Gu Tingzhou watched as Lin Jiaojiao only stared at the braised pork, swallowing her saliva but not eating. Thinking about her upbringing, he felt an inexplicable pang in his heart.
Such a good girl—yet she had been tormented by that family of scum to the point where she didn’t even dare eat the meat in her own bowl.
With that thought, he spoke in a tone as if coaxing a child.
“Eat. No one here will hit you or scold you.
I bought all this meat especially for you. Eat as much as you want. If it’s not enough, we can buy more.”
Hearing this, Lin Jiaojiao looked up at the sky in silent exasperation.
This misunderstanding was getting seriously out of hand.
But if she said she wasn’t afraid to eat, just that it looked too greasy and she didn’t want it—would she get hit?
In this era, unlike later times, meat was hard to come by. When people bought meat, they usually chose fatty cuts.
The fattier, the better. The richer, the more satisfying.
Lean meat, on the other hand, was unpopular.
And since most people lacked oil and fat in their diet, a bite of fatty, glistening meat brought immense satisfaction.
Looking at the oily-looking braised pork in her bowl, Lin Jiaojiao gritted her teeth, picked it up with her chopsticks, closed her eyes, and quickly put it into her mouth.
But what she had thought would be greasy turned out to be unexpectedly delicious.
Rich but not greasy, melting in the mouth.
She suddenly opened her eyes, staring at the plate of braised pork in disbelief.
Gu Tingzhou, who had been watching her closely, couldn’t help but curve his lips slightly in satisfaction.
“If you like it, eat more.”
After saying that, he picked up another piece for her.
“Enough, Comrade Gu. You should eat too. I can help myself.”
Although she found it tasty, she could only eat at most two pieces more.
Any more and she couldn’t handle it.
“Alright.”
Gu Tingzhou nodded and stopped serving her, focusing on his own meal.
So, although Lin Jiaojiao wasn’t hungry to begin with, she still ate in small bites to keep him company so he could eat at ease.
The atmosphere was quite harmonious.
But after eating half a bowl of rice, she couldn’t eat another bite. Holding her chopsticks, she didn’t know whether to continue or put them down.
Her bright, dark eyes kept glancing at Gu Tingzhou, who had already finished a bowl of rice and was now eating three steamed buns along with dishes, as if he still had plenty of appetite. She looked like she wanted to say something but hesitated.
After all, in this era of scarcity, wasting food was shameful.
If she left food, even if Gu Tingzhou said nothing, others would surely criticize her.
She didn’t care much about her reputation, but Gu Tingzhou couldn’t afford it.
He was a soldier, an officer.
A reputation for wastefulness would seriously affect him.
Even though she would be the one wasting food, they were together and about to get married. If someone used this against them, it could be dangerous.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Tingzhou noticed her gaze and asked.
Lin Jiaojiao pointed at her bowl, stammering.
“Um… Comrade Gu, I… I can’t finish it. This…”
Before she could finish, Gu Tingzhou took her bowl and poured the remaining rice into his own.
Lin Jiaojiao was instantly stunned.
This… this was her leftover food!
Seeing her shocked expression, Gu Tingzhou chuckled.
“It looks like you’ve already eaten. I didn’t think this through—sorry.”
Lin Jiaojiao quickly shook her head to say she didn’t mind.
But the issue wasn’t whether she had eaten—it was why he was eating her leftovers.
Aren’t soldiers supposed to be very clean and particular? Was he an exception?
What she didn’t know was that Gu Tingzhou did indeed have a strong cleanliness habit—normally.
But with her, that habit seemed to be automatically disabled.
What shocked her even more was that he not only finished her rice, but also ate the remaining two meat buns and all the dishes.
Good heavens—soldiers did have big appetites due to training, but this man seemed unusually capable of eating.
Could his allowance even support himself?
Before even getting married, Lin Jiaojiao was already worrying about his wallet.
After they finished eating and left the state-run restaurant, they strolled along the less lively streets.
Everything in this era looked dull and gray—the streets, the clothes, everything.
Unlike later times with colorful flowers and shaded trees lining the roads.
There were no cars everywhere either. Most people walked, though some rode old-style bicycles.
“Comrade Gu, do you have any plans today?”
After walking in silence for a while, Lin Jiaojiao couldn’t help asking.
She realized something—if she didn’t start talking, Gu Tingzhou would simply stay silent forever.
A complete quiet type.
But then again, if he weren’t so silent, with his looks and rank, at his age he would probably already have kids running around.
What she didn’t know was that many women admired him, but none ever caught his eye.
Suddenly, Gu Tingzhou stopped and looked at her seriously.
“Comrade Lin, did you bring your household registration booklet?”
“Huh?”
That jump in topic was a bit too abrupt.
“Yes, I did. Why?”
“Then shall we go get married now?”
As he said this, his ears turned slightly red again.
Lin Jiaojiao: “……”
So this young man was this pure?
Shouldn’t she be the one embarrassed?
Why was it reversed?
Calling him “young man” wasn’t wrong either.
After all, in her previous life, she was already thirty—three years older than him.
Suddenly, she felt like an “old cow eating tender grass.”
And she was the cow.
Tch—no, no.
She was clearly a pure lily flower, not some old cow.
“Comrade Lin, are you unwilling?”
Seeing her not responding for a long time, Gu Tingzhou asked nervously.
Lin Jiaojiao quickly shook her head.
“Of course not. I’m just curious—how can military marriage approval be this fast?”
Normally, she had heard that military marriage approvals take at least a month.
Even if he had connections, it shouldn’t be done in one day.
Of course, Gu Tingzhou wouldn’t tell her that many people were eager for him, the “old bachelor,” to get married as soon as possible—including his superior, Commander Huo, who was once his grandfather’s subordinate.
So once the call came in, everything was rushed through at full speed.
Naturally, it was fast.
But he couldn’t tell her that.
Looking at her slightly thin face and especially bright eyes, he chuckled softly.
“I remember you said yesterday that you were in a hurry, so I asked my superiors to process it urgently.”
Lin Jiaojiao: “……”
She admitted she was in a hurry.
But brother, do you really have to say it so directly? Don’t you know how to spare a girl’s dignity?
Serves you right for being 27 and still single.
What she didn’t realize was that in her previous world, she was already thirty—and still a single, never-dated woman.