You're my wife, don't doubt it!

“Three people, that’s like a wedding photo, no, a family portrait.” Xiao Yao laughed, “Sounds pretty good.”

Wedding photos…

Shen Jie suddenly stopped in her tracks: "Hey, Xiao Yao."

"Huh?" Xiao Yao was walking along just fine when Shen Jie suddenly stopped, pulling him until he stumbled.

"How about we take wedding photos?" Shen Jie said mysteriously.

"What the heck?" Xiao Yao couldn't believe his ears.

"Wedding photos, huh? Didn't you want to marry me?" Shen Jie's tone was light and cheerful, and Xiao Yao couldn't tell whether she was serious or joking.

"Let's go pick out another pair of rings..."

“If you’re serious,” Xiao Yao said cautiously, “my answer is, okay.”

"Okay, that's it."

Shen Jie was already a little regretful, but since she had already said it, she couldn't go back on her word on the spot.

She had always planned to have her wedding photos taken by herself, not for any other reason than that she thought they would look beautiful.

However, she did think about it, but not "particularly". Otherwise, given her execution ability, she wouldn't have put it off until today.

Shen Jie thought, "I'll make sure Xiao Yao looks handsome in the photos."

The two walked to a green space—this green space was not far from Xiao Yao's home, and like the green space around St. Francis Middle School, it was a public green space in Shanghai without walls, and there weren't many people there at the moment.

At the end of the green space is a small swing, illuminated by a solitary white street lamp.

"The city under the moonlight, the lights beneath the city, and the people waiting beneath the lights..."

Shen Jie plopped down on the swing, and Xiao Yao stood behind her and pushed her.

"Sing, why did you stop singing?" Shen Jie held onto the swing's chains with both hands, her legs straight. "I like listening to you sing."

"Really?" Xiao Yao was delighted: "The wind in the crowd, the song in the wind, the sound of time in the song~ Who sighs unknowingly, sighing at the unknowing age, who still listens to the beauty of a single leaf heralding autumn..."

Xiao Yao pushed the swing higher and higher, and Shen Jie shouted happily. This made Xiao Yao finally realize that beneath her mature appearance, she was still just a sixteen or seventeen-year-old child.

"You once sang the same moonlight, you once shared my sorrow over the falling leaves, you once drew my likeness before the snow-covered window..."

"You should sing some summer songs; this one is out of place." Shen Jie's slippers traced an arc before landing on the grass a short distance away: "Oh, my shoes, shoes, shoes..."

The swing slowly came to a stop. The girl jumped off the swing, hooked her right foot, which was only wearing a sock, and hopped on her left foot to pick up the shoe.

After jumping a few steps, the slipper on her left foot was also thrown off.

"What are you laughing at?" the girl snapped. "Aren't you going to help me pick it up?"

Xiao Yao laughed as he walked over, picked up the slipper, and placed it in front of the girl's feet: "It's your turn to push me."

"I can't move you, you big oaf," Shen Jie muttered.

Xiao Yao knew, of course, that this wasn't the truth—but he didn't care. He simply sat down on the swing next to Shen Jie, held her in his arms, and then used his toes to push off the ground, making the swing sway gently.

“Sigh, Xiao Yao,” Shen Jie helped him stomp on the ground, “I feel like I not only have a daughter, but I also have a grown son.”

"Mother?"

"How disgusting are you?"

"Disgusting."

“...Xiao Yao”.

"Ah."

Shen Jie lowered her head and thought for a while before continuing, "I want to discuss something with you."

"Please speak," Xiao Yao said, stroking the girl's long hair.

“I went to pick you up from school today, but you left early, and then I ran into Yu Luying,” Shen Jie said.

"Huh? Oh." Xiao Yao let down that strand of long hair, and slowed down the speed at which he pushed off the ground.

"We... chatted for a while and talked about some... things," the girl said meaningfully.

"What's wrong?" Xiao Yao asked, a little nervously.

"Actually, you haven't let go of her yet, you haven't completely let go of her, right?" Shen Jie's slippers fell off again, but she was too lazy to pick them up and continued to push the ground with her feet, which were wearing short socks.

“I’ve completely let go,” Xiao Yao said.

“If you two still like each other,” Shen Jie said earnestly, “you should be together.”

"What do you mean?" Xiao Yao was getting a little angry: "You're going to... again? Weren't you just going to take wedding photos with me and buy wedding rings?"

“Don’t rush me, listen to me,” the girl stretched out her right hand and wrapped it around Xiao Yao’s waist: “I will still be your future wife, and our relationship will remain the same as it is now, but you can let her be your girlfriend.”

"What do you mean?" Xiao Yao was completely confused.

“It’s easy to understand,” Shen Jie explained earnestly, “You are mine, and she is yours.”

"???"

"Are you fucking crazy?" Xiao Yao thought.

“Look,” Shen Jie explained patiently, “we’re definitely going to get married and have Tianyun, right?”

“Yes,” Xiao Yao said.

"But you and Yu Luying like each other, right?" Shen Jie coaxed gently.

Xiao Yao kept his mouth tightly shut.

“If it weren’t for me, you two might already be together. But when high school students date, 99 out of 100 relationships don’t work out. But for both of you, it’s a precious memory,” Shen Jie said. “I don’t want to ruin this experience for you two because of me.”

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Xiao Yao's voice was a little muffled.

“I told you, she’s yours, and you’re mine,” Shen Jie said. “You two should talk it out. We’ll maintain the status quo. Anyway, you two won’t last. In the end, we’ll get married.”

“Dating without the intention of marriage is just playing around,” Xiao Yao pointed out. “What good will it do you if you ask me to play around? Just to please someone else?”

“It’s one thing to accommodate you,” Shen Jie said softly, “but it’s also good for me. It can distract you—so you don’t have to focus all your attention on me. I’ll still be with you, but I’ll also have the energy to do my own things.”

"And what about you?" Xiao Yao pointed out, "I'll also find another man to date, as long as he comes back and marries me in the end?"

“You can rest assured about that, I won’t,” Shen Jie shook her head. “Actually, I’m not interested in things like men and women, you know that. I just want to have time to study, exercise, and go shopping with my girlfriends, besides spending time with you…”

Xiao Yao rubbed his face, his mind blank.

“I’ll still be staying with you for now, but this isn’t a long-term solution,” Shen Jie continued. “After I go back, I have to convince my father to cancel the engagement. We’ll still see each other. You can hug me, hold my hand, whatever you want. When I say there won’t be any changes between us, I mean exactly what I said…”

Xiao Yao finally understood what the girl meant. She was saying, "Here, I'll give you a million. You don't have to pay any price. Just sign here."

"How could there be such a good deal?" The more tempting the conditions Shen Jie offered, the more he suspected it was a telecom scam.

Without a doubt, this was a clumsy attempt, a disastrous question, and I'm not stupid.

"Shen Jie," Xiao Yao said, "Stop talking, or I'll get angry."

"Hmm?" The swing had completely stopped, and Shen Jie's two little feet were gently gliding across the fragrant grass.

"Your thinking is disrespectful to me, Xiao Yao, to Yu Luying, and to yourself."

Would Yu Luying agree to something like this? Are you kidding me! Xiao Yao vaguely felt that Shen Jie's claim of bumping into Yu Luying at the school gate was true, but had they discussed this matter? He couldn't sense it through symbiosis.

"Dating without the intention of marriage is just playing around. Yu Luying wouldn't play around, and neither would I," Xiao Yao said in a deep voice.

"Since I know that you are my future spouse, it would be disrespectful to you and our marriage if I were to date someone else."

"I like Yu Luying. I used to like Yu Luying for a long time, but now my heart is completely filled with you, and there is no room for anyone else."

"Regarding your question about your personal space," Xiao Yao paused, "I'm not without my own things to do. I also have my own studies, sports, and hobbies. I won't tie you to my side 24/7, and I won't interfere with your studies, sports, or shopping with your girlfriends..."

Xiao Yao believed that he had submitted a perfect answer sheet.

However, Shen Jie remained silent for a while, and did not hug him in gratitude or rest her head on his chest.

But at least she smiled, and it must have been a happy smile... right?

"Okay, I got it." The girl jumped off the swing, felt for her slippers with her feet, and slipped them on. "It's getting late, shall we go home?"

--split line--

After returning home, Xiao Yao turned on the light, casually placed his newly bought leather backpack on the sofa, and then plopped down on the pile of clutter on the sofa.

"Get up!" Shen Jie pulled him up. "You just threw the bag I bought you away like that? And can't you even tidy up this mess on the sofa?"

"?" Xiao Yao asked, puzzled. "I'm in class at school all day. Who made such a mess of the sofa?"

Shen Jie was taken aback, thought for a moment, and then chuckled: "Then it should be... me?"

Xiao Yao raised his right hand, bent his five fingers, and protruded his middle finger, tapping Shen Jie's head with the knuckle of his middle finger.

"It hurts." Shen Jie covered the spot where she had been hit with both hands: "Domestic abuser."

Xiao Yao turned around and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Why are you still wearing sneakers? Go change into slippers!" The girl reached out in vain to tidy the sofa: "Don't expect me to mop the floor for you!"

“I can’t bear to take them off,” Xiao Yao said, stretching out his legs and looking at the most expensive shoes he had ever worn in his life. “Wearing these shoes makes me feel like you’re by my side.”

Shen Jie ran to the photo room, grabbed Xiao Yao's large slippers, and ran back, saying, "Isn't I right here with you now?"

Xiao Yao obediently changed his shoes, and Shen Jie took the basketball shoes to the photo room outside and put them away.