The Zhou Family Was Truly Blessed

Xia Yao rode her aunt's bicycle over for noodles. Zhou Erwa Restaurant was easy to find, right at the main gate of the Textile Factory.

As the bicycle stopped, Xia Yao jumped down and immediately spotted a little girl in a floral padded jacket sitting outside the restaurant.

The little girl was simply too adorable, with a round little face, delicate features like they had been carved from pink jade, and fair skin flushed with rosy color. She was eating candy when she looked up at Xia Yao, froze for a moment, then opened her mouth in a soft, cute Sichuan accent—and she was complimenting Xia Yao.

"Little one, you're so pretty." Xia Yao felt her heart melting. She searched her pockets for a while, but she had not brought any snacks when she left home.

"Here, baby, have some candy." Meng Anhe parked the bicycle, pulled out two White Rabbit Creamy Candies from her handbag, and smilingly held them out to Zhou Momo.

"Big bunny!" Zhou Momo's eyes lit up. She reached out to take the candy, then looked up at Meng Anhe with a beaming smile. "Thank you, pretty auntie!"

"Mhm, such a good girl." Meng Anhe looked at the little one, whose eyes curved into crescents when she smiled, and liked her immensely. She could not help sighing to Xia Yao, "Girls are still better. Unlike those two little demons in my family, who only know how to give me headaches."

"My cousins are still pretty well-behaved," Xia Yao said with a laugh. "At least they're quiet when they're asleep. Haha."

"Are you two here for noodles?" Zhao Tieying came out with a smile when she heard them.

Zhou Yan, who had been about to count the day's takings, also looked toward the door, and his eyes brightened.

The young woman on the left had a lovely oval face, brows like distant mountain mist, a cherry-red mouth, and skin so fair it seemed to glow.

She was tall and slender, with long black hair falling over her shoulders. Her long white dress was cinched at the waist, outlining her slim waist and elegant figure. She wore a light beige knitted cardigan over it and carried a bulging handbag.

As she looked down at Zhou Momo, her eyes curved softly, and faint dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth. She looked bright and gentle.

The woman on the right appeared to be in her early thirties. She had large permed waves and bore a sixty- or seventy-percent resemblance to the girl beside her.

She wore a white pointed-collar blouse, with an exquisite gold button pinned at the collar points. Slightly flared trousers covered her black mid-heeled shoes, and she had a red knitted cardigan over them.

A light blush had been brushed across her face, and she wore lipstick. Her presence was commanding, with a fashion-forward, flamboyant air from head to toe.

Looking at the two women standing at the door, Zhao Tieying's eyes filled with amazement. She instinctively drew her feet back, hiding her old cloth shoes with patches on them.

Among the middle-aged women of Zhou Village, she was considered fashionable.

But standing before these two women, she looked like a raw recruit.

Those big waves, bell-bottoms, and high-heeled shoes—she had only ever seen them in movies. This fashion wind had not yet blown into the village; even in town, such things were rare.

"Auntie, my name is Xia Yao. I came to thank Comrade Zhou Yan for saving my life," Xia Yao said to Zhao Tieying with a smile.

Her voice was gentle, carrying the soft, glutinous sweetness of Jiangnan's water towns.

"Oh, it's you." Zhao Tieying suddenly understood. So she was Deputy Factory Director Lin's niece. Then the other woman must be Deputy Factory Director Lin's wife. No wonder she was so fashionable. Zhao Tieying quickly turned and called, "Zhou Yan!"

Zhou Yan had already heard their conversation and put the money away in the drawer.

The light at the doorway dimmed, and a tall figure stepped out.

Xia Yao looked up and could not help freezing. She unconsciously tilted her head back. So tall!

At one meter eighty-two, Zhou Yan was unquestionably tall in this era of scarce supplies. He was even a few centimeters taller than Lin Zhiqiang, who had come from the north. Amid the crowds of Bashu, he stood out like a crane among chickens.

Then there was his face—sharp and well-defined, with deep-set features and clear, open brows. He looked fresh and handsome, yet he had a pair of peach blossom eyes, smiling at their corners, the kind of eyes that looked affectionate even when they gazed at a dog.

He wore the white cotton shirt commonly worn by chefs at large restaurants, its sleeves rolled to his elbows and one button undone at the collar. A dark blue apron was tied around his waist. The same outfit looked exceptionally clean and well-fitted on him.

Xia Yao felt that even the captain of the basketball team at her art academy, the boy most popular with the girls, was not as good-looking as he was.

Meng Anhe studied Zhou Yan and could not help nodding slightly. For a fleeting instant, she felt as though she had returned to the first time she had seen Lin Zhiqiang in Moscow. Back then, he had been the campus heartthrob among the international students. In the blink of an eye, he had already grown a beer belly. A man's flowering season was simply too short.

"Comrade Zhou Yan, I'm Xia Yao. Thank you for throwing yourself into the river without regard for your own safety to save me the day before yesterday." Xia Yao extended her hand to Zhou Yan with graceful composure.

"You're welcome." Zhou Yan reached out and lightly shook her hand. Her hand was fair and slender, her skin exceptionally smooth, like warm jade, though it was faintly cool.

Yet Xia Yao found Zhou Yan's hand especially rough, particularly at the fingertips, where thick calluses had formed. Though he was young, he had clearly not slacked off in his cooking.

"Are you from Zhejiang Province?" Zhou Yan found her accent strangely familiar, and his heart could not help stirring.

Xia Yao nodded in surprise. "I grew up in Hangzhou, though my ancestral home is Zhoushan. Have you been to Zhejiang Province?"

Beside them, Zhao Tieying also looked at him in confusion.

"No. I just met someone from Zhejiang Province before, and I thought the accent was somewhat like yours." Zhou Yan smiled, shook his head, and casually brushed the matter aside.

"Then you're quite impressive. Xia Yao's accent is actually already very faint." Meng Anhe smiled. "I'm Xia Yao's aunt. Thank you for saving Xia Yao. My Lin praised you to the skies when he came home yesterday. He went away on a business trip yesterday afternoon, so I brought Xia Yao here today."

"You're too kind. I didn't think that much about it at the time. Anyone who came across it would have done the same," Zhou Yan hurriedly said.

Lin Zhiqiang's wife did not look like a housewife at all. She radiated the air of a strong career woman, the sort who had the final say at work.

"Ordinary people do not have that kind of courage. You are a true hero," Meng Anhe said admiringly.

The workers had all gone to work, and the vendors outside the factory gate had also become idle. Seeing two fashionable women arrive at Zhou Erwa Restaurant, they all pricked up their ears and craned their necks for gossip. Some busybodies even moved closer to watch the excitement.

When they learned that the two were Deputy Factory Director Lin's wife and niece, and that they had come to thank Zhou Yan, they began whispering among themselves.

"Didn't Deputy Factory Director Lin just give him a Twenty-Eight Bicycle yesterday? Why are they thanking him again today?"

"City people are particular about these things. The girl must have come personally to thank him today. But she's truly beautiful—prettier even than the female workers at the Textile Factory."

"She and Zhou Yan look pretty well-matched. A handsome man and a beautiful woman."

"What kind of match is that? Zhou Yan's just a self-employed trader. Would a college student from the city even look at him?"

"This is a small token of thanks I prepared." Xia Yao opened her handbag and began taking things out one by one.

Shanghai Malted Milk, Friendship Snow Cream, Pechoin Cold Cream, a whole carton of Yuxi cigarettes...

The watching vendors' eyes widened into circles. The more they looked, the more envious they became. These were all rare goods. Who among them would normally be willing to buy such things? City people really were generous!

"Sweetie, this malted milk is for you to drink." Xia Yao handed the Shanghai Malted Milk to Zhou Momo.

"Thank you, pretty big sister." Zhou Momo held the malted milk in her arms, her eyes shining. She had tried this at her eldest uncle's home during the New Year, and it had been so, so sweet!

"Auntie, this snow cream and cold cream can keep you from getting frostbite and cracked skin in winter."

"These are too valuable. I can't take them. We usually just use clam oil—how could we possibly need this?" Zhao Tieying waved her hands again and again.

"This works better than clam oil. When it gets cold, you can put a little on Xiaobao's face too. These cigarettes are for Uncle. My uncle said these taste good to smoke, though I don't know if he'll be used to them. And here's yesterday's lunchbox." Xia Yao directly stuffed the things into her hands.

"This... how could I accept these?" Zhao Tieying said, though the corners of her mouth could not help lifting.

This city girl really knew how to conduct herself. She said she had come to thank Zhou Yan, but she had brought gifts for all of them. She was generous, and her words were pleasant too. It would be wonderful if they could find a daughter-in-law like her.

Xia Yao took out a peacock-blue fountain pen from her bag and held it out to Zhou Yan. "My father gave me this pen. I hope you'll accept it."

Looking at the Parker Pen with its 24K gold-plated clip and cloisonné finial, Zhou Yan shook his head. "This imported fountain pen is too valuable. I already feel undeserving of the bicycle. I can't take something you cherish as well."

She truly was a little rich girl. Her family's circumstances might not be any worse than Lin Zhiqiang's. Her upbringing was simply impeccable.

Meng Anhe looked at Zhou Yan in slight surprise. He knew his stuff. This Parker 45 sold for forty-five yuan, and one needed foreign-exchange coupons to buy it. It had been Xia Yao's birthday gift from her father.

"You saved my life. If my father were here, he would absolutely want you to accept it too." Xia Yao looked at him with a firm expression.

Zhou Yan hesitated for a moment, but he still reached out and accepted the pen. He nodded. "Then I'll accept it. Thank you."

"You're welcome." A smile returned to Xia Yao's face. "I had the Spare Rib Noodles you made yesterday. They were so delicious! My aunt and I haven't had breakfast yet—we came specially for the noodles."

"Sweetie, hurry inside and sit down. Let Zhou Yan make them for you right away." Zhao Tieying hurriedly said with a smile.

"Okay." Xia Yao answered softly, the dimples at the corners of her mouth deepening. The way Sichuan and Chongqing aunties addressed people always made one feel close to them.

"The menu is on the wall." Zhou Yan followed them inside.

Once Zhou Yan and the others had gone inside, the vendors began gossiping again.

"Friendship Snow Cream, Pechoin Cold Cream—those are things only wealthy city women use. She just gave them away like that."

"She gave away a whole carton of Yuxi cigarettes. A carton of those costs thirty yuan!"

"Old Zhou's family is truly blessed!"

"Did you see that fountain pen? The factory director usually has one just like it clipped to his chest pocket, only in a different color. Last time, I heard Director Liu say it was called a Parker Pen, American goods. One costs forty-five yuan!"

"Oh my heavens! Forty-five?!"

The crowd immediately drew in a collective breath, everyone stunned speechless.

A tiny fountain pen actually cost more than a Textile Factory worker's monthly wages! And that girl had just handed it over!

Zhou Yan had truly struck it rich this time.

Wang Laowu and his wife listened with faces gone green. Not only had their business been snatched away, but seeing Zhou Yan strike such a windfall truly made them unable to bear it!