Chapter 147 Good News
As planned for today, after dinner, Zhou Weifang ordered coffee and a cream cake.
The price of these two items covered the cost of the private room. Luo Yan smiled broadly after taking a bite of the sweet one, but grimaced after taking a sip of the bitter one, finally concluding, "I really can't drink this."
Fortunately, he only ordered one drink. Zhou Weifang moved the glass to his side and said, "It's okay, I'll drink it."
The two were sitting next to each other; if he were to pick it up and drink from it, wouldn't that...?
Even though they had already kissed, Luo Yan still turned the handle of the cup around and handed him a spoonful of cream with another spoon: "Press it down."
Zhou Weifang was also "picky": "I think your spoon is better."
Luo Yan nudged him: "I think you're getting more and more demanding."
Zhou Weifang looked at her still red eyes and said, "There's nothing I can do about it, you spoiled her."
"Hmm?" Luo Yan scolded him playfully, then asked, "Are you coming tomorrow?"
Zhou Weifang: "I'll go pay my taxes tomorrow morning. If I have time, I'll bring you some food."
He seemed genuinely eager to pay this money; he went as soon as he got to work. Luo Yan asked curiously, "Why do I feel like you're looking forward to it?"
Zhou Weifang said with righteous indignation, "Isn't it only right to pay money to the country?"
Luo Yan really couldn't refute it, but she looked him up and down suspiciously.
Zhou Weifang coughed awkwardly twice: "It can't be that I say the calculation is two yuan and fifty cents and they just accept it as two yuan and fifty cents, right? I guess they also need to see the ledger, you know, could you help me check the calculation?"
As the business grows bigger and bigger, he can correct any problems in the accounts as soon as possible.
Luo Yan clapped her hands lightly: "Smart! How come I didn't think of that?"
Zhou Weifang pinched her cheek: "Because you're not a shrewd businessman."
Luo Yan patted him on the shoulder: "Stop talking badly about yourself."
Okay, okay, I won't say anymore.
Zhou Weifang: "What do you want to eat for lunch tomorrow?"
Luo Yan: "I'll bring you lunch. Our cafeteria's new head chef is really good at cooking."
“Then give me your meal ticket and I’ll go queue up,” Zhou Weifang said, seeing her hesitation. “If you go after school, will you still be able to buy one?”
Luo Yan couldn't outrun anyone, and thinking about it, it made sense. She took out three meal tickets from her wallet and counted them out for him: "One ticket can buy two dishes."
After doing the math, he wondered why there would be so much food for three people, so he drew back a card and said, "This is fine."
Holding the two bills, Zhou Weifang imagined her managing all the family's money and giving him pocket money, and laughed out loud: "Our little Yan'er really knows how to manage a household."
Luo Yan: "The rest can be exchanged for money."
Eating in the school cafeteria is cheaper than eating outside, but the supply of a ticket is also limited. Many people don't get enough to eat and have to exchange tickets with classmates who have extra at the end of the month.
Although she doesn't live on campus and can get fewer tickets than students who do, she eats even less at school, so she's always been a big ticket collector.
Zhou Weifang knew she had this habit and gave her a thumbs up: "You've got a knack for making money."
Luo Yan raised her eyebrows: "Of course."
Zhou Weifang complimented her a couple of times, saying, "The cream is about to melt."
Luo Yan ate quickly, and was so full she could barely move. She tilted her head back and asked, "It doesn't seem to say how long the private room can be used?"
After she finished speaking and received no reply, she turned her head to look at him.
Zhou Weifang reached out and ran his fingertip across the corner of her mouth: "A little bit."
Luo Yan tensed up, swallowed hard, and preemptively said, "You weren't even listening to me properly."
Zhou Weifang couldn't accept such a serious accusation: "I'm listening, I'll go ask."
After asking, he came back and said, "Someone booked a place for tonight, saying it can be before five o'clock."
Luo Yan glanced at her watch: "Then there's no rush."
She even began to slowly look around the place, examining the paintings on the walls and the hanging crystal chandelier.
Zhou Weifang: "Do you like this style?"
Luo Yan shook her head slightly: "It looks quite nice outside, but it would take forever to clean it at home."
It looks nice but is useless.
Zhou Weifang: "You don't need to think about whether to wipe it or not, just say whether you like it or not."
Luo Yan looked closely and said, "I don't really like it either; it's too bright for my eyes if I look at it for too long."
The next second, Zhou Weifang covered her eyes with his hand: "Then don't look, your eyes are prone to hurting anyway."
Luo Yan bumped her forehead forward, hitting his palm. For some reason, she found it quite amusing and grabbed his hand to prevent him from dodging.
She bumped into it herself, so she didn't use much force, but because of her fair skin, her forehead soon turned slightly red.
Zhou Weifang: "If I get hit again, it will really hurt."
Luo Yan also found it boring and stopped, remembering something: "How much salary do you pay your sister-in-law?"
This isn't something that can't be said, Zhou Weifang: "Thirty-five yuan, one day off per week."
Perhaps because she had been hearing about the large sums spent on buying houses and tiles lately, Luo Yan didn't think it was a lot, saying, "That seems to be a bit more than Brother Jianjun's."
Zhou Weifang: "He's still an apprentice; he'll be officially hired soon."
This is the case in all factories. For the first three years, you are an apprentice and your salary is only half that of a first-level worker.
Luo Yan secretly told him, "I heard Aunt Li say that if a woman in a family earns more than a man, something bad will happen."
Zhou Weifang, unlike her, was not polite and said bluntly, "Isn't she just trying to sow discord?"
Luo Yan: "I also find it strange. Actually, she was quite nice to my sister-in-law before, but ever since my sister-in-law started working at your store, she has started to find fault with everything."
She really knows very little about human nature. Zhou Weifang said, "She was unhappy because her sister-in-law got better."
Luo Yan really didn't understand: "We're all family. I think she really cares about Hongyu. Couldn't she at least think about the child?"
Zhou Weifang: "Mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law are not related by blood, and even if they are related by blood, it depends on fate."
Speaking of fate, Luo Yan crossed her arms and looked at him: "I had a fight with my brother yesterday."
The siblings argue at least eight times a day. Zhou Weifang said, "Want me to beat him up for you? I'm more than capable of that."
Luo Yan slapped him instead: "You two are in cahoots."
"Huh?" Zhou Weifang touched his arm, looking rather aggrieved: "We haven't been plotting anything lately."
Luo Yan said a few words to him, then put her hands on her hips and said, "You two aren't related by blood, but you're destined to be together. Humph, if I weren't related by blood, I wouldn't have anything."
"Well..." Zhou Weifang thought for a moment, "My future brother-in-law and I are definitely destined to be together. It proves that God had arranged for us to be a family long ago."
After hearing what he said, Luo Yan actually felt that it made sense, and thought to herself: So fate had already made arrangements?
Seeing that she remained silent, Zhou Weifang wondered if this meant she was tacitly agreeing with his description of her as his "future brother-in-law," but he didn't dare to ask and simply kept looking at her.
As she looked at him, Luo Yan raised her eyes and said, "I remember you two became sworn brothers."
Zhou Weifang firmly denied it: "That's impossible, otherwise it would mess up the seniority system."
Look at the cat's guilty look as it steps on its tail. Luo Yan added fuel to the fire: "There is one, but they didn't include me."
Thankfully, she wasn't taken along, and Zhou Weifang clearly remembered: "You ran away as soon as we mentioned swearing a blood oath."
Anyone who doesn't run away is a fool, Luo Yan: "They're all like you two, saying they'll prick themselves with a needle and then doing it. The ten fingers are connected to the heart, how much pain must that hurt?"
Perhaps because he was too thick-skinned as a child, Zhou Weifang didn't really feel it back then, but now his fingertips are twitching, and he rubs them as he says, "I can't prick them now."
She shouldn't have been stabbed in the first place, but Luo Yan brought up some old grievances against him.
Zhou Weifang shook her hand and acted cute to change the subject, and the two of them ended up chatting in the small private room for an entire afternoon.
Luo Yan: "It's better than strolling in the park; I don't feel like a thief."
Zhou Weifang also thought it was good, after all, he had spent quite a bit of time there that afternoon...
He said, "We'll come again next time."
Luo Yan: "Forget it, it's expensive enough."
Zhou Weifang repeatedly said, "It's not expensive, it's not expensive, we have money."
Luo Yan poked his shoulder: "Who says you're 'us'?"
She glanced at her watch: "Let's go, it's almost time."
The two of them carried their belongings and walked out, parting ways at the restaurant entrance.
Zhou Weifang was going to a wedding banquet in a more distant place that evening. Before leaving, he hooked his finger with hers and said, "See you tomorrow."
Luo Yan waved goodbye and slowly rode her bike home.
Seeing that no one was home, she knowingly turned and went to her new house.
The couple were wandering around the empty house when Liu Yinfeng looked at her daughter and said, "Perfect timing, Yanyan, give me some advice. It's really hard to talk to your dad about this."
Luo Yan squeezed between her parents: "What advice do you have?"
Liu Yinfeng: "What color of bricks do you think would be best for paving this floor?"
Luo Yan stroked her chin: "White is brighter, but won't it show dirt too easily? I've seen a lot of people using red lately, but we're going to paint it green anyway, red and green together look silly..."
The mother and daughter had a heated discussion when Luo Xinmin took a step back and said, "You two talk, I'll go back and cook."
Although he only has one hand, he has developed a habit over the years that allows him to cook a meal even if he takes his time.
Liu Yinfeng only told him, "There's still a piece of meat in the refrigerator; you can stir-fry some minced meat."
Chopping things is the most convenient thing for Luo Xinmin. As soon as he got home, he started chopping away. After he finally finished cooking everything, he realized that none of them had come back. He closed the door, intending to go and urge them to come back.
The family of three met at the gate of the courtyard. Luo Yan asked curiously, "Do you run out of oil or salt? I'll go buy some."
Luo Xinmin laughed: "All that's missing is a wife and kids."
Luo Yan was very enthusiastic: "The child is also very hungry."
Luo Xinmin: "It's not as good as your mother's anyway, but it'll do."
Luo Yan has a sweet tongue; after just one bite, she praises it to the skies, and she even treats her mother fairly: "Things are valued for their rarity. My dad only makes it occasionally, which is why I think it tastes better. If he made it every day, my mom's cooking would definitely be better."
Luo Xinmin and his daughter put on a show: "That's right, I only learned what real gourmet food was after I married your mother."
Alright, alright, Liu Yinfeng: "You two, father and daughter, are even doing stand-up comedy now."
Luo Yan chuckled, and after eating, she went to wash her hair and take a shower before sitting in the yard to read.
As she looked around, she saw a shadow in front of her and looked up, asking, "Does Hongyu also want to read?"
Li Yuhong sat on her aunt's lap and, without anyone asking, angrily said, "I'm never playing with them again!"
It seemed she had a falling out with her friends. Luo Yan couldn't help but chuckle: "Okay, then you can play with Auntie from now on."
Zheng Sanmei followed her daughter two steps into the courtyard and called out to her, "Auntie is studying, don't disturb her, come home with me to sleep."
Li Hongyu twisted and turned like a pretzel, probably because she felt she hadn't had enough fun.
Zheng Sanmei didn't care, picked her up and gently patted her bottom: "If you stay in bed late again tomorrow, I'll beat you up."
No matter how much it struggled, it couldn't escape its mother's grasp.
Luo Yan thought to herself: I definitely wouldn't be able to catch it.
But then she thought: My daughter probably wouldn't thrash around like that.
But then she thought again: Zhou Weifang's daughter is another story.
With the addition of the two thoughts, Luo Yan's face flushed. She took a deep breath, shook her head to clear her mind, and calmed herself down to open the book.
She only went back to her room after seeing her brother get off work.
Luo Hong, brushing the dust off his clothes, called out to her, "Is there a boy in your class who is dark-skinned, not very tall, wears glasses, and sounds like he's from Hunan?"
Even if Luo Yan wasn't familiar with anyone in her class, she could still recognize everyone. After thinking for a moment, she said, "No, what's wrong?"
Luo Hong: "He came to buy a bicycle tonight, saying he was your classmate."
Perhaps they thought they could get a discount because they knew someone, so they just made up a name for themselves.
Luo Yan patted her chest and said, "Look how much I've promoted you. Shouldn't you give me a red envelope?"
In the past, Luo Hong would have taken out his wallet, but he was really strapped for cash lately. He said, "I'll put it in the account and send it to you later."
Not only was he broke, but Luo Yan's savings were also wiped out.
She touched her pocket: "How about I become a tutor?"
Luo Hong slapped her forehead: "You'll have plenty of time to work in the future, so stop doing those meaningless things. Besides, you don't even like being a teacher."
Luo Yan muttered under her breath, "But I teach pretty well, and I get paid for it."
Luo Hong solemnly warned: "Don't even think about it. If you have nothing to do, go play."
"Okay, okay," Luo Yan said, hugging her book. "I'm going to sleep."
As his younger sister walked, her hair swayed back and forth. Luo Hong shook his head helplessly: "Her temper has really gotten worse lately."
Luo Yan heard it all and turned around: "Keep your voice down when you're talking badly about people."
Luo Hong: "They won't even let people speak the truth anymore."
Luo Yan rubbed her hands together and gave him a slap: "Serves you right for talking about me."
And you know what? His strength has also improved a lot.
Luo Hong gasped and pretended to hit her: "Today I'm going to show you why the flowers are so red."
Luo Yan immediately hid in the room and closed the door, which couldn't be locked at all.
Luo Hong only made a few threatening remarks from outside. After taking a shower, he remembered something important. Knowing that his sister was definitely not asleep, he knocked on the door and said, "Remember to bring your calligraphy brush tomorrow."
Luo Yan poked her head out: "What are you going to do?"
“I don’t know who took the sign from my door. Now you can put it on the door, and I’d like to see who can lift it.”
Luo Yan calmed down; she had practiced her handwriting diligently. She said, "They must have taken it to use as firewood."
Regardless of what happened, Luo Hong said, "It's all gone anyway."
Luo Yan nodded to indicate that she understood, then turned around and put the things she needed to bring tomorrow into her bag.
She left home earlier than her brother and went to the car dealership to write large characters. Halfway through, she realized she had been led astray and said, "Who will see these characters when the door opens?"
She put away her pen and ink, ran two laps around the school, and halfway there she saw her brother and ran towards him.
Luo Hong asked her, "Are you out of ink? Why are you only writing half a word?"
Luo Yan countered, "When you open a shop to do business, who can see what's written on the door?"
Luo Hong was taken aback, then belatedly realized, "How could I have forgotten about this?"
Luo Yan: "Because you're stupid."
Luo Hong grabbed her face and said, "I think you really need to be taught a lesson. Say it again."
Before Luo Yan could speak, a teacher shouted, "You two students, which class are you in!"
Luo Hongsong tried to explain to them that "we are siblings born of the same mother," but it was no use; the two of them were still taken to the security office.
But there are plenty of people in the security department who can vouch for them, since the car dealership is right next to the duty room.
The teacher, somewhat annoyed, still admonished them: "Be mindful of your behavior at school, and don't fight or roughhouse with your siblings."
Luo Yan obediently said she understood, then grabbed her bag and ran towards the school—if she didn't run, she would be late today.
--
Luo Hong, who remained where he was, clicked his tongue and shook his head, thinking that with his sister's "grudge-holding" nature, the first thing she would do after school at noon was to settle scores with him.
He thought he might as well go out and hide for a while. When he saw his childhood friend around noon, he said, "You've come at the perfect time."
Zhou Weifang knew perfectly well: "What do you want me to do now?"
Luo Hong: "You can keep the stall. I'm leaving."
No, he just left.
Zhou Weifang: "I haven't gotten my food yet, you can look at it for a while longer."
Luo Hong replied quite confidently, "Then hurry up, stop dawdling."
Zhou Weifang didn't think there was anything wrong with his tone; that was just how the two of them usually talked.
But because he understood, he stopped in his tracks: "You don't seem to have anything urgent to do, but you do seem a little guilty. Let me make this clear, I can't take the blame for you right now. In Yan Yan's eyes, I'm not as valuable as your brother."
Upon hearing this, Luo Hong couldn't really pass the buck to him, so he said, "Then we can only gamble. She hates being late the most. If we're lucky enough to make it in the morning, neither of us will be in trouble."
Wait a minute, wait a minute, Zhou Weifang: "What do you mean we're both fine? It wasn't my fault to begin with."
Luo Hong gave a fake smile: "Because I'm a very loyal person, and I'll never forget my good buddies no matter what happens."
Zhou Weifang pointed at the air and vented, "You're holding me hostage now. Let's see when you'll fall into my hands."
Luo Hong smiled sinisterly: "Oh my, I'm really living a good life now."
Zhou Weifang kicked him: "Look at your slutty face."
After saying that, he took his lunchbox and went to line up at the cafeteria. He and Luo Yan, who had just finished school, left the school gate one after the other.
He was a step too late, and as soon as he entered the car dealership, he saw his partner beating up his older brother. He stood aside and watched the show.
Luo Hong covered his head and ran away, saying, "It wasn't me who asked the teacher to catch me."
Luo Yan: "I'm late! I arrived even later than the teacher!! The whole class watched me walk into the classroom!!!"
She was irritated all over when she said that, as if someone had ripped a piece out of her heart, and she felt uncomfortable all over.
Luo Hong knew he was in for a beating, and it took him a while to calm him down. He said, "Let's eat, let's eat, then we'll fight."
Luo Yan glared at him: "There's something even worse."
At this point, even Zhou Weifang took two steps back, thinking: I don't want to get caught up in this mess too.
Luo Hong had nowhere to retreat, so he braced himself and said, "Please speak."
Luo Yan: "I didn't screw the ink cartridge on properly! Look at my bag! My books!"
If the thing she brought was actually useful, that would be fine, but it turned out to be something she didn't need to bring at all, which made her so angry that her eyes widened.
Luo Hong gasped, "Should I check the almanac before going out today?"
Luo Yan retorted irritably, "Shouldn't I be the one looking at you?"
She seemed to have vented enough. Zhou Weifang asked, "So, should I still tell you this good news?"
Good news? Luo Yan tidied her hair: "What is it?"
Zhou Weifang: "I went to pay my taxes this morning, and the people from the newspaper were there too. They said I was the first one there and asked if I could cooperate with an interview. Of course, I said yes. You know, once it's in the newspaper, the fruit shop will become famous."
That's really great news! Luo Yan: "Which newspaper? Which day?"
Zhou Weifang: "They said they want to come to my shop tomorrow to take photos."
Taking photos? That certainly sounded like a good thing, but Luo Hong gritted his teeth and said, "Why didn't you tell me about this first to save me?"
Zhou Weifang also gave a forced smile: "Because I am also a very loyal person."
What does this have to do with loyalty? Luo Yan didn't want to understand the details between the two of them. She just washed her hands and said, "I'm going to eat. Brother, you have to wash my bag."
"Wash it," Luo Hong assured him, "I'll definitely wash it clean for you."
Luo Yan glanced at him but didn't say anything more. She just looked down at the two ink spots on her clothes and snorted.
Luo Hong guiltily moved his bowl to the side, but Zhou Weifang eventually changed the subject, asking, "Do you think I should prepare some drafts or something in advance?"
The manuscript? Luo Yan: "But I don't know what they'll ask."
Zhou Weifang: "There must be some basic questions, right? I'll prepare some this afternoon, and you can take a look at them for me after school?"
This was a serious matter, and Luo Yan offered him advice while eating lunch, though she would occasionally give her brother a sharp look.
Given how vengeful she was, Luo Hong was certain he wouldn't have a good three days ahead of him.
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Author's note: Good night!
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