The three of them spent the afternoon at Happy City.

On the food street in the basement they tried all sorts of food. Neither Chen Qingqing nor Wang Yuxin had much of an appetite; they bought several different snacks, took only a small taste of each, and handed the rest to Xu Ye.

Then they went up to the arcade on the fourth floor and played the dance machine and the basketball machine, and got into one of those two-person karaoke booths and sang for a while. It seemed to be Chen Qingqing’s first time in a place like that; she was quietly excited the whole way through.

Once they’d worn themselves out, Chen Qingqing led the two of them into a dessert shop and treated them to several very good afternoon-tea desserts.

At around half past five, Xu Ye asked, “Do you two still want dinner?”

Chen Qingqing and Wang Yuxin shook their heads at the same time.

“Then let’s head back,” Xu Ye went on. “It’s half past five already. It’ll be dark outside by now.”

“Aww~” Wang Yuxin wasn’t ready for it to be over. Chen Qingqing wasn’t either, really — she just didn’t show it as plainly.

Xu Ye hauled Wang Yuxin up off her chair with his left hand and took Chen Qingqing’s hand with his right, smiling. “Come on. The winter break’s still got a long way to go. There’ll be plenty of time to go out later.”

Xu Ye quickly led the two of them into the elevator by the hand. There were other people in it, and one young man’s eyes went wide the instant Xu Ye stepped in.

He was one of Xu Ye’s high school classmates, a boy called Zheng Yong. Xu Ye didn’t recognize him in the slightest, which was hardly his fault — he had seen that set of classmates exactly once, at the class reunion.

For Zheng Yong, he and Xu Ye had been in the same high school class six months ago. But before the rebirth Xu Ye had lost touch with the overwhelming majority of his high school classmates, and the number he could still put a name to now could be counted on one hand.

Zheng Yong was thoroughly stunned by what he was looking at.

In high school Xu Ye had barely registered in the class at all — for all practical purposes he had been invisible. It had never occurred to Zheng Yong that in the space of six months Xu Ye would change this much on the outside — his hair, his taste in clothes — and that even the way he carried himself would be nothing like it was in high school.

What stunned him more was the campus-belle-grade beauty standing beside Xu Ye — a girl Gu Mengyao, their class beauty back in high school, wasn’t even in the same league as.

Zheng Yong had meant to get out on the first floor, but seeing that Xu Ye didn’t get out, he stayed on and followed him all the way down to the basement parking level. And when he watched Xu Ye drive off with the two of them in the car, Zheng Yong found himself rather glad he hadn’t said hello in the elevator.

At the same time, he was curious. Six short months. How had Xu Ye changed this much?

…

After driving Chen Qingqing home, Xu Ye went in as well, to use the toilet.

Seeing that Jiang Meilin had already gone, he asked, “Your mom’s left. So you’re on your own in the house tonight?”

Chen Qingqing nodded.

Xu Ye grinned wickedly. “If you’re scared, I could stay the night and keep you company.”

“Absolutely not,” Chen Qingqing said quickly. “When my mom goes away for work I’m on my own at night anyway. Auntie Wang only comes during the day.”

“All right. I’ll video call you tonight, then.”

“I know.”

Xu Ye held the car key out to her, but Chen Qingqing didn’t take it. She looked up at him. “You drive Yuxin home in it.”

“Did your mom agree to that?”

“My mom is the one who told me to give you the key.”

Xu Ye scratched his head. “Jeez. My mother-in-law’s unbelievably thoughtful.”

Chen Qingqing went red at that. She reached out and pushed him to the living room door, pouting. “Off you go. It’s already dark.”

“I’ll come round and find you again tomorrow, then.”

“Fine. I know.”

Xu Ye got back into the car and drove Wang Yuxin home.

The two of them had barely got in when Old Xu came back from work. He was still at the door changing his shoes, muttering and swearing. “Some bastard’s gone and taken my parking space downstairs again. Aren’t we the big man, driving an Alphard. Damn it…”

“Dad, do you mean the black Alphard?”

“How do you know that?”

“Oh.” Xu Ye pulled the key out of his pocket. “That’s the car I drove home. Were you just swearing at me?”

Old Xu’s head started buzzing.

Downstairs a minute ago he had, in his own head, paid his respects to eighteen generations of that driver’s ancestors. If Xu Ye really was the one who’d parked it there, then he’d just been cursing himself.

“The car you drove home? Where did you get a car?”

“My girlfriend’s family’s car.”

“Are you serious? You’re not messing with your old man, are you?”

“Serious. Ask Wang Yuxin if you don’t believe me. The three of us went out together this afternoon.”

Old Xu looked straight at Wang Yuxin, and when she nodded he smacked himself hard across the mouth, then strode over to Xu Ye and snatched the Alphard key out of his hand.

“They’re letting you drive a car this good? Her parents agreed to that?”

“Her mom’s the one who gave it to me to drive.”

Old Xu bristled with indignation. “Your old man’s been driving a beat-up Santana for nearly ten years, and you, you little brat, jump straight into a car like this? Come on, come on — take me down for a test drive.”

“Dad, have you no pride at all?”

Old Xu kicked him in the backside and snapped, “Cut the nonsense. Take me for a test drive.”

What else was Xu Ye going to say. He trotted off downstairs with Old Xu to test-drive the Alphard.

Sitting in the passenger seat, watching the excitement all over Old Xu’s face, Xu Ye thought to himself: once I’ve got real money, I’ll get Old Xu a luxury car of his own, just to make him happy.

Old Xu took the Alphard on one long loop around the compound and finally brought it back to the parking space, still not done with it. As he cut the engine, he handed the key back to Xu Ye. “You drive carefully, boy. If you damage it, this family can’t afford to pay for it.”

“Relax. I’m an old hand.”

Old Xu slapped him on the thigh. “You got your licence over the summer and you’ve got the nerve to call yourself an old hand?”

Xu Ye rolled his eyes and couldn’t be bothered to explain.

As father and son went up the stairs together, Xu Ye asked quietly, “Dad, do you remember what tomorrow is?”

“Your mom’s birthday.”

“You do remember. I thought you’d forgotten.”

“Which year have I ever forgotten your mom’s birthday? Every year, who do you think cooks that bowl of longevity noodles in the morning?” [TL: 长寿面 — a single long, uncut noodle eaten on one’s birthday. The unbroken length stands for a long life, so it must never be cut or bitten through.]

“What are you planning to get her this year?”

Old Xu laughed. “How many years have your mom and I been married now? What does she need a present for? Take her out for a meal in the evening and she’s perfectly happy.”

“Dad.” Xu Ye laid a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll transfer you three thousand tonight. Tomorrow you go and buy Mom a new phone — the screen on hers is smashed. Say you bought it. Let her have a bit of joy out of it.”

“That works. She’d be delighted with that.”

Xu Ye grinned. “You just take care of that part tomorrow. Leave the rest to me.”

Old Xu felt a rush of emotion. He put an arm around Xu Ye’s shoulders. “You little brat. You’ve finally grown up.”

(End of Chapter 183)