Before I knew it, the end of the school term had arrived, and everyone started scrambling for tickets about ten days before the holiday break.
This year, the Spring Festival travel rush seemed especially tight, and Shen Zhaozhao had tried for two days with her phone but couldn’t manage to get a ticket.
Seeing her getting so worked up over ticket snatching, Sheng Chuyi couldn’t help but suggest, "Why not just stay here for the New Year?"
It wasn’t an entirely bad idea.
The new home had been aired out for a few months and was ready for move-in any time.
"It’s not that I can’t stay, but I don’t want to be cooking for myself during the New Year’s celebration." The thought of having to cook for herself during the festive period made Shen Zhaozhao lean more towards going home for the New Year.
Going home meant not having to lift a finger, and she could enjoy an abundance of delicious food; just thinking about it made her happy.
If push came to shove, she could also have her parents come to Jing City for the New Year. That would be better than her staying here alone.
Observing her, Sheng Chuyi said, "What I mean is, you could spend New Year’s with my family."
"I haven’t officially joined your family yet, wouldn’t it be inappropriate for me to spend New Year’s at your place now?" Although Shen Zhaozhao was somewhat tempted, she felt it wasn’t quite proper.
"There’s nothing wrong with that, have you forgotten? We used to spend New Year’s together when we were kids," Sheng Chuyi said.
"That was different." Back then, their families lived close to each other, and it didn’t matter whether she and Sheng Chuyi spent New Year’s at her place or his.
Sometimes, they even ate the New Year’s Eve dinner together.
The adults didn’t mind at all.
But now, their identities had changed, hadn’t they? Without being married, it just wasn’t proper for her to go to his family’s home for New Year’s; it would make her seem eager and impatient to marry into his family.
"Moreover, leaving just my parents alone for New Year’s seems so sad; I should go back and spend more time with them!" Now that she could only go home during holidays, and considering that the winter break was short, she wouldn’t be able to stay for many days.
In the future, once she started working, the opportunities to visit her parents would be even less.
Shen Zhaozhao planned to spend more time with them while she could.
Sheng Chuyi had also thought about this. After they got married, she would spend even more time by his side, so there was no need to rush this moment. Moreover, after the New Year’s, they were going to visit her parents anyway; they wouldn’t be apart for too long.
"Then stop trying to snatch tickets," Sheng Chuyi said. "Once you finish your exams, I’ll drive you home."
"We’ll see when the time comes; it’s still over ten days away, and I might still get a ticket." The trip to her place wasn’t too far yet not too close either; it would take several hours by car, and Shen Zhaozhao didn’t want to impose too much on him.
If she could get a ticket, she would prefer to take the high-speed train home. If tickets were truly unattainable, then it wouldn’t be too late to trouble him.
Sheng Chuyi didn’t find it troublesome at all; in fact, he would relish the chance to go back with her.
Now that he and Shen Zhaozhao were engaged, sending New Year’s gifts to her family was customary.
Even though gifts were exchanged before their marriage, it wasn’t the same. Previously, the gifts were from his parents, representing an exchange between the two families. However, the gifts from now on would be in his name, a token of respect for his elders.
He would have to make the trip sooner or later; it was better to go early than late.
Once he had made his prospective in-laws happy, perhaps they would agree to let their daughter marry him a bit sooner.
When Sheng Chuyi shared his thoughts with Shen Zhaozhao, she teasingly rebuked him without mercy, "So you’re that eager to marry me, huh? Don’t worry, my parents like you even more than they like me. They’re more scared of losing you, their son-in-law-to-be, than I am. If only we were old enough, I bet they’d want me to marry you right now."