Daily Life in the 70s-Chapter 65 - Ambiguities

Who said I was saving money for him?

Eventually, she picked a plain floral cotton jacket, one pair of velvet trousers, one cotton pair, and a pair of leather shoes.

Several young women next to them could not help but glance their way, someone murmured, “Marrying a soldier is really not bad, look at them, their clothes probably cost as much as an ordinary family spends in a year.”

“Don’t be envious, being a Military Wife isn’t easy.”

“That’s true too, losing a laborer at home, having to shoulder everything alone.”

Shen Yiguang slightly furrowed his brow imperceptibly and looked at Yang Peimin’s expression.

As if his hand had a mind of its own, it reached out and held hers.

Yang Peimin was startled and reflexively tried to pull away, but his grip was tight.

His hand was large, encompassing her entire hand snugly, dry and warm.

She looked up at him, Shen Yiguang also looked down, meeting her gaze, his rich voice low and powerful, “Trust me, I’ll do everything I can to give you a good life.”

Yang Peimin realized he was affected by the earlier comments from the bystanders.

She had thought about it before: being a Military Wife entailed either following him or staying at home to take care of elders and handle household affairs.

She didn’t know what Shen Yiguang’s arrangements were, but she knew his military position already qualified for family accompaniment.

But she planned not to follow him for now, for there was an important examination coming up next summer.

She wanted to seize this opportunity.

In her past life, she hadn’t finished college and hadn’t had a choice in her field of study; she wanted to start over.

Thus, the notion that “it’s not easy being a Military Wife” didn’t impact her much.

Her life and dreams wouldn’t be abandoned or changed because of this.

Yang Peimin nodded to signify her trust and signalled for him to let go of her hand before anyone noticed their intimacy.

Even as a legal couple, showing affection in public could still attract attention and disdain.

“You should let go of my hand.”

His hand, soft as if boneless, Shen Yiguang was reluctant to let go.

“People are watching,” Yang Peimin warned.

Only then did Shen Yiguang release her, but his gaze remained intensely on her.

Yang Peimin’s cheeks turned slightly red as she turned to ask the salesperson to gather their items for payment; she had always blushed easily, a trait carried over from her past life.

It wasn’t as if she was particularly shy.

After leaving the store, Shen Yiguang looked up at the sky, “Let’s grab something to eat; the small wontons at that restaurant last time were quite good.”

Yang Peimin checked the time, it was just past eleven, “Let’s wait a bit, I want to look for a bookstore.”

“What kind of book are you looking for?

There is a state-owned Xinhua bookstore here, but it doesn’t have many books.”

“I’m looking for my high school textbooks.” The original owner only had books from sophomore year, and afterward, she borrowed from Xu Min, but she had already returned them.

Shen Yiguang stopped in his tracks, his gaze heavy, “Are you thinking of taking the college entrance exam again?”

Yang Peimin nodded.

Did his look mean disapproval?

She paused inwardly, her gaze resolute as she looked at him, “I want to try again.

The policy for the college entrance exam has been announced.

If there’s a first round, there will be a second, and it’s never wrong to start preparing early.”

“There’s no rush for this, we can slowly plan it out after we get married.

I’ll find a way to get the books for you.

It just so happens my two younger sisters are also in their senior year, so you will have some company.

But we also don’t know if someone who has already taken the college entrance exam once can participate a second time, right?”

“If it’s possible, would you have no objections?” Yang Peimin still stared intently at him as she asked.

The biting north wind swept past, scattering her words and causing someone to shiver.

Shen Yiguang pulled her along, “Let’s go get something to eat first, and we can talk about this slowly.”

Yang Peimin pulled her scarf up to cover most of her face and nodded slightly.

Though it was the onset of spring, it was still exceptionally cold.

The streets were sparse with hurried passersby, lacking any festive atmosphere of the New Year.

Soon, they arrived at National Restaurant.

Both of them ordered a bowl of dumplings and added a dish of chive and egg pancakes that Yang Peimin liked.

Shen Yiguang simply ordered according to her preference without adding anything else.

Being accustomed to the warmth indoors (because, concerned about her health, her family kept the kang heated all day), stepping out and braving the wind made her limbs stiff, and even out of the wind, it took a while to ease up.

Yang Peimin took her hands out of her pockets, rubbing them and craning her neck to see the serving window.

“Why did we talk out in the street?

Aren’t you cold?” Shen Yiguang’s gaze lingered on her hands, pale as jade.

He took off his cap and handed it to her, “Put your hands inside to warm up for a bit.

Let’s also order a pot of mutton soup, it’s nourishing and warming.”

Yang Peimin nodded and, without hesitation, accepted the cap.

Warming her hands with his hat, which still retained his body warmth, indeed felt better.

Drinking the steaming mutton soup seemed to revitalize her entirely.

“Minmin, have you thought about following me into the military after our marriage?” Shen Yiguang ladled some more soup for her and asked.

Looking up from her bowl, Yang Peimin replied, “Wouldn’t you need to file a report and apply?

It won’t be so soon, right?”

Shen Yiguang looked at her, “It might take one or two months.”

“If I leave, I haven’t had a good chance to bond with the elders at home.

I don’t know if they would be saddened by this,” she said slowly, observing his expression.

Shen Yiguang’s deep dark eyes lingered on her face for a second before he quickly smiled and nodded, “If the parents knew their daughter-in-law’s thoughts, they’d definitely be happy.

We should also ask the family’s opinion, don’t you think?”

Yang Peimin didn’t want to express her determination too strongly and simply nodded in agreement.

After lunch, with the weather turning gloomy and looking like it would snow, they hurried back home.

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Since she mentioned wanting to take a nap, Shen Yiguang did not stay long at the Yang Family’s house but left.

She indeed felt quite tired.

The trip out had chilled her to the bone, and as soon as she got back, she lay down on the bed.

Zhang Minghua came in to see her, “What’s the matter?

Did you two have a falling out?”

The old saying is indeed true— only a mother knows her child well.

Only her mother would notice something off about her expression.

But she would not admit it, “Nothing, I got up early this morning and want to catch up on some sleep.

Mother, you don’t know how cold it is outside.

Even sitting in the car, I could feel the chill creeping up from the soles of my feet.

It was really cold.

Let me lie down for a while to recover.”