Chapter 186: A Little Dance, Adding to the Festivity

"Aunt Xianglan, how do you have time to drop by?"

A few kids at Pang Ya's house saw the candy and all crowded around; Aunt Xianglan laughed as she handed out the candy.

"I'm here to give you some wedding candy; don't fight over it, everyone gets a share. Oh dear, these kids are really a handful."

"Wedding candy?" Pang Ya was momentarily confused: "Is your Lu San'er having a wedding?"

"No, no, the wedding has to wait until Qing Yan's parents get back over there."

"Then I get it; it must be Ying Ying who arranged the match."

"Not exactly; that girl can really drive you crazy, just doesn't want to marry. It's my Lu Cheng; his department is recommending him for university."

"Is that so? That's wonderful; I've seen this child have promise since he was little."

Aunt Xianglan chuckled: "You say that, but you've only been married here a few years!"

Pang Ya laughed along: "Huh, what I mean is, Lu San'er looks promising; he'll definitely become a high official later, and you can look forward to enjoying his blessings."

"Whether we enjoy blessings or not, as long as the child does well, that's best. Fine, I'll go over to Teacher Wu's house next door for a look."

"Please sit a while longer..."

"No, no, another day then."

While she sat a bit longer, the kids snatched up all the candy.

A short while later, after Aunt Xianglan left Teacher Wu's house, she kept wandering to other houses.

Wu Guiwen held a few candies in his hand, standing at the doorway with a gloomy expression.

"What kind of rotten luck has the Old Lu family gotten, that even Lu Cheng, a street loafer, can get into university!"

When Aunt Xianglan arrived at the alley, she happened to meet Li Aunt passing by, who calmly tossed the Admission Notice onto the ground.

Li Aunt saw it and couldn't help picking it up: "Xianglan, what did you drop?"

Aunt Xianglan turned back, patting her pocket: "Did I drop it? Open it and see."

Li Aunt opened it, spread it on her hand and said: "Look, I can't even read a single character."

Aunt Xianglan leaned in: "Ah, it really is mine. It says my Lu Cheng was recommended for university, specifically Qingbei University."

Amid Li Aunt's envious expression, Aunt Xianglan took the notice: "I almost lost it; thanks to Li Aunt for picking it up. If it were lost, the child could blame me to death."

"Hehe." Li Aunt's face was a forced smile: "That's great, we should make something tasty tonight to celebrate."

"We should celebrate. His dad wants to go out to eat, but my Lu Cheng is sensible and says we can just have stewed radish at home. I said that's not okay; going to university is a big deal, we must listen to your dad and eat out."

"Hehe, yes, yes, Lu Cheng has been sensible since childhood. Fine, you go ahead with your tasks."

"Hey hey, goodbye Li Aunt."

As Aunt Xianglan wandered, the whole alley soon knew about it.

Lu Beitang, who had been waiting for her to return to go out to eat, didn't get home until eight o'clock.

"You still managed to come back!"

Seeing Lu Beitang staring, Aunt Xianglan instantly became displeased.

"You say that, but I can't even come back to my own home!"

"Then you shouldn't take so long; a little is enough. We can just be happy ourselves. How can you be so eager to shout with a loudspeaker to the whole world? What are you after?"

"What am I after? I just want my heart to be at ease! Let everyone know that my son is not a street loafer!"

Lu Beitang, too lazy to argue further: "You, you hurry and cook; the kids are starving."

"Weren't we supposed to go out to eat?"

"What restaurant? It's already eight, and by the time we get there, everyone will have finished work."

Aunt Xianglan finally understood her husband's complaint; indeed, she had come back a bit late.

"Never mind, never mind, we'll eat at home today and make up for it tomorrow." Aunt Xianglan said, remembering something.

"By the way, San'er, it's perfect to invite your Master tomorrow; the more people, the merrier."

Lu Beitang muttered nearby: "Then just go call him; when we get to Xu Erye's place, we can keep promoting."

Aunt Xianglan glared: "Lu Beitang, I'm happy today; don't provoke me."

Seeing his parents start arguing again, wondering when they'd ever get this meal, Lu Cheng stood up.

"You two keep arguing; I'll go cook."

Aunt Xianglan immediately dropped the argument: "No, no, I can't let you cook; you'll mess up the oil. Wait, I'll do it."

Lu Cheng sighed; this meal was eaten, and the plan to go out to eat was gone.

Fortunately Mom promised to make up for it tomorrow, and he also wanted to see Master.

Remembering that Senior Sister beat him up today, he must file a complaint tomorrow.

That night, after a simple dinner, everyone returned to their rooms; Lu Cheng heated the stove until it boiled.

Lin Qingyan was playing with Qing'er in Lu Ying's room; when she returned, she pulled back the curtain and hot steam hit her face.

The weather kept getting colder, especially at night; it was nearly minus ten degrees, and it seemed there would be heavy snow tonight.

She knew Lu Cheng disliked the cold, so heating the house was normal; the only odd thing was a bottle of foreign liquor placed on the wooden bedside table.

That bottle was the one Lu Cheng had taken out of the Beijing Station warehouse earlier; it was originally meant for Master, but Xu Erye couldn't stand the foreign drink and brought it back.

Lin Qingyan glanced, then shut the door: "Why aren't you sleeping yet? Qing'er has already fallen asleep."

"Aren't you waiting for you to come back, to have a drink with me?"

Lin Qingyan turned around; Lu Cheng, from somewhere, produced two Enamel Jars and poured the foreign liquor.

Lu Cheng lifted his head slightly, pouring while saying: "Don't laugh, we just don't have proper wine glasses at home, so we have to make do with these."

Lin Qingyan stood there, arms crossed: "I don't even know how to drink."

"It's fine, just sip a little; red wine doesn't get you drunk."

Lin Qingyan had to walk over: "You're quite in the mood; you seem very happy today."

"Aren't you unhappy?"

Lin Qingyan was, of course, happy; rather, she was happier than anyone else.

Being able to attend university, in that way her mother's impression of Lu Cheng would surely change.

When she thought that, she felt surprised again—why was she so concerned about Lu Cheng's impression in her parents' minds?

Late at night, when everything was quiet, the houses of Da Za Yuan gradually dimmed, and only the West Wing Room still glowed with a dim yellow light.

Through the window lattice, snowflakes fell in a flurry.

Si Jiu Cheng was about to enter the coldest months.

The house was already hot from the fire, and after drinking some foreign liquor, Lu Cheng only felt his whole body breaking out in hot sweat.

He stripped off his sweater and Woolen Pants, leaving only a thin autumn shirt and trousers, and said, "You're not hot? If you're hot, just take it off."

Lin Qingyan also drank some wine; she indeed felt a bit flushed, but she shook her head and said, "I'm fine."

Clearly very hot yet not admitting it, Lu Cheng changed his posture, crossed his legs on the bed, and took a sip of red wine.

"Drinking straight like this is a bit dull; how about… you dance for me, to liven things up."