Chapter 46#
The voice was very familiar.
In the hazy glow, the man walked steadily towards Yan Heqing, his tall figure gradually becoming clear.
His long black overcoat was slightly open, revealing a simple, matching suit underneath. A beige cashmere scarf was draped around his neck, falling naturally.
It was Lu Lin.
Yan Heqing hadn’t expected Lu Lin to appear on New Year’s Eve. He was briefly stunned for a moment, and Lu Lin was already in front of him.
Lu Lin’s gaze fell on Yan Heqing’s face.
The boy’s complexion, up close, was even paler.
Coming back to his senses, Yan Heqing politely curved his lips, “Mr. Lu, are you looking for me for something?”
Lu Lin’s voice was low and deep, “There’s a temporary job to offset medical expenses. Will you take it?”
Yan Heqing asked, “Now?”
“Now.”
Yan Heqing instinctively felt that this job wasn’t simple. “Can I ask what kind of job it is first?”
“Accompany my mother.” Lu Lin’s eyes were deep. “She’s not well and has been recuperating in the mountains for years, rarely seeing people. The job is to make her happy, and the salary will be paid at three times the market hourly rate.”
A photo he had seen at Lu Lin’s residence flashed through his mind.
So that was why Lu Lin never ate New Year’s Eve dinner at the Lu family in the original text.
Yan Heqing was silent for a moment, then shook his head, “No.”
Lu Lin’s dark eyes deepened slightly. Before he could speak, Yan Heqing suddenly raised his face, meeting Lu Lin’s gaze. The corners of his lips curved slightly, “I’d like to be a guest. Can I stay for a meal?”
Yan Heqing needed to go upstairs for a moment, and Lu Lin waited for him downstairs.
Watching the slender figure walk into the unit building, Lu Lin took out his phone and dialed a number.
The other side answered very slowly.
Lu Ruchan’s hearing had deteriorated over the years, so it usually took a while.
Just as the ringing tone was about to end, Lu Ruchan’s voice sounded, “A-Lin, are you almost here?”
“No, I’m picking up a friend.”
Lu Ruchan was quite surprised. Bringing a friend? This was the first time. She smiled and nodded, “Okay, I’ll have someone add a few more dishes. What kind of taste does your friend prefer?”
“Home-cooked, light, not too sweet.” After a pause, Lu Lin said, “He’s young.”
Lu Lin emphasized it specifically, which made Lu Ruchan curious. “How young?”
Just then, the stairwell light came on, and Yan Heqing came out of the unit building. Lu Lin’s gaze followed him. “Eighteen.”
Yan Heqing was carrying a paper bag. Seeing Lu Lin standing outside the car, and snow starting to fall again, he quickened his pace, jogging towards Lu Lin. “Mr. Lu, we can go now.”
Lu Lin put his phone back in his pocket, walked to the back seat, and opened the car door.
Yan Heqing was momentarily confused. Did he want him to drive? He didn’t have a driver’s license.
Lu Lin didn’t let him wonder for too long. “Get in.” Then he returned to the driver’s seat.
He was driving himself.
Yan Heqing got into the back seat. The temperature inside the car was very high, as if it were two different spaces from outside. In front of him was the back of Lu Lin’s head, half visible above the seat.
Lu Lin buckled his seatbelt, started the car, and set off.
Yan Heqing gently placed the paper bag at his feet. It contained the succulents he had raised.
It was a gift for Lu Lin’s mother. At this time, all the shops were closed, so he couldn’t buy any other gifts.
Perhaps the car was too quiet, so Lu Lin casually turned on the radio.
A random station, two actors were performing a crosstalk, their tones exaggerated.
Lu Lin looked at the rearview mirror. In the mirror, the young man sat quietly. “If you don’t like it, change the song.”
“No need.” The young man suddenly looked up, meeting Lu Lin’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “Listening to crosstalk during the New Year is very lively.”
Lu Lin averted his gaze. The car drove out of the community and continued for a while before he turned onto the highway.
Inside the car, the actors’ exaggerated laughter continued. He spoke again, “Why didn’t you continue living there?”
“I have things to deal with, and it’s more convenient to go home.”
The car turned onto the highway. Streetlights illuminated both sides. Snow fell on the windshield, and it gradually grew heavier. “Didn’t you run into the creditors?”
“Mm.” Yan Heqing curved his eyes. “They also have to celebrate the New Year.”
Lu Lin looked at the rearview mirror again, and his gaze met the young man’s clear eyes. “Thank you, Mr. Lu.”
Lu Lin’s Adam’s apple moved slightly. He calmly averted his gaze. “You already thanked me.”
“That was today’s thank you.” Yan Heqing smiled. “Actually, I was feeling a bit down today, so I’m very happy that you invited me to your home for the New Year.”
Lu Lin felt a slight cough in his throat. He suppressed it. “Why were you feeling down?”
“Missing some people very much.” Yan Heqing then withdrew his gaze and looked out the window. There were intermittent streaks of light from the road, but most of the time it was silent darkness.
On the radio, the crosstalk reached its climax, and the audience burst into laughter.
For the rest of the journey, neither of them spoke again.
After exiting the highway, they drove for a while up a mountain road. In the quiet mountains, only a spot halfway up was lit.
The car stopped at the villa. The snow was heavier than in the city, falling in large flakes. Yan Heqing closed the paper bag and got out of the car, taking a few steps up the stairs.
Lu Lin lowered half of the car window. “Go inside first, I’ll park the car.” He drove to the garage.
At the same time, the sound of a door opening came from behind. Light shone on the steps, and then a kind female voice said—
“Hello, little friend.”
Yan Heqing turned around. What met his eyes was an extremely thin woman, almost a pale skin covering a skeleton, wearing a thick hat and sitting in a wheelchair.
She almost immediately overlapped with the woman in the photo.
This was Lu Lin’s mother.
Yan Heqing bowed politely, “Hello, my name is Yan Heqing.”
Lu Ruchan waved her hand. “Come closer.”
Yan Heqing was puzzled. He took a few steps forward and bent down closer to Lu Ruchan. “Yes?”
Lu Ruchan then saw Yan Heqing clearly. She smiled, “It suits your name very well.” And he was indeed young, five years younger than Lu Muchi.
Her withered palm gently patted Yan Heqing’s shoulder. “Come in quickly, it’s cold outside.”
Following her inside, the maid had already prepared slippers for guests. The entire house was heated with appropriate floor heating. Yan Heqing changed into the slippers, then took off his overcoat. When he reached the living room, he took out the gifts one by one. “These are some small potted plants I raised. I hope you like them.”
There were four pots in total.
Pink Bluebird, Colorful Berries, Snowflake Jade Pendant, and Money String Brocade, planted in small white ceramic pots. Each pot was particularly vibrant.
Lu Ruchan was pleasantly surprised. She took the Pink Bluebird and couldn’t put it down. “So beautiful, I will definitely take good care of it.”
Yan Heqing was still carrying the paper bag. The maid offered to take it, but Yan Heqing smiled and shook his head. The maid returned a smile and didn’t move.
The sound of the door closing echoed from the entrance. Soon after, Lu Lin came in.
Besides his overcoat and scarf, he had also taken off his suit jacket, wearing only a light brown pinstriped shirt. As he walked, he unbuttoned his cuffs. Lu Ruchan held up the small potted plant. “A-Lin, look at the beautiful gift Xiao Heqing gave me!”
Lu Lin looked at the pink bluebird plant.
It was indeed very well-maintained.
He took off his watch, checked the time, it was past eight. He placed it on the small side table’s tray and walked towards the dining room. “Let’s eat.”
Lu Ruchan was still reluctant to put it down, turning it over and over for a while before finally setting the potted plant down.
Suddenly, she mysteriously winked at Yan Heqing. “I also prepared a small gift for you, it’s on the dining table.”
At the dining table, Yan Heqing realized that the gift was a dish—pineapple shrimp fritters.
The maid smiled and said, “This dish was personally cooked by Madam. The last time she cooked was ten years ago.”
Lu Ruchan smiled and shook her head, “It wasn’t all me. I couldn’t stand up, so I just prepared the ingredients and mixed them. The chef still had to do the rest.”
She looked at Yan Heqing, “A-Lin said you don’t like things too sweet. This dish isn’t sweet; it’s sweet and sour.”
Yan Heqing knew this dish. It was on Xie Yunjie’s wedding banquet menu. The method was simple, but the preparation process was troublesome. Shrimp paste had to be stuffed into cut fritters one by one, and it was particularly popular with children.
The other dishes were unexpectedly not extravagant, all home-cooked.
Asparagus in superior broth, abalone braised pork, steamed beef ribs, tea tree mushrooms mixed with cucumber flowers, abalone stewed with shrimp, coconut pork rib soup, wine-flavored baked chicken, ingot eggs, pan-fried lightly salted yellow croaker, braised pork ribs with chestnuts, and stir-fried rice cakes with swimming crab.
And a pot of mint mung bean soup.
The maid poured a cup, and Lu Ruchan first offered it to Yan Heqing. She observed Yan Heqing, “Eat more meat, you’re too thin.”
She used serving chopsticks to pick a large piece of beef rib onto Yan Heqing’s plate.
Yan Heqing, however, looked at the mint mung bean soup. Except for his hometown, he had almost never seen mung bean soup cooked with mint elsewhere.
He picked up the cup and drank half of it in one gulp. Lu Ruchan spoke first, “Do you like it? This is how we make it in my hometown. It’s especially refreshing and perfect for summer and New Year.”
Yan Heqing asked, “Isn’t your hometown in the capital?”
“Not really. My ancestral home is in the south, but I’ve been in poor health since birth. I get sick if I travel for more than half an hour, so I can’t go far.” Lu Ruchan sighed slightly. “I’ve never been able to go back. A-Lin has been there twice though.”
Lu Lin’s maternal grandparents passed away one after another. Their last wish was to return to their roots and be buried together in their hometown. Lu Lin personally handled it twice.
Yan Heqing held his chopsticks and picked up a beef rib. At this moment, another pair of serving chopsticks landed on his plate.
It was a fritter stuffed with shrimp paste.
Followed by a piece of pineapple.
Yan Heqing looked up. Lu Lin calmly withdrew his serving chopsticks. “I tried it. It’s not too sweet.”
Last time in Lu Lin’s office, he mentioned that the Beijing-style shredded pork was too sweet.
Yan Heqing silently gnawed on the beef rib, then picked up the fritter. Wrapped in the mixed salad condensed milk sauce, the sweetness was just right. The fritter was crispy, the shrimp paste was fresh and sweet, and with the sweet and sour pineapple, it was indeed appetizing and delicious.
He picked up a few more pieces himself.
After dinner, according to her usual habit, Lu Ruchan would prepare to rest.
She was unusually happy today, so she extended it by two hours.
She particularly liked listening to Yan Heqing speak. The young man’s voice was clear, with an unhurried steadiness that was particularly comfortable to listen to.
Yan Heqing knew that Lu Ruchan had been recuperating in the mountains for decades and rarely interacted with the outside world, so he embellished some of his experiences from his part-time jobs and told them to Lu Ruchan.
Lu Lin went to the kitchen and came out shortly with a fruit platter.
Lu Ruchan couldn’t eat fruit after dinner, so the plate was full of blueberries.
Lu Ruchan was engrossed in listening. When she came back to her senses, it was almost midnight. Lu Ruchan whispered, “Another year has passed.”
Her voice was very low. Yan Heqing didn’t hear clearly. He leaned closer, “What did you say?”
A smile appeared in Lu Ruchan’s eyes. She gently took Yan Heqing’s hand, held it with both hands, and said with a loving expression, “I said there will be New Year fireworks at 12 o’clock, for a full ten minutes.”
“There’s an unobstructed spot in the garden, which is the best viewing spot for fireworks. Every year, people want to pay to come up and watch them. Later, I’ll have A-Lin take you to see them.”
She patted Yan Heqing’s hand, withdrew her hand, and smiled slightly. “I’m tired. I’m going back to my room to rest.”
Lu Lin was about to escort her back to her room, but Lu Ruchan operated her wheelchair herself. “I can manage this short distance. You, go and keep Xiao Heqing company.”
Lu Ruchan went back to her room, and the living room became quiet.
Outside the French windows, there was already a faint stir. It was almost 12 o’clock.
Lu Lin stepped out. “Let’s go.”
Yan Heqing got up, picked up the paper bag, and followed Lu Lin out.