After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World - Chapter 779

Chapter 779: Caught!
Althea smiled as she helped Little Pepper drink her milk. Her hands supported the bottle while the baby’s little hands held onto it. She watched the little girl drink fondly and she couldn’t help but poke the baby’s chubby cheeks a bit.

“Gmghmawmaaa…” her son mumbled next to her. Althea turned to her son who was held by his father. He had let go of his bottle as he reached out to her.

She shook her head and helped him hold it. Little Pepper pouted, about to let go of her bottle.

She chuckled and leaned down, giving the girl a smooch, “You’re a big sister, Pepper,” she said, and the girl really didn’t let go of the bottle anymore.

Little Meatballs seemed to understand and also behaved, making everyone smile.

“Awww, my babies are the cutest,” she said, giving both infants wet smooches on their chubby faces.

She then turned to look at the two other big babies sitting tensely on the sofas. Their body language reeked of guilt, with their heads looking down and their hands on their knees.

“Why do you look like underaged kids getting caught frolicking by me?”

They didn’t answer.

“You’re adults now,” she said, “I understand that you are both very capable of making your own decisions.”

“Yes, but…”

They felt guilty regardless. Even if Althea was their peer, she took bigger roles than that in their lives.

For Ansel, though ambiguous, she really was family, and for Winona she was her friend as she was her counsel, also a sister.

“Well… don’t you have anything to say?” Winona asked, and the two looked at her tensely at the question.

It amused her very much.

“Well, if you want to ask for my opinion, I’d like you to get married.”

“WHAT?”

“You don’t want to?”

The two awkwardly looked at each other before shifting their sights away.

She still knew Ansel only dated and kissed all those girlfriends of his. The fact that he did the whole deed with Winona meant that she was really, truly, special to him.

Similarly, Winona was a conservative and the reason at least one of her previous boyfriends left her was because she refused to go all the way.

These two… would never be inebriated enough to break the rules they set for themselves without them truly wanting to.

She looked at Harold, “Do we have weddings here?”

“We don’t have a church, but Mathilda did mention more than once that it should be done in some shape or form.”

There had maybe been more than one person who had talked to Mathilda about it. They were planning on proposing, but didn’t know the next step so they put it on hold.

For example, Bull. Another, Turbo.

The two guilty people flushed when they realized what these people were planning. “Althea…”

She looked at them, wanting to tease, though not exactly lying. She didn’t support casual sex at all. She hoped they would show more commitment to each other.

“Fine. But if it’s up to me, you can’t sleep together again until you do.”

The two froze.

They flushed even more and looked awkwardly at each other.

“Ehh….”

Althea laughed, and so did the others.

Seeing how exposed they were, the new couple could not wait to bury their heads in embarrassment for the rest of their lives.

…

In the end, they just decided to propose a Civil affairs office in the Government Building for now, the details of which would be discussed with the Elders at a later date.

People had different religions and they didn’t know how many of those remained in this new world, so they decided on just doing the secular approach.

They decided to open some land leasing for people to be able to build their own things. Maybe there would be a religion big enough to make their own church. Or maybe just a mercenary team who wished to have their own base as well.

Either way, the territory wouldn’t be at a loss since the lease wouldn’t be cheap and the ownership would remain in the territory.

The wedding itself could be done in the gardens or one of the restaurants, and there happened to be one or two wedding organizers in the territory. They were working in the hospitality buildings now, but they’d probably love to get this part-time job.

Someday, these people might make events planning companies, and soon the territory would not just see the return of weddings, but maybe also large birthday parties and debutante balls.

She would have to talk to Mathilda about the laws of marital union as well. It couldn’t be the same as back in Terran as they were a mixed culture now, and they’d also be welcoming aborigines.

At the very least, they would probably just be protecting their rights as well as defining what it meant to be husband and wife.

They would probably be putting up more laws as well, some copied from Terran like certain family laws and the like. For example, the view that marriage was also an economic partnership might be retained. That was to say, income and assets received after marriage was shared property of the couple.

They were encouraging procreation now. This law was designed, historically, in order to protect the less-earning spouse. Perhaps, this would be the spouse who’d stay at home and was assumed to have contributed in other ways other than monetary. Of course, things like prenuptial would also be a thing.

There would also be laws wherein parents would be required by law to support their children until the age of 18, and they’d define what counted as a basic need here, including basic education.

In the end though, she just decided to handle the infrastructure with the other elders, and let the others go at their own pace.

Looking at Ansel and Winona, whether or not they would get married, would be up to them, but as the older sister she’d definitely give them the facility to do a ceremony should they want to.

Besides, it would be unfair to Winona to just get married like this. That girl was a romantic, she’d want to be properly proposed to.

She still really really hoped Ansel would propose soon though.