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◎ Third update ◎
Thinking that it was Liang Baozhen’s birthday and that they wanted to go to the movies, Zhou Yun directly stopped Xu Shengwei and Xu Shengya from joining them. She said they could take the two children to the movies anytime and that there was no need to intrude on their older brother and sister-in-law’s fun.
She wanted to give the young couple more time alone. Since they had just gotten married, they should cherish this time together.
Xu Shengwei and Xu Shengya understood the situation and quickly agreed. “Sister-in-law, we’ll go next time.”
“You and brother should go together,” Xu Shengya said shyly.
Liang Baozhen knew what her grandmother was thinking, so she finally agreed with Xiaowei and Xiaoya to take them to the movies together next time.
When Xu Shengjie came back, it was almost evening. He helped to make a set of cabinets for Hong Saner’s sister’s wedding and was busy for most of the day. Hong Saner was the youngest of three children in Hong Jixiang’s family. He had an older brother and sister. The older brother had been married for three or four years, and the older sister was getting married next month to a chef at a state-owned restaurant. As for Hong Saner, his mother had urged him to get married as well.
Hong Saner, who was still laughing at Xu Shengjie being arranged to go on a matchmaking a while ago: “…”
It was tough!
“A few days ago, I saw Sister Qin from the factory trying to introduce a girl to Hong Saner.”
Liang Baozhen brought out a thicker quilt today. The temperature has dropped recently, and the thin summer quilt was no longer warm enough. Now lying in bed, she felt much warmer.
Xu Shengjie touched his wife’s hand, which was warm. “He’s just playful by nature and hasn’t settled down yet. He always feels that getting married means being controlled, and that’s uncomfortable for him.”
“Did you think the same way back then?” Liang Baozhen felt that the two brothers must be similar.
Remembering how he was quite resistant to marriage when he first returned from the military, Xu Shengjie admitted, “At first, I did feel that way and think that it didn’t matter whether I got married or not. But now, I think it’s pretty good.”
Liang Baozhen agreed wholeheartedly. She also felt that everything was going well after their marriage and that all her previous worries and anxieties had been for nothing.
There was a small wooden cabinet next to the wooden bed, which was specially made by Xu Shengjie. It could be used to store some small things and was very convenient. Liang Baozhen put the two movie tickets under the enamel cup and took them out and handed them to Xu Shengjie.
“On my birthday, let’s go see a movie?” Liang Baozhen dusted off the movie tickets as if presenting treasure. “Brother Fang works at the cinema, so these are sold at the internal price of 10 cents a ticket. Actually, 10 cents is quite expensive, but when I think about the original price of 20 cents, I feel like we saved a lot of money.”
Xu Shengjie took the tickets. He had already prepared a birthday gift for Liang Baozhen, but he hadn’t expected this. For him, the movie was just a war movie he watched with his comrades when he was in the military. It was passionate and exciting. After watching it, everyone was more motivated to march and fight.
“Sure, we’ll go right after work,” Xu Shengjie quickly calculated the timing in his head. He would prepare some food in advance, finish work at six, and they could ride their bicycles to the southern part of the city. They’d arrive around six twenty-five, and if they had time, they could eat their food outside and make it just in time for the six-thirty movie.
Liang Baozhen listened to Xu Shengjie’s detailed schedule and felt something was off. How could such a romantic movie trip be arranged like a standardized procedure?
***
On Liang Baozhen’s birthday, at five in the morning, Zhou Yun got up early in the dark, lit the kerosene lamp, and went to the stove. The courtyard was quiet at this time, with only the rustling sound of leaves in the wind.
She took out the flour from the cupboard, kneaded the dough, and rolled it out. Zhou Yun had lived for most of her life, and what she was best at was rolling noodles. Because it was his grandson’s wife’s birthday, the longevity noodles she made this time had to be one continuous string.
A long and thin longevity noodle is cooked in a pot. Soy sauce, chili oil, and a little lard are poured into a porcelain bowl. After adding some cabbage leaves, the noodles are put into the bowl and sprinkled with chopped green onions on top, which smells delicious.
“Grandma, you’re up so early!” Liang Baozhen smelled a delicious aroma as soon as she woke up, and when she looked closely, it was a bowl of noodles.
“Go brush your teeth and wash your face, and then have some noodles.” Zhou Yun wiped her hands and looked at Liang Baozhen lovingly. “Today is your birthday, so you can’t miss this bowl of longevity noodles.”
Zhou Yun thought about how Liang Baozhen couldn’t have her birthday at her own home this year and how her parents couldn’t cook her a bowl of longevity noodles. As her grandmother, she had to make sure to remember.
“Thank you, grandma.”
At the Xu family’s dinner table today, Liang Baozhen had the best meal: a bowl of longevity noodles and a boiled egg. Egg tickets were precious at home, so usually, they only gave eggs to Xiaowei and Xiaoya at least twice a week since they were still growing.
“Happy birthday, sister-in-law.”
“Sister-in-law, happy birthday, and wishing you more prosperity…”
“It’s not New Year’s, so why are you wishing your sister-in-law more prosperity?” Zhou Yun looked at Xiaowei.
“I just said it out of habit.” Xu Shengwei counted on his fingers. There were still five months until the Chinese New Year. He couldn’t help but groaned, “Why hasn’t the New Year come yet?”
“You’re just thinking about getting the New Year’s money, right?” Xu Shengjie exposed his brother’s little thoughts; how could he not understand?
“Shouldn’t we receive more this year? One from Grandma, one from Big Brother, and one from Sister-in-Law!”
“That’s for sure.” Xu Shengya was also looking forward to it. The Chinese New Year was the best, with lucky money to get and new clothes to wear!
“It depends on your performance in school. If you do poorly on the exam, you might get less New Year’s money.” Xu Shengjie threatened Xu Shengwei. “How are you doing in school lately? I don’t expect your grades to be very good, but at least pass, okay?”
“Passing is no problem. Brother, I’m only two points away from passing! That’s huge progress.” Xu Shengwei scored fifty points on his last exam and fifty-eight points on his most recent one, which can be described as significant improvement.
“Hmm, you’ve made even more progress than me,” Xu Shengya added.
Xu Shengya always scored ninety-eight, ninety-nine, or a hundred points, so her room for improvement is less compared to her second brother.
Before heading to work, Liang Baozhen carefully braided her hair. This time she braided a four-strand braid, which was more troublesome and delicate than the usual three-strand or two-strand braids. But today is a special day so she wanted to dress up.
Finally, looking at the two new hairpins on the table—both of them were beautiful—she raised her hand and prepared to take one and put it in her bag. She didn’t want to wear it right away; it was too eye-catching and not practical for work, so she planned to wear it when she went to the movies after getting off work.
“Ahem.” Xu Shengjie was standing at the door, waiting for his wife to go out with him. When he saw her raising her hand, he couldn’t help but remind her, worried that she might take the wrong hairpin.
Liang Baozhen; “…”
Looking at Xu Shengjie, Liang Baozhen knew what he was thinking. She deliberately reached out for the purple hairpin. Seeing a crack in his serious expression, she frowned, then turned around with a smile and put the bow hairpin into her bag. “Let’s go~”
Xu Shengjie, tricked by his wife, could only smile helplessly and followed her out.
***
Liang Baozhen was very excited when working on her birthday and was looking forward to going to the movies in the evening. At six o’clock, she rushed out of the workshop with her bag and headed straight for the factory gate.
Xu Shengjie was already waiting for her on his bicycle. The State Cotton Factory was quite far from the cinema, so they had to hurry to get there; otherwise, they might miss the start of the movie.
Liang Baozhen sat on the back of the bicycle, took out the bow hairpin Xu Shengjie had given her, and clipped it into her braid. She then took out the dry food she had prepared earlier and ate. Occasionally, she fed Xu Shengjie a bite. They filled their stomachs this way.
When they arrived at the cinema at exactly six twenty-five, Liang Baozhen couldn’t help but admire Xu Shengjie’s precision with time!
After getting their tickets checked at the entrance of the cinema, the two went inside immediately.
This was Liang Baozhen’s first time coming to the cinema. Watching movies here was very different from watching open-air movies in the commune. The comfortable seats, dark environment, and clearer movie images were a new experience for her, and everyone was focused on the screen ahead.
“Have you been here before?” Liang Baozhen asked in a low voice.
“No, it’s my first time here.”
The feeling of watching a movie in the cinema was too new. As soon as the movie started, Liang Baozhen was completely immersed in it and no longer paid attention to the man next to her.
These days, relationships between men and women are strictly regulated. If a man or a woman is close to each other on the street and is seen by the patrol team, they may be questioned. Couples had to be especially cautious to avoid any misconduct.
But it’s different in a dark cinema. It’s dark all around, with only the screen in front providing light. Everyone’s eyes are fixed ahead, and no one cares about what others are doing. As a result, cinemas have become a perfect place for many couples to express their affections and emotions.
Liang Baozhen was concentrating on watching the movie when she suddenly heard a rustling sound. A man and a woman were talking with their heads close together, and they were even holding hands.
Her almond-shaped eyes widened slightly, as if she had discovered something very important. Liang Baozhen turned her head away, her face turning a bit red. Fortunately, it was pitch dark now, and no one could see.
After a while, Liang Baozhen discovered that a couple on her left was also talking affectionately. There were some noises from time to time, and it seemed that they were holding hands as well. The cinema was filled with sounds, with men and women expressing their feelings in this unattended place.
She glanced at Xu Shengjie secretly. The man was staring at the screen intently. His sharp jawline and handsome face made her glance a few more times.
Liang Baozhen looked around and felt that she should also take advantage of this situation.
She reached to the side and gently touched Xu Shengjie’s hand on his knee. This man sat very properly while watching the movie, with his back straight, which was obviously a habit he had acquired during his time in the military.
Xu Shengjie suddenly felt a warmth on the back of his hand and looked down to see his wife’s hand touching his. She must have been too focused on watching the movie, and her hand had moved towards him. Xu Shengjie didn’t pay that much attention and returned his gaze to the screen.
Liang Baozhen: “…”
She had never seen someone so indifferent! Liang Baozhen moved her little finger and hooked it towards Xu Shengjie’s finger, which just happened to touch the calluses on his fingertips and sent a slight prickle through her skin. Seeing that he still didn’t react, she moved her hand and lightly traced some circles on his palm…
Xu Shengjie knew that many men and women in the cinema were affectionate and close to each other. He couldn’t stand it and felt that it was too open. He thought it was okay at home, but it’s important to be mindful of their own actions outside, especially since he was a soldier and had received strict training…
Feeling the caress on his palm, Liang Baozhen’s skin was delicate and smooth to the touch. Xu Shengjie did not move; he blinked a few times and swallowed hard… Then he grasped his wife’s hand and quietly clasped their fingers together in a corner under the seat where no one could see.
The author has something to say:
Happy birthday to our Zhenzhen~
Liang Baozhen: We should also do what other young couples do!
Xu Shengjie: I’ve received professional training, and I shouldn’t be affected by this flirting… Forget it, I can’t bear it!
***
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