The first department store in Shanghai.
Even in the cold wind, people were still coming and going in front of the department store and the streets were filled with the sound of car horns. Although there were not many cars, the horns were particularly loud because people and cars were mixed together.
Zhan Aiping bought two new pairs of leather shoes, picked out some cloth, and asked an old tailor to make a few dresses. The old tailor lamented that she came to make spring and summer dresses in such a cold weather, and said regretfully: "Comrade, you have a good figure. If you were in the past, you would have made a few cheongsams and looked very pretty."
In the 1950s and 1960s, cheongsam was still a popular style. No matter how old the women in the city were, they always had several cheongsams in their wardrobes. But in the past few years, there was a big uproar and no one wore cheongsam anymore.
"Are we going to the countryside to be educated youth next year? Most of us educated youth went to southern Yunnan. There is no winter there, so thick cotton-padded jackets are useless..."
Zhan Aiping bought a lot of things these two days, including a large suitcase, some Chinese medicinal materials, and went to Xinhua Bookstore to pick out a lot of books for her younger brother. She also bought wedding candies and cakes... Later she thought about making a few dresses for herself.
People still need to dress up. Who says you can't have strength and beauty at the same time
Gu Sheng probably hasn't seen her wearing a skirt yet.
She has always maintained a good figure, and was even more exquisite when she was young. Her skin is tight and elastic, and her arms, legs and waist are all extremely slender, yet hidden with a sense of strength.
The old tailor measured her size and praised her repeatedly. Zhan Aiping confirmed the date to receive the goods with her, put on her coat, and walked out of the tailor shop. Many young men on the street couldn't help but look at her.
When passing by the alleys, some people even whistled at her.
Although the atmosphere is tense at the moment, the harder the pressure is, the stronger the backlash will be. There is never a shortage of little hooligans in the dark corners, and there is no Skynet surveillance at the moment. Unless they are caught on the spot and there are witnesses and physical evidence, there is nothing we can do about them.
Zhan Aiping gave the man a provocative sidelong glance. The man did not expect her to react like this. He was frightened by the viciousness in her eyes. He staggered back two steps and ran away in shame.
These little hooligans are bullies who only bully the weak and fear the strong. The more timid, panicked and scared they see women, the more excited they become.
Zhan Aiping withdrew money from her passbook and went to buy two watches, one thick and one thin, with a silver chain, a round dial, and light gold hands. She did not choose the fancy ones, just the ones with simple and clear dials.
Of course, watches in this era were of simple styles and not fancy. The more "fancy" ones were those with celebrity portraits printed on the dial and a red slogan like "Serve the People".
Zhan Aiping gave one watch to Gu Sheng and one to herself, and wore them directly on her wrist. She was used to checking the time on her mobile phone anytime and anywhere. Now that she didn't have a mobile phone, she could only raise her wrist to check the watch.
A watch is one of the "four big items" that were popular at weddings in this era, with three turns and one ring, along with a radio, a bicycle and a sewing machine.
Among these four items, there is no need to buy a sewing machine, but a watch, a radio and a bicycle are still necessary. Zhan Aiping exchanged a bicycle ticket with someone, planning to save it for buying when she settles down, and to buy the radio when a new batch of goods arrives from the department store.
Radios are just like mobile phones. It’s better to buy new rather than old.
Originally, most of the four wedding items were supposed to be bought by the man's family and given to the woman, or the man would buy one or two items, and the woman's family would give a sewing machine as a dowry, which could be kept by her and Gu Sheng...
Zhan Aiping plans to buy it herself. How many times can she get married in her lifetime? There should always be a sense of ceremony, just think of it as "she" marrying "him".
No matter what era it is, the one who pays is the boss.
“Sister Pingping, you, you’re back…” When Zhan Aijia saw Zhan Aiping, she felt scared. She didn’t know what happened to Zhan Aiping in the past few days. Why did she suddenly become… so radiant
Zhan Aiping returned home, took off her coat, and put on a dark blue turtleneck sweater. The dark color made her skin look porcelain white. When she looked up, her neck looked long and beautiful, like a swan.
After coming to Shanghai, Zhan Aijia felt that braiding was old-fashioned, but Zhan Aiping's braid falling on her shoulders made her look inexplicably gentle and beautiful. Her hair was shiny black, and her whole body looked as if she had just washed, without a trace of dust.
When she raised her hand, she revealed the silver on her wrist—she bought a watch!!
"Our mom called the He family. What do you think? Are you going to get married or not..." The wedding date was approaching and she had just had a fight with the man, but Zhan Aiping acted as if nothing had happened. She even bought herself a lot of things and dressed herself up beautifully every day.
"Our mom asked He Mingzhang, and he said that you went too far last time. His mom is the elder after all, so you should give her some face... Their family just wants you to show some attitude, otherwise, sister, you should give their family some face."
Zhan Aijia was trying hard to persuade Zhan Aiping. She had envied Zhan Aiping for finding a Shanghai man who was an intellectual and had a big house, but she didn't want Zhan Aiping's marriage to fail.
Zhan Aiping’s marriage fell through, what should she and her mother do
The two of them came to Shanghai to prepare for Zhan Aiping's wedding. If Zhan Aiping's marriage failed, she and her mother would have to go back.
It has to be done!
She has a sister and brother-in-law who are teachers in Shanghai, so she can find a good partner in Shanghai!
Now Zhu Jiaorong and Zhan Aijia are both coaxing Zhan Aiping, wishing they could treat her like an ancestor and hoping that she would quickly compromise with the He family. On the other hand, they are also actively contacting the He family, hoping that the He family will bow their heads first.
"You don't need to meddle in my affairs, Zhan Aijia, just take care of yourself. If you want to find a partner in Shanghai, do it quickly. It will be too late if you delay." Shanghai is a big city where everyone wants to stay, but Zhan Aiping had been here for too long and was already tired of it. She agreed to go to Yunnan Province with the army. Zhan Aijia and her daughter had no excuse to stay in Shanghai, and Zhan Aijia would not have met the man from Shanghai later.
Although he was not a good man, he was at least a native of Shanghai, which made Zhan Aija stay here.
Not to mention the countryside, compared with the conditions in other big cities across the country, Shanghai has first-class treatment. Although the general environment is short of food and clothing, Shanghai has developed basic industry and commerce, and the supply of grain and meat from all over the country is guaranteed in Shanghai, so there is no need to worry about meat. Sometimes if you go there at the right time, you can even buy not-so-fresh discounted meat.
Those small Western-style buildings left over from the past all show that it once had a glory different from other cities.
Zhan Aiping also understood that she wanted to stay here.
Zhan Aijia said anxiously, "Sister, aren't you anxious? You booked the hotel yourself, and you paid for it yourself. The date is coming soon. Are you going to get married alone?"
When getting married these days, holding a wedding banquet and informing relatives and friends is more important than getting a marriage certificate. In many people's minds, getting a marriage certificate does not count as marriage, but the day of the wedding banquet counts as marriage.
Many rural couples in the countryside do not have a marriage certificate, but they have a wedding and then live together, which is a de facto marriage.
Zhan Aiping said: "I want to marry Gu Sheng."
"who?"
"Gu Sheng, you took his photo, how could you not know?"
Zhan Aijia was choked and didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "... Stop teasing me, sister."
Although Zhan Aijia has some girlish thoughts about Gu Sheng, she also knows that she can't marry him. She just thinks about him in her heart, but... her sister is with Gu Sheng, and they are going to get married?
Hahahaha, how is that possible? They are old enemies, foes since childhood. If Gu Sheng could become her brother-in-law, even a sow would climb a tree.
She doesn't believe it even if you beat Zhan Aija to death.
"You're just saying that out of anger. If you really marry Gu Sheng... I, I, I, I'll dare to eat shit!" Zhan Aijia guessed that Zhan Aiping must have been talking nonsense. She must have said that on purpose because of the previous photo incident.
Because of this photo, she also helped wash diapers.
Bah, he's clearly drinking milk, why does his poop smell so bad
Zhan Aiping: “…”
"Then go and eat."
*
On the second floor of the hospital's family quarters, a man wrapped in a military coat ran upstairs and opened the door. He put down the lunch box in his hand with a breath, "Lao Gu, I brought you some food. Haha, Xiao Shen and I went to the movies today..."
"I'm used to living there, but I'm not used to this winter. It's too cold."
"Xiao Shen and I went to see the snow before. Do you know what we wrote in the letter?"
The man who was speaking was called Wang Youli, an old comrade of Gu Sheng. The two came to Shanghai on a business trip together. Gu Sheng came to receive a commendation and went to a big hospital to check his hand injury, while Wang Youli came to do business and return to his hometown to visit relatives and also met a pen pal in Shanghai.
He and his pen pal fell in love at first sight, and they were so in love that they decided to get married in just a few days. It could be said that this was a marriage sent by heaven.
"Xiao Shen and I are planning to hold our wedding banquet in the army. You have to prepare well and congratulate me then."
"Didn't you say before that a brother you've known since childhood is getting married in Shanghai soon? Go and have a drink and tell me how they plan the banquet? Is the new bride pretty?"
Gu Sheng had a blank expression on his face and was unable to put into words: "..."
Wang Youli was immediately amused when he saw his expression: "Ha, why do you look like that? Are you envious? Hahaha... You said that I came to Shanghai and it was a godsend, I got a wife for free. To be honest, are you envious? Who would have thought that my pen pal could become my wife."
Gu Sheng: “…”
“Who envies you? Why do you need to write a letter of guarantee, promising to hand over your salary after marriage, admitting all your mistakes in quarrels, and doing all the housework as long as you go home... What’s the point of a man living like you?” Gu Sheng held a cigarette in his mouth and threw the cigarette box to Wang Youli.
Wang Youli took out a cigarette and threw it back, "This is a good cigarette. Thank you, comrade. I will only smoke this last cigarette. I promised Xiao Shen that I will quit smoking in the future."
Gu Sheng sneered: "Are you marrying a wife? You are marrying an ancestor."
"I'm happy to." Wang Youli grinned, "You don't understand, this is the power of love, the power of love is so great, I quit smoking for her, and she promised to learn to cook for me, you can come to my house for dinner in the future."
"I'll wait."
"Don't take it lightly. Look at you, Gu Sheng. You have higher standards than me. You don't like any of the girls that were introduced to you. You are so good-looking and have a good family background. Be careful that you might marry someone even more powerful in the future."
Gu Sheng shook off the ash from his cigarette, thinking that he was going to marry a powerful ancestor, but... He thought back to the conditions he had proposed, which were perfect: no betrothal gifts, no salary, and she would have to do all the housework.
His "brother" was stupid enough to agree to everything.
One by one, they were all blinded by love.
A smart man like him would never believe in love, and he would never fall in love with Zhan Aiping.
As the saying goes, it is never too late for a gentleman to take revenge. I will slowly deal with her after we get married.
Gu Sheng put out his cigarette and said, "Brother, can you lend me your marriage report to copy?"
(End of this chapter)