Chapter 32

Winter in the North is piercingly cold.

But with the entire world draped in a blanket of pure white on this joyous day, it brings about a dreamlike sense of romance.

Tian Mi was woken up by her elder sister that morning, practically chased out of bed. In the past, she’d never understood why the bride had to be called out of bed on her wedding day—couldn’t she wake up herself?

But now that it was her turn, she got it… because she couldn’t get up on her own.

Maybe every girl experiences a bit of pre-wedding jitters. Even though her groom was the man she had longed for, as the big day approached, she couldn’t help but feel anxious about the unknowns of the future.

Turning over and over in her mind and finally dozing off, she felt like she’d only closed her eyes for a moment before being called up again.

But being young has its advantages, and as she glanced at herself in the mirror, she was still as rosy-cheeked as ever.

As the bride, while there was busy excitement outside her room, the space inside felt like an entirely different world.

Tian Mi had already put on her wedding attire—a brand new military uniform.

This was a reward from the regiment for her bravery in saving lives.

Originally, Tian Mi had prepared her own wedding outfit, but after weighing her options, she chose the military uniform. Compared to her own preparations, she felt it was more in line with the standards of the era.

In this unique time, standing out wasn’t wise—blending in was key.

However, as a first-time bride (in both her lives), she had her own little insistence on certain things. For example, instead of her usual twin braids, she styled her waist-length hair in a fishtail braid from the top of her head down to the ends.

Finally, she scattered small red plastic flowers throughout her hair.

Though this style—with those bright plastic flowers—had a slightly rustic touch, it suited her era perfectly, and Tian Mi’s beauty carried it well.

One by one, the military wives who had come early began showering her with compliments, so much so that even the usually thick-skinned Tian Mi couldn’t withstand it. Her face flushed as she retreated shyly into her room, trying to look demure.

The wedding date had been set over half a month earlier than expected, but there was no sense of chaos.

Tian Yu Da Jie’s good relationships were shining through, as several sisters-in-law came over to help out early in the morning. Of course, the fact that the wedding banquet was arranged in the canteen helped keep things orderly.

Initially, Tian Yu had wanted to cook for her little sister’s wedding herself, but Tian Mi and the family men firmly opposed the idea.

What a joke—even the simplest banquet still requires several tables, and it would be exhausting to prepare on her own!

They decided it was better to spend some extra cash and food coupons to have the quartermaster handle the arrangements.

“The groom’s here! The groom’s here to pick up the bride!”

At nine in the morning, Lou Luhui, tall, handsome, and looking especially joyous, arrived to collect his little bride, followed by a long, lively line of friends.

Inside the room, Tian Mi was chatting with her sole bridesmaid, the young girl Wang Xunyan.

Hearing the commotion outside, the two immediately looked toward the door.

Unfortunately, Lou Luhui was still blocked by the military wives outside, so they couldn’t see anything.

Wang Xunyan stood up with a grin, teasingly saying, “Saozi, I’ll go check things out first and report back to you in real-time.”

“Pfft… Go on then, I’ll be waiting for your report.”

But evidently, Miss Wang wasn’t the most reliable informant. Hardly had she stepped outside before the lively scene distracted her. Assuming the role of a ‘member of the bride’s family,’ she squeezed into the crowd, joining in the laughter as they playfully made it difficult for Lou Luhui to pick up his bride. She even managed to snag a lucky red envelope.

Hearing the sounds outside, Tian Mi could only smile helplessly.

It didn’t take long, though, for her turn to come.

The sisters-in-law were rather ‘easygoing’—after receiving their red envelopes, they efficiently led everyone inside, showering the room with endless joyful words, each one different from the last.

When he stepped forward, dressed in a crisp, new military uniform with a big red flower pinned to his chest, his face full of joy as he reached out to her, Tian Mi suddenly felt all her previous worries and nervousness vanish.

This was the man she had chosen, the one who would share all of life’s moments with her, through every season and every meal.

With smiles and gentle nudges from those around them, Tian Mi placed her hand in his warm grasp.

Then, hand in hand, they walked to their new home together.

Originally, Lou Luhui had planned to borrow the regiment’s Jeep to drive the bride around the island, but Tian Mi thought it unnecessary. In the end, they chose the simplest option—hand in hand, they walked to their new home.

It was Saturday.

Along the way, little Chen Xun, who had the day off, led his younger siblings and took charge of handing out candies to the kids in the family quarters.

For them, it was a joyful day just as much as it was for the bride and groom. The children laughed, chased each other, and gleefully scattered behind the couple…

They didn’t care who was getting married—all they knew was that there were candies, so many candies!

At the new house, mother-in-law Zhong Yuxiu was already waiting.

To prevent anyone from playing pranks on the bride, after a few warm greetings between mother and daughter-in-law, she had her son escort Tian Mi to her room and then, smiling ear to ear, went off with Meizi to help host the guests.

During the entire time, Zhong Yuxiu’s smile never wavered for even a second. With a large bag in hand, she generously handed out sweets and sunflower seeds to everyone who came by to offer congratulations. If it weren’t for the current restrictions, she would have loved to bring out a basket full of wedding candies to share, just to express her happiness for her son’s wedding…

The wedding room had been set up the night before by Lou Luhui, his mother, Aunt Mei, and Zhou Jian.

As the bride, Tian Mi was seeing it for the first time. Although most of the items in the room were things she had bought herself, seeing them all arranged together gave her a completely different feeling.

Sitting on the bright red wedding bed, she suddenly felt a rush of reality…

…this was her and Lou Luhui’s home.

“What are you looking at? Are you cold?” The wedding banquet was being held in the canteen, so they only had a brief moment to rest in their new home before they’d need to go to each table to toast the guests. Concerned she might be cold, Lou Luhui settled her in and then brought her a warm cup of powdered milk he’d prepared.

This was something he specifically arranged to buy after he learned that Tian Tian liked dairy products.

Yes, she was his wife. They had held their wedding banquet today, so in this era where the banquet was more important than the marriage certificate, they were already a couple.

Thinking about how he had finally brought her home, Lou Luhui felt light-headed, as if he were walking on clouds. This feeling had persisted since last night.

Tian Mi took the teacup, sipped a few times, and then replied, “I’m not cold… I wasn’t looking at anything, just feeling a bit happy. This is our home.”

Hearing this, Lou Luhui sat beside her, wrapped his arm around her shoulders, and gently smiled, “Yes, our home.”

After taking another couple of sips, Tian Mi brought the cup to his lips, urging him to drink.

Lou Luhui shook his head in refusal. “I don’t like this.” Of course, the main reason was that the powdered milk was hard to come by.

“You have to drink it today even if you don’t like it. Don’t you know that milk can dilute alcohol? Otherwise, when it’s time for toasts, what if you get drunk? You wouldn’t want to…”

The implication of her words was clear, and Lou Luhui’s face turned red as he snatched the teacup from the girl’s hands, tilting his head back and downing most of the milk in one go with a “ton ton ton” sound.

He even licked his lips and stood up with a serious expression. “I’ll go make another cup…”

“…Pfft!”

Thanks to the uniqueness of this era, although there were many teasing voices during the wedding, most of the time, it was still restrained.

Tian Mi had heard from her elder sister that a few years ago, weddings could turn into chaotic scenes where people would fight, and all sorts of vulgar antics would unfold. Hearing about those common wedding pranks made her scalp tingle, and she felt incredibly lucky to have missed out on such an opportunity.

Even though she was excited, she absolutely couldn’t have tolerated those tacky wedding antics. If that had been the case, she would have chosen to go straight to the civil affairs office to register without a wedding ceremony.

Of course, today’s orderly atmosphere was partly due to the environment, but more so because Commander Wang was acting as the officiant, which had a significant deterrent effect.

Despite his rustic appearance, when Commander Wang got angry, anyone would feel intimidated.

The wedding proceeded smoothly. After the oath-taking ceremony, they moved on to the final toasting segment, which was the liveliest part of the entire wedding.

The men enjoyed their drinks, and with the cold northern weather, many liked to have a few drinks to warm themselves up.

Fortunately, while they were drinking, everyone still remembered their roles. Even though it was Saturday, many would have to return to their jobs after the banquet, so they paced themselves.

Even so, after Lou Luhui toasted several tables, a rosy flush had spread across his handsome face, making the big red flower on his chest look even more festive.

Tian Mi was not much better off. The drinks she had were watered down by her mother-in-law in advance. Although she frowned every time she drank, as if the liquor had burned her, it was actually too cold, causing her teeth to hurt. She thought that if her mother-in-law hadn’t been worried about revealing the fact that she was drinking pure water, she would have definitely switched all of it for water.

However, even so, when it hit her stomach, it was still filled with a lot of ice chips, which made her feel really chilly.

She felt that this was no easier than what Lou Luhui was experiencing; at least he was warm.

After the couple finished toasting through the hot and cold moments, they finally settled down to eat with everyone.

Today, they had lamb hot pot. After Tian Mi ate several pieces of steaming hot meat, she finally felt rejuvenated…

The chefs from the cooking team were quite skilled, especially when they had all the spices available. Everyone was very satisfied with this wedding banquet.

After filling their stomachs, it was only eleven-thirty.

Since the cafeteria needed to be cleared for the soldiers to have their lunch, the wedding banquet was held quite early.

As they were leaving, Lou Luhui instructed his aide to carry several dozen pounds of candy to the logistics officer.

It would definitely be too expensive to treat all the soldiers to a meal, but giving each person a piece or two of candy was manageable. 

So during his trip to the city, he bought a hundred pounds of fruit candies, with over a hundred pieces per pound and no ticket required, spending over sixty yuan—a thoughtful gesture.

As the noise and excitement faded, the newlyweds were left alone in their new home.

The room was already heated with a kang, making the temperature quite comfortable.

Tian Mi took off her thick coat and watched the man walking steadily, although his pace was noticeably slower, and suggested, “Are you a bit drunk? Do you want to lie down for a while?”

At this moment, Lou Luhui indeed felt a bit tipsy, his head floating, but when his muddled brain caught the words “lie down,” his eyes suddenly lit up.

He bent down to pick her up.

“What are you doing? Go to bed yourself!” Tian Mi tried to dodge, fearing he might fall.

“I want to… take you to bed!” 

“You’re drunk; can you even carry me?”

“I can… carry you… Let’s go!” 

“Let’s go your sister, you think you’re carrying a pig? Quickly unhand me! Bang!~ … Ah!! Hu Hui! I’m going to bite you to death; you bumped my head… Bang!~ Hiss…”