Chapter 27

Jiang Yu didn’t know or care about Lin Sicheng’s feelings. She found him annoying, so she deleted him.

Realizing it was getting late, Jiang Yu turned to Jiang Zhe and said, “Let’s go.”

Jiang Zhe nodded, and they quickly drove to her parents’ house.

When they arrived, her parents were already busy in the kitchen. Seeing them bustling about so early, Jiang Yu asked, “Mom, Dad, why are you up so early to cook for me?”

Mother Jiang, busy washing vegetables, answered, “We want to finish cooking early so you and Jiang Zhe can go out and enjoy some time together. We don’t want to interrupt your couple’s time.”

Jiang Yu was embarrassed to tell her mom that they had already spent a long time together yesterday. The mention of spending time as a couple made her blush.

She was soon shooed out of the kitchen, left to watch TV in the living room while everyone else busied themselves. Jiang Zhe brought her some cut fruits before heading back to help.

Watching them work, Jiang Yu joked to herself that it felt like Jiang Zhe was their biological son, while she was just a girlfriend he brought home for the first time.

Smiling at her own silly thoughts, Jiang Yu started enjoying the fruits while watching TV.

When she was halfway through the fruits, the doorbell rang. It was the cake delivery. Jiang Yu brought the cake to the dining room, informing her parents, “The cake’s here.”

From the kitchen, her mom responded, “Great! Just sit tight, we’re almost done.”

Indeed, soon after, they finished cooking and set the dishes on the table: eight dishes and a soup, all of Jiang Yu’s favorites, including some spicy dishes.

Mother Jiang said, “Since it’s your birthday today, I made your favorite food. But for the baby’s sake, eat less spicy food.”

Jiang Yu looked at Jiang Zhe beside her and stuck out her tongue, as if to say: “Isn’t my mom super naggy?”

Jiang Zhe laughed and then pulled out a chair for her. “Let’s eat.”

Jiang Yu noticed Jiang Zhe smiling more and more often, which was a very welcome change.

Mother Jiang, having noticed her daughter’s little gesture, reminded Jiang Zhe, “Xiao Zhe, keep an eye on her. Don’t let her have too much. She can eat whatever she wants after the baby is born.”

Jiang Yu protested, “Then what’s the point of living?”

Mother Jiang glared at her but decided not to say more. She knew that even if she reminded them, these two would just pretend to listen. Jiang Zhe would definitely give in to her.

The first step of the meal was, of course, cutting the cake.

The cake was pink, matching Jiang Yu’s tastes perfectly. Looking at the little fairy on top of the cake, she said, “Mom and Dad, you bought such a beautiful cake. How can I bring myself to eat it?”

Mother Jiang replied, “Then next year we’ll buy an ugly one.”

Jiang Yu laughed, and so did Mother Jiang. “Come on, make a wish, sing the birthday song, and then we can eat. Your dad and I will head out for a walk afterward.”

Jiang Yu immediately teased her, “You two are always going off to enjoy your couple’s time.”

Mother Jiang said, “If you don’t like it, you can come along.”

Jiang Yu replied, “I’m not a child anymore. I don’t need to tag along.”

Mother Jiang said, “Sometimes you act even more like a child than a real child.”

Amidst the laughter and jokes, Jiang Zhe inserted candles into the cake.

Since Jiang Yu was turning twenty-six, he placed six candles on the cake.

While they joked and chatted, he watched from the side, his eyes filled with a light smile. He loved the atmosphere in Jiang Yu’s family, where they could tease each other without anyone getting upset. If possible, he hoped this happiness could last forever.

Everyone sang the birthday song for Jiang Yu, and after it was done, she made her wish. Her wish was simple: she hoped for a happy family, and for her parents and baby to be healthy. Of course, she also wished for Jiang Zhe to be happy.

Jiang Yu then wondered if her wish counted as one wish or multiple wishes. She decided not to worry about it and blew out the candles. She watched as Jiang Zhe elegantly cut the cake. His hands were beautiful, and his movements were graceful.

Watching him cut the cake gave her a warm, happy feeling.

The first slice of cake was, of course, for her. Looking at the half-fairy on her plate, Jiang Yu felt a bit reluctant to eat it. “What do I do, Jiang Zhe? I can’t bring myself to eat it.”

Mother Jiang said, “Don’t worry. Once you put it in your mouth, you won’t feel reluctant anymore.”

Jiang Yu laughed and really did put it in her mouth. “Delicious.”

“Then eat more if it’s delicious.”

Jiang Zhe didn’t like sweets much, but since it was her birthday, he generously ate a big slice.

Jiang Yu found the cake delicious and quickly ate two slices. When she was about to start on a third, her mom stopped her. “Are you only going to eat cake? There’s a whole table of food here.”

“I’ll eat!” Jiang Yu couldn’t bear to let such delicious food go to waste and immediately set the cake aside to start on the meal.

After the meal, her dad and Jiang Zhe cleaned up the table while her mom packed some food for Jiang Yu to take home. There were many supplements sent by relatives, which her mom insisted she take.

Jiang Yu tried several times to refuse, but her mom insisted on giving them to her.

After everything was packed, Mother Jiang took Jiang Yu to her room and took out a bank card from the cabinet. “When you got married, we didn’t give you much. This is what your dad and I have saved up, 800,000 yuan. Even though Jiang Zhe has money, it’s still good for you to have some of your own.”

Jiang Yu was shocked.

When she got married, the Jiang family had given her a dowry of 600,000 yuan, and her parents added another 200,000 yuan. Now her mom was giving her more, which meant they were giving her all their savings.

Jiang Yu pushed it back. “Mom, I can’t take this. What will you use if I take it?”

Mother Jiang said, “Silly child, your dad and I still have money. Besides, we both have pensions. What are you worried about? Take it. In case you need it urgently. At my age, I don’t need that much money. It will eventually go to you anyway.”

Jiang Yu couldn’t take it. She didn’t lack money.

She pushed the card back. “Mom, you keep it. If I ever need money, I’ll come back and ask. I haven’t even touched the money I have now, so you better keep it.”

Mother Jiang thought about it and agreed. Her daughter was fine now, but who knew if she’d change her mind later? Before the wedding, they should have given her this money, but she had seemed so unwilling then that they only gave a part of it.

“Alright, I’ll keep it for now. But live well with Jiang Zhe and don’t cause too much trouble.”

“I know, Mom. Love you.”

People of Mother Jiang’s generation didn’t often say ‘I love you,’ so she felt a bit shy when her daughter said it. Over the past few days, she felt her daughter had changed a lot, but she was still her daughter.

“Mom loves you too.” It was hard to say, but she said it.

After packing a carload of things, her parents left, and Jiang Yu and Jiang Zhe went back home. On the way, Jiang Yu watched the cars and people outside and felt a bit troubled. “My parents have gone out. Where should we go later?”

Jiang Zhe said, “It’s up to you.”

“There’s another old town near the one we visited yesterday. Let’s go there.”

“Sure.”

They went to the neighboring old town, which was larger and had more water.

Jiang Yu saw that there were some popular hairpin shops in the area and felt tempted. She turned to Jiang Zhe and said, “I want to try the hairpins. Do you want to join me?”

Jiang Zhe, seeing her excitement, agreed.

“Sure.”

Jiang Yu chuckled and chose a shop with a nice décor. The shop was run by a few elderly women. When they saw her come in, one asked, “Do you want to try the hairpins, young lady?”

Jiang Yu nodded and then added a bit shyly, “My husband wants to try them too.”

Jiang Zhe was taken aback.

Jiang Yu had seen some male influencers online wearing hairpins and thought they looked good. She was curious about how Jiang Zhe would look with them.

She asked the elderly women, “Can men wear them too?”

One of the women, who also wore a hairpin, replied, “Of course. We had a handsome young man come in just yesterday. Your husband is so handsome, he’ll definitely look good.”

Jiang Yu smiled slyly. “Then I’ll trouble you.”

The women used fresh flowers for the hairpins. Jiang Yu had noticed their beautiful color combinations and decided to come in. Seeing Jiang Zhe standing still, she urged him, “Come in, what are you standing there for?”

Jiang Zhe was a bit stunned but remembered he wasn’t the first man to do this, so he wasn’t too resistant and followed her inside.

Jiang Yu chose bright colors for her hairpin, mainly pink, while for Jiang Zhe, she picked something lighter but similar in color. While the women were putting on Jiang Yu’s makeup, she couldn’t turn to see Jiang Zhe. When she was done and saw him, her mouth opened wide in surprise.

Jiang Zhe had a bit of makeup on. Being a straight man, he hadn’t worn makeup since a group performance in school. He wasn’t used to it, especially with a big bunch of flowers on his head. He felt a bit embarrassed and asked, “Does it look bad?”

Jiang Yu could see a blush on his face and found it amusing. “No, it looks great.”

Not only did he look good, but he also looked very well-behaved.

He looked absolutely beautiful!

Jiang Yu regretted not bringing him here for photos earlier.

She tried hard not to laugh but couldn’t help smiling a bit.

The women and photographers had seen all sorts of requests and weren’t surprised by a man wearing a hairpin. They were quite calm about it.

One of the women even praised Jiang Zhe, “Young man, you look very handsome. You’ll definitely turn heads when you go out.”

With their makeup done, Jiang Yu felt her outfit was perfect for photos, so she didn’t change.

They took photos by the river, where there were many people. As soon as they arrived, people started pointing at them.

“The guy is wearing a hairpin!”

“Wow, he’s so handsome!”

“I’m jealous. Other people’s husbands are the best.”

Jiang Yu’s pregnancy was obvious to anyone who wasn’t blind, but it didn’t stop Jiang Zhe from attracting attention. Some people even took out their phones to take pictures of them.

Jiang Yu had imagined this scene and didn’t mind. Beautiful things are meant to be admired. She didn’t care if people liked Jiang Zhe and took pictures of him.

Jiang Yu was at ease, but Jiang Zhe felt uncomfortable under the scrutiny and just wanted to take the flowers off his head.

So, he didn’t take any solo photos. After their couple’s photos were done, they finished the shoot together.

The shop was quick with the photos. Despite Jiang Zhe’s discomfort during the shoot, when he saw the pictures of them with their heads together, adorned with hairpins, he found them beautiful.

He saved all their couple’s photos.