“Why did you buy so much?”
Su Wanwan saw Lu Xiao carrying three aluminum lunch boxes, along with sunflower seeds, White Rabbit milk candies, and other snacks.
“I wasn’t sure which dishes you’d like, so I bought a couple of extra options.”
“These are for after the meal or when you get bored.”
Their train ride would take more than thirty hours to reach the destination. He didn’t mind, but he was afraid Su Wanwan wouldn’t be able to sit still for that long.
Although she had packed some pastries when they prepared their luggage, for some reason, when he saw the milk candies and other snacks, he couldn’t help buying some.
“Thank you.”
To be honest, Lu Xiao had already given her quite a few pleasant surprises.
He opened the three aluminum lunch boxes. One contained rice with braised pork and stewed potatoes. Another had rice with luncheon meat. The last one held two vegetarian dishes.
“You eat first. I’ll finish whatever’s left.”
The portion was huge rice and dishes together. Su Wanwan couldn’t possibly finish it all.
Seeing her hesitate, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Don’t like any of it?”
She shook her head.
“No, it’s just too much. I can’t finish it.”
Lu Xiao took an empty lunch box out of his luggage.
Based on how much he had seen her eat at home, he portioned out some braised pork, some luncheon meat, and a bit of the two vegetable dishes.
He handed it to her.
“This is my lunch box but it’s clean.”
Su Wanwan hadn’t expected him to go this far.
She took it and began eating.
“Oh my, you two are so sweet. Makes people jealous. Young man, you’re really attentive.”
“When you weren’t here earlier, some old lady tried to bully your wife. Thick-skinned too kept asking her for food. She gave the boy a piece, but they weren’t satisfied and came back for more.”
The auntie sitting nearby, seeing how affectionate the young couple was, couldn’t help striking up a conversation.
“You were bullied just now?”
Su Wanwan shook her head. “I’m fine.”
Her cheeks were puffed with food, rice not yet swallowed, paired with those round eyes it made Lu Xiao suppress a laugh.
“Finish eating,” he said gently.
Then he turned to the auntie. “Auntie, thank you. Have some sunflower seeds.”
He handed her a handful.
“Oh, no need to be so polite.”
“Auntie, if I go to buy food again later, could you help keep an eye on my wife?”
“No problem!”
“But let me tell you your little wife is quite formidable…”
The auntie began recounting what had just happened.
Lu Xiao hadn’t expected the young woman to be so sharp-tongued.
Good. As long as she didn’t get bullied when out and about.
Over the course of the journey, the two became much more familiar with each other, no longer so awkward.
At least Su Wanwan’s impression of Lu Xiao had become very good.
It was somewhat amusing already married, yet only now going from strangers to somewhat acquainted.
After Su Wanwan finished eating, Lu Xiao began his meal, polishing off all the remaining food.
At that moment, she gained a clear understanding of his appetite.
No wonder he was so tall and broad he really could eat.
Before long, a train attendant came to collect the lunch boxes.
In those days, meals in the dining car were served in aluminum containers that were washed and reused.
Lu Xiao even rinsed out the lunch box Su Wanwan had used.
When he returned, he saw her head leaning against the window, nodding forward bit by bit fast asleep.
They had gotten up early, traveled all the way to the county, registered their marriage, and then rushed to catch the train. She must have been exhausted.
He sat beside her, gently lifting her nodding head and resting it on his shoulder.
A faint, elegant fragrance drifted into his nose.
He couldn’t help but inhale softly.
In his line of sight was a delicate, radiant face.
He raised his hand and compared her whole face was only about the size of his palm.
It reminded him of the porcelain dolls displayed in store windows exquisite, beautiful, evoking a sense of affection.
“Oh my, how sweet you two are. Just married, right?”
Lu Xiao smiled and nodded.
“I could tell at a glance.”
The auntie looked on enviously.
The young man was handsome and treated his wife so well.
And the young bride was truly beautiful no wonder he treasured her so much.
When Su Wanwan woke up and realized she had been leaning on Lu Xiao’s shoulder, she jerked upright.
“Careful!”
A strong hand shielded her head, preventing her from hitting anything.
“I…”
“What time is it? How much longer?” A flush of warmth rose to her face. She quickly tried to calm herself.
Looking at her pink, just-awakened cheeks, Lu Xiao didn’t know why, but his mood lifted inexplicably.
“It’s still early. Have some water first.”
He handed her the canteen.
She took it and sipped a few mouthfuls.
More than thirty hours it wasn’t extremely long, yet not short either.
Two days and one night. Lu Xiao was fine his military-trained body could handle it but Su Wanwan felt like her bones were about to fall apart.
How she missed high-speed trains.
Seeing her grow more and more wilted, Lu Xiao felt a twinge of regret. He should have bought soft sleeper tickets.
He was used to hard seats and didn’t think much of it.
He had overlooked that the young woman was delicate and not suited for such long, grueling travel.
At last, they arrived and disembarked.
Lu Xiao held Su Wanwan’s hand with one hand and carried both their luggage with the other.
This time, she didn’t shy away she let him lead her.
“Find me a guesthouse. I won’t go home with you yet,” she said quietly. She knew his family wouldn’t welcome her.
“Don’t overthink it.” He couldn’t resist ruffling her hair.
“How about this if you don’t feel like going home today, we’ll stay at a guesthouse for the night and rest. Tomorrow we’ll go back together, alright?”
There was no way he would leave her alone.
She nodded.
That was the only option.
“Little brother!”
“Big brother?”
“Grandma sent me to pick you and your wife up.”
Lu Zheng hadn’t expected his younger brother to pull something so drastic registering the marriage behind their backs.