Lu Qingyuan never expected his dad and little brother to come. He stood dazed for a long while before finally scooping Chen Annan up.
Overjoyed to be held in Brother’s arms, Chen Annan planted a big, noisy smooch on his face, trying his best to make an audible sound.
Finding it too clingy, Lu Qingyuan freed one hand to pinch both his cheeks, squeezing his mouth into a slight pout, warning: “No random kissing.”
Chen Annan mumbled an explanation: “But I missed you to death.” The baby fat on his face was soft and squishy; pouting like that, he looked like a doll, his eyes also sparkling bright.
Lu Wenyuan was thoroughly amused by the two of them: “Not seeing you, the kid was worried sick. Did Brother miss us?”
Lu Qingyuan didn’t answer. Chen Annan’s woolen hat was on backwards, and half of the clothes inside his padded jacket were bunched up. He straightened out those clothes, wondering to himself if his dad even knew how to take care of a child—how could he be led out the door dressed so messily?
Having not seen Brother for so long, Chen Annan clung to him and acted cute for a good while that evening. When Xiao Qingxiang finished her social obligations and arrived home, she saw Chen Annan sitting on Lu Qingyuan’s knee, watching cartoons.
Chen Annan’s concept of “Mom” still lingered from years ago. Back then, Mom always held him, tied a little sprout of hair on his forehead to play with him, and tirelessly asked, “Who is the best mommy in the world?” Chen Annan would say, “It’s you, of course!” And Mom would hug him, laughing joyfully.
But Xiao Qingxiang was completely different from his mother.
Xiao Qingxiang held very high standards for Lu Qingyuan. At the dinner table, she would correct his posture, remind him not to make any noise while eating, and mapped out his daily schedule, requiring him to follow it strictly to the timetable.
Chen Annan called her “Auntie.” Xiao Qingxiang would smile gently. When she looked down at someone, her long hair, slightly slipping down, softened her sharp, dignified austerity.
Her attire was always neat and elegant, without a single untimely wrinkle. Her coat, extending below the knees, outlined her slender, graceful figure. She was actually gentle towards people, but within that gentleness, there always faintly seeped a sense of detachment.
However, when she discovered Chen Annan’s talent in vocal music, she would also very patiently teach him personally.
Chen Annan never imagined that his time in Beijing would also be pulled into studying.
The two kids still slept together. Chen Annan sprawled over Brother, refusing to sleep even after lights out, wanting to fuss for a while, asking all sorts of weird little questions.
He was too much of a handful. Annoyed beyond measure, Lu Qingyuan said, “Right now, you’re the only kid in all of Beijing who won’t sleep. Next week, your name is getting struck off the Good Kids Registry.”
Only then did Chen Annan obediently go to sleep. But even in sleep, he wasn’t still—his plump little leg draped over Lu Qingyuan, sleeping diagonally, his small belly puffing up and down with each breath.
During this period, Lu Wenyuan always appeared during the day to look after them, leaving only after Xiao Qingxiang returned. He felt that since he was divorced, he shouldn’t taint someone else’s reputation for no reason.
A few times, Xiao Qingxiang wanted him to stay and live there, but he didn’t agree.
Lu Wenyuan, this man, was gentle and calm on the surface, infinitely accepting, yet inside carried a bit of obstinate old-fashionedness and rigidity. He deeply loved his family and would do everything within his power to hold up a piece of the sky for them.
One day, Xiao Qingxiang finished her work matters and returned late at night.
The old, worn streetlight at the entrance to the alley illuminated dust motes flying in the dry air. Buildings in Beijing were mostly of the old school—red walls, black tiles. Decaying alleys connected to alleys, cramped and narrow, making the gray-blue sky seem like the opening of a well.
Nowadays, the news always broadcast reports of who had been robbed, who had been molested. Walking alone at night on such a small path inevitably brought a spine-tingling fear of isolation.
Xiao Qingxiang had already sent her assistant home first. Shivering from the cold, she walked forward. Not far along, she suddenly spotted a figure ahead.
Lu Wenyuan was waiting for her under the light at the alley’s entrance, a bouquet of flowers resting in the crook of his arm.
Xiao Qingxiang was surprised. She asked, “Why are you still here? It’s so cold outside.”
A rare awkwardness appeared on Lu Wenyuan’s face as he handed her the flowers. “When I was out walking, I happened to pass a flower shop. Seeing these flowers, I thought they’d complement you beautifully.” Up close, his voice became clear and gentle. “It’s a pity I didn’t see your performance, but I wanted to congratulate you on its success.”
Xiao Qingxiang took the flowers, smiling despite herself. “Are the kids asleep already?”
“Both coaxed to sleep,” Lu Wenyuan said.
The two tiptoed into the house. The kitchen was cold, the stove empty. Still, Lu Wenyuan made a bowl of steaming hot Braised Noodles, drizzled with a bit of sesame oil, and brought it to Xiao Qingxiang, watching her slowly finish eating.
“Your cooking skills are even better than before,” Xiao Qingxiang said softly.
A shallow, warm smile rippled in Lu Wenyuan’s eyes. He didn’t speak. After she finished, he tidied up briefly before leaving.
The Winter Vacation was short. Time flew by swiftly. After the New Year, Chen Annan and Lu Qingyuan both had to return to Nanjing. Xiao Qingxiang deliberately made time to take them out to play.
In winter, Shichahai couldn’t stir up any waves in the cold wind. The shores were all frozen over with thick layers of ice, cordoned off to open a skating area.
The air was very cool. A single inhale sent the cold wind straight into the lungs. Bundled up tightly in a hat and scarf, Chen Annan exhaled puffs of hot air that lingered around his face.
He changed his shoes today to a pair of fuzzy snow boots, making a pitter-patter-patter sound as he ran. Lu Qingyuan led him onto the ice to glide. Chen Annan’s little face quickly turned bright red in the wind, both scared and excited.
Lu Wenyuan and Xiao Qingxiang sat in the rest area, watching Chen Annan, with Brother’s help, stagger forward. He hadn’t skated long before suddenly letting out a lost “Ah!” and falling onto the ice.
Dressed thickly, this fall didn’t hurt at all. Lu Qingyuan helped him up. Like a joyful little penguin, he hugged Brother’s waist and asked with a laugh, “Again, again, okay? I still want to play.”
Chen Annan had never ice-skated before. He was so excited his ears were flushed a translucent red, a thin sheen of sweat appearing on the tip of his nose. Afraid he’d take a big tumble again, Lu Qingyuan simply placed him on a sled and told him to sit properly.
Without waiting for Chen Annan to ask again, he directly grabbed the sled and started running, pulling it. The sled rapidly skidded across the ice. The wind surged past. Everything in sight flew backwards at high speed. Chen Annan screamed in fright, calling out “Brother!” continuously, laughing as he yelled.
Lu Qingyuan pulled him a good distance. A young woman nearby also didn’t know how to skate. While turning, she nearly bumped into them, and because the turn was too sharp, she tumbled off her sled, landing solidly on her bottom.
Just as Lu Qingyuan wanted to help her up, he suddenly heard a man yelling as he skated over: “Wifey, wifey, don’t be scared, I’m coming!”
Lu Qingyuan subconsciously stepped back a few paces, then watched as the man, running too fast, performed a slide tackle—and sent his wife, who had just gotten up, right back down.
The two groaned “Ah-yo” for ages. Chen Annan also got off the sled to help Brother pull the two people up. The man thanked them repeatedly while calling her “Xifu” (wife).
Chen Annan couldn’t help but ask, “What’s a Xifu?”
The young woman, finding him cute at his young age, fondly touched his woolen hat and told him, “It’s the person you’re going to be together with for a lifetime.”
Chen Annan let out a soft “Ah,” nodding.
The two adults, wanting to thank them, treated them to milk tea. Two cups of Pearl Milk Tea—you ripped open the powder packet and mixed it with hot water. Popularized from Taiwan to the mainland, it had taken the streets by storm for a good while.
Chen Annan was drinking it for the first time. The steaming, fragrant milky aroma wafted up, nearly making him swoon with delight. Both eyes shining, after finishing his own, he kept staring at the cup in Lu Qingyuan’s hand, asking him why he still hadn’t drunk it.
Unable to bear that look, Lu Qingyuan simply gave him his own cup. Having gained an advantage, Chen Annan then shamelessly acted even cuter, contentedly hugging Brother, pressing close to him, and saying, “How are you so good to me?”
Lu Qingyuan didn’t respond.
Chen Annan was carrying a pocketful of random little thoughts. No one knew which one popped out first as he suddenly spoke: “Brother, can I be your Xifu?”
“?” Lu Qingyuan was bewildered by the question. What kind of organizational test was this now?
“Can I?” Chen Annan asked again.
“No.” Lu Qingyuan refused very crisply.
“Whyyy?”
“I don’t marry men.”
“Oh, okay.” Chen Annan pondered seriously for a moment, thinking he’d come up with a clever compromise. “Then can you be my Xifu?”
“…No.” Lu Qingyuan didn’t know how his little schemes kept popping up, like chives in a field—cut one crop, another grows.
“Really, not even possible?” Chen Annan asked, unwilling to give up.
“N-O.” Lu Qingyuan emphasized, enunciating each syllable.
Once again decisively shut out, Chen Annan felt a bit dejected. “But the Auntie just now said a Xifu is someone you stay with for a lifetime. Don’t you want to be good to me for a lifetime anymore?”
“…” Where did all these messy, random questions even come from? Seeing the kid looking so wronged, Lu Qingyuan felt all his words just stuck in his throat, unable to go up or come down.
“Brother, if you’re not going to be good to me anymore, will you still give me milk tea?” Chen Annan had finally circled back to the main topic.
“…” The tiny bit of softening that had just condensed in Lu Qingyuan’s heart vanished instantly.
Xiao Qingxiang, borrowing the sunlight, squinted as if reminiscing, and laughed lightly. “Even more of a coquette than his mother.”
Lu Wenyuan really couldn’t stand this mushy, lovey-dovey energy anymore. He came over and plucked Chen Annan away in one swoop, saying in a roguish tone, “You love drinking it that much? Then Uncle will buy it for you—buy a hundred cups, how about that? Let’s not be Brother’s little Xifu, taking all that grief.”
As he spoke, he winked mischievously at Lu Qingyuan, grinning slyly. Nearly forty, and still took pleasure in teasing kids at every turn; it was unbecoming.
Chen Annan immediately defected: “Okay, okay! Uncle is the best!”
His heart was as solid as a brick. Lu Qingyuan broke in coldly from the side: “You are not allowed to drink that much. You weren’t smart to begin with; drinking more will make you even stupider. Do you want to score a big fat zero?”
Chen Annan froze at this remark. Normally when scolded, he’d care about his pride and try to make excuses. But this time, benefiting from someone’s generosity, it was really hard to argue back. He could only pout, cling to Lu Wenyuan’s arm, turn his face away, and stop talking. That was how he always was when unhappy.
Xiao Qingxiang and Lu Wenyuan were tickled by the two of them for a long while. The winter sun wasn’t intense, the cold wind carrying a faint hint of snow. They laughed freely, a refreshing clarity reaching from their throats down to their chests.
But seeing Chen Annan a little unhappy, Lu Wenyuan still scooped him up again and said teasingly to Lu Qingyuan, “Brother, stop scaring us now.”
