Chapter 58 The Park
That evening, Luo Yan told her brother that she was going to Beihai Park with Zhou Xiuhe the next day.
Luo Hong, being perceptive, immediately noticed: "When did you two make this appointment?"
Luo Yan's eyes darted around, finally settling on the tips of her shoes: "I went to the train station today."
"Very well," Luo Hong sneered, "I didn't even ask you to pick me up when I came back from the countryside."
The train station was a chaotic place, and almost every train was late. Not wanting his family to wait in vain, he deliberately didn't tell them his arrival time.
Luo Yan quickly explained, "He didn't ask me to go; I just suddenly ran off on my own."
As expected, daughters grow up and leave home, Luo Hong was even more annoyed, but as usual he instructed: "You must be home when it gets dark, and you are not allowed to go to places where there are no people."
Luo Yan also knew the meaning of "one should always be wary of others," which is why she always told her brother before going anywhere and nodded emphatically twice.
Luo Hong felt a little relieved, then took out five yuan from his pocket: "Take this and spend it tomorrow."
Luo Yan, with the money in her pocket, gave her brother a fawning smile and even served him food during the meal.
Luo Hong gave her a disdainful look and let out a cryptic laugh.
The siblings were playing riddles again. Their parents exchanged a glance but didn't ask. They only asked, "Yanyan, are you starting school the day after tomorrow?"
Luo Yan: "Yes, we'll pick up the textbooks the day after tomorrow morning, and classes will start in the afternoon."
Liu Yinfeng only felt the New Year holiday was over when her daughter started school.
She said, "I don't know if I'll have a lot of classes this semester."
Luo Hong chimed in, "She can't stay idle either."
That's true, Liu Yinfeng encouraged: "Go out and have fun with your classmates more often."
Upon hearing this, Luo Hong let out a strange laugh, which drew more attention to him from his parents.
Liu Yinfeng: "Why are you being so sarcastic?"
Luo Hong shrugged: "Because that's the kind of person I am."
Liu Yinfeng thought about it and agreed, so she ignored him and continued eating her meal.
Luo Hong felt a bit bored, so he went to tease his sister again, and finally felt better after being stepped on.
After finishing her meal, Luo Yan gestured with her brother for a bit before returning to her room to study. Suddenly remembering something, she ran to him again and said, "Did you ask Zhou Weifang?"
Luo Hong slapped his forehead: "I was too busy today, I forgot."
No wonder he didn't mention it when he got home. Luo Yan pouted and said, "Never mind, I'll ask him myself tomorrow."
She arrived at the car dealership early the next morning. Zhou Weifang was eating a steamed bun, which was about the size of his fist. He stuffed it into his mouth and couldn't swallow or spit it out when he saw her come in. He could only frantically gesture for her to sit down first.
Luo Yan was afraid he would choke, so she sat down and said, "Eat slowly."
My right hand was already clenched, ready to deliver a punch when he choked.
Zhou Weifang sensed a hint of eagerness in his eyes, and after struggling to swallow the steamed bun, he asked, "Why do I feel like you really want to hit me?"
Luo Yan shook her head with her hands behind her back: "No."
To make his words seem more believable, he stared with innocent-looking big eyes.
Zhou Weifang took a sip of water and raised an eyebrow: "Really?"
Luo Yan put on airs: "I'm here today on important business."
As soon as the conversation turned to business, Zhou Weifang knew it was about the continuing education program: "I'll still sign up for the one with classes twice a week."
Luo Yan went to the school a couple of days ago to check the announcement for him and said, "Okay, I'm starting school the day after tomorrow, I'll help you register then."
Zhou Weifang reached into his pocket to get her the tuition fee: "Thank you for your help."
He then said, "Since you're already here, could you help me with a couple of questions?"
Luo Yan had something to do in the afternoon, so she nodded and said, "Okay."
She talked for quite a while, and seeing that it was almost lunchtime, Zhou Weifang simply said, "Let's eat lunch here."
Luo Yan: "No need, I'll eat at home."
Seeing that he couldn't keep her, Zhou Weifang took out a box of cookies from the cabinet: "Here, take this."
Luo Yan felt perfectly justified in running errands for him, and put the item in the bicycle basket, saying, "Let's go."
She arrived home panting, just in time for lunch.
Liu Yinfeng came out of the kitchen with the dishes and saw her daughter, saying, "What a coincidence."
Luo Yan could sit down and eat after washing her hands, glancing at her watch as she ate.
Liu Yinfeng didn't notice, only that she ate unusually fast today. It wasn't until she saw her finish eating and immediately go to change into pretty clothes that she realized: "Do you have something to do this afternoon?"
Luo Yan braided her hair in front of the mirror, then turned her head slightly and said, "I've made plans to go to the park with a classmate."
"Classmate?" Liu Yinfeng understood: "The boy who wrote the letter?"
Luo Yan nodded slightly twice, then turned her face to show her mother: "Is it okay to wear this?"
Liu Yinfeng: "My daughter looks good in anything."
He added, "You have to be home when it gets dark, understand?"
Luo Yan obediently agreed, smiling as she said, "Goodbye, Mom."
As her daughter swung her braids out the door, Liu Yinfeng sighed with emotion: "She actually figured things out before her brother!"
She wanted to roll her eyes at her son as soon as she heard this, and then she cleaned up the dining table.
Luo Yan was unaware that her brother had been "implicated" by her again. She walked to the alley entrance to wait for the bus and arrived at the park entrance fifteen minutes earlier than agreed.
Zhou Xiuhe had already arrived and waved to her.
Luo Yan hopped two steps forward to stand in front of him, pulled her scarf down a little, and looked at him, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping herself.
Zhou Xiuhe: "What's wrong?"
Luo Yan thought for a moment and said, "Next time you go out, don't arrive too early. I'm afraid people will have to wait for me."
Zhou Xiuhe arrived early to show he valued her, and since she didn't like it, he naturally had to change it: "Okay, I'll be on time from now on."
Seeing that he looked unharmed, Luo Yan breathed a sigh of relief.
She has always felt that clear communication between people is better, but the essence of language is tact, and she often struggles because she can't grasp the right balance. But now she feels that Zhou Xiuhe should be able to say whatever he wants, but she can't help but wonder if he will be unhappy with a straightforward way of communicating.
Zhou Xiuhe certainly wouldn't, and even breathed a sigh of relief, after all, the caution that came with liking someone had left him feeling quite at a loss.
He said, "Luo Yan, just tell me what you like and dislike."
Luo Yan smiled and nodded, then distanced herself from him a little.
Young men and women are not allowed to get too close in the park, otherwise the security guards will come over immediately. But this distance adds to the ambiguity, and even the shadows on the ground seem to overlap.
The two walked slowly around the lake, talking as they went.
Zhou Xiuhe: "I finished reading the letter yesterday."
Luo Yan laughed: "Luckily I didn't write much, otherwise what time would you have gone to sleep?"
She felt that the number of words reflected sincerity, explaining, "I'm basically at home every day, so there's not much I can write."
Zhou Xiuhe: "I only went back for ten days, and I was out running around every day."
He mentioned having a reunion with classmates, relatives visiting from Hong Kong, and the bustling night markets of Guangzhou.
The things mentioned in those letters were brought up again, with countless details added.
Luo Yan listened intently: "Guangzhou seems like a lot of fun."
Zhou Xiuhe: "It's fun, there's lots of delicious food, and it's not cold at all, unlike Beijing."
As soon as it gets cold, a gust of wind blows over.
Luo Yan rubbed her hands together: "It's March now, and a sandstorm is about to hit."
Zhou Xiuhe had only ever seen the term "sandstorm" in books: "Is it that powerful?"
Luo Yan: "When you spit out a mouthful of ash, at the worst you can't even see a meter away."
What kind of weather is this? Zhou Xiuhe couldn't help but praise his hometown, but then he changed the subject: "It's hot, the summer sun is unbearable."
Luo Yan looked at his face thoughtfully.
Zhou Xiuhe immediately understood what he meant and said, "After the college entrance exam, I played basketball outside every day, otherwise I would have been quite fair-skinned."
Really? Luo Yan slightly raised her chin, probably to express "Can you be as white as me?"
From this angle, her facial features were more defined, and her cheeks looked like soft steamed buns. Zhou Xiuhe suppressed the urge to poke her and said, "Of course, I'm not as fair-skinned as you."
Luo Yan: "I don't go out much, so I don't get much sun. Do you really like playing basketball?"
Zhou Xiuhe: "Yeah, everyone in my dorm fought, right there on that little playground on the east side of the school."
The small playground? Luo Yan unconsciously punched her thigh twice: "I think I've only walked through there twice."
Zhou Xiuhe saw this and suggested, "Why don't we sit down for a while?"
The two found a pavilion in the middle of the lake and sat facing each other. Luo Yan stretched her legs out a little, put her hands on the stone bench behind her, and leaned her shoulders slightly forward.
Zhou Xiuhe noticed that she was dressed in very little clothing: "Aren't you cold?"
The weather is nice today, and the sun is shining brightly. Luo Yan said, "I'm almost sweating from walking."
She looked to her left at two creatures that looked like ducks swimming in the lake, and to her right at the bare trees, but somehow she wouldn't look at the people on the other side.
Zhou Xiuhe had been watching her the whole time, and after a moment of silence, he asked, "Are you free on Sunday?"
There are no classes on Sundays, but Luo Yan has always prioritized her studies, saying, "I usually spend Sundays in the school library."
The school library was so crowded after the start of the semester that you could run into a familiar classmate every three steps. Zhou Xiuhe secretly wanted to be closer to her, so he asked, "Do you want to go to the city library?"
Luo Yan: "Locations at the city map are hard to secure."
Zhou Xiuhe said firmly, "No, I'll save you a seat."
Luo Yan disliked taking up space the most and hesitated, "Wouldn't that be too much trouble?"
Zhou Xiuhe repeatedly denied it: "No, no, not at all."
But he didn't deny his own thoughts: "As long as you can come."
Luo Yan nodded, offering herself an excuse: "The city library has more books than the school library."
Zhou Xiuhe echoed, and inexplicably started laughing foolishly again.
His smile made Luo Yan feel embarrassed, as if something deep inside her was breaking through the soil and was completely out of her control.
She lightly kicked Zhou Xiuhe's shoe: "Don't laugh."
Zhou Xiuhe immediately pursed his lips: "See you at the city library next Sunday morning at nine o'clock."
He added, "But we should also have a chance to meet at school."
Luo Yan, who was used to being a good student, suddenly became a little nervous: "We shouldn't talk at school."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Xiuhe stared at her intently.
Luo Yan was bewildered by his gaze, and then belatedly realized: the school only cares about those who are dating, and they aren't even dating yet, so his words seemed to imply that she should date him.
She had no intention of doing that yet, and suddenly stood up: "I'm going home."
Zhou Xiuhe assured him, "Don't worry, I will absolutely not let the teacher know."
Luo Yan dared not ask him what the "thing not to be known by the teacher" was, and pretended to be looking for directions: "Which way is the gate?"
Zhou Xiuhe pointed and said, "There."
Luo Yan walked forward with a thud, noticing out of the corner of her eye that a shadow was following closely behind her.
Zhou Xiuhe walked her to the bus stop and handed her the whole bag: "This is a gift I brought for you. It's a bit heavy. Shall I take you home?"
Luo Yan didn't want to run into any of her neighbors: "I can go back by myself."
She carried the other person's bag on her back, saying, "I'll secretly return it to you tomorrow."
The word "secretly" made Zhou Xiuhe want to laugh, and he even gave her a suggestion: "Just put it in the bicycle basket, and I'll go get it myself."
Sure, Luo Yan rarely had such moments of "keeping a secret." Her heart was pounding, and she was also quite excited.
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Author's note: Second update tomorrow!
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