Blazing fire is hard to extinguish chapter 59
Extra: Honeymoon
“How much for two servings of salmon soup?”
Lin Chi, speaking broken Finnish, gestured to the vendor at the market.
Across from him stood a bearded, chubby, and burly older vendor, whose expression seemed somewhat unwelcoming.
Lin Chi, dressed in a black down jacket, with long, lean legs, wore a red scarf and hat. Although they were about the same height, Lin Chi seemed smaller in comparison.
The vendor strained to listen and finally understood after a while.
“29 euros!”
Li Tingyan watched this scene with a smile.
It was during this trip that he learned Lin Chi knew some Finnish. After taking a month of online lessons, the rest he taught himself.
Based on his vocabulary, it was probably at a kindergarten level.
However, Lin Chi was quite proud of himself, seizing any chance to speak Finnish, enthusiastic and undeterred, completely ignoring the fact that Scandinavians are fluent in English. He gestured wildly as he spoke.
Li Tingyan took another sip of coffee. The steaming hot coffee in the icy cold surroundings brought a strange sense of satisfaction.
He gazed at the frozen harbor in front of him, where seagulls fluttered up and down between the railings and the sea.
It was just past 10 a.m. Finland’s winter was gloomy, and the sky was still dim. There were few tourists or locals, but his mood was lighter than ever.
This was the sixth day of his honeymoon with Lin Chi.
Because of their work, they had already traveled to many places around the world and weren’t particularly eager to sightsee anymore. What mattered more was who they were with.
So after their wedding, they headed straight to Helsinki to enjoy their vacation.
Like the locals, they had no specific plans, didn’t bother seeking out tourist spots to take pictures, but instead enjoyed the not-so-bright sunlight, sipped coffee, and walked hand in hand through snow-covered streets.
But these were the most peaceful and happy days of Li Tingyan’s nearly thirty years of life.
Soon, Lin Chi returned with two servings of salmon soup, along with a piece of grilled bread.
“That uncle just complimented my Finnish,” Lin Chi boasted proudly to Li Tingyan.
After buying the soup, he’d exchanged a few more words with the vendor, who, despite his intimidating appearance, had been quite friendly and patient with this language-challenged foreigner.
Li Tingyan smiled again.
“Yes,” he praised blindly, “I think you’re much more fluent than before. The local environment really helps with language learning.”
Lin Chi beamed at the compliment.
He bragged shamelessly, “I think that in a few more years, I might even become a translator.”
The salmon soup was delicious, with cream, onions, potatoes, and more. Lin Chi tore the bread into pieces and dipped it in the soup.
The winter wind blew cold against their faces, but both he and Li Tingyan were the type who didn’t feel the cold too much, and their thick clothes kept them warm enough.
As Lin Chi took another sip of the hot salmon soup, he even felt a bit of warmth spreading through him.
“I had salmon soup the last time I was in Helsinki, but it was in a restaurant. It didn’t taste as good as this,” Lin Chi said.
Li Tingyan knew what he was referring to.
It was during the six months they were apart.
Lin Chi had come here with a team to shoot a promotional video.
Casually, Lin Chi added, “At the time, I wasn’t in a good mood. I barely went out except for filming. I stayed in the hotel, sleeping or going out for coffee with Huo Yuning. Occasionally, we’d have a little alcohol, but she kept a close watch on me and only let me have a small bottle.”
He gestured with his fingers to show how stingy Huo Yuning had been.
Li Tingyan smiled wordlessly.
He laughed and took a sip of salmon soup, “Then I must thank her.”
Lin Chi knew what he meant.
At that time, he was in a bad mood, had just gone through a breakup, and was drunk, not knowing what might happen. While alcohol could numb the nerves, it didn’t do any good.
But he took a sip of coffee and gazed at the distant scenery.
When he thought of that quiet, sad six months, it felt like a distant memory.
Every day spent together with Li Tingyan was so vivid.
Li Tingyan’s grip on his hand was firm and strong, easily overshadowing the sadness of those six months.
So much so that sometimes he couldn’t even recall how he felt back then.
After finishing this long-overdue breakfast, Li Tingyan and Lin Chi casually strolled along the streets.
They had no plans, just wandering wherever their feet took them.
At a market, Lin Chi found a beautiful vintage pearl brooch and some handmade woven coasters.
He was indeed interested in all things beautiful and chatted enthusiastically with the gray-haired old lady vendor in his somewhat broken Finnish.
The old lady introduced him to the history of the brooch.
He only half understood, but his eyes were bright and focused.
Li Tingyan watched from the side, thinking how incredibly cute he looked like that.
He wondered if it was because being newlyweds naturally caused more dopamine to be released.
Li Tingyan felt like he liked Lin Chi more with each passing day.
In the twenty-seven or twenty-eight years before meeting Lin Chi, he had never felt this way.
The world to him had always been a precisely operating machine, and he was a bright and sharp part of that machine.
What he needed was to never make mistakes, to never stop, not to be happy.
Back then, he never imagined that one day, he would be married to the most beautiful boy in the world, in the icy snow of Finland.
Watching Lin Chi put on a handmade woven hat, Li Tingyan raised his hand and took a photo.
The old lady noticed Li Tingyan’s action and smiled as she asked Lin Chi something.
Lin Chi was momentarily stunned, then broke into a wider smile.
He shook his head and said a few words quietly.
The old lady raised her eyebrows and handed Lin Chi something else from her stall.
In the end, Lin Chi left with a brooch, a hat, two hair clips, and a small sweet biscuit.
Naturally, Li Tingyan took the items and asked Lin Chi, “What were you two talking about?”
Lin Chi had already started unwrapping the biscuit the old lady gave him.
He smiled slightly, “She asked if you were my friend.”
He unwrapped the biscuit and bit into it. By now, it was noon, and the sunlight was finally brighter, shining on his lively face.
His eyes turned brown under the sunlight as he looked at Li Tingyan with a spirited expression.
“I told her you’re my newlywed husband.”
Mumbling this, Lin Chi took a big bite of the biscuit. It was very sweet.
Foreigners seem to put sugar in their sweets as if it costs nothing.
But he felt happy.
“So the old lady gave me the biscuit, wishing me a happy marriage.” Newlywed husband.
Li Tingyan realized he really liked that term.
Even though he didn’t care for sweets at all, he lowered his head and bit off the other half of the small sweet pastry from Lin Chi’s lips. It was crispy.
And indeed, it was extremely sweet.
But he ate it all under Lin Chi’s shocked gaze.
With his gloved fingers, he gently wiped away a crumb from the corner of Lin Chi’s mouth.
“Since it’s a wedding gift, of course, we should share it equally.”
He chuckled as he spoke.
After strolling through the market, they went to the Rock Church.
This church was built into blasted rocks, and walking inside made it feel like entering a round cave.
There was a massive pipe organ inside, and the acoustics were excellent, so it was often used for concerts.
Lin Chi’s fingers brushed the rocks, feeling the rough texture. That day, the church was nearly empty; besides them, there were only a few middle-aged tourists gathered to take photos.
He softly said to Li Tingyan, “It seems like it would be interesting to have a wedding here.”
Li Tingyan, who was looking at postcards in the church, responded seriously, “If you want, we can hold another one here.”
Lin Chi burst into laughter.
“I still prefer the small chapel where we had our wedding.”
He picked out a postcard as well.
For their wedding, Lin Chi and Li Tingyan kept things low-key and simple, choosing a small chapel in the suburbs.
But Li Tingyan had hired several designers, and every element of the wedding was something he loved, even down to the candles, which were adorned with his favorite iris flowers.
He was very pleased with it.
This was an experience he would cherish and look back on in his old age, so he had no intention of replicating it.
Lin Chi picked out several postcards, wrote the date, stamped them, and sent them to various friends.
After leaving the Rock Church, they had a cup of coffee, and by then, it was evening.
They went to a famous bar in Helsinki.
Back home, given Lin Chi’s current fame, going to a crowded bar would require some caution. His face had gained a certain level of recognition, not to mention the attention-grabbing Li Tingyan beside him.
But this was Finland.
This was Helsinki.
No one paid special attention to two black-haired, black-eyed strangers.
They could embrace on the dance floor like any other couple in the world.
The bar was dimly lit, filled with lively men and women.
Li Tingyan typically disliked such environments.
He preferred private, secluded, quiet places, ideally with the sound of rain.
It was no wonder Ye Fengshan and the others teased him for being like an ascetic monk.
But now he realized, that was only because he didn’t have Lin Chi in his arms at the time.
This bar was strange, with dreamy pink and purple lighting that made people’s skin appear as if it was dyed.
But even in this light, Lin Chi looked vibrant and handsome.
Li Tingyan teased him, “What if we get photographed?”
He said, “Maybe someone’s phone caught us, uploaded it to Instagram, and by tomorrow, the whole world will know you have a secret lover.”
He said it with a faint smile on his face, making it hard to tell if he was truly amused by this absurd fantasy.
Lin Chi knew Li Tingyan was teasing him.
But their behavior was indeed bold. Huo Yuning had warned him to be mindful of his actions, even though he was married, but he had completely ignored the advice.
Yet, mixed in with the bustling crowd, with the loud and lively music and couples openly kissing and cheering, no one cared about their complicated love or their shining careers.
“Then let them capture it,” Lin Chi said with a carefree smile. “I’ll announce to the world that this is not my secret lover but my husband.”
Li Tingyan laughed, a rare, unrestrained laugh.
In this massive, noisy, and dreamy pink bar, surrounded by a sea of people, with cheap beer and cocktails being sold nearby, and others clinking glasses and singing loudly, he lowered his head and kissed Lin Chi.
Author’s note:
The extra chapters are starting~