqiu and Zhou Yanwen right after stepping out. Was this fate?

At this point, she had already changed back into the outfit she had worn when leaving the Xu family.

Naturally, Xu Yaqiu was wearing a new outfit she had bought after returning to the Xu family, and it was a new style.

Xu Yaqiu immediately sensed her superiority. “Xiaoluo, you’re here to take photos too?”

“Ah… Let me guess, Captain Shen probably emptied out his entire savings to give you the betrothal gifts. And with the Fang family’s conditions, look at you, still wearing this dress. Since things are already so tight, you shouldn’t try to be like the rich people and take photos. You should save some money for Captain Shen. As women, we need to think about our family when we get married. We can’t always be extravagant. What will we do if we can’t even afford food with so many people in the family?”

Shen Zheng frowned, his eyes narrowing, and Xu Yaqiu immediately felt the blood freeze in her veins.

The same sense of pressure from their past life swept over her.

While Xu Yaqiu was speaking, Zhou Yanwen’s eyes never left Fang Xiaoluo.

This woman was annoyingly beautiful, with those red lips…

After knowing Fang Xiaoluo for so many years, he had never had the chance to be with her. All the benefits had gone to Shen Zheng, what a waste!

Fang Xiaoluo realized that Xu Yaqiu was getting more and more unbearable, always looking for trouble.

“Since you’re so concerned about me, why don’t you pay for the photos this time?” she said.

Then, turning to the studio staff, she added, “Please charge her. I’m such a kind person, I can’t let her feel upset for me.”

Xu Yaqiu quickly retorted, “When did I say I’d pay for you?”

Fang Xiaoluo rolled her eyes. “Then what was all that nonsense you just said? Were you just talking for no reason?”

“I… I…” Xu Yaqiu stammered. “You’re the one talking nonsense!”

Fang Xiaoluo patted Xu Yaqiu on the shoulder. “Alright, alright, I get it. You just want to spend money on me, don’t you? You can’t feel good if you don’t spend, huh?”

With that, she and Shen Zheng went over to pick up the things from the sofa.

Xu Yaqiu froze. “Th… this… these are your things?”

How could so much stuff belong to Fang Xiaoluo? She had just been praising the bride for being so lucky!

Fang Xiaoluo smiled. “Yes, these are from Shen Zheng. I told him not to buy so much, but he insisted I look good in it. He even wanted to clear out the entire counter. Men… they’re hopeless. They just love to buy things for women. Well, today, we really bought too much, so we should try to save a little. Thanks, Yaqiu, for coming over to help us pay. You really are a good person, always doing good deeds.”