On the way to the Civil Affairs Bureau, I drove fast, relatively speaking, with an eager voice in my heart urging me not to miss such a good opportunity.

Halfway there, I joked with Pei Shi Yu, "If I had known sending flowers would work, those three-plus months apart would have been a waste."

"This is something sending flowers can fix?"

"Then what made you change your mind?"

"I said that topic is over, don't you want to get the marriage certificate?"

"I do, just chatting."

"Things are best left unsaid once they've been said. How should I answer to give you the answer you want?"

Pei Shi Yu lacked a certain charm in her personality and was sometimes too rigorous. I turned to her and asked, "Do you know what a soulmate is?"

"I don't understand, tell me about it," she answered quite frankly.

"It's about having a common language, being able to communicate and understand each other. Being able to help each other through any difficulties."

"I don't qualify?" Pei Shi Yu thought for a moment and answered.

"It's not about qualifying, it's just that we're not in sync enough."

"Then how should I have answered the earlier question to be in sync?"

I smiled and replied, "A casual answer is more convincing than a question, and it makes for better conversation."

"Okay, I'll try to improve in the future."

"I like that attitude." I took her left hand in mine.

"How long have we known each other?" Pei Shi Yu suddenly asked.

"Not even a year."

"I feel like it's been longer," Pei Shi Yu corrected, looking at me.

Of course, I knew it had been more than four years, but I deliberately didn't want to bring up the unhappy experiences. The reason I could be with Pei Shi Yu was because President Li and Lao Wang were my mentors in life. Without them, I wouldn't have been able to meet her.

I immediately explained, "Let's filter out the awkward and unhappy things. You've already eliminated that Lin Che."

"I hope so."

"Definitely!"

I assured her confidently. By this time, we had arrived at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau. I immediately turned the steering wheel and parked the car in a parking space, saying, "Let's go, the moment of witnessing is about to arrive. I'm very excited."

"I'm very calm," Pei Shi Yu retorted.

"That means I'm a trustworthy man."

I walked around to the other side and carefully opened the car door for Pei Shi Yu. Today, our outfits were a coincidence. Pei Shi Yu's black dress and my black T-shirt. As she got out of the car, I deliberately puffed out my chest as if to tell her that we were a perfect match.

Pei Shi Yu immediately understood my action and looked at her own dress, asking, "Is it okay to take pictures in black later?"

"It's great, we happen to be wearing the same color today."

She suddenly patted my chest muscles and said, "Your muscles are very developed. Have you been working out recently?"

"It's natural."

When we walked inside, there was no one there. I looked at the time again, it was only 10:30. We went to the registration desk and the staff member, who was older than us, asked enthusiastically, "Registering for a marriage certificate?"

"Yes," I nodded immediately and replied.

"Do you have an appointment?"

"No."

"There's no one here right now, fill out the application form, register here, and then go take pictures."

"Thank you, it's our first time here and we're a little confused about the procedure."

"It'll be troublesome if you come here a second time," the other person replied to me very seriously.

After a while, I led Pei Shi Yu to the photo area. The photographer looked at our outfits and said, "Wearing black?"

"Is there a rule?" I asked curiously.

"Most people wear white."

"We're just different. Black represents saying goodbye to yesterday and welcoming a new future."

"Okay, no problem, sit still."

The expression ended with the sound of the camera clicking. I immediately turned my head to look at her and saw that the smile on her face hadn't disappeared. That kind of smile seemed to have a happy meaning.

When I got the photos, I found that my expression was particularly stiff, just the opposite of Pei Shi Yu. She immediately asked me, "What does that mean? Is taking pictures painful?"

"I rarely take pictures, it's fine, it looks like you're taking marriage very seriously." Pei Shi Yu just smiled.

Finally, when I received the marriage certificate, I instinctively kissed Pei Shi Yu in the photo. That feeling was very subtle. Although it was just a booklet of mutual restraint, it seemed to instantly bring me into another realm of life because we had truly become a family. It also meant that I had to be responsible for the woman next to me, at least to give her a warm harbor.

I handed the other booklet to Pei Shi Yu and asked her, "How does it feel?"

"It feels like saying goodbye to being single."

"You should answer that you're very happy."

"Are you happy?" Pei Shi Yu asked me back.

"Of course, I'm happy!"

Pei Shi Yu didn't say anything, just pointed at me in the photo. I immediately realized my expression and took the lead to walk out.

Outside, I looked up at the sky and then closed my eyes, feeling that my life was already fulfilling enough.

"Let's go," Pei Shi Yu tugged at my sleeve and urged.

"Should we go to my mom's restaurant for dinner?"

"Whatever, I didn't eat breakfast and I'm a little hungry."

I immediately called my mom, and as soon as she answered, she asked, "Did you get the marriage certificate?"

I looked at Pei Shi Yu next to me and said, "Yes, we just came out of the Civil Affairs Bureau."

"Come over for dinner."

"I'm calling to tell you that we're coming over."

"Then I'll ask Xiao Wu to cook you a few dishes. Ask Shi Yu what she wants to eat?"

I immediately turned on the speakerphone and said to Pei Shi Yu, "My mom asked what dishes you want to eat?"

"The same as usual."

Before I could answer, my mom said loudly on the phone, "Then I'll ask Xiao Wu to cook your favorite dishes as usual."

"Okay, we'll go straight over," I replied for Pei Shi Yu.

...

On the way back to the restaurant, I found that I had a lot of desire to express myself, so I started talking to Pei Shi Yu again, "Now that we've got the certificate, we belong to each other. That feeling is really good, just like we said in Italy before, growing old together slowly."

"Although we've got the certificate, it'll still take several years before we really live together. Now it's just giving each other a guarantee."

"Coming back once a year shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"Let's look forward to the scene five years from now."

I immediately replied, "There's a lovely child who's already in kindergarten, maybe very cute, maybe very naughty, but the child's mother is always around her/him, that's motherly love, and it's a warm family."

"Do you like that atmosphere?" Pei Shi Yu's tone suddenly became very gentle.

"Of course, I like it. I don't even dare to imagine it now, otherwise I'm afraid I won't be willing to leave you."

"Go ahead, we're looking forward to something that will happen five years from now."