Chapter 15: She Probably Likes It Too

Wang Zhifang frowned. "Didn't you just get paid?"
"My mother is ill. You know about this."
Wang Zhifang stared at Lu Yan for a while. They all said this guy was just a bookish science major, not one of those scheming liberal arts types, right?
So filial?
"One hundred yuan, will you lend it or not?" Lu Yan spoke again.
Su Yang quietly slipped out from the line up ahead and went to the regular window.
There were special meal arrangements for research personnel in the cafeteria.
Wang Zhifang looked around—there wasn't a single familiar face ahead of Lu Yan. As a leader, he felt it was a bit much...
He gritted his teeth and nodded. "Come to my office later."
He really shouldn't meddle in these family matters.
Lu Yan, satisfied, turned and lined up again, fetched his food, and returned to Su Yang's table. Su Yang kept his head down, eating, not looking at him.
Lu Yan found it amusing. "Don't worry, I know you're strapped for cash."
"Sorry, man! My wife can't nurse, my daughter has to have formula, and my wife needs to recover her health. You know my salary is only one hundred and fifty a month."
He truly couldn't understand how Lu Yan, who hardly spent anything, managed to blow through four hundred and fifty yuan in just a few days.
Just then, Chen Haixia arrived with her lunchbox and sat down opposite Lu Yan, looking concerned. "Is your mother feeling any better?"
Lu Yan nodded. "Much better, thank you."
"No need to be so polite." Chen Haixia tried to be nonchalant, but couldn't help glancing up at Lu Yan. His features were refined, elegant, and strikingly handsome. Even just sitting and eating, he carried himself with a composed dignity that made it hard to look away.
Yet, this seemed to be the quality he cared least about.
She couldn't help but nudge a box of braised pork she'd brought herself toward him. "Try some!"
Without looking up, Lu Yan replied, "You have it. I'm not fond of greasy dishes."
Chen Haixia gave an awkward laugh. "Are you still upset about what Auntie Qian said the other day?"
"What did she say?" Lu Yan couldn't recall.
Su Yang's eyes lit up at the sight of the braised pork. "Hey, Lu Yan, you're really picky! Let me try some. Braised pork's a treat—it's not like we get it at the window every day."
He reached out with his chopsticks and grabbed two pieces.

Chen Haixia's frown was barely perceptible; she didn't know what to say.
Lu Yan finished the last of his rice and got up to fetch some soup.
Su Yang chuckled, "Ah, that guy's always so aloof. Don't take it to heart."
Su Yang had only gotten to know Chen Haixia and Lu Yan after starting work here.
Other than knowing they were from the same hometown, he didn't know about their childhood friendship. Chen Haixia had joined the institute's mailroom a few months after Su Yang.
From afar, Chen Haixia watched Lu Yan, saw him fill a bowl with soup, drink it right there, and leave. A wave of grievance rose in her chest.
Su Yang noticed her expression. "What's wrong?"
Chen Haixia took a deep breath, her tone aggrieved. "Lu Yan and I are from the same village, went to the same elementary school, the same middle school, and even the same high school. We always got along well, even through college.
But now, it feels like he has something against me."
Hearing the plaintive tone in her voice, Su Yang felt a bit sympathetic and tried to reassure her. "No, no, you should see how he treats other girls. When he first started here, honestly, he was quite the catch—any unmarried young woman in our department who saw him would find an excuse to chat him up, but his answer was always, 'I have to work.'
Even his own wife, after coming to the institute, never contacted him once.
I think he actually talks to you more than anyone."
After a long silence, Chen Haixia asked, "Really?"
"Of course. Otherwise, how could he not know if his own wife was kicked out of the house?" Su Yang replied.
Chen Haixia's expression darkened; clearly, that last remark didn't comfort her.
Lu Yan might not have feelings for Shen Qingyi, his wife, but he was responsible—others might not know, but she did.
She took a deep breath, suppressing her disappointment, and focused on her meal.
...
After work, Lu Yan told Su Yang to leave the door open for him and asked where he could buy a tape recorder and some cassettes.
Su Yang was curious. "When did you get interested in this?"
Lu Yan smiled. "Yesterday."
"Try the department store, but they don't have all the tapes. If you want specific pop songs, you have to go to a privately owned tape shop. They're more expensive, at least five yuan a cassette."
He went on to recommend a private shop. "My wife used to buy a new tape there every month. Real spendthrift, that woman."
Though he grumbled, there was affection in his tone.

Lu Yan bought a tape recorder at the department store for eighty-five yuan, then asked the clerk, "Do you have the tapes for 'Pink Memories' and 'Green Island Serenade'?"
The clerk smiled, "You're in luck—we just got them today. Even yesterday, we didn't have any."
She took out a cassette and handed it to Lu Yan. "Five yuan each."
She sneaked another glance at him—such a handsome man—and couldn't help recommending some other popular tapes. "These are really popular songs right now."
Lu Yan wasn't sure, so he glanced at them and hesitated. "What kind of people like these songs?"
The clerk replied with a smile, "All the girls here love them. There's a tape player over there for sampling—want to listen?"
Without waiting for his answer, she pressed play: "So sweet, your smile so sweet, like a flower blooming in the spring breeze..."
Lu Yan felt nothing in particular, but the melody reminded him of the song An'an had hummed yesterday—'Green Island Serenade.' She'd probably like this one, too.
He nodded. "Alright, I'll take these two."
He had five yuan left out of a hundred—ten in total, just enough for now. He never spent money on bus fare anyway.
Carrying his purchases, he was just at the door when he spotted An'an peeking inside.
"An'an!" he called out. An'an didn't move, just leaned against the doorframe with wide, sparkling eyes, grinning at him.
As he approached, she curiously eyed what he was holding.
"What did you buy?"
"A tape recorder," Lu Yan replied, placing it on the table and taking out two cassettes from his bag.
An'an's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow, that's amazing! How did you know Mom's radio broke?"
Lu Yan's gaze flickered. "The radio broke?"
Shen Qingyi came out carrying a dish, just in time to hear this. "I'll have it repaired tomorrow."
An'an announced loudly, "He bought you a tape recorder, and tapes, too."
Though An'an still hadn't called him Dad, Lu Yan knew she was thrilled.
He pointed at the tapes on the table. "I heard from An'an that you like these two songs, so I bought these tapes for you."