Chapter 42 (Second Update)
Luo Yan had just left when Luo Hong, who had just finished get off work, passed by the car dealership.
He didn't even get out of the car, but barged straight open the curtain, seemingly in a hurry, and stretched out his hand: "Give me the question."
Zhou Weifang: "Not needed today."
He said "no need," not "there is none."
But Luo Hong didn't notice the subtle difference. He pushed off the ground with his legs to make the car back up: "Let's go."
Zhou Weifang called out to him, "No need for tomorrow either."
Luo Hong, however, was in no hurry to leave and advised him, "If you're going to learn, then persevere. Don't let Yan Yan think you're giving up halfway."
With his younger sister on his left and his childhood friend on his right, he had always hoped that the two of them could get along well, but he knew that he couldn't force it. Now that he had the opportunity, he was trying his best to "bring them together".
Zhou Weifang thought to himself, "You have no idea how determined I am to study," and said, "No, it's because she's coming to talk to us the day after tomorrow."
Hmm? Luo Hong: "She told you she'd be coming the day after tomorrow?"
Zhou Weifang: "Yes, she just passed by the door."
Where else could he pass by? Luo Hong couldn't figure it out. His only discovery was: "Why is your chin all red and purple?"
Zhou Weifang: "That's safflower oil."
Good heavens, what a precious person.
Luo Hong: "I can't tell if you have a sprain or a broken bone."
If Zhou Weifang hadn't been holding a wrench, he would have thrown it at him: "Believe it or not, I'll smash your bones."
Luo Hong leaned his upper body on the handlebars and continued to tease, "Your face is worth a lot of money; you should wear makeup."
What's it worth? Zhou Weifang: "Are you going to give me money?"
Luo Hong clicked his tongue, truly living up to his sister's words.
"Big Mouth" commented, "Yanyan said that when you opened your business, many girls from No. 4 Middle School came specifically to see you."
Zhou Weifang's heart skipped a beat: "I thought Luo Yan thought I was good-looking."
Luo Hong shattered his illusion: "No, but I would say you're quite capable, no, impressive, but that doesn't seem right either, what was the exact quote again?"
Zhou Weifang almost ran over and shook his head to make him remember, gripping the wrench: "What is it?"
Luo Hong shrugged: "I forgot, but anyway, it was a compliment."
After saying that, he actually left, leaving Zhou Weifang standing there, scratching his head in frustration. Finally, he said fiercely, "I'll endure it."
What can I do if I can't bear it? Should I offend him at this critical juncture?
Luo Hong had no idea that he could be released without charge despite committing such a heinous crime, and continued riding home.
He ran into a childhood friend at the courtyard gate, stopped to chat for a bit, and suddenly felt that the friend's gaze was strange. He noticed a shadow beside him and turned around to look: "What are you doing here?"
Luo Yan thought to herself, "I'm holding a washbasin, isn't it obvious enough?"
She greeted the others first, then punched her brother, saying, "I'm going over there."
Luo Hong stepped aside and "complained" to his childhood friend, "This girl has quite a temper now."
Childhood friend: "Don't act innocent after getting a good deal. Who has a younger sister as obedient as Yanzi?"
Obeying? It's hard to say who will obey whom.
Luo Hong drawled, "It's a long story."
His childhood friend punched him back, said something like "Let's sit here another day" before leaving.
Luo Hong parked his bicycle in the yard, looked into the house through the open door, and asked, "Mom, how much work did you do today?"
Liu Yinfeng spent the whole day rearranging the furniture in the living room, then put her hands on her hips and said, "Doesn't it feel much more spacious now?"
Luo Hong: "The largest black and white TV is only 18 inches. How much space would it take up for you?"
Liu Yinfeng: "If the neighbors want to come and see, we have to give them a place to sit."
How farsighted! Luo Hong: "When will the TV arrive?"
Liu Yinfeng turned her gaze to her husband: "You'll have to ask your father."
Luo Xinmin: "I'll definitely let you find someone before the Chinese New Year."
Wait, what does that mean?
Luo Hong astutely pointed out: "So this TV is only for my mom to watch, not for us?"
That brat, he's always trying to find loopholes in these trivial matters.
Luo Xinmin: "Look, look, the whole family looks together."
Dad has a good temper, but Mom can't hold back.
Luo Hong dodged the rag his mother threw at him and slipped into his sister's room.
Luo Yan was tidying up the wardrobe, her upper body disappearing inside. She didn't turn around even when she heard the noise.
Luo Hong spoke to himself, "What are you doing?"
Luo Yan: "My mom asked me to look for any old clothes I could give away."
Luo Hong: "Who should I give it to?"
Luo Yan: "I didn't ask."
She suddenly turned around: "But I guess it's Tongtong. Her dad is a real scoundrel. He didn't even put a cotton coat on her in this cold weather."
Tongtong's family is a typical case of having a stepmother and a stepfather; who wouldn't feel sorry for such a young girl?
Luo Hong: "Find two nicer ones, something warmer."
“The new ones are all too big. She’s only ten years old. How can she wear them?” She rummaged through the clothes and found only one. She held it up to herself and said, “This one is just right.”
She gave him a questioning look, and Luo Hong honestly shook his head: "How can I know what size clothes a ten-year-old should wear?"
That's true, asking is pointless.
Luo Yan put this item aside for the time being and rummaged through the closet. Suddenly, she took out everything and piled it all over the bed.
Luo Hong, who was originally sitting in a chair, was forced to move to the corner to make room and said, "I noticed that you don't have many clothes either, they're all just a bunch of odds and ends."
Luo Yan disagreed: "Every single one of them is meaningful."
What does it mean? Luo Hong picked one up casually: "Your hair clip is broken."
Luo Yan: "That was a birthday present my dad bought for me."
Speaking of birthdays, Luo Hong said, "I hardly ever celebrated my birthday when I was a child."
Luo Yan sneered: "That's because you always take advantage of the fact that you won't get beaten up on your birthday every year and do whatever you want."
Luo Hong: "In the end, they all got beaten up."
The reasons varied, but upon closer examination, none of them were unjust.
"That's what you deserve."
Luo Yan knew her brother's "crimes" like the back of her hand; she could rattle off a thousand or eight hundred of them in one go.
Luo Hong dared not provoke her, and stretched out his hand with his five fingers spread: "Stop, don't bring up old grievances."
Luo Yan put her hands on her hips: "You have new grievances too? Tell me, did you get into an argument with someone at the factory?"
It all happened in the last couple of days. Luo Hong had anticipated that nothing stays secret forever, but he hadn't expected his sister to find out first. He asked in surprise, "How did you know?"
Luo Yan: "I just ran into Aunt Liu at the bathhouse. Guess when Mom will find out at the latest?"
Luo Hong retorted, "You know how annoying Wang the Bald is."
Luo Yan knew perfectly well: "Let's argue, you didn't even tell me. I always tell you everything right away."
Luo Hong felt guilty, and when his sister added, "You must have told Zhou Weifang," he laughed out loud: "No, you've been holding a grudge for all these years?"
The biggest reason Luo Yan disliked Zhou Weifang when she was a child was that she always felt that he was competing with her for her brother's affections, and for a long time, her brother was even more friendly to her.
She still feels wronged when she thinks about it now, saying, "It's because you always hang out with him and never include me."
Can we still have fun with her? Luo Hong: "To be fair, you also bear some responsibility."
Then, in a gentle tone, she said, "There's a secret that only you in the whole world know."
Luo Yan had too much leverage over her brother and didn't immediately know what he was referring to.
Luo Hong reminded him of one word: "Cheng".
Luo Yan: "He didn't even know about this?"
While secretly pleased, she remembered that it was her brother's scar, and her expression turned slightly somber.
Luo Hong didn't really care anymore, saying, "He doesn't even know where I keep my money."
Luo Yan scoffed: "He wouldn't even bother with your paltry sums."
Luo Hong received his first dividend, and the vast majority of it was used to repay his sister's principal.
The little he kept for himself, he gave to his mother this morning to buy a TV, and now he says, "You're wrong, there's not even a penny left."
Luo Yan pulled out fifty cents: "Here you go, keep the change."
It was enough for two lunches in the cafeteria, and Luo Hong wasn't embarrassed about taking his sister's money; he happily stuffed it into his pocket.
Seeing that she was still rummaging through drawers and cabinets, he said, "I'm going out, there's nowhere to stand here."
Luo Yan looked around and finally realized that her impulsive tidying up was a mistake.
It took her most of the night just to put all those things back in neatly. She collapsed onto the bed, too exhausted to move, and when she woke up again it was already lunchtime.
As Liu Yinfeng watched her daughter leave the room, she said, "I was worried you wouldn't get up, so I went in to wake you."
I'm worried that she'll oversleep during the day and won't know how late she'll stay up tonight.
Luo Yan yawned, leaning against the door frame: "I'm exhausted after a whole night."
Liu Yinfeng: "My brother said you didn't go to sleep until after 3 a.m., and told me not to wake you."
She was knitting a sweater in her hands: "You can leave it aside and do it again today, it's the same."
Luo Yan: "That would make me feel bad."
Liu Yinfeng couldn't do anything about her daughter's temper: "Eat some biscuits first, I'll cook after I finish these two injections."
Luo Yan's stomach was growling with hunger, and after washing up, she snuggled up to her mother and acted spoiled.
The mother and daughter chatted casually when Liu Yinfeng suddenly remembered: "Yingying came to see you this morning."
Luo Yan patted the cookie crumbs off her hands: "Then I'll go find her to play after I finish eating."
He took a sip of tea and said, "Then I won't be able to do my homework until tonight."
Liu Yinfeng patted her daughter's thigh and said, "Mom gets a headache just looking at you now."
He's obsessed with his homework all the time; it's driving him crazy.
Luo Yan stuck out her tongue and didn't dare to reply. She thought to herself: Anyway, there are only two pages left. Maybe I should finish writing and then go play with my friends?
But she had a gut feeling that Chen Yingying must have something to talk to her about, so she put the homework aside. She vaguely felt that she had missed something, but she probably hadn't slept enough and couldn't remember it at all.
At this moment, Zhou Xiuhe was looking around the library, holding onto the "see you tomorrow" that she had forgotten.
After a morning, he finally realized that it was probably just polite talk, and sighed as if it had nothing to do with him.
-----------------------
Author's note: Wishing you a happy weekend!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com