Chapter 10: Childhood Sweethearts

Di Ye carried a backpack containing a change of clothes, bought a copy of the December 1994 issue of *Science Fiction World* magazine at a newsstand, and stood by the street reading for a while. Seeing Huang Ya walk out from the north gate of the school, he put away the magazine, pressed his Electronic Watch, connected with Di Ye, and notified him: "Huang Ya is here."

"Don't worry, she just wants to trick you into treating her."

"I'm not worried; I want you to see an old childhood friend."

Di Ye pretended to brush off dust, dragged the Light Screen with his finger to position it above his left shoulder, then switched his perspective to observation mode and asked: "You and Xia Fangfei don't click—is it because you like Huang Ya?"

"No, I'm too familiar with Huang Ya. Looking at her is like looking at my sister. Besides, I like gentle and quiet girls; she and Xia Fangfei have similar personalities—both are too rowdy."

"You should go online and buy a silicone doll as a wife; that's guaranteed to be quiet."

Huang Ya crossed the road, walked to a spot a few meters away from Di Ye, took a small round mirror out of her handbag, shone it at him, and shouted: "Monster, reveal your true form!"

Di Ye took a closer look, realized she was holding a makeup mirror, couldn't help but laugh, and said: "Should I let out a loud scream, then transform into a puff of black smoke and head straight for Beimang Mountain?"

"Why go to Beimang Mountain?"

"Beimang Mountain is where many emperors and generals are buried. Someone as wise and martial as me, even if possessed by something dirty, would surely be of a very high grade, like a Demon King or Ghost Emperor."

Huang Ya widened her eyes and opened her mouth, making an exaggerated expression in the style of Zhou Xingchi, and retorted: "Xia Fangfei was wrong; it's not that your skin is thick, it's that you have no skin at all."

She was very spirited, her expressions vivid, and her imitation was remarkably lifelike. Di Ye was also a fan of Zhou Xingchi, recognized it at a glance, and played along with the lines: "One Day Life-Taking Powder?"

"Wow! Don't you hate watching movies? How do you know I'm imitating *Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance*?"

Di Ye reached out, made a motion of pulling a hat above Huang Ya's head, and said with a smile: "I even know you took the Smiling Half-Step Stunner, acting all crazy."

Huang Ya was not tall, visually estimated at no more than 1.6 meters, and looked particularly petite standing next to Di Ye. She tilted her head, rolled her eyes, and complained: "You're the one acting crazy! I went to all the trouble of introducing Xia Fangfei to you, and you actually don't cherish it, wanting to be some kind of playboy. A thousand birds in the forest are not as good as one in the hand—do you understand?"

Ever since Huang Ya walked into the display range of the Light Screen, Di Ye had been silent. At this moment, he sighed softly and entrusted: "Except for my dad, my mom, and my sister, Huang Ya is the person who treats me the best. You should help her more in the future; her family is quite struggling."

That sigh contained deep melancholy. Di Ye was also a transmigrator and felt the same way, so he promised: "I will do my best to help her."

"I'm going to look at the code for the Compression Software. Call me if anything comes up."

After Di Ye finished speaking, he cut the connection, and the Light Screen on the shoulder automatically returned into the Electronic Watch.

Di Ye looked down at the Electronic Watch, then interrupted Huang Ya's nagging complaints and said: "It's already past 11 o'clock, let's go have a big meal; we can chat while we eat."

"What are you going to treat me to?"

"Let's go to the Sihai International Hotel for a buffet, and while we're at it, get a room to take a shower. I'm covered in sweat right now and feel very uncomfortable."

"Tsk tsk, just to take a shower, you're going to a 4-star hotel to get a room—you really have the air of a playboy!"

The Sihai International Hotel was one of the highest-grade hotels in Yuncheng in 1995, located only about 3 kilometers away from Yun University. The two arrived quickly. Di Ye went to the front desk to ask and found they didn't offer hourly rooms, so he had to get a standard room.

Huang Ya had never stayed in a star-rated hotel and was very curious. She followed him to the room to take a look, saw that the bathing facilities inside were very complete, felt a bit tempted, and said: "Di Ye, will you be here this afternoon? I want to come and take a shower too."

"I have class this afternoon. I'll give you the key later, you can open the door yourself."

"Alright then. What time will you be back? I'll wait for you here."

"Around 4 o'clock. You go to the buffet restaurant to eat; I'm going to shower first."

Huang Ya and Di Ye were inseparable friends during their middle school days and both got into Yun University, but one studied Business Administration and the other Computer Science. They were in different colleges and didn't see each other often, so although she was surprised by his changes, she didn't find it abnormal. While eating the buffet, she kept trying to persuade Di Ye to reconcile with Xia Fangfei.

"Don't always talk about me, what about you? Have you met any boys you like?"

"The boys in school are all too childish; there isn't one worth looking at."

"You're always imitating Zhou Xingchi, aren't you childish?"

"That's a personal hobby! Forget it, let's not talk about this. How is your preparation for the postgraduate entrance exam going?"

"It's a sure thing. How are you planning to handle work? Are you going to follow the school's assignment or seek employment on your own?"

When the conversation turned to work, Huang Ya stopped being playful and said distressingly: "I want to go to Pengcheng to take a look and find a job myself, but my mom wants me to work locally in Yuncheng so it's easier to take care of my two younger brothers."

According to the information provided by Di Ye, Huang Ya's father had already passed away, her mother ran a small restaurant to make a living, and there were two younger brothers in middle school at home, so it was indeed quite difficult. Di Ye gave a hum and said: "Don't worry about the work; I'll get it sorted for you next semester."

"Bragging again. You'll be doing well if you can sort yourself out."

"Just you wait, I will definitely help you find a good job when the time comes."

In 1995, key cards were not yet popular. When Di Ye opened the room, he received a traditional key. After finishing the buffet, he handed the key to Huang Ya and returned to school for class.

By around 4 o'clock in the afternoon, Di Ye returned to the Sihai International Hotel. After knocking the door open, he discovered it was actually Xia Fangfei inside. She had just finished showering, was wearing a set of loose clothes, and was drying her hair with a towel.

"Where's Huang Ya?"

"She had something come up and went out, said she'd be back in a while."

Di Ye instantly understood what was going on and felt a bit torn between laughter and tears. He stood at the doorway and said: "There's a hair dryer in the bathroom, you dry your hair, I'll go downstairs and wait for her."

Xia Fangfei didn't seem to feel awkward and said generously: "No need to go downstairs, come in and wait. After all, this is a room you paid for."

Seeing her say this, Di Ye walked in, turned on the television to take a look, saw that he could receive overseas channels, so he sat by the bed and used the remote to change a few channels, finally choosing an English-language financial program, because this program was discussing the Mexican financial crisis.

From December 20th to 22nd, 1994, in just three days, the Mexican peso plummeted by 42%, triggering a financial crisis. Within the following 3 months, the Mexican stock market fell by as much as 48%. Although this crisis was quickly quelled by international capital led by the United States, the hidden dangers were not eliminated, and it was widely considered the precursor to the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

"After the Mexican financial crisis comes the Hanshin Earthquake in Dongying, and after that is the Barings Bank collapse case... It's all money! I must find an opportunity to go abroad as soon as possible and make a fortune from it."

Xia Fangfei finished drying her hair and walked out of the bathroom. Seeing Di Ye staring intently at the television, she asked: "Can you understand it?"

Di Ye's English was terrible. He had originally met Xia Fangfei through Huang Ya's introduction because he needed to translate a computer paper. To cover it up, Di Ye said: "I can barely understand a little."

Xia Fangfei gathered her hair with both hands, tied it into a simple ponytail, then stood in front of the television and explained the content of the program to Di Ye in the manner of simultaneous interpretation.

Di Ye had traveled to places like the United States and Australia, and his English was passable. Seeing Xia Fangfei translate so quickly and accurately, he looked at her with newfound respect and said: "You could go work at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is too hard to get into. I'm planning to work at a public institution under the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation."

"Is it already decided?"

"Not yet. My dad has a comrade-in-arms at the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation; he told me to go to Beijing next semester for an interview and see."

"Your English is so good, and you translate all kinds of economic terminology very accurately; it should be no problem."

At this time, the financial program on the television ended. Di Ye picked up the remote, changed channels while chatting idly: "Is your dad a retired soldier?"

Xia Fangfei sat down by the other bed and said: "Panda Electronics used to be a military enterprise; many employees are retired soldiers."

The standard room in this hotel was quite narrow, and the two beds were very close. Di Ye smelled the faint fragrance emanating from Xia Fangfei, his heart stirred, and he turned his head to look at her beautiful face, praising: "'Clouds remind me of her clothes, flowers of her face; the spring breeze brushes the railing, the dew is thick and rich.' This poem by Li Bai is very fitting for you right now."

Xia Fangfei smiled sweetly and said: "I'm not as beautiful as Yang Guifei."

In 1995, social customs and life concepts were relatively conservative. Di Ye was a newcomer and didn't dare to act rashly. Feeling that if he stayed any longer there was a risk of losing control, he stood up and walked to the window to pretend to look at the street scene outside. Aside from the noise from the television, there was no movement in the room.

After a moment, Xia Fangfei broke the silence and said, "Di Ye, someone asked about my family's situation today."

Di Ye was startled, snapped out of his reverie, turned around, and asked, "How did you answer?"

"I followed what you said yesterday and brushed it off with confidentiality."

"What kind of person asked you? Was it a classmate or a stranger?"

"It was our class counselor."

Upon hearing this, a cloud of suspicion rose in Di Ye's heart.