Chapter 29

Marriage is often said to be the grave of love.

This saying has been a timeless truth throughout history.

Youyi and Huang Youyi discussed the accuracy of this statement and reminded Youyi to reconsider whether her choice was indeed the right one.

Even though she had already made her choice, she was encouraged to reflect deeply.

Huang Youyi was truly one of the most clear-headed people.

She advocated for sexual freedom, desired sexual pursuits, and embraced many possibilities, openly displaying herself while also offering sincere, rational advice to friends.

She shouldn’t be studying medicine. She should have become a philosopher.

“The grave comes before love,” Youyi replied after some thought.

Her situation was not the normal procedure.

After the intensity of love reached its peak, couples chose to marry, but before marriage, there wasn’t love in her case.

She had only a simple, sole commitment.

After entering marriage, she didn’t experience the mundane and messy life she expected. Instead, she found herself still in a comfortable zone.

There were no complicated relationships with in-laws or a husband needing care, or the difficult balancing act between two families.

Her life had only gained Fu Cheng.

And having him brought her psychological joy and happiness.

So, it wasn’t bad at all.

“Why did you agree so easily with your grandfather?” Huang Youyi asked curiously. “Weren’t you afraid he might be a bad person?”

Marrying without knowing the other person was risky, and no one could predict what might happen in the future.

Moreover, nowadays, it’s easy to get married but hard to divorce. Even if you decide to divorce, there’s a three-month cooling-off period where attempts at reconciliation are encouraged.

“I didn’t think too much at the time.”

“Grandfather didn’t force me to do anything. He has always been very indulgent with me. He is the person who wants me to be the happiest person in the world.”

On one hand, to reassure him. On the other hand, it was also due to the natural human preference for attractive things.

Ding Youyi had been very strictly controlled by her parents since childhood, following their choices. When she even resisted returning home during school vacations, she thought that having another home of her own might be a good thing.

At least, it would provide a place with reasons to go.

Huang Youyi extracted information from this statement and asked with curiosity, “So, do you have love now?”

“I think I’ve confessed my feelings to him,” Youyi said. “I like him.”

After a pause, she added, “He likes me too.”

But what defines true love?

According to the dramas and novels Youyi has seen, true love means being inseparable through life and death. Enduring everything together with promises that only death can break.

However, such extreme notions of life and death don’t quite fit with modern society.

Huang Youyi remarked, “This is the result of hormone production after the hormone level rises. For example, I have never experienced this kind of hormone increase.”

Huang Youyi is very rational and somewhat pessimistic. Although she often follows celebrities and ships couples, she remains skeptical at her core.

But Fu Cheng does seem like a very upright person.

For now, Huang Youyi is reserved in her assessment.

Everything needs time to prove itself, and many factors must support it.

She is on Youyi’s side.

*

After class, on her way home, Youyi was still thinking about what Huang Youyi had said.

As soon as she stepped out of the elevator, she saw a lot of things in the hallway.

Workers in blue uniforms were moving furniture into room 902.

Youyi stopped and saw that the furniture was what she had picked out a couple of days ago while shopping.

It had arrived so quickly.

“Be careful,” a hand reached over her head and shielded her forehead. Fu Cheng came through the gap and said, “You should go to the opposite side and come back after the moving is done.”

Otherwise, the dust would be too heavy.

Fu Cheng was also moving items. He was slightly sweating, indicating that the moving process had been going on for a while.

So many things had been added to the house…

Youyi didn’t go over. She asked, “Is there anything I can help with?”

“Would your husband make you work?” Fu Cheng picked her up with one arm, opened the door to the opposite room, and let her inside.

“Half an hour at most.”

Then he closed the door.

Half an hour later, Youyi took out a bag of dumplings from the fridge and boiled a bowl of sour soup dumplings. Before the half-hour was up, the noise from the moving had stopped.

Youyi opened the door and called out, “I’ve cooked something. Come and eat.”

This was Youyi’s first time making sour soup dumplings. She followed an online recipe and wasn’t sure about Fu Cheng’s taste, so she didn’t add too much vinegar.

“Do you prefer them a bit more sour?” Youyi asked.

“No need,” Fu Cheng said as he sat down and picked up his chopsticks.

The dumplings were handmade frozen ones bought from the supermarket last time, with various fillings mixed together. There were only thirty left.

Youyi ate ten, but she wasn’t sure if Fu Cheng had enough.

If not, they might need to order takeout.

He finished quickly.

“Let’s go see if you like it,” Fu Cheng said as he got up.

Most of what he had added were soft furnishings, arranged carefully according to Youyi’s preferences, decorating their home meticulously.

The four-piece bedding set Youyi didn’t like was replaced with a darker shade of green plum with leaf patterns, which matched the room’s style. She liked it.

There was also a small bouquet of daisies on her new vanity.

The vase was a slender rectangular bottle with a white gauze ribbon tied into a bow.

“Did you buy these?” Youyi asked, surprised.

Clearly, it could only be Fu Cheng who bought them.

The small surprises in life, like suddenly seeing a bouquet of flowers you love and knowing someone has prepared them with care, make you realize in that moment—

“So it turns out… someone will also prepare flowers for me.”

Youyi bent down to smell the flowers.

The daisies had a faint, refreshing fragrance, not strong but very pleasant.

This wasn’t the first time someone had given Youyi flowers, but it was the first time she received them with such genuine meaning. Compared to roses and tulips, this bouquet of daisies felt incredibly precious.

“Why daisies?” Youyi asked Fu Cheng curiously.

The florist said daisies represent innocence, beauty, and pure joy.

They suited Youyi very well.

Fu Cheng simply said, “They’re pretty.”

Youyi didn’t need to say “I like them.” Her expression had already conveyed all her feelings.

She placed the bouquet on the windowsill, and with the transparent glass reflecting, the flowers seemed to shine even brighter.

Fu Cheng reached out, his fingers gently moving her chin to the side, and he noticed a black mark near her neck on the left side of her cheek.

He used his fingertip to gently wipe it away.

“I’m glad you like it,” he said.

His fingertip brushed against her lips, accidentally sliding across her tongue. The touch was warm and slightly damp, and he was momentarily taken aback.

His fingers unconsciously tightened.

It felt like the suffocating sensation of drinking a large jug of water after eating sour soup dumplings, leaving her breathless.

This was just a similar physiological pressure.

Youyi frowned, and Fu Cheng seemed to realize, releasing his hand.

He looked down.

The spot he had touched was now visibly red.

White skin reddens easily when pinched.

“No, I just wanted to say, I need to brush my teeth,” Youyi explained.

The dumplings had made her noticeably thirsty. She wanted to brush her teeth, not because she disliked the flowers.

Everyone has their own unique preferences, and all personal comforts deserve respect.

It was only after knowing Fu Cheng that Youyi realized she liked the strong and somewhat oppressive sense of control, similar to his.

Just as Fu Cheng hoped she could rely on him at times, she also liked that reliance.

Youyi bent over and walked past him.

When she grabbed her toothbrush, she noticed the rinsing cup had also been replaced with a new one.

It was a pair of white mugs with black-and-white patterns, clearly designed for couples.

That was the first thing she noticed, but it was clear that the changes in the house were not limited to just this.

There were many more, all in pairs.

One for him, one for her.

They were all arranged side by side.

It showed respect and aligned with her aesthetic.

It was evident that Fu Cheng had put a lot of thought into choosing these.

At that moment, Youyi truly felt that the house was theirs.

A home that belonged solely to the two of them.

When she came out, Fu Cheng was installing the newly arrived floor mirror.

The mirror was large, and he held it up with one hand, stabilizing it firmly.

“Isn’t there still a potted plant missing?” Youyi suggested from behind, “A tall, large one.”

Adding a bit of greenery to the living room would make it look more vibrant.

Fu Cheng replied, “I’ll buy one next time.”

With that, the house had fully transformed into the kind of home she liked.

It wasn’t just about the things. The most fundamental reason was because Fu Cheng was there.

She looked up the meaning of the small daisies.

It was—

I like you.

So, do you love me?