Chapter 39

On New Year’s Day, Lu Yun woke up early in the morning. Still drowsy, she got out of bed and immediately heard the popping sounds of firecrackers outside.

Today, school was on holiday, and there were many children outside playing with firecrackers. Even in the courtyard, there were kids playing, and Lu Yun could hear someone calling for them to come out and join.

Wearing her cotton shoes, Lu Yun splashed some water on her face to wake herself up. She hadn’t even changed her clothes when she was called by Zhang Meili and Lu Dong, reminding her not to forget to go find He Cheng’an to celebrate the New Year together.

Aside from the first time He Cheng’an came to their house or when Lu Dong went to the station to wait for him, He Cheng’an usually came by himself.

Just a few days ago, when the Lu family helped package black fungus, He Cheng’an had made several trips back and forth in one day. But today was New Year’s Day.

Lu Yun had a slow and leisurely way of doing things. She yawned and went back to her room to change her clothes. After greeting everyone, she went outside.

When Lu Yun arrived at He Cheng’an’s house, he was in the middle of packing things up. He had bought a lot of stuff, both big and small packages, including some fruit and gifts for the Lu family.

Zhang Meili’s gift was a thick winter coat, and Lu Dong’s gift was the same as Zhang Meili’s, but in a different color. He Cheng’an obviously hadn’t thought much about it; he just felt that the cotton inside was good and warm.

However, Lu Yun couldn’t help but think of matching outfits and laughed quietly as she continued to look at the gift for Lu Xiang’an, which was an electric shaver. She picked it up to examine it and unconsciously glanced at He Cheng’an.

For Lu Yun, who had never been in a relationship, she had mostly seen such male grooming items on television. She found herself wondering what He Cheng’an looked like when he had stubble.

He Cheng’an said, “Ah Yun, Happy New Year.”

As a beautifully wrapped gift box was placed in front of Lu Yun, she looked at He Cheng’an before seriously unwrapping the package in front of him. Inside, she found a pager.

For Lu Yun, a pager was something she had only heard about. It had become popular for a while, but soon the mobile phone, which could make direct calls, appeared on the market, followed by compact mobile phones and eventually the smartphones that came later.

At that time, the price of a pager was not cheap. Although Lu Yun didn’t know the exact price, she figured that this pager must have cost at least two or three thousand yuan. In addition, there were monthly fees to pay, similar to the phone bills that would later come with mobile phones.

Lu Yun wanted to ask He Cheng’an why he had bought a pager since it was so expensive, especially considering that the mobile phones would soon become popular. However, under He Cheng’an’s bright, expectant gaze, she held the pager and stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

Lu Yun asked, “Now that we have a pager, it’ll be much easier for us to stay in touch. What about your pager? What’s your pager number?”

He Cheng’an’s fingers, which were hanging at his side, moved slightly. “I haven’t bought mine yet. Once I go back to the provincial city, there’s a renovation that the homeowner needs to check. After that, I’ll go buy it. I know your pager number, and I’ll contact you once I get mine,” he explained. “When I return to the provincial city, I can buy one.”

He noticed that Lu Yun was standing still and added, “Because it’s New Year’s Day, the workers who were helping also need to go home to celebrate, so I settled their wages for them early at the end of the month. Later, I went back to the countryside to collect black fungus and ordered packing boxes at the factory. I plan to continue selling the black fungus in the provincial city during the New Year. I ordered more packaging, and since the price is lower, I figured I should stock up, so the money I have available right now is a bit limited.”

Lu Yun never wanted He Cheng’an to feel disappointed in their interactions. Though she felt a twinge of concern for him, she knew that if she had prepared the pager as a gift for him and he responded with a long lecture about practicality, her anticipation of giving the gift would be crushed.

She called out to him, her eyes sparkling, “He Cheng’an, you’re so good to me.”

He Cheng’an smiled. Standing next to Lu Yun, he patiently taught her how to use the pager. He was especially gentle, repeating himself even when Lu Yun made mistakes in operating it.

In just a minute or two, Lu Yun was able to operate the pager skillfully.

He Cheng’an praised her, saying, “Our Ah Yun is really smart.”

—o—o—o—

For New Year’s Day, Zhang Meili and Lu Dong had started writing the menu a few days earlier. They wanted to prepare dishes that everyone would enjoy. When they asked He Cheng’an, it seemed he didn’t have any particular favorites. He truly wasn’t picky about food.

Later, when Zhang Meili asked him what he wanted to eat, he mentioned a few dishes that Lu Yun liked: braised spareribs, stir-fried pork, and stir-fried mixed vegetables. At first, Zhang Meili didn’t think much of it, but when she realized it later, she couldn’t help but laugh.

By noon on New Year’s Day, they prepared a total of eight dishes and one soup, more than half of which were Lu Yun’s favorites.

Before the meal, He Cheng’an took out the gifts he had bought for the Lu family and presented them to everyone.

Zhang Meili remarked, “Why are you buying more things? You, this child, once you get married, you’ll understand the importance of saving.” Although she said that, she was still happy to receive the thick coat He Cheng’an had bought for her.

Lu Dong, comparing his own clothes, asked everyone, “How does it look?”

Lu Yun nodded and said, “Looks good.”

After everyone had unwrapped their gifts, Lu Yun waved the pager in front of them. She glanced at He Cheng’an and announced, “This is a gift from He Cheng’an.”

Lu Xiang’an excitedly walked over and said, “Is this a pager?” He held it up to look at it and laughed at Lu Yun, “You can’t even use a tape recorder; can you figure out how to use a pager?”

Lu Yun replied, “He Cheng’an can! Right?”

He Cheng’an smiled and said, “Yes, I can.”

Lu Yun’s pager was indeed a rare item. After everyone gathered around to take a look, they finally sat down to eat. During the meal, Zhang Meili reminded He Cheng’an to save money, and Lu Yun thought she was being a bit nagging. However, He Cheng’an listened seriously, and his demeanor made Zhang Meili increasingly fond of him.

At that moment, Zhang Meili recalled a saying: the more a mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, the more she likes him. It turned out to be quite true.

While eating, Lu Yun had only eaten half a bowl of rice before she felt full. She had eaten quite a bit of the stir-fried pork, and when she had leftover rice, He Cheng’an didn’t pour it into his own bowl but took Lu Yun’s leftover dinner and finished it instead.

Lu Yun also served him a few more dishes.

After finishing the meal and clearing the table, He Cheng’an stood up and expertly began to clean up without waiting for Zhang Meili to say anything. When Lu Yun was about to leave, Zhang Meili grabbed her.

“Next time, make sure to finish eating on your own,” Zhang Meili said.

Lu Yun gestured, “You filled my bowl to the brim. I barely touched the food next to me, and besides, he didn’t mind me.”

“Oh, you,” Zhang Meili replied, shaking her head.

Lu Yun had something to do. “I’ll head back first. After He Cheng’an finishes up, tell him to come to my room.”

Once Lu Yun returned to her room, she began rummaging through her drawer to find something. She heard a knock at the door, and after a few more moments of searching, she stood up to open it.

Standing outside was He Cheng’an. Lu Yun stepped to the side to make room for him to enter.

“You got here quickly,” Lu Yun said.

He Cheng’an ruffled Lu Yun’s hair and replied, “I heard her. She doesn’t mind you at all; you can eat as much as you want.”

Although Zhang Meili’s voice was not loud, the room didn’t have good sound insulation. Just as He Cheng’an returned, planning to continue cleaning up, he caught the tail end of what Zhang Meili had said.

He went to the sink for a moment and then slowly walked back.

With her hands behind her back, Lu Yun stretched out her voice, “You don’t mind me, do you?”

He Cheng’an smiled, cupping Lu Yun’s face in his hands and looking into her eyes. “No, I don’t mind. How could I possibly mind you?”

Lu Yun said, “Put your hand out.”

He Cheng’an obediently extended his hand, and Lu Yun placed a red envelope in his palm. She said, “He Cheng’an, Happy New Year! This is my New Year’s red envelope for you from 1989.”

Lu Yun hadn’t expected that He Cheng’an would buy gifts for the New Year. She had thought about giving him a gift herself, specifically a New Year’s gift. Today, however, He Cheng’an had given everyone a present, but no one had given him anything in return. It was too late to buy a gift for him now, and she figured that a red envelope would be the most suitable option.

“Are you happy?” Lu Yun asked.

“I’m happy, especially happy,” He Cheng’an replied.

As he hugged Lu Yun, she stepped back slightly. He then pulled her close and said again, “Happy.”

In the courtyard, there had been some initial doubts about Lu Yun marrying He Cheng’an instead of pursuing Chen Zhiqiang properly, but now everyone was enviously looking at their relationship.

“Just look at that son-in-law of the Lu family.”

“Exactly, he treats Lu Yun so well.”

“Look at this New Year; he bought so many gifts for the Lu family.”

“The Lu family members are also good to He Cheng’an; last time, they helped a lot with those black fungus.”

On New Year’s Day, He Cheng’an stayed at the Lu family until evening before finally heading home.

—o—o—o—

That night, Lu Yun lay in bed with the pager in her hands, still wondering how long she would have to wait before she could start sending messages.

However, once the Brother became popular, it would be much more convenient to stay in touch.

Thinking about her phone, Lu Yun felt that she needed to work hard on her shop. When she started making money, she wanted to buy an phone for herself and then gift one to He Cheng’an.

But the mobile phonese was really expensive; when it first became popular, it cost several thousand yuan. Still, since He Cheng’an was going into business, he would definitely need a phone, and Lu Yun knew she would need one too.

—o—o—o—

Meanwhile, He Cheng’an returned home, smiling as he held the red envelope Lu Yun had given him. Inside the envelope, Lu Yun had put sixty yuan. He didn’t take the money out but instead opened the envelope.

Then, He Cheng’an took out some paper and a pen and wrote a note to put inside the envelope. The note read: “January 1, 1989, the first red envelope Ah Yun gave me.”