The nights in the small mountain village were exceptionally peaceful. Sitting on the electric scooter, gusts of cold wind blew through the withering grass of autumn and the trunks of trees. Every breath carried the earthy fragrance of damp soil.
Lin Yan felt as if autumn had hardly passed before winter was already in sight.
In her heart, she quietly thought that come next spring, she must go to Hai City. Whether or not she could stay there, she wanted to see her younger brother and sister, and Zhou Xiaoyue as well.
Since Lin Xue had gone to Hai City, she hadn't initiated a single phone call; Lin Yan was always the one reaching out.
Lin Xue said she was busy, wanting to learn quickly and earn money. Lin Yan didn't understand, was she so busy that she didn't even have time for a phone call?
Zhou Xiaoyue dropped Lin Yan off at her doorstep, and the earliest they could meet again would be next spring.
Lin Yan didn't want to part with her; her nose tingled with sorrow, and she felt like crying.
Zhou Xiaoyue held the scooter's handle with one hand and stood with one foot on the ground, patting Lin Yan's shoulder, "Don't cry, if you cry, I'll want to cry too."
Lin Yan had grown accustomed to sharing everything with Zhou Xiaoyue, big or small. If she had a cookie in her hand, she would want to break off a huge piece for her.
Zhou Xiaoyue felt the same, always thinking of Lin Yan.
Her family had contracted a lot of farmland in the village, and they grew corn every year, always with a good harvest. They were considered wealthy in the village.
Zhou Xiaoyue's living conditions were naturally much better. If she bought something nice, she would definitely rush over to show Lin Yan first.
Lin Guoping often reminded Lin Yan to maintain a good relationship with Zhou Xiaoyue and avoid quarrels. They might need her family's support in the future.
Whenever Lin Guoping tried to instill these ideas in Lin Yan, she always felt as if she were looking up to their family.
Zhou Xiaoyue wanted to meet Lin Yan's man. "Won't you let me go in and see?"
Lin Yan remembered that in the morning, Lu Chenyuan had made it very clear not to bring anyone home.
Her face showed her difficulty, "Maybe there'll be a chance."
Zhou Xiaoyue pursed her lips, feeling sorry for Lin Yan. She was not someone who would keep secrets from her, seeing Lin Yan's troubled expression.
Zhou Xiaoyue understood then. That man wasn't presentable or worth showing off.
The damn old bachelor, why do such harm, preying on a young girl.
She conceded, "Alright, there will be a chance in the future."
The courtyard gate wasn't locked, and the lights inside the house were still on. This was the second time she hadn't come home and the lights were not turned off.
Lu Chenyuan hadn't slept yet; Lin Yan looked at the empty walls, thinking a TV might relieve some boredom.
Lu Chenyuan smelled the lingering scent of alcohol on Lin Yan and noticed her face's flushed kind of redness.
"Did you drink?"
Lin Yan nodded, "Had two glasses, didn't like it, it's my first time drinking."
Just two glasses turned her into this state, her tolerance for alcohol was poor.
"My best friend also went to Hai City. There's gold everywhere there. Many people from our village work in Hai City; they only come back during the spring and fall harvests." Lin Yan opened a bag of powdered milk and scooped several spoonfuls into an enamel cup.
Lu Chenyuan saw through it, "Money is not so easy to make. Gold everywhere, eh? Has anyone from here picked up any gold? Even if there were, it would have been plundered by capital first."
The capital Lu Chenyuan referred to could very well be alluding to his own business empire and power.
Lin Yan thought Lu Chenyuan didn't understand, so she explained earnestly, "I didn't mean real gold! I'm talking about making money. It's a figure of speech, not that they are digging up gold from the ground in Hai City."
Lu Chenyuan looked at her serious manner of explanation, as she treated him like someone with such poor understanding.
"I'm not that stupid, I can understand these things."
Lin Yan handed the prepared milk powder to Lu Chenyuan.
Lu Chenyuan was lactose intolerant and rarely touched dairy products.
Lin Yan made such a large can of milk powder, the milky fragrance was so strong it filled her nose.
"I don't drink it."
Lu Chenyuan refused, and Lin Yan pushed it forward again, "You've been eating just radishes and cabbage every day, there's not much nutrition in that, and I've already caused enough trouble by staying here."
Lin Yan didn't make herself clear; she wanted to bribe Lu Chenyuan by being nice to him.
Lu Chenyuan saw that Lin Yan was staring at him eagerly, as if only seeing him drink would put her at ease.
Lu Chenyuan knew he couldn't accept dairy products, and there was no need for him to inconvenience himself to please someone unimportant.
"Take it away. I'm lactose intolerant; I can't drink this kind."
Lin Yan was surprised, and she spoke in a low voice, "Sorry, I didn't know."
After she spoke, she sipped from the enamel cup, not wanting to waste it.
"Why apologize? It's normal that you don't know me," Lu Chenyuan said.
"We'll get to know each other gradually over time," Lin Yan reminded him, not forgetting to tell Lu Chenyuan that she planned to stay here, until the village tore the house down.
Lu Chenyuan was composed. Lin Yan could say whatever she liked; some people were destined to be passersby.
He wasn't interested in those who were half-grown with immature minds.
The night was very cold, and one would feel their hands and feet icy even when wearing a coat indoors. Lu Chenyuan took a towel and went to the bathroom in the yard to take a cold shower.
Lin Yan saw that the standalone toilet in Lu Chenyuan's home was relatively well-conditioned, its interior even tiled.
Lin Yan followed him to the yard, "You'll catch a cold like this. Look at the weather now, the water is bone-chilling cold."
Lu Chenyuan turned around, with Lin Yan following closely behind. Suddenly, Lin Yan's forehead bumped into Lu Chenyuan's firm shoulder.
Lin Yan's head buzzed with pain, and she rubbed it. Lu Chenyuan was too tall, and she could only reach below his shoulders.
Lu Chenyuan's bones, just like his personality, were hard.
"I'm taking a shower. What are you following me for? Moving in doesn't mean you can hover around me all the time," Lu Chenyuan said, his voice full of irritation.
Lin Yan was clearly well-intentioned.
She retorted while rubbing her forehead, "Who is hovering around you? I was clearly behind. I am worried that you might catch a cold; the clinic won't be open at night."
"Worried? Are you going to join me?" Lu Chenyuan's thin lips curled slightly, his deep voice conveying frivolity in contrast with his composed demeanor.
Lin Yan shrank back, deflated. She certainly wouldn't go. She had never seen a man naked, and although she was quite curious, her only understanding of male and female knowledge came from biology textbooks.
She didn't wait for Lu Chenyuan to go in and turned back. She wanted to heat water for her bath.
She didn't have even a fraction of Lu Chenyuan's courage. She dreaded the cold the most and didn't want to catch a cold or fall ill.
Over the years, she had endured minor ailments and persevered through major ones, never seeking medical attention.
Back in the room, Lin Yan found a book on the kang bed that definitely wasn't hers.
The book was thick, and both the title and the content inside were in English.
Although Lin Yan had always performed well academically, the educational resources were limited. She couldn't easily understand a work written entirely in English.
She flipped through the book, muttering to herself, could this book belong to Lu Chenyuan? How could he possibly understand it, or was it something he picked up to use for kindling?
Lin Yan put the book back in its place and refrained from touching Lu Chenyuan's belongings.
She always felt that Lu Chenyuan was no simple man, with his commanding presence and his deep, cold nature.
Even though she wasn't very knowledgeable, she could sense that this sort of demeanor could only belong to someone who had held a position of authority for a long time.