Chapter 186: Chapter 184: A Reunion Better Than the Honeymoon

The next day, Su Tang didn’t wake up until after ten in the morning.

The breakfast Lu Xiao had bought was already cold enough to be her lunch.

"You’re awake?"

Lu Xiao was washing Su Tang’s clothes.

The "battle" last night had been intense. No matter how much Su Tang begged for mercy, Lu Xiao hadn’t let her off the hook.

As a result, clothes that had been perfectly clean were now soiled.

Besides, Su Tang had been wearing them for a few days anyway, so they were due for a wash.

She had brought a change of clothes, so she had something to wear if they went out.

"How about I take you for a walk around Beijing later? It’s different from Shanghai."

Lu Xiao peeked out from the bathroom, looking at Su Tang’s drowsy, sleepy-eyed face.

He finished scrubbing the clothes clean and hanging them up before coming out.

"Still sleepy? Want to sleep a little longer?"

Lu Xiao sat beside her and reached out to smooth her hair.

She leaned against his shoulder and hummed clingily.

Seeing his wife being so adorable, Lu Xiao’s heart melted.

He picked up her clothes from the side, helped her into them, and then tried to tie up her hair.

But his attempt was crooked and lopsided, looking quite awful.

Su Tang looked at her reflection in the mirror, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"Mr. Lu, if you opened a salon with skills like these, your customers would kill you."

Lu Xiao chuckled, his fingertip gently scratching her earlobe. "Perfect. That way, I’ll only ever do your hair for the rest of my life."

The warmth from his palm seeped through her hair. Su Tang pulled her neck back, then turned and threw herself into his arms, whining playfully, "Nope. It’s too ugly. You have to do it again."

He couldn’t say no to her, so he had no choice but to take out the hair tie and try again.

This time, his touch was noticeably gentler as he clumsily gathered her hair strand by strand to the back of her head. The result, however, was still a ponytail tilting to the left.

Su Tang pouted at the mirror. He suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his chin on the crown of her head.

"It looks great like this. Anyone can tell at a glance that you’re Lu Xiao’s wife."

"Now you’re just being shameless, aren’t you?"

But Su Tang didn’t press the issue. ’After all, a crooked ponytail is considered cool in modern times.’

After teasing Lu Xiao for a bit, Su Tang ate her breakfast, and they headed out to explore Beijing.

The Su Tang from the modern era had, of course, been to Beijing before—and more than once.

She knew all about places like Wangfujing and the famous alleyways.

But this version of Su Tang had to pretend she didn’t.

Lu Xiao held Su Tang’s hand as they walked through an alleyway. The gray-blue brick walls were mottled with the marks of time, and a few pomegranate branches, wilted from the sun, poked out over the top.

Su Tang deliberately slowed her pace, her eyes darting around curiously.

"These walls look much older than the shikumen in Shanghai."

’When it comes to history, Beijing certainly has stories to tell.’

"I hear everyone who lives here is an old-timer from Beijing, right?"

Lu Xiao stopped to tidy her wind-tousled bangs, the pad of his finger brushing against the shell of her hot ear.

"That’s right. This whole area is the old city district."

"If we go two more streets ahead, you’ll find an old man named Zhang who sells sugar paintings. The gold trim on his dragon and phoenix designs is so clear they say he was even in the news once."

Before he could finish, Su Tang was already grabbing his arm and pulling him forward.

A few little girls in pigtails were crowded around the sugar painting stall.

Old Man Zhang held a bronze ladle, moving it skillfully over a stone slab. The amber-colored syrup fell in golden threads, and in the blink of an eye, formed a butterfly with wings poised for flight.

Su Tang pointed at the butterfly and whispered, "I want that one."

Lu Xiao paid, took the still-warm sugar painting, and handed it to her. Then he noticed her staring intently at the tanghulu stand nearby.

The dark red hawthorns were coated in a crystalline sugar shell, gleaming with a honey-colored light in the sun, like a skewer of frozen sunset.

He was just about to call over the old man with the carrying pole when Su Tang tugged on his sleeve. "Let’s go see the city moat, okay? The books say you can see the reflection of the corner tower."

Lu Xiao just smiled without a word, but as Su Tang turned away, he bought her a skewer of tanghulu.

’It’s the kind of thing all young girls love.’

’Even though they had a child, Cheng’an, in his heart, she was still his little girl.’

The water of the city moat was a thick, deep green, and the weeping willows on the bank swayed in the breeze.

Lu Xiao took off his army-green jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

Su Tang hugged her arms and nibbled on the sugar painting, the butterfly’s wings melting into sweet honey on her tongue.

Just then, she heard a familiar laugh from behind them.

It was Lu Xiao’s comrade, Zhao Peng, strolling with his arm around a girl with her hair in a thick braid.

"Mr. Lu, showing your girlfriend around Beijing?"

Zhao Peng’s voice boomed like a gong. The girl with him blushed and tried to hide behind him.

Su Tang greeted them openly, while Lu Xiao replied, "She’s my wife. She came to Beijing to visit me."

’Girlfriend? No way. Lu Xiao had to make his official status as the husband crystal clear.’

Zhao Peng’s expression soured when he heard that.

He and Lu Xiao didn’t really get along. Even though Lu Xiao came from a remote area, he was better than Zhao Peng at everything.

He always placed first in evaluations, was an upstanding man, and carried himself with integrity.

Zhao Peng had thought he’d finally found some leverage against him, but he never expected such a beautiful girl to actually be his wife.

This was more than enough to infuriate Zhao Peng.

’Why did Lu Xiao get to marry such a beautiful wife and be so capable on top of it all?’ 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Ah, so this is your wife. A pleasure."

Zhao Peng offered the greeting reluctantly. Once he’d said his piece, he turned and left with the girl.

Once the couple was out of earshot, Su Tang noticed Lu Xiao staring at her with a grin, the fine lines at the corners of his eyes twinkling. "Did you see that? He’s dying of jealousy."

"Yes, yes, I saw. He’s jealous of you."

Su Tang laughed as she bit into her sugar painting, then turned to grab the tanghulu he was holding.

Lu Xiao deliberately held it high, watching her stand on her tiptoes and flail against his chest like a little sparrow trying to sneak a bite.

"Lu Xiao!"

She puffed out her cheeks and playfully punched his arm, but he took the opportunity to grab her wrist and pull her into his arms.

Even the autumn wind seemed to turn gentle as it swirled around them.

"Here you go."

He lowered his head and held the tanghulu to her lips. Su Tang’s eyes narrowed. Noticing a smear of sugar on the pad of his finger, she leaned in and gave it a light lick.

’He was teasing her. She couldn’t just admit defeat.’

Lu Xiao’s breath hitched, and the base of his ears flushed red.

He gripped her hand tighter and started walking toward a less crowded spot, his voice low and raspy. "Don’t mess around. There are people here."

"So what if there are people? Are you scared?"

Instead of embarrassing him, Su Tang’s words only stirred Lu Xiao’s competitive spirit.

"You’re not leaving tonight."

The implication couldn’t have been more obvious. Now it was Su Tang’s turn to blush.

She swatted his arm. Seeing her reaction, Lu Xiao had no choice but to mutter an apology.

The two of them stopped by the city moat. Lu Xiao met Su Tang’s gaze and asked,

"What are you thinking about?"

"I was just thinking..."

Su Tang stood on her tiptoes and kissed his chin. "...it would be nice if Cheng’an were here too."

Lu Xiao’s expression softened. He pulled a small kraft paper bag from his pocket and opened it to reveal some sweet rice rolls.

"I bought them at the co-op yesterday. We don’t have these back in the Northwest."

Su Tang’s heart suddenly felt full.

She knew Lu Xiao wasn’t one for sweet talk, but he always kept her and their child’s favorite things etched in his heart.

They were far apart in distance, but their hearts were not far apart at all.