Chapter 45

On New Year’s Eve, Lu Yun did not sleep in. She got up early and changed into new clothes. Her festive outfit, a red down jacket, was purchased from a state-run store in the provincial capital. It fit her loosely and looked nice, while her black curls were styled half up and half down, a hairstyle that was still quite popular. Zhang Meili did not allow Lu Yun to lounge around the house and even gave her some firecrackers that children liked to play with.

Lu Yun held them in her hands, and for a moment, she felt a surge of excitement.

He Cheng’an accompanied Lu Yun outside. As Lu Yun stood by watching him set off the firecrackers, she stepped back each time he threw one, and she did not forget to hook her arm through his.

Lu Yun felt she had fully embodied the saying of being both clumsy and playful.

On the way back, Lu Yun was still a bit excited. Having played outside, she was now reluctant to go back inside and lie down. He Cheng’an rode his bike, taking Lu Yun with him to buy fireworks.

At the fireworks stall, He Cheng’an did not ask about the prices. He knew they were definitely more expensive than before, but if the stall owner said it looked nice, he would buy it. In the end, he purchased a whole bunch and only then started to bargain with the owner.

When He Cheng’an bargained, he did not use any of the tricks Lu Yun had heard others mention, like suggesting a price that was directly half. He was more knowledgeable, understanding the cost price, but also allowing the owner to make a profit, and he did not stretch the negotiations too far, making it easy to bring the price down.

When the two of them were about to head back, the owner thought Lu Yun and He Cheng’an were a newlywed couple and joked, “Your man really knows how to bargain.”

Lu Yun and He Cheng’an exchanged a glance, and they were evidently a bit shy about the phrase “your man.”

He Cheng’an asked, “How about we buy a little more?”

Lu Yun replied, “Let’s go home. We have to eat lunch soon, and we still need to make dumplings in the afternoon.”

He Cheng’an nodded quickly, “Alright, let’s go home.”

The firecracker stall owner laughed, “He’s still afraid of his wife, hahaha!”

After saying this, he even handed some fireworks meant for children to Lu Yun. “This is a gift for you two; your relationship is really good.”

He Cheng’an sincerely thanked him and then added, “Yeah, I always listen to her.”

—o—o—o—

During the New Year, Zhang Meili and Lu Dong prepared a large feast. To be honest, it was a bit easier than usual because while Lu Yun was still sleeping, He Cheng’an had already taken care of some of the tasks. If it weren’t for Zhang Meili stopping him and saying Lu Yun had just woken up, he might have helped cook as well.

Recently, Zhang Meili had often heard others at home enviously mention her daughter, saying that her daughter had found a good partner and didn’t have to worry about anything. They commented that if her daughter hadn’t found a good partner, it would truly be frustrating for the whole family.

In the afternoon, the family was making dumplings. Lu Dong moved a large round table, and everyone sat around it together to wrap the dumplings.

Lu Dong found several coins, washed them in water for a long time, and selected only clean, shiny new coins. He took the coins out and wrapped them inside the dumplings.

This had a special meaning, as whoever ate the dumpling with the coin would be blessed with wealth.

Lu Yun quietly told He Cheng’an, “Eat a bit more when we have dumplings tonight.”

He Cheng’an smiled and replied, “Okay.”

Lu Xiang’an didn’t wrap the dumplings well, and after a few tries, he simply went back. Zhang Meili and Lu Dong wrapped dumplings for a while but then remembered there were still things to finish in the kitchen, so they let Lu Yun and He Cheng’an continue wrapping.

Lu Yun said, “We can wrap these together; you two go ahead and busy yourselves.”

Zhang Meili glanced at Lu Yun and He Cheng’an and nodded, “Alright, you two wrap; your dad and I have to get busy soon anyway.”

Lu Yun and He Cheng’an sat together closely. After Lu Yun finished wrapping one dumpling, she looked at He Cheng’an. As a food blogger, Lu Yun was quite good at wrapping dumplings, and she was surprised to find that He Cheng’an wrapped them well too.

He Cheng’an placed his dumpling next to the one Lu Yun had just made, then took another piece of dough, added filling, and handed it to Lu Yun.

As Lu Yun wrapped dumplings, He Cheng’an watched for a while. Then, while he wrapped, he unconsciously mimicked Lu Yun’s movements. His dumplings didn’t look as good as hers, but they were quite similar.

He became more adept as he wrapped a few more.

Lu Yun also knew how He Cheng’an wrapped dumplings; she just wasn’t used to it. Seeing him so focused and with bright eyes, she wrapped a dumpling that looked like the ones He Cheng’an had made earlier and asked him, “How does it look?”

He Cheng’an stood up behind Lu Yun and guided her step by step on how to wrap the dumplings in his usual way. Once they finished, He Cheng’an placed the dumplings on the table, but Lu Yun reached out and playfully touched He Cheng’an’s face with some flour, laughing joyfully.

Lu Yun turned around and sat down, playfully smearing more flour on He Cheng’an’s face a few times. He Cheng’an just watched her without moving, and eventually, Lu Yun drew what looked like a mustache with the flour on his face.

Lu Yun nodded and said, “Looks good.”

He Cheng’an smiled and nodded in response, asking, “How good does it look?”

Lu Yun replied, “It just looks good. Hurry up and wrap the dumplings.”

—o—o—o—

Outside, the sound of firecrackers crackled in the courtyard, while in the kitchen, the dumplings were boiling in a pot of hot water. The night of New Year’s Eve was especially lively.

Lu Yun and He Cheng’an had fireworks. After finishing with the firecrackers, He Cheng’an took Lu Yun outside to set off fireworks. With loud bangs, the colorful fireworks bloomed beautifully in the sky.

Lu Yun stood outside the courtyard, watching the fireworks in the sky, filled with joy.

“Hey Cheng’an, hey Cheng’an, that blue one looks nice!” she exclaimed.

After watching the fireworks, Lu Yun still felt a bit reluctant to leave, but since the dumplings were ready, she and He Cheng’an headed back inside, where they would eat dumplings.

Everyone sat down at the table. In addition to the dumplings, there were also leftover dishes from lunch. As Lu Yun looked at the leftovers, she suddenly thought about how long it would take to finish all this food.

Others came over and continued to prepare new dishes, so they ended up with more leftovers.

He Cheng’an ate a dumpling, and when he took his first bite, he was taken aback as a coin popped out of his hand.

Lu Yun quickly bit into one as well and was surprised to find a coin too, and it was the same as He Cheng’an’s—both were fifty cents.

Lu Dong exclaimed, “You two are lucky! If you’re getting married, and you both eat coins together, your life together will definitely be good!”

Soon, Zhang Meili and Lu Dong also found coins in their dumplings, but unlike Lu Yun and He Cheng’an, they did not find coins in their first dumplings.

Lu Xiang’an rolled up his sleeves, saying, “I must eat a dumpling with a coin too!”

By the time they finished the meal, Lu Xiang’an was still eating dumplings. He had devoured a large plateful by himself, perhaps getting a bit too competitive, and after finishing that, he took another plate for himself.

Lu Yun covered her mouth and laughed as she sat there watching Lu Xiang’an eat dumplings. This was quite entertaining, and finally, when Lu Xiang’an finished his second plate, he found a coin hidden inside.

Lu Yun exclaimed, “Congratulations, Eldest Brother! You’ll be getting rich in the future!”

After that, Lu Dong took out a deck of cards. Lu Yun and He Cheng’an teamed up, while Zhang Meili and Lu Xiang’an formed another team, with Lu Dong watching from the side as they started playing cards.

They also listened to the Spring Festival Gala together.

As the new year began, everyone started exchanging New Year wishes. Lu Yun, Lu Xiang’an, and He Cheng’an all received red envelopes from Zhang Meili and Lu Dong. Afterward, Lu Xiang’an also gave Lu Yun and He Cheng’an individual red envelopes.

When it was time to rest and go to sleep, He Cheng’an handed all his red envelopes to Lu Yun for safekeeping, and then he took out the envelope he had prepared for her.

Lu Yun truly was at the top of the food chain in the Lu Family!

Receiving the red envelope from He Cheng’an, Lu Yun said, “He Cheng’an, Happy New Year!”

He Cheng’an smiled slightly and replied, “Yes, Happy New Year! Our Ah Yun must be even happier in the new year.”

And just like that, they transitioned from 1988 to 1989.

—o—o—o—

After the New Year, the Lu Family was particularly busy. Relatives came to visit, and Zhang Meili took everyone to visit other relatives, even bringing He Cheng’an along. This way, everyone got to know the Lu Family’s new son-in-law.

Zhang Hao also brought his family to the Lu Family. In addition, Xiao Sun and her partner came by but didn’t stay for a meal; they just dropped off some gifts for Lu Yun before leaving.

Since Sister Sun was older than Lu Yun and had a good relationship with her, Lu Yun and He Cheng’an decided to visit Sister Sun’s house together.

The entire New Year was very lively.

On the day they visited Li Ling’s house, He Cheng’an seriously handed her a red envelope. Li Ling remembered the time she had called him “brother-in-law” and couldn’t help but laugh. This time, she accepted the envelope and addressed him as “brother-in-law” again.

Although He Cheng’an had given Li Ling a red envelope, Lu Yun also prepared one for her, considering they hadn’t officially registered their marriage yet. This envelope had been ready for a while.

While everyone was busy chatting, Li Ling linked her arm with Lu Yun’s and whispered to her, “Since your shop’s business has been getting better and better, Han Jiangang is starting to think about getting into business himself.”

Lu Yun asked, “What does he plan to do?”

Li Ling replied, “We’re still figuring that out. I’ll let you know once we decide.”

Lu Yun nodded, “Alright.”

While Lu Yun was talking to Li Ling, He Cheng’an didn’t interrupt them. It wasn’t until Lu Yun was ready to eat that she and Li Ling went outside and noticed Han Jiangang talking to He Cheng’an. Seeing the way Han Jiangang looked at He Cheng’an reminded Lu Yun of how Zhang Hao regarded him—with a kind of deep-seated respect.

She wondered what they were discussing.

At noon, they had lunch at Li Ling’s house. Lu Yun noticed several new dishes prepared by Li Ling’s family and ended up eating quite a lot, knowing she would still have to eat leftovers when she got home.

Lu Yun also craved the spicy skewers from her own shop.

In a low voice, she said to He Cheng’an, “When the shop opens, let’s go eat spicy skewers together.”

He Cheng’an responded, “Do you want to eat?”

Lu Yun nodded, “Yes, I really want to.”

He Cheng’an said, “Let’s go to the spicy skewer shop together later and have some.”

After eating a bit more, taking advantage of the busy atmosphere when no one was paying attention to them, Lu Yun tugged at He Cheng’an’s sleeve and they went outside together.

Before Lu Yun could say anything, He Cheng’an wrapped his arms around her.

He Cheng’an asked, “What did you want to say?”

Lu Yun had intended to invite Li Ling and Han Jiangang to join them, but at that moment, she didn’t feel like saying it. Instead, she simply replied, “Forget it. Let’s just go back and eat.”

He Cheng’an looked around and held Lu Yun tightly in his embrace, a bright smile on his face. “Then let me hold you for a while longer.”

After a moment, He Cheng’an asked, “Ah Yun, how about I propose tomorrow?”

Lu Yun answered, “That sounds good.”