Qin Yanci lowered his eyes to look at her, sometimes worried, sometimes smiling.
When he worried, his brows were faintly furrowed, making him look weak and helpless—like the fragile reflection of the moon on water, broken yet complete, inexplicably stirring pity in others.
When he smiled, his eyes looked like shimmering ripples of light spreading outward.
At first glance, she was beautiful.
A closer look—she was even more beautiful.
And such a beautiful person… was his wife.
He felt very pleased as he asked, “After getting the marriage certificate, are you happy or not?”
Ying Sisi looked up and smiled. “Happy. Very happy.”
Saying she wasn’t happy would be too discouraging.
They arrived at their destination.
Only then did Ying Sisi realize Qin Yanci had brought her to the residential compound of his father’s workplace.
A row of connected apartment buildings.
Qin’s father lived in the third row, third floor, unit 301.
After entering, Ying Sisi observed the surroundings.
The house was a bit messy.
The walls were clean white, and the dark red furniture was simple but complete.
A hanging calendar with portraits was stuck on the back of the door.
There were two bedrooms, large and small, both empty of bedding.
The kitchen had no pots; only a few aluminum lunchboxes scattered on the stove.
The bathroom, however, was fully stocked with toiletries.
From what Qin Yanci meant, they would be living here after marriage.
Ying Sisi asked, “Will it be convenient for your father to go to work if we live here?”
“He has another single dormitory,” Qin Yanci replied. “Do you like it?”
“Yes!” Ying Sisi of course liked it.
Just the two of them living together—quiet and comfortable.
A faint smile appeared on Qin Yanci’s lips. It was worth the effort.
After work yesterday, when his mother mentioned preparing a new wedding house, his sister-in-law actually said it would be more lively for everyone to live together, that living separately would make them distant and would invite gossip from neighbors.
What a joke.
What right did she have to decide whether living together was “lively” for him?
What did other people’s gossip have to do with him?
Fortunately, before leaving, his wife had said those words, and he repeated them word for word in front of everyone.
That finally shut her up.
His father immediately suggested using a unit house to temporarily accommodate them, and even arranged his job.
He would be working at the geological survey team.
But he had no interest in it.
He wanted to take the college entrance exam.
At this moment, he brought it up, wanting to hear his wife’s opinion.
“The geological survey team job is stable. But taking the college entrance exam is difficult—you haven’t touched textbooks for ten years, and you’ve probably forgotten most of what you learned. If it were you, what would you choose?”
Ying Sisi thought for a moment and said, “I would choose the college entrance exam. With a degree, you have more choices. You’re a high school graduate with a foundation, so your chances are higher than most people.
As for the survey team job, I don’t really understand it. It sounds respectable, but I feel stability means everything stays the same. A life you can see the end of—wouldn’t that become boring? Or do you actually like the job? If you like it, then it’s worth doing.”
The girl was young.
Her voice was slightly soft and immature, but she spoke with great seriousness, as if she had thought it through carefully.
Qin Yanci found it very satisfying.
He said, “I’m not interested in it. Studying is more interesting. My savings are limited, so during this period of revision, you’ll have to endure some hardship with me.”
Ying Sisi almost couldn’t hold back her smile.
A good house to live in, a partner supporting her—how could this be considered hardship?
This was happiness.
Happiness so great it felt like a dream.
She immediately said, “It’s not hardship. As long as I’m with you, even eating coarse food is happiness.”
Qin Yanci laughed at that, completely amused.
He promised, “I will do my best and make sure you live a good life in the future.”
“Mm.”
“…”
Later that afternoon, Ying Sisi used the excuse that she still had things to do at home and separated from Qin Yanci. On the way back, she secretly opened the red envelope.