Crystal chandeliers surrounded them, glittering in all directions. A soft violin melody floated through the restaurant. Zhao Xiaoyun sat at the table, feeling completely out of place—she had never been to such a high-end place before.
“Why did you bring me somewhere like this?” she asked.
Shen Yuyin laughed, half-exasperated, half-amused. “What else do you do at a restaurant if not eat? Hm?”
Zhao Xiaoyun glanced at the menu that had been pushed toward her. Just a glance was enough to know this place was far beyond what she could afford. One dish, one bottle of wine here could cost half a month—or even a whole month—of her salary.
“What, nothing on the menu to your taste?” Shen Yuyin asked, resting her chin in her hands.
Still looking down, Zhao Xiaoyun muttered, “It’s all too expensive.”
Shen Yuyin smiled. “Don’t worry about saving money for me. I may lack many things, but money isn’t one of them.”
Zhao Xiaoyun closed the menu and pushed it back toward her, then asked curiously, “Someone like you—what could you possibly lack?”
It was hard for her to imagine.
Shen Yuyin chuckled self-deprecatingly. “There’s a lot about me you’d never guess. You probably think that with money, you can have everything in the world. But that’s not true. Take tonight for example.”
She paused, looking around. The restaurant was filled with couples, families—no one was dining alone.
“My mom’s having an affair behind my dad’s back. She went out to meet her lover tonight. Meanwhile, my dad’s bedridden and needs a caregiver. So New Year’s Eve dinner? For me, it’s a meal alone. Fun, right?”
Zhao Xiaoyun listened intently, shocked. “That’s… actually really sad.”
Shen Yuyin smiled faintly. “I’ve had a few relationships over the years. My first love was a guy. We’d just started figuring out what love was. But we broke up in under three days—turns out, all he wanted was to sleep with me.”
She smiled again, but it was tinged with bitterness.
“Then I realized I liked girls. My first relationship with a woman ended because I overheard her telling someone I was just her ATM.”
“And after that?” Zhao Xiaoyun asked, genuinely curious now.
“The second time, I treated her really well. Gave her everything she wanted. But six months later, she left me for a guy.”
She said all this lightly, as if time had dulled the sting. But Zhao Xiaoyun suspected it hadn’t.
“After that, it was more of the same. Some were just after my money. Some just wanted to play around. I stopped opening up to people. If I felt lonely, I’d just hook up. One-night stands, flings… You probably think I’m promiscuous. But people like me—we’ve all been hurt, one way or another. We’re just trying to find comfort.”
“What about your friends?” Zhao Xiaoyun asked softly.
“You mean my party friends?” Shen Yuyin scoffed. “If I lost my money, they’d all disappear. I used to really like Tang Yan, you know.”
That caught Zhao Xiaoyun’s attention—she sat up straight.
“There’s just something special about her. I don’t know what it is. She’s just… magnetic. You want to be near her. But I don’t think she feels the same about me. Maybe she already has someone.”
“I think… Tang Yan probably likes men,” Zhao Xiaoyun murmured. “Just a guess, of course.” She glanced at Shen Yuyin. “You know, you’re not as insufferable as I thought.”
Shen Yuyin laughed, then suddenly sobered. “Enough about me. What about you? Why didn’t you go home for New Year?”
Zhao Xiaoyun hesitated. “You’ll laugh, but… I dropped out of school young. At fifteen, I left for the south to work because I had a younger brother. I sent all my earnings home, keeping only a little for myself. Half a year ago, I disobeyed my parents and came to Huadu on my own. I wanted to find a life for myself—leave my old self behind. I called home a week ago, planning to tell them I’d come back. But the moment my mom answered, she scolded me and asked for money. I canceled the ticket and decided not to return.”
Shen Yuyin looked at her with newfound respect. “Damn. That’s bold of you. I guess it’s true—people with money have money problems, and people without money have… well, no money.”
Zhao Xiaoyun nodded. “Being a person is hard. Just staying alive is hard.”
“Then let’s drink to that,” Shen Yuyin said, pouring her a glass and raising hers in a toast.
That evening, Ji Yuqing had cooked a full table of dishes. Though each dish was small in portion, it was enough to enjoy without waste.
Tang Yan, Ji Yuqing, and her elderly mother sat around the table. The old woman had a surprisingly good appetite, perhaps because the flavors were familiar. She polished off two bowls of rice and leaned back, patting her belly. “So full.”
“Like a little kid,” Tang Yan giggled.
“She is like a kid,” Ji Yuqing replied, her eyes smiling. “They say the elderly are like treasures in the home. And with age, they really do become like children.”
“The food is so good!” Tang Yan said, hugging her bowl.
“Then eat more—no leftovers!” Ji Yuqing added more sweet-and-sour ribs to her bowl.
“You should eat too,” Tang Yan said, returning the favor by adding sweet-and-sour pork to Ji Yuqing’s plate.
“Okay.” Ji Yuqing picked up her bowl with a smile, happily eating what Tang Yan gave her. “Hmm, it’s a bit more sour than usual—maybe I didn’t add enough sugar.”
“No, it’s perfect! I love sour food!” Tang Yan said quickly, stuffing several more pieces into her mouth until her cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk.
Ji Yuqing laughed. “You sure know how to cheer me up.”
After dinner, they had to bathe, medicate, and tuck in the elderly woman. Normally this would’ve been exhausting for Ji Yuqing alone, but with Tang Yan’s help, everything went smoothly. When the old woman was finally asleep, Ji Yuqing turned off the light and closed the bedroom door with a sigh of relief.
It was 10 p.m.
When she returned to the living room, she found that Tang Yan had already washed the dishes and was wiping down the table.
“You finished so quickly?” she asked, surprised.
“Yep.” Tang Yan looked up and smiled.
“Young people are so efficient,” Ji Yuqing said, rubbing her lower back, which had been strained from leaning over the bed earlier.
“Did you hurt your back?” Tang Yan asked, concerned.
“Probably just pulled a muscle.”
“I’ve got it!” Tang Yan rushed over and began gently massaging her back. The pain eased slightly under her hands.
After a few moments, Ji Yuqing suddenly said, “Yanyan, I have something for you. Come to my room.”
“Okay!” Tang Yan stood up straight and followed her.
In the bedroom, Ji Yuqing opened her wardrobe, pulled out a large shopping bag, and retrieved a neatly folded down jacket—brand new. She handed it to Tang Yan. “You should wear something new for the New Year. Put this on tomorrow.”
Tang Yan stared down at the jacket in her arms, overwhelmed. Aunt Ji always took such good care of her—it was too touching. Her eyes stung.
“But I didn’t prepare anything for you…” she said softly.
“You don’t need to, silly. If I want something, I can buy it myself. It’s almost midnight. Come on—I want to take you somewhere.”
In the car, Tang Yan asked curiously, “Where are we going?”
“To Lakeside Plaza,” Ji Yuqing said as she started the engine. “Every New Year’s Eve, thousands gather there to count down to midnight and watch the fireworks.”
“Do you go every year?” Tang Yan asked.
Ji Yuqing smiled faintly and shook her head. “I always went alone. But this year, I have you.”
Finding a parking spot was tough. Ji Yuqing circled the nearby streets several times before someone finally pulled out.
They walked toward the plaza, and just as she’d said, it was packed—more than just thousands, it seemed. Children skated past, vendors sold glowing toys, and Ji Yuqing once again reached for Tang Yan’s hand.
“Come with me—I know the best spot to watch the fireworks.”
She tugged Tang Yan forward. Tang Yan stumbled a little but followed. She had never seen Aunt Ji this excited before.
The “perfect spot” was on the bridge in the middle of the lake. One side overlooked the glittering cityscape, the other stretched into a vast lake.
“The fireworks will start over there,” Ji Yuqing said, pointing.
11:59. The crowd began counting down in unison.
“Ten, nine, eight… three, two, one.”
Boom!
On the other side, fireworks exploded, lighting up the night sky.
Tang Yan glanced sideways at Aunt Ji’s face—she was smiling so brightly, so beautifully, the very definition of joy.
“Yanyan.”
“Hmm?”
Ji Yuqing turned toward her, cheeks slightly flushed, eyes curved in a gentle arc. “Happy New Year.”
Tang Yan’s heart skipped a beat. Aunt Ji seemed… different in that moment—especially the way she looked at her.
Her throat tightened. It took a while to find her voice.
“Happy New Year.��
By then, Ji Yuqing had turned to look at the fireworks again, hands gripping the railing.
But her words still reached Tang Yan:
“In the future… I hope you’ll be happy.”