Chapter 61, Three Chapters of Agreement
On Wednesday, Zhou Weifang went to Jiaotong University to report for duty.
He ate dinner early and set off. When he saw Luo Yan wandering around the school gate in the distance, he pedaled his bicycle twice and rushed up to her: "Have you been waiting long?"
Luo Yan turned her face away and sneezed: "I just finished eating too."
Zhou Weifang: "How's the food in your cafeteria?"
Speaking of the cafeteria, Luo Yan said, "Do you eat there? I still have meal tickets."
Meals are subsidized with ration coupons, but students in continuing education programs don't receive coupons.
To be honest, Zhou Weifang felt a bit out of place standing here; the open entrance seemed to have the words "No Entry Without Permission" written on it.
He felt a sudden itch all over his body and said, "No need, I'll eat first and then come back."
Luo Yan casually asked, "Sure, next time you can just ride your bike to the bottom of Building 2, it'll be more convenient."
She pointed the way, led the person to the classroom door, checked her watch, and said, "I have to go to class too, let's go."
Zhou Weifang quickly asked, "I'll treat you to a late-night snack after class."
Seeing that she was about to shake her head, I added, "I definitely won't understand it today, can you go through it for me?"
Upon hearing this, Luo Yan hesitated, but then remembered, "I have two sections, but you want three."
There's a one-hour difference between when school ends and when it ends.
That's late enough. Zhou Weifang said, "How about Sunday, you take the day off?"
Sunday? Luo Yan couldn't help but smile: "Okay, but it has to be in the evening. I have things to do during the day, and my brother will be off work soon."
Zhou Weifang knew he would definitely bring one of his childhood friends, and said, "Okay, see you on Sunday."
Luo Yan grunted and ran off, stepping into the classroom just as the bell rang. She sat down in the front row, took a couple of breaths, and quickly held her breath when the teacher came in.
In the evening, during the lesson on urban road planning, the teacher showed a hand-drawn map of Beijing. The names of each road were written in tiny characters, and Luo Yan, whose eyesight wasn't very good, had to crane her neck to see them as the teacher gestured.
After watching for two hours, she felt a pain in her neck. After school, she pinched her neck as she walked out and rode her bicycle home immediately.
When her daughter arrived home, Liu Yinfeng turned around and said, "There's another letter for you today; I left it on your table."
Luo Yan acknowledged and went back to her room to get her clothes, saying, "I'm going to take a shower."
Luo Hong leaned back on the sofa: "I'll pick you up at ten o'clock."
At ten o'clock, there were almost no people in the alley. It was pitch black and accidents were most likely to happen. Luo Yan didn't say that she didn't need to, and took advantage of the fact that there were still lights on in the streets and alleys to walk out.
There were quite a few people in the bathhouse at this time.
Luo Yan's face turned red from the steaming heat. After washing up, she dried her hair in the changing room and headed out when she saw it was almost time.
Luo Hong, even more punctual than his sister, came running over with his hands in his pockets, sniffling as he asked, "Are you hungry? Sparrow said we should have hot pot."
Luo Yan wasn't very hungry, and also said, "You go ahead, I feel embarrassed to even smoke at other people's houses."
Luo Hong knew her perfectly well: "Did you eat your fill tonight?"
"Speak the truth!" Luo Yan stomped on his foot and went inside the courtyard gate by herself.
Luo Hong then walked forward to Sparrow's Bookstore.
He arrived last; his childhood friends had already started eating. Seeing him come in alone, Sparrow asked, "Didn't you say you were going to call Goose?"
Luo Hong casually remarked, "She still has homework tonight."
He picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, turned his head, and asked, "Weren't you in class today?"
Zhou Weifang had only been there a short time, and said, "Yeah, I just got out of school."
These three words made everyone burst into laughter, with Li Jianjun slamming his fist on the table the loudest: "I never thought that the three parties would say such a thing one day."
They were all good friends who skipped school together back then.
These are supposed to be childhood friends of over twenty years, what kind of people are they? Zhou Weifang: "If you knock twice more, this broken table will collapse."
Whoever said that was bad, the sparrow said, "You have a good table, I'll come eat at yours next time."
Zhou Weifang: "Fine, I'll cut five more jin of cucumber strips next time."
Five catties, for him to cook.
Sparrow: "Okay, let's get some more abalone, sea cucumber, and shark fin."
Zhou Weifang: "Do you want to eat the remaining eight catties of bird's nest?"
Sparrow: "Eat."
Then, casually, he asked, "Are the refresher courses difficult?"
Zhou Weifang took a sip of his drink: "The teacher didn't say much on the first day of class. What, you want to take it too?"
Sparrow: "I think it's better to learn a skill; staying here and minding the shop all the time isn't a good thing."
"What's wrong with this shop?" Li Jianjun looked around and said, "You've made quite a bit of money this month."
He was currently most worried about money, and downed the wine in his glass in one gulp.
Sparrow knew he was troubled and said, "Now that Hongyu can go to school, who knows, maybe one day the household registration restrictions will be relaxed, and your sister-in-law won't have to go back to our hometown."
Li Jianjun sent his wife off on the train after she was put on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. He had been living a cold and lonely life for the past two days. He waved his hand and said, "It's not that easy. How many educated youths haven't been registered yet?"
He didn't want to talk about that, and instead said, "Hongyu's matter is all thanks to Uncle Luo."
Luo Hong: "Don't mention it. It's a big deal for the child to go to school. It's just that the factory's preschool class still has openings this year, otherwise he wouldn't be able to get any help."
Li Jianjun raised his glass and clinked it with his: "No need for words, bottoms up, brother."
He drank the most at the end of the meal and was carried back by Zhou Weifang and Luo Hong, one on each side.
Luo Yan was still reading when she heard the commotion in the yard. She assumed her brother was drunk and glanced out the window, which put her mind at ease.
After a while, she heard her brother enter the room and peeked out: "Brother Jianjun has drunk so much."
Luo Hong: "He hasn't been in a good mood these past two days."
After he finished speaking, he took the basin and went to wash up. Luo Yan also retreated back into her room. Perhaps because she had recently fallen in love, she could understand Li Jianjun's melancholy.
She tidied her desk, lay in bed, and read Zhou Xiuhe's letter again.
This letter was written on the ninth day of the first lunar month. He said that according to the customs of his hometown, he should worship the Heavenly Emperor. The ceremony was not as grand as before the founding of the People's Republic of China, but it was quite lively compared to the past years.
Luo Yan imagined a scene filled with the noise of gongs and drums, carefully put the letter into the cookie box, and counted on her fingers based on Zhou Xiuhe's return time to Beijing: there should be three more letters.
Luo Yan's prediction was correct; she sent letters for the next three days.
She wrote back to each one and took them with her when she went out on Sunday.
Liu Yinfeng knew what her daughter was going to do today just by looking at her braids, and only told her, "Come back before dark."
Luo Yan remembered: "I'm going out to eat with my brother tonight."
With whom? Luo Hong: "How many older brothers do you have?"
Luo Yancai realized she hadn't mentioned it to him, and asked with her mouth agape, "You don't have anything planned for tonight, do you?"
Luo Hong: No, where shall we meet?
Luo Yan didn't know where to eat either, so she said, "Chexing."
Huh? Luo Hong: "Why would it be at a car dealership?"
Luo Yan wrapped a scarf around herself: "Zhou Weifang said he's treating."
Luo Hong guessed it was related to his childhood friend going to a training course, and didn't think there was anything wrong with asking his sister to give him a ride. He finished the last mouthful of porridge and said, "I'll go after get off work."
He was about to stand up when his mother grabbed him, asking in surprise, "What's wrong?"
Liu Yinfeng asked after her daughter had walked away, "How come my sister found out about the three-party dinner party first?"
Luo Hong hurriedly explained a few words, then said anxiously, "Mom, I'm going to be late for work."
Liu Yinfeng didn't stop him anymore, and turned to look at her husband: "Don't you find it strange?"
Luo Xinmin thought for a moment: "It's related to school, so Yanyan will definitely care."
Is that so? Liu Yinfeng fiddled with the bowls and chopsticks on the table: "Among my son's childhood friends, I can count on my fingers how many of them have feelings for Yanyan."
It's perfectly normal for a family with a daughter to have many suitors, and for someone to like her. As long as they're not the kind of scoundrels who play dirty tricks, their fate is entirely up to their children.
The couple had discussed this matter several times.
Luo Xinmin: "If we're really looking for someone from our alley, I think the three people are pretty good."
Liu Yinfeng: "What do you mean 'okay'? He doesn't even have a place to stay."
Luo Xinmin: "I already said that we should choose the best among the worst. Besides, there's still the child who writes letters."
Liu Yinfeng was also not very satisfied with this: "He's from another province, will the girl go with him in the future?"
Luo Xinmin: "Don't say this in front of Yanyan. It's rare for her to find someone she likes. At worst, we can go with her in the future."
Anyway, he came to Beijing from elsewhere, so he'll settle down with his children.
Liu Yinfeng: "What about the son?"
Both children are his flesh and blood, Luo Xinmin sighed, "Never mind, let's wait until the child is really born."
Luo Yan and Zhou Xiuhe are not going to get together anytime soon.
Having prepared her words, she said seriously as soon as they met, "Can we go somewhere else? I have something to tell you."
Seeing her expression, Zhou Xiuhe wondered what she meant and said, "Then let's go to Zizhuyuan?"
Zizhuyuan Park is right next to the city library; it's just a short walk away.
Luo Yan pondered her words again during the short distance of about a hundred meters, and when no one was around, she said, "Zhou Xiuhe, can we make a three-point agreement?"
Zhou Xiuhe didn't ask about the contents, but nodded first: "Okay."
Luo Yan: "First, we should pretend we don't know each other at school."
Zhou Xiuhe waited for her second question, but she didn't speak for a long time. He asked, "Anything else?"
Luo Yan: "To sum it up, it's just this one thing."
She ran her hands over her handbag and said, "We all need to graduate smoothly."
Zhou Xiuhe: "Can I ask you something too?"
Luo Yan looked up at him: "What?"
Zhou Xiuhe: "Am I the only one who needs to pretend I don't know you at school?"
Many things are understood without being said.
Luo Yan bit her lip and nodded, then kicked an innocent stone by the roadside.
Zhou Xiuhe's face lit up with joy, and he inexplicably rummaged through his pockets. But he hadn't actually brought much with him today. Finally, he jumped up and down a couple of times and said, "Luo Yan, when we graduate, I have a lot to tell you."
What were those words? Luo Yan was now looking forward to it.
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Author's note: Let's ship them!
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