Chapter 176: Wedding

It must be said, although Xu Damao is young, his belly is full of wicked tricks, and all sorts of devious ideas simply emerge one after another.

However, He Yuzhu couldn't be bothered to pay him any mind; those things of his were all beneath notice.

After dealing with these children for a while, He Yuzhu went upstairs to tidy up the room.

He took the photo developing equipment out from his space. This trip to the United States brought back a large quantity of film and photographic paper. There were enough materials to open a photo studio.

He was busy working when, *dong, dong, dong*—a knock came from outside the door.

He Yuzhu opened the door to look, and it was actually two familiar figures: one was Lou Xiaoe, and the other was Chen Xueru.

Both were wearing festive dark red silk cotton-padded jackets, which were particularly eye-catching in this winter weather; their pretty, fresh appearances formed a beautiful, bright landscape in the courtyard.

"Are you two also here to attend the wedding?" He Yuzhu was somewhat surprised.

Lou Xiaoe stood frozen in place, clearly unable to recognize at first glance who this tall and upright person before her was.

Chen Xueru, however, had a sharp eye and recognized him at a single glance: "He Yuzhu? You've actually grown so tall! And you've gotten darker too!"

"Eating well, sleeping well, and exercising every day, naturally I grow fast." He Yuzhu squeezed out a smile, yet it carried a sense of detachment.

He still remembered that the last time he helped Chen Xueru design clothes, he had shamelessly gone to her house to buy fabric, and not only did she not thank him, she had been indifferent. He Yuzhu felt that his soul, which was over thirty years old, had been insulted by a little girl. From then on, he had never looked for her again. He had thought they wouldn't meet again, but he hadn't expected to run into her in his own home today.

Chen Xueru seemed to sense the detachment in his eyes, pursed her lips, and said bluntly: "Last time you came to my fabric shop, I didn't greet you, and you just left; do you think I'm the type to burn bridges? You're really petty, you've been avoiding me for a whole year."

"How am I that petty? I just felt we aren't the same kind of people." He Yuzhu replied indifferently.

"What kind of person are you then?" Chen Xueru gave a light huff.

"I am a person who values loyalty above all; if a friend treats me well, I treat them with absolute sincerity, but if someone stabs me in the back, I will pay them back in full!"

"Look at how impressive you are, you're just a little brat!" Chen Xueru said.

Lou Xiaoe finally recognized He Yuzhu; she didn't care what the two were saying and immediately rushed forward to grab his hand, her eyes full of surprise: "Brother Zhuzi! Hurry and take a photo of me! You haven't taken one for me in so long, and I've grown a year older!"

Facing the little girl's innocent and naive request, He Yuzhu's heart softened instantly.

There was nothing urgent today; playing with them was certainly more interesting than playing with that bunch of rotten kids like Xu Damao.

Lou Xiaoe insisted on touring the house, so He Yuzhu took her around for a look. After she finished, she said: "Your house's style is very unique, it's different from the homes of all my friends!"

"My interior design style is called: 'discard anything useless,' and every item has multiple purposes. Look, this chair can be folded, and this bed can turn into a seat."

Chen Xueru, however, watched with extreme seriousness and even drew every piece of furniture.

He Yuzhu teased: "Imitating my home's design will cost you a patent fee."

Chen Xueru glared at him: "Are you obsessed with money?"

"In Europe, design fees are very expensive," He Yuzhu said righteously.

"I'm going to change my shop to look like this too, it's really beautiful." Chen Xueru didn't pay any attention to He Yuzhu's mood and continued to do as she pleased.

Only today did she truly believe that He Yuzhu was no ordinary person.

Her clothing store was now the most popular ready-to-wear shop in Qianmen, and the income from selling clothes far exceeded that of selling fabric.

Her family had just bought the storefront across the street and was preparing to renovate it to open a more fashionable clothing store, but they were struggling for inspiration.

Today, she had finally witnessed what a truly new-style renovation was.

Lou Xiaoe saw the room upstairs filled with developing equipment and excitedly touched this and poked that.

He Yuzhu took out the Camera, skillfully loaded the film, adjusted the lens, and then aimed it at Lou Xiaoe.

"Alright, little moth, don't move around, look at the lens, smile."

*Click*—the shutter sound was crisp and pleasant, and time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Lou Xiaoe posed with a childish posture, smiling like a blooming flower.

When it was Chen Xueru's turn, her posture was completely different—the greenness had faded from her brows and eyes, and her gaze held a bit more of a young woman's confidence and composure.

He Yuzhu looked at her through the viewfinder, and a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart—she was no longer the willful little girl from his memory; there was already a woman's charm in the movement of her eyes.

In order not to disturb others in the courtyard, the three decided to go to the street to take photos.

They walked slowly along the hutong, from the old hutong with blue bricks and grey tiles to the weathered Zhonggulou, and the frequency of He Yuzhu pressing the shutter became faster and faster.

More than twenty children followed far behind them, chattering and laughing.

He Yuzhu simply took photos of the children in the courtyard as well, each photo capturing their innocent smiling faces.

Finally, he organized everyone to take a big group photo.

The children crowded together, learning to make the 'V' sign from He Yuzhu, and the scene was extremely lively.

On the way back, Lou Xiaoe pestered He Yuzhu to teach her how to take photos.

"Fine, fine, fine, I'll teach you."

He Yuzhu smiled helplessly and began to explain patiently: "This is the shutter, it determines the exposure time; this is the aperture, it controls the amount of light entering... if you want to take a photo with a blurred background, you have to use a large aperture, set the aperture first, this is called aperture priority mode..."

Seven-year-old Lou Xiaoe listened in a daze and started yawning before long.

Chen Xueru, however, listened with extreme focus and even took notes in a small notebook from time to time.

When it was time for He Yuzhu to ask questions, Lou Xiaoe couldn't answer a single one, while Chen Xueru answered fluently.

Back in the room, He Yuzhu began the practical teaching.

He carefully removed the film in the dark bag, loaded it into the developing tank, and proceeded in order: washing, developing, stopping, fixing, and washing again...

The whole process was like a precise chemical experiment, with a faint scent of chemicals drifting in the air.

Then He Yuzhu began to enlarge the photos.

Chen Xueru held a flashlight wrapped in red cloth, watching as the outlines of the figures, the background, and the light and shadow gradually emerged on the photographic paper, as if memories were slowly waking up from the darkness.

"Wow—there's a shadow! It's me! It's me!" Lou Xiaoe jumped for joy like a little deer.

Although the children outside couldn't see the operation process, as soon as they heard Lou Xiaoe's shouting, they felt as if they were there, one by one peeking through the door cracks; although they didn't see anything, they felt as if they had seen everything.

When Lou Xiaoe opened the door and handed out the photos one by one, they were incredibly excited.

It was the first time the children had seen themselves in a photo; they were stunned at first, feeling it was very strange, and then they looked at them over and over again as if they had found a treasure.

By this time, the children had long since cast aside the small favors given by Xu Damao and were all holding their own photos, unable to put them down, as they went to find their parents.

Xu Damao stood at the entrance of He Yuzhu's home, his face gloomy, muttering under his breath: "Bah! Isn't it just a broken Camera? I can afford one too!"

At this moment, he hated He Yuzhu to the core. Even when he was hosting guests, you had to steal the spotlight; you are truly despicable. Sooner or later, I will make you kneel at my feet and beg for mercy.

Chen Xueru was also moved this time. She examined the photograph in her hand and whispered to herself: "So taking photos also requires artistic cultivation and attention to aesthetics. I, I also want to learn..."

As noon approached, the wedding procession arrived.

Cui Xiu was taken away by Luo Jiangtao, and the courtyard became lively as the banquet began.

Because his mother had been taken away, Xu Damao was already unhappy, and having his spotlight stolen by He Yuzhu made him even more displeased. He wolfed down his meal, threw down his chopsticks, and left.

After the meal, Chen Xueru took the initiative to find He Yuzhu, with the proactive attitude of someone asking for a favor: "He Yuzhu, your home is decorated so well. Could you help me design my new shop? Just follow the style of your place."

"Sure, but there is a fee!" He Yuzhu teased.

"I'll pay you; you're obsessed with money! How annoying!" Chen Xueru muttered as she ran off.

"I wonder who is really obsessed with money?" He Yuzhu curled his lip and chuckled.

The next day, just as dawn broke, He Yuzhu was awakened by urgent knocking at his door.

Opening the door, he saw Pingping standing outside with a panicked expression: "Hurry and come with me to Liugongguan!"

When He Yuzhu arrived at Liugongguan, he saw Liu Rusi pacing anxiously in the living room.

"It's early in the morning; has something happened again?" he asked, frowning.

"I received news that they are going to blow up a train!" Liu Rusi's voice trembled slightly.

"Do you know the specific location?"

Liu Rusi shook her head: "I only guessed it from the code left by an informant."

"In that case, the probability of me completing the mission is less than twenty percent. You need to be mentally prepared," He Yuzhu said calmly.

"However, I suspect they won't place it more than fifty kilometers away," Liu Rusi added.

"Then I will go along the railway line to search for it right now," He Yuzhu decided immediately.

"Do you want me to send people to help you?"

"No need. Among those people of yours, there might already be spies planted by your father."