91. Xiao Cheng, you’re here for the discussion too? Please cast a monthly vote.

On this Wednesday, the weather in Yanjing had settled into the depths of winter. By morning, the entire city lay beneath a blanket of pristine white snow.

“Xuemin, for today’s symposium, I’m not going to join the excitement. Just take me to the bus stop later, and I’ll ride the bus to school.”

Early in the morning, Feng Jiayou had no desire whatsoever to get out of bed. It was simply too hard.

“This weather... it’ll be good for you to live in the school dormitory from now on. No more dragging yourself up at dawn.”

Cheng Xuemin nodded, tugged the lazy little cat out from under the quilt, and laughed.

Because of the terrible weather, Feng Jiayou would not only skip the symposium at Yanjing Literature, she might well have to stay in the school dormitory for the next few days too. Commuting back and forth to school in freezing conditions was far from safe.

Walking was likely to mean slipping and falling; cycling would be even worse. Better to stay at school altogether. New Year’s Day was just around the corner anyway, and winter break at Yanjing University was soon to begin.

Unfortunately, Cheng Xuemin was not a student there, so he could not stay nearby to look after Feng Jiayou. He had even thought about buying a place close by, but had not come across a suitable property.

“Hmm, so I’m moving into the school just because I like to sleep late?”

“Of course not.”

Feng Jiayou shot him a playful glance, then could only rise reluctantly.

By the time they were dressed and ready, they discovered that her parents had already gone out.

“Xuemin, do you think my mom and dad will go to your symposium today?”

When her parents had left for work earlier, they had not said whether they would be attending the symposium at Yanjing Literature for The Horse Herder. So Feng Jiayou could not help speculating.

“I’m not sure,” Cheng Xuemin said, shaking his head. The timing had been unlucky: the symposium had run straight into this heavy snowfall, making travel extremely inconvenient. Whether they would go was genuinely uncertain.

“And what about Grandpa Qian in the front courtyard?”

She had only just asked when they reached the front yard, where Old Qian appeared, impeccably dressed in a formal Zhongshan suit and carrying a briefcase, clearly on his way out.

“Grandpa Qian, are you heading out? Going to the symposium?”

Feng Jiayou’s eyes lit up at once as she greeted him.

“Jiayou, Xiaocheng, you two are off to school?” Old Qian greeted them warmly. Then he went on, “I hadn’t planned to go. It’s snowing too hard, and Yanjing Literature doesn’t have that much of a reputation yet.”

“But I just ran into your parents, and they said there’d be a surprise at today’s symposium.”

“Since your mother, Teacher Gu, said so as well, I might as well stretch my legs and go over there to join the fun.”

He straightened the spotless Zhongshan suit on his body, and his expression even carried a trace of anticipation.

“Hehe, then there’ll definitely be a surprise,” Feng Jiayou replied mischievously. “But the snow really is heavy. Why don’t I have Xuemin bike you over?”

“No, no. In snowy weather, a bicycle is even slipperier. I’d better take the bus.”

“Oh, and Jiayou, you two be careful too. The roads are no good.”

“I’m taking the bus too. Xuemin’s the one riding his bicycle,” Feng Jiayou said with a smile.

“All right, all right. Then let’s head to the bus stop together.”

Only then did Old Qian relax and nod, and the three of them left the yard together. On the way, he also asked Cheng Xuemin about his studies.

When he learned that Cheng Xuemin was currently preparing for the entrance examination by repeating his studies at the Yanjing University Affiliated High School, he encouraged him to study hard and strive to get into Yanjing University next year, so that he and Feng Jiayou could be together, inseparable as a pair.

Cheng Xuemin and Feng Jiayou could only nod repeatedly and say that they were taught.

When they reached the stop, a bus bound for Yanjing University arrived just in time. Cheng Xuemin first helped Feng Jiayou onto the bus, then crossed the road to greet Old Qian and tell him to take it slow.

After that, he mounted his bicycle and gave chase after the bus.

“This son-in-law of Old Feng’s really is quite good.”

“Just a little dull, a little foolish, a little stingy.”

Watching Cheng Xuemin ride his bicycle through the biting wind after the bus, Old Qian could not help sighing.

The two of them could have ridden the bus to school together. Why insist on one taking the bus and the other cycling? In such heavy snow, if that was not dull and foolish, what was it?

Perhaps he simply hated to spend the five-cent bus fare. If that was not stingy, what was?

Not long afterward, another bus came from the direction of Yanjing University, and Old Qian boarded it smoothly.

By the time Cheng Xuemin reached the Yanjing University bus stop on his bicycle, Feng Jiayou’s bus had still not arrived.

In those days, buses stopped at nearly every stop, and with the snow packed slick on the roads, they were certainly not as fast as a bicycle.

Although Cheng Xuemin had nearly skidded into sideways drifts several times on the way over, he had, after all, managed to send Feng Jiayou onto the bus.

After waiting in the freezing wind for nearly another twenty minutes, he finally saw another bus approach. Cheng Xuemin hurried forward, figuring this one must be hers.

“Xuemin, didn’t I say you should go straight to the symposium and not make a detour all the way over here?”

“Look at you—your nose is frozen red.”

As soon as Feng Jiayou stepped off the bus, she complained to Cheng Xuemin with obvious distress. She was hardly a child; he simply would not listen when she told him not to come.

“The roads were too slippery. I was worried about you.”

“Come on, I’ll see you inside. It should be better on campus. They ought to clear the snow there, right?”

On a day like this, Cheng Xuemin could not help being worried.

Whether in this life or the last, it was the first time he was so close to becoming a father. It was impossible not to be a little tense.

Besides, his parents had repeatedly stressed in their letters that he must take good care of their future grandson.

So there could be no accidents, not even the slightest.

“After I get in, you’ll still have to turn back and head into the city. Isn’t that too much trouble?” Feng Jiayou’s heart was full of happiness, but her mouth kept on chattering. “Why don’t you just take the bus later, Xuemin?”

“Take the bus?”

Cheng Xuemin was indeed tempted, but after estimating the time, he thought he might not make it, so he said, “The bus is too slow. I might miss it. I’ll send you to your classroom first, then head over directly.”

“No, no, no. Let’s walk in, let’s walk in. The ground is too slippery. I nearly fell several times when I came just now.”

Seeing Feng Jiayou nod and then try to sit straight down on his bicycle, Cheng Xuemin hurried to stop her.

“Then why are you putting yourself through all this? You should have gone straight to the symposium earlier. You’d already be almost there by now.”

Feng Jiayou shot him a reproachful glance, her heart aching for him, and still went on muttering. She reached out and wrapped both arms tightly around Cheng Xuemin’s arm.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’m just taking a little detour. It won’t delay me.”

“Believe it or not, even if I set out from here right now, I could still catch up with Old Qian.”

At the bus’s crawling pace, and with Old Qian not riding a direct line but having to transfer and wait, Cheng Xuemin really could catch up on a bicycle.

“Believe you, believe you. Just be careful. I told you, you nearly fell several times just now.”

“Even if you fall, it may not be a big deal for you, but if you get your clothes all dirty and soaked, that would be bad.”

Feng Jiayou reminded him again and again. Cheng Xuemin nodded repeatedly, saying he understood.

“Old Xu, Jiayou, weren’t you two supposed to be at the symposium today? Why are you still running around the school?”

On the way to the classroom, they happened to run into Huang Beijia, who was carrying a stack of books, and she teased them.

By now, Huang Beijia and the others had stopped calling Cheng Xuemin by his name altogether and simply called him “Old Xu.”

“It’s his symposium, not mine. And don’t we still have a big lecture this morning?” Feng Jiayou said with a smile as she greeted Huang Beijia.

“True enough. If it weren’t for the big lecture this morning, Jianying and I would definitely have gone to cheer for you, Old Xu.”

“I heard even Teacher Ding Ling will be attending your symposium, Old Xu. You really have made a name for yourself.”

Huang Beijia gave a thumbs-up and praised him warmly.

“Besides Teacher Ding, Old Qian will be attending too,” Feng Jiayou added at the right moment.

Earlier, it had not been entirely certain whether Grandpa Qian from the front courtyard would go, but after seeing him leave this morning, it was basically confirmed.

“Old Qian? Which Old Qian?”

“No way! You mean the Old Qian who wrote that critical review of you, Old Xu?”

“My God, that’s Old Qian! That Old Qian!”

“He’s coming to your symposium too? Really?”

At first, Huang Beijia had not realized which Old Qian Feng Jiayou meant. But once it clicked, she was utterly incredulous and cried out in shock.

That alone was enough to astonish her?

If Huang Beijia knew that her friend’s husband had not only won favor with Teacher Ding Ling, but had also received guidance from Old Mao, who knew what her reaction would be.

“Cough. I didn’t expect Old Qian to come either. It’s getting late, I should head over right away. We can talk more when I get back.”

After escorting Feng Jiayou up the steps of the teaching building, Cheng Xuemin wasted no more time. He said goodbye to them and hurried off.

“Take it slow. The road’s slippery!”

Seeing Cheng Xuemin’s bicycle slip a full yard forward as soon as he started pedaling, Feng Jiayou could not help calling after him anxiously.

“No problem, no problem. Once you know the trick, it’s fine.”

Cheng Xuemin dared not take a hand off the handlebars to wave, so he called back without turning around, then continued pedaling forward as though walking on thin ice.

At that moment, he rather missed the little commuter car he had in his previous life.

If only he had a private car of his own, he would not have to worry about Feng Jiayou’s safety on the road, and she would not need to stay in the school dormitory.

He could simply drive her to and from school every day.

A pity.

In this era, where everything had to be assigned and allocated, even if Cheng Xuemin earned enough manuscript fees to buy a car, there was nowhere to buy one, and he would not dare buy one anyway.

These were days when only government vehicles were issued. Without the proper rank, one was simply not entitled to a four-wheeled car.

As for private cars, the concept did not yet exist at all. There was nowhere for a private buyer to purchase one.

So he lurched and swayed, his heart thudding with dread, riding for more than an hour before finally reaching Yanjing Literature before nine-thirty.

The symposium was scheduled for ten o’clock. As a newcomer, Cheng Xuemin certainly could not arrive right on the dot and walk in as though it were nothing.

Just as he entered the courtyard, he actually managed to catch up with Old Qian, and rang his bicycle bell to greet him.

When Old Qian heard the bicycle bell behind him, he thought it was an acquaintance calling out to him. Turning around, he found that it was actually Cheng Xuemin, and he could not help staring blankly in surprise.

This young man, Xiaocheng, really was a decent fellow.

In this heavy snow, worried that his wife might fall, he not only escorted her onto the bus himself, but even rode after it, waiting on the other side to help her off.

It was just that he was a little dull, a little foolish, a little stingy.

But what was this now? Hadn’t Xiaocheng sent his wife Feng Jiayou to Yanjing University, while he himself was supposed to be going to the Affiliated High School for class?

How had he gotten off the bus and come in ahead of him, only to follow inside on that same bicycle?

What was he doing here?

Could it be that he was also here to attend the symposium at Yanjing Literature?

That could not be, could it?

Old Feng’s son-in-law might be a bit dull and foolish, but could he really be that foolish?

That day, when Li Qingquan from Yanjing Literature had come to visit and invite him, Old Qian, the old lady at the Feng household had snapped back at him, and in passing he had invited every last one of the Feng family as well.

So Li Qingquan had merely been making polite conversation, and this son-in-law of the Feng family had taken it seriously?

Had he truly braved such heavy snow just to come attend Yanjing Literature’s symposium?

This...

Thinking of it, Old Qian felt it necessary to give Old Feng and his wife a hand by pointing out a thing or two to this foolhardy son-in-law.

He ought to be told, at once, to go back wherever he had come from.

He must not make a spectacle of himself here. Otherwise, who knew how Madam Gu would deal with her son-in-law afterward?

“Old Qian, I came here to attend the symposium too. Earlier I was even going to give you a ride, but as you can see, the roads really are slippery. I nearly fell several times.”

Cheng Xuemin still did not know what was going on in Old Qian’s head. His cheeks, reddened by the cold, wore an awkward smile.

Good heavens—he really was here for Li Qingquan’s symposium?

Old Qian’s expression instantly turned strange, and he truly did not know what to say about Old Feng’s foolish son-in-law anymore.