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Zhao Jinghuan blundered downstairs and followed Lu Kai into the car, not even trying to refuse. In the car, she silently reflected on her feelings. It was probably because New Year's Eve made people vulnerable, but it wasn't impossible that Lu Kai, standing on tiptoe and waving, looked so radiant. She stole a glance at him as he drove. Succubi always appear in unexpected ways. ………… Lu Kai took Zhao Jinghuan home. After getting out of the car, he deliberately avoided Zhao Jinghuan and called his mother upstairs, instructing her that a friend was coming over and asking her not to get too excited and scare them. Then, blushing, he led Zhao Jinghuan upstairs. Three elders, beaming, met them at the door, clearly eager to see Zhao Jinghuan's true self. Before Zhao Jinghuan could even change her shoes, Lu Kai's mother grabbed her hand and repeatedly praised her beauty, leaving her utterly embarrassed. Lu Kai pulled away Zhao Jinghuan's mother who was almost clinging to her, and pulled Zhao Jinghuan to sit in the living room. His parents had brought a lot of tableware when they came, so he didn't have to use the only cup to entertain Zhao Jinghuan. After Zhao Jinghuan entered the house, Lu Kai's father was sent to the kitchen to cook, while he and Wanfeng's two mothers squeezed into the same small sofa and chatted with Zhao Jinghuan. With Lu Kai's previous reminder, neither of them asked about Zhao Jinghuan's personal affairs. At most, they asked about Zhao Jinghuan's previous experiences when he was delivering food. When talking about Lu Kai and his colleagues' work, Lu's mother kept praising Zhao Jinghuan as a lucky star, saying that Lu Kai and his colleagues had been working tepidly for several years, but as soon as Zhao Jinghuan came, their sales had a big leap. Zhao Jinghuan didn't see anything wrong with this statement, but Lu Kai was a bit annoyed. He corrected his mother, "Jinghuan does a lot of work. How can you just call her a lucky star?" Lu's father came out with the stir-fried beef and, after listening halfway through, couldn't help but interject, "If she's not a lucky star, then she's a fierce general." This only earned him another sharp rebuke from Lu Kai's mother, "Is it nice to call her a fierce general when she's a girl?" Lu's father shrieked, "I thought you were talking about our son." He then casually exposed Lu Kai's weakness, saying that his WeChat Moments signature in college was, "How can I protect you without a sword?" He sounded like a fierce general. Lu's father busied himself in the kitchen for a while before the two mothers went to clear the table and help him set the plates. They had their New Year's Eve dinner at three in the afternoon. Zhao Jinghuan hadn't celebrated the New Year properly in a while. After asking Lu Kai, she learned that the dinner was scheduled so early because they had a dumplings dinner that evening. During the meal, Lu...

Zhao Jinghuan went downstairs in a daze and followed Lu Kai into the car without even trying to refuse or pull him. She silently reviewed the situation in the car and felt that New Year's Eve might make people vulnerable, but she also did not rule out the possibility that Lu Kai, standing on tiptoe and waving, was too bright.

She stole a glance at Lu Kai who was driving.

Succubus always appears in the most unexpected form.

…………

Lu Kai brought Zhao Jinghuan home. After getting off the car, he deliberately avoided Zhao Jinghuan and called his mother upstairs, telling her that his friends were coming and asked her not to be too excited and scare them.

Then, blushing, he led Zhao Jinghuan upstairs. Three elders, smiling broadly, blocked the doorway to greet them, clearly eager to see Zhao Jinghuan's true face. Before Zhao Jinghuan could even change her shoes, Lu Kai's mother grabbed her hand and repeatedly praised her beauty, leaving Zhao Jinghuan utterly embarrassed.

Lu Kai pulled his mother, who was practically clinging to Zhao Jinghuan, away and pulled her to the living room to sit down. His parents had brought plenty of tableware, so he didn't have to use his only cup to entertain Zhao Jinghuan. After Zhao Jinghuan entered the house, Lu Kai's father was sent to the kitchen to cook, while he and Wanfeng's two mothers squeezed onto the same small sofa to chat with Zhao Jinghuan.

With Lu Kai's previous reminder, neither of them bothered to ask about Zhao Jinghuan's personal affairs. At most, they asked about Zhao Jinghuan's experiences while delivering food. When talking about Lu Kai and his colleagues' work, Lu's mother kept praising Zhao Jinghuan as a lucky star, saying that Lu Kai and his colleagues had been working tepidly for several years, but as soon as Zhao Jinghuan came, their sales had greatly increased.

Zhao Jinghuan didn't think there was anything wrong with this statement. Lu Kai was a little unhappy. He corrected his mother's statement: "Jinghuan has done a lot of work. How can you just say that she is a lucky star?"

Dad Lu came out with the stir-fried beef. He listened halfway and couldn't help but interject, "If it's not a lucky star, then it's a fierce general." As a result, Lu Kai's mother pinched him again, "I'm a girl. Do you think it sounds good to call me a fierce general?"

Lu's father screamed and said, "I thought you were talking about our son." He also exposed Lu Kai's shortcomings, saying that when Lu Kai was in college, his signature on WeChat Moments was: "How can I protect you without a sword?" He sounded like a fierce general.

Dad Lu was busy in the kitchen for a while before the two mothers went to clear the table and help Dad Lu set the dishes. They had their New Year's Eve dinner at three in the afternoon. Zhao Jinghuan hadn't celebrated the New Year properly for a long time. After asking Lu Kai, she found out that because they had another dumpling dinner in the evening, the New Year's Eve dinner was arranged so early. During the meal, Lu Kai's mother kept picking up food for Zhao Jinghuan. After dinner, everyone sat in front of the TV to watch a program. Lu Kai's mother brought a blanket and sat next to Zhao Jinghuan, covering their legs with the same blanket. Wanfeng's mother laughed at her:

"Look at how sticky you two are. If someone doesn't know, they would think Jing Huan is your biological daughter."

Lu Kai's mother hugged Zhao Jinghuan and said, "It would be great to have a daughter. I have no other regrets in my life. The only regret is that I didn't give birth to a daughter. A daughter is so great. We can take a bath together, go shopping together, and when she is little, I can buy her pretty clothes and dress her up well. But we didn't have that much money when we were young." As she spoke, she rested her head on Zhao Jinghuan's shoulder. Zhao Jinghuan already missed her deceased mother a little, and after being treated like this by Lu Kai's mother, she instantly felt like crying.

When alone during the day, time passed slowly, and he could only rely on sleep to get by. But when he arrived at Lu Kai's house, with everyone laughing and chatting, the entire night flew by in a flash. The Spring Festival Gala was as dull as ever. Around eleven o'clock, Lu's father went to make dumplings. After eating, Wan Feng, who had been ordered by the doctor not to stay up late, went home with his mother to rest. Zhao Jinghuan saw this and said she wanted to go back to the dormitory, but Lu Kai's mother refused to let him. "You stay here. Who would go back to the dormitory during Chinese New Year? Lu Kai and his father will sleep in the small room, and we will sleep in the big room tonight. It's settled." With that, she went to make the bed.

At this moment, Dad Lu remembered that he had not yet set off the fireworks he brought. He called Lu Kai to go downstairs with him. As soon as he said that, he was kicked in the butt by Lu Kai's mother who was holding the quilt.

"You're almost 60, why are you putting flowers there?"

Dad Lu muttered something about age. Seeing Mom Lu winking at him, he finally realized what was happening and stretched lazily, trying to hide his guilt. "Oh, yeah, people who are almost sixty just don't have the energy. Lu Kai, you and Xiao Zhao should go downstairs and put up the flowers. We still need to have some fun during the New Year."

Lu Kai was worried that this forced way for parents to be alone might offend Zhao Jinghuan, but fortunately, Zhao Jinghuan didn't take it too seriously. After changing clothes, they went downstairs, carrying the fireworks. The property management had specifically emphasized in the homeowners' group chat that fireworks were prohibited in the community, but they also marked nearby locations where fireworks were permitted.

After Lu Kai and Zhao Jinghuan went downstairs, they headed straight for the riverbank behind the residential complex. The trail along the river was filled with couples setting off fireworks. After the fuses were lit, they held hands and stepped aside, or simply hugged each other and looked up at the fireworks exploding in the sky.

Lu Kai looked at the couples with envy, even imagining Zhao Jinghuan sitting in his arms and watching the fireworks with him. He found an open space, set up the fireworks, and asked Zhao Jinghuan what wish she wanted. Zhao Jinghuan was a little surprised: "Can you make a wish during the Chinese New Year? I thought you could only make wishes on your birthday."

"Can't you make a wish anytime you want?"

Zhao Jinghuan tilted her head, feeling that what Lu Kai said made a lot of sense. She asked Lu Kai, "What wish do you want to make?"

Lu Kai said, "There are quite a lot. There are many things to do next year. First of all, I hope that Little Freckles will continue to sell well. Then I want to release a version of trendy toys for Tomato and Evening Breeze. They don't have to achieve the same sales level as Little Freckles, but at least they have to make a profit. Only then can they have works that can stand on their own. And Evening Breeze has been sick a lot recently. This is not good. I hope he will be healthy next year. Also, I hope you can leave Mr. Hu Zi as soon as possible. We really need you to come back, and Hu Mingyuan is not a good person. Besides, I also hope..." He glanced at Zhao Jinghuan and really didn't have the courage to say in front of her that he hoped to start a relationship with her in the new year, so he stopped there, "That's...that's all."

Lu Kai tugged at his ears, a little embarrassed: "I've said so much, am I a little too greedy?"

"A little bit." Zhao Jinghuan said with a smile, "Why don't we just make a wish that everything goes well next year."

Lu Kai's eyes lit up and he said that was a good idea. The two looked at their watches and saw that it was only a few minutes before midnight. They decided to light the fireworks a few seconds before the old year turned to the new year, so that at midnight, they could make a wish under the fireworks.

Lu Kai squatted on the ground, holding the lighter and aiming it at the fuse. Zhao Jinghuan stared at his phone from a distance, estimating the time and preparing to give the order. Then Lu Kai suddenly thought: "Oh, that's not right. You haven't told me what you want to wish for yet?"

Zhao Jinghuan waved his hands: "It's too late, hurry up and light the fire! Ten seconds..."

Lu Kai lit the fuse and ran away.

"Nine...eight...seven..."

Lu Kai ran to sit next to Zhao Jinghuan.

"six……"

Fireworks shot into the sky and exploded above the two men's heads with a "bang".

"five……"

Zhao Jinghuan seemed to have never seen fireworks so closely before, and she hadn't even celebrated the New Year happily for a long time.

"Four……"

She thought it was only this morning, and she was still wondering how she was going to get through this long day. And now...

"three……"

Perhaps for most people, eating dumplings and setting off fireworks is just an ordinary New Year. But for Zhao Jinghuan...

"two……"

Even such an ordinary year can be considered precious. She turned her head to look at Lu Kai beside her. He had clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and was ready to make a wish.

"one……"

Zhao Jinghuan suddenly felt that she should thank him.

So, at the moment when the old year turned into the new year, Zhao Jinghuan leaned over and kissed Lu Kai on the lips.

This time she decided to make the kiss longer, but it was a kiss that spanned a year nonetheless.