You're my wife, don't doubt it!

She took a deep breath and firmly planted her feet on the mudflats. The soft, squishy texture of the mud made her a little uncomfortable, but with each step, the mud was slowly compressed, and the clams would emerge from beneath it.

With her movements, more and more clams surfaced beneath her feet. They struggled in the yellow mud, opening their shells to the sunlight. Gradually, her stockings were covered in the mud of the Yellow Sea, obscuring their original whiteness. The mud clinging to the stockings shimmered faintly in the sunlight…

"What are you laughing at again?" Yu Luying's voice pulled Xiao Yao back to reality.

"No, I was just thinking," Xiao Yao continued with his smile, "I don't eat clams, but if you're the one I caught, I think I could give it a try..."

“Hehe,” Yu Luying said, “Keep dreaming, I’m not going to let you step on me.”

"Hey, get off, get off!" The bus had stopped sometime earlier, and the driver, sitting in the driver's seat, shouted at the top of his lungs.

"How did we get here so quickly?" Yu Luying was taken aback.

“We’ve just reached the Yangtze River,” Xiao Yao explained to her. “Next, we’ll take a ferry.”

"Hey—do we have to cross the Yangtze River? It's so wide!" Yu Luying's eyes lit up, clearly saying, "That sounds like so much fun! I want to go!"

"Let's go." Xiao Yao took the girl's hand and stood up.

"Hey, aren't you taking your bags?" Yu Luying looked back at the two luggage bags under the seats when she followed Xiao Yao to the aisle of the bus.

"Take any valuables you have; otherwise, leave them," Xiao Yao said.

“Oh, I thought we’d have to change cars when we got to the other side…” Yu Luying said.

"What a silly girl," Xiao Yao mocked her, pulling her out of the car.

The sun was blazing, and there wasn't a single shady spot around. The earth was blindingly bright, making one feel slightly dizzy.

The stench of sweat emanating from himself and the people around him irritated Xiao Yao. Subconsciously, he habitually waited for that parasol to be raised, but it never did.

He then suddenly realized that the person beside him was her, not her.

For some reason, the pedestrian and vehicle access routes were separate when the ferry terminal opened. Empty buses lined up in a long queue and passed through the terminal one by one, while travelers slowly walked in through the adjacent pedestrian walkway.

Xiao Yao suddenly sensed that the girl beside him was somewhat excited—her walking posture was a bit cheerful, and her steps seemed to be skipping.

"What's wrong? Why are you so happy all of a sudden?" Xiao Yao asked her with a smile.

Yu Luying just smiled and remained silent, walking along and even turning around.

"What happened? Tell me," Xiao Yao urged.

“I just suddenly realized,” Yu Luying replied cheerfully, “that symbiosis is pretty good too.”

"What's wrong?" Xiao Yao asked.

“If it weren’t for symbiosis,” Yu Luying told Xiao Yao, “I probably wouldn’t have been able to go to such faraway places by myself or with a boy before I turned 18, no, before I got married.”

Xiao Yao thought with emotion that he was glad his happiness wasn't one-sided.

He really wanted to lift Yu Luying up and spin her around his head twice.

"Nothing can stop your yearning for freedom," Yu Luying sang as she walked and jumped: "In this boundless world, your heart is free of all worries."

“Having traversed dark years, I have felt lost,” Xiao Yao added spontaneously, “only when you look down do you realize the path beneath your feet…”

Chapter 208 Difficulty Traveling

2023-05-25

"Stand still, I'll take some pictures of you." After the ferry started moving, Yu Luying held her precious camera and actively directed Xiao Yao.

A girl and a boy stood at the bow of the boat, the river breeze fluttering the girl's skirt. Behind her were dozens of long-distance buses parked in a square formation.

Xiao Yao would have preferred to sleep in the car, but Yu Luying was as excited as if she were seeing the Yangtze River for the first time.

"Who's the real 'country bumpkin' between us?" the boy thought sarcastically.

The Yangtze River ferry trembled and hummed as Yu Luying directed Xiao Yao to pose while excitedly pressing the shutter. She captured Xiao Yao standing at the bow, the background scenery blurred, only Xiao Yao's figure standing out vividly.

"One more shot, a little closer!" Yu Luying gestured for Xiao Yao to move a little to the left, and Xiao Yao moved accordingly, smiling as he looked at the camera.

"Don't smile with your mouth crooked! Look at the camera! Don't look to the side... Forget it, maybe you shouldn't smile at all."

The ferry glided slowly across the Yangtze River, its surface shimmering in the sunlight. A gentle breeze rippled the water's surface. Sunlight streamed through the clouds, casting a soft golden glow over the entire river.

The riverbank stretches out in the distance, dotted with lush green trees. The riverbank on the south side of the river gradually disappears from view, but the "ideal other shore" has yet to emerge from the horizon.

Fishing boats and yachts crisscrossed the river, leaving trails of waves that intersected with the waves from the car ferry.

White seagulls soared in the air from time to time, and several cargo ships were slowly sailing on the river in the distance, their silhouettes shimmering with silvery light under the sun.

"I'm not filming anymore," Yu Luying stamped her foot and pouted, "You're not cooperating at all."

"How much more cooperative can I be? It's so hot, lady." Xiao Yao walked over with a wry smile and reached for the camera in the girl's hand: "Or should I take a picture for you?"

"Do you know how to film it?" Yu Luying asked suspiciously.

"Oh, isn't it just about looking at that little transparent square, aiming at the person, and then pressing the shutter button?" Xiao Yao said casually.

“…You should just wash up and go to bed,” Yu Luying muttered. “Do you think this is a stupid machine?”

“Okay, I’ll take a picture of it for you with my phone,” Xiao Yao said.

After taking a few photos of Yu Luying with his phone, Xiao Yao walked over to her, turned his phone upside down, held it up at a 45-degree angle, and took a few close-up photos of the two of them together with the river as the background.

"This one is nice."

"This one looks better."

"This one is nice too, but the one from before was even nicer."

"No, that last picture was too ugly, delete it."

"Don't delete it."

In front of Yu Luying, Xiao Yao set his favorite photo of them together as his desktop wallpaper and waved it in front of her: "How about that? It's only fair to return the favor. I can't let you secretly use our photo as your wallpaper."

“You…” Yu Luying said softly, “Send this one over, and I’ll exchange it for the same one as you.”

"it is good."

“You can use this for a few days,” Yu Luying closed her flip phone and reminded Xiao Yao, “Remember to change it before you meet your sister, otherwise she’ll be angry when she sees it.”

“She wouldn’t—she’s not that petty,” Xiao Yao said.

No, she will, Xiao Yao thought.

"How about the three of us take a picture together and make it into wallpaper?" Xiao Yao suddenly suggested.

"You wish—what are you thinking about all day!" Yu Luying said, somewhat annoyed, and pushed Xiao Yao's forehead with two fingers. "I'm going back to the car!"

"Oh my god, I can finally go back to the car and enjoy the air conditioning," Xiao Yao thought.

Yu Luying walked more than ten meters away, then stopped, turned around and glared at Xiao Yao, looking as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

"You go up first!" Xiao Yao shouted, "I'll take some pictures of the river view for her and send them over."

"Be careful, don't send our photos over there," Yu Luying shouted, then turned and got into the car.

If you've already given it, why act like you're doing something wrong?

...Okay, that's not really appropriate.

After taking the photos, Xiao Yao jogged back to his car. He was already used to the strong smell of gasoline, so all he felt was the coolness from the air conditioning.

"That feels good!" Xiao Yao plopped back down next to Yu Luying, who was quietly drinking a bottle of mineral water and tearing open a bag of potato chips.

Xiao Yao snatched the water and potato chips from Yu Luying's hand, gulped down half a bottle, handed it back to her, tore open the potato chips for her, and then grabbed a handful.

Finally, he raised the hand holding the potato chips to the girl's chin.

Just like when they watched "Beautiful Shanghai" in the war movie capital, Yu Luying, like a little bird, began to peck at Xiao Yao's palm with perfect naturalness.

No wonder the War Park sells beef for 20 yuan a piece to feed the tigers in the park, and the business is so good.

People can really feel a sense of satisfaction when feeding animals.

After finishing the potato chips, Yu Luying took out a magnetic chess set and asked Xiao Yao if he wanted to play.

Xiao Yao had just been hanging around and getting killed twice when the announcement came over the loudspeaker at the bow of the ship: "Attention passengers, we are about to reach the dock on the other side. Please return to your vehicles and prepare to disembark."

"That was pretty fast." Yu Luying put the chess set away.

"It'll probably last between 45 minutes and an hour," Xiao Yao said. "Why did you put it away? Are you done playing?"

"Playing with you is no fun," Yu Luying pouted.

Ugh, I got looked down on to my face again.

Seeing Xiao Yao's hurt expression, Yu Luying quickly explained, "No, I was just joking. It's just that I got carsick from driving. If I keep going, I'll get carsick."

It's fine as long as the word "motion sickness" isn't mentioned, but as soon as it is, it's like a flag has been set for Xiao Yao, and he immediately feels the effects as soon as he gets ashore.

"How come you still get carsick?" Yu Luying's face turned ashen as she covered her mouth and complained in a low voice.

"Maybe you're just carsick?" Xiao Yao said stubbornly.

“I almost never get carsick,” Yu Luying told Xiao Yao.

Xiao Yao wasn't in the mood to nitpick Yu Luying's grammatical errors, and soon, neither of them had the energy to bicker anymore.

The boy and girl leaned back in their chairs, eyes closed, teeth clenched, fighting against the churning in each other's stomachs.

The faint smell of gasoline began to seep into Xiao Yao's nostrils again, and each time he smelled it, his urge to vomit intensified.