The next day, when Gu Jianing stepped outside, she overheard the villagers discussing how Bao Shanyan had taken Wen Zhuqing to the county town to take photos and register their marriage.

It seemed that Bao Shanyan had taken her words to heart.

With Wen Zhuqing, that scoundrel, temporarily out of the picture, Gu Jianing’s life became relatively peaceful, and she officially entered the phase of preparing for her wedding.

During this time, Huaihua Village was bustling for two days due to the year-end pig slaughtering and the distribution of pork.

Out of nine pigs, five were handed over to the commune, while the remaining four were slaughtered. On that day, every household in the village received a share of pork.

For those two days, the chimneys of every home in Huaihua Village were filled with the aroma of meat.

As the excitement died down, the day of Gu Jianing’s wedding arrived.

The pork the Gu family had received two days prior was used in two ways: half was consumed, and the other half was reserved for today’s wedding banquet. Her second brother had gone hunting in the mountains and brought back some wild chickens and rabbits to supplement the feast. With these additions, there was plenty of food, and the rest could be exchanged with other households in the village.

The day turned out to be a rare good one. Although it was winter and bitterly cold, the sun rose early in the morning. The aunties and elders who were close to the Gu family arrived at dawn, stepping into the Gu family’s kitchen to help prepare the dishes for the banquet. Everyone was chatting and laughing merrily.

As the bride, Gu Jianing also woke up early to get ready in her room.

The red woolen coat she wore accentuated her complexion and figure beautifully. She had purchased it from the system store using her points.

Red fabric was a precious commodity in this era.

A ready-made woolen coat in red was even rarer and harder to come by.

Even if one went to the provincial department store, it was nearly impossible to find such an item, as red was a festive color that everyone desired.

As for the origin of the coat, Gu Jianing told her family that it was a gift from Sheng Zexi.

And if Sheng Zexi ever asked about it, she would say it was prepared by her family.

Previously, Sheng Zexi had come to take her shopping for a wedding dress, but after driving to the provincial city, they hadn’t found anything suitable.

That was why Gu Jianing had resorted to buying it from the exchange store.

Items related to daily necessities like clothing, food, and shelter were sold at very low prices in the store.

Not only had she bought the red woolen coat, but she had also purchased a set of modern cosmetics.

Today was her wedding day, and she would be standing in front of so many people. It was also the day she would step into a new chapter of her life after being reborn. Naturally, she wanted to look her best.

So, she declined offers from her sister-in-law and some village friends to help her with her makeup.

The cosmetics couldn’t be seen by anyone.

Gu Jianing was skilled at applying makeup and finished in half an hour. She also styled her hair, deciding against tying it up and instead opting for a braided princess hairstyle.

No man could resist a woman with a princess hairstyle.

As time passed, the aroma of food from the kitchen grew stronger, and the villagers attending the banquet began to arrive one after another.

They handed over their monetary gifts, offered their blessings, and everyone’s faces were filled with joy.

The Gu family had invited almost the entire village. Among the educated youths from the educated youth point, only one or two who were on good terms with the Gu family and had never spoken ill of Gu Jianing were invited. For example, the shy young man Lu Weixian and another quiet, hardworking female educated youth who had been in the village for a long time.

The female educated youth had already given up on returning to the city and had recently become engaged to a young man from Huaihua Village. She planned to marry him in a few days, just in time to celebrate the New Year together.

As the sound of a jeep approached from a distance, the children who spotted it ran over excitedly to deliver the news.

“They’re here, they’re here! The officer groom has come to fetch the bride!”

Hearing this, many people came out to watch.

The jeep stopped in front of the Gu family’s house, and the door opened. A tall, handsome man in a crisp military uniform, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, stepped out with long strides.

Grandpa Sang and Grandma Sang had come to witness their grandson’s wedding. They had been staying at a hotel, unwilling to return home, just to wait for this day.

After Sheng Zexi got out of the car, they were helped out as well.

“Today is the day I, Sheng Zexi, take my bride. Fellow villagers, let’s all have some wedding candies and share in the joy.” Sheng Zexi took out several bags of candies he had prepared earlier. While Grandpa Sang and Grandma Sang entered the Gu family’s house, he stood at the entrance handing out the candies.

Anyone who offered their blessings, whether old or young, received candies.

Sheng Zexi was generous, giving several candies to each person.

In this era, candies were considered a rare treat, loved by everyone, especially children.

The children, eager for more, kept spouting auspicious phrases. Even a one- or two-year-old toddler, who could barely speak, seeing the older children receiving candies, stumbled over a few garbled words of blessing. His big eyes were fixed on the candies in Sheng Zexi’s hand. When Sheng Zexi placed the candies in his palm, the child immediately broke into a toothy grin, proudly showing the candies to his grandmother. “Candy, candy, sweet~”

After distributing all the candies he had brought, Sheng Zexi entered the Gu family’s house.

There, he saw Gu Jianing stepping out of her room, dressed in fiery red.

The moment Gu Jianing appeared, everyone gasped in admiration.

She was beautiful, truly beautiful!

Radiant, charming, and adorable, she was like a blazing flame that leaped into everyone’s hearts, warming the entire winter.

“Our Ningning is even more beautiful than the city girls. I’ve never seen anyone more beautiful than her.”

“That’s right, even the female educated youths from the city can’t compare.”

“No wonder Officer Sheng is so smitten.”

“Our Ningning and Officer Sheng are truly… what’s the word for it?”

The shy Lu Weixian, who had also seen Gu Jianing emerge, was momentarily stunned before instinctively chiming in, “A perfect match, made in heaven.”

“Yes, yes, that’s exactly it! A perfect match, made in heaven. Little Lu, you’re so well-educated.”

Lu Weixian blushed at the praise, but his eyes sparkled.

Gu Jianing’s hand was held by her father, who then placed it in Sheng Zexi’s large palm.

“Xiao Xi, I’m entrusting our Ningning to you. You must take good care of her. If you dare treat her poorly, our entire Gu family will not stand for it. We won’t let you off easily.” Gu Jianing’s father’s eyes reddened.

As the head of the family and its pillar, Gu Jianing’s father was usually reserved and not one to express his emotions openly.

But there was no denying that his favorite was his daughter, Gu Jianing.

Now, after raising her for 17 years, his beloved daughter was about to marry. He couldn’t bear to let her go.

Only his wife knew that he had been losing sleep lately, thinking about how his precious daughter would soon be married and moving to the northwest with the military. They might not see each other for an entire year. The thought made him so upset that he had secretly cried several times, though there was no need to tell Ningning about this.