The Early Spring - Chapter 131

Chapter 131 - In No Rush

Dr. Liang suddenly caught a wild hair to stay up all night on New Year's Eve. The four adults and the dog sat in the living room, exhausting every possible topic of conversation. Having been on the move for several straight days, Shang Zhitao's fatigue had yet to wear off. She couldn't help but let out a yawn, her eyes growing misty and unfocused.

Dr. Liang found her thoroughly amusing. Even though she was so sleepy, she remained seated bolt upright on the sofa, her posture never faltering. She felt that the person Luan Nian had fallen in love with was truly rare.

And indeed, she was.

Luan Nian had been picky ever since he was small; anything he liked had to be special and the very best, and the same went for his friends. After spending only a short time with Shang Zhitao, Dr. Liang had a rough idea of why Luan Nian loved her.

Looking at Luan Nian again, he was reading a magazine with his head lowered, occasionally shooting a glance at Shang Zhitao. Seeing her yawn, he stretched his leg out to kick her: "We're staying up to see the New Year in—don't slack off." He said it for Dr. Liang's benefit, voicing his discontent with her demand to stay up all night.

Dr. Liang delivered a kick to Luan Nian's father: "Forget staying up, I'm sleepy." Turning to Shang Zhitao, she said, "Taotao, go to sleep too." She pulled her up and ushered her to the guest bedroom: "This is Luan Nian's room, though he's only stayed in it once. Just make do for the night."

"Where am I sleeping then?" Luan Nian asked Dr. Liang.

"You sleep in the small room."

"I'm not sleeping in the small room. Why should I have to sleep in the small one?" Taking a step inside, he ordered, "Shang Zhitao, get in here."

"Then I'll go sleep in that other room."

Shang Zhitao felt uncomfortable sleeping in the same room as him with his elders present, but Luan Nian grabbed her by the collar: "There are mice in that room, half a meter long. There are also cockroaches as big as fists." Dragging her into the room, he shut the door behind them.

"This is impolite!"

"How is it impolite?"

"Sleeping in the same room in front of elders."

"?" It's not like I'm doing anything to you anyway. Once we get married, are we going to spend our whole lives not sleeping under the same roof?" Luan Nian asked her.

...

Shang Zhitao froze upon hearing the word "married." Yet Luan Nian acted as if nothing had happened, tapping her on the head: "Hurry up and go to sleep!"

Shang Zhitao felt stuck—going out wasn't an option, but lying down didn't feel right either.

Luan Nian got up, scooped her up in a single motion, and threw her onto the bed: "There really are cockroaches in that room."

Turning off the light, he wrapped his arms tightly around her and teased her: "Where do you get all these stupid rules from?"

Just as Shang Zhitao was about to retort, he covered her mouth with his palm: "Sleep!"

Luan Nian didn't care to pretend to be a gentleman, nor did he want to be shackled by those rigid social etiquette rules. He knew full well what kind of people his parents were; they couldn't wait for Shang Zhitao to sleep in the same room with him, and they couldn't wait for the two of them to register for a marriage license tomorrow. That way, they could finally hand him off.

They liked Shang Zhitao immensely; Luan Nian could tell. Dr. Liang in particular—she wasn't usually like this, and Luan Nian could easily distinguish between her superficial politeness and genuine affection.

Exhausted to the point of dying, Shang Zhitao turned to lie face-to-face with him, nesting her head in the crook of his arm and tucking her legs between his. It was a deeply comfortable sleeping position she had discovered the previous night, and she chuckled to herself.

"Luan Nian," Shang Zhitao called him softly.

"Mm?" Luan Nian answered in a soft voice. It was as if the house had terrible soundproofing; in truth, the old house's soundproofing really wasn't that great. But their voices were so quiet that it took effort for the other to hear, like two children giggling in the dark.

"I like Dr. Liang," Shang Zhitao said.

"You don't like my dad?"

"I like him too."

"What about me?"

"I like you."

Shang Zhitao's voice grew quieter and quieter until she finally fell asleep, thoroughly content. Listening to her soft, rhythmic breathing in the dark, Luan Nian sank into a deep slumber as well.

When they opened their eyes the next morning, Dr. Liang and Luan Nian's father had already gone to visit friends. Dr. Liang sent Luan Nian a text message: "You youngsters go out and have fun on your own."

"Where do you want to go and play?" Luan Nian asked Shang Zhitao as they headed out.

Shang Zhitao missed the mountain scenery a bit—his bar, as well as the stars and moon visible just by sitting in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows: "I want to go to the mountain. Is it particularly quiet right now? Is the bar still open?"

"It's open. Let's go."

The bar manager had been leeching off Luan Nian for nearly ten years; he simply loved staying on the mountain, which was why Luan Nian's bar stayed open three hundred and sixty-five days a year. Curiously, no matter the season or weather, there were always people visiting the bar. Some would drive from far away with their laptops and books in tow, whittling away the day at the bar until nightfall. For a period of time, the bar manager had found those people baffling, saying to Luan Nian, "How are there so many lonely people out there?"

Luan Nian hadn't been able to answer him back then, because he was lonely too.

Luke still remembered the road up the mountain. Even before they arrived, it was already thrilled, spinning in circles nonstop in the back seat. The moment they arrived and the car door opened, it bolted out, first taking a pee on the path Luan Nian often took it on, claiming the mountain for itself. Then it dashed toward the bar. Luan Nian was already holding the door open waiting for it, and it burst inside. Upon seeing the bar manager, it leaped up and barked loudly: "Where's my meat! Where's my meat!"

Dogs truly had incredible memories.

The bar manager looked at Shang Zhitao, then at Luke, unable to believe his eyes: "I thought I'd never see you two again in this lifetime!"

Luan Nian shot him a cold glare, causing him to silence himself and take Luke to eat meat. When Luan Nian came up last time, he had suddenly brought along some meat, even telling the manager, "Luke will definitely come."

Shang Zhitao turned around with a smile and spotted a massive painting hanging in the shadows.

In the painting, the two of them stood on the streets of Lhasa, in the prime of their youth.

She looked at that painting in utter disbelief, thinking she would never see it again in this life. Those photos she had tucked into her books had long since been moved to the top shelf of the bookcase, shelved away along with those memories of the past.

The two of them looked so beautiful in the painting.

It had happened that year when Luan Nian finished work late at night and drove out of the company. It was the Qixi Festival that day, and he had suffered through a soul-crushing traffic jam. People surged like a tide through the streets; young girls clutched fresh flowers while leaning on their boyfriends, bustling with life everywhere. Only a high school girl sat beneath a bus stop sign holding a book to read, the surrounding hustle and bustle completely detached from her.

It was twenty-two-year-old Shang Zhitao jumping off the bus, running into the elevator hallway, and lifting her leg to prop her backpack while stuffing a thick Business English textbook inside.

The breakdown had struck without warning.

Luan Nian had flown to Lhasa early the very next morning, standing on the bustling street to look at that photography studio—their photos were still hanging there. The owner said that he had never shot a better photo since then.

He had stayed alone in Lhasa for three days, then went to Nyingchi. There, he reminisced about their spontaneous trip that had been called on a whim—it was his favorite trip of his entire life.

Shang Zhitao looked at the photo for a long time before finally saying to Luan Nian, "Look at that. Had you known you loved me this much, wouldn't it have been better to treat me a bit nicer back then?"

"Shut up."

Luan Nian refused to accept her banter and walked behind the bar counter: "What are you drinking?"

"Anything works."

Shang Zhitao liked watching Luan Nian mix drinks.

He had always been wild and untamed, and his bartending movements were equally uninhibited; yet when he lowered his head to carve the ice, he was remarkably focused. Shang Zhitao rested on the bar counter watching him. It took him a very long time to mix the drink. When he finally brought it out, an ice moon floated inside the glass, surrounded by a deep blue liquid that resembled poison.

"What is this drink called?"

"Bright Moon Guides the Lover Home."

It was rare for Luan Nian to be romantic, and the few romantic gestures he had mustered in his lifetime were all given to Shang Zhitao. Seeing Shang Zhitao take a sip, she found the sweet and sour flavor to her liking, along with a subtle, intoxicating kick.

"Delicious," she nodded, walking behind the counter herself. "I want to mix a drink too."

"You know how?"

"I learned a bit."

Shang Zhitao had picked up other accomplishments over the past few years: accompanying He Yun during postpartum recovery to learn aerial yoga, spending time with Shang Zhishu by learning pole dancing, and later on, tinkering with bartending for a while on her own.

Old Shang always poked fun at her for constantly bustling about, but she had argued back plausibly, "I'm broadening the horizon of my life."

Her hands shook the tin rapidly in the air, the ice cubes clinking loudly against the glass. Seeing her look quite the part, Luan Nian watched as she brought out a cocktail with a milky white base a moment later. He asked her, "What's it called?"

"Snow White and Crystal Clear," she blinked, spouting a name off the top of her head. Yet the drink in the glass truly resembled the snow clinging to the mountain peaks ahead, fitting the scene perfectly.

Holding their glasses, they went to the window to sip their drinks, passing the time on the first day of the New Year. It was so quiet on the mountain that one could almost hear the sound of a single withered leaf hitting the ground.

"I'll take you back to Harbin tomorrow," Luan Nian said to her. "So you can catch the tail end of the New Year back home."

"Sure. Do you want to come eat at my house then?"

"What do you think?" Luan Nian looked at her meaningfully before adding after a moment, "If my parents pay a visit to your family in a while, do you think that'd be convenient?"

"Huh?"

Shang Zhitao failed to react for a moment, not understanding why Dr. Liang and the others would visit her house.

Luan Nian was familiar with custom, even if only slightly. If two people intended to get married, the parents from both sides had to meet. They needed to sit together to talk things through, clearing up every detail of the young couple's future together.

Shang Zhitao was too dense to realize his intentions in the slightest.

"Can they go?" Luan Nian asked her.

"They can." Shang Zhitao finally registered what he meant: "Are we... discussing marriage now?"

Luan Nian glanced at her without saying a word.

He had rented a plot of land on the mountain, and he wanted to plant roses in that soil. When the roses bloomed, he would present the entire garden to her.

And so the topic passed.

Luan Nian drove Shang Zhitao back and had a proper, formal dinner at her house. Shang Zhitao's parents were already thoroughly acquainted with him, so there was no sense of distance when the four of them sat together. They chatted and laughed, and Luan Nian drank a bit of alcohol with Old Shang.

Old Shang still enjoyed plying him with liquor; every time Luan Nian reached his six-tael limit, he would pretend to be drunk and collapse onto the table, refusing to get back up. Old Shang eventually saw through it, yet chose not to expose him.

Luan Nian stayed with Shang Zhitao until the eighth day of the Lunar New Year before returning to Beijing.

After the New Year, Shang Zhitao wanted to open up a new business track while simultaneously serving as an agent for another company's advertisements. And so, she began working tirelessly day and night once more.

She consulted her channel manager about the new track, and the manager set her up with two entry-level sub-agents, letting her practice by running a few accounts first. Shang Zhitao complied dutifully, practicing with complete dedication.

Even though she was swamped, she was no longer like before, forgetting Luan Nian the moment she grew busy. She would send him messages after wrapping up a meeting or meeting a client—sometimes discussing work questions, sometimes simply acting spoiled. As for Luan Nian, his replies remained brief as usual. Yet after receiving her messages, he would often call her directly via voice call to chat for a few sentences.

Shang Zhitao often said to him, "I miss you."

He would usually reply, "Mm, got it."

"Well, do you miss me?"

"Mm."

"Do you or don't you? I want you to say it out loud."

Luan Nian would always pause briefly before finally saying, "I do."

They had truly entered a romantic relationship—just like any other couple—after both of them had passed the age of thirty.

They were both extremely certain, yet neither was in any rush, wishing to use a lifetime to slowly savor this love.

Sometimes late at night, when both of them were finished with work, they would share a bedtime phone call. Occasionally they would bicker on the phone, the reason still being Luan Nian's lack of tact—his expression of views remained blunt as ever. But it was merely bickering; Shang Zhitao never took it to heart, because she had come to completely understand what kind of person Luan Nian was.

Toward the end of March, Dr. Liang and Luan Nian's father paid a visit to Harbin.

Not wanting Shang Zhitao's parents to tire themselves out, they shared a meal together at their old bistro.

All four elders were wonderful people, chatting about everything under the sun together. At the end, Dr. Liang said to Da Zhai, "I know Luan Nian has a terrible temper, so I hope he hasn't made you two unhappy."

"Not at all. Luan Nian is very polite."

"That's good then." Dr. Liang nodded: "If the two of them get married, are there any customs on your end? Such as betrothal gifts?"

Old Shang shook his head: "My daughter is priceless. I am giving my daughter away in marriage, not selling her."

"Then we understand. If the two children can take that final step, please rest assured—we will treat Taotao well."

And that was that.

Sitting to the side, Shang Zhitao secretly asked Luan Nian, "When are we going to announce that we're getting married?"

Luan Nian smiled without a word.

He was brewing a lifelong romance.