Chapter 55: Getting the Marriage Certificate

Chapter 55: Getting the Marriage Certificate

"That guy just now? That's Sheng Huaimin, the one who's been chasing after you?" Gu Yan asked casually.

Gu Yan hadn't gone out of his way to dig into Lin Zhijin's past, but stuff had a way of reaching his ears anyway—like about Yang Su, and about Sheng Huaimin.

Compared to Sheng Huaimin, he was more concerned about Yang Su. If it weren't for his heavy workload and zero downtime, Yang Su would've gotten together with Lin Zhijin ages ago, and Gu Yan wouldn't have stood a chance.

But Sheng Huaimin was no good either. He kept popping up like a thorn in his side, knowing damn well he and Xiao Jin had already had their wedding banquet, and still had the nerve to tell her he liked her and would wait for her forever—what a load of crap.

Gu Yan was pissed. He had someone dig into Sheng Huaimin, and sure enough, he turned up some pretty damning stuff. He was planning to find the right moment to take him down for good, but Sheng Huaimin caught on fast.

Lin Zhijin saw the jealous look on his face and couldn't help but laugh. "I never gave him the time of day."

"I know." Gu Yan put the things in the car and sat close to Lin Zhijin. "It's right that you ignored him. He's not a good person."

Lin Zhijin raised an eyebrow. "You investigated him?"

He gave her hand a little squeeze, signaling that there were people in the car and they'd talk about it once they got home.

They finally made it home, but Li Yue and the others weren't off work yet. So they figured they'd get the place cleaned up first—nobody had been there in over two weeks, and a layer of dust had already settled.

First, they opened the windows to let the place air out. While the sun was still up, they hurried to drag the quilts and pillows out into the yard to air them out. The pots, pans, and dishes in the kitchen also needed to be washed again.

Lin Zhijin scrubbed the dishes and asked out of curiosity, "So what exactly did Sheng Huaimin do that he had to pack up and run with all those people?"

"So you figured out he was on the run?" Gu Yan clicked his tongue at the mention of Sheng Huaimin. "There's no hard proof, but that murder case in the Sheng family... he's definitely mixed up in it."

Lin Zhijin was taken aback. "You're saying his father, his stepmother, and his birth mother all died because of him?"

"Yeah. His birth mother's poisoning was probably something he steered her into. And anyone in the Sheng family who ever crossed him either ended up dead or crippled. Not a single one came out okay." Hearing what had happened to those people made Gu Yan's blood run cold, which was why he'd wanted to hit him hard and fast in one decisive move, so there'd be no chance for payback. But Sheng Huaimin was sharp enough to sense something was off and took off with his crew.

Lin Zhijin sucked in a breath. "I always had a feeling he wasn't as mild-mannered as he let on, but I never thought he'd be this vicious."

By the time they finished talking, the whole place was cleaned up inside and out. They took showers and changed, and were just drying their hair when Li Yue and the others walked in from work.

"Hey, Zhijin, Director Gu, when did you two get back? You already cleaned the whole place? Why didn't you wait for us to help?" Li Yue gave Lin Zhijin a once-over, and seeing how good her color was, figured she hadn't been given a hard time in Beijing. She nodded, satisfied.

Lin Zhijin smiled at how blunt yet caring she was. "Sister Li Yue, let me tell you—we flew back this time. It was definitely faster than the train, but my ears paid the price. They wouldn't stop ringing, and it hurt. Takeoff and landing were the worst—my chest felt all tight and stuffy..."

"Wait, what? You flew back?" Wang Chunhua shoved Li Yue aside and grabbed Lin Zhijin's arm. "You really took a plane? Then did you see the moon and the stars? And the clouds—did you see them? Are they really like cotton candy? Could you see people on the ground from up there?"

"The moon and stars are way too far away. Unless you're on a rocket in outer space, you can't see them from a plane. The clouds are just thick fog—you can't touch them. And the windows don't open. As for people on the ground, no way you can see them, but you can see tall buildings." Lin Zhijin explained patiently.

Seeing Wang Chunhua was about to fire off more questions, Lin Zhijin quickly changed the subject. "I brought back some Beijing specialties for you all—the Eight Pieces and roast duck. How about we have the duck tonight? It's hot out, so it'll spoil by tomorrow."

"Roast duck?" Wang Chunhua's eyes lit up, and just like that, her attention was gone.

Lin Zhijin had also brought gifts for Secretary Yang and Director Zhang, not just Li Yue and Wang Chunhua. So after a quick dinner, the two of them grabbed flashlights and biked over to deliver them.

Director Zhang wasn't home—probably pulling overtime again. Secretary Yang was in, but he had company. Lin Zhijin and her husband didn't stick around, just said a few words and left.

"Do you know those two people who were sitting on the couch?" Lin Zhijin asked quietly once they were outside the compound.

For some reason, Lin Zhijin couldn't shake the feeling that the way they looked at her was a little off.

"No, I don't know them. Why?" Gu Yan asked, confused.

"Nothing. Director Su just told me to get my materials ready—I might be getting promoted." Lin Zhijin wrapped her arms around Gu Yan's waist, all excited.

Lin Zhijin had already been promoted to a cadre position after a year on the job. She was currently a section chief. The next step up would be deputy division chief, which would make her a deputy director. So it looked like Wang Xiaoyao's intel was right—Su Jianhong was getting transferred out, and Chen Qiuqiu was moving up to director.

"My wife's incredible." Gu Yan meant it. From a country girl who couldn't read a single word, she'd finished elementary school in just three years, never slacked off at work, and even come up with a bunch of practical proposals. If it weren't for her age and lack of seniority, she'd have been promoted ages ago.

Meanwhile, back at Secretary Yang's place, the man and woman who'd caught Lin Zhijin's attention were talking about her too.

"So she's the girl Xiao Su likes? She really is pretty." The woman had a short bob and a sharp, capable air about her. If Lin Zhijin had looked closer, she'd have seen she looked a lot like Yang Su—about fifty percent—just with softer features.

"And that's the Gu kid next to her? Good-looking fella, works as deputy director at the machinery factory?" The man had a mild, gentle manner, like a proper classical studies teacher.

"Yes, that's Zhijin. She works under me right now—a hardworking, driven, and quick-learning girl." Su Jianhong was worried her cousin-in-law might get the wrong idea about Lin Zhijin, so she made sure to sing her praises.

Yang's mother smiled at Su Jianhong. "What, worried I'd make trouble for her? Even if she and Xiao Su had ended up together, I'm not some evil mother-in-law. Besides, I don't have that kind of luck—she's already married into the Gu family. At the wedding in Beijing, even the old leader showed up."

Turns out, the man and woman were Yang Su's parents. They were in the area on business and had stopped by to visit relatives, never expecting to run into Lin Zhijin while she was dropping off gifts.

Hearing that, Su Jianhong scoffed inwardly. Her cousin-in-law was no pushover. If Lin Zhijin had married into that family, she wouldn't have been outright mistreated, but she'd have been picked apart for sure.

Thinking about it now, Lin Zhijin marrying Gu Yan really was the better move. His father had died a hero, leaving behind a solid political legacy. His mother had remarried and had her own life, so she wouldn't meddle in their marriage. Gu Yan was capable, and they didn't have to deal with being apart all the time. Tsk, that girl was sharp.

"Alright, since it didn't work out, they just weren't meant to be. The girl's already married, and Xiao Su's still single. We need to worry more about him—he can't stay a bachelor his whole life." Yang's father said with a headache at the thought of Yang Su.

Secretary Yang and Su Jianhong looked at each other and let out helpless sighs. Over the past two years, they'd tried setting Yang Su up with someone, but nothing ever stuck.

The next day at the Women's Federation, Su Jianhong told Lin Zhijin that the couple from last night were Yang Su's parents. That explained why they'd been eyeing her like that.

She was speechless. That thing with Yang Su was years ago—what was there to be curious about?

"They're just curious what the girl Yang Su used to like looks like. Don't worry about them. They're heading back to Beijing in a couple days, so you probably won't see them again." Su Jianhong explained with a smile, then sent Lin Zhijin back to her desk.

Two weeks later, the promotion list came out, and Lin Zhijin's name was on it. Chen Qiuqiu, just like Wang Xiaoyao had said, got the "deputy" dropped from her title and became the director of the street-level Women's Federation. As for Su Jianhong, she and Secretary Yang were both transferred to another province.

And Lin Zhijin wasn't the only one who got promoted—Gu Yan did too. He was now the director of the machinery factory.

"You're incredible—a factory director at twenty-five." Lin Zhijin's eyes sparkled as she looked at him.

"What's so impressive about that? My dad was already commanding an independent regiment at my age." Gu Yan pulled a fancy little box out of his pocket. "Here—a gift for your promotion."

"I didn't get you anything." Lin Zhijin opened the box. Inside was an imported ladies' watch set with diamonds. It was gorgeous—she fell for it the second she saw it, but there was no way she could wear it out in public.

"What would a guy like me need a gift for? Come on, let me put it on you." Seeing how happy she looked, he knew she loved it.

"Too bad I can only wear it around the house." Lin Zhijin held up her wrist to admire it for a second, then told Gu Yan to wait. She went into the bedroom and came back with a beautifully wrapped box. "Here—I was gonna save this for your birthday, but you can have it early."

Gu Yan hadn't expected a gift in return, so getting one was a nice surprise. He carefully untied the bow and opened the box—a fountain pen. He swapped it out with the pen in his chest pocket right away, patted it, and said, "Thanks, wife. I love it."

A couple days after the promotion was Lin Zhijin's birthday—which was also the day she and Gu Yan were going to get their marriage certificate.

With everyone teasing them, they walked into the street office. Gu Yan handed out wedding candy to anyone he passed. There weren't many people there to get certificates that day, so their turn came up fast. When he finally held the marriage certificate in his hands, Gu Yan was over the moon. They'd already had the banquet, but nothing beat the peace of mind that little piece of paper gave him.

Lin Zhijin tilted her head to look at him, eyes curving into little crescent moons, a soft smile shining in them. She whispered in his ear, "Let's go, husband."

Gu Yan's grip on her hand tightened a little. He lowered his voice and murmured by her ear, "Let's go home."

They were way past being new at this, but today was the most intense it'd ever been. They didn't even stop for lunch, and it only ended when Lin Zhijin waved the white flag.

"Hungry?" Gu Yan kissed Lin Zhijin's forehead softly, then her lips. "You stay in bed and rest—I'll go make us something to eat."

Lin Zhijin lay there for a bit, then got up and followed him out. Seeing him rolling out dough, she said with a smile in her voice, "One bowl of longevity noodles isn't gonna cut it. I want eggs too—two of them."

Gu Yan chuckled softly, "Two? I'd cook you ten if you asked."

Lin Zhijin watched Gu Yan busy at the stove, "A Yan, will you cook me longevity noodles on my birthdays in the future too?"

"Of course." Gu Yan set the bowl of noodles on the table, "As long as you don't mind."

Lin Zhijin picked up the coarse porcelain cup and gently clinked it against his, "How could I ever mind? Gu Yan, here's to all the years to come—please take care of me."

Gu Yan looked at her, his eyes full of real, deep warmth, "Zhi Jin, all my remaining years—I'll spend them all with you."

Author's note:

Let me be honest: I'm a plot-driven writer who always wanted to try my hand at emotion-driven storytelling, and as you can all see, it didn't quite work out. There were times I had no idea how to keep writing (╥﹏╥). To be frank, after such a long hiatus, I've lost the creative spark and drive I used to have, so this story ends here. There are still a few bonus chapters left, and it seems I can make them free now—let me figure out how to do that. Thank you all for your unwavering support. Thank you, love you all, muah! (づ￣3￣)づ╭❤～ Next story: "After Becoming a Factory Girl, I Quit and Ran Away Overnight" — this one is set in 2006, something fresh to switch things up. Please add it to your library!