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"Heh heh, I saw you always loved watching monkeys play ball. I thought you envied them."

Su Yan tied the belt of his pajamas, lay down on the bed, and said lazily, "I'm going to sleep. Remember to wake me at eight."

A good night's sleep here could make all his exhaustion vanish without a trace.

The next day was the first day of the Lunar New Year.

Su Yan got up promptly at eight and cooked a pot of chicken soup vermicelli. The chicken soup had been sent over by Aunt Xu yesterday. Where they lived, people did not necessarily eat dumplings for the New Year; they ate all sorts of things. Many families had chicken noodle soup or chicken soup vermicelli. No matter what, as long as it tasted good, that was enough!

The chicken soup was wonderfully fresh, and the vermicelli was authentic too. Su Yan wolfed down three large bowls, rubbed his slightly swollen stomach, and rode his bicycle out.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, every household got up early. The neighborhood was especially lively today. Su Yan ran into quite a few acquaintances along the way and exchanged New Year greetings with them. Many elders even stuffed lucky candies into his pockets. With both pockets bulging, Su Yan arrived at the fruit shop beaming.

"Happy New Year, everyone!" Su Yan called out brightly.

"Happy New Year!" Lin Qiang was dressed in new clothes, his face glowing with health, and his voice was especially loud.

"Happy New Year," Chen Yan said shyly. When Su Yan saw her, he whistled. "Girls really do change at eighteen. Chen Yan, you look very pretty today."

Chen Yan was so embarrassed that her face turned crimson. Aunt Xu lightly scolded them, "You two naughty boys, stop teasing the poor girl."

"We're all friends. What's there to be afraid of? Lin Qiang, how many red envelopes did you get? Take them out and share."

Lin Qiang hurriedly hid them behind his back. "My little red envelopes aren't even worth as much as your bicycle. Stop trying to rob me."

"Tsk. That down jacket of yours cost five or six hundred, didn't it?"

"Hehe, that's right. My dad was especially happy this year, so he splurged and bought me this down jacket." Lin Qiang carefully stroked the jacket, afraid of accidentally getting it dirty.

Many people went out to pay New Year visits on the first day of the Lunar New Year. Quite a few bought fruit, though far fewer than before the holiday.

The shop was rather quiet. Su Yan secretly urged Aunt Xu to go home for a vacation and told her to come back to work on the fifth day of the New Year. Aunt Xu had worked for half a year, and this was her first break. It really had not been easy.

Once Aunt Xu left, the three young people played cards in the shop. They served customers whenever someone came in and continued playing whenever there was no one around.

Lin Qiang suggested, "Su Yan, Chen Yan, I'm planning to visit our homeroom teacher tomorrow to pay New Year respects. Why don't you come with me? We can just bring some fruit to show our appreciation."

"Sure. I also want to visit our math teacher for the New Year. I quite like that old man. Besides, he's getting on in years, so it's only right to go pay him a visit." Su Yan did not mention that this math teacher, his favorite, had suddenly retired during their second year of high school. Su Yan had always found it regrettable.

"Ah, if the other teachers find out, won't they have opinions about it?" Lin Qiang felt troubled. Visiting only their homeroom teacher was no big deal, but there were a whole lot of other subject teachers. Visiting every one of them would cost a great deal, and they could not afford it.

"That's true." Su Yan nodded and threw down four threes, blowing up Lin Qiang's airplane. Lin Qiang cried out miserably. Before Su Yan could even celebrate, Chen Yan slowly laid down two jokers. Lin Qiang burst into laughter.

Su Yan sighed. "Let's just visit our homeroom teacher."

At seven-thirty the next morning, the three of them arrived at their homeroom teacher's home carrying fruit.

When Ma En saw the three students, he was overjoyed. He hurriedly invited them inside for tea and urged his wife to cook chicken noodle soup.

"Did we come too early?" Lin Qiang was a little worried, because Teacher Ma's chubby little son was still not out of bed.

"Not early at all. I just saw off a relative. I'm truly gratified. I never expected the three of you to come pay me a New Year visit."

What pleased Ma En most was Su Yan and Chen Yan. The two had something in common: neither was very sociable. Being willing to visit their teacher for the New Year was a breakthrough in itself. Chen Yan especially surprised him. After just one winter break, she seemed to have changed quite a bit—brighter, gentler, and more like a high school student.

The capable teacher's wife cooked the chicken noodle soup and brought it to the table, urging them to eat. The bowl was packed with ingredients: a few strands of noodles, three eggs, two chicken legs, and a huge pile of chicken meat. Su Yan laughed. "Madam, after the three of us finish eating, won't your soup pot be empty?"

"Exactly. There's so much in it, and it tastes so fresh. It's even better than what my mom makes. Teacher Ma really is lucky."

Teacher Ma laughed and scolded, "Your teacher's wife is famous for making good soup. During the New Year, who comes to my house without trying to get some soup? Eat without worry. There's more in the kitchen."

"Haha, then we won't stand on ceremony." Lin Qiang said shamelessly.

"You must stay for lunch and try your teacher's wife's cooking," the teacher's wife said, poking her head out from the kitchen.

"No, no, absolutely not. We'll leave after eating the noodles. The three of us are working part-time selling fruit during winter break, and we need to go watch the shop later."

"Oh?" Teacher Ma was curious. After asking about it and learning the details, he did not object. He merely nodded. "That's good too."

The three of them had come on empty stomachs. They finished their large bowls of noodles cleanly and let out satisfied breaths.

Teacher Ma brought out snacks from the house to treat them and also cut up some of the fruit they had brought. Just as the teacher and students were chatting enthusiastically, the doorbell rang.

Teacher Ma went to answer the door. Lin Qiang quietly said to Su Yan, "Shouldn't we be leaving?"