After the cake was cut, everyone gave each other gifts; Team 404 collectively gave each other a new cell phone.
The gift from Bu Ke and his sister was a magical tool, a single-edged dagger.
"This dagger is called the Demon. If you are wounded by the blade of this dagger, the wound will continue to worsen within seven days, and medicine will be ineffective. It is effective on both humans and zombies, with the effect being doubled on zombies. The back of the blade can remove this effect."
Han Yan gave them custom-made couple watches. The men's watch was black with a small sun on the dial, and the women's watch was silver-white with a small moon on the dial. The sun and moon would rise, set, and disappear as time went on.
"This one is for Marquis Quan."
The Marquis gave her a bottle of perfume. Others smelled it for a long time but couldn't tell what it was. Zhuang Zhao smelled it the moment she opened the perfume. It was the scent of Yan Shi holding roses.
I don't know how Quan Hou did it, but not only could he smell it, but it was also similar to the scent on Yan Shi's body, and even had a floral fragrance.
"This is my birthday present." Yan Shi held a small box in both hands. Given its size, and the fact that it was a gift for a boy, it was hard to guess what it contained.
Zhuang Zhao took it and was about to put it away.
"Open it and see what's inside."
Zhuang Zhao looked at Yan Shi, and only after Yan Shi nodded did he open the box to look inside; it was the car key.
"I rented a car for you to play with."
Wow, that's a big spender.
"Giving a car as a birthday gift for a 20th birthday—that's something so many boys dream of."
"I really like it. Thank you for the gift, sister. Thank you everyone."
"So Zhuang Zhao is only twenty. He's the youngest among us."
"I thought he was at least in his twenties; he's much more mature than his peers."
"Stop crowding around, get ready to eat. We still need to go back and prepare dinner."
"By the way, is there anything planned for tonight?"
"It seems like each district is putting on a show; I wonder if I'll be able to see it."
We had hot pot and fried chicken takeout. It was noisy, but not too messy. Everyone helped clean up before leaving.
"Wow, I'm so tired, even though I didn't do anything." Yan Shi slumped on the sofa, playing with Xiao Hei.
"She's done so much for me, yet she says she hasn't done anything. Thank you, sister. It's so nice to be cared for like this."
"Silly girl, don't underestimate yourself. You are the person I care about most, second only to myself."
"Even if it's fake, I'd still be happy to hear it."
"Why would anyone lie to you about this? But let me make it clear beforehand, I don't have much savings, so I won't be giving you a New Year's gift."
"I'll deliver it."
"I'm happy to receive gifts, but don't spend too much. I might need your help in a few days."
"Know."
"Hey, how about I keep watch with you tonight? I don't want to keep watch with Han Yan."
"Then let him stay here. Quan Hou said he'll be staying in the lab tonight and won't be back. Bring him breakfast tomorrow morning."
"I'll bring him some dumplings later; it's pitiful for him to be alone during the New Year."
"Too."
"I'll go take a nap first, then wake me up when you're making dumplings."
"Go."
After Yan Shi returned to his room, Zhuang Zhao went downstairs to find the car that matched his key. When he opened the car door, he could see a melon and a postcard on the seat.
Happy 20th birthday! I'll buy you another one when I can afford it.
P.S.: Just eat the cantaloupe; it was originally there to freshen the car smell.
Zhuang Zhao put away the postcard, carried the melon in his hand, and went to the nearby supermarket, where he bought a pound of red beans and two cans of red bean preserves.
Tonight, he's going to do something big.
Around eight o'clock, Yan Shi woke up, stretched, and went outside to see Zhuang Zhao making dumplings.
"Why didn't you call me? Everyone should make dumplings together when it's time to keep watch."
"I saved you a few, do you want to put some coins in them?"
"No, it's hard on the teeth. Wrap this instead." Yan Shi took out a packet of dried roses from the cupboard.
“That’s not easy to taste, how about we try packing this?” Zhuang Zhao pointed to the can of red beans next to him.
"Ah, this is the sweet kind, right? A dessert topping."
"Yes, I think this is easy to taste."
"Then add red beans. Did you buy canned red beans specifically? Are you making a dessert?" Yan Shi asked expectantly.
"I'm planning to make red bean pie."
"Mmm! I love pie, when are you making it?"
"If all goes well, we should be able to eat it tomorrow."
"That's great! Wow, you can do everything!"
"This is my first time trying it, so it may not look very appealing, but the taste should be alright."
"Appearance doesn't matter, as long as it tastes good."
Besides dumplings, there were four dishes and a soup. Even if the portions were small, two people couldn't finish it all. So, I packed an extra portion and sent it to Quan Hou and his colleague in the car I had just rented.
Yan Shi ultimately didn't stay up until midnight. Around 11:30, she fell asleep on the sofa while holding Xiao Hei.
Zhuang Zhao quietly got up and went into Yan Shi's room, only to come out a few minutes later.
"It's midnight, wake up, go back to your room and sleep."
"Hmm, it's a new year, please take care of me." Yan Shi got up groggily, his eyes barely open, and started to walk forward after saying that.
Zhuang Zhao quickly reached out to catch her to prevent her from bumping into the coffee table.
Yan regained consciousness at 7 a.m. on the first day of the Lunar New Year.
"What is this thing? It's hard." Yan Shi reached out to touch the culprit that had disturbed her sleep, and tried to push it aside, but she couldn't finish pushing it aside after a while. Frustrated, she got up and took a look.
Wow, there was a handful of red beans in the quilt, rolling around everywhere, and there were some under the pillow too. Besides the red beans, there was also an envelope.
That's strange. Could it be heading in a fantasy direction?
The envelope was addressed to "To Yan Shi," and inside was a fragrant piece of paper.
She read the four or five lines several times before she was sure she hadn't misunderstood.
Is this a love letter? Is this a confession? How should she respond?
Play dumb and wait for him to ask? Accept it willingly? Refuse it politely?
The problem is that she has no idea whether she loves him or not.
Yan Shi scratched his hair, groaned in frustration, and then pulled the blanket over his head to continue sleeping.
Some people say she's like a tortoise, living her life in her safe shell, only venturing out for a stroll when she's in a good mood, and immediately retreating back in if anything happens.
But all she's good at is hiding.
I couldn't sleep because I had something on my mind, and my shoulders were cold from tossing and turning.
"Forget it, let's just give up."
Yan Shi got up and washed up. After standing by the wardrobe for a long time, she finally put on her comfortable plush pajamas.
"Happy New Year, Sister! May your life be prosperous and successful!" As soon as she stepped out of her room, she saw Zhuang Zhao busy in the kitchen. She glanced at him but couldn't see his expression clearly. She didn't dare to look at him a second time, afraid of making eye contact.
"Hmm, Happy New Year, what are you doing?"
"Red bean pie, red bean porridge, red bean steamed cake, plus the leftover fish from last night."
"Wow, this is quite a feast!" Yan Shi laughed awkwardly, wondering why it was all red beans.
"Sister, go feed Xiao Hei and Hei Hei. It was very windy last night, so I let Hei Hei in."
"Okay, I'll go right away."
Zhuang Zhao caught a glimpse of Yan Shi's fleeing figure and knew exactly what was going on.
Let's bring it up after we finish eating, otherwise she won't be able to eat properly.
Some people, if you don't push them, they won't budge an inch even in a hundred years.
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