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

"I'm going out to buy a phone and a SIM card. Do you want to come with me?" Xiao Yao asked Shen Jie.

"Brush your teeth and wash your face first! -- I bought everything for you this morning, here," Shen Jie handed over a brand new Lenovo flip phone: "Meiyu personally picked out this model for you, see if you like it? Oh, and the card is bought too."

"?" Xiao Yao took the phone with a puzzled look, thinking to himself, "When did you two go shopping together?"

"Where's the charger—?" Xiao Yao fiddled with his new phone. "By the way, about the lice, aren't you really planning to buy a new set of bedding?"

“Buying new ones won’t help if there are lice,” Meiyu laughed. “Besides, what era are we living in? There aren’t any lice anymore. But it’s true that Jie has a bit of a skin allergy. I’ve already applied some Piriton cream to her skin. I’ll take the bedding out to air it in the sun later and spray some of that stuff—”

"I can't accept that, it's too much trouble for you." Xiao Yao said politely to her, "By the way, you've been staying here for quite a while now, haven't you?"

“Not long,” Meiyu tilted her head and thought for a moment, “about two and a half years.”

"There's fried rice in the kitchen, I saved some for you, try my cooking." Shen Jie suddenly said to Xiao Yao, "It's a little cold though, you can microwave it again."

"You? Fried rice? What the hell?" Xiao Yao said.

"Meiyu taught me how to make this. Try it and see how well I did!" Shen Jie urged.

Meiyu winked at Xiao Yao: "I taught her step by step. It's all made of rice, eggs, and salt. It won't kill you."

Shen Jie went back to her room and changed into a relatively conservative dress. She slung a small backpack over her shoulder, wore sandals barefoot, and went out with Xiao Yao, wandering aimlessly in the northwest direction.

Xiao Yao patted his belly contentedly with his right hand: "Delicious. Happiness is eating my wife's fried rice and then holding her hand and going for a walk."

"Is it delicious? Are you happy?" Shen Jie smiled.

"It seems like this is the first time I've seen you carrying a backpack like this." Xiao Yao said as he walked, holding Shen Jie's hand with his left hand and swinging their arms around each other vigorously.

“Right? It looks good, doesn’t it?” Shen Jie said.

"Yeah, it's kind of student-like, I like it." Xiao Yao said, while secretly sending a text message to Yu Luying with his right hand to let her know his new number.

They miraculously discovered a Xinhua Bookstore, browsed inside for an hour or two, and each picked out several books to pass the time during their boring dungeon days.

"Suddenly I feel that browsing bookstores together like this is quite nice," Xiao Yao said to Shen Jie in a low voice while enjoying the air conditioning in the bookstore. "It has a kind of innocent feeling like a campus romance."

“Hey artsy young man, don’t be so naive,” Shen Jie laughed. “I’m not a student anymore, and dating a working adult is something I’d be doing you a disservice to. You’ll have to be understanding and not look down on me.”

"Of course I'd complain! How can you not be a student?" Xiao Yao shouted. "I'd rather sell a kidney than let you be a girl who drops out of school."

"Why are you making so much noise in the bookstore? Is this the kind of manners students have?" Shen Jie teased. "You shouldn't be so delusional—hey, Meiyu is planning to quit her job and open her own barbecue shop. I'm actually quite interested in partnering with her. I happen to have some capital, so it's like starting a business from scratch. What do you think?"

"You're the one who's daydreaming, aren't you? What kind of joke is this about China and the world?" Xiao Yao lowered his voice, but couldn't hide the anxiety in his tone.

Chapter 277 Your Kidney Is Mine

2023-07-27

"A book like 'Teach You to Be a Chef Step by Step', are you serious?"

After leaving Xinhua Bookstore, Xiao Yao curiously picked up a book that Shen Jie had bought.

"What do you mean by steamed or boiled?" Shen Jie said, pouting.

“The Glory and the Dream, Mr. Toad Goes to See a Psychologist, Confessions… Are you trying to become a literary youth now?” Xiao Yao continued flipping through the books Shen Jie had bought.

"The husband and wife go hand in hand," Shen Jie said casually. "Isn't that good?"

"Saint Augustine? Wasn't the Confessions written by Rousseau?"

"Ah, this isn't Rousseau's work...? Oh no, I bought the wrong one." Shen Jie exclaimed in surprise.

"The Barbecue Bible... Are you serious?" Xiao Yao flipped to the last book.

"What do you mean by steaming or boiling?" Shen Jie said again, "Every profession has its experts. How can you open a shop if you don't learn from me?"

Xiao Yao put the book back, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself.

"By the way, let's go buy mosquito nets. Where can we buy mosquito nets?" Shen Jie said.

"Hmm... um... I don't know either, a home furnishing store?" Xiao Yao said.

The two embarked on another journey to find a home goods store.

"Your barbecue stand... your fried rice... well, did you learn it on the spot?" Xiao Yao brought up the topic again.

“I’m not really good at it, but Meiyu is. It’s not like I’m the one watching the furnace,” Shen Jie said matter-of-factly. “I’ll partner with her. She provides the manpower and skills, I provide the money, and you provide the labor.”

"...Let's put aside the fact that I'll put in the physical effort," Xiao Yao cautiously confirmed, "So you're not just opening a barbecue stand, you're investing in one."

“I’m the boss, so of course I run this business—and of course, Meiyu is also a technical partner,” Shen Jie told Xiao Yao.

“This is what I think,” Xiao Yao said as he thought, “If you want to invest in something or do something, we still have some capital, so I don’t object.”

Shen Jie didn't say anything, but just looked around, looking for a home furnishing store or a place where she could buy a mosquito net.

“But one, shouldn’t you be a little more careful when choosing a partner? This is a mixed bag of people from all walks of life in this place, and we’ve only known each other for less than a day…” Xiao Yao said.

“I generally think highly of her, but I will continue to get to know her and assess her character,” Shen Jie said.

"The other one, whatever you do is fine with you, but dropping out of school is absolutely unacceptable," Xiao Yao said.

"Oh? Why?" Shen Jie asked in a half-joking tone, "There's an educational requirement for applying to be your wife? Then I'll transfer schools."

"Stop talking nonsense, what educational requirements..." Xiao Yao said.

"Do you think transferring schools is so easy? I'm a minor, I have an ID card but no household registration, and I don't have a guardian. Do you really think St. Francis Xavier's is your private property?"

“I’ll figure out a solution. It’ll cost a little, I’ll pull some strings, and if all else fails, we can have you attend a school outside of school.” Xiao Yao solemnly promised, “You don’t have a father anymore, so I am your father.”

Shen Jie: "? If you can't speak, you don't have to."

"That's what I meant, you can rely on me," Xiao Yao quickly explained.

"Let me put it this way, even if you manage to enroll as a temporary student, you won't be able to take the college entrance exam, and you won't even get a diploma. What's the point?" Shen Jie pulled Xiao Yao into a "Friendship Store," a shop whose name and ambiance were full of the style of the last century. "Besides, I'm not that interested in going to a university in China. Getting a diploma doesn't mean much to me—so what's the point? Is it really just to accompany you on your campus romance?"

"Why do you keep bringing this up?" Xiao Yao said angrily. "I'm clearly thinking about you and your future, so why do you always think it's for my own sake?"

Shen Jie glanced at him, then remained silent, simply tiptoeing and gently stroking the back of Xiao Yao's head.

“Yes, you can’t get a graduation certificate or take the college entrance examination if you’re a temporary student,” Xiao Yao said. “But you’ll definitely be starting from the second year of high school, right? Two years is plenty of time for us to figure out a solution. It’s better than you just drifting around aimlessly in society, isn’t it?”

Shen Jie hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped herself.

"And you said that a domestic university degree is meaningless—how can it be meaningless? If you drop out of school now, you'll only have a junior high school diploma, and you won't even be able to find a decent job, okay?" Xiao Yao continued.

“Ha,” Shen Jiele said, “So that’s what you think. You’re making it sound like I can become a high-ranking official just by getting a high school diploma—and who said I was looking for a job?”

“Yes, with your family's wealth, you could certainly live a lifetime without working,” Xiao Yao nodded in agreement, “but aren't we currently preparing for the worst? Let's assume we rely on ourselves—”

“Dog, listen to me,” Shen Jie said earnestly, pressing down on Xiao Yao’s shoulders. “I know now that you were doing this for my own good. I misunderstood you before, and I apologize.”

"Okay," Xiao Yao nodded.

"Let me tell you, there's no way I'm going to work, never in my life," Shen Jie said. "Since I've come out here, I have no intention of relying on my dad anymore, and I can't rely on you either—"

As soon as she said this, Shen Jie worried about Xiao Yao's pride and changed her words, saying, "I can't rely on you in the short term. My father also started from scratch. He only graduated from junior high school and then got a university degree—if he can do it, so can I."

“I don’t object to you starting your own business,” Xiao Yao emphasized. “I still hold the same view: in this society, a university degree is still necessary. It’s at least a stepping stone and something that elevates one’s social standing.”

"So you know so much? Then why didn't you study properly before?" Shen Jie teased.

“I’ve turned over a new leaf, don’t interrupt me,” Xiao Yao said impatiently. “If you drop out of school now, who will I face? I won’t even be able to face myself. Do you remember what Yan Xiao said to me that day?…”

“I remember, I remember. Yan Xiao is still essentially a petty bourgeois, or to put it bluntly, a working-class person—don’t mind me, you’re the same,” Shen Jie told Xiao Yao. “You’ve been taught since childhood that the only way out is to study hard, go to university, and find a decent job.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s the only way out,” Xiao Yao sighed, “your new friend Meiyu, she just doesn’t study properly, she’s so young and already out there in the world, how’s she doing? I really don’t understand why you’d go to such extremes as renting a place like this, but we’re only staying for a few days, and she is—”

"Why would I rent a place like this?" Shen Jie said unhappily. "I sent you the address and asked you to come and look at apartments with me, but you were busy with your mistress and didn't come, leaving me all alone—if I don't settle here, how will you find me when you come? You didn't have a phone at the time, and your mistress blocked my number, so I can't contact you at all..."

Upon hearing this remark about "concubines," the shop assistant at Youai Store curiously peeked out.

“Well, you can just call her from a public phone after you’ve made up your mind and contact me,” Xiao Yao pointed out.

“Yes, so I deserve to be carrying all those bags and running around Shanghai, looking for an apartment all by myself.” Shen Jie deliberately omitted the fact that Daiyu was the one doing all the hard work.

Xiao Yao: "..."

Shen Jie softened her tone and steered the conversation back on track: "Why isn't Ren Meiyu studying properly? Don't just spout off. She's always been an excellent student in her migrant workers' children's primary school and junior high school. If she were to take the Shanghai high school entrance exam, she might not be any worse than you—but she can't take it, she's not qualified."

“Then how did she…” Xiao Yao was startled.

“My family dropped out of school because they didn’t have the money. They wouldn’t let me continue my studies, so I dropped out of junior high and started working to help support my family,” Shen Jie told Xiao Yao.

"So now she's fallen to this state, all because of Chun Chun's parents." Xiao Yao said painfully and bitterly, "Her parents' shortsightedness ruined her future, ruined her. Can't you see that I'm trying to avoid you, and you too..."

The boy was racking his brains for the right words when Shen Jie spoke up: "How did you fall to such a state? What state are you talking about?"

Xiao Yao: "..."

As the girl spoke, she stepped forward and put her arm around the boy's waist: "Didn't I tell you? I know you're doing this for my own good, but you still don't understand."

"I can't just watch you slack off like this," Xiao Yao muttered, continuing to use the futuristic language he had learned from Shen Tianyun.

“I’m not giving up,” Shen Jie told him gently. “I’m seriously planning my own future, a future with you in it.”

These words were quite pleasing to the ear, and Xiao Yao was momentarily stunned.

“It’s impossible for me to work,” Shen Jie repeated. “Having others work for me and earning money through my own efforts is the best way. My grades aren’t good either. I’ll only go to an ordinary high school, and even if I get into a third-rate university—do you know what the university admission rate is at St. Francis University?”

"How many?"

"20%." Shen Jie held up two fingers: "It's your own school, don't you care about these things?"

Xiao Yao: "..."