Extra 7 – New Year’s Eve
At the greeting, Xiang You’s parents’ expressions softened somewhat, while her father simply opened the half-opened door all the way. “It must have been tiring driving all the way here. Why don’t you come in and sit for a while?”
Meng Ou could not bring himself to refuse and nodded. “Okay, thank you, Uncle.”
The road in front of Xiang You’s house was very narrow, and a vehicle this big took up nearly two-thirds of it. Although there were rarely any cars coming by in the middle of the night, leaving it parked right in front of the door was still not very appropriate.
Meng Ou got back into the car, preparing to drive it into the courtyard. Xiang You called out, “Dad, Mom, I left something behind,” and hurriedly slipped into the passenger seat as well.
As soon as they got into the car, the two of them stared at each other with wide, nervous eyes.
Meng Ou was particularly flustered, an unusual sight. “What do we do? Does your dad smoke? I brought a few cartons of Suyan cigarettes in the back seat. And there’s a box of bird’s nest. Does your aunt eat this kind of stuff? Oh, right, I also have two bottles of Moutai. Should I bring those too?”
From the sound of it, he was about to unload all the New Year’s goods he had prepared to take home as gifts and dump them all at her house halfway there.
Xiang You was already extremely nervous herself. Somehow, seeing Meng Ou like this for the first time made her inexplicably want to laugh, and some of her unease eased.
“None of that is necessary.” She pressed down on Meng Ou’s hand. “You gave me that box of pastries, didn’t you? That’s enough.”
“I didn’t expect I’d have to come inside and sit for a while.” Meng Ou pressed down on her hand in return. “How is one box of pastries enough? It’ll make me look so stingy.”
As if they were playing a game of slapping hands, Xiang You reached out and pressed down on his hand again. “Don’t you think it’d be a little strange for you to carry so many bags of things inside?”
At that, Meng Ou fell silent.
Xiang You also felt the hand she was pressing down on seem to lose its strength all at once.
The relationship between them now was nothing more than that of old classmates.
What old classmate would casually come over to sit for a while and make such a big production out of bringing a pile of gifts?
“All right.” Meng Ou’s voice was faint as he pulled his hand back and gripped the steering wheel.
Xiang You, who had been sitting sideways, leaned her whole body back against the seat as well, quietly watching him drive into the courtyard.
The atmosphere inside the car was slightly stifling, but the moment they got out, the two of them still instinctively put smiles on their faces.
As soon as they entered the house, Xiang You lifted the box of pastries and gave it a little shake. “Dad, Mom, Meng Ou specially brought this back from City A. We can all try some later.”
“He drove you all the way back and even brought a gift. We’ve put him to quite a bit of expense.” Her mother patted her. “Look at you and that memory of yours. You can even forget to buy a ticket home.”
Xiang You gave a sheepish little “hee-hee.” “Luckily I had him. Otherwise, I might not have been able to come back at all. When I called him, he was already on the expressway heading back. He specially drove all the way back to Changrui to pick me up.”
“You little troublemaker!” her mother scolded with a laugh, and there was a hint of approval in the way she looked at Meng Ou.
“Come, come, come, sit down.” Her father pointed toward the sofa.
Meng Ou hurriedly pointed toward it too. “You sit first.”
“Don’t be so polite. Just sit.” Her father did not bother with the formalities and grabbed his shoulder, forcibly pushing him down onto the sofa.
Meng Ou placed both hands on his knees and sat bolt upright like an elementary school student, repeatedly casting pleading looks toward Xiang You.
Unfortunately, Xiang You was too afraid she would burst out laughing, so she turned her eyes away while suppressing her smile.
“Rice cake, have some.” Her father casually opened a box of rice cake and handed a piece to Meng Ou.
Meng Ou accepted it respectfully with both hands. But in the next second, her father pulled out a carton of milk. “Here, this milk has a very high protein content.”
“Thank you, Uncle.” Meng Ou placed the rice cake on his lap and again took the milk with both hands.
Seeing that everything had been successfully handed over, her father sat down on the sofa beside them with satisfaction, but apparently still felt that something was lacking. “Why aren’t you drinking it?”
“Oh! Okay.” Meng Ou fumbled around as he began unwrapping the straw, then obediently started drinking the milk.
“Have some rice cake too. You have to eat it for the New Year.”
“Y-yes, yes.” Meng Ou put down the milk and hurriedly began unwrapping the rice cake.
Who would have thought Meng Ou could look like this?
Xiang You stood not far away, laughing nonstop at the sight, only for her mother to give her ear a gentle tug. “Look at you, laughing like that.”
“What are you doing, Mom?” Xiang You rubbed her ear and pouted at her.
“When did you two get back together? Why didn’t you tell Mom?” Her mother leaned close to her ear and lowered her voice.
“We... didn’t get back together.” Xiang You’s expression was somewhat awkward.
“You didn’t get back together?!”
The living room was only so big, and her mother’s voice had risen just a little too much. In an instant, it drew the attention of the other two.
Meng Ou looked over uneasily, his mouth half open as though he felt he should say something, yet he could not find the right words.
After a brief silence, her father was the first to smooth things over. “But he did help bring our daughter home, didn’t he? If you two can’t make it work, being friends is pretty good too.”
“Yes, it’s pretty good, it’s pretty good.” Her mother realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly followed along.
She looked around the room, then pulled out a box of peach shortbread, broke off a piece, and handed it to Meng Ou, conveniently changing the subject. “Youyou loves this peach shortbread from this place. Every time she comes home, she makes us buy some for her. We can’t really see what’s so special about it, but you should try it.”
Xiang You nudged her. “Mom, give me some face.”
“What’s there to be embarrassed about?” Her mother handed her a piece as well. “This time I deliberately bought you a few extra boxes. Take them back to Changrui and eat them slowly.”
Xiang You unwrapped the peach shortbread and lowered her head to eat, watching Meng Ou from the corner of her eye.
He looked incredibly busy, with the rice cake, the peach shortbread, and a carton of milk all demanding his attention. Poor thing, he only had one mouth.
Yes. Even if they could not make it work, being friends was pretty good too.
Just as she had thought that night, was having a long-lasting friendship not better than having a fragile, easily shattered love?
But what was going on with her?
She seemed somewhat dissatisfied with being merely friends.
Reason and emotion were naturally two contradictory extremes.
Her heart swayed between them. Every time reason managed to pull it back a little, it would unconsciously drift even farther away.
They were only a little distance apart. That small distance was being fiercely guarded by the last of her reason, but it seemed to be on the verge of collapse as well.
Although the awkwardness just now had been smoothed over, the atmosphere in the house had inevitably become much more oppressive.
Her parents began talking about other things, saying that the New Year had come early this year, discussing which programs they were looking forward to on the Spring Festival Gala, and wondering when it would snow.
After a stretch of painfully awkward small talk, Meng Ou finally finished the pile of food and rose to his feet of his own accord. “Uncle, Auntie, it’s getting late, so I’ll head home first.”
“All right. Be careful on the road.” Her father patted him.
Her mother hurriedly brought over a new carton of milk, then added a gift box of cherries and handed them to him. “Here, here, here. Take them home and eat them slowly.”
After a round of meaningless but necessary back-and-forth over whether he should accept them, Meng Ou ultimately took everything.
The door opened, and Xiang You, who had been standing at the back all this time, stepped forward. “I’ll walk you out.”
Her parents deliberately stayed inside, watching the two of them leave.
It was only a few steps from the inner room to where the car was parked. After watching him put the things into the trunk, Xiang You finally spoke.
“You... don’t take it to heart.”
“What would you be worried about?” Meng Ou smiled. “It feels like I came to your house to freeload off you, eating and drinking and even packing up a bunch of things to take home. Your parents should be the ones not taking offense at me.”
Xiang You smiled faintly but said nothing as she looked at him.
Meng Ou did not speak again either, simply standing there and looking at her.
Above their heads, a full moon finally illuminated their long-delayed reunion.
“Be careful on your way ba—”
“Xiang You.”
The two of them spoke almost at the same time, but in the end, it was Meng Ou who interrupted her.
Xiang You gave a serious little “mm.”
Having seized the initiative in the conversation, Meng Ou nevertheless failed to make good use of it.
He merely reached out and gently touched her hair, as he habitually did. “Happy New Year’s Eve.”
This New Year’s Eve was very happy, but there was also a strange, faint sourness to it.
Xiang You watched all the way until the car’s taillights disappeared at the end of the road. Unhurriedly, she closed the courtyard gate and returned inside.
Her father went to rest first, but her mother was still waiting for her. “Youyou, sit down and chat with Mom for a bit.”
Xiang You knew what her mother wanted to talk about.
Since she would have to face it sooner or later, she decided she might as well not avoid it.
Ever since their relationship had been exposed that time when their parents were called to school, the two of them had stopped keeping their relationship a secret.
Her mother’s only requirements were that she put her studies first and protect herself, and that she tell her parents immediately if anything was wrong.
Xiang You agreed, and so this relationship was, in a sense, tacitly approved by her parents.
Although neither side had seen the other’s parents again, Xiang You often mentioned him to her mom and dad.
When they learned that Meng Ou had gotten into such a good university, her parents were so happy, it was as if she herself had been the one admitted.
Later, whenever he came up in conversation, it was about how the two of them were going to City A together, or coming back together. Having someone to accompany her on the road made her parents feel much more at ease.
During their senior year, her mother had even asked indirectly when they planned to get married, saying that couples who had been dating since school either got married right away or, in most cases, ended up separating after graduation.
Xiang You had brushed the question aside, saying she wanted to wait until she had settled down herself before thinking about it.
In the end, her mother’s words had come true.
After arriving in Changrui, Xiang You did not rush to start work. Instead, she made a trip back to her hometown.
Perhaps seeing that she was not in a very good state, her parents tacitly chose not to mention her breakup.
Xiang You rested at home for several days like that, until finally, on the day she was preparing to leave, she threw herself into her mother’s arms and burst into tears.
What she said was that she could not bear to leave her parents, but no one knew her daughter better than her mother.
Her mother stroked her back and comforted her, telling her that people inevitably went through meetings and partings, and sometimes no one was to blame. Perhaps they simply had not been fated enough. In the future, she would surely meet someone with whom she was more fated.
But Xiang You had once passed by her parents’ bedroom and accidentally overheard them sighing over it, saying what a pity it was.
Such a pity.
Whether it was her parents, her classmates, or her homeroom teacher, this was almost everyone’s first reaction upon learning that the two of them had broken up.
Everyone had hoped they would create a fairy tale that went from school uniforms to wedding gowns, but reality rarely went as people wished.
“Mom.” Xiang You took her mother’s outstretched hand and sat down beside her.
“Xiao Meng certainly put some thought into it, coming all the way from City A to Changrui to pick you up,” her mother said.
“Mom, he... left City A. He’s working in Changrui now.”
“What happened?” Her mother’s expression immediately turned serious. “Because of you?”
“No, no. It’s because, because a company in Changrui recruited him. He thought the compensation and benefits were better here by comparison, so he came over.” Xiang You lied for him.
Heaven knew how someone who had always been honest with her parents had instinctively lied this time, and so naturally that even she herself found it unbelievable.
It was just that if she followed Meng Ou’s own version of events and said that he had been unable to make a living in City A and had had no choice but to come back, what would her mother think of him?
Even if they were only friends, protecting a friend’s dignity in front of her parents was perfectly reasonable.
As for those other little thoughts that could not be spoken of, she would just let them remain hidden.
“So you two are in the same city again now?” her mother asked.
“Yeah.”
“Mom doesn’t want to be one of those annoying old-fashioned people who are always nagging you about this and that. But Youyou, have you ever thought about your lifelong plans?”
Xiang You had thought about them, and the conclusion she had reached was somewhat despairing.
But ever since Meng Ou had appeared again, it seemed a small flame had suddenly been lit in her heart. It was very faint, but it showed signs of growing stronger.
“Mom...” Xiang You buried her head in her mother’s arms. “Isn’t this exactly you pressuring me?”
“I’m not, I’m not.” Her mother patted her helplessly. “I’m just telling you to seize the opportunity. The first time it slipped away. If you can’t hold on to it the second time, it might really be gone.”
“Do you want me to get back together with him?” Xiang You asked with her head still buried.
“Your dad and I think he’s a pretty good person, but what we’ve seen is ultimately only one side of him. You still have to make your own considerations. It’s not about whether we hope for it or not. The only thing your dad and I hope for is that you’ll be happy.”
Then, if she were together with Meng Ou, would she be happy?
She had intended to treat this question as something to consider over a long period of time, but the answer suddenly popped out without warning.
Yes, yes, yes.
With that last shred of dignity, she coyly changed the subject in her mother’s arms. “Mom, I’m so sleepy.”
“All right, all right, all right. Mom knows. Then hurry up and go to sleep.”
•
When Xiang You woke up, it was already afternoon. She rubbed her hungry stomach and followed the aroma into the kitchen, where she casually picked up a freshly fried lotus-root sandwich.
“Whose little mouse is this, sneaking over here to steal food?” her father teased.
The little mouse caught in the act was not flustered in the slightest, taking a big bite of the fragrant lotus-root sandwich.
“You, you, you. You’re already this old, and you still don’t know how to cook.” Her mother sounded somewhat exasperated by her daughter’s lack of initiative.
Eating, Xiang You answered indistinctly, “I won’t let myself go hungry anyway.”
“That much we can tell.” Her father chimed in.
“Speaking of which, can Xiao Meng cook?” her mother suddenly asked.
Xiang You stopped chewing, inexplicably a little embarrassed. “He can.”
“Oh...” Her mother nodded thoughtfully and said nothing more.
After New Year’s Eve dinner, the family gathered around the sofa to watch the Spring Festival Gala.
Xiang You was somewhat distracted, looking down and scrolling through her phone.
A notification suddenly popped up on the screen. It was a message from that “Stupid Seagull.”
stupidgull: Happy New Year’s Eve!
A red envelope containing New Year’s money was attached beneath it.
Xiang You thought about it and, without making much of a fuss, accepted his red envelope and sent him one in return.
stupidgull: Want to come out and set off fireworks together later?
Xiang You put down her phone and was just about to ask her parents what they thought when she saw her mother give her a sidelong glance.
“Xiao Meng looking for you?”
“Why are you peeking at my phone?” Xiang You pretended to be displeased.
“Who was peeking?” Her mother pinched her cheek. “Look at the silly grin you had just now!”
Xiang You’s cheeks felt a little hot.
Was she really like that when she chatted with Meng Ou?
So embarrassing.
Meng Ou drove all the way to her house. The moment the car horn sounded, Xiang You, who had been fully dressed and ready to go since earlier, grabbed her scarf and ran outside.
Her parents watched her leave with a buoyant little step, silently exchanged a glance, and smiled helplessly.
As soon as she got into the car, Meng Ou patted her. “Hold out your hands.”
“Hm?” Xiang You was a little confused, but obediently held out her hand anyway.
“So small...” Meng Ou smiled as he commented. “Hold out both at the same time.”
Xiang You blankly held out her other hand.
Meng Ou turned her hands palm-up and placed them together. “Don’t move.”
Then, from the somewhat bulging pocket of his overcoat, Meng Ou grabbed a large handful and dumped it all into her hands with a rustle.
Chocolate, fruit candies, peanut brittle... all sorts of miscellaneous sweets piled into her palms.
“I grabbed them from the fruit dish before I left,” Meng Ou said.
Xiang You lowered her head and seriously gazed at the handful of colorful candies in her hands.
She had not even tasted them yet, but her heart had already begun to sweeten.
She carefully put all the candies into her own pocket, unwrapped a piece of chocolate and held it in her mouth, then gazed out the window at the nighttime scenery, her heart brimming with delight.
There were very few pedestrians on the streets on New Year’s Eve. Ever since the ban on firecrackers had been imposed in the urban area, the streets looked even quieter than usual.
Meng Ou sped along the main road toward the outskirts, while Xiang You lowered her head and poked at the car’s built-in display. Before long, the entire car was filled with the sound of Gongxi Facai (Wishing You Prosperity).
Andy Lau sang the festive song in his awkward Mandarin, and Xiang You happily sang along, constantly bobbing her head. “I wish you prosperity, I wish you success...”
“Xiang Youyou.” Meng Ou could not help laughing. “Did you drink tonight?”
“No, I didn’t. I don’t drink.” Just then, the speakers played the line, “When wishing prosperity, you have to shout it with enough boldness,” and she enthusiastically followed along, shouting, “Gong! Xi! Fa! Cai!”
“Good, prosperity, prosperity!” Meng Ou was thoroughly amused by her.
Xiang You truly had not touched a drop of alcohol, but at this moment she felt as if her whole body were floating, and there was an inexplicable exhilaration in her mood.
So you could get drunk without drinking?
But she was just so, so happy, happier than she could say.
Perhaps it was because of the holiday, or perhaps it was because of something else. Everything she looked at seemed wonderful, and everything made her happy.
By the time the song had looped for the third time, Xiang You was getting so hyped that she felt a little hot, so she lowered the car window partway.
The cold winter-night wind rushed in with a whoosh, cooling her overheated head a little.
Leaning against the seat, she looked at Meng Ou and said dreamily, “The New Year is so nice.”
“Mm...” The corners of Meng Ou’s lips lifted. “I think so too.”
The two of them casually found an open square in the outskirts and parked the car.
Meng Ou opened the trunk. Inside was a brilliant sea of red, filled with all kinds of fireworks.
“My little nephew saw them and insisted on coming with me. I said no, minors aren’t allowed to set them off,” Meng Ou said.
“How could there be such a mean uncle as you?” The smile on Xiang You’s face was clearly at odds with the reproach in her words.
“That’s right. The moment his uncle thought about going out to set off fireworks with a certain someone, he stopped caring about anyone else.”
This “certain someone” rubbed her burning cheeks and unwound her scarf one loop at a time.
When it came to setting off fireworks, Meng Ou was actually a novice too.
He had Xiang You choose a box, then carried it out into the open space, turned on his phone’s flashlight, and began carefully studying the instructions on it.
The two of them put their heads together and studied it for a long while before they finally figured it out.
They tore open the packaging and pulled out the fuse. Meng Ou held a lighter in one hand and assumed a starting position. “I’ll count three, two, one, and then we run.”
“Mm!” Xiang You nodded nervously.
“Three, two... one!” Meng Ou pressed the lighter, grabbed Xiang You’s hand, and took off running.
The two of them sprinted madly across the open ground. In a daze, it was as if they had returned to that afternoon, their homeroom teacher shouting herself hoarse behind them while Meng Ou pulled her by the hand, as though he intended to run with her all the way into the future.
Suddenly, the sound of fireworks shooting into the sky rang out behind them, followed by a deafening boom.
They both hurriedly turned to look. Xiang You’s head spun dizzily, and she collapsed backward into Meng Ou’s arms, where she saw the most beautiful fireworks she had ever seen in her life.
Half the sky was illuminated by them, dazzling in its splendor.
They were fleeting, but there was always another burst following close behind.
Meng Ou wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. Xiang You tilted her head back against his chest, breathing in that familiar, reassuring scent as she watched the fireworks fill the sky, each cluster more magnificent than the last.
The New Year was so nice.
Meng Ou was so wonderful.
Everything, everything was wonderful.
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