Chapter 47

Chapter 9: The birthday party confession incident (part two)

The red sun, dusk, the traffic at the intersection, the hurried crowds-all flowed quietly past them. No one knew what the intersection they passed would look like after the city's future redevelopment, just as no one knew where they would be or what they would be doing ten years later.

The unknown future always added a trace of awe to people's expectations, perhaps with a little melancholy born of dissatisfaction with their present lives. For Su Can, however, everything he was experiencing was changing through his own intervention, shifting toward an unpredictable distance. The future of his own fate was equally unknown to him, yet he was not afraid. Instead, he was more like a farmer, diligently digging and reclaiming the land, striving to someday reap fields of brilliant fruit and rice that danced in the wind.

When he arrived at the restaurant entrance, he saw Xiao Yunyun waiting downstairs to welcome everyone, along with a group of her friends, both boys and girls. Chen Lingshan and the boy Su Can had seen earlier were among them. The world really was small.

"Happy birthday." Su Can smiled faintly.

"Mm, I really want to know what you got me!" Xiao Yunyun came forward when she saw Su Can, then took the wrapped box from his hands, her eyes curving with her smile.

Su Can then looked at Chen Lingshan. "How come you're...?"

Chen Lingshan gave him a playful smile. "Heh, Xiao Yunyun and I have been good friends since middle school. How could I miss her birthday?"

Xiao Yunyun then began introducing everyone. The boy Su Can had previously seen with Chen Lingshan was called Gao Fan. He was a second-year student, his family worked in a municipal government department, and he had known Xiao Yunyun since childhood.

Gao Fan greeted Su Can with neither warmth nor coldness, then made sure to glance at Chen Lingshan beside him, looking as though he were saying, "Oh, so he's Su Can."

Chen Lingshan ignored his look and warmly greeted the girls Xiao Yunyun introduced beside her. They had all attended No. 1 High School and had seen one another before; now they were simply becoming better acquainted.

Xiao Yunyun pointed at the two of them. "You two gave me a surprise, arriving together today. How did you end up in the same taxi?"

At Xiao Yunyun's words, Su Can noticed a trace of nervousness enter Chen Lingshan's gaze as she looked up at him.

Gao Fan said with some pride, "Since it's your birthday today, I happened to arrange to go clothes shopping with Lingshan and pick out a present for you along the way. You know, I have no idea what you girls want, so I had to ask someone for advice. It's nothing much, just a silver bracelet from Romantic House. Do you like it?"

A bracelet from Romantic House drew attentive looks from some of the girls nearby. Romantic House was Xiahai's earliest specialty gift shop for women at the time. Its merchandise resembled that of later shops specializing in girls' accessories. Girls who often went shopping naturally loved visiting it, and its necklaces and jewelry had always been expensive, especially the Silver Princess Series, with each piece costing between forty and sixty yuan. At the time, that was already a price students could hardly afford.

No one would normally volunteer what was inside their wrapped gift. By dropping that hint, Gao Fan was undoubtedly showing off his present, with a desire to display himself behind it. He probably wanted even more to prove himself a cut above everyone else in every respect. His bracelet looked elegant and substantial, and having a first-year class beauty like Xiao Yunyun wear a bracelet he had given her would certainly add considerably to his sense of satisfaction.

This made the other boys, the chubby Wang Andong and the tall, thin Nie Hai, much more hesitant. Naturally, they worried that once Xiao Yunyun opened the gifts and found theirs could not compare with Gao Fan's, their standing in her heart would fall far behind his.

Then again, even without the gifts setting the tone, they understood their own circumstances. There was no need to compete with someone like Gao Fan, who was well known throughout his year. For a while, Wang Andong and Nie Hai actually began cozying up to Su Can, standing on the same side as him. In their eyes, Su Can probably felt the same way they did, deeply frustrated by Gao Fan's standing in Xiao Yunyun's heart.

In the private room of the restaurant specializing in stewed dishes, decorated with a distinctly classical flavor, Gao Fan virtually took charge. He was a leading figure in both his class and his year, and he had a way with words. Throughout the meal, he had quite a few of the girls giggling, which naturally made Wang Andong and the others' strategic alliance even more united.

Su Can, however, did not share their tendency toward class struggle against Gao Fan. The boy was quick-witted and articulate, and knew how to please people. Though he was a little prone to boasting and putting on airs, and liked others to revolve around him, there was nothing particularly unpleasant about his personality.

Su Can spoke little during the meal, spending most of his time observing these people who had just started their first year of high school ten years ago. His earlier assumption that Chen Lingshan and Gao Fan were dating proved untrue, though it was clear that Gao Fan liked Chen Lingshan very much. Chen Lingshan was probably still wavering. For a girl as outstanding and cherished by everyone as she was, even a prominent figure in their year like Gao Fan would not find it so easy to pluck this flower. Still, his advances were clearly vigorous.

Halfway through the lively meal, Gao Fan changed the subject. "Yunyun, I remember your dad was still a section chief when our family moved away, right? How's he doing now? He must hold a pretty important position at the Construction Bureau, right?"

Gao Fan's father had previously worked with Xiao Fei in the Construction Bureau's Township and Village Section. Later, he had been transferred to a nearby county town, only returning three years earlier, and was still only at deputy section level. He was currently lobbying for the vacant Planning Section chief position, and Gao Fan intended to help make a connection for his father.

"Oh, my dad? I don't really understand what he does, but I think he's the director of the Municipal Bidding Office..." Xiao Yunyun glanced at Su Can before answering.

"Oh, that's quite a position, too. It's been ages since I last saw him. I really should pay Uncle Xiao a visit later. Our family might be inviting yours to dinner before long. My dad wants to catch up with your dad, too!"

Once the restaurant banquet ended, everyone headed to the main event of the day: Xiao Yunyun's home.

Seeing the familiar courtyard where his eldest uncle lived, Su Can smiled helplessly. From the earlier days when Xiao Yunyun's parents and many other parents in the compound had feared him like a tiger, to now, when his eldest uncle had effectively become the compound's top man and Xiao Fei no longer resisted him, instead enthusiastically having his daughter invite him to her birthday party-the contrast was rather hard to take in. This truly was a world of practical realities.

This was Su Can's first time entering Xiao Yunyun's home. The 180-square-meter apartment was spacious and bright. Its decor was not exactly luxurious, and was somewhat plain instead. In fact, it was already quite nice for the time, but judged by Su Can's standards of future smart homes, it naturally paled somewhat in comparison.

Xiao Yunyun's parents greeted everyone at the door with smiles on their faces. When he saw Su Can, a flicker of delight passed through Xiao Fei's eyes.

With Xiao Fei's personality, how could he possibly come out in person to welcome these young friends of his daughter? Naturally, he was there for Su Can.

Seeing Su Can enter, Xiao Yunyun's mother also gave her daughter an approving look.

Fruit platters, cake, and all the other party preparations were ready, and the atmosphere immediately grew lively again.

Su Can entered Xiao Fei's study and closed the door. Whatever they were discussing inside left the boys and girls outside puzzled.

In fact, Xiao Fei did not say much to Su Can. He merely used casual conversation to indirectly sound him out about his eldest uncle. His tone still treated Su Can as a child who had just started high school, secretly amusing Su Can. Su Can therefore pretended to innocently reveal some of Zeng Qu anming's thoughts and concerns. Naturally, these were half true and half false, with no shortage of his own inventions. He even deliberately imitated his eldest uncle's sigh. "He often says, 'I'm actually quite confident in Xiao Fei's abilities. It's just... sigh, so much has built up over the years that he might well hold a grudge.'"

"Your eldest uncle really said that?!" Delight shone in Xiao Fei's eyes, though it carried a trace of disbelief. Why would Zeng Qu anming tell Su Can something like that?

"Mm, I accidentally overheard him talking to my aunt not long ago. Uncle Xiao, what happened in the past?" Su Can asked, putting on an act.

"Oh, nothing, nothing. With that temper of your uncle's, he and I had a few perfectly normal disagreements over work before. Ah, that's where he's petty. Did he really think I'd hold a grudge?" Xiao Fei laughed and patted Su Can's shoulder, his heart already greatly relieved. Lately, he had indeed been left idle with nothing to do. Zeng Qu anming had not acted against him, but had sidelined him, leaving him anxious and unsettled. Now that he had heard Su Can's words, he already believed most of them.

By the time Su Can left, he was already considering whether he should lower his own stance, share a couple of drinks with Zeng Qu anming as an apology, and let a smile put their grievances to rest. After all, although they had fought for so long, they had also spent so many years striving together for the same cause and knew each other inside out. Such circumstances were no longer common.

When Su Can walked out of Xiao Fei's study, Gao Fan could not help feeling a little surprised. When he had paid his respects to Xiao Fei earlier and mentioned his father's invitation to dinner, Xiao Fei had merely grunted an acknowledgment and answered perfunctorily. Yet now he had kept Su Can, whose background was unclear, talking in his study for ages. Gao Fan could not help feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

Sitting on the sofa, Xiao Yunyun noticed that her mother was smiling more often, too, and understood that Su Can and her father had made some progress. She said quietly to Su Can, "Thank you."

Su Can paused, and Xiao Yunyun blushed slightly. During this period, she had naturally understood her father's worries. Her attention to Su Can had been driven more by a desire to relieve her father's troubles than by any genuine wish to pursue Su Can. Now that she saw her family's worries had been resolved, she involuntarily breathed a sigh of relief, with a faint sense of guilt toward him.

After thinking for a moment, Su Can understood. He did not blame Xiao Yunyun for having an element of self-interest in her deliberate friendliness toward him.

Su Can also knew his own circumstances. His grades were not outstanding in Class Five, and his family was not particularly well-off. Even if his eldest uncle was the head of the Construction Bureau, that had nothing to do with him. Besides, he had yet to grow tall. No matter how one looked at him, he was not the Prince Charming type. Xiao Yunyun was unlikely to fall for him simply because his essay had been praised by a journalist from the central media and the mayor.

This was not a play or a novel, and he was certainly not the protagonist who would have countless girls throwing themselves at him and adoring him the moment he appeared.

More of them would be like Xiao Yunyun, with other purposes in mind.

Nor could he blame Xiao Yunyun for that. It was normal for girls who grew up in the Government Compound to mature a little early.

This was simply life, very realistic and very helpless.

Ultimately, while he quietly lay low, before his transformation, he was still that ugly duckling. He waited quietly in the most inconspicuous corner, looking forward to the moment when dawn would tear through the darkness and descend over everything.