Chapter 11: Marriage Certificate—One Step Ahead!
Shen Youchu stood there dumbly, not even trying to dodge.
Old Chen, panting from exertion, glared at Chen Shi. “You little brat! Just wait till I deal with you!”
Tian Xiulan intervened. “Alright, enough. Let the kids go get their marriage certificate first.”
Chen Shi snapped back to reality. “Right, right! Dad, don’t you want me to marry before Jia Dongxu? Wouldn’t that count as our family winning?”
He’d been so caught up in the commotion that he’d almost forgotten his comparison task.
Old Chen pulled out the introduction letter and tossed it to Chen Shi. “Buy some candy. Give some to the civil affairs office staff and Director Wang from the neighborhood committee. As for the courtyard folks, one piece per household is enough.”
He sighed. “Our family’s situation… no need for a banquet.”
Chen Shi rolled his eyes. Others might not know their family’s true financial state, but he did. They could afford not just a banquet but even the “Four Big Items” (bicycle, sewing machine, radio, wristwatch).
But Old Chen always insisted on playing poor—”The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.”
Fine. Let’s keep up the act.
As Chen Shi led Shen Youchu out, humming a tune, he thought, Why waste candy on those courtyard vultures?
I’d rather buy myself a pack of Da Qianmen cigarettes.
Shen Youchu followed obediently, like a quiet little quail.
At the gate, they ran into Foolish Pillar (He Yuzhu), who smirked. “Oh-ho! Chen Shi, got beaten again? Hah! Three days without a beating, and you’d tear the roof off!”
He added mockingly, “But then again, your family’s too poor for a banquet anyway.”
Xu Damao chimed in, “Everyone knows Old Chen’s family is the poorest—two sickly burdens who can’t even afford food.”
Chen Shi lifted his chin defiantly. “So what if I’m poor? Poverty is glorious!
Your family’s rich, mine’s not,
Your house has piss pots in every spot!
Mine’s poor, yours is grand,
Your dad ran off with a widow’s hand!
Mine’s broke, yours is flush,
But you’re the one Foolish Pillar loves to thrush!”
Most people avoided hitting where it hurt, but not Chen Shi.
If you provoke me, I’ll slap your face and dig up your shame.
He Daqing (Foolish Pillar’s father) running off with a widow was a sore spot no one dared mention—because Foolish Pillar, having trained in wrestling at Tianqiao pre-liberation, was the courtyard’s undisputed top fighter.
But Chen Shi didn’t care.
Foolish Pillar’s tough?
Chen Shi’s fighting style, learned from orphan gangs pre-liberation, had no finesse—just ruthless efficiency. Even Foolish Pillar avoided tangling with him.
Now, enraged by the taunt, Foolish Pillar swung a fist the size of a sandbag. “You little bastard! Asking for a beating?”
Chen Shi dodged nimbly, pulling Shen Youchu aside. “Who’re you calling ‘little bastard’?”
“Good boy! Wait here, Grandpa will deal with you later!”
With that, he dashed off with Shen Youchu.
Once out of the alley, Chen Shi looked at her flushed cheeks. “You silly girl, why didn’t you dodge earlier? Did Dad hit you?”
Shen Youchu whispered, “If I dodged, he might’ve hit you… Better me than you.”
Chen Shi’s heart warmed. Now this is a wife!
Compared to the modern women he’d encountered in his past life—with their endless demands (stable job, house, car, gifts, dowry)—Shen Youchu was a treasure.
No bride price, no fuss—just sweetness and devotion.
I’ve upgraded from gruel to gourmet.
At the supply and marketing cooperative, Chen Shi bought 20 candies and a pack of Da Qianmen.
As they left, he popped a candy into Shen Youchu’s mouth.
She froze. “I—I shouldn’t eat this! Save it for you!”
Chen Shi pinched her lips playfully. “Eat. I want you plump and healthy.”
My wife will be the fairest in the courtyard!
Shen Youchu’s face turned scarlet at his touch.
Chen Shi quickly withdrew his hand. “Don’t worry, no one saw.”
But she kept her head bowed, shoulders hunched.
“Don’t slouch—it’s bad for your neck! Stand straight!”
He positioned himself facing her, adjusting her posture.
Two soft, unexpectedly bouncy orbs smacked into his face.
Chen Shi stared, stunned.
Did I just get hit by… Shen Youchu’s…?
Even malnourished, she’s blessed where it counts!
This volume would drive modern women mad with envy.
Shen Youchu, mortified, stammered, “S-Sorry! I… I tied them with cloth, but they’re too… too big! Did it hurt?”
Chen Shi, recovering, smirked and pinched her cheek. “It did. So tonight, you’ll have to let me knead them as an apology.”
Shen Youchu turned beet red.
Chen Shi grinned. A treasure indeed. My future’s looking bright.
She outclasses Qin Huairu by miles.
At the civil affairs office, the paperwork went smoothly. Chen Shi handed out candies and soon held two marriage certificates.
Early PRC certificates retained Republic-era traits—vertical text, adorned with lotus flowers, herons, and reeds (“Continuous Success” symbolism) or new socialist motifs.