Chapter 8

He Cheng’an held the mooncake that Lu Yun had sent him, extending his hand to wipe it on his clothes. He carefully opened the packaging and took out a piece of mooncake, biting into it.

In just a few bites, he nearly finished off half the mooncake. He exclaimed happily, “Delicious!”

Before Lu Yun could respond, He Cheng’an quickly finished the remaining mooncake right in front of her, even eating the crumbs that had fallen onto his hands.

Lu Yun opened her mouth to speak, “Then I’ll just head back first.”

He Cheng’an glanced around, realizing that Lu Yun must have taken the bus or walked over. He quickly rushed to the door, saying, “It’s getting dark; I’ll walk you back.”

Once they entered the courtyard, He Cheng’an placed the things Lu Yun had given him inside the house. Then he stepped outside.

While preparing to push his bicycle, he suddenly remembered something. He took down a white shirt that he had hung up to dry that morning, folded it a few times, and placed it on the back seat of the bicycle before pushing it out.

He Cheng’an said, “You can sit here; I’ll push it.”

Lu Yun looked at his shirt, saying, “There’s no need for that.”

He Cheng’an reached back to adjust the shirt that was laid on the back. “It’s softer this way.”

After a pause, he added, “It’s clean; I washed it this morning.”

Lu Yun watched him for a moment before replying, “You should ride the bicycle; if I go back late, my parents might start to worry.”

He Cheng’an tightly gripped the handlebars, saying, “Alright, you get on.”

Lu Yun sat on the back seat of his bicycle, holding onto her skirt with both hands.

He Cheng’an didn’t ride particularly fast, but he wasn’t slow either. This was Lu Yun’s first time sitting on someone else’s bicycle.

As the evening breeze blew, she could even smell the faint scent of soap from He Cheng’an’s freshly washed shirt.

Lu Yun quickly relaxed, and her little legs began to sway gently.

He Cheng’an looked up at the full moon in the night sky. “Look at the moon; it’s really beautiful tonight.”

Lu Yun glanced up and smiled. “Yes, it’s especially beautiful.”

Suddenly, He Cheng’an sped up his cycling, and his smile brightened even more.

In that moment, they felt like they were celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival and enjoying the moonlight together.

“Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, Lu Yun,” He Cheng’an said.

—o—o—o—

After returning home, Lu Yun was scolded by Zhang Meili.

Meanwhile, Lu Dong sat to the side, giving Lu Yun a sympathetic look.

As Lu Yun listened to Zhang Meili’s nagging, she heard the sound of a door opening outside, and her spirits lifted instantly.

Sure enough, it was Lu Xiang’an who walked in, returning even later than Lu Yun.

Seizing the moment while Zhang Meili was busy reprimanding Lu Xiang’an, Lu Yun swiftly grabbed her toiletries and dashed off to take a shower, even washing up quicker than usual.

When she came out , she coincidentally ran into Lu Xiang’an.

Unable to contain her laughter, she quickened her pace back to her room and shut the door.

As soon as she entered, she spotted Lu Xiang’an leaning on the windowsill.

“Who did you go to see just now?” Lu Xiang’an asked.

Lu Yun walked over, quickly shutting the window and drawing the curtains.

After a moment’s thought, she opened the curtains again and pushed the window back. “I didn’t even ask you.”

Lu Xiang’an lowered his voice. “Well, I went to see my girlfriend. You, on the other hand, went to see your boyfriend. Who is it? Someone else, or is it Chen Zhiqiang again?”

As he said this, he wore a somewhat serious expression.

In the next moment, Lu Yun had shut him out of the window again.

Zhang Meili came out, carrying a table. “What are you all doing? Hurry up and come out; it’s time to enjoy the moon. We still haven’t eaten mooncakes together!”

Lu Xiang’an stepped forward, saying, “I’ll help!”

On this Mid-Autumn night, the courtyard buzzed with activity. Lu Yun sat at the table, feeling her half-dry hair, taking a bite of mooncake, and then grabbing an apple, which was sweet and crisp.

As she gazed at the moon, thoughts of He Cheng’an crossed her mind, tinged with a hint of regret.

In the novels she read, the male supporting character and the female supporting character often played specific roles—the female supporting character was there to be face-slapped by the female lead, while the male supporting character stood behind her, indulging her.

The stories were typically told from the perspective of the female lead, often filled with memories. Therefore, Lu Yun didn’t know much about He Cheng’an.

She suddenly recalled that when He Cheng’an returned home, the courtyard lights weren’t on; he lived there alone.

Was he spending the Mid-Autumn Festival by himself? Why hadn’t he gone home?

Zhang Meili passed her some pomegranates. Their family only had this one, a gift from someone else. They hadn’t dared to eat it the day before and had saved it for the festival.

Seeing Lu Yun still holding the apple without taking a bite, Zhang Meili asked, “What are you thinking about?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Lu Yun replied.

Zhang Meili sighed helplessly. Raising children had always been a concern. She had thought that once they grew up, she wouldn’t have to worry so much. Yet here she was, still worrying about them.

After dealing with the children, she had to think about their careers; after that, it was their marriage. And once the marriage was settled, she would be concerned about their happiness and even about helping to care for grandchildren.

“Do you know why I chose your dad back then?” Zhang Meili asked.

“Why?” Lu Yun inquired.

“He protected me in front of his family. At the time, I didn’t want to get married, especially with all those relatives of his…” Zhang Meili shook her head at the memory. “But your dad was willing to stand by me. He was willing to separate from his family and live on our own. Of course, those years were tough.”

She looked at Lu Yun. “Let me tell you in detail about the hardships I went through.”

Zhang Meili spoke for over half an hour, recounting how Lu Dong’s relatives bullied her, how Lu Dong’s capable sister-in-law looked down on her, the favoritism of her in-laws, and how they had started out quite poor.

As Lu Yun listened to her stories, she felt increasingly engaged, though Lu Dong eventually intervened, stopping Zhang Meili from continuing.

On the way back, Lu Dong sighed, “When you married me, you really had to endure a lot.”

Zhang Meili rolled her eyes. “I can’t let Ah Yun know about these hardships; I’m so worried about her marriage. Today, I ran into Chen Zhiqiang’s aunt. She acted all high and mighty, just like your sister-in-law, if not worse, looking down on everyone. Just because Chen Zhiqiang went to university and is a director at a factory, their family is in much better shape than ours. What’s so impressive about that? It’s as if everyone wants to climb up to be with her nephew.”

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. “If someone wants to marry our Ah Yun, there would be a long line. It’s not just that Chen Zhiqiang’s family doesn’t want this marriage; I don’t want him as my son-in-law either! If she’s going to marry, she should marry someone from a good family; that way, life will be a lot easier.”

Hearing their conversation, Lu Yun quietly took a few steps back without saying a word.

—o—o—o—

That night, Lu Yun found it hard to sleep. She tossed and turned in bed, unable to settle down, and recalled Zhang Meili’s words.

Before her time travel, Lu Yun had never been in a relationship, but she felt Zhang Meili was right. Before her journey, Lu Yun’s teammates had asked what kind of boyfriend she wanted.

Her answers had varied—someone taller, good-looking, with a stable job, etc.—but the most important thing was that he should be protective of her, that he should favor her.

As she pondered, Lu Yun didn’t even realize when she finally fell asleep.

—o—o—o—

During the Mid-Autumn holiday, aside from the first day of the festival, Lu Yun spent the rest of her time lounging at home, even going a day without washing her face.

She only brushed her teeth during meals, turning into the quintessential lazy person.

Although there weren’t any electronic devices, Lu Yun could still read the books she had bought, take afternoon naps, or help with cooking. Whenever she cooked, someone would ask her how she did it, eager to learn.

Lu Yun generously shared simple tips, such as advising Aunt Wang on how to cook tofu. She suggested boiling the tofu in hot water before stewing it. For some of her dishes, she also explained that salt should be added later in the cooking process.

On the day she returned to work, Lu Yun got up early and quickly glanced at her watch. She rushed out of her room, exclaiming, “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Zhang Meili brought breakfast in. “We did call you! But when we saw how sleepy you were, we thought we’d let you sleep a little longer. Hurry up, wash up, and eat breakfast before heading to work.”

When Lu Yun arrived at the Cotton Textile Factory, she was about ten minutes late. She could only hope that this tardiness wouldn’t affect her salary for the month, especially since she planned to visit the provincial capital next month.

It wasn’t for a new dress; she just wanted to browse the shopping mall and buy some things for the Lu family.

This month, because she had bought a Mid-Autumn gift for He Cheng’an, she needed to tighten her belt a bit financially.

As Lu Yun entered, she ran into the deputy director of her office, who was accompanied by a man. He looked clean and warm but also somewhat distant.

Lu Yun recognized him; during her interactions with the system while helping the next traveler, she had memorized Chen Zhiqiang’s appearance.

The system had even advised her not to get too carried away with the novels and attempt to pursue the male lead.

But Lu Yun wouldn’t have done that anyway.

She didn’t like the male lead, and besides, she was the original character in the story who married the male lead, eventually becoming the female lead’s counterpart, not merely a character in a novel.

The deputy director of Lu Yun’s office walked over with a smile. “Lu Yun, back to work, huh? Hurry up and head to your office.” After saying this, he glanced between Lu Yun and Chen Zhiqiang, chuckling softly.

Hearing this, Lu Yun felt her mood brighten. If the deputy director said it like that, her tardiness of ten minutes likely wouldn’t affect her salary for the month.

“Thank you, Deputy Director. I’ll head back to the office now,” Lu Yun replied, then walked directly past Chen Zhiqiang.

Chen Zhiqiang stood in place, not quite catching what the deputy director had been saying to Lu Yun. After a moment, he turned slightly to look at her, just as Lu Yun was jogging away, her skirt and hair gently swaying in the breeze.

Once he saw her enter the office, he turned back and said, “Well, I’ll get back to work then.”

The deputy director smiled. “Alright, you go ahead and busy yourself. I have some things to attend to as well.”