Chapter 82 (First Update)
No sooner had the sparrow left than Luo Yan darted into the shop.
She certainly knew how to enjoy herself. She rummaged through the cupboard for some food, sat down to pour herself a cup of tea, and opened the book she always carried with her to read.
After Luo Hong finished fixing the tire, he had a moment to say to her, "Weren't you supposed to have a full schedule? Why are you here again?"
Luo Yan said matter-of-factly, "The library is too crowded; it's not as comfortable as here."
"I'm not feeling well," Luo Hong kicked her, "Don't finish it all."
Luo Yan defiantly popped a whole piece of mung bean cake into her mouth, her cheeks bulging, looking like she was choking.
Luo Hong mocked her, "You tried to steal a chicken but failed."
Luo Yan didn't have time to argue with him. She kept chewing, and when she couldn't swallow anymore, she took a couple of sips of tea to soothe herself, then pounded her chest.
Luo Hong laughed even harder, only stopping when his sister kicked him.
Luo Yan glared angrily and said, "By the way, I'll be walking with you tonight."
Luo Hong: "Why?"
Luo Yan: "I have to rehearse after school, and I don't know what time it will end. If he takes me back, I'm afraid he'll lock the door when I get back to the dormitory."
With her voice, she's supposed to be the lead singer? Luo Hong said, "Stop practicing, it's really embarrassing."
Luo Yan was also very self-aware, but she slightly raised her chin and said, "I don't rely on singing well."
Yes, yes, I know she's beautiful.
But Luo Hong never looked at his sister with the same eyes a man has for a woman; he always felt that she was still that little girl who cried her eyes out.
He said, "It's alright."
Tch, Luo Yan ignored him and glanced at her watch: "I'm going to buy food."
Luo Hong has a dish he wants to eat today: "I'd like some braised tofu."
Luo Yan agreed and walked across the street to the small restaurant with her lunchbox.
After buying her peaches, she came out and was surprised to find a tricycle selling peaches. She exclaimed, "Grandma, how much are these?"
The peaches at this time of year are the first harvest, and they sell for about the same price as meat.
The old man said, "Six cents a pound."
Wow, that's expensive! Luo Yan is an expert at eating peaches, but not so good at picking them.
She glanced at it hesitantly, and the old man had already stuffed several into his straw bag: "Mine are sure to be sweet. If they're not, come back and find me."
Luo Yan felt embarrassed to refuse, and thinking that it looked pretty good, she said, "Okay, then please weigh it."
When weighed, it cost two yuan and thirty cents.
Luo Yan sensed something was wrong, but looking at the old man's simple face, she couldn't quite put her finger on it, and slowly took out her money.
Before he could even take it out, Zhou Xiuhe, who was just coming out of the post office and passing by, cut in and handed over a ten-yuan note: "Here you go."
Luo Yan recognized Zhou Xiuhe's voice.
I turned my head to look at him. In that short moment, the stall owner had already given me my change.
Zhou Xiuhe took the money and peaches and smiled, "Let's go."
He walked in front, and Luo Yan walked behind him; the two of them went into the store together.
Luo Hong was dozing on the recliner when he heard footsteps. He opened his eyes, sat up straight, and greeted, "Little Zhou is here."
Zhou Xiuhe: "Brother Luo."
He's not here to see me, and I reckon he'd find it annoying to exchange a few more pleasantries.
Luo Hong simply asked if they had eaten and if they wanted to eat together, fulfilling his polite request before picking up his chopsticks.
Luo Yan washed a peach for him: "Try it, it was so sweet when I ate it yesterday."
Zhou Xiuhe had just finished eating. He took a bite, thinking he was too full to taste anything, then took another bite and said, "It's quite sweet."
Really? Luo Yan stopped eating and took a shower herself.
Zhou Xiuhe assumed it was just bad luck, but then he saw her frown after biting into it and say, "Isn't it sweet either?"
"Also?" Luo Yan: "Didn't you say it was sweet?"
She picked out a large, round one from the bag and presented it to him like a treasure. How could Zhou Xiuhe bear to say it wasn't delicious?
He hesitated slightly, but Luo Yan already knew the answer. She blinked her big eyes at him and said, "Let's go find her."
Huh? Zhou Xiuhe wasn't very good at this, after all, the old lady looked quite old.
He said, "It's okay, I'll eat these. I'll buy you some more later."
It wasn't about who ate the peaches; Luo Yan was a little unhappy. Then she remembered something else and asked, "Brother, do you think this weighs four pounds?"
Four pounds? Luo Hong put down his chopsticks: "Where did you buy it? I'll go find them."
Luo Yan wanted to point it out to him, but found that the tricycle was gone. She put her hands on her hips and said, "This is outrageous!"
A female student like her, who seems easy to talk to, would be lucky to fall for her tricks three to five times a year.
Luo Hong had stood up for his sister for a long time, saying, "Call me next time you see her."
Zhou Xiuhe watched the siblings talking and thought to himself that it was unnecessary.
He was an only child, and his parents were both working, traveling by train all year round. Every month, they would send a large portion of their salary to their son. He didn't lack money, and he felt that it would be undignified to argue with them, so he hesitated to speak.
Luo Yan didn't have time to look at him; she was speaking indignantly to her brother.
Luo Hong noticed this, and with his fingers tracing patterns on the table, he interrupted, "If you don't eat soon, you'll be late."
This reminded Zhou Xiuhe: "Our class has rehearsal, I'm leaving now."
She picked up the remaining peaches and said, "Don't be upset, I'll eat them."
Luo Yan felt this wouldn't do, but not wanting him to be late, she simply waved goodbye and ate the unsweet peach with a bitter taste.
After everyone left, Luo Hongcai asked his sister, "What are you thinking about?"
Luo Yan: "I'm not unhappy."
She was indeed frowning over the matter at this moment, but it didn't affect her emotions much. Instead, it was Zhou Xiuhe's way of handling it that made her uncomfortable, but she couldn't say anything because it was someone else's money that was spent.
Luo Hong could guess about 70-80% of his sister's thoughts. He wasn't speaking up for anyone, but simply stating the facts: "Xiao Zhou is a scholar, and I don't think he's the type to argue with people."
Luo Yan thought of Wang Tongguang after a long time, wondering why she didn't want to associate with him just because he showed a little excessive politeness. But when it came to Zhou Xiuhe, she felt it was understandable and couldn't help but accept her brother's explanation, wanting to exonerate him.
She posed the question to her brother, Luo Hong, who couldn't bring himself to say anything sarcastic, and simply replied, "If you're willing, then so be it."
Luo Yan translated it herself and felt it sounded more like "Who told you to like him?" Feeling a little embarrassed, she threw the peach pit into the trash can, picked up her bowl, finished eating, and went to school.
After class ended at 8 p.m., the class monitor organized the whole class to rehearse in the classroom. Everyone didn't stand in formation, they just kept singing.
The security guards came to urge them, "Student, we need to lock the door now."
The squad leader had just started to feel like he was getting the hang of it when he regretfully said, "Everyone, please come early tomorrow."
He added, "Day students, be careful on your way home, especially girls. Remember to walk in groups."
Beijing is much more lively at night in the summer, and the streets are not too deserted at this time.
If it were Luo Yan walking home alone after school, she would also dare to go home.
She picked up her bag and walked outside, where she met Zhou Xiuhe in the bicycle shed.
No one knows how long he's been waiting here; he's passing the time by pinching the mosquito bites on his arm with his fingernails.
Luo Yan wanted to ask him what he was doing there, but because there were other people around, she pretended to be studying the car lock.
Zhou Xiuhe found her adorable. Seeing a glimmer of an opening, he quickly pulled a bag of peaches from his backpack and said, "Here you go, they're absolutely sweet."
He had classes in the evening, and the fruit shop near the school gate closed early, so he didn't know where he bought the fruit; his forehead was covered in sweat.
Luo Yan took a tissue and wiped his forehead lightly, saying:
"stupid."
Zhou Xiuhe grinned foolishly, "Shall I take you back?"
Luo Yan agreed and told her brother when she passed the shop before heading home.
Zhou Xiuhe followed her at a distance, then rode faster to catch up at a certain intersection. Remembering something, he asked, "Who was that boy in the shop yesterday?"
Luo Yan: "You've met Zhou Weifang before."
It was winter that time, and everyone was wearing thick layers of clothing. Zhou Xiuhe hadn't been staring at the person the whole time, but now he said, "So this is what he looks like."
Her tone seemed a little strange. Luo Yan asked, "What's wrong?"
Zhou Xiuhe: "It's nothing, I was just asking."
Regardless of whether the faint hostility he sensed from Zhou Weifang yesterday was a misperception, as long as Luo Yan's expression remained normal when mentioning this person, that was fine.
Curiosity is a natural human trait.
Luo Yan accepted this explanation and quickly said goodbye to him at the alley entrance.
Zhou Xiuhe was afraid that the dormitory would be locked when he got back, so he rushed back to school without stopping, his back view showing a strong drive.
Luo Yan looked at him twice but he didn't turn around. She thought to herself, "He must be in a real hurry." She rode her bike home.
When her daughter came in carrying peaches, Liu Yinfeng couldn't help but laugh: "Alright, you don't need to eat for the next couple of days, I'll let you eat your fill."
Luo Yan immediately noticed the peaches on the table and asked, "Mom, how much did you pay for them?"
Liu Yinfeng, the person in charge and an expert, said, "Fifty-three cents."
This is outrageous! Luo Yan complained to her mother, "Today I..."
My daughter has a personality that's very forgiving; she can't stand being wronged, but when she's in a confrontation with someone, she can't be assertive and always has to be polite and courteous.
Liu Yinfeng knew this too, so she said a few words to coax her.
Luo Yan just complained a bit, then couldn't wait to wash another peach and sit in the yard to eat it—the one Zhou Xiuhe had given her.
She took a bite, and the juice slid down her wrist. Perhaps Wangcai and Laifu smelled the aroma, and came over wagging their tails.
Luo Yan raised her hand high: "I can't share this with you."
The puppy didn't understand, it just kept whining and showing its soft belly.
Luo Yan had no choice but to bite off a small piece: "That's all!"
That little bit wasn't even enough to fill a puppy's teeth, so they took advantage of it and lay on the ground spinning around.
Luo Yan had no choice but to eat quickly so that they could see that her hands were empty.
The puppy sniffed around, its eyes clearly showing disappointment, and dejectedly went back to its kennel.
"This is getting sentient!" Luo Yan laughed. "I'll share it with you next time."
Wash your hands, go home to get your clothes and basin, and then go to the public bathhouse.
No matter the season, public bathhouses are always hotspots for news. Luo Yan could tell from the sound of her mother arguing with someone that day, so she asked her when she got home.
Liu Yinfeng showed her daughter her healthy arms and legs, saying, "What could possibly happen to your mother? Could Chen Xiangyun possibly beat me?"
That's what she said, Luo Yan added, "I reckon my brother will need to know too."
When the rumors reached his son's ears, he must have felt immense pressure, if nothing else.
Liu Yinfeng, who gave birth to the child herself, knew the truth and said, "He definitely won't mention it when he comes back, so let's just pretend we don't know anything."
Luo Yan listened to her mother and went back to her room to read. Sleepiness slowly crept in, and just before she fell asleep, she thought: Why hasn't my brother come back yet?
Luo Hong, whom she was thinking about, had actually closed his shop long ago, but she ran into He Lei and Li Jianjun as soon as she entered the alley.
He Lei knew about what happened today, and felt quite guilty, so he insisted on dragging Luo Hong out for a late-night snack.
The two of them were close, and they were supporting each other from both sides, so Luo Hong couldn't refuse. Right now, they're having a drink at a small restaurant at the entrance of the alley.
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Author's note: The second update is in production.
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