Chapter 1459: A Date

Early the next morning, Li Kui brought his younger brother over.

Some mutton and offal remained from yesterday; they added water in the morning and let it simmer until bubbling, and the three of them ate together, making even the hard-to-swallow corn cakes taste fragrant.

"From now on, follow Brother Yan well. Whatever he tells you to do, you do it; however he tells you to do it, that's how you do it. Did you hear me?"

Li Kui patted his second brother Li Kuiyuan's head as he gave these instructions.

"Don't worry, Brother, I will definitely study hard," Li Kuiyuan said, patting his chest.

Though he was not as sturdy as his elder brother Li Kui, his chest still made a loud thump when struck.

Wang Yan smiled and said, "Learn as much as you can. I heard we're being sent down to the countryside again; everyone who has graduated from middle school will have to go within these two months."

Li Kui nodded and said, "I've heard. Two days ago, Auntie Wang from the neighborhood committee came to take statistics. I will definitely have to go. Since my second brother still has a year left, let him learn carpentry from you this year; that way, when he reaches the countryside, he'll have some use and won't go hungry or thirsty."

"As long as you understand. Second Brother, do you see those pieces of wood? After we finish eating, take that piece of wood and make me a miniature cabinet, about the size of a book. Here is a basic carpentry manual; flip through it yourself and learn according to what's written. I'll check your work when I return tonight."

The entry into carpentry is not difficult; anyone can saw and plane a couple of pieces of wood, join them in various ways, and that becomes a piece of furniture. However, mastering carpentry is not easy; it involves many aspects and carries artistic value.

Having the Li family's second son fiddle around making a miniature cabinet on his own was to test the boy's talent: whether he could plane the boards straight and smooth, whether the joints were meticulous and secure, and whether the stress distribution was even.

If he has talent, there is a teaching method for those with talent; if he lacks talent, there is another method entirely.

Take Wang Yan, for instance; he was never a talented person, always relying on clumsy, hard work. It was just that he put in so much effort, combined with the mental enhancement provided by his living father, that over time he became an all-rounder.

He might not be top-tier in every single aspect, but he at least possessed high-level general knowledge that was constantly updating. He knew everything and understood everything; no one could deceive him by leveraging barriers of professional expertise.

After eating, Wang Yan continued working on the cabinet. By this time, the cabinet was basically complete. What he needed to do now was apply oil to make the wood moisture-proof, rot-proof, and insect-proof.

Fortunately, Li the Second was here today; the fire in the stove wouldn't go out, so he could apply the oil and let it air-dry indoors, and by the time he returned in the afternoon, it would be dry. Then, after assembly and some simple touch-ups, the cabinet would be finished, and the four yuan would be in his pocket.

Those four yuan were quite a sum; rice cost only two mao, meat less than one yuan, and a bottle of Moutai was only eight yuan. Moreover, the materials were supplied by the client himself, so this was purely labor fees, and he hadn't even worked on it for many days.

Therefore, having a skilled trade was indeed quite good.

After all this busyness, Wang Yan dug out his ice skates; this item was standard equipment for young people. After all, entertainment activities were scarce in those days, the skating rink was lively, filled with many young men and women, and skating wasn't expensive, costing only a few fen to enter.

These ice skates didn't need to be exquisite, nor did they require high costs. Those with blades riveted to the soles were more expensive, but tying iron strips under the shoes worked too. Thus, Li Kui also had ice skates, and naturally, Wang Yan took him along.

Sitting on the rear seat, Li Kui exclaimed, "Brother Yan, when are we going to pursue that path to riches you mentioned?"

"Am I not pursuing love right now? I'm working all day; where would I find the time?" Wang Yan said. "But you did remind me. How about this: in the next few days, I'm giving you a task. Carefully investigate the black markets of this city of Four-Nine: who organizes them, or who holds a reputation in the black markets, sells the most goods, and holds the most coupons."

"Brother Yan, don't think I'm meddling, but none of those people are simple. They are worse than Little Rascal. When Little Rascal kills someone, at least people know he did it, but when those people strike, you can't even find the corpse."

"Wealth is sought amidst danger; just go and investigate."

"That's the spirit. Brother Yan, if you've truly made up your mind, I will definitely go with you."

Wang Yan smiled, continued pedaling the bicycle forward, heading toward Beihai.

The skating rink was truly lively; a vast crowd of people filled the place, the laughter of men and women filling their ears, creating a great clamor.

Finding a spot with a clear marker, they parked the bicycle and locked it. Wang Yan and Li Kui paid their entrance fee, went inside, changed their shoes, and began skating on the ice.

"Hey, Xiaobai, look, look, they're here."

Luo Yun called out to Zhou Xiaobai to look toward the shed where people were changing shoes; the two figures were currently supporting each other, standing together and walking haltingly.

Zhou Xiaobai looked up and saw Wang Yan gliding around, scanning everywhere, along with Li Kui beside him, dressed incongruously in a woolen overcoat and wearing a woolen hat.

Before Zhou Xiaobai could say anything, Luo Yun shouted and waved her hand: "Over here, over here!"

So Wang Yan glided over casually, and seeing their current state, he said with a smile, "Not seeing you for one night makes me miss you greatly, Comrade Xiaobai."

"Rogue!" Zhou Xiaobai rolled her eyes at him.

She didn't blush because of this, however, as her face was already red from the cold.

"Hey, I'm here too."

"I saw you," Wang Yan said. "I was just about to greet you."

"You are so lustful that you forget your friends."

"Don't talk nonsense; we all know each other, so what friendship am I forgetting?" Wang Yan waved his hand. "But indeed, you were the one who suggested coming skating today, so I must thank you. If Xiaobai and I succeed, then you are truly righteous; even my ancestors for eight generations would thank you."

"Why do you have to make it sound so creepy?" Luo Yun glared at him displeasedly.

Wang Yan said, "Seeing the two of you like this, you can't skate, can you? I thought you two skated quite well."

"We've skated several times but just can't learn. Wang Yan, the moment for you to show off has arrived."

Wang Yan turned his head and said, "Dayong, you teach her; I'll teach Comrade Xiaobai."

"Did I agree to this?" Zhou Xiaobai said, equally displeased.

"Shy? That's good," Wang Yan said with a smile. "Being shy means there's a feeling; at least I'm not suffering from unrequited love."

After glaring at Wang Yan, Zhou Xiaobai lowered her head and began skating.

Wang Yan raised an eyebrow at Luo Yun, then followed after Zhou Xiaobai, offering guidance from the side: "Your posture is wrong. Look at those people skating wildly; aren't they all half-squatting with their upper bodies leaning slightly forward? Yes, yes, yes, do you feel the center of gravity? It needs to be below the abdomen, aligned between the two feet. Feel it carefully, find the sensation."

"Don't rush to kick with your legs; you can't even stand steady yet. If you kick out and fall, it will definitely be severe. Falling on the back of your head could be fatal, falling forward could ruin your looks. As someone who acts on lust, don't make me suffer from a guilty conscience."

"Get lost, get lost, what are you talking about?" Zhou Xiaobai said displeasedly, slapping Wang Yan.

"Our relationship has made substantial progress; we've started flirting," Wang Yan said, raising an eyebrow at Zhou Xiaobai.

"A dog's mouth cannot spit out ivory."

"Whatever you say goes."

Wang Yan did not argue; dealing with women involved only three points: be bold, be meticulous, and be shameless.

Boldness was the prerequisite for starting, meticulousness was the guarantee for long-term communication, and shamelessness was the cornerstone of emotional stability.

Of course, if the goal was marriage, these three points were somewhat insufficient. Unless one possessed extraordinary charm, and the other party was either clear-headed or not; the former knowing what they wanted and being willing to pay the price and sacrifice other requirements, while the latter was simply easy to fool.

However, for Wang Yan, none of this mattered, since he could no longer be described merely as possessing extraordinary charm.

But he differentiated situations; if it was just casual chatting, his principle was not to be bold, meticulous, and shameless, but rather to neither initiate nor reject, using long-term interaction to display various personal qualities, thereby attracting women. "I am the wutong tree; naturally, the phoenix will come to perch."

Different goals naturally required different methods.

"Hey, are you really a carpenter?"

"Didn't I just say it? The Fengtai Furniture Factory."

Zhou Xiaobai asked, "Then what grade are you?"

"Grade two, twenty-eight yuan a month. Besides that, I do some private jobs on the side; when neighbors need furniture added but can't afford finished products, they save up materials and come to me. I earn a bit of hard-earned money, making an extra ten or twenty yuan or so."

"That's not a small amount either." Zhou Xiaobai nodded.

In truth, she didn't actually know whether it was small or not; after all, her father was a general earning over three hundred yuan monthly, and her mother was a hospital leader earning around two hundred. Together, the couple made over five hundred yuan a month—enough for Wang Yan to earn in an entire year. This was a massive chasm.

Of course, for Wang Yan, this chasm was just what it was.

"Are you comforting me? No matter how glorious being a worker is, it still can't compare to being a cadre."

"But you can still get promoted; your wages will definitely rise in the future."

"You're not very good at comforting people." Wang Yan shook his head with amusement. "If my wages rise, won't the cadres' wages rise too?"

"Sorry about that..."

"It's fine; you meant well. I'm quite content myself; isn't it better than some and worse than others? So many people have no jobs; otherwise, why do you think there are so many people at this skating rink now? They're all loitering outside. I can earn money, I've learned a craft, I don't worry about food or drink, and life has its flavor; it's very good indeed."

"Do you really think that way?" Zhou Xiaobai looked at Wang Yan.

"Of course. I told Dayong: I'm young now, healthy, don't have to worry about paying for medical treatment, can still earn forty or fifty yuan a month, have no elders to support, no wife or children; one person eats enough and the whole family goes hungry no more. I spend whatever I earn; isn't that acceptable?"

"But you can't go on like this; you must consider the future."

Wang Yan nodded with a smile: "Isn't that exactly what I'm doing, considering the future with you? Hey, don't glare at me; there has to be someone for me to consider the future with, right? Otherwise, why would I work so hard? Don't you agree that makes sense?"

"No! That someone isn't me; there are others."

"I will marry no one but you! Isn't that a firm stance?"

Such naked words immediately made Zhou Xiaobai's face redden by three more degrees.

"Have I agreed yet, for you to be so firm?"

"Let me tell you first," Wang Yan said. "I don't believe love must necessarily be earth-shattering, but one's attitude toward love must definitely be passionate."

"So that's why you're acting like a hooligan?"

Wang Yan shook his head and let out a long sigh: "Your misunderstanding of me runs too deep. Why not try looking at it from another angle? If I hadn't opened my mouth to speak to you, would you even know me? Although speaking abruptly is indeed very rash, we still need a beginning. Otherwise, how could we have our present situation?"

"Who said we have a 'present situation'?"

"Not you? Then a puppy will do."

"You're the puppy! I'll beat you to death!" Zhou Xiaobai, flushed with shame and anger, launched an attack.

Wang Yan pushed off with his foot and shot forward, standing there and raising an eyebrow at her.

Zhou Xiaobai was so angry her teeth itched; subconsciously, she too pushed off with her foot and glided out.

Wang Yan skated backward with his hands behind his back, which made Zhou Xiaobai even more indignant; glaring at Wang Yan, she kicked her legs and chased fiercely.

After skating one full lap like this, under Wang Yan's smiling gaze, she finally realized she was gliding rapidly across the ice. Once she became aware of this, panic seized her heart; her movements became distorted, and her body began to sway unsteadily.

Wang Yan slowed down, spread his arms wide, and caught the charging Zhou Xiaobai squarely, holding her tightly in his embrace.

Applying slight pressure with his hands, Wang Yan lowered his head and whispered by her ear: "This is you throwing yourself into my arms voluntarily; I'm not deliberately taking advantage of you."

Hearing these words, Zhou Xiaobai, who had been somewhat at a loss, came to her senses; she pushed hard against Wang Yan, broke free, and then swung her fists to strike him. However, after only a few blows, she could no longer maintain her balance and fell backward onto her back.

Wang Yan flashed forward, supporting Zhou Xiaobai's waist with one hand and her back with the other, once again holding her half-embraced against his chest. To quote Station Master Wu, it was damn well full of romantic flair.

Meeting Wang Yan's eyes, Zhou Xiaobai's face reddened by another six degrees; she struggled to her feet and then, in a bad mood, delivered a powdery fist to Wang Yan.

"It's all your fault."

"Then I'm far too innocent; twice you were about to fall—once risking disfigurement, once risking smashing the back of your head—and both times I saved you. Otherwise, you'd surely be lying on the ground crying right now. Not only do you not show gratitude, but you actually turn around and blame the victim. Comrade Xiaobai, on behalf of the organization, I must criticize you."

"Get lost! You represent the organization?" Zhou Xiaobai, in a bad mood, couldn't help wanting to punch him again, but she restrained herself.

Wang Yan laughed heartily: "Haven't you noticed that you can skate now?"

"Hey, that's right; just now I chased you around for a big lap."

"It's just that you're not yet proficient; practice more and you'll be fine. In your heart, you must not panic, must not show fear; otherwise, you'll end up like just now. You must think that you can do it; you must have confidence in yourself. Naturally, it will become as easy as eating and drinking."

"You make it sound simple; actually doing it is nowhere near that easy. How did you learn?"

"By falling, of course. I don't have your talent, nor did I have someone with such excellent skating skills guiding me; I could only rely on being battered by falls."

"Hey, you're quite narcissistic," Zhou Xiaobai chided.

"Hey, you're quite narcissistic too."

"How am I narcissistic?"

"I said you have talent; why didn't I see you refute that?"

"Otherwise, how could I have learned so quickly?" Zhou Xiaobai blinked her big eyes, staring unblinkingly at Wang Yan.

Immediately, the two burst into harmonious laughter, very happy indeed...

And so, the two continued skating, chatting away indiscriminately; compared to yesterday, their progress was like traveling a thousand li in a single day.

It was nearly noon before they finally skated until exhausted and frozen through; they finally ended their skating session, changed their shoes, and prepared to go together to the state-run restaurant for a meal.

Unexpectedly, while everyone was chatting and laughing, having retrieved Zhou Xiaobai's and Luo Yun's bicycles, and then going to the place where Wang Yan had parked his bicycle...

"Brother Yan, the bike is gone! Damn it, don't know which bastard did this. Don't let me find him, or I'll crack his skull open," Li Kuiyong cursed furiously, truly angry.

"Why not report it to the police?" Zhou Xiaobai tugged Wang Yan's sleeve, offering a suggestion.

Before Wang Yan could speak, Luo Yun cut in first: "Forget it; so many bicycles get stolen; how many are ever found?"

Wang Yan swept his gaze around, deliberately memorizing several faces, then waved his hand with a smile: "It's fine; I'll look for it myself later. We've been skating for so long, we're all starving; let's hurry and eat. Dayong, you take Luo Yun; I'll take Xiaobai; let's go."

"Maybe we should still look; what if we find it? One bicycle costs over a hundred yuan, and you still need a ration ticket for it," Zhou Xiaobai said, letting go of the handlebars.

"No need; let's eat first. If you're not hungry, I am. Heaven and earth are vast, but eating is paramount. Get on the bike quickly." Wang Yan had already strode forward with his long legs, adjusted the pedal with his foot, and mounted the bicycle.

Seeing that Wang Yan's smiling, completely unconcerned demeanor did not seem feigned, Zhou Xiaobai let out a long breath, lightly hopped, and sat sideways on the back, gripping Wang Yan's clothes with both hands.

"Are you foolish? Put your hands in your pockets."

Wang Yan took her hand, thrust it into his own pocket, and regardless of how Zhou Xiaobai in the back seat reacted, shouted, "Off to eat meat!" before pedaling the bicycle away.

Seeing Li Kui turn his head to look at her, Luo Yun said irritably, "What are you looking at me for? Hurry up and chase; otherwise, we'll lose sight of them in a moment."

"Got it, then hold on tight." Li Kui pedaled the bicycle fiercely and surged forward.

His sudden acceleration startled Luo Yun into a shriek, her hands gripping Li Kui's waist tightly.

Little lady, let's see you act arrogant now...

Li Kui pedaled along with a cheerful grin...

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