Afternoon.
Hua Mei Estate, Yu Meixia’s apartment.
Ding Dong… Ding Dong… Ding Dong… Yu Meixia walks over to open the door.
“Mum! I’m back!” Yu Qianqian shouted as she enters the apartment.
“Are you cold?” Yu Meixia quickly grabbed her daughter’s hands and rubbed them. “Your hands are freezing. Why didn’t you wear more clothes? It’s still very cold now.”
“I forgot.” Yu Qianqian is very close to Yu Meixia, and she hugged Yu Meixia tightly to warm herself up.
Yu Meixia smiled and closed the door. “Your Uncle is here. Go and greet him first.”
“Ah?!” Yu Qianqian looks into the living room. “Big Bro… Ah… Uncle!”
Dong Xuebing laughed and waved for her to go nearer. When Qianqian got closer to Dong Xuebing, he rubbed her head. “I have not seen you for a few days, and you had gotten taller and prettier. Did you listen to your mother when I am not around? Huh? How are your results?”
Yu Meixia smiled proudly. “Qianqian got third in her class for the last test.”
“Wow…” Dong Xuebing pinched Qianqian’s cheek lightly. “You are so smart.”
Yu Qianqian felt embarrassed and replied shyly. “It’s because Aunt Luan had given me tuition during the winter break.”
Dong Xuebing smiled. “But you are also smart to get third.”
Yu Qianqian let Dong Xuebing pet her head like a kitten as she hugged his arm. “Uncle, there are some problems with my laptop. It suddenly becomes very slow. Can you help me take a look? Also, I have some math problems with I don’t know how to solve. Can you teach me?” She had not met Dong Xuebing for a few days and wants to be with him.
Yu Meixia looks at her daughter. “Your Uncle had just arrived. Let him have dinner first.”
“It’s alright.” Dong Xuebing stood up. “Let’s go. I will repair your laptop first.”
Yu Meixia looked at them and smiled. “I will prepare dinner now.
In the kitchen, Yu Meixia is still smiling as she prepares the ingredients. She knows she is not smart and only knows how to serve others. After quitting her supermarket cashier job, she had been learning massage and cooking from books.
Twenty minutes later.
All the ingredients are ready, and the doorbell rang again.
Yu Meixia opened the door and let the visitor in. “Fang Sao, please come in.”
“Meixia, you are preparing dinner?” Fang Sao smiled and passed a plastic container to Yu Meixia. “We had prepared braised beef and cannot finish it. I had brought some over for you and Qianqian.”
Yu Meixia thanked her. “Sorry to trouble you. Thank you.”
“We are neighbors and should take care of each other. Oh, this is my son. Have you met him before?”
A young man steps forward. He is not bad looking and looks honest.
Yu Meixia replied. “Of course. It was Xiao Xu who helped me unclog my drainage pipes. Come in.”
Xiao Xu, who is around 23 or 24 years old, greeted Yu Meixia politely. “Aunt Yu.”
Fang Sao and Yu Meixia are staying on the same floor, and she is also an ordinary commoner. She and her husband had been working in a bicycle factory. Since New Year, she and her husband had been giving little gifts to Yu Meixia and Yu Qianqian. Sometimes they will bring food, fruits, and even dresses for Yu Qianqian. When Xiao Xu overheard from Yu Qianqian that their house’s drainage pipe is clogged, he immediately went over to help. Yu Meixia knew they must have heard from somewhere that she was Xiao Bing’s helper before and is trying to suck up to her. But despite this, she is still grateful to Fang Sao and her family for treating her well.
Yu Meixia went to brew tea for them after they entered the apartment.
Fang Sao stopped her. “Don’t worry about us. Haha… I will not treat myself as a stranger and will brew tea myself.”
Fang Sao comes over to Yu Meixia’s apartment often to chat with her and knew where the tea and cups are kept. She reached over and took out the tea leaves, and made a cup of tea for herself.
Yu Meixia asked. “Xiao Xu, what fruits would you like? I will go and cut it.”
Xiao Xu quickly waved his hand. “No need… Thank you, Aunt Yu.”
Fang Sao laughed. “Don’t bother with him. This kid does not like fruits.”
“Qianqian also does not like to eat fruits in the past.” Yu Meixia took out a plate of fruits and puts it on the coffee table. “But Xiao Bing told her fruits have lots of vitamins, and she must eat it like taking medicine.”
Fang Sao heard Yu Meixia mentioning ‘Xiao Bing’ and knew who she was referring to. “Qianqian is not around? Is she studying?”
Yu Meixia turned and look at the room. “Xiao Bing is here, and I think he is fixing Qianqian’s computer.”
Chief Dong is here?! Fang Sao immediately got nervous. “This… Err…”
Xiao Xu is also nervous and looks towards the bedroom door.
Fang Sao composed herself and pulls Yu Meixia beside her on the sofa to chat with her. She asked Yu Meixia how she maintained her looks and figure. This is not flattery. She had seen more than a dozen men in the estate steal glances at Yu Meixia. Even her son, Xiao Xu, also kept looking at her. Yu Meixia felt awkward and quickly said that she is not pretty and has wrinkles.
After chatting for a while, Fang Sao started talking about her son. “Your daughter Qianqian takes after you. She looks exactly the same as you. She will have a bright future, unlike my Xiao Xu. Sigh… He doesn’t have good looks and cannot even find a job. I wonder how he is going to get a wife in the future.”
Yu Meixia asked curiously. “Isn’t Xiao Xu working in the County?”
Fang Sao sighed again. “He had gotten an internship with the County’s TV station. But the TV station is not interested in him, and he might not convert to a full-time staff this year.”
“Ah…” Yu Meixia also felt sorry. “Xiao Xu is a good kid. Why can’t he be converted to full-time?”
Fang Sao replied. “Most of the interns in his group have connections. But we are not wealthy and don’t have any connections. Sigh…” She paused and looks at Yu Meixia. “Meixi, I am at my wit’s end. If Xiao Xu cannot be converted to be a full-timer, what will he do in the future? I know you are capable. Can you give Xiao Xu a hand?” Fang Sao’s eyes turned red, and a tear rolled down her cheek.
Xiao Xu felt guilty. “Mum, it’s all my fault for being so useless. I…”
Fang Sao wiped her tear and held Yu Meixia’s hand. “Meixia…”
Yu Meixia is softhearted and becomes anxious when she saw Fang Sao crying. “Don’t cry… I… Let me see what I can do…”
Fang Sao is overjoyed. “No matter what the outcome is, I will thank you.”
Yu Meixia thought for a while and walked over to the bedroom. She enters and closed the door behind her. Dong Xuebing and Yu Qianqian are playing PC games in the room. They play a fighting game against each other, and Qianqian seems to be losing as her face and ears are all red and frowning. She is pressing on the buttons furiously and breathing loudly.
The round ended.
Dong Xuebing laughed. “I won again. Qianqian, you are no match for me.”
Qianqian is pouting. She had started using this laptop for a few months. How is it possible for her to win Dong Xuebing?
Yu Meixia saw they had finished playing, and she said softly. “Qianqian, Aunt Fang is here. Go out and accompany them.”
Dong Xuebing petted Yu Qianqian’s head. “Let’s continue playing at night. I will teach you a special move, and you might win against me next time.”
“Ok!” Qianqian replied happily and ran out of the room. “Aunt Fang, Brother Xu.”
Yu Meixia closed the bedroom door.
“Your friend is here?”
“Yes. They are our neighbors and had treated Qianqian and me well.”
“What happened? What’s with that expression? Is there anything wrong?”
Yu Meixia hesitated and walks over slowly. She sat beside Dong Xuebing and stroked his hand. This is the first time she initiated intimacy with Dong Xuebing.
Dong Xuebing is amused. “Seems like this is not a small problem.”
Yu Meixia blushed. Xiao Bing had always helped her in the past, and she had never asked him for help. If it was another person who had asked her for help, she would never ask Dong Xuebing. But Fang Sao and her family had treated her well, and she cannot refuse her. “Xiao Bing… I… Fang Sao’s son is an intern with the County TV station. His internship is almost up… but he was not converted to full-time. That’s why… err… if you can… Can you… it’s fine if you cannot help.” She doesn’t even know what she is talking about.
Dong Xuebing laughed. “That Fang Sao is asking you for a favor?”
Yu Meixia nodded. “Fang Sao had helped me a lot in the past. Xiao Bing, you… can you help?” She tightens her grip on Dong Xuebing’s hand. This is the first time Fang Sao asked her for a favor. “Fang Sao and her family are good people.”
Dong Xuebing replied without hesitation. “Ok. I will help you ask around.”
Yu Meixia is overjoyed. “Really?!”
Dong Xuebing kissed Sister Yu on her forehead. “This is the first time you asked me for help. How can I reject you?”
Yu Meixia smiled sweetly when she heard this. She knows Xiao Bing still likes her.
