CH 32

After New Year’s Day, the final exams were being studied intensively. Ruan Mengmeng borrowed the class study committee’s notes and copied them. Two years later, the college entrance examination has determined the art test for art students, and there is a lot of content to memorise for the three subjects of politics, history, and geography.

After the fireworks show, Ruan Mengmeng and Lu Zhengyuan would occasionally chat, feeling that nothing had changed from before. They could occasionally wave and smile when they ran into each other during recess.

But the two of them, a science student and an arts student, really don’t have much interaction. Apart from an occasional game, they didn’t have much to say.

Ruan Mengmeng couldn’t tell which love beans were on rice lately in the novel she read. The little fresh meat was so handsome and good. The second male in this novel was very good to the male lead. They were full of love, and she suspected that they had taken the wrong script for the female lead script. The two men were definitely together.

But, it would be embarrassing to say this.

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As for He Yiyang, on the other hand ……

Ruan Mengmeng was completely unable to understand his routine.

When the two of them were together, she was the one who was often forced into service, and He Yiyang often relied on her for matters of his personal life. From printing, scanning, and filing information from the company, to paying for the water and electricity network on the property side.

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It was really …… hard to say no, and she just wanted to spoil him.

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At first, Ruan Mengmeng also blushed, but then she let it all go.

She wasn’t really unwilling and she couldn’t help it anyway. He Yiyang would place her on his lap, hands clasped and arms around her waist.The human-shaped heater was perfect for doing business.

Her body of bubble flesh was nothing. To He Yiyang, a little sense of weight is not a threat.

Time flew by quickly. Three days after the final exam, the school gave Senior One three days off and Senior Two two days off.

On the first day of the holiday, Ruan Mengmeng slept through the night, wrapped in a blanket.

The next day, Ruan Mengmeng and Chen Linjia walk around the shopping plaza. The two of them loved beauty, and they could visit each shop for a long time. They didn’t need to wear school uniforms during the winter holiday, so the desire to buy instantly swelled.

“Jiajia, I want to check out the men’s clothing.” Ruan Mengmeng said.

“Do you want to buy it for Uncle Hai?” Chen Linjia gave the clothes in her hand to the shop assistant, gesturing for her to wrap them up, “I’ll …… go check it out too.”

Chen Linjia was now boarding. It didn’t hurt for her to live in school. During the winter holidays, she could go to two places: Hua Ya Garden tenth floor, where the family used to live happily; the other was the Gu House, where Huang Lili, Gu Wei, and Gu Tingzhi lived  together.

Ruan Mengmeng had only met Gu Wei from afar when she attended the wedding banquet.

The richest man in C City had an ordinary face and a tall stature. He looked like the kind of man who couldn’t be found at first glance when mixed in a crowd, but could be quickly found again with a second glance. The charm and verve of a white-knuckled family were shocking from the inside.

Beautiful skin was the same. An interesting soul and a unique temperament were one in a million, so they were naturally impressive.

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Gu Tingzhi, Ruan Mengmeng had dealt with him a few times, and the only times with him were in relation to Chen Linjia.

The Gu father and son should be good to her best friend, so Ruan Mengmeng advised, “Jiajia, when we finish our tuition, we will be on holiday. Do you want to buy some New Year gifts for your elders?”

Chen Linjia was looking at the cufflinks in front of a glass cabinet. Her face froze at the words, and then she shook her head.

Ruan Mengmeng scratched her face, “Okay.”

She regretted it just as she said it. They were still students, and their parents were paying for all the expenses. Even if they bought gifts, they were just taking their parents’ money to show their love.

And the card Chen Linjia had just given herself to buy clothes was formerly Father Chen’s money.

The atmosphere was delicate for a moment, and Ruan Mengmeng regretted it so much that she tugged at Chen Linjia’s sleeve.

Chen Linjia snorted out a laugh, “Let’s talk about it later. Let’s look for things for Uncle Hai. How about this pair of hexagonal fine steel inlaid onyx?”

With black gemstone faces, they looked atmospheric and stable, and the symmetrical hexagonal shape reflected the hard and rigid image of the wearer.

“Not bad.” Ruan Mengmeng said.

The guide smiled attentively and politely, “You two have a good eye. This is the latest model, and there is also the same model in blue. Take a look.”

There were not many options for gifts for men, so Ruan Mengmeng simply bought both colours of the same cuff. The black one was for Ruan Mengmeng’s father and the blue one for He Yiyang.

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*.

The end of the year was approaching, and on the 28th day of the lunar month, school was finally out for winter break.

Ruan Hai sat in front of the TV watching a documentary shown on the Dito station, looking back with a look of emotion. Then, he slapped his thighs and decided to go back to his old house in the countryside this New Year to have a good time with his folks.

Ruan Hai and He Zhenhua were neighbours in the same village, Yangtang Township, Haipo Village. It was only ten years ago that the road out of the village entrance was opened, which was privately funded by He Zhenhua. Haipo Village’s isolation and difficult conditions spoke for themselves.

When the village chief heard that they were coming back for the Chinese New Year, he was so excited that his white beard was raised. He offered to help clean the premises, hoping that they would be comfortable and that they could teach the young people in the same village some valuable experience in breaking into society.

So, as soon as Ruan Mengmeng and the others got off the bus, the village headman stood at the head of the village and waved his hand. Firecrackers crackled, and they were followed by a round of applause.

The sincere and simple smiles on the villagers’ faces instantly infected the Ruan father and daughter, and their eyes reddened.

“Uncle.” Ruan Hai wiped the corners of his eyes and walked up to shake hands with the village chief’s old grandfather.

He Yiyang was standing next to him and had just gotten out of the car when he was shocked by the sudden noise. He frowned. Not to mention such a sandwich welcome, he hadn’t seen a firecracker to welcome guests for a long time.

Although the etiquette was vulgar, it was the warmth of the heart that was valuable.

“Uh-huh.”

A small whimper caught He Yiyang’s attention, and he looked over to see that it was Ruan Mengmeng. He then followed her line of sight to understand.

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Several small children dressed in rags were standing by the old man’s legs. Their black and white eyes were timidly curious, and their cheeks had a trail of frost cracks. They were clearly neglected.

He Yiyang stroked Ruan Mengmeng’s head and smoothed her shawl hair with his five fingers into a comb, “Didn’t you bring a whole load of supplies from your own supermarket? You’ll give them out later.”

Haipo village was mountainous and had a small population. The young and strong were all out working, leaving only some old people with limited legs and children left behind.

“Brother, shall we go to the market later?” Ruan Mengmeng looked up and said.

He Yiyang: “What?”

“The things we brought in the car are all household items from our own supermarket. There’s plenty to eat, but no clothes for the children,” Ruan Mengmeng looked at the children picking firecrackers on the side of the dirt road, her face was full of heartache, “Brother has never been to a fair before, right? I’ll take you to play?”

He Yiyang: “Okay.”

He smiled with a doting smile. If she wanted him to accompany her, then he would go.

Before lunch, He Zhenhua also came back. When he saw He Yiyang, he stood on his toes and raised his hand, trying to pat his grandson’s head, who was taller than him.

He Yiyang was such a big man. How could he be patted on the head? He didn’t want to lose face.

He ducked and ran away, while Grandpa He chased after him. After chasing him twice around the courtyard, in the end, he couldn’t escape Grandpa He’s stubbornness.

Ruan Mengmeng, who was watching from the side, laughed out loud and helped Grandpa He block He Yiyang several times. She exasperated him so much that He Yiyang pinched her face.

He Zhenhua was also quite happy and took out a large red envelope from his pocket and distributed it to the two youngsters. After a few words of encouragement, he was sent by the village chief to have a leisurely chat.

After lunch, the village chief’s grandfather heard that Ruan Mengmeng was going to the market. He was afraid that the two city dolls would be ‘ripped off’ by the vendors, so he instructed his grandson to go along in the family van and also act as a bodyguard or something.

The village chief’s grandson was called Tang Bin, and he was older than them by several years. He followed a relative to a construction site to learn how to drive a forklift before finishing college, and was now able to send some money to his family every month.

The Yangtang town fair, which was held on the fifth day of the lunar calendar, was located in the centre of the nine counties north of the city of C. It had easy access to the national highway and a reservoir to the northeast, where there were many fresh fishery products.

Tang Bin pointed to the entrance of the bazaar in front of him and imparted his experience, “The food is clean and fried fruits can be bought if you want. It’s not much more expensive. If it’s clothes and toys, then you have to cut the price. You two know that, right?”

Ruan Mengmeng’s head shook like a rattle, and He Yiyang stood there silently.

Tang Bin held out a hand and said, “Buy at 50% off the asking price, okay? If it’s more than half the price, you can leave immediately.”

“En, okay.” Ruan Mengmeng nodded her head in a serious manner.

Tang Bin turned around and went back. He opened the car door and instructed, “I’ll wait for you in the car; call me if you can’t lift any more.”

Ruan Mengmeng smiled, “Thank you. Brother, let’s go.”

He Yiyang took Ruan Mengmeng by the shoulders and said, calmly as she looked over, “There are many people. Don’t get separated.”

There’s a phone, ah, Ruan Mengmeng blinked.

Well, whatever brother said was right. It was a great honour for him to come along.

He Yiyang hated crowds. He hated the noise and hated the filth.

It was especially annoying when you could hear it at the door.

However, because Ruan Mengmeng found it fun, lively, and humane, he could press down the impatience in his heart.

“Brother, look,” Ruan Mengmeng pointed to the crowd in front of him and leaped, “collapsing popcorn!”

After saying that, her little fat legs jumped forward and ran. He Yiyang reached out to grab it all but failed to do so. He couldn’t help but be stunned and laugh.

It was the same as the fat sparrow squatting on the wire!

A big, black iron bucket spun unsteadily on the stove, and the stall owner sat on a small pony to dish out the grains to be collapsed, such as corn, soybeans, and black beans. The iron buckets of popcorn used to be shaken by hand, but now there was a small electric battery by the fireplace that took over the work of the stallholder.

A small stallholder, too, was making progress with the times.

“Crash!” There was a loud bang, and the white, round ‘ocean ginseng rice’ came out of the oven, smoking hot and fragrant.

An older woman and the child beside her were beaming with joy. The older woman didn’t mind the heat as she reached out and took a small handful and blew on it, feeding it into the child’s mouth as he tilted his head up in eager anticipation.

When he found Ruan Mengmeng, he saw her staring tearfully at the old lady in the flowered coat with tears in her eyes.

He said in surprise, “Mengmeng?”

Ruan Mengmeng turned around, her voice soft and full of dependence, “Brother~”

Without waiting for He Yiyang to ask further questions, she took his hand and squeezed out of the crowd.

The concept of family reunions in the New Year was a concept that could be fully embodied by the Spring Festival spectacle for the people of China.

The hustle and bustle was perhaps long overdue, and Ruan Mengmeng remembered that she hadn’t thought of her mother in a long time, not to mention ……

Walking out of the crowd, He Yiyang was worried, “What just happened?”

“Nothing.” Ruan Mengmeng shook her head, her hands tightly holding onto He Yiyang’s arm. Her eyes were shining as she looked at him.

Since the last kiss, Ruan Mengmeng had consciously avoided his closeness. Being as clingy as she was at this moment was rare. He Yiyang was pleased, but he reflected on why.

“Mengmeng ……”

He Yiyang drew out his arm that was being held and turned to hug Ruan Mengmeng tightly, lowering his head to gently imprint a kiss on the top of her head.

Girls were all gentle and considerate. That was true.

Before He Yiyang was even aware of his loneliness and sentimentality, there was someone around him who felt sorry for him first, and her first step gave him warmth and strength.

He Yiyang’s voice trembled with suppressed emotion, “I have you.”

Without my parents, I still have you.