The Early Spring - Chapter 47

Chapter 47 - Farewell to This Year

Just like that, the year came to an end.

Shang Zhitao sat at her workstation writing her year-end review, then pulled her to-do list out of the drawer. She had learned to drive, so she could cross that off. Her English had improved just a bit, so she could check that box. She had made more than three friends—after giving it a thought, that had been achieved too.

Reviewing everything about the year earnestly, there was a tinge of heartache, but much more joy. As for what the heartache was exactly, she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

She tucked her to-do list back into the drawer and began tidying up her desk. She would be heading home early the next morning, and that feeling was simply wonderful. She had received a year-end bonus of over forty thousand yuan; back when she made that mistake, Luan Nian had said he would dock her bonus, but it turned out he had just been scaring her. Thinking about the tens of thousands of yuan sitting in her bank account, she suddenly felt like someone with actual savings. She had already started planning how to spend the money: she would replace the reading glasses for Old Shang and Dazhai, and buy them each two new sets of clothes.

She also needed to prepare gifts for her roommates, Lumi, and Yao Bei after the new year, and get a gift for herself as well. A small box sat inside her drawer—a New Year's gift she had bought in advance for Luan Nian, though she had never given it to him.

Luan Nian had given her two bags; how much they cost precisely, Shang Zhitao didn't know, as she had never unwrapped them. She felt she ought to return something, but Luan Nian lacked nothing, and she always felt that giving him a gift would look bizarre and might even shatter the hard-won balance between them.

After pondering for a long time, she finally decided to gift Luan Nian a box of fish food. She bought it by matching the appearance of the stuff under his fish tank, having asked around at several shops in the flower, bird, fish, and insect market after her English lessons over the weekend. Pointing at a fish, she asked the store owner, "What is this exact kind of fish called? What does it usually eat?"

"A red arowana," the owner replied.

"How much?"

"Four thousand. Higher-grade ones cost more."

"Oh, oh." So Little Red Flag was a red arowana! Every time Shang Zhitao saw it, it acted as if it were very familiar with her, swimming in the tank following the direction of her fingertip. Little Red Flag was far more personable than Luan Nian.

"I'll buy its food—the most expensive kind."

"Four hundred and thirty a box."

...With a hardened heart, Shang Zhitao bought it. Looking at the small gift box right beside her now, she couldn't muster the courage to give it to Luan Nian no matter what. Watching as her colleagues trickled away and Luan Nian stood up to pack his computer, she knew that if she didn't give it to him today, she wouldn't have another chance tomorrow. His flight to the US was at midnight, while her train back to Ice City was early tomorrow morning. Luan Nian would be gone for a long time this time—visiting family, attending meetings at headquarters, and participating in a creative competition—and wouldn't return until early March.

Luan Nian walked out of the office. Shang Zhitao shouldered her backpack, picked up the gift box, followed closely behind him, and stepped into the elevator. Luan Nian caught sight of the small box in her hands through the elevator mirror, as well as her nervous, anxious expression. He asked bluntly, "Is that for me?"

Shang Zhitao's face flushed slightly, and she nodded.

Luan Nian extended his hand. Seeing that Shang Zhitao stood frozen in place, his brow furrowed. "Not giving it anymore?"

Shang Zhitao placed the small box in his palm and told him before the elevator doors opened, "Have a safe trip."

"You too."

Once in his car, Luan Nian stared at the gift box for a long time before finally opening it. The moment he unboxed it, the lingering doubt in his heart vanished, and he laughed out loud upon seeing the box of fish food.

Shang Zhitao was truly something else.

He drove out of the basement garage and purposely circled around to the front of the company building. Sure enough, Shang Zhitao was still trying to hail a cab. He pulled the car right up in front of her and said, "Get in."

Shang Zhitao was slightly surprised; today wasn't Friday, and tomorrow they were both heading off on separate journeys.

"Not getting in?" Seeing her hesitate, Luan Nian urged her onward.

Shang Zhitao opened the car door and saw the gift she had given him resting on the passenger seat. Luan Nian picked it up, and once she sat down, he placed the fish food back on her lap along with a set of keys. Shang Zhitao sat there in a daze, looking from the keys to Luan Nian.

Looking straight ahead, Luan Nian said indifferently, "Since you've given me this gift, you might as well handle the after-sales service while you're at it. During the days I'm away, I'll trouble you to help take care of my fish."

...“You have so many valuables in your house...”

"None of them can be taken away."

"Oh."

"Thank you for the gift."

"You're welcome, you've given me gifts before too."

Noticing her cautious reserve, Luan Nian suddenly chuckled. "Shang Zhitao, do you know when you're the bravest?"

"Hm?"

"When you're in bed." Luan Nian paused. "Especially uninhibited, especially brave."

Luan Nian had occasionally wondered if there were two people living inside Shang Zhitao—one in charge of her wildness, and one in charge of her humility. Otherwise, why would her expression change so fast?

"First of all, on our final meeting of the year, I hope you'll change how you address me." Luan Nian found that term of address utterly ridiculous, and he mimicked Shang Zhitao's tone: "You... please don't kiss there..."

Luan Nian rarely spoke this much. Shang Zhitao discovered that when he did talk a lot, he could actually be quite a funny person, and his imitation of her tone was spot-on. Yet he deliberately picked the phrase that made her the most bashful to recite. She couldn't help laughing out loud, though her face flushed red as well.

"Is it weird?" Luan Nian asked her.

Shang Zhitao nodded. "It's weird, so how am I supposed to address you..." Catching Luan Nian's sidelong glance, she clamped her mouth shut.

"Just call me Luan Nian."

"Oh. Secondly?"

"Secondly..." Luan Nian parked the car in the garage. "You're acting so reserved, it's as if we've never slept together."

"I didn't mean to, it's just that we aren't quite familiar enough yet..."

Luan Nian nodded. "Ah, so it's because we haven't slept together enough times yet..."

He scooped Shang Zhitao up in his arms, tossed her onto the bed, and reached to unbutton his own shirt. He stopped talking, leaving only his deep gaze lingering by Shang Zhitao's side with a murderous aura. Feeling a trace of tension, Shang Zhitao instinctively bit her lip, only to be restrained by Luan Nian. He said in a low voice, "Don't bite your lip, bite me."

Shang Zhitao was the most obedient. She clamped her teeth down onto his neck, expecting Luan Nian to dodge like he used to, but this time he didn't. In the past, Luan Nian would say, "It's inconvenient when meeting female clients." He was telling the truth; if Jiang Lan saw hickeys on his neck, she would surely come straight for him and demand her own round of passion, and Luan Nian didn't want to deal with that.

Shang Zhitao applied slight pressure with her teeth, the tip of her tongue sweeping across the blood vessel on his neck. Luan Nian's heavy breathing fell right beside her ear, proving more effective than anything else.

"I want to bite a few more times," Shang Zhitao murmured near his ear. "Dare me?"

"Bring it on."

And bite him she did. She left marks all over his neck, chest, and shoulders, feeling like she possessed the mentality of a little puppy peeing on things to mark territory—I've peed on this spot, so it's mine, and Luan Nian's New York bed partner better watch out and steer clear.

Yet Luan Nian got down to serious business without a sound. Right when she reached the peak of her wildness, he captured a small patch of skin on her neck with his lips, returning her unbridled energy right back to her.

Then he asked her, "Are we familiar enough now?"

"A little more familiar."

They carried on the ruckus until the early hours of the morning. Luan Nian had a flight to catch, and Liu Wu was waiting for him downstairs. Hiding inside the room and refusing to let Liu Wu see her, Shang Zhitao's little scheming thoughts were crystal clear to Luan Nian, who didn't give her a hard time and simply left.

Clutching the keys to Luan Nian's home, Shang Zhitao felt they weighed heavily in her hand. Terrified of losing them, she kept them tucked away in her inner pocket close to her body.

Once she returned to Ice City and saw the boundless white snow covering the world, the lanterns hanging in the alleys amidst the snow, her heart finally settled back into place. She loved the snow of Ice City, the dilapidated architecture of the old town, the popsicles laid out flat for sale right on the streets, and the neat rows of Spring Festival couplets and hanging scrolls. The New Year was finally here!

Old Shang and Dazhai beamed from ear to ear when they saw her. Dazhai squished her face into a ball of dough, chanting, "My daughter has grown so thin..."

"Mom!" Shang Zhitao pouted in protest. "How am I thin! Look at how robust I am!"

"You still have dark circles under your eyes. Has work been too exhausting?"

Shang Zhitao felt a twinge of guilt. Work during these last few days of the year hadn't been tiring at all; serving her boss yesterday, however, had been terribly exhausting. Dazhai shooed her back to her room to sleep. "Go sleep for an hour first, I'll call you when dinner is ready."

Shang Zhitao was actually capable of sleeping like a log. Pulling the covers over her head to catch up on rest, she heard the door open softly twice during her nap. By the third time it clicked open, she poked her head out from beneath the blankets to see Old Shang and Dazhai peeking at her stealthily from the doorway.

Elderly parents missed their child, yet couldn't bear to disturb her sleep, so they had no choice but to sneak in and check on her time and again. A sour ache hit the bridge of Shang Zhitao's nose, and she nearly failed to hold back her tears. Just as she wanted to get out of bed to be close to them, she suddenly remembered Luan Nian's mischievous handiwork—she had to cover up her neck, otherwise the two elders would definitely start asking questions. Wrapping herself tightly in the quilt, she acted coquettishly toward them: "I want to sleep a little longer~ I stayed up all night yesterday, I'm so tired." She conveniently omitted the reason behind staying up all night.

Heart aching for his daughter, Old Shang nodded. "Then sleep a bit more, we'll eat a bit later."

"Mm-hm."

Old Shang closed the door. Shang Zhitao fished out a high-necked sweater to put on; fortunately, this was Ice City, where wearing a turtleneck didn't look out of place at all. Then she walked out to share a meal with Old Shang. Volunteering to keep Old Shang company with a tiny drink, Old Shang poured her a mere thimbleful of baijiu at the bottom of a glass. "You and your tiny alcohol tolerance—just sip a little." Giggling, Shang Zhitao clinked glasses with Old Shang. Once she arrived home and relaxed, every trace of Beijing was instantly cast to the back of her mind.

After eating, she started calling her classmates. She had a few close friends from high school; some had joined the municipal bureau after graduation, some worked in government offices, and a couple ran small businesses. In Ice City, after all, stability was prized above all else—holding an iron rice bowl beat everything else. They made plans to go karaoke-ing on the second day of the Lunar New Year. Chatting away like this led deep into the night, and when she opened her eyes again, the New Year had officially arrived.

By the time the Chinese Lunar New Year rolled around, Luan Nian had only been back home for a short while. Dr. Liang was currently bantering with Luan Mingrui: "What you're saying is far too narrow-minded."

Dr. Liang was a medical expert specializing in conquering tumors, proud, aloof, and highly disciplined; Luan Mingrui was a businessman through and through, handling massive sums of money every single day. Two completely unrelated people had somehow wound up together, bickering back and forth for a lifetime.

Seeing Luan Nian walk through the door, both of them clamped their mouths shut. Dr. Liang stepped forward to hug Luan Nian, caught sight of the love bite on his neck, and let out a clicking sound of amusement. "So intense?"

For some reason, Luan Nian felt his face flush slightly. He didn't mind carrying that hickey across the ocean, but he never expected to be teased by his mother about it. He thought to himself that Shang Zhitao's bite had truly been ruthless—far more vicious than anything he could dish out.

"Got bitten by a dog," he said offhandedly, heading upstairs to change his clothes. Standing in front of the full-length mirror and spotting the marks on his body, he recalled Shang Zhitao's somewhat wild appearance and suddenly burst out laughing.

Downstairs, Dr. Liang's eyes were still fixed on his neck as she joked, "That mark was well-placed."

Luan Mingrui finally stood up, walked over to look Luan Nian over, and said with a smile, "Young people."

"So a family of three reuniting after a long separation leaves us with no other topics of conversation?" Resisting their continued staring at his neck, Luan Nian simply grabbed a band-aid and slapped it over the spot, making his cover-up all the more obvious.

"Sticking a band-aid on is great. Once everyone arrives later, they're bound to cross-examine you," Luan Mingrui teased.

"Who's coming today?"

"Today? Your Uncle Song's family and Uncle Chen's family."

"Qiuhan and Kuanian are coming too?"

"Otherwise what? Leave them at home to starve to death?"

Overseas Chinese loved gathering together to celebrate the New Year because it added to the festive atmosphere. Luan Nian liked those two lads; they were a few years younger than him, but both carried themselves like upstanding young men, and they had even made plans to start traveling together starting next year.

Amidst the lively hustle and bustle of the New Year, while Luan Nian was dining with family and friends, he received an email. In it, Shang Zhitao solemnly wished him a Happy New Year. She wrote: Happy New Year, hoping everything goes well in the new year.

Luan Nian replied to her: Happy New Year. Next time, bite a little lighter.