On New Year's Eve, most people in Jiangcheng stayed home from the afternoon onward, and Xia Yan was no exception. The groceries she had bought with Lu Zhengting at the supermarket on the afternoon of the 29th were now neatly stored in the fridge, each in its proper place. Xiaohan and Lu Zhengting had wanted to spend the New Year at her place, but she firmly refused. She also didn't agree to go to Dongshan Villa for the holiday.
That afternoon, Xia Yan heard a knock at the door. When she opened it, she saw Xia Minghui. She wasn't surprised, but she was a bit taken aback. At his request, she followed him back to the Xia family home for the New Year.
The meaning of the New Year for Xia Yan was hard to put into words. In truth, her status in the Xia family had never been truly acknowledged. Aside from Xia Minghui turning a blind eye, Xia Siyue and the old Madam Xia were both dissatisfied with her, and Xia Siyue saw her as a thorn in her side.
When Xia Yan appeared at the villa with Xia Minghui, the old Madam Xia's reaction was perfectly normal—no surprise at all, which meant she had known Xia Yan would return for the New Year. When Xia Siyue came out of her room and saw her, her gaze was far from friendly, but to Xia Yan, that was nothing.
On New Year's Eve, Xia Yan sat next to Xia Minghui, deliberately ignoring Xia Siyue's stares, and ate the reunion dinner as if nothing was wrong. The room she used to live in was still the same, unchanged. After dinner, Xia Yan found an excuse to go back to her room. It seemed she wouldn't be able to return to her apartment tonight.
She walked around the room, occasionally reaching out to touch things that had once been hers. The feel was the same, the layout unchanged. She went to the balcony, cracked the window open just a little, and the cold air rushed in, making her shiver.
The Xia family villa was mostly shaded by the surrounding trees and plants, and Xia Yan's room had been arranged according to the old Madam Xia's wishes, so it didn't get much light. During the day, the sunlight was mostly blocked by the leaves, let alone at night. Compared to Xia Siyue's room, there was a huge difference.
She rested her hands casually on the window railing, leaning her head forward a bit. Outside, it was pitch black, except for the half-moon in the sky casting a faint, clear light, with stars trying to adorn its beauty. The clouds parted, and the sky turned a deep blue, like a dizzying charm that made it hard to look away.
"Ding ding ding..."
Her phone suddenly rang, breaking the quiet of the night. Xia Yan frowned, turned, and glanced at the phone glowing on her bed. She walked over casually—it wasn't a call, but a text message.
The messages were all New Year-related, mostly greetings.
She opened them one by one and replied to each.
After finishing, she instinctively set her phone to silent and sat there in a daze. She wished she were back in her apartment, that little space that truly belonged to her. She wondered what Lu Zhengting was doing now. Had he eaten? Or was he still at dinner? What about Ke Yaru? Was she at the villa spending the New Year with him?
All these questions suddenly flooded her mind, making her restless. She slapped the bedspread in boredom and muttered, "See, see? How boring!"
In past New Years, after dinner, Xia Yan would go with Lin Xujia to watch fireworks at the church. If Ye Yunchen was back from abroad or in the country, they'd make it a trio. But now? Everything had changed.
Thinking this, Xia Yan hesitated about whether to call Lin Xujia. Since the Lu Corporation leak incident, Lin Xujia had vanished from Jiangcheng. Xia Yan didn't know if she was hiding on her own or with Ye Yunchen.
"Ah..." Xia Yan sighed, catching a glimpse of her phone screen lighting up again.
******
At Dongshan Villa.
Lu Zhengting appeared in Jiang Mingxiu's sight with Xiaohan. He glanced indifferently at Ke Yaru sitting beside Jiang Mingxiu, showing no surprise. Ke Yaru spending the New Year here had been arranged by Jiang Mingxiu long ago. The living room atmosphere was a bit tense. Xiaohan wore a black padded jacket and a thick, warm knitted scarf around his neck—a gift from Xia Yan a few days ago.
Xiaohan sneaked a look at Jiang Mingxiu, subtly tugged at Lu Zhengting's finger, and looked up at him. Then, as if struck by a thought, he suddenly let go of Lu Zhengting's hand and ran over to Jiang Mingxiu. "Grandma, Xiaohan wishes you a happy New Year."
Jiang Mingxiu pulled Xiaohan into her arms, a rare smile softening her stern face. She patted his head affectionately, took out a prepared red envelope, and handed it to him. Then, without looking at Lu Zhengting, she gave another one to Ke Yaru.
"Yaru, this is for my future daughter-in-law."
Hearing this, Ke Yaru blushed, her gaze cautiously darting toward Lu Zhengting. Seeing his expression turn grim, she bit her lip and said pitifully, "Auntie, this gift is too precious. I'd better not take it. Besides, it should be for Xia Yan."
"Yaru, it's New Year's. Don't bring up those dreary people and topics. Since I'm giving it to you, it means you're worthy of it." Jiang Mingxiu spoke each word deliberately, ignoring Lu Zhengting's cold face. With that, she took Ke Yaru and Xiaohan's hands and led them to the dining room, leaving Lu Zhengting alone in the living room.
After dinner, Lu Zhengting left the table without a word, went to his room to grab a jacket, and came downstairs with keys in hand. Ke Yaru was sitting in the living room watching the Spring Festival Gala with Jiang Mingxiu. Seeing this, she hesitated, then, at Jiang Mingxiu's nod, quickly got up and chased after him.
The cold wind howled, and the chill seeped into his collar, making him shiver. Ke Yaru had rushed out without thinking, wearing only a thin shirt. She ran up to Lu Zhengting, blocking his path, her eyes fixed on him without blinking.
"Zhengting, it's New Year's. Where are you going?"
Lu Zhengting hummed in response, lifting his eyes to look down at Ke Yaru. "That's not your concern."
"But, Zhengting, I just think since it's New Year's, Auntie wouldn't want you to leave now. There's no overnight feud between mother and son..."
"Are you done?"
"Zhengting, I..." Ke Yaru's words were cut off by Lu Zhengting. She blinked, feeling his sharp gaze on her. She paused, thought for a moment, and added, "Can I ask you one thing? Zhengting, do you hate me? Is that why you don't want to see me?"
Hearing this, Lu Zhengting considered it and finally looked at her squarely. "Yes."
A single "yes," without any hesitation. Ke Yaru felt as if her body had lost all support, stepping back, unwilling to believe that answer came from Lu Zhengting. She gripped the hem of her clothes, bit her lip, and persisted, "So you admit you don't want to see me, that you hate me?"
As if afraid to hear another answer she didn't want, she quickly interrupted, "Why? Because of Xia Yan?"
This time, before Lu Zhengting could answer, Ke Yaru suddenly spoke again, "Don't answer me. I think I don't want to hear the answer from you right now. You're going to find Xia Yan, aren't you? Go ahead. I'll calm Auntie down."
With that, Lu Zhengting gave Ke Yaru a long look, then turned without hesitation and got into the car.
Watching his decisive turn and the black car disappear into the night, Ke Yaru slowly looked up at the sky. The tears welling in her eyes finally spilled out. She wiped them away with her hand, and feeling the warmth of her tears, she realized her emotions were at their peak—both anger and sorrow. After standing in the cold wind for a while, she went back inside.
At nine or ten o'clock, the streets were busier than Xia Yan had imagined. She remembered her college days, when she and Lin Xujia would link arms and be part of the crowd, soaking in the laughter and joy around them, joking and playing. In less than three hours, the whole city would welcome a New Year's fireworks display. Most of it was private purchases set off at designated spots.
In Jiangcheng, the usual spot for fireworks was the church.
Xia Yan found herself walking to the church. It was already packed, people squeezing against each other. She was helplessly caught in the crowd, surrounded on all sides. After struggling to push her way out, she found a relatively quiet spot to stay.
Beside the church was a river. Xia Yan stood by the railing, where there were fewer people. Most here were releasing sky lanterns. She didn't want to, so she just watched others. Not far away, she saw a few young girls huddled together, their faces bright with smiles, holding unopened sky lanterns. One of them had a pen in hand.
From their chatter, she guessed they were deciding what blessings to write on the lanterns—maybe wishing for lasting friendship, hoping their loved ones would be happy, or wanting those they loved to love them back. Love and friendship seemed to define youth, with everyone cherishing naive love and loving naively.
Thinking of this, Xia Yan couldn't help but smile. In her memory, her own youth seemed to lack these things. She almost wondered if she'd had a fake adolescence.
She shook her head, suddenly remembering the unfamiliar number that had called before she left. When she answered, the other side hung up without a sound. When she called back, it was off. Staring at the calm river, she pulled out her phone and realized she hadn't sent Lu Zhengting a New Year's greeting. So she composed a message, checked it repeatedly, and sent it.
The reply wasn't a text—it was a call.