Chapter 43 See you tomorrow
After lunch, Luo Yan rode her bicycle to find the Chen family.
Chen Yingying was sitting in the sun at the courtyard gate when she saw her rushing over from afar. She spread her arms to block her way, shouting, "Yanyan!!"
Luo Yan quickly slammed on the brakes: "I couldn't stop in time and I hit you."
Chen Yingying giggled, "I've been waiting for you."
Luo Yan: "You should have woken me up this morning."
A knock on the door will definitely wake you up.
Chen Yingying: "It's rare for you to sleep in late, and it's not something that's in a rush."
Her eyes sparkled with excitement. Luo Yan, trying to figure out what was going on, asked, "Are we going to your house or somewhere else?"
Chen Yingying: "Wait a minute, I'll push a cart, and we'll go to Beihai."
Beihai Park? Luo Yan: "I haven't been there yet."
The place only reopened two months ago, and it also houses the Fangshan Restaurant, which offers a menu full of imperial dishes, with prices comparable to those of restaurants in Beijing.
Chen Yingying highly recommended: "It's a lot of fun, we can go up the White Pagoda."
Luo Yan casually asked, "When did you go? Why didn't you call me?"
Chen Yingying lowered her head, and whether it was from blowing or something else, her ears were red.
Luo Yan realized: "You went with him?"
This "he" is He Jiakun, Chen Yingying's high school classmate.
She blushed at the implied meaning and gently pushed him away, saying, "I'll tell you later."
The two found a quiet spot in the park and sat on a bench to have a long talk.
Luo Yan had already adopted a listening posture, but seeing that her friend didn't move, she nudged her with her shoulder: "Aren't you embarrassed yet?"
Chen Yingying bit her lip, her eyes sparkling, looking every bit the lovesick young girl, one hand touching her scarf: "He gave it to me."
Luo Yan also reached out and touched it: "It's so soft, it doesn't feel cheap."
He then revealed a hint of hesitation: "Didn't you say he..."
Chen Yingying knew what she meant: "Yes, he saved up money for a long time and even tutored people."
He Jiakun comes from an ordinary family, but he excels academically and is currently studying civil engineering at Tsinghua University, where he is said to be among the top students.
As long as a person puts in the effort, it's a good quality.
Luo Yan naturally held high regard for those with good grades, praising, "You've put a lot of effort into this."
Chen Yingying kicked and swung her feet: "Actually, I thought we were going to break up. He rarely contacted me this semester, and I didn't even hear from him during the holidays. But yesterday he suddenly asked me to come out."
“I had it all planned out. If he told me he wouldn’t contact me again, I absolutely couldn’t cry. That would be so embarrassing. But instead, he gave me a gift. That really made me furious. I said, ‘I’m not surprised at all by what you’ve done.’ I felt even more wronged.”
"He clearly cares about me, but he won't tell me what he's been busy with. I thought he was seeing someone else."
She had mentioned this suspicion during their last meeting. Luo Yan added, "Men are all the same, none of them are good people."
She felt embarrassed thinking about it now, scratching her face: "I must never let him know that I also insulted him."
Chen Yingying laughed: "It's okay, I'm the one who scolds the most."
She leaned closer and whispered, "We held hands."
Luo Yan's eyes widened: "Did you go first?"
Chen Yingying raised her chin slightly: "Of course not, I said I was leaving, and he pulled me away himself."
The "cool" tone completely dispelled any semblance of romance.
Luo Yan: "Are you sure you want to lead the way?"
Chen Yingying clasped her hands together and showed her: "It's like this."
Luo Yan followed suit, feeling only her own body temperature, and couldn't help but wonder: "What's it like to be led by a boy?"
Chen Yingying thought for a moment and said, "My heart is beating very fast."
These words sounded so familiar, Luo Yan teased, "When have you ever seen him unhappy?"
Thinking about it, it really is true. Chen Yingying shrugged and said, "Don't just laugh at me. You'll know when you have someone you like."
"Someone you like?" Luo Yan asked, "What would it feel like if you did?"
Chen Yingying couldn't quite describe it either: "I guess I'm happy whenever I see him."
She wasn't really sure either: "Anyway, you'll know once you have it."
Luo Yan chuckled and said, "What's the difference between this and adults always saying, 'You'll understand when you grow up'?"
Chen Yingying: "That's really true."
However, she seemed unable to think of anything either, and said, "I'm really curious what your future partner will be like."
Luo Yan watched a wild duck drift across the water: "I'll tell you first when the time comes."
Being loyal, Chen Yingying muttered something else to herself, and the two sat there until the sunlight disappeared before going home separately.
The wind outside made Luo Yan's nose turn red, and as soon as she got home, she quickly rubbed her hands against the stove.
Liu Yinfeng: "It's going to be even colder tomorrow, remember to wear an extra layer."
Luo Yan nodded in agreement, saying she would do her homework once her hands warmed up.
She had only done a few questions when someone outside called her name.
The voice was unfamiliar, and Luo Yan couldn't recognize who it was, but she still answered loudly, "Coming!"
Liu Yinfeng opened the door before her daughter, and hesitated after seeing who it was.
The other person was also taken aback and asked, "Hello, is this Luo Yan's home?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Luo Yan met the newcomer and said in surprise, "Sister Siqi."
Liu Siqi breathed a sigh of relief: "I thought I had the wrong number."
Luo Yan turned to the side: "That's right, come in and sit down."
Liu Siqi waved his hand: "No need, no need. I came to pick up something. Your brother said he has two bottles of wine in his drawer. Oh, and the note he wrote for you."
My brother's handwriting is terrible, you could even say it's ugly. It's all written in a flamboyant style, and it's just two words: "Give it to her."
This saved Luo Yan the time of thinking and judging, and she said, "Okay, I'll go get it."
Liu Siqi stood outside the door and politely smiled at her colleague's mother.
Liu Yinfeng showed great enthusiasm: "Come in, come in, let me pour you some tea."
Just as Liu Siqi was at a loss, Luo Yan appeared swiftly, raising both hands: "Is it them?"
Liu Siqi: "That's right, then I'll go first, goodbye."
She then politely added, "Goodbye, Auntie."
After the girl left, Liu Yinfeng kept looking at her retreating figure and asked, "Whose daughter is that?"
Luo Yan: "I only know that he is my brother's colleague, and I have seen him when we have dinner together."
Liu Yinfeng couldn't help but inquire, "Are you married?"
Luo Yan called out helplessly, "Mom."
Okay, okay, I won't ask.
Liu Yinfeng: "Anyway, we're going to buy a TV, so I won't rush you."
She finally couldn't hold back: "Are she very close to my brother?"
Luo Yan countered, "When have you ever seen your brother interacting with girls?"
My son has such a bad temper. He's already being quite lenient with his sister, but he still manages to make her jump up and down every day.
Liu Yinfeng gave up completely and continued knitting, muttering "TV, TV."
However, Luo Yan felt that her brother would still be questioned when he came back at night.
What his sister could guess, Luo Hong had naturally anticipated as well.
As soon as he got off work, he saw his mother smiling strangely and saying, "She has a boyfriend."
Liu Yinfeng glared at her son: "Everyone has one, except you."
Luo Hong didn't argue with her. He knocked twice on his sister's door, opened it, and said, "You have to do something for me tomorrow."
Luo Yan turned her head: "What is it?"
Luo Hong handed her the tickets and money: "Go to Heping and buy two bottles of wine to give to Sanfang."
Luo Yan didn't ask them what they wanted to do, feeling that she couldn't sort out all the complicated comings and goings, and just confirmed again: "Is it the kind that Sister Siqi took today?"
Luo Hong nodded: "Yes, don't buy the wrong one."
Luo Yan pouted: "I'm not you."
Then he asked, "Are you in a hurry? Should we go early, or should I decide for myself?"
That's how my sister does things; she has to be clear about every single detail.
Luo Hong: "Just bring the questions you're presenting tomorrow."
Luo Yan opened her palm: "It's a delivery fee; I'm going out to eat tomorrow."
Luo Hong patted his sister's hand: "There will be money left over after buying the wine."
"They're quite self-disciplined," Luo Yan nodded in satisfaction, and readjusted her plans for tomorrow.
She went to the library as usual in the morning, sat down as she always did, and looked to her right, thinking that Zhou Xiuhe had actually arrived later than her today.
Perhaps I slept in too late?
Just as Luo Yan was thinking this, Zhou Xiuhe appeared.
As soon as he entered the library, he looked in Luo Yan's direction, flashed a smile, took a couple of steps forward, and greeted her, "Good morning."
Luo Yan: Good morning.
Zhou Xiuhe hesitated whether to ask her why she didn't come yesterday, but then decided to hold it in, since they weren't familiar with each other yet.
His only slightly bold move was sitting closer to Luo Yan.
It's close by, but there's still room for four or five people to sit in the middle.
From a distance, you could even hear the sound of her turning the pages of a book.
Zhou Xiuhe had never known that his ears were so sensitive that he could tell what Luo Yan was doing from every sound.
He thought to himself that this was not the behavior of a gentleman, and he felt that changing places would be even more impolite, so he forced himself to focus all his attention on the book.
But the more he tried to calm down, the less he could concentrate, and he would close his eyes in an attempt to clear his mind.
Once Luo Yan starts reading, she becomes so engrossed in her book that she is completely unaware of the restlessness of the person next to her.
She didn't realize she needed to rest until her eyes started to feel uncomfortable.
She placed the pen in the middle of the book as a bookmark, stood up, stretched her waist, and took a sip of water. As her gaze drifted left and right, she noticed Zhou Xiuhe watching her. Embarrassed, she put her hands down by her sides and whispered, "Did I disturb you?"
Zhou Xiuhe barely wrote anything all morning: "Nothing."
He kept thinking about what to say next, then pulled a handful of candy from his bag, leaned forward desperately with one hand, and grabbed the table with the other as if afraid it would tip over: "Try this."
Why don't you come over?
Luo Yan felt something was off, but she still reached out and took one: "Thank you."
Zhou Xiuhe: "They're all for you."
Currently, most things still require ration coupons to purchase. According to Beijing's regulations, students from other places do not have a ration coupon for non-staple foods.
The candy in his hand was either sent by his family or bought at a high price at the free ticket window of a department store.
But no matter which possibility it is, Luo Yan cannot take it.
She said, "One is enough for me."
Zhou Xiuhe couldn't force it.
He was raised with such good manners that he inevitably thought things through too much, with the concept of propriety ingrained in his very being. He withdrew his hand and said, "We're all friends, no need to be so polite."
Even though that's what he said, Luo Yan still felt that she had made the atmosphere awkward.
She subconsciously reached into her pockets to look for a return gift, but after a long time she couldn't find anything. She had no choice but to sit down dejectedly and say, "I'll bring you food tomorrow too."
This time it wasn't just a casual remark, was it? Zhou Xiuhe was secretly delighted: "Okay, see you tomorrow."
This makes it sound like some kind of solemn agreement.
Luo Yan thought to herself: I should also find some delicious snacks when I buy the wine later.
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Author's Note: I guess I'm just not cut out for having drafts; the more I read, the less smooth it gets. That's all for today, see you tomorrow!
That's strange, why did the last few lines disappear when I sent it the first time?
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