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

"Oh wow, time flies so fast. This silly kid is already in the 80s again, thirty years old. Not good, not bad, having gone through the 90s..."

"She's thirty years old and still acting like a child," Shen Jie thought.

Lu Ying sings really well; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say her voice is like a nightingale's.

"Alright, you two are truly a perfect match, a match made in heaven," Shen Jie smiled tolerantly.

"The most frustrating thing is that he's always a step behind everyone else, he doesn't have any money in his pocket!" The two of them started singing together: "Hey, pat your chest, stand up bravely..."

Xiao Yao bravely stood up—he patted his chest, and Yu Luying's phone rang, her singing abruptly stopping as she gestured for Xiao Yao and Shen Jie to be quiet: "Hello? Mom..."

As he walked out, he said, "I didn't drink any alcohol, why would I drink alcohol?"

Xiao Yao had no choice but to sit down again, and he and Shen Jie looked at each other—but less than half a minute later, Yu Luying returned.

"What's wrong, Luying? Is your aunt urging you? Xiaoyao, eat faster," Shen Jie said.

“No,” Yu Luying’s voice was slightly tinged with drunkenness, “She said she won’t be back tonight, and told me to lock the doors and windows and check the gas before I go to bed…”

Shen Jie was a little puzzled. Yu Luying's alcohol tolerance was too low. She only drank half a plastic cup. She drank two cups herself, and Xiao Yao drank the rest. She didn't expect that with just half a cup, Yu Luying's speech was already a little slurred. She guessed that the reason she started singing outside earlier was also due to these drinks.

The three ate for a while longer when a large group of burly men came to the next table. Before the dishes were even served, they started playing drinking games, making a deafening noise.

Shen Jie found it too noisy, so she discussed with Yu Luying that she wanted to leave.

Yu Luying composed herself and glanced out of the corner of her eye at the hairy bellies revealed by the men's vests, and a few of them were even shirtless, their sweaty, muscular backs covered in grotesque tattoos that made her dizzy. She then reached out and patted Xiao Yao's arm: "Xiao Yao, let's go."

"What are you doing..." Xiao Yao slurred, "I didn't finish eating, I paid for it..."

"Don't you see what time it is?" Shen Jie pulled Yu Luying, stood up and was about to leave: "Don't go home, Yu Luying wants to go home too."

"Hey, wait for me!" Xiao Yao glanced reluctantly at the few remaining dishes and drinks on the table, then quickly followed.

"Hey, hey, just buying one? Handsome?" The bald shopkeeper rushed over and grabbed Xiao Yao's arm tightly.

Chapter 107 The First Night with Yu Luying

2023-02-12

"Shen Jie, Yu Luying, Qingpu is so nice, we can see the stars!" Xiao Yao stumbled along the dark national highway, carrying Shen Jie's LV bag, Yu Luying's small shoulder bag, and another miscellaneous bag.

“Yes—” Shen Jie and Yu Luying walked hand in hand three meters ahead of Xiao Yao, empty-handed: “Take good care of the shoes, don’t lose them, they’re worth tens of thousands.”

"What the heck, a pair of shoes costs tens of thousands..." Xiao Yao was startled, and his drunkenness sobered up a bit. He couldn't help but pay more attention to the high heels that were hooked between his left index and middle fingers.

“You know what, these shoes are actually quite nice, all sparkly,” Xiao Yao said.

"Right?" Shen Jie said.

“I don’t actually like high heels,” Xiao Yao said. “Firstly, they don’t comply with the ‘Middle School Student Code of Conduct’ and the ‘Middle School Student Daily Behavior Norms’…”

Shen Jie frowned, feeling a bit angry, when she heard that the two of them always thought and spoke in the exact same way.

It's one thing for Yu Luying, but you, a bad student who fails exams, skips classes, goes to internet cafes to play games, drinks, and gets your hair permed, are always quoting your "Middle School Student Code of Conduct." How many dishes did you have to drink to get like this?

Okay, was it five or six dishes just now?

"But the main reason is because of my fat homeroom teacher in the second year of junior high school, who was even more annoying than Song Haijian," Xiao Yao recalled. "Now, whenever I hear the sound of high heels clicking, I think of her. It's a primal fear etched into my genes."

Shen Jie and Yu Luying spoke at the same time. The former said, "Are you a pig? Why are you wearing sneakers instead of high heels for your wedding photos?" The latter said, "You're even more annoying than Teacher Song. Really? I don't believe it."

"Okay, after thinking about it carefully, we're evenly matched." Xiao Yao felt a lot of sweat on his forehead, and raised his left hand to wipe it. As he lifted his hand, the bling-bling high heels were only a few centimeters away from his nose.

Xiao Yao smelled something strange, and out of a spirit of scientific exploration, he brought the shoes even closer to his nose.

Yu Luying glanced back at him, and he quickly put the shoes he was holding down again.

It was difficult to hail a taxi in Qingpu, especially since it was already quite late. The three of them had been walking for more than ten minutes without being able to find one.

It's still unknown whether there are buses running. Even if there are, no one knows where the stops are. And even if they could be found out, Shen Jie would probably refuse to take the bus again.

According to Shen Tianyun, in their day, you could not only use your phone to hail a taxi, but also place an order with a nearby private car going the same way, pay for a ride, and get what you need. It sounds like something out of a video game...

Finally, a black Toyota pulled up beside them, and the driver leaned out to ask, "Where are you going? Need a taxi?"

These are the unlicensed taxis that frequently appear in the suburbs and towns. Right now, the group had no other choice, and although the price seemed a bit outrageous, they had no choice but to accept it.

"Xiao Yao, you sit in the front," Shen Jie instructed.

"Oh." Xiao Yao reached out and opened the passenger door.

“I’ll sit in the front,” Yu Luying said, getting in first and fastening her seatbelt. “You can sit in the back with your sister.”

"Silly girl, what are you doing—"

In the end, Yu Luying sat in the front, while Shen Jie and Xiao Yao sat in the back.

"Wife!" Xiao Yao gasped for breath, resting his head on Shen Jie's lap. "Actually, I'm just a stupid kid, a stupid kid is me."

“I can tell—I can hear it,” Shen Jie patted his head. “Silly boy, be good, stop talking and go to sleep.”

"Actually, I'm just a country bumpkin..." Xiao Yao mumbled incoherently, "from a quiet little village..."

“Your small town… can’t even be called a village,” Yu Luying said, turning around.

In fact, Shen Jie was unwilling to be too intimate with Xiao Yao in front of Yu Luying, feeling that it would not be giving her friend face, but she had no other choice in the current situation.

"Don't vomit on my feet later," Shen Jie thought.

Although these shoes aren't very expensive, but...

Oh dear, my skirt is the key!

Unlike Shen Jie's conflicted feelings, Xiao Yao was feeling incredibly good at the moment—both exhilarated and exhausted, a sense of fulfillment that made the day a perfect ending.

Shen Jie felt a groping hand on her ankle. She wanted to kick it, but then thought better of it.

The taxi sped along the dark national highway, Luo Dayou's "The Future Master" playing inside. Xiao Yao's heart drifted along with the song, drifting aimlessly...

Finally, I fell asleep.

He said he was asleep, but not completely asleep. Xiao Yao felt like he could hear the two girls whispering and chatting the whole time.

Wow, those two have such a good relationship. I hope I won't become superfluous one day.

I don't know how long the car had been driving, but it eventually came to a stop.

Has it arrived...? It's faster than I expected, Xiao Yao thought.

"Xiao Yao, Xiao Yao," Shen Jie patted Xiao Yao's head, "Let's get off the bus."

"Have we arrived?" Xiao Yao looked up, feeling much more sober.

"No, the car broke down." Yu Luying had already gotten out of the car and opened the door for Xiao Yao.

"What? It broke down?" Xiao Yao exclaimed in surprise.

"Excuse me," the driver turned back to Xiao Yao and said, "You can get out of the car and find another one. I won't charge you."

“No, it’s not about whether I’ll take the money or not,” Shen Jie said anxiously. “We’re in the middle of nowhere, where are we supposed to find a car? Let’s wait a little longer for you to fix it.”

“It can’t be fixed,” the driver shook his head. “You’ve been waiting for twenty or thirty minutes already. If it were fixed, would I be sitting here doing nothing? I’ll just spend the night in the car and find someone to come and take a look in the morning.”

"Can you find us a car? Don't you have that radio station?" Yu Luying asked the driver.

"Oh, of course I would help you find someone, but I'm not a taxi. At this hour and in this place, if I could find a friend to pick you up, I wouldn't have to spend the night here."

"How about I call a tow truck for you? We can go back with the tow truck." Shen Jie took out her phone.

"Forget it, I've already worked for free for half a month by calling a tow truck. I'm already not charging you for the truck. I didn't want the car to break down either, so don't make things difficult for me." The driver shook his head vigorously and hid back in the car.

Shen Jie hesitated for a moment, discussed it quietly with Yu Luying, and finally decided to abandon the car and continue on their way.

Xiao Yao got out of the car and found that this really was the middle of nowhere—a pitch-black national highway with weeds taller than a person on both sides? Stinking ditches and farmland.

What kind of rural area is this? This is practically a dark and stormy night for murder!

The three teenagers walked along the national highway, waving their hands in vain at the occasional passing vehicles with their high beams on.

And without exception, they swiftly and mercilessly swept past.

Xiao Yao was a little worried that Shen Jie would take her anger out on him again, but this time she seemed very calm.

The two girls walked ahead of him hand in hand, chatting quietly about something along the way, and he could even hear laughter from time to time.

But...it's so cold...Xiao Yao instinctively hugged his arms tighter.

If the cold at night can still be described as "cool," then this is pure, unadulterated cold.

The road was wet; it looked like it had rained while I was in the car.

Xiao Yao felt as if the air in his stomach was sinking, his head was splitting, he was so sleepy that he wanted to vomit, his legs ached, and his shoes felt like they were filled with lead.

"It's been so long since I've traveled far, and so long since I've had a proper workout," Xiao Yao thought.

"Luying, who are you calling?"

“I’m asking my uncle to send a car to pick us up, but his phone is always off.”

"Shut down? What happened to him?"

"Oh, I remember now!" Yu Luying suddenly exclaimed, "Damn, the priests in the Shanghai diocese are all taking a retreat these past two days."

"What does 'avoiding quiet' mean?" Shen Jie asked, but she didn't seem to really want to know the answer, while Yu Luying seemed too tired to speak.

After walking for what seemed like an eternity, the three of them finally arrived at a place that looked like it was inhabited.