Chapter 637 Settled

At 6 PM, An Ning set out, her hair a mass of woolly curls.

Jiang Xia also left his house.

The two of them locked eyes on the street. Hold it in!

Hold...

Hold it in a little longer!

Couldn’t hold it in anymore!

"COUGH COUGH COUGH..."

As Jiang Xia broke into a coughing fit, An Ning walked over with her head held high and chest puffed out, snatching the hat right off his head with one hand.

"The dog days of summer... and you’re wearing a dog-fur hat. You’re really something else!"

With his hat gone, Jiang Xia wanted to cover his "hairstyle" with his hands, but then decided against it. His arm went up, then came back down.

"And those curls of yours... did you get them done with a stove poker?"

"And you? How many years of reform did you just get out of?"

The two of them burst out laughing at each other in mock disgust, then started walking west side-by-side.

As they were walking, a little girl selling flowers suddenly appeared beside them.

Jiang Xia generously bought all of the girl’s flowers and gave them to An Ning.

An Ning walked down the road cradling the flowers. She lowered her head, took a sniff, and said, "They don’t really smell like anything."

"Comrade An Ning, could you please play along?"

"Wow... they smell so wonderful and they’re so beautiful!"

An Ning played along with exaggerated enthusiasm. Jiang Xia played along even more, saying, "Thank you."

"You’re welcome."

They both walked on, a silent understanding between them. He knew what she was thinking, and she knew what he was thinking.

Jiang Xia followed his planned route, leading An Ning toward the park.

An Ning, who had originally planned to make the first move, was no longer in a hurry. ’Got to let the man keep his pride, after all.’

The two of them, one cradling a bouquet of flowers, attracted a lot of attention from passersby.

Their unique appearances made them the center of conversation.

"Hurry, hurry, look at him. He must’ve just gotten out. And damn, she looks pretty young."

"Look, even a guy who just got out knows to buy a girl flowers!"

"Don’t be mad... He could probably only chase after middle-aged aunties!"

A bickering young couple zipped past them. If Jiang Xia hadn’t held An Ning back, she would have definitely chased them down to give them a piece of her mind.

"What kind of eyes do they have! Where do I look...?"

"Nowhere! Their eyesight is just bad."

Jiang Xia seized the opportunity to take An Ning’s hand, holding it tight, unwilling to let go.

An Ning felt the warmth of Jiang Xia’s palm. Their eyes met, with the evening clouds as their witness.

"Jiang Xia, be my boyfriend!"

"An Ning, be my girlfriend!"

At the exact same moment, they both abandoned their prepared lines and schemes, blurting out the words that came straight from their hearts.

Two faces, one identical smile.

"Okay!"

"Okay!"

Two loud, joyous "okays," and the two of them stood on the street like a pair of happy fools, holding hands and swinging them back and forth, radiating the sweet scent of new love.

"Are we a little foolish, waiting this long after going around in circles?"

"A little. We wasted a lot of time."

An Ning toyed with Jiang Xia’s hand, lifting it up before her eyes. "I never realized how nice your hands were before."

"Really? I, on the other hand, have always thought you were this beautiful."

Jiang Xia’s sweet-talking had clearly leveled up, making An Ning’s smile even more ’benevolent’.

Both of them were in high spirits, but they lacked much of the awkwardness typical of a new couple.

"Let’s go for a walk."

Jiang Xia invited. An Ning hummed in agreement, and they headed toward a less crowded area.

When they reached the riverbank, Jiang Xia dialed a number on his phone. They stood one behind the other.

"An Ning, this is for you."

"BANG!"

Fireworks exploded on the opposite bank, painting the sky in a riot of brilliant, dazzling colors.

An Ning watched the fireworks with a smile, her body unconsciously leaning back against Jiang Xia. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and they nestled close together.

’Finally, they were together.’

The fireworks display lasted for twenty-one minutes—a little touch from Jiang Xia.

After the fireworks ended, the two left quickly. They really couldn’t afford to keep feeding the mosquitoes.

On the way back, a thought occurred to Jiang Xia, and he asked, "Should we tell our families?"

"Why not? Is there some reason you can’t be seen in public?"

An Ning retorted. Jiang Xia just grinned foolishly.

"It’s just this humble son-in-law being nervous about meeting his father-in-law!"

"So, are you going to meet him or not?"

I am!

That one firm word made An Ning nod with satisfaction. "You know what’s good for you."

They walked all the way back to her doorstep and then parted ways.

When An Ning went inside, everyone was in the courtyard, cooling off and chatting. The whole family was there.

Seeing that everyone was gathered, she figured there was no need to pick a special time.

"I have something I need to tell everyone."

As An Ning spoke, everyone in the courtyard stopped talking and looked at her.

’Wow, suddenly there’s a bit of pressure!’

"Um... COUGH COUGH... it’s just... I..."

An Ning opened her mouth several times before finally steeling herself and blurting out, "Jiang Xia and I are dating!"

"Uncle—I’ve come—to die!"

Jiang Xia was standing at the entrance holding a basin of fruit tea. For reasons unknown, he dropped to his knees with a THUD.

This combined performance from the two of them completely bewildered everyone in the courtyard.

In the end, Lin Cuihua was the first to react. She also finally understood An Ning’s strange behavior over the past two days.

She absolutely couldn’t find a single fault with Jiang Xia. The more she looked at him, the more she liked him. She immediately went to help him up.

"Get up, get up! Child, what are you afraid of? Did An Ning force you into this?"

"Ah? No no no no... I’m willing, it was willing... no, I mean, we’re both willingly together... no, we are already together. We just held hands... we haven’t done anything else... what I mean is..."

Jiang Xia was a mess.

An Guoming, unable to watch any longer, stood up and said to Jiang Xia with a look of disdain, "Just shut up!"

"Yes! I’ll shut up!"

Like a child who had done something wrong, Jiang Xia clamped his mouth shut. Lin Cuihua took the bowl of fruit tea from his hands.

In the courtyard, An Guoqing had no objections. An Guoming already knew. Lin Cuihua and her sister-in-law were both quite pleased; there could be no better son-in-law than Jiang Xia.

Not only did the two families know each other inside and out, but Jiang Xia also had an advantage that other potential suitors lacked: he was an orphan.

For a daughter-in-law marrying into another family, this was actually quite an important point.

The only one in the courtyard with a stern expression was probably An Sancheng.

In reality, An Sancheng also approved, but a father-in-law had to maintain a certain posture.

Otherwise, it would make his daughter seem too forward.

Unconsciously, everyone’s gaze fell upon An Sancheng.

An Sancheng cleared his throat, his voice unreadable. "Set a date. The two families should have a meal."

"Yes! Uncle! Thank you, Uncle! I will definitely be good to An Ning, I swear on my life."

As if granted a full pardon, Jiang Xia fled from the An family’s home, scampering all the way back to the Jiang residence. He was shouting for his grandpa before he even stepped through the door.

An Ning stood to the side, watching Jiang Xia leave, before walking over to An Sancheng.

"Dad, you’re clearly very happy. Why are you trying to scare him?"

"Silly girl, don’t you understand how a formal proposal works? The woman’s side has to maintain a high posture."

An Ning nodded. "Mmm... Jiang Xia wouldn’t dare. He can’t beat me in a fight."

Her words sent the entire courtyard into roaring laughter.

An Sancheng stopped chatting, stood up, and went over to his elder brother’s house to discuss things with Uncle An.

On the other side, Jiang Xia and Grandpa Jiang were also making plans.

Observing the custom of giving three days’ notice for a formal invitation, Grandpa Jiang consulted the perpetual calendar and chose an auspicious date. Master Tang was tasked with procuring the ingredients. It was decided: in three days, the Jiang Family would pay a formal visit to propose marriage.

The An family also began their preparations. In three days, they would formalize the engagement for the two of them.