They had always thought these things were uninteresting, but when they did them, it felt natural and not burdensome at all.
Later, the two of them reviewed the scene from that day.
Gan Yang deliberately teased Ding Zhitong, saying, “Doesn’t this count as you proposing to me?”
Indeed, he had only asked her to run together, while she had bluntly asked if he wanted to get married.
Ding Zhitong immediately retorted, “Who said ‘lifetime’? Who knelt? With so many people around, weren’t you afraid I’d turn and run away?”
Gan Yang laughed heartily, but confidently replied, “We were almost at the finish line, and you ran so well this time. You definitely wouldn’t have wanted to drop out.”
Ding Zhitong had to admit, his logic was sound. With this performance, she became an elite runner in the Shanghai Marathon, eligible for direct entry in future races. Was this why he was so insistent on her finishing under 3:30? She couldn’t tell if he was being naive or cunning.
After the race, they both received their Shanghai Marathon finisher medals.
Gan Yang immediately changed his WeChat profile picture to a photo of the medal and insisted that Ding Zhitong do the same. She never imagined she’d use matching profile pictures, but since these were relatively low-key, she complied.
As Gan Yang watched her change it, his sharp eyes caught a small image in her photo list. He leaned over and asked, “Hey, what’s that?”
Ding Zhitong’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly scrolled up, exited the app, and stuffed her phone into her hoodie pocket, refusing to let him see.
Gan Yang wouldn’t let it go. He stared at her and said, “What good stuff did you secretly photograph? Indeed, no one can escape alive from their girlfriend’s phone.”
It sounded like she had done something strange, and wasn’t that saying originally about boyfriends?
Ding Zhitong had to prove her innocence. She opened her “Albums” to show him. There were several videos of him running, some on the treadmill at home, others in the park, or on the Xuhui Riverside jogging path. Whether indoors or outdoors, they had one thing in common—she had filmed them secretly.
“Why did you film these?” Gan Yang had already recognized himself but still insisted on asking.
“Just… studying running form,” Ding Zhitong refused to let him win, finding various excuses. “I used to watch Suguru Osako. Those legs, that rhythm—I could watch for an hour, getting more and more absorbed. But he’s too professional; I couldn’t learn even if I wanted to. Someone like you, who’s decent among amateurs, is just right for me to learn from…”
Gan Yang suddenly felt deflated and handed the phone back to her, stuffing it into her pocket.
Ding Zhitong found it amusing and finally praised him, “Although your performance isn’t great, your running… still looks pretty good.”
“Really? How so?” Gan Yang just wanted to hear her say it.
Ding Zhitong wouldn’t give in. She reopened her phone and played a video for him to watch together. It was from an evening when they were running by the river, with him slightly ahead of her. Gan Yang had never appreciated himself from this angle before. Without waiting for her to speak, he started analyzing, “I don’t understand flirting, only back-flirting.”
Ding Zhitong thought the joke was lame, but Gan Yang was even more serious than when she watched Osako, continuing to praise himself as they watched. Ding Zhitong couldn’t stop laughing, thinking to herself that his self-confidence was indeed as strong as ever.
The wedding plans were set, and all preparations proceeded with tacit understanding.
The LT project was completed, and the domestic pandemic situation was mostly under control. Ding Zhitong had to return to work in Hong Kong, forcing them to separate, but they still made time to meet each other’s parents.
Gan Yang had no problems with Yan Aihua and Ding Yanming.
By Ding Zhitong’s estimation, although invitations hadn’t been sent out, the relatives of both the Yan and Ding families surely knew she was getting married, and that her partner was quite a catch. This would probably lead to a fair amount of speculation and discussion, which would eventually reach her ears.
She had thought her situation would be different, but when it came time to meet Gan Yang’s parents, she didn’t feel too anxious. She knew Gan Yang would have everything arranged. Yes, it was that certain feeling.
With this certainty, she flew from Hong Kong to Quanzhou and then followed him to the small city.
Gan Yang had told her beforehand that his parents were divorced, so they would meet them separately.
They met Gan Yang’s relatives from his father’s side at a restaurant, with two round tables in a private room to settle everything at once. Gan Kunliang still maintained his old boss’s demeanor, speaking eloquently and giving generous welcome gifts. But afterward, he discussed with his son a business he wanted to pursue, asking if he could invest some more money.
Then came Director Liu.
At the first meeting, Director Liu was very amiable but didn’t say much. Ding Zhitong thought she might not like her.
But over the next two days, Director Liu added her to a family group chat called “Tea Wholesale,” took her to see the old house where Gan Yang grew up, his elementary and middle schools, the mountain they climbed on autumn outings, his uncle’s tea garden and tea shop. She also showed her many old photos, from the intentionally revealing hundred-day photo to him standing at the kindergarten gate with missing front teeth, to wearing the red scarf, running the 4x100m relay at school sports meets. She even dug out an old, ugly yellow plush dog pillow from the closet, saying it was what he always had to hug while sleeping.
Ding Zhitong burst out laughing, while Gan Yang was mortified beside her.
Director Liu also laughed, explaining to her, “This is the first time Yangyang has brought a girl home. I don’t know how I should act…”
Hearing this, Ding Zhitong was suddenly moved. It turned out they were equally nervous.
Then it was time for both sets of parents to meet.
Shanghai weddings don’t have fixed rules, but Gan Yang’s family had their customs. The man’s family had to visit to propose and discuss the marriage contract.
Ding Zhitong and Gan Yang sat by the side, listening as Director Liu said, “The village now has regulations against competing with betrothal gifts, but they don’t control the three gold jewelry pieces and house and car, so we’ll make up for it there…”
Yan Aihua and Old Ding didn’t know how to respond, just clearing their throats.
Ding Zhitong found it curious and sent Gan Yang a message asking, “What’s going on?”
Gan Yang replied without looking up, “Just let them handle it.”
In the end, the marriage contract was indeed like a formal agreement, specifying betrothal gifts, dowry, and even the standard for alcohol. Ding Zhitong found it amusing. She had negotiated so many contracts, always haggling over every detail, yet for this contract concerning a major life event, she was letting it go. Whether it was a bit more or less didn’t seem to matter.
By then, she was already in contact with headhunters, considering changing jobs to Shanghai. With her experience, she could find a position; it was just a matter of finding the right fit. But even if she didn’t return, it didn’t matter. She knew that no matter what, they could figure out a solution together because they both had the ability and confidence in each other. As for these wedding details, they were even less of a concern.
After that came viewing ceremony and reception venues, getting clothes made, buying shoes, trying on makeup, taking wedding photos, and selecting wedding favors and gifts for the ceremony—all things they had originally thought uninteresting, but when they did them, it felt natural and not burdensome at all. Even if sometimes they had to take two-and-a-half-hour flights just to be together.
On the day of the wedding dress fitting, Gan Yang secretly took a photo of Ding Zhitong’s back and posted it on his Moments.
Before this, he had only ever posted company soft articles, hard advertisements, industry conferences, and recruitment information. Director Liu was the first to like the photo, and sure enough, the comments that followed exploded with people guessing who the woman was.
The situation was similar on Ding Zhitong’s side.
Because the wedding scale was small, she only invited two people from her work circle: Li Jiaxin and Qin Chang.
When Li Jiaxin received the invitation, it was like she had been granted amnesty and could finally stop pretending not to know. She came to share the gossip, telling Ding Zhitong that several small groups were now spreading the news that Tammy was taking marriage leave, and they were guessing who she was marrying.
Ding Zhitong could only be thankful that the project was finished, that Qin Chang was no longer her boss, and that she was already planning to change jobs. But she didn’t care how others might speculate.
When Song Mingmei heard her former secretary gossiping about her in the administrative assistant group, she jokingly asked Ding Zhitong, “Do you now have that feeling of ‘if I’m getting married, I might as well get my revenge’?”
Ding Zhitong shook her head. No, really no. Now she only wished for world peace and happiness for everyone.