Marriage in the 1970s: The Political Commissar's Contract Wife

Fang Chu ignored the surrounding noise, his gaze fixed on Zhi Xia. He turned his head slightly, lowered his voice, and, with a hint of barely perceptible expectation and caution, softly asked her opinion: "...How about I carry you back?"

Zhi Xia frowned almost imperceptibly, avoiding his gaze, her tone calm yet firm: "No need. I can walk by myself."

The small flame that had just ignited in Fang Chu's eyes due to the commotion of the crowd was instantly extinguished, and a clear sense of loss swept across his brows.

He nodded, not insisting further, but unconsciously tightened his grip on her hand.

Seeing that the bride wouldn't agree, the crowd, still unwilling to give up, offered their own advice:

"Sister-in-law! Let Political Commissar Fang give you a hug!"

"Yes, sister-in-law, let's give him a chance to prove himself!"

"Don't worry, he'll be steady; he definitely won't dare drop you!"

Zhi Xia seemed not to hear these sounds. She gently pulled her hand away from Fang Chu's, lowered her head, and quickened her pace, almost stubbornly walking alone towards the small courtyard that had been decorated as a bridal chamber. The hem of her red skirt drew a resolute arc behind her.

Fang Chu watched her hurried departure, paused for a second, and then immediately took long strides to follow her.

They left behind a group of onlookers, still savoring the spectacle and exchanging knowing glances. Beneath the lively atmosphere of the wedding, a subtle, almost imperceptible, distance was clearly visible to anyone with eyes to see.

The wedding proceeded amidst the boisterous blessings of the crowd, and after several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere grew increasingly lively. Suddenly, someone, seemingly eager for more excitement, loudly suggested:

"Come on, come on! Bride and groom, drink the nuptial wine! You absolutely must drink this one!"

The suggestion was immediately met with enthusiastic responses from all the guests, with cheers and applause rising and falling.

Zhi Xia looked at the glass of liquor handed to her, which contained strong, pungent baijiu. She instinctively shrank back, her brows furrowing slightly, and said honestly, "I... I don't drink."

"Hey! Bride, this won't do!" Li Yunxiao immediately jumped in, taking the lead in the "bridal chamber pranks." Holding a wine glass, he insisted, "Just this one! For good luck, you have to drink it! Fang Chu will help you with the rest, but you have to drink the nuptial wine yourself!"

Seeing Zhixia's troubled expression, Fang Chu felt a pang of heartache and reached out to take the wine glass, saying, "I'll drink it for her."

"No way!" Li Yunxiao stopped him, deliberately putting on a stern face. "Old Fang, you can't do this for me! The nuptial wine is all about opening your hearts. How can the bride not drink it? Just one cup, it won't kill anyone!" He actually had a bit of a bad idea in mind, thinking of getting Zhixia slightly drunk so that Fang Chu could have a smoother night.

The others chimed in, "Yes! Just one cup! Sister-in-law, drink it!"

Fang Chu wanted to say something more, but Zhi Xia took a deep breath. She knew that if they didn't get past this hurdle, these people wouldn't give up. She didn't want to spoil everyone's fun, nor did she want the charade to reveal too many flaws.

"Okay, I'll drink," she said softly, taking the glass.

Arms intertwined, amidst cheers and stares from the crowd, the two tilted their heads back and drank the glass of wine. The spicy liquid burned their throats, all the way down to their stomachs. Zhixia's brows furrowed instantly from the spiciness, tears welling in her eyes, and she coughed violently, covering her mouth.

Fang Chu quickly put down the cup, gently patted her back, her eyes filled with heartache and frustration, and asked in a low voice, "Are you alright?"

Seeing Fang Chu's distressed expression, Li Yunxiao was speechless. He leaned close to Fang Chu's ear and, in a voice only the two of them could hear, complained with exasperation:

"Why are you protecting your wife at a time like this! Let her have a couple more drinks, get a little tipsy, and you'd have an easier time tonight, right? Now look what happened, she's wide awake, and you're the one who'll be suffering and unable to handle things tonight!"

Fang Chu glared at Li Yunxiao, too lazy to pay attention to his fallacies.

Looking at Zhixia's eyes and nose, red from the spiciness, he felt a tightness in his chest. Any lingering romantic thoughts were completely overshadowed by his heartache.

The noise subsided, and the red candles burned brightly.

Finally, only the two of them remained in the new house. Zhixia sat quietly on the edge of the bed, her body swaying slightly, her head bowed.

The aftereffects of those three glasses of baijiu fully kicked in, igniting a hazy fire in her already weak body. Her mind felt like it was filled with mush, and the sounds of the outside world became distant and blurry.

She had agreed to drink only one cup, but under Li Yunxiao's persistent nagging, she was forced to drink two more. Fang Chu tried to stop her, but couldn't completely stop her.

"Zhixia, how are you?" Fang Chu squatted down, looked up at her flushed cheeks and hazy eyes, and spoke in a very soft voice, with a hint of probing.

Zhi Xia looked up at the sound, her gaze unfocused on his face. She stared for a long time, but couldn't say a word. She just blinked, her long eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings.

Seeing her completely bewildered expression, Fang Chu felt both amused and helpless. She patiently and softly asked, "Shall we... go to sleep?"

His response was still silence and those eyes that had lost their usual coolness, leaving only pure confusion.

Fang Chu sighed, knowing that there was no reasoning with a drunkard.

He got up to fetch warm water and gently wiped her hands and face with a damp towel. The occasional touch of his fingertips on her burning skin sent a shiver down his spine. After doing this, he helped her lie down and covered her with a light blanket.

"You lie down first, I'll go wash up," he whispered, not knowing if she heard him.

When Fang Chu finished washing up quickly and returned to the bedroom, still damp and steamy, the sight before him made his blood rush to his head and his breath catch in his throat—

On the bed, Zhixia had somehow torn off her red dress and was lying there completely naked, her fair skin glowing with a luminous sheen in the candlelight, her curves fully exposed. She seemed to feel a little hot and kicked the thin blanket to the foot of the bed.

Fang Chu's Adam's apple bobbed violently. All his reason, guilt, and thoughts of respect and agreement were swept away by his most primal and surging male instincts at this moment.

This is his lawfully wedded wife (at least from the outsider's perspective).

She was lying on his bed, completely unguarded.

How could he possibly still be a man like Liu Xiahui, who could remain unmoved even with a woman in his lap?

The candlelight crackled softly, pulling Fang Chu back to her senses.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, his eyes were filled with a dark and surging determination.

He walked to the bedside, blew out the flickering candlelight, and leaned down in the darkness...