Tao Menghan knew her question was a bit redundant, considering the high consumption of the coffee shop. If one wasn't doing well, they couldn't afford to patronize such a place.
"Not bad, I've settled down. My younger siblings are all in school now. How are you doing here?" Zhou Wenjie chatted with her casually. After all, they were both from Shanghai, making them half-compatriots.
"Let's go sit over there. It's fate that we met here," Tao Menghan gestured towards the restaurant.
"It's my honor!" Zhou Wenjie smiled.
Amidst the chaos of war, Lin Yan was still very busy. Even Ye Xiuyuan hadn't seen her in a long time.
Originally, after they had cleared the air, they planned to have their wedding soon. However, due to their demanding schedules, the wedding was repeatedly postponed.
Lin Yan's work was intricate, and she was involved in many areas. She had been diligently training students and assistants, hoping to have more personnel to utilize.
However, literacy was low in this region, making it difficult to cultivate talented individuals. Thus, she could only focus on nurturing skilled professionals.
The war had raged for a long time and affected a vast area. But because the invaders were unjust, resistance movements flourished everywhere.
They were a small nation and could not sustain such a protracted war. As the war became increasingly difficult, they gained little from it.
Especially after their stronghold in Hua, the three northern provinces, were breached by comrades from the base areas, the invaders became like rootless duckweed in China.
Recalling historical experiments, Lin Yan instructed the comrades there to investigate cautiously and gather evidence to expose the invaders' crimes to the world.
The war ended earlier than Lin Yan remembered. When the news of the invaders' defeat reached her ears, she was momentarily stunned. Had they succeeded already?
However, this time, the invaders' failure was not due to the "nuclear peace" policy of a major power, but rather their own efforts.
Peace became the theme of the nation, and everyone rejoiced in the victory. Lin Yan looked at the smiles of the people around her, refraining from saying that the war was not yet over.
Since everyone was so happy, she didn't want to dampen their spirits.
"Little Comrade Lin, the war is over. When will our Comrade Ye be officially recognized?" a kind elder, who was close to Lin Yan, teased her.
Over the years, everyone had seen how Ye Xiuyuan felt about Lin Yan, and their relationship was very good. It was just that both of them were too busy, so they hadn't held a wedding.
Although everyone had suggested Ye Xiuyuan keep the wedding simple and proceed with it, he was unwilling to let Lin Yan be wronged.
"You'll have to ask him. I'm not as busy now, so it depends on when he has time," Lin Yan said without a hint of shyness.
She was still busy taking a patient's pulse, asking them to open their mouths to examine their tongues, and then released her hand.
"I'll prescribe some medicine for you. Take it on time. It's not a serious matter." Lin Yan had a clinic here. She would consult for half a day every two days, and during the rest of the time, the clinic would sell common medicines.
"Alright, I'll go ask Comrade Ye for you," the elder said enthusiastically.
They all understood clearly that the relationship between this Little Comrade Lin and Comrade Ye was led by Little Comrade Lin. If she didn't agree, Comrade Ye wouldn't dare make any moves.
After the elder left, Lin Yan couldn't help but smile. These people were truly concerned about their romantic lives.
However, she and Ye Xiuyuan had already discussed getting married after the war subsided.
In fact, their families lived not far from each other, and apart from the wedding ceremony, they were no different from husband and wife. But for some reason, everyone seemed to fear that she might wrong Ye Xiuyuan.
Logically, Ye Xiuyuan was handsome, highly educated, and always took care of Lin Yan. Shouldn't it be Lin Yan who worried about him leaving her?
After finishing her patients for the day, Lin Yan saw Ye Xiuyuan waiting for her at the entrance.
"I bought a chicken from a fellow villager today. I'll stew some chicken soup for you at noon," Ye Xiuyuan took the items from Lin Yan's hands, and they walked towards Lin's house together.
"Comrade Ye is here to pick up Little Comrade Lin again today!" comrades passing by teased them.
"I got off work early today, so I came by on my way," Ye Xiuyuan replied with a smile.
Lin Yan didn't mind, as such teasing happened almost every time Ye Xiuyuan came to pick her up.
When Lin Yan and Ye Xiuyuan arrived home, Lin's father had not yet returned.
"Let's eat first. I've already saved some for Uncle Lin," Ye Xiuyuan served Lin Yan a bowl of chicken soup.
"Elder Sister Li asked me today when you would be officially recognized," Lin Yan said casually as she took the bowl of soup.
Ye Xiuyuan froze. "You, what did you say?"
He had actually met Elder Sister Li on his way to pick up Lin Yan, but he still wanted to confirm Lin Yan's attitude.
"I think it's about time. After all, my father is urging us, isn't he? We're both less busy now, and who knows if we'll get busy again later," Lin Yan looked at Ye Xiuyuan, trying to discern something from his expression.
"Then I'll submit an application. Although it might be a bit unfair to you, I'll do my best!" Ye Xiuyuan said excitedly.
"As long as it's you, I don't feel wronged."
Ye Xiuyuan and Lin Yan's wedding was quickly prepared. Many people sent gifts, contributing to the celebration.
This wedding also showcased how popular Lin Yan and Ye Xiuyuan were. Especially Lin Yan, whose clinic had saved many lives. Furthermore, she had trained several batches of battlefield nurses, rescuing many who might have died on the battlefield.
Although the wedding lacked luxurious wedding dresses and gowns, and there were no betrothal gifts or dowries, everyone's face was filled with joyous blessings.
Even many leaders attended the wedding. Lin Yan and Ye Xiuyuan were their heroes. Although they hadn't been on the battlefield, their contributions were even greater than those who had.
Thus, Lin Yan experienced the most simple yet possibly the liveliest wedding.
Many people attended the wedding, all bringing food to offer their congratulations. Lin Yan and Ye Xiuyuan also distributed wedding candy.
This wedding candy was homemade by Lin Yan and Ye Xiuyuan. Since sugar was considered a luxury item then, everyone was surprised and impressed by their generosity when they received the candy.
After the wedding, both were exhausted and lay on the bed. They chose to stay at Lin's house instead of moving into Ye Xiuyuan's cave dwelling.
After their wedding, Ye Xiuyuan planned to return his cave dwelling to the organization for allocation to those in greater need.
Because of this, many people said Ye Xiuyuan had married into the Lin family. But he didn't care at all. After all, it was his life, and how he lived it was nobody else's business!