“The duck skin is so fragrant…”
“Even better with some hoisin sauce…”
In the bustling roast duck restaurant, Bai Lan listened to Datou and Qin Yan comment between bites and couldn’t help but want to shake her head. In her opinion, the roast duck was deliciously crispy and fragrant even without any additions. Probably because ducks back then had much more flavor than they would in later decades.
“Should we order another one?” Bai Lan asked happily after swallowing a mouthful of the fragrant roast duck.
The two, still immersed in their food, immediately shook their heads. “No need, one’s enough for the three of us. And we still have the pancakes. We’ll be full after finishing those.”
Both knew a roast duck cost over ten yuan—one was plenty. Ordering another would be excessive.
Seeing this, Bai Lan didn’t push further. She decided she’d buy two duck carcasses on her way back and give one to each of them. Their families didn’t have a chef father like hers did, so they didn’t get to eat well as often.
A little while later, the roast duck was finished, and the pancakes had all made their way into their stomachs. Datou cradled his bulging belly and sighed, “Beige really missed out.”
Bai Lan chuckled. “He’s busy with work! Not like the three of us, with nothing to do.”
Then, Bai Lan suddenly remembered the question that had been on her mind before bed last night. She sat up a little straighter and asked, “Datou, you’re pretty close with Fourth Brother Xu. Do you know if he has a girlfriend?”
“A girlfriend? He should… wait, no. Xiao Lan, why are you asking that?” Datou looked at Bai Lan with suspicion. Even Qin Yan turned to look.
Bai Lan didn’t beat around the bush. “I think he’s my type.”
No sooner had the words left her mouth than a loud thud rang out. Datou had fallen backward, chair and all, onto the floor. The commotion drew the attention of the entire dining hall.
Qin Yan was so embarrassed she wanted to cover her face. She reached out to pull Datou up.
Bai Lan was speechless at his dramatic reaction. “Was that really necessary?”
Hearing this, Datou didn’t even bother getting up. He nodded frantically. “Yes, yes, yes.”
This was absolutely shocking! Datou never imagined Bai Lan would be interested in Beige. Having grown up together, and with Bai Lan always being so decisive, Datou had always seen her as the big sister figure. Beige was his good buddy, but Datou had always looked up to him like an older brother.
Now the big sister had set her sights on the big brother. He needed a moment to process this.
Seeing Datou looking like he’d been struck by lightning, Bai Lan was even more speechless. She took a deep breath and dropped the questioning. She decided that the next time she ran into Xu Jianbei, she’d ask him herself.
Hopefully, his reaction wouldn’t be as over-the-top as Datou’s!
—
After the meal, Datou said he had something to do and left on his own. Bai Lan and Qin Yan walked back toward the courtyard together.
“Lanlan, are you really interested in Xu Jianbei?”
Bai Lan nodded. “I just think he seems like a good person.” Of course, it also helped that Xu Jianbei happened to fit Bai Lan’s aesthetic perfectly.
Qin Yan said enviously, “You’re so brave. You just said it outright. I’d be too embarrassed.”
Bai Lan replied, “There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. If he has a girlfriend, I’ll just pretend I never asked.”
Qin Yan thought about it and realized that made perfect sense. There was no rule saying women couldn’t ask whether a man was taken.
As the two chatted, Datou, who had left earlier, had already run to the screw factory.
The screw factory and the textile factory were actually next to each other. Both were about a 20-minute walk from Xinghua Alley. Apart from Xu Jianbei, a few others from the courtyard also worked at this factory.
Of course, Datou had come to the screw factory mainly to find Xu Jianbei.
He’d been shocked when Bai Lan told him. But after the shock wore off, he decided to come ask Beige. If Beige had a girlfriend, he’d quietly tell Bai Lan to give up. And of course, he’d ask Qin Yan to comfort her—tell her there were plenty of men out there, and even though Beige was great, it wouldn’t be the end of the world to miss out.
Just as Datou was lost in his imagination, Xu Jianbei had already been notified by the security guard and arrived at the factory gate.
Seeing Datou looking dazed, Xu Jianbei amusedly walked over and patted his shoulder. “If you’re going to zone out, don’t do it at our factory entrance.”
Snapped out of his reverie by the sight of the very person he’d been imagining, Datou jolted and gave an ingratiating smile. “Beige, you’re here!”
Xu Jianbei raised an eyebrow. Datou wasn’t acting like himself today. He narrowed his eyes slightly and asked, “Did something happen?”
Datou shook his head, then nodded. Then, gritting his teeth, he asked in a low voice, “Beige, do you have a girlfriend?”
A flicker of surprise crossed Xu Jianbei’s eyes. Then he shook his head. “I joined the project team right after graduation. When would I have time to find a girlfriend?”
Even as he said this, he began to guess why Datou was asking. He had an inkling, but it seemed unlikely. He shook his head. “If there’s nothing else, I need to get back. We’re busy at the factory.”
Datou was about to say that was all, when he heard a voice behind him. “Little brother, perfect timing—you’re already out.”
Xu Jianbei looked up with a smile. “Third Brother, Third Sister-in-law.”
Xu Jiannan walked toward Xu Jianbei with Liu Meiling. Spotting Datou, he looked over in surprise.
Seeing the brothers had things to discuss, Datou immediately said his goodbyes. He thought to himself that he’d go back and tell Bai Lan right away—Beige was single.
Bai Lan had no idea what Datou was quietly up to. After returning home, she started organizing her books. In a few days, she would need to go to school to collect her graduation certificate. The books at home needed to be tidied up. Throwing them away was out of the question. When the college entrance exams resumed, these books would be useful again.
——
Another few days passed, and soon it was the wedding day of the short drama’s male and female leads.
Just before four in the morning, noises began to emerge from the west wing. Bai Lan’s father, Comrade Bai Xiaoniu, had agreed to be the chef. So Comrade Bai got up around five as well.
Several aunties and young wives from the courtyard had also been invited by the Xu family to help prepare the banquet. And so, Number 3 Courtyard became a hive of activity.
Bai Lan didn’t sleep in either. While the sinks weren’t too crowded yet, she quickly fetched water and went back to her room to wash up. When she came out, she saw two large stoves had been set up by the decorative gate. The stoves were boiling water, steam billowing upward.
“Little sister, come eat breakfast first!”
Hearing her second sister’s voice, Bai Lan went to the main hall to eat first. Seeing her mother and third sister already eating, but not her father, she knew her dad was already busy at work.
“Mom, should we go help later?” Second Sister Bai Li asked softly.
Mother Bai nodded. “Yes, all three of you sisters go.” Then she looked at her third daughter, Bai Ping.
“Pingping, will Chengcai come today?”
Qiu Chengcai was Bai Ping’s boyfriend. He worked as a statistician in the accounting department at the department store. He was also one of Xu Jiannan’s closer classmates.
For his wedding that day, Xu Jiannan hadn’t invited any leaders. Heard it was because he didn’t want to create a bad impression. So he had only invited close classmates and friends, as well as the truck drivers he often traveled with, plus important relatives from the Xu and Liu families. All in all, no more than fifty people.
There would be five banquet tables in total. Three in the back courtyard and two in the front.
For long-time neighbors like them, each household would send one representative to the table.
Hearing her mother ask about Qiu Chengcai, Bai Ping’s lips moved slightly. She nodded. “Xu Jiannan invited him.”
——
Bai Lan listened carefully from the side. Something felt a bit off. But soon she didn’t have time to dwell on it. After breakfast, she followed her second and third sisters to help watch the children.
That’s right—during the courtyard banquet, the married men and women all helped with the preparations. The unmarried ones were responsible for watching the courtyard’s children. Making sure they didn’t get into the banquet food or cause trouble for the guests.
It was only then that Bai Lan noticed that Number 3 Courtyard had a total of eight children. All under ten years old. Every single one of them at that mischievous, troublemaking age. Watching over these little terrors was no easy task.
Fortunately, there were ten unmarried young people watching the kids. That meant more than one per child, so at least the little monsters weren’t running everywhere.
Guests began arriving one after another. Bai Lan sat under the eaves and watched them come in with the others.
Just then, she heard the widow Hu’s son, Hu Aimin, tugging at Qin Yan’s older brother, Qin Tang, and complaining, “Why are all the guests rough and unrefined? Not a single young woman.”
“You little brat, these people have good jobs—either truck drivers or office cadres. You might not be impressed, but you girls should all open your eyes wide. You might just find a good match.”
Liu Zhaodi, who lived in the east side room of the main house, popped out from somewhere and unexpectedly announced this loudly to the unmarried group.
Her voice was so loud that the guests in the courtyard all turned to look at them.
Bai Lan felt a bit embarrassed. Liu Zhaodi’s room was right next to Bai Lan’s. She often heard the woman muttering that the Bai family had too many daughters, which she blamed for her own inability to have a son. She also often smelled the constant scent of herbal medicine wafting from Liu Zhaodi’s room.
Now, with Liu Zhaodi telling them that the girls should all try hard to latch onto the eligible male guests, it made Bai Lan uncomfortable.
And Bai Lan wasn’t the only one. The others didn’t want to engage with Liu Zhaodi either.
Seeing her well-intentioned advice ignored, Liu Zhaodi felt the girls were being ungrateful. If she weren’t already married, she would have gone over to chat with those men herself.
But she didn’t have time to complain. Because the groom had just arrived in the truck with his new bride!
——
This was Bai Lan’s first time seeing a wedding ceremony from this era. It was very simple, but especially lively. They held a copy of Selected Works and bowed to the Great Leader to take their vows.
Afterward, the newlyweds came out to chat with their friends.
By this time, the aunties and young wives who had been helping had a moment to retrieve their own children.
That left Bai Lan free. And then she saw her third sister’s boyfriend walking toward their family with a big smile on his face.
And not far behind him was a familiar handsome figure. Seeing him, Bai Lan raised her eyebrows in surprise.
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