Chapter 34 Part 2

They had made dumplings like this before, so they got the hang of it pretty quickly.

The dumplings Zhou Wan made were all small and exquisite, with beautiful crimped edges.

The two chatted idly while making dumplings. They made a whole large plateful. Grandma took some to cook, and put the rest in a plastic container in the fridge to eat for breakfast later.

Soon, the dumplings floated to the surface. They were scooped out and poured into a bowl.

Zhou Wan mixed a bowl of dipping sauce and ate one.

Grandma asked, "How is it?"

Her cheeks puffed out as she smiled, "Delicious."

"If it's delicious, then eat more," Grandma smiled along. "You need to get fatter to have a stronger immune system."

"My immune system is great. I haven't been sick at all this winter."

After finishing the dumplings, Zhou Wan cleared the dishes and sat in the living room to turn on the TV.

She rarely watched TV, so Grandma asked with some curiosity why she was watching TV today.

Zhou Wan replied, "I have to accompany you today."

"What's there to do accompanying an old woman like me?" Grandma chuckled. "On a day like today, your classmates must have asked you to go out and have fun, right?"

"Mhm, I heard there's a fireworks show at Xi Qiao today. It seems they went to see it together."

"You should go watch too. What's the point of staying with Grandma all the time?" Grandma patted Zhou Wan's head. "Don't we see each other every day after school? You're with me every day."

At this moment, Zhou Wan opened her Moments.

The very first post was one Jiang Yan had just sent: a photo.

In a Western restaurant, the dishes were exquisite, the lighting soft, and a section of Lu Zhongyue's gray suit was visible at the top.

Someone commented below, saying his dad really had a sense of ceremony for the New Year, and that this Western-style restaurant must cost several thousand per person.

Zhou Wan lowered her eyes.

She exited Moments and sent a message to Lu Xixiao.

[Zhou Wan: What are you doing?]

Lu Xixiao sent a photo.

In a dim background, there was a row of liquor bottles, with a blue spotlight sweeping down.

Probably at a bar.

[6: With Jiang Fan and the others.]

Before she could reply, Lu Xixiao called her.

Zhou Wan paused. "Grandma, I'm going to take a call."

She went back to her bedroom before answering, softly, "Hello?"

Lu Xixiao's side was a bit noisy, with booming music and a clamor of voices. Even his casual laugh was drowned in it. "Have you eaten?"

"Just finished."

"What did you eat?"

"Dumplings, we made them ourselves."

He raised an eyebrow. "You know how to make dumplings."

"It's very simple, as long as they don't fall apart in the water," Zhou Wan said. "What about you?"

"I'll eat later."

Zhou Wan glanced at the time. It was already past nine in the evening. "Then drink less alcohol, or your stomach will hurt."

Lu Xixiao chuckled, "Oh."

After a pause, Zhou Wan said softly, "Lu Xixiao."

"Hm?"

"Happy New Year."

He paused.

It was only a second, but amidst the noisy background sound from the phone, that one-second pause seemed to stretch infinitely, making the silence feel heavy.

"Mhm." Lu Xixiao's voice still held that familiar, lazy smile. "Happy New Year, Wanwan."

After hanging up, his one-second silence still lingered in Zhou Wan's mind.

It was as if he didn't even know it was December 31st, or rather, he simply didn't care.

Such holidays held no meaning for him.

Anyway, day after day, every day was spent the same way.

He steeped himself in the hustle and bustle of a decadent life, passing day after day in liveliness.

Yet he remained detached from the liveliness, his heart cold, his eyes calm, never truly blending in.

...

Zhou Wan walked out of the bedroom. Grandma asked, "Who were you on the phone with?"

She lowered her head, not daring to look directly at her grandma. "Just a classmate."

Grandma smiled gently. "Did they ask you to go out and have fun with them?"

"No, we just chatted a bit." Zhou Wan sat back down on the sofa, watching the TV series that was on—a family ethics drama with over seventy episodes.

Her gaze fell on the TV, but she couldn't take anything in, couldn't hear a thing.

Grandma watched her from the side without a change in expression, then smiled knowingly. "Wanwan, go have fun with your classmates. Friends are important too. Anyway, you have tomorrow off, you can accompany Grandma then."

Zhou Wan hesitated for a moment, then looked up to meet her grandma's smiling eyes.

"Then—" Out of guilt, Zhou Wan's face unconsciously flushed red. "I'll go out for a bit, I'll be back soon."

"Mhm, go on." Grandma rubbed her hair. "Wear a scarf, don't catch a cold."

Zhou Wan changed her clothes and put on her scarf. At the door, she turned back, took a box of dumplings from the fridge, cooked them, put them back in the box, stuffed it into her bag, and quickly went out.

Once on the bus, Zhou Wan remembered to send a message to Lu Xixiao.

[Zhou Wan: I'm coming to find you now.]

[Zhou Wan: Is that okay?]

[6: Didn't you have to take your grandma to the hospital?]

[Zhou Wan: We're already done.]

[6: I'll come find you.]

[Zhou Wan: I'm already on the bus. Wait for me there for a bit.]

[6: Fine.]

The streets were very congested today. The bus moved slowly, braking constantly. Zhou Wan was frequently thrown forward by the inertia, to the point she started feeling a bit carsick and nauseous.

She opened the window. The cold wind blew in, and the nausea finally subsided.

Forty minutes later, she finally arrived.

Zhou Wan got off the bus. The bar was just across the road.

From afar, she could see Lu Xixiao standing at the entrance, leaning back against the wall. He stood lazily, a cigarette dangling from his lips, playing on his phone. The screen's light reflected on his high nose bridge, sharp and clean-cut.

Zhou Wan looked at him, paused for a moment, and then ran towards him.

Lu Xixiao heard the footsteps, looked up, and smiled when he saw her.

The girl was wearing a thick down jacket, bundled up tightly. A red scarf wrapped around her small chin, and her face, nipped by the cold wind, was both pale and red, like a piece of fruit-filled soft candy.

"Why did you suddenly come over?" Lu Xixiao asked.

Zhou Wan didn't know why she had suddenly come to find him either.