Chapter 13

Time flew by, and more than a month had passed.

Today, as usual, Ye Xiaoyu went out early for her morning workout. As soon as she opened the door, a gust of cold air rushed in. Her nose itched, and she couldn’t help but sneeze.

The temperature had dropped again.

Ye Xiaoyu quickly shut the door, added scarves and gloves for both herself and Lele, and put on ear warmers. Once properly equipped, they headed out.

Little Lele skipped ahead, full of energy. After spending over a month together, likely because he had regained a sense of security, he now understood that his mother wasn’t going to leave him. With an overly energetic mother as an influence, he had become much more lively, no longer as quiet and reserved.

Of course, because of this, Ye Xiaoyu made sure to incorporate a few safety lessons into their playtime, and they even played a game of cops and robbers.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they saw the world covered in a blanket of snow. The snow from last night had fallen heavily, and the security guards and cleaners of Huayuan residential complex were already out shoveling the snow. They greeted Ye Xiaoyu and Lele with smiles and exchanged a morning greeting.

There were fewer people in the nearby park today, and even the breakfast stalls had reduced by one or two.

Ye Xiaoyu usually cooked one-third of her breakfast herself and bought two-thirds from outside. Today, she went to her regular stall, first buying for Lele: fried dough rings, tea eggs, and douzhi (fermented mung bean drink). For herself, she also bought a cup of hot soy milk to keep warm in the cold.

“The soy smell is so nice,” she commented.

“That’s because it’s slow-cooked, simmered for a long time. The flavor comes out that way,” replied the vendor, Aunt Mao, with a shy smile.

A customer in line sighed, “Snow is a good omen for a good harvest. It’s already December, so it’s time for snow.”

“Yes, exactly. In just over half a month, it’ll be the lunar December, and the New Year isn’t far off. It always snows around this time,” said another customer.

The mention of the New Year brought smiles to many faces, a shared sense of anticipation.

“Yes, the New Year is almost here,” Ye Xiaoyu added, then asked, “Aunt Mao, I heard from Grandma Yang that you’ll still be selling breakfast during the Spring Festival?”

Aunt Mao quickly responded, “Yes, yes. I’ll be selling except for the night of New Year’s Eve and the morning of the first day of the New Year.”

In this time, people really valued the Spring Festival, and the atmosphere of the New Year was strong. Very few shops or vendors worked straight through to New Year’s Eve, and even fewer worked during the New Year itself. Most people took time off until the Lantern Festival.

Aunt Mao worked so hard, and her struggles were not without reason.

Ye Xiaoyu didn’t ask casually; she had a general understanding of Aunt Mao’s family situation. She lived in a shared alley with several other families. The man in her household had broken his leg and was bedridden. She had an elderly parent and three children—one daughter had dropped out of school to work, a son who was in junior high, and a little daughter in elementary school.

Her older daughter and son were born before the one-child policy, so they didn’t pay fines, but when her younger daughter was registered, the family had to pay a fine. Since the man’s accident, the entire financial burden had fallen on Aunt Mao.

The more children one had, the poorer they became. Were you aware of family planning products?

Ye Xiaoyu had met Aunt Mao’s older daughter and second son. The older daughter had dropped out of school because she didn’t pass the entrance exam to high school and had been encouraging her younger sister to study hard and aim for high school or even university. She was just one of many ordinary mothers, gentle and kind in nature, with many regular customers at her stall.

Thinking of this, Ye Xiaoyu said, “Every family will have good food during the New Year. Your business will likely drop a lot, right?”

“Exactly,” Aunt Mao replied with a wry smile.

“Actually, I know of a temporary job that starts around mid-month and lasts until New Year’s Eve. It’s for about one and a half months with a salary of 2000 yuan. If you do well, there’s a 500 yuan bonus at the end of the year. Aunt Mao, would you consider it?”

Before Aunt Mao could respond, another customer immediately spoke up, “I’m tempted myself. Two months for 2500 yuan? Even senior technicians at state-owned factories don’t make that much.”

Although the customer was envious, the reality was that these people would never take such a job. Not to mention the possibility of it being fake, they would never want to work hard during the New Year, especially for a temporary job.

Aunt Mao thought for a moment. Businesspeople knew that while working early and late was exhausting, the money they made was higher than regular salaries. However, as more people discovered this secret, business became more competitive. By the 1990s, earnings were actually lower than before. Just look at this small park—when there were more breakfast stalls, there were over ten. So, yes, her business would indeed drop significantly during the New Year.

“Is this job for real?”

“Of course. I’m a regular at your stall, and you know I live nearby. There’s no way I’d lie to you. Don’t worry, it’s legal and legitimate work.”

Aunt Mao thought it over and agreed. If the job was real, she would take it. If not, she would continue selling her breakfast and wontons for lunch and dinner.

After confirming the details with Aunt Mao, Ye Xiaoyu resumed her morning workout.

Today, there were fewer elderly people out in the park, and Lele only greeted five or six “grandpa” or “grandma” calls. Previously, he would have said at least fifteen or sixteen.

An elderly man, Grandpa Dong, took a big white rabbit candy from his pocket and gave it to Lele. He hadn’t brought candy before, but he had grown fond of Lele, and for some reason, he started bringing candy with him every morning.

If Lele didn’t take the candy, he would scold Ye Xiaoyu. Yes, he would scold the mother if the child didn’t take the candy.

Such a bad temper!

“Thank you, Grandpa Dong.” Lele, always obedient, took the candy. He only allowed himself to eat one piece of candy a day, so his teeth wouldn’t get cavities. He didn’t want cavities. He made sure to brush his teeth seriously every morning and night.

Grandpa Dong, seeing Ye Xiaoyu jump rope as usual, spoke up, “You sure don’t let ‘snow or wind’ stop you. It’s only been a short time, and your face has gotten slimmer by two circles. If you keep it up, once the snow melts, you might become as thin as a stick!”

What he meant was for Ye Xiaoyu to be careful with her weight loss, to not overdo it.

However, Ye Xiaoyu only heard the first part of his sentence: “Really? That’s great!” She was thrilled, happy to hear someone notice that her face had become slimmer.

She had definitely noticed her weight loss, especially because it was so obvious. Since it was still winter and she wore thick winter coats, she imagined that the changes would be even more noticeable in summer. The fact that someone else noticed and mentioned it made her even happier.

Grandpa Dong:

“……”

After the morning workout, when Ye Xiaoyu stopped by the market, she used someone else’s large scale to weigh herself — 118 jin.

In just a month, she had lost dozens of jin, which was a bit startling, but Ye Xiaoyu felt no discomfort, and her skin remained firm. This might be related to what the old Chinese medicine doctor had said about her being in very good health after traveling through time.

Ye Xiaoyu hummed a cheerful tune as she returned to Huayuan Community. On the way, she ran into Old Lady Yang, who was out buying groceries. Naturally, Ye Xiaoyu reached out to help carry some of the heavier bags.

Old Lady Yang said, “Xiaoyu, take it easy. You can’t let losing weight harm your health.”

Ye Xiaoyu smiled and replied, “Grandma Yang, I know.”

Old Lady Yang still thought the weight loss might be a bit too much, but since she was just a neighbor and an outsider, she couldn’t press the matter further. She opened her mouth, “You also need to think more about Lele. He can’t be without you.”

“Right, Grandma Yang, I know you care about me. If I feel unwell, I’ll go to the old doctor you mentioned. If the doctor disagrees, I definitely won’t do it.”

“That’s good,” Old Lady Yang nodded, glancing at Ye Xiaoyu and then at Lele. She smiled, “I have to say, after you lost weight, you and Lele look like you came from the same mold.”

Ye Xiaoyu’s face was the first part to gain weight, and it was also the first to slim down. Or rather, her face had slimmed down so noticeably that it was now a round face, with only one layer of a double chin left.

Her delicate features had gradually become more prominent — big, bright eyes, long and curled eyelashes, a high nose bridge, and smooth, fair skin. She looked more and more like Lele, didn’t she?

Even Old Lady Yang sighed at how striking Xiaoyu’s features were. No wonder she gave birth to such a beautiful child like Lele. The mother and son really looked alike.

Ye Xiaoyu was pleased by the compliment. Lele was also happy that he looked like his mother. They both smiled at the same time, showing perfectly aligned, white teeth.

Old Lady Yang looked at the pair of them and praised them again in her heart. Suddenly, she patted her forehead and said, “Tomorrow is Sunday. Haohao will come over. He’s been thinking about Lele. How about you and Lele come to my house to play tomorrow?”

Yes, Lele had made friends.

But it wasn’t just Haohao. On weekends, when they went for morning walks or afternoon strolls in the park, other elderly neighbors would bring their own children to play.

At first, Lele was reserved and shy, but with Ye Xiaoyu, the “big kid,” joining the group, becoming the “king of the kids,” and teaching Lele how to make friends through her own example, Lele had already made many good friends before even going to school.

Haohao was one of them.

Ye Xiaoyu frowned, “Well, tomorrow I have something to do. It might not be convenient to bring Lele over.”

Old Lady Yang frowned too. Her grandson Haohao was very lively, but the cold weather didn’t suit outdoor play. She had been hoping for a playmate to tire him out. She tentatively asked, “Does this matter have anything to do with Lele? How about you drop Lele off at my house tomorrow, and I’ll watch them with my daughter. You can pick him up after your things are done?”

Ye Xiaoyu thought for a moment. It was getting colder outside, and she hadn’t planned on going out today because she didn’t want to risk Lele catching a cold. This could be a solution. However, she asked, “Wouldn’t it be too much trouble for you?”

“No trouble, no trouble,” Old Lady Yang replied. “As long as I can keep that little troublemaker entertained, I’ll be grateful.”

Ye Xiaoyu didn’t immediately agree. She squatted down and asked Lele, “Lele, do you want to play with Haohao tomorrow?” She explained that she would drop him off at Grandma Yang’s house and pick him up in the afternoon, just like when he went to kindergarten.

A month ago, Lele would definitely have refused, but now, he answered in his clear, sweet voice, “I want to play with Haohao, but you have to come pick me up early, okay?”

Ye Xiaoyu gave him a high-five. “Of course.”