Chapter 155, Part 155 (Second Update)
Two tables were set up for dinner.
Although Liu Yinfeng told her daughter to buy more, more people came than she had expected. She couldn't very well let the guests go hungry, so she simply sent her son to take his friends out to eat.
They were supposed to be friends, but there were only two of them: Li Jianjun and Zhou Weifang. Luo Yan also picked up Zheng Sanmei and her daughter, whom he had dragged along when he passed by the old house. The six of them sat at a small restaurant at the entrance of the alley.
The table is long and narrow, and three people can sit on one side.
On one side was Li Jianjun's family of three, and on the other side were two childhood friends with Luo Yan sandwiched between them. After she sat down, she realized something was wrong. Her eyes glanced around unintentionally, and finally she stared at the menu on the wall.
Zhou Weifang asked her, "What do you want to eat?"
Luo Yan ate at a restaurant at noon and ordered several main dishes. After thinking it over, she finally managed to squeeze out the words "cucumber salad".
Upon hearing this, Luo Hong nudged his sister and said, "Be good."
It was the brother and sister who were hosting, but the first thing they said was a vegetarian dish, leaving the guests wondering what to say next.
Luo Yan realized her rudeness and added, "I'd also like to eat stir-fried mutton with scallions. What would Hongyu like to eat?"
Li Hongyu is illiterate, but she has eaten out with her parents a few times. There is one dish she particularly loves, and when asked about it, she immediately says, "I want to eat loofah."
Are there loofahs this season? Luo Yan looked at the chalk writing on the wall, searching for them.
Seeing this, Zheng Sanmei explained, "It's candied sweet potato. She said those four words always come together."
Luo Yan suddenly realized: "I knew it, I've never seen many kids who like to eat loofah."
This loofah is not that loofah, but Li Hongyu had no idea, and exclaimed loudly, "I love eating loofah!"
Yes, yes, she loves to eat.
Li Jianjun patted his daughter's head: "I'll order some for you, don't yell."
Li Hongyu was immediately satisfied and took out a rope from her pocket to play with her mother.
Children have their own joys, and adults have their own things to say. After the noisy ordering, Zheng Sanmei chatted with Luo Yan while comforting her daughter: "Is this considered the move finished for today?"
Luo Yan: "The only thing missing is the bed. The almanac says it's inauspicious to set up a bed today, so we can only do it tomorrow."
As she said this, she naturally took the soda Zhou Weifang handed her, took a sip, met Li Jianjun's gaze at her sideways, and smiled shyly.
Although Li Jianjun was in the know, this was the first time he had seen the two of them so familiar with each other. So, as if he had just found out, a hint of shock flashed in his eyes, but he remained calm and continued talking to his two childhood friends.
We all grew up together, how could we not tell the difference?
Luo Hong inexplicably laughed out loud, and changed the subject when everyone knew what was going on.
The group chatted amongst themselves, and after dinner, they went to sit at the Luo family's new home.
Li Hongyu got excited as soon as she saw Huang Laishun and chased after him around the yard.
Li Jianjun was worried about his daughter, so the boys simply stood outside and watched.
He caught a glimpse of his wife and Luo Yan sitting in the living room out of the corner of his eye, and finally managed to say something he'd been holding back for a long time: "You're really dating Yanzi?"
His tone clearly indicated utter disbelief.
Zhou Weifang listened and said, "Your tone is a bit off."
Li Jianjun: "I really didn't expect it to be the two of you. Radish, could you have imagined it?"
Luo Hong sneered: "Do you think he'd still have a chance?"
Everyone in the alley knew how much he doted on his younger sister. According to his thinking, no one else would be a good match for her. So, the way he looked at Zhou Weifang was a little less kind.
Li Jianjun slapped his thigh and laughed: "Sanfang, you never thought this day would come, did you?"
Zhou Weifang kicked him: "Why do you have to bring up something you don't want to talk about?"
They didn't try to hide anything from each other, and everyone inside could hear them clearly.
Holding a handful of melon seeds, Zheng Sanmei asked, "Yanzi, I've been wanting to know for a long time, how did you and Sanfang get together?"
Luo Yan was momentarily at a loss for words, touching her face: "We grew up together."
Zheng Sanmei asked in surprise, "So you've liked him since you were little?"
Luo Yan shook her head sharply: "He was a real nuisance when he was a kid."
Zheng Sanmei felt she understood men a little: "Little boys are all like that, they'll tease whoever they like."
Luo Yan: "He really dislikes me."
But it wasn't entirely a single emotion, and it didn't contradict those friendly past relationships.
Zheng Sanmei had vaguely heard some things, and lowered her voice to say, "When Jianjun first found out, he was shocked and said that the two of you were complete strangers..."
The second half of her sentence sounded somewhat pessimistic, so she quickly swallowed it back.
Luo Yan didn't mind people saying that; she just felt it was expected: "Even my brother, who was born to the same mother, needed several days to recover."
The younger sister was kidnapped by her childhood friend, and she recovered very quickly in a few days. Zheng Sanmei understood this clearly: "Your brother loves you the most."
Their voices were neither too loud nor too soft, and could be heard faintly outside.
But Luo Hong heard this sentence very clearly and interjected, "Did you hear that, Luo Yan? The eyes of the masses are discerning. You're always arguing with me."
Luo Yan scolded him: "Don't listen to what you shouldn't hear! You're so rude!"
Luo Hong retorted sharply, trying to scare her: "I'll sew your mouth shut sooner or later, then we'll see how polite you are."
"Who's afraid of who!" Luo Yan snorted three times, poured the guest a cup of tea, and said, "He's also the most annoying brother."
Zheng Sanmei laughed out loud, glanced into the courtyard, and felt that the wind was really strong. She raised her voice and said, "Jianjun, bring the girl in. She'll catch a cold tomorrow."
Li Hongyu was running happily and wouldn't listen to reason. Only when Luo Hongyi grabbed Huang Laishun and took him away did she agree to go inside. The two of them continued running around in the living room.
"This child is in someone else's home after all," Li Jianjun said defensively, "He's very naughty and makes a lot of trouble."
Luo Hong said, "Let her be," and invited him to sit down and have some tea. Then he turned his head and saw that Zhou Weifang had already picked up his cup without any hesitation. He said, "He doesn't even consider himself a guest."
Zhou Weifang now has the confidence to sit next to his partner openly and legitimately.
Luo Yan gave him an elbow but didn't say anything; everyone continued chatting in small groups.
After a while, Li Hongyu started to feel sleepy and rubbed her eyes.
Zheng Sanmei glanced at the time, and the couple took their child and said goodbye.
There were only three people left in the living room. Luo Hong turned on the TV, as if he was very interested in the TV series.
Luo Yan understood and secretly tugged at Zhou Weifang's sleeve, signaling him to follow her into the room.
Zhou Weifang had been holding back all day, and only now did he have a little time alone with her. He rested his chin on her shoulder and rubbed it against her shoulder: "You have no idea how much I've missed you."
Luo Yan put her hand on the back of his head and patted him: "You've worked hard today."
Tiredness was secondary; Zhou Weifang was just jealous: "Aunt Wu said she'd saved up a good match for you; he's a college student too."
In the afternoon, many neighbors came to help, and when we met, we naturally chatted about everyday things.
However, Luo Yan didn't hear it and asked curiously, "What university?"
Zhou Weifang said urgently, "You're not allowed to like him no matter what university you attend."
The second half of her sentence then shifted to a pitiful tone: "Can you just like me, okay?"
Knowing she shouldn't have teased him, Luo Yan coaxed him, "I only like you now."
That was enough to make Zhou Weifang overjoyed.
He said, "I'm also reading books and making progress."
When the topic of books came up, Luo Yan casually asked him, "What page are you on? Is there anything you don't understand?"
Zhou Weifang thought she wouldn't ask today, and he was even more nervous than when he was a child and his hand was slapped by the teacher. He cautiously replied, "I've only read half a chapter. I've been too busy lately."
Reading is a priority for everyone, and Luo Yan knew he was busy, so she said helplessly, "Actually, you didn't have to come today. My sister-in-law told me that the shop is obviously very busy."
Zhou Weifang took her hand and said, "No matter how busy I am, nothing is more important than your business."
Luo Yan poked his forehead: "You're so sweet-talking."
Zhou Weifang took the opportunity to kiss her, then leaned close and asked, "Is it sweet?"
Luo Yan deliberately turned her face away: "It's fine as it is."
In this way, Zhou Weifang's lips almost touched her earlobe, and every word he uttered sounded like a whisper: "But yours is sweet."
He had always been compliant in front of Luo Yan, but now he adopted a tough stance, forcing her to look him in the eye.
Luo Yan subconsciously closed his eyes, feeling that he was a bit like he was when he was a child—domineering and vicious.
She was almost out of breath, clutching the collar of his shirt.
Even though their breaths were already mingling, Zhou Weifang still felt it wasn't enough, so he tightened his hand on her waist, and the two of them were almost touching.
Luo Yan was still embarrassed, so she covered her chest with one hand, tilted her head slightly to look at him, her eyes wide, and suddenly asked, "Can you dance ballroom dance?"
"Huh?" Zhou Weifang kissed her fingertips: "You want to sign up for the school dance?"
Luo Yan didn't want to know so many people at school.
She said, "I want to go to a dance hall and dance once."
Zhou Weifang naturally went along with her, saying, "Then shall we start practicing next week?"
Judging from his expression, he was clearly secretly pleased.
Luo Yan slapped his hand away from her waist, took a step back, and extended a finger as a warning: "If you don't jump well, you're finished."
Zhou Weifang lowered her hand and said, "I'm sure I danced well, I won't embarrass you."
Luo Yan coughed awkwardly: "But I might feel a little embarrassed."
She failed to get a job at a performing arts troupe despite her looks, which shows that she has no talent in singing and dancing.
Zhou Weifang pinched her cheek: "I've never known how to write these two words, so I'll always be at the bottom of your class."
Having someone to accompany her, Luo Yan didn't mind being laughed at; in fact, she was somewhat looking forward to it: "Then let's go when I have winter break."
Zhou Weifang nodded vigorously and touched the ends of her hair: "It feels like you've cut quite a bit."
Luo Yan actually takes good care of her hair, but there's really no way to dry it in winter: "It's hard to dry, and I get headaches if I sleep with it wet."
"A headache won't do," Zhou Weifang coaxed her, "It'll grow longer again in the spring."
That was all she could think of, Luo Yan pouted and remained silent.
Zhou Weifang was annoyed, thinking to himself: How could my mouth be so inconsiderate?
Just as he was about to change the subject, he heard someone knocking on the door.
Luo Yan knew it was her brother and, suppressing a laugh, said, "I'm urging you to go out."
Zhou Weifang dawdled, one hand on the doorknob, his face turned towards Luo Yan.
Luo Yan kissed him, then quickly opened the door. Even though she could only see her brother's back as he watched TV, she inexplicably shrank back and pushed Zhou Weifang ahead of her.
Zhou Weifang was actually a little embarrassed. He was too weak and intimidated in front of his childhood friend, and said, "Then I'll go first, and I'll come again tomorrow."
Even though there aren't many things left to move tomorrow, let him come if he wants.
Luo Hong raised his chin and grunted, showing no intention of getting up to see the guest off.
Luo Yan carried little Huang Laishun to the gate of the courtyard. After the man was out of sight and the gate was closed, she said to the dog, "From now on, when he comes, you can't yell at him, understand?"
Huang Laishun looked completely bewildered, but surprisingly, it never yelled at Zhou Weifang again.
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Author's note: My original plan was to go out and buy something and then come back to write, but I ended up passing a barbecue stall on the way, so I ate there, took a walk to digest, and then came back.
That's all for today. Have a great weekend, everyone, and goodnight!
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