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

"Xiao Yao, look," Shen Jie suddenly took out her phone and showed Xiao Yao several MMS messages she had just received.

"What is this?" Xiao Yao muttered as he took Shen Jie's phone and started flipping through the photos.

The photo shows a large basketball court filled with boys in tuxedos and girls in backless evening gowns.

Looking closely, these guys all have very youthful faces; they're clearly my age.

Xiao Yao continued flipping through the photos and saw two girls wearing high heels, fake over-the-knee black stockings, and short skirts, as if they were dancing.

Naturally, beneath the exquisite makeup lies the face of a high school girl.

Between the girl's skirt hem and the fake "stocking edge" above her knees, what is revealed are two sections of thighs that appear to be bare legs but are actually wrapped in skin-colored velvet fabric.

"What is this?" Xiao Yao pursed his lips.

“The ballroom dance party jointly organized by No. 7 Middle School, No. 4 Middle School, and No. 54 Middle School,” Shen Jie told Xiao Yao, “was held last night, right when we were doing our morning exercises in the hall with Song Haijian.”

"Oh..." Xiao Yao said, "What's wrong?"

"They even asked me to go." Shen Jie pouted slightly, revealing a regretful expression.

"You really enjoy this kind of activity?" Xiao Yao asked her.

"It's alright, the ones the school organizes aren't very interesting," Shen Jie puffed out one cheek, "but I haven't been to any of these dances or anything like that in a long time."

Xiao Yao thought to himself, "You haven't been here long, so how can you say 'long'?" He casually replied, "This was organized by the school? I thought it was a student-organized event..."

"It's organized by the school, why?" Shen Jie asked, puzzled.

“Look at this,” Xiao Yao handed Shen Jie’s phone to her, “this backless dress, from behind I thought it was a shirtless young man—”

"Pfft." Shen Jie spat it out, a clear indication that the Shen family was about to erupt in laughter.

“Take a look at this,” Xiao Yao said, flipping through the photos on Shen Jie’s phone: “Heavy makeup, ah, high heels, ah, mini skirt, ah, stockings, ah, hugging and cuddling—wait, there’s someone wearing fishnet stockings here, hey, fishnet stockings!”

"Where did you get those garter stockings? Are you blind? They're pantyhose, it just has a garter belt drawn on." Shen Jie scoffed, "Then don't hug me anymore."

“We’re a legally married couple, how can that be the same?” Xiao Yao continued her incessant criticism: “Look at these people’s clothes and appearance, ah, what aspect of them conforms to the ‘Middle School Student Code of Conduct’ and the ‘Middle School Student Regulations’…”

"Shut up, it's not like we're in class," Shen Jie reached out to snatch the phone back from Xiao Yao's hand. "I was just sharing something with you, why are you such a spoilsport? You're always talking about middle school rules and regulations, and you complain that Song Haijian is controlling you, but you're even more of a Song Haijian than him. Look at you, sleeping in class every day, not doing homework, skipping class to go to internet cafes, getting your hair permed, living with your girlfriend, using sex toys... cough cough, you're still talking about controlling your own class? What a load of crap!"

While saying "big-headed ghost," the girl pressed her finger hard against Xiao Yao's forehead.

“Let’s be reasonable. You’re the one who let me get my hair permed,” Xiao Yao protested. “Fun—well, okay, okay, I won’t say anything more, don’t put your hands on my waist…”

Shen Jie finally burst into laughter. Xiao Yao reached out and pulled the bright young woman into his arms, kissing her on the cheek, his heart filled with happiness.

At that moment, the bus was passing Wai Tan, and its speed slowed down.

Xiao Yao continued scrolling through the MMS messages on Shen Jie's phone and suddenly saw those photos: selfies taken by the girl on the way back from the boat resort, when he was fast asleep with his head resting on Shen Jie's shoulder.

Because it was a selfie taken with a mobile phone, the image looks a bit cramped.

Shen Jie held out her phone and squeezed herself and Xiao Yao together.

The girl smiled, thinking that her sleeping face actually looked rather...cute?

His hair was a little messy, but his features were fairly regular.

Shen Jie wore the same black outfit she wore at the boat resort, which accentuated her delicate features and made her look radiant.

"What are you looking at!" Shen Jie snatched the phone back, somewhat embarrassed.

Without his phone, Xiao Yao turned to look out the window. The scenery of the crooked beach outside the car window seemed to connect the past, present, and future.

The historical buildings of the former concessions stretch along the Huangjiang River, and the exotic European-style buildings gleam in the sunlight, as if commemorating the city's past glory.

Looking east, you can see the magnificent Oriental Pearl TV Tower, standing on the banks of the Yellow River, like a pearl adorning the skyline of Shanghai. Its white sphere and glass curtain wall shimmer in the sunlight, creating a vibrant and colorful scene with this bridge, that bridge (Xiao Yao couldn't name it), and the ships on the Yellow River.

“I was thinking, Song Haijian’s ‘effort’ ‘effort’ ‘effort’ and ‘score’ ‘score’ ‘score’ ‘score’,” Xiao Yao said softly, “that, along with these photos on your phone, form a perfect ironic contrast.”

“That’s just a temple,” Shen Jie reminded him, “a distorted spiritual world.”

"No, it is real; it is a true reflection of the lives of millions of students in this country," Xiao Yao said.

Shen Jie fell silent.

As they were talking, the bus passed by another huge human-shaped statue.

The statue is 8 meters tall and is made of stone and bronze.

The man was dressed in Chinese clothing, with a serious expression. His left hand was clenched into a fist and placed in front of his chest, while his right hand hung loosely at his side.

Xiao Yao knew that this was a statue of the first mayor of Shanghai in the new era.

"When you have time someday, come with me to Waitan for a walk," Xiao Yao said earnestly.

"What's so fun about Waitan? It's a place only people from out of town come to," Shen Jie replied casually.

“I’m from out of town.” Xiao Yao said with a serious expression.

“Okay, okay, fine. Your home is so close to Waitan, you can come anytime,” Shen Jie said. “But we have to wait until it gets a little cooler. Going out in this weather, you’ll be roasted alive in the sun.”

"Mm," Xiao Yao said.

As they were talking, the bus left the bustling metropolis, crossed the approach bridge of a certain bridge, and sped off again.

"Xiao Yao." The girl suddenly broke free from the boy's embrace and sat up straight in her seat: "I have something very serious to discuss with you."

“I knew you had something to say to me,” Xiao Yao said.

"How did you know?"

"I can tell. Let me guess—it's definitely not good news," Xiao Yao said, feigning nonchalance.

"Doggy, I miss home," Shen Jie blurted out.

"Mm," Xiao Yao said.

"I want to go home," Shen Jie said softly.

The boy turned his head to look at the girl and drew a question mark in the air with his finger.

“Yesterday, at night,” Shen Jie carefully chose her words, “my father asked Zhou Xiaoying to send a message to my QQ account.”

The girl scrolled through a message history on her phone and handed the phone back to Xiao Yao.

Xiao Yao first glanced at the time: 1:43.

In other words, it should have been after she was kicked off the bed while looking for her socks, and before Shen Jie went to the spittoon, and the two of them had a late-night chat.

The message content is as follows:

"My dear daughter, this text message is from your father to you."

I want to tell you that your Aunt Luo and I care about you very much, and we will always love you.

You are an adult now, and I believe you are capable of taking care of yourself, but I also know that facing life's challenges alone is not easy.

I want you to know that we are always here for you and are willing to help you.

Your Aunt Luo and I have always hoped that you could come back. We would like to sit down and talk with you.

Dad is really sorry for pressuring you to get engaged before. I didn't consider your thoughts and feelings, and I hope you can forgive me.

As long as you are willing to come home, our whole family will respect your decision.

From your father, whose hair is turning white overnight.

"Hmph," Xiao Yao commented casually, "When I saw him the other day, his hair was blacker than the leather shoes you're wearing now."

Shen Jie glared at him with displeasure.

Xiao Yao realized that now was not a good time to undermine his father-in-law: "Why did you only tell me about the information from last night today?"

“It only took half a day,” Shen Jie said matter-of-factly. “You’ve been keeping your secret from me for much longer than that.”

Knowing he was in the wrong, Xiao Yao raised his hands in surrender: "OK, OK, so you just said you wanted to go home, was that a notification or a discussion?"

A surge of nervous excitement welled up in the boy's heart, and he swallowed hard.

He knew very well that this dramatic cohabitation, surrounded by enemies on all sides, would eventually come to an end, and that day could come at any moment.

Nevertheless, when that day suddenly arrived, Xiao Yao was still extremely reluctant and unwilling.

“We’re going to get married someday,” the girl said softly, taking the boy’s arm. “So I won’t make any decisions on my own; I’ll always discuss them with you.”

Hearing this, Xiao Yao felt a little calmer: "Well, I think... you know your father, but I don't. If he has really compromised, then you should go back."

Although Xiao Yao was very reluctant to let Shen Jie go back, that was all he could say.

"But... I'm afraid that Dad is just trying to trick me into going back, and that once I get back, things won't be up to me anymore."

“Yes,” Xiao Yao nodded slightly, “I have the same concerns.”

Chapter 153 An Invitation to the Harem II

2023-04-06

“Well, assuming you go home and aren’t locked up by Dad,” Xiao Yao thought for a moment and broke the silence, “you have to promise me a few things.”

"Okay, go ahead," Shen Jie said, seemingly distracted.

“Hmm… After you go back,” Xiao Yao said, “you have to text me every day to say good morning and good night, both when you wake up in the morning and before you go to bed at night.”

Why didn't you tell me?