The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

"The scenery is beautiful on a sunny day, with red flowers and green grass..."

An Jianxing held the steering wheel, humming to himself.

Shen Jingwan, sitting in the passenger seat, reached out and patted his arm, laughing:

"Seriously, can't you see how nervous those two kids are?"

An Jianxing glanced back in the rearview mirror and obediently shut up.

In the back row, Ye Guoqiang had drunk too much yesterday, but when he got up today, he changed into a particularly formal outfit, turned his head to look out the window, and didn't say a word.

Ye Shu sat between Ye Guoqiang and Xiao Xue, and the two children were tense as soon as they got on the bus.

Xiaoxue gripped Ye Shu's arm tightly, her fingertips feeling slightly cool.

Ye Shu wasn't much better off; her eyes were fixed on the gearshift, her mind a jumble of thoughts.

One moment she's thinking, "I'll be a married man from now on," and the next she's worried about forgetting her ID.

Last night he complained that his dad's snoring was too loud and kept him from sleeping, but now he misses the sound of the electric drill to drown out his heart pounding like a drum.

Today, the heavens were very kind to us, knowing it was an auspicious day, and we didn't encounter a single red light along the way.

After driving for about half an hour, the car arrived at the entrance of the Nancheng Civil Affairs Bureau.

Although today isn't a special day like 520, Qixi Festival, or Valentine's Day, there are still several people queuing up at the entrance.

Xiaoxue got out of the car and pressed herself against Ye Shu, wrapping her arms around his and trying to snuggle into his embrace.

However, Xiaoxue has made great progress; at least she doesn't have to be wrapped up like a dumpling when she goes out now.

Despite the progress, the tension remained.

Not only was Xiaoxue nervous, but Ye Shuye was also on edge, his mind filled with the thought that he would be their legal husband and wife in the future, and he felt a little lightheaded.

Shen Jingwan walked over, looked at the two children, one trembling and the other stunned, and smiled:

"Don't be nervous. We'll just go in, take a picture, register, get our stamped and a booklet handed out, and then we can go home."

The two children remained frozen in place. Shen Jingwan turned to An Jianxing, who was standing to the side looking ahead to see when the door would open, and said:

"Go, buy some drinks."

An Jianxing looked around and saw an open supermarket nearby, so he turned around and walked over there.

Seeing this, Ye Guoqiang turned around and followed, his intentions quite clear.

An Jianxing turned around and waved his hand:

"No need, you're fine here, bro."

Ye Guoqiang just smiled and didn't say anything, but he didn't stop either.

The two old men walked unsteadily, one with a protruding belly and the other with a slightly hunched back; their backs looked rather comical.

After a while, Ye Shu took a sip of a bottle of chilled mineral water, and the burning sensation in his heart finally subsided.

He looked down at Xiaoxue, who was still clinging to him, and seeing her trembling slightly, he gently pressed a bottle of mineral water against her face.

"what!"

Xiaoxue was startled and let out a soft cry. When she saw that it was mineral water, she looked up and gave Ye Shu a reproachful look, but only for a moment before pressing her face against Ye Shu's arm again.

Ye Guoqiang and An Jianxing went to smoke under the shade of a tree by the roadside. The two old men were chatting about something, and they would occasionally glance over here.

Shen Jingwan smoothed Xiaoxue's hair again, took out two mints from her small bag, and handed them to the two of them:

"Here, have a candy and relax a bit."

The two of them each ate one, and the coolness went down their throats, which did make them feel much more relaxed.

The line behind him grew longer and the sun overhead grew hotter and hotter, but Ye Shu's initial nervousness gradually dissipated, replaced by a feeling of urgency.

Why isn't the door open yet?

At 8:30 sharp, the glass doors of the Civil Affairs Bureau opened, and the people in line went inside.

Ye Shu held Xiao Xue's hand and followed Shen Jingwan to the ticket machine in the lobby. Looking at the number 6 on it, he inexplicably said "666".

This joke is awful!

Ye Shu made a self-deprecating remark.

Meanwhile, An Jianxing and Ye Guoqiang, the two fathers standing next to them, didn't say anything or show it on their faces, but everyone could tell that they were extremely nervous.

The stool was like a nail stuck in the ground; they couldn't sit still. Every ten minutes, they would stand up and go out for a smoke.

While the equals sign was in progress, Shen Jingwan took the two children to have their ID photos taken.

That self-service machine is a bit like those photo booths from years ago, except it has a red cloth behind it.

The two sat inside the machine, looking at their own faces on the screen, and at Xiaoxue with her head down. Ye Shu said:

"Xiaoxue, um... don't be nervous, look at the camera... you don't need to do a peace sign."

Xiaoxue's face flushed red instantly, and she quickly put her right hand down.

The machine flashed a few times. Shen Jingwan looked at the photo for a long time, then nodded and smiled:

"It's alright, but aren't your faces a little too red?"

Despite being number six, they had appointments, and by the time they were called, they had already been waiting for two or three hours.

Finally, the 6th arrived, and Shen Jingwan took out the two people's household registration books and ID cards and handed them to them.

Last night, Ye Shu also handed over his ID card and household registration book to Shen Jingwan for safekeeping, just in case he forgot to bring anything today, which would be too awkward.

The staff member was a woman, who looked to be in her forties or fifties.

The two handed their identification documents and photos to the older woman, who checked the information online and found nothing wrong with them.

But when the eldest sister symbolically asked Xiaoxue, "Is this a voluntary marriage?", Xiaoxue lowered her head, nodded slightly, and then whispered "Mmm".

Seeing Xiaoxue like this, the older woman immediately became alert, put down her pen, and stared at Ye Shu.

Seeing her older sister's sharp gaze, Ye Shu quickly nudged Xiaoxue's arm and whispered:

"Xiaoxue, speak louder! People are misunderstanding, or I'll be arrested soon..."

Xiaoxue then realized what was happening, quickly looked up, and nodded repeatedly with a blush on her face:

"Yes, it's voluntary! I...I like Ye Shu!"

Hearing Xiaoxue say this, the older woman relaxed and said with a smile:

"Oh, this little girl is quite shy. Okay, as long as it's her choice."

The rest of the process was quick: fill out forms, give fingerprints...

When the staff handed over the two red booklets with photos of the two of them, Ye Shu's hand trembled slightly. Looking at the booklets, at the photos of the two of them, and at the names on them, he felt a little like crying.

But it's not over yet; there's one last step.

He took Xiaoxue's hand and walked to the oath-taking hall next door.

The two stood hand in hand on the oath-taking platform. Below, An Jianxing was recording with his phone, Shen Jingwan's eyes were red, and Ye Guoqiang stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the two children on the platform.

The red light on the camera next to them was on, and Ye Shu could feel the sweat on Xiao Xue's palms.

The two exchanged a glance and spoke at the same time:

"We voluntarily become husband and wife, and from this day forward, we will jointly shoulder the responsibilities and obligations that marriage brings us."

"Be filial to your parents, educate your children, respect and love each other, trust and encourage each other, understand and forgive each other, support each other through thick and thin, and cherish each other for a lifetime."

"From now on, whether in good times or bad, whether rich or poor, whether in health or sickness, whether young or old, we will stand together through thick and thin, share joys and sorrows, and become lifelong partners."

"We must uphold the vows we made today!"

"The oath takers are Ye Shu and An Suxue."

That day, Ye Shu and Xiao Xue's friends saw a new post while scrolling through their WeChat Moments.

The photo shows two red marriage certificates put together, with identical text.

For the rest of our lives, please take care of me! Mr. Ye/Ms. An