Feeling dizzy from the journey, he decided to spend the night in the county town.

Gao Shen sat beside Jing Qingxin. He could clearly see her delicate brows furrowed and the discomfort on her face. He understood she was not used to the bus, and his heart ached for her. He wished he could hold her in his arms, but in public, especially while wearing his military uniform, he had to mind his image.

"Drink some water and take it slow," Gao Shen said, pulling a round, army-green canteen from his military bag—one of the essential items issued to every soldier.

Jing Qingxin took the canteen and drank several gulps, finally feeling the nauseating discomfort in her chest ease. The water inside was from the stream in 'Flowing Brocade,' which she had specially filled before leaving home.

After drinking the stream water, the nausea lessened, but the stuffiness in her chest lingered. Her discomfort stemmed mainly from the stale air inside the bus. Ignoring the dust swirling outside, Jing Qingxin hurriedly cracked open the window. A breeze rushed in, carrying some dust, but she still found the air outside much easier to breathe.

Gao Shen immediately rummaged in his bag and handed her a light blue checkered handkerchief. "Cover your nose. Don't breathe in the dust," he said softly.

Jing Qingxin obediently took the handkerchief and glanced at it, a smile curling on her lips. What an innocent era this was! A man carrying a handkerchief—she had never seen such a thing! In the postmodern world, not only handkerchiefs, but most men didn't even carry a packet of tissues.

She held the handkerchief to her face as the wind blew, the scent of soap filling her nostrils—fresh and clean, much like Gao Shen's own scent. Instantly, she felt much more comfortable.

Gao Shen kept watch over her, noticing the smile on her lips at the sight of the handkerchief. Though he didn't quite understand what amused her, as long as she was happy, that was enough.

After a while of breathing the fresh air, Jing Qingxin felt much better and closed the window. After all, there were people seated behind her; it wouldn't do to let everyone breathe in dust.

An hour later, the small bus finally wobbled its way into the county bus station. It was already half past four in the afternoon, and there were no longer any buses heading to Ning City.

Transportation was inconvenient in this era; at most, buses ran twice a day—one at seven in the morning, another at two in the afternoon. For cities farther away, there was only one bus daily. As for trains, development hadn't reached the point where every city had a station; usually only provincial capitals had them.

Cities under the jurisdiction of the provincial capital traveled between each other by small and large buses. County towns with poor transport had to switch between several buses to reach the capital.

"So, are we staying in the county tonight?" Jing Qingxin asked after Gao Shen explained the current transport situation.

"Yes, that's right. Let's go buy tomorrow's tickets first," Gao Shen replied. He had already mapped out the plan before they left home.

The two quickly bought tickets for the early bus to Ning City the next day. Jing Qingxin couldn't help but feel relieved—fortunately, identity cards hadn't been issued yet, and there was no real-name ticket policy. Otherwise, as a traveler from another time, she would surely be caught as an undocumented or illegal entrant!

"Where will we go next?" she asked after leaving the station, feeling like a country bumpkin, unfamiliar with routes since leaving Dajing Village.

"To a comrade's home. We'll stay there tonight," Gao Shen said, leading her in a certain direction.

Jing Qingxin stopped, somewhat embarrassed. "Your comrade’s house? Wouldn’t that be too much trouble? Can't we stay at an inn or something?"

"You mean a guesthouse? We can’t," Gao Shen answered frankly.

"Why not?" Jing Qingxin was puzzled.

"You don’t even have a household registration booklet. How would you check in?" Gao Shen chuckled. Sometimes his girl was smart, but other times, so muddled.

"Oh... I forgot," Jing Qingxin replied with an awkward smile.

She had just been pleased about the convenience of not needing a real-name ID, forgetting that identity in this era was proven by the household registration booklet, which no longer existed in her time. Everything was managed by systems; a scan of the chip in her ID card revealed all family information.

Recalling history, she remembered that in 1984, the country began formally issuing personal identity cards. Before that, citizens were registered as families, using household registration booklets. Before the end of the collective era, people going out to work or getting married could only prove their identity with the booklet or a certificate issued by the brigade.

"Why do you think recognizing relatives matters? The national census isn’t strict yet. If you acknowledge the teacher and his wife as your godparents and are registered as their adoptive daughter, we can file a marriage report and get a marriage certificate. Once married, we can apply for our own household registration booklet, and your registration can be transferred. But all this depends on you having a formal, legal identity first. Do you understand?" Gao Shen lowered his voice and patiently explained the situation.

Jing Qingxin nodded, finally understanding. "So complicated! Got it. You handle everything, and I’ll fully cooperate!"

To live legitimately with Gao Shen, no matter how complex, she had to see it through. She mused silently—since Gao Shen had it all planned out, she felt reassured. There were so many rules in this era she didn’t fully understand, so for now, she would simply follow his lead.

Gao Shen was amused by her serious, official tone—it sounded just like the formal language of his unit!

The county town at this time was neither large nor prosperous. There were no shops run by private owners; the most common means of transport was the unique "chicken cart," a single-wheel vehicle that could carry passengers or goods. Jing Qingxin had only seen it in historical records and couldn't help but look at it with curiosity.

The next most common vehicle was the single-rod black bicycle. Jing Qingxin had seen these old bicycles in classmates’ collections—true antiques. Motorcycles hadn’t become popular yet; people’s options for transport were very limited.

As she walked, Jing Qingxin noticed the tallest buildings were only three stories high, made of red brick, and there were only one or two of them. The streets weren’t very lively, but the roads were much better than the primitive mud lanes in the town. Still, everything looked simple and unadorned.

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