Chapter 10
The birthday banquet was only the first half. There were still more arrangements after dinner for the second half.
A birthday came once a year, so of course it had to be celebrated to the fullest. They didn’t stay for the second half. The adults’ entertainment and nightlife weren’t suitable for little girls, so Lin Baixin took Yu Min away halfway through and drove her out for a spin.
Tonight, Yu Min had been so focused on eating that she’d lost track of how much she’d had. By the time they got out near the park for a walk, she was a little too full and needed to digest it.
Once they were outside, Yu Min became much more talkative and far less reserved. Curious, she asked, “Is Teacher Lu the same age as you?”
Lin Baixin said, “She’s older than me. She started school later than I did; she’s twenty-six this year.”
“Teacher Lu said you were roommates in high school, and that you went to the same university too,” Yu Min said. “Which university was it?”
“Finance and Economics University,” Lin Baixin replied. “But she didn’t go to grad school. She started working after her bachelor’s.”
“You two are really close.”
“Mm, pretty much.”
Yu Min thought about it, then asked, “The one sitting next to Teacher Lu, was he also one of your classmates?”
He was a man; he looked upright and handsome enough, and he was very polite to Lin Baixin, having helped her pour water and pass things to her twice, but he wasn’t especially attentive to anyone else.
“Which one?” Lin Baixin wasn’t really paying attention. There were people seated on both sides of Lu An, plus another woman, so she couldn’t tell which one Yu Min meant.
“The one in the white shirt, with the buzz cut,” Yu Min described. “He’s tall, a little dark-skinned, and Teacher Lu calls him senior.”
“Qiu Xing?” Lin Baixin said. “Not really. We went to the same high school before; we were all from No. 1 Middle School. He was one year above us.”
“Oh, I thought you were all from Finance and Economics University.”
“He’s a PE teacher at your high school division, and he lives next door to Lu An.”
Yu Min was surprised. “Then that means he’s close to us... close to Heyuan?”
Heyuan was the neighborhood where they lived now.
Not just close; it was only two streets away. Yu Min’s family lived by Xingguang Road, while Heyuan was on Weimin Street. By car, it was just over a kilometer; on foot, less than ten minutes, and even faster by car.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing... nothing.”
Yu Min was somewhat preoccupied with Qiu Xing, maybe because the man might become her teacher—something that wasn’t even certain yet. Still, she had started thinking about it without realizing it. Siping was too small; wherever you went, you could run into one of Lin Baixin’s acquaintances.
She didn’t ask much more in front of Lin Baixin, keeping all those thoughts to herself. On the way, they passed a pharmacy and bought a box of digestive tablets; Yu Min broke off four and popped them into her mouth. The pills were sweet and sour, like hawthorn candy.
Once something happened once, there was bound to be a second time. After they’d gone out to eat together once, there would naturally be a second and third time. After that, Lin Baixin took Yu Min to a few more gatherings, all invited by Lu An, and every single time those same friends were there, with Qiu Xing present each time.
Students had vacations, and teachers did too; Qiu Xing showing up wasn’t strange. Young people had plenty of energy and got bored staying home all day, so if there was a gathering, of course they’d come and join in.
Lu An pulled Yu Min up to Qiu Xing and said with a broad grin, “You’ve got to look after the little one a bit more since you’re from the same school.” Yu Min didn’t know how to handle this sort of thing; she stood there stiffly and didn’t know how to greet him. She hadn’t paid attention to what Qiu Xing said in response. Instead, she shifted slightly and turned her head to look at Lin Baixin beside her. Only after a while did she belatedly come to herself and say softly, “Thank you, Teacher Qiu.”
Privately, Lu An half-covered her words, nudging Lin Baixin with an elbow and giving her a look. “Hey, let me ask you something. Answer seriously.”
Lin Baixin was focused on typing on her computer. “Go ahead.”
Lu An leaned a little over the coffee table and stared at her face. “What do you think of Qiu Xing?”
“He’s pretty good,” Lin Baixin said. “Not a bad person; he’s pretty enthusiastic.”
“And?” Lu An pressed. “That’s all everyone knows. Teacher Qiu being a nice guy is common knowledge. Say something I don’t know, like how you feel about him personally.”
Lin Baixin asked back, “Personally?”
Lu An hemmed and hawed, unable to answer. She couldn’t say it outright, so after a long moment of hesitation she said, “Like, his looks and all that; whether he’s your type, the feeling you get from being around him, and then his family background, his personal ability—put it all together and see if he’s workable.”
Lin Baixin answered honestly, “Average.”
“That’s only average? You think he doesn’t make the cut?” Lu An gradually became more direct. Thinking it over to herself, she kept changing her tune like the wind. “Though, yeah, his family’s above average around here—not super rich. As for him... mm, he’s handsome, he graduated from a top school, and now he’s got a stable government post with a full position. He doesn’t fall short in any area. Compared with other men, he’s not top-tier, but he’s still impressive. He stands out among his peers, and he’s popular at our school. It’s just that compared with you, he’s definitely far behind; the gap isn’t just a little... Sigh, forget it, forget it. Let’s not talk about it. Pretend I just had a brain glitch and never asked. Hurry up and forget it; he won’t do, absolutely won’t do...”
They were talking in the study on the second floor, and Yu Min was in the room too. She had originally meant to find a book and leave so she wouldn’t disturb them, but she couldn’t find anything she wanted to read for a long time. She kept flipping through aimlessly; though she had no intention of eavesdropping, Lu An wasn’t trying to keep her voice down, so Yu Min heard everything.
Her fingertips brushed the hard book cover; she touched it, then peered through the gap in the shelves toward the other side. Yu Min’s feet seemed rooted to the floor, sunk deep into the boards, unable to move.
Lin Baixin herself didn’t care much about this. Lu An meant no harm, and things like this happened often enough. Besides, she wasn’t very interested in that sort of thing. She was used to being on her own, so she couldn’t summon much enthusiasm.
“Being alone is fine too; it’s free and easy, with no restraints and not so many worries,” Lu An agreed, then turned to complain about her mother pressuring her to get married. She wasn’t a die-hard single-life advocate; she still planned to marry someday, just not so soon. Her family kept trying to set her up on blind dates, hoping she’d settle down and have kids as soon as possible. She hadn’t had enough fun yet, so she resisted blind dates.
Blind dates were too goal-oriented; it was better to find someone yourself. Only after dating for a long time and being sure it was right could you move on to the next step.
Lin Baixin followed along with a few remarks, not very eager to get involved in these family matters.
By the time Yu Min, standing behind the bookshelf, finally gave up on finding a book she liked, she had already turned them over and over again without being able to make up her mind.
New books had been added to the shelf at some point without her noticing. There were too many books in the study; she couldn’t take them all in.
.
At the next gathering, Qiu Xing was absent for some reason. Lu An said something had suddenly come up at school; Qiu Xing had originally planned to come, but there was a scheduling conflict, so he didn’t.
At the barbecue stall, the skewers were heavy with the smell of oil and smoke. Yu Min took a small bite of the chicken wing Lin Baixin handed her, still unable to blend into Lu An’s circle. She lowered her lashes; the cola in the glass in front of her was fizzing, and the chilled glass was icy cold, quickly beading with condensation.
Lin Baixin didn’t like barbecue skewers; too much meat got greasy. She picked out a small plateful and put them in front of Yu Min. The little girl was still growing; she could eat.
That day, Aunt and the others rarely remembered this side of things and called back with a video call. They were already in Bali, enjoying a comfortable, leisurely trip as a family of three. Zhou Jin sighed and said, “It’s a pity you didn’t come, Sister Minmin. You missed it. Next time, you absolutely have to come; it’s really interesting here.”
Yu Min wasn’t envious. She said lightly, “Have fun.”
Temperatures stayed high, and this year was even hotter than usual. The TV news kept mentioning global warming; in previous summers, Siping often had rain, but this year was abnormal, with no rain for two or three straight months.
The upside to the heat was that Yu Min could nap in the second-floor room on Lin Baixin’s side at noon. The room Lin Baixin had prepared for her had floor tiles scorched hot by the fierce sun, so going back across to nap was a hassle. Yu Min usually rested over here at noon, and occasionally at night, when it got too late and the maid wasn’t there, she would sleep here as well.
The green plants in Lin Baixin’s house needed watering and regular care. Before, when Lin Baixin wasn’t around, she paid someone to come do it. Now that task had fallen to Yu Min.
Yu Min had volunteered for it herself; she wouldn’t stay here for free. In exchange, she said she would take over those chores from then on, whether Lin Baixin was home or not.
She was meticulous and even learned a lot online about how to care for houseplants more professionally. She studied it with more effort than she did her schoolwork.
Lin Baixin agreed.
Caring for flowers and plants took a lot of attention; it wasn’t as simple as just watering them.
Whenever Yu Min had free time, she tinkered with them. She wasn’t fussy; when she got tired, she would sit on the floor, curl her legs up a little, and prune branches, trim dead leaves, and clear weeds from the plants.
The girl wasn’t the least bit delicate. She handled everything with meticulous care; even if her hands got covered in dirt, she didn’t blink an eye. She wasn’t afraid.
She took the best care of the green apple calathea. It was a new purchase by Lin Baixin, bought specifically to decorate this room.
“If you like it, you can take it back with you,” Lin Baixin said, misunderstanding her, her voice gentle.
Yu Min shook her head. “Leave it here; when the day comes... when I leave, I’ll take it then.”
She still didn’t know when that day would come. Going home was nowhere in sight.
“You’ll be living in the dorms after school starts?” Lin Baixin seemed to think of something and mentioned it casually.
No. 1 Middle School’s high school division had full closed-campus management; unless there was a special reason, students had to stay in the dorms. When school started, Yu Min would have to move out of Aunt’s house and start living in a shared room with four other girls.
She didn’t ask what she was supposed to do during vacations—whether she should come back here or return to the Yu family. Lin Baixin knew where to draw the line; as she closed her laptop, she said, seemingly offhandedly, “If I’m not around later, you can only come by yourself. If you don’t have time to deal with these things, then forget it. Studying is more important.”
What she meant was that Yu Min could come here anytime, whether the owner of the house was there or not.
Yu Min gave a quiet acknowledgment; she understood.
Taking advantage of the countdown to the end of vacation, she had to buy everything she’d need for dorm life first. Yu Min was independent and didn’t need adults worrying about her; she’d already bought everything early. The high school division at No. 1 Middle School allowed students to report two days early, and Lin Baixin drove her to school.
Outsiders entering the dormitory had to register and fill out forms. The dorm supervisor asked about their relationship, and Lin Baixin said, “Family. I’m her older sister.”
Yu Min turned and looked at her.
Lin Baixin also handled her enrollment. The new homeroom teacher’s surname was Qi, and Lin Baixin knew her. When she learned they were family, Teacher Qi was surprised; she couldn’t see where the two looked alike, but she still believed it.
Yu Min wasn’t good at lying, especially in front of a teacher. Teacher Qi asked her a few questions, and her face heated up; so did her chest. She was very nervous.
To ease her embarrassment and guilt, Lin Baixin absentmindedly patted her on the back in reassurance.
Yu Min instantly stiffened. She lost her balance, and before she knew it, the tips of her ears had turned red. Standing there dumbly, she became stammering all over again.
“Th-tha... that...”