Jiang Si was unaware of these matters. When she found out that the old master wasn’t at home, she didn’t think much of it.
She quickly took out the clothes she had bought for them.
“Grandma, Zhou and I just went to the department store.”
“I saw this cotton-padded jacket that looked really nice, so I bought one each for you and Grandpa. Why don’t you try it on and see if it fits?”
“Alright, alright~”
Grandma Huo, influenced by Mother Huo, never let the children be disappointed over things like this.
Without hesitation, she took off the jacket she was wearing and changed into the one Jiang Si had bought.
The cotton-padded jacket Jiang Si chose was the latest model from this year’s department store. Although it was about a third more expensive than the regular ones,
you truly get what you pay for.
When the salesperson mentioned that the filling inside was duck down instead of cotton batting, Jiang Si immediately bought four of them.
Besides the ones for Grandpa and Grandma, she had already sent the other two to Third Uncle and Uncle Zhong when she passed by the post office earlier.
As soon as Grandma Huo put on the jacket, she couldn’t stop praising it.
“Not bad, not bad. The size fits perfectly.”
“It feels warm and cozy, and it’s not bulky at all.”
“Si, this jacket must have cost quite a bit, right?”
Jiang Si smiled but didn’t respond directly. “Grandma, as long as you like it, that’s what matters.”
“I do, I do. As long as it’s from you, Grandma will like it.”
Grandma Huo squinted her eyes with a smile, seizing this happy moment to bring up the idea of hosting a wedding banquet for the young couple.
In fact, Huo Tingzhou had already mentioned this to her on the way back.
Jiang Si didn’t have any objections. After all, marriage is a matter between two families.
Since the elders were keen on holding a banquet, and they happened to be in the capital city, it was best to have one to put their minds at ease.
“Grandma, Zhou and I don’t mind. We’re just not very familiar with these arrangements, so we’ll have to trouble you all to take care of most of it.”
“That’s no trouble at all,” Grandma Huo said happily. “I know you’re busy, so you don’t have to worry about the banquet. Leave it to me and your Grandpa. We’re just sitting around at home anyway.”
“Oh, and you should give Third Uncle a call later. If he has time to come, it’ll be livelier with him here.”
Jiang Si thought to herself that there was probably no need to ask.
Even if Third Uncle was busy, he would definitely find time to come.
But still, it wouldn’t hurt to ask.
After finishing their meal, Jiang Si and Huo Tingzhou shared the news about the banquet with Third Uncle.
The moment he heard it, he laughed until tears came to his eyes.
“No way, I have to tell Big Brother this good news first thing tomorrow morning.”
And maybe bring some good wine over for him!
Sniffling, Third Uncle said, “Alright, got it. Just let me know the date once it’s set. Zhong and I will arrive two days early.”
This was a topic beyond Jiang Si’s knowledge, and she didn’t really understand it.
Fortunately, Grandma Huo had already made all the preparations and cheerfully took the phone to make the arrangements.
After some discussion between the elders on both sides, the date for the banquet was set for New Year’s Day.
Jiang Si had no objections. New Year’s Day was just a month away.
By then, Huo Tingzhou would still have half a month of vacation left, and she would have almost finished her work.
After finishing the wine arrangements, they could still stay a few more days in Hu City.
The schedule was set, and Grandma Huo was so happy she barely paid attention to the young couple. Seeing this, Jiang Si and Huo Tingzhou went upstairs together.
After organizing all the bottles and jars they had bought, Jiang Si put the pajamas she had changed out of yesterday into the basin.
She also had to rinse the few sets of clothes they bought today.
“Leave it to me, I’ll take care of it later,”
Huo Tingzhou took the clothes from her hands all at once. Perhaps Jiang Si’s words earlier had given him a bit of courage.
The moment his fingers touched hers, he didn’t pull away quickly as he usually did.
Instead, he held her hand tightly.
Others might not know how much brainpower she put into painting those pictures, but Huo Tingzhou’s heart was as clear as a mirror.
“You’ve been busy all morning. Go lie down for a while.”
Jiang Si didn’t pretend she wasn’t tired. She had gotten up early and spent the whole morning enduring the cold wind at the stadium.
Now, after eating her fill, she was indeed a bit sleepy.
Once she lay down under the covers, Huo Tingzhou took a military green bedsheet out of his rucksack.
He neatly spread it over the other side of the bed.
Then, he placed a towel on the pillow.
During his missions, Old Xiao would often share tips about married life.
Mostly, he warned about the pitfalls he had stepped into over the years.
At first, Huo Tingzhou didn’t take it seriously until Old Xiao said that his wife no longer wanted to sleep in the same bed as him.
The reason? Because he sweated a lot.
The same bedsheet, after he slept on his side for less than three days, would darken noticeably, and the pillowcase too.
The worst part was, no matter how much they washed it, the stains wouldn’t come out.
When they first got married, Hu Meili could tolerate it.
Now that their child was already toddling around, she wasn’t putting up with it anymore and had kicked her husband out to the spare bedroom.
When Xiao Zhengjun said this, he gave Huo Tingzhou a pointed look.
“Your wife clearly loves cleanliness, you have to be careful.”
“Once you split the bed, it’s hard to go back.”
Huo Tingzhou wasn’t really a heavy sweater, but that was when he slept alone.
Sleeping in the same bed with his wife, he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t sweat.
Regardless, he wanted to eliminate that possibility in advance, which explained why he was laying out the bedsheet today.
Jiang Si didn’t ask any questions. After he lay down,
she turned over and faced him, instinctively resting her leg over his.
Her other hand naturally wrapped around his waist.
When Huo Tingzhou was away, Jiang Si always hugged a pillow to sleep. Now that he was back, of course, she wanted to hold him.
As for feeling shy, Jiang Si simply didn’t have those words in her vocabulary.
She felt comfortable and at ease, but Huo Tingzhou, whose breathing had been steady just moments before,
felt every muscle in his body tense up the instant she touched him.
From his shoulders and back, down his arms, waist, and thighs, every inch of muscle was like a drawn bowstring.
Her warmth, her curves, and her youthful fingers wrapped around his side—
all of it was igniting the nerves he had been holding taut.
What made it even harder for him to speak up was an inexplicable, creeping heat that had already begun to spread rapidly from somewhere deep inside.
Yet Jiang Si, the instigator of this feeling, was now teetering on the edge between sleep and wakefulness.
She murmured softly as she sensed his body stiffening noticeably.
“Don’t be nervous… I’m not going to touch you…”
“I’m just going to hold you for a moment…”
After saying that, she contentedly nuzzled against his back.
Huo Tingzhou was silent for a moment, then, unable to fully admit it, replied with a half-truth.
“I’m not nervous.”
He waited a long while but heard no response from behind him, only the faint, steady rhythm of her breathing.
Only then did Huo Tingzhou carefully adjust his position.
Afraid of waking her, he kept his movements gentle and light.
That restless feeling, hard to put into words, was finally released as a barely audible sigh, restrained by his strong willpower.
Jiang Si, who was drifting in and out of sleep, had been dozing for about forty minutes when she finally woke up.
She noticed the large hand resting on the back of her hand.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Jiang Si’s lips. Just as she was about to quietly pull her hand away,
a strong arm swiftly wrapped around her waist.
Dizzy and disoriented, Jiang Si felt her body lighten.
Before she could react, she was gently placed on the inner side of the bed.
This sudden move startled Jiang Si, and she jabbed the man behind her hard with her elbow in frustration.
“When did you wake up? You scared me!”
Huo Tingzhou’s chin brushed lightly against the top of her head as he answered in a hoarse voice,
“Just now… I woke up.”
Jiang Si hummed in acknowledgment and gently patted the hand still wrapped around her waist.
“Alright, stop fooling around. I’m getting up now.”
But the arm around her waist didn’t loosen immediately; instead, it tightened slightly.
After a moment, a low, husky voice sounded again in her ear.
“Si Si, let’s move to the West Hill Estate and stay there for a while, okay?”
Move to the West Hill Estate?
Jiang Si was about to ask what on earth he was thinking.
Why leave here when things were fine?
But the next second, she fell silent—
