Zhou Zheng, dressed in his suit, stepped somewhat bashfully in front of everyone. The guests at home lit up all at once, a wave of enthusiastic whistles and applause following.
His build leaned lean and toned, the lines of his shoulders and back striking. He still had a boyish quality at this age; the suit fabric was crisp yet fit his frame perfectly, lending him a completely transformed, striking presence. Lin Shuang, used to dressing him in casual wear normally, found herself with a heartfelt flutter at how handsome and extraordinary the man looked.
When it came to the bride’s makeup, it really was simple and efficient—Lin Shuang did her own lips and brows, while Miao Cai helped with her hairstyle. Once dressed in the wedding gown in the closet, Miao Cai glanced at the full-length mirror, then at the real person, with a hint of jealousy: “It’s like a fairy descending to earth, a princess setting off for her wedding.”
The guests waiting outside, led by the groom, saw the bedroom door open, and in that moment everyone froze. The room fell silent for a few seconds, then erupted into explosive screams.
The bride’s figure was flawless. The wedding dress had no heavy lace or rhinestones, no long train or full skirt, just a clean, sleek satin mermaid gown, pearls dotted throughout, its texture and allure impossible to fully describe—as if all the light in the room had gathered on her. She stood there smiling, the white veil draped over her head playful and lively, her gaze sparkling, her chin tilted slightly up—you could tell at once she was, as always, proud, precious, unattainable, the one figure impossible to forget across all these years.
Zhou Zheng stood before her, taking a deep breath, extending his hand with utmost gentlemanly grace.
Lin Shuang raised an eyebrow slightly, her gaze turning coyly toward him, a smile in her eyes, extending her hand gracefully and gently, placing it elegantly in his palm.
He held her hand tight, leaning in toward her cheek, wanting a kiss.
The room erupted in noise that shook the ceiling.
Amid the noise, Lin Shuang whispered quietly: “Not too hard, you’ve got lipstick on your mouth, I’ve got foundation on my face, if our makeup gets ruined we’ll have such a hassle touching it up in this heat.”
Zhou Zheng suppressed a laugh, leaning in through her veil to plant a light kiss on her cheek.
All the important relatives and friends were present. There was still some time before heading to the hotel, so Zhang Fan started hosting the atmosphere, encouraging everyone to take photos with the newlyweds. Even Zhou Zheng’s grandmother and second uncle and aunt had rushed over—this was also the first time Fu Min met Zhou Zheng’s family.
Lin Shuang made introductions: “This is my mom, and this is Grandma, Second Uncle and Second Auntie, and the younger siblings.”
“You can tell at a glance you’re mother and daughter, the mother-in-law’s so young, no wonder—with a mother-in-law like this, of course you’d get such a gorgeous bride.”
“My mom was really pretty when she was young too.” Lin Shuang looped her arm through Fu Min’s, waving at the photographer. “Get a photo of me and my mom, please.”
Fu Min’s heart swelled with a bittersweet ache, quietly shedding a tear.
Once everyone at home had had their candy and tea, and with the weather being nice, the forest park had an outdoor photo platform too. A whole crowd surrounded the bride and groom heading downstairs, the photographer extending his lens for an outdoor fashion-shoot style shoot.
There was no grand procession of flower cars and firecrackers blaring, but the neighbors in the complex still couldn’t help but glance over—it wasn’t often you saw such a fresh, tasteful wedding procession, nor such a stunningly gorgeous bride and groom, a perfectly matched pair. The bright sunlight and pearl-weighted veil couldn’t dampen the lingering, loving looks the two exchanged.
After a simple photo session, the lunch banquet time approached. At the hotel, Qi Xiong was helping oversee the setup, calling to have Zhou Zheng time his entrance to the auspicious hour. Everyone dispersed to head to the hotel for the banquet. The wedding car was simply their own car, lightly decorated—Zhou Zheng drove himself, the car parked at the entrance to the forest park.
The car had just started when Zhou Zheng suddenly killed the engine again. Lin Shuang asked him: “What’s wrong?”
“Almost forgot, this morning in the bathroom, we drank quite a bit of red wine.” He pressed his lips together. “Can’t drive after drinking, that’s a DUI.”
“Red wine metabolizes in three or four hours.” Lin Shuang counted on her fingers. “Are you dizzy?”
“Dizzy.” He nodded. “I’m dizzy all over.”
Whether it was the wine’s effect, or the wedding itself, his heart had been racing especially fast all day.
“I’m dizzy too.” Lin Shuang rubbed her temples. That morning’s bottle of red wine—the two of them had soaked in the tub for over an hour and drunk more than half of it, completely forgetting they’d need to drive later.
Just the two of them in the car, Lin Shuang couldn’t help but look up at the sky: “Let’s get someone to come drive. Where’s Zhang Fan?”
“Zhang Fan’s driving, he’s got Mom and Qi Ling and Qi Shan in his car.”
“Miao Cai’s car has the photographer in it.”
“What about other friends, who else can drive?”
“Everyone who can drive already has someone with them, and they left before us.”
“Why don’t we…… call for a designated driver?” Lin Shuang hesitated, unable to help covering her face. “Calling a designated driver for the wedding car, does that even make sense?”
Zhou Zheng called Shunzai. Shunzai had already dropped off Second Uncle, Second Auntie, and Grandma at the wedding home, joined the fun for a bit, and then headed to the hotel to greet the guests coming from the village—he should be free right about now.
The driver’s seat, in the end, had to go to Shunzai.
Who else, after all, had been such a complete witness to their relationship from the start.
Everyone else had already set off; only the bride and groom remained, waiting for their driver.
There was no use rushing. The two of them sat in the car waiting for the driver, and in the meantime……chatted a bit.
Zhou Zheng let her veil fall, hazily veiling her delicate face. “This is the first time I’ve seen such a beautiful veil, sewn with pearls.”
“I made it myself, took apart one of my pearl necklaces for it, does it look nice?”
“So beautiful……. not just the veil, everywhere, it’s all so beautiful…….. like a dream princess.”
“You look handsome too.” She straightened his suit. “Too handsome to be a math teacher, more like a prince on a white horse.”
“I’m not a prince on a white horse.” He murmured. “I should be the knight standing at the base of the castle wall.”
“Then you’re also the personal guard captain I promoted.”
“May I kiss you? My princess.”
“Of course you may.”
He carefully lifted her veil, carefully kissing her red lips, tender and lingering, light and entangled.
A knock rapped against the car window. Shunzai had rushed over by taxi, breathless and urgent, an expression of disbelief on his face: “The guests at the hotel are already arriving one after another, and you two aren’t there to greet them, and you’ve still got the mood to be kissing in here?”
The two of them exchanged a helpless smile.
Good things always arrive fashionably late.
Once the bride and groom reached the hotel, they truly became living cardboard cutouts and photo backdrops. Originally, according to the two of them, the wedding guest list wasn’t meant to be too large, mainly colleagues and friends of theirs, but gradually more had been added—Zhou Zheng’s fellow villagers, and some of his former students too—so the actual number of tables wasn’t small either.
Luo Wei came too, with her husband and child, the family of three warmly taking photos with the bride and groom.
Lin Shuang felt like her face might crack from smiling so much. She’d assumed a wedding process like this wouldn’t be too exhausting, but who knew that the group photos alone could wear a person out completely.
Fortunately there was no full wedding program—once the banquet began, the bride and groom ate and drank together with everyone, but there was still an emcee arranged—Zhang Fan, of course, being the school’s student activities coordinator, he’d hosted plenty of school events before, cracking jokes and lifting the mood without missing a beat.
Following the school’s usual custom, there were bound to be speeches. Zhou Zheng had invited Ding Yan to open, with the principal saved for the finale; the teacher’s wife and Lin Shuang’s aunt also took the stage—the story, after all, had begun with two matchmakers arranging a blind date, their hard work deserving of recognition.
Naturally there was also a moment for the bride and groom to speak. Lin Shuang had few lines—really, there was no need for her to speak at all, a beautiful woman taking the stage, all eyes on her under the spotlight, and one radiant smile was enough to bring the house down.
Zhou Zheng had written his own speech, aiming for brevity, wit, and liveliness, but there were simply too many people heckling and interrupting. He’d say a line, and someone nearby would immediately follow up with a jab, turning the whole thing into something resembling a stand-up comedy set—too many people envious and jealous, no one willing to give the groom any face.
“Since everyone loves tearing me down so much, guess I’ll just step off the stage and go back to my bride, and while I’m at it, wish everyone a full stomach and a happy life.”
“There’s no drinking contest between bride and groom today, just a joyful, relaxed banquet. Before we get too drunk, let’s all raise our glasses together, wishing the bride and groom a lifetime together, growing old side by side.”
Lin Shuang happily accepted the champagne handed to her.
Aside from Zhang Fan, everyone else at this meal ended up eating and drinking to their heart’s content.
After the banquet, the two of them saw off relatives and friends, heading home with a heavy load of gifts.
The sunlight at home was just right. Lin Shuang changed out of her wedding dress, Zhou Zheng took off his jacket, both dressed simply in casual dresses and shirts, entertaining the guests who’d come home with them.
Fu Min chatted with Zhou Zheng’s grandmother and second aunt about household matters, the kids gathered together chatting and opening red envelopes, Xie Xiaomeng kept Zhang Fan company as he ate, and even Lanting and Guo Yuan came by out of curiosity to see the couple’s new home. Friends sat together chatting casually, having a bit to drink, discussing all sorts of odds and ends.
By the time everyone had left, it was already evening.
The two of them sat on the bedroom floor opening red envelopes—a considerable amount, enough that even after covering the banquet and other expenses, they’d still have some savings left over.
“All mine.” Lin Shuang gathered the red envelopes scattered across the floor. “Enough for us to splurge at the duty-free shop abroad.”
“Sure thing.” Zhou Zheng went to clean up the mess scattered around the room.
The two of them carried the wedding dress and suit, draped over the bench at the foot of the bed, into the walk-in closet.
“Once they’re dry-cleaned, let’s seal them up as keepsakes.” Lin Shuang stroked the dress, sighing softly. “They’ve already fulfilled their purpose.”
“If you ever want to wear it, you can take it out anytime.” Zhou Zheng held her, his voice low and hoarse. “We could put them back on again, dance at home.”
“Let me try it on once more.” She smiled. “We can dance one more now.”
She put the white gauze back on in front of the full-length mirror, her makeup slightly smudged, her hair a little loosened, missing that saintly elegance now, but carrying instead a lazy, lingering allure.
Lin Shuang spun on her toes in front of the mirror, her skirt flaring out.
Zhou Zheng went to run the bathwater, turning on the speaker along the way.
The two of them embraced quietly, swaying gently to the music.
His crisp white shirt had somehow picked up traces of her lipstick, carrying a scent both clean and decadent.
“Tired?”
“A little.” With the music playing, she was too worn out to keep her eyes open.
“Let me carry you……. shall we go take a bath together?” His hand pressed against her bare back, sliding gradually down along her spine, his voice hoarse and sensual, faintly tempting.
“Are you up for it?” Lin Shuang laughed. “Got the energy to keep going?”
“Guess we’ll find out.” The man’s lips brushed against her jade-carved earlobe, his eyes lifting to the full-length mirror before them, his hot words traveling straight from his throat to her ear. “Want to……. take off your wedding dress right here.”
“You shameless man, filthy and brazen, don’t think I don’t know what you’re thinking.” She laughed with her eyes closed, wrinkling her nose.
Her slender fingertips traced across his chest, and she added with a bright smile: “Wanting to do it is fine, but if you can find a way to get this dress off, I’ll admit defeat.”
Indeed, a large hand was already wandering over her body, not just searching for the mechanism, but stirring up trouble along the way.
Stroking her full chest, her slender waist, her round, perky rear and alluring hip line, her long legs bound in lace garters.
She leaned dizzily against his shoulder, breathing softly.
“Is it here?” His fingertip lingered on the pearl fastened onto the dress, gently rolling it, his voice hoarse as he asked, “Is this pearl in the middle of the bow a button? If I just undo it…….”
Fingers accustomed to holding chalk now studied her dress, and finally, with a gentle pinch, she suddenly felt the taut dress lose its hold, hanging loosely on her frame.
“Can we leave it not entirely off?” He asked softly, his voice extremely hoarse, carrying a sensual blend of exhaustion and rising desire, his large hand sliding down through the gap in her dress, misbehaving inside it. “Do it once, still in the wedding dress? Hm?”
Lin Shuang, drawn in by his low, rough voice, felt her scalp tingle, her body going weak.
He suppressed his heavy breathing, his belt making a crisp “snap,” followed by the rustle of a zipper.
The peacock-blue velvet sofa sat before the full-length mirror, the bride’s long dress blooming across it like a lily in full bloom. Lin Shuang, eyes hazy, watched the scene reflected in the mirror, her fingers wandering unconsciously through his hair, the groom bowing his head, his damp lips and tongue tugging at the garter tied around her thigh.
Lin Shuang felt……. she’d thoroughly corrupted that once clean, upright Teacher Zhou.
Their wedding night, this fine evening—no matter how far the indulgence went……. it was worth it.