Chapter 4: Green Plum Meets Bamboo Horse

A week later, Lin Momo received news from her sister-in-law, Zhang Hui. Her maternal cousin, Cheng Jinghao, had returned from the army and wanted to meet Lin Momo for an arranged look at each other.

The meeting was set in the park of the flour factory’s residential area. At first, Lin Momo’s mother disagreed, thinking it wasn’t appropriate for a strange man and woman to meet alone outside.

However, after considering that it was just a casual look, and that visiting each other’s homes wasn’t appropriate either, she reluctantly agreed.

“Mom, he’s a soldier. What could he possibly do to me in broad daylight?” Lin Momo said, eager for the meeting. She needed to confirm if this person was really the Cheng Jinghao she remembered.

“Fine, but you need to be careful. Keep your distance,” Lin Momo’s mother carefully reminded her. Though she wasn’t initially in favor of Lin Momo meeting someone alone, since it was her daughter’s decision, she didn’t want to interfere.

In this era, any slight proximity between a man and woman was subject to gossip, and even married couples holding hands on the street would be criticized for being immoral.

The next morning, Lin Momo arrived at the park. As soon as she spotted the designated sign, she saw a tall and straight figure standing in front of it, dressed in a green military uniform, with his back to her.

Just as she was about to instinctively call out “Cheng Jinghao,” the figure turned around, and she froze in place.

That face was too familiar to her—Cheng Jinghao’s features were delicate and well-defined, his eyes deep and piercing. He stood at 188 cm tall. Lin Momo had once jokingly said that if Cheng Jinghao hadn’t joined the military, he could have been a model.

“What are you standing there for? Are you stunned to see me?” a magnetic voice rang out.

The moment he spoke, Lin Momo confirmed it—he was indeed Cheng Jinghao, the man who had sacrificed himself for her in the fire.

Lin Momo covered her mouth, her tears welling up in her eyes, but she couldn’t bring herself to approach him.

Cheng Jinghao smiled, his lips curling up as he walked towards her. “If you keep crying here, people might think I’m some kind of rogue.”

Hearing his words, Lin Momo quickly wiped away her tears.

“This isn’t the right place to talk,” Cheng Jinghao said, glancing around. Having spent many years in the military, he wasn’t particularly familiar with the capital’s bustling environment.

Although the park wasn’t crowded at the moment, their conversation could easily be overheard, and they might get into trouble. It was better to be cautious.

“Follow me.” As childhood friends, Lin Momo naturally understood what he meant.

She led him into an alley, and Cheng Jinghao followed, always keeping about half a meter of distance behind her.

Before entering the alley, Cheng Jinghao took a quick look around, ensuring there was no one nearby, then followed Lin Momo inside.

Once they were in the alley, Lin Momo suddenly grabbed him, and in the next instant, both of them appeared in the mall.

“What is this? Your space?” Cheng Jinghao surveyed their surroundings and quickly realized it was the mall where Lin Momo had worked in her previous life.

“Hey, you know about spaces?” Lin Momo looked at him, surprised. As far as she knew, Cheng Jinghao never read novels.

“Mm.” Cheng Jinghao looked at her, his eyes gleaming. He had finally found her.

“Are you stupid or what? Why did you follow me to your death?” Lin Momo placed her hands on her hips, pointing at him.

“Now it’s fine,” Cheng Jinghao smiled, “We’re both alive and here, that’s what matters.”

“…” Lin Momo was momentarily speechless. He was right—both of them were alive, and that was the important thing.

“When did you come?” They both asked at the same time.

“July 23rd.” They had both arrived at the same time.

“I’ve already prepared the marriage registration papers. I’ll go get the certificate tomorrow. I only have one week off,” Cheng Jinghao said nonchalantly.

“Get what certificate? What marriage? When did you prepare the marriage papers?” Lin Momo stepped back a bit, putting some distance between them, her eyes full of caution as she watched him.

“When I received your photo, I filed the marriage report. Wasn’t it you who actively wanted to meet me?” Cheng Jinghao said, looking at Lin Momo with interest.

“I just wanted to confirm if it’s really you. You’re 26 now, I’m 18. If you’re thinking of eating young grass, forget it.” Lin Momo hugged her clothes tightly.

“What’s wrong? Do you want to be like before, where you stayed unmarried until you were 28? Nowadays, it’s common for people to marry at 18. If you don’t marry me, are you planning to marry some crippled, old man?” Cheng Jinghao crossed his arms and looked at her.

“I won’t marry. I can go to the countryside. With such a big mall, do you think I’ll starve there?” Lin Momo raised her head proudly.

“Yeah, you don’t work, you take everything from the mall. But if people find out about your space, are you sure they won’t dissect you?” Cheng Jinghao looked her up and down.

“…” Lin Momo immediately deflated. Cheng Jinghao had a point.

“Do you think I’m interested in someone like you, a bean sprout? If it weren’t for the fact we grew up together, I…” Cheng Jinghao gestured at Lin Momo’s body.

“What do you mean? Although my body is 18, it’s still in good shape, okay?” Lin Momo puffed out her chest and stepped closer to Cheng Jinghao.

“Ahem.” Cheng Jinghao’s face reddened, and he quickly looked away.

“…” Lin Momo also blushed. Ever since Cheng Jinghao joined the army, they rarely kept in touch. Meeting again in this world made her feel as if they were still children, forgetting that they had grown up.

“A fake marriage. My parents are pushing for it, and it will solve your problem too. Once we’re married, you can follow the army right away,” Cheng Jinghao said seriously.

“Let me think about it.”

“I’ll give you a benefit.” Seeing her hesitation, Cheng Jinghao unbuttoned two of his military uniform buttons.

“Cheng Jinghao, what are you doing? Are you acting like a rogue?” Lin Momo looked at him nervously.

“What are you thinking?” Cheng Jinghao revealed his collarbone, where there was a red water droplet-shaped mark.

“What’s this?” Lin Momo asked curiously.

“Spiritual spring.”

“Spiritual spring? The kind that brings the dead back to life?” Lin Momo asked excitedly.

“You’ve been reading too many novels.” Cheng Jinghao lightly tapped her forehead and said, “It can improve your constitution, strengthen your body, and speed up wound recovery.”

“How do you have this? Why don’t I have it?” Lin Momo stared at the red mark enviously.

Cheng Jinghao felt his body heat up under her gaze, and he quickly buttoned up his shirt. “Do you remember the red droplet-shaped stone you gave me when I joined the army? This is it.”

“What?” Lin Momo was shocked, pointing at the mark that had already been covered up. “I bought it for ten yuan by the roadside.”

“Do you want to marry me in a fake marriage? The spiritual spring is yours,” Cheng Jinghao offered. “You’ll manage my food and drink. My allowance is 131.3 yuan a month. If I go on a mission, I get a bonus, at least 50 yuan, sometimes even several hundred.”

“My savings right now are exactly ten thousand. I’ll give it all to you. What do you think?” Cheng Jinghao looked at Lin Momo, his eyes shining.

He knew her too well. At this moment, she was already calculating in her mind.

“Fake marriage?” Lin Momo looked at him with sparkling eyes.

A ten-thousand-yuan household, huh? In this era, being a ten-thousand-yuan household wasn’t something that came easily.

Although she had endless resources in the mall, she didn’t have the ability to fight. She couldn’t afford to go down the black market route. What if she got caught and dissected?

“Fake marriage,” Cheng Jinghao nodded.

“Deal.” Lin Momo raised her hand, ready to high-five Cheng Jinghao.

Cheng Jinghao raised his hand. Lin Momo was so immersed in the joy of becoming a ten-thousand-yuan household that she didn’t notice the gleam in Cheng Jinghao’s eyes.