Song Qi rode his bicycle to the post office, following Shen Moxi's directions. He went inside and bought four sets of stamps, along with thirty sets of Year of the Monkey stamps. These Year of the Monkey stamps were especially, especially commemorative.
People in this era had no notion of stamp collecting, and the stamps were gradually used up. By the time their value began to rise later on, very, very few Year of the Monkey stamps remained.
She decided to buy stamps every year from now on and put them away, waiting for their value to rise so she could pass them down to her children.
After Song Qi entered, he looked all around, seeing what a post office was like and how things were sent. After wandering around for quite a while, he finally understood, once again marveling at how advanced this world truly was.
The two left the post office and put all the stamps into the storage room.
"Little lady, what did you buy all those stamps for?" Song Qi couldn't help asking on their way back.
"To keep until they go up in value. Stamps are very commemorative, especially these stamps from the eighties. There's plenty of room for their value to rise in the future. This is hidden wealth! I'm going to pass them down to our children," Shen Moxi said happily.
Song Qi's attention was entirely on the words "our children." He gave a teasing smile. "Little lady, are you reminding me that we haven't consummated our marriage yet? Do you want a child that badly?"
Uh... Shen Moxi went over what she had just said, her face flushing bright red.
"Ahem, yes. Since we're going to be together and we're husband and wife, of course we'll have children someday." Shen Moxi nodded, pretending to be calm.
"Mm, you've reminded me. Tonight, let's take the first step toward having a child." Song Qi nodded solemnly.
"Ahem, ahem..." Shen Moxi nearly choked. Had she ended up being teased instead?
The two chatted and laughed all the way home. When they arrived, they found several more people in the courtyard: Shen Moxi's parents and sister-in-law.
Shen Moxi gave Song Qi a puzzled look, and the two walked inside.
"Dad, Mom, Sister-in-law, what brings you here? Did something happen?" Shen Moxi went over to Ye Yunjuan.
Song Qi also went over to Song Yongjun to ask what was going on.
"We're here to discuss your wedding with Xiao Qi, of course." Ye Yunjuan patted her hand. "Your in-laws said that since Xiao Qi has woken up, you need to go through the proper formalities. They can't let you be shortchanged. Besides, you haven't even taken your marriage certificate photo yet."
"Ahem, I see. Then you can discuss it and decide." Shen Moxi nodded shyly.
"We've already talked it over and checked the dates. We'll hold it in the middle of July next month, which gives us just over a month to prepare." Ye Yunjuan held her hand and smiled.
Shen Moxi smiled and nodded. "Since you've settled it, we'll just wait, then. Since you're here, stay for dinner before you go. I'll go cook."
Shen Moxi and Song Qi went to the kitchen. Huang Yushan smiled and shook her head. "Both children are feeling shy."
Song Yongjun stood up with a hearty laugh. "Let's go sit inside and have some tea. That girl Moxi's cooking is delicious. We're benefiting from your visit."
Shen Xiao, Ye Yunjuan, and the others also stood and followed him inside.
Once everyone had gone inside, Song Zhitao came out of her room and ran to the kitchen, where she saw Shen Moxi cooking.
"Brother, Sister-in-law." Song Zhitao went over and sat beside Song Qi.
"Taozi? What brings you in here?" Shen Moxi looked at her.
"Mom and Dad are discussing your wedding. I was bored, so I came to see you and help out." She picked up a potato and began peeling it.
"You're going to school tomorrow. Go get your things ready, and don't leave anything behind. Your brother and I can handle this." Shen Moxi put the washed green beans into a basket beside her.
"I've already packed. There's not much to bring, just a couple of changes of clothes." Song Zhitao shook her head casually.
At the mention of clothes, Shen Moxi finally remembered that she hadn't given her younger sister-in-law an outfit yet. Once dinner was over and her parents had left, she would get a couple of outfits for her to take along. Girls her age all liked looking pretty, and it could serve as a bit of advertising too.
With that thought, Shen Moxi looked at her. "I'll give you a present before bed."
Song Zhitao looked up in delighted surprise. "What present? Something tasty?"
Heh, this one's a foodie too.
"It's not food. You can try guessing. You'll find out before bed." Shen Moxi kept her in suspense, acting mysterious and refusing to tell her.
That made Song Zhitao terribly curious, and she kept wondering what it was. No girl disliked surprises, especially presents.
With Father Shen's party of four joining them tonight, Shen Moxi made another four or five dishes.
Song Qi and Song Zhitao strongly insisted that she add Sichuan boiled pork slices as well. They really could eat it every day without getting tired of it. The flavor was simply incredible.
Shen Moxi shook her head in amusement. "What if eating it every day gives you too much internal heat?"
"Sister-in-law, I'm leaving tomorrow. Who knows when I'll get to eat it again? Make it just this once more, please, my lovely sister-in-law." Song Zhitao hugged her arm and wheedled.
Song Qi said nothing, but the look in his eyes said it all.
In the end, Shen Moxi had no choice but to make Sichuan boiled pork slices again. Tonight's spread was truly lavish.
The three carried the dishes to the table. Song Yongjun brought out his treasured baijiu to share a few drinks with Shen Xiao.
The two fathers-in-law sat together, talking about everything under the sun, and drank too much as they went. Father Shen could hold his liquor and was fine, but Song Yongjun couldn't. By the end, he was talking nonsense.
Seeing this, Ye Yunjuan stopped Shen Xiao. Once they had eaten their fill, they headed home before it grew too late. Shen Moxi told Huang Yushan and Song Yongjun to go rest in their room; the others could handle the cleaning.
Song Zhitao cleared the table and tidied up, while Song Qi and Shen Moxi went to the kitchen to clean up and wash the dishes.
In the kitchen, Shen Moxi took out paper and a pen and quickly sketched three outfits for a young girl: one dress and two sets of tops and bottoms. Once the drawings were finished, she put them into the workshop to be made.
Since there were only three designs, three outfits in all, they were finished in minutes.
She also took out two pairs of lightweight leggings and a pair of little leather shoes in Song Zhitao's size, putting them with the three outfits. Once she returned to her room, she would find a cloth bag to pack them in and give them to her.
Song Qi watched from the side and only spoke once she was finished. "Little lady, she's still a student. Can she wear clothes like these?"
Shen Moxi nodded. "Why couldn't she? I designed the simplest styles, just right for a girl in her early teens. Girls start caring about looking pretty at this age."
Song Qi nodded. "Mm, if you think it's fine, then it's fine. I don't know much about children her age. I've never even spent time around them."
Shen Moxi smiled and leaned against his shoulder. "Doesn't that make me lucky, then? I'm the first woman you've spent time with?"
"Mm, I'm the lucky one. You were the person I saw when I opened my eyes." Song Qi smiled and pinched her nose, his eyes full of affection.
After washing the dishes, the two washed up and returned to their bedroom.
Shen Moxi opened the wardrobe, found a slightly nicer-looking cloth bag, and packed the clothes inside. "Lie down and rest first. I'll take this to her and come right back."
"Mm, all right." Song Qi took off his clothes and slipped under the covers.
Shen Moxi knocked on Song Shan's door. "Taozi, are you asleep?"
Song Zhitao, who was reading inside, heard Shen Moxi's voice and excitedly bounded over to open the door. "Not yet, Sister-in-law. I was waiting for you."
"Here, your present. Take it inside and have a look. I'm going to rest now." Smiling, Shen Moxi placed the cloth bag in her arms.
"Thank you, Sister-in-law. Go get some rest." Song Zhitao hugged Shen Moxi, waved, and shut the door, hurrying back inside to look at her lovely gifts.