48: Chapter 48 Happy Birthday to Us

They said it would be an all-nighter.

In reality, Shen Weiyue spent the whole night sleeping at the internet cafe.

That idiot Ye Lingtao seemed determined to vent all his frustrations online; in the wee hours of the morning, he was caught red-handed by the internet cafe manager while sneakily downloading adult films.

"You troublemaker, don't mess around with that stuff! Downloading porn slows down the internet and gives the computers viruses!"

The manager tried to persuade him nicely, but after several failed attempts, he simply gave him a USB drive. Once Ye Lingtao borrowed a movie to watch, he finally quieted down.

The next morning.

Ye Lingtao continued to hang out at the cafe, while Shen Weiyue returned to his rental apartment to catch up on sleep. The lease on the place still had a few days left, so he could pack his things slowly.

In the afternoon, Liang Yuting sent him a message asking where he was.

Shen Weiyue said he was at the residential complex, so Liang Yuting told him to come over. When she opened the door, she asked right away, "How did the exam go?"

"It feels good; I'm very confident."

Shen Weiyue started to change his shoes, but Liang Yuting stopped him. "Don't change your shoes yet. I was busy buying groceries and didn't have time to pick up the cake. Could you go get it for me? It's over on Jianshe Road."

Shen Weiyue took the order and asked, "How about we go together?"

"That's probably not a good idea. What would it look like for the two of us to be walking together in broad daylight? The county town is so small; let's not cause any misunderstandings," Liang Yuting refused.

She was already on vacation mode, looking fair-skinned, beautiful, and long-legged in casual, girlish attire. If they walked together, it would indeed be easy to be misunderstood.

Shen Weiyue smiled without a word and turned to head downstairs.

Liang Yuting was in a cheerful mood, busying herself in the kitchen, starting by simmering some chicken soup.

When Shen Weiyue returned with the cake, she had already chopped all the vegetables, leaving only a fish untouched.

"Just put the cake on the table. You handle this fish; I don't want to end up smelling like fish."

"Sure. It's a good thing you didn't buy seafood; that's the really smelly stuff."

"I did buy some, but the shopkeeper already prepped them when I bought them—garlic oysters and vermicelli abalone."

Liang Yuting pointed at the steamer and said proudly.

Shen Weiyue swallowed hard. Having been reborn for a few months now, he hadn't eaten abalone yet, and he was really craving it.

He changed his shoes and squeezed into the kitchen, skillfully grabbing the fish and getting to work. This time, he did some fancy knife work and said with a smile, "Beautiful Liang, today I'm going to make you something you've never had before: Squirrel-Shaped Mandarin Fish."

"Huh? Where would a squirrel come from? And what kind of Mandarin fish?" Liang Yuting leaned in to watch his fancy cutting, her eyes wide.

"No, it's a style from the Jiangnan region. You'll see in a moment." Shen Weiyue suddenly realized he had forgotten to tie his apron, so he said naturally, "Help me tie my apron; my hands are covered in fish smell."

"Oh, okay." Liang Yuting agreed instinctively, but only realized something was off when she held the apron. Still, it was hard to say anything about it.

She slipped the apron over Shen Weiyue's head, then reached around with both hands to grab the strings and tied a bow behind his back.

For a fleeting moment, she had a strange illusion of them relying on each other for survival.

The ordinary warmth of life in this world, just like the descriptions in books of mutual respect and a domestic life, probably meant something like this, right?

Shen Weiyue had no idea she was letting her imagination run wild. After prepping the fish and coating it in starch, he heated the oil in the wok and entered "master chef" mode.

"Step back a bit, be careful of oil splatters."

Before Liang Yuting could speak, he had already stepped back, his back instantly colliding with her. Liang Yuting's face flushed red.

She rubbed the sore spot and quickly stepped back. Seeing the oil bubbling and sizzling in the pot, she simply hid outside the kitchen, grabbing the door frame and poking her head in to watch.

Shen Weiyue fried the fish until it was golden and crispy, then set it aside to drain the oil. Turning to see her cute expression, he couldn't help but smile gently.

"If you hide that far away, you won't learn anything."

Liang Yuting pouted and frowned, "I'm not learning this. Your way of cooking this fish is too scary; I wouldn't dare grab the tail by hand to deep-fry it."

"If you don't learn it, what will you do if you want to eat it in the future?"

"If I want to eat it later, I'll just find you..."

Liang Yuting replied offhandedly, but realized she had misspoke as soon as she said it, so she tried to recover, "If I really want to eat it, I can go to a restaurant. At worst, I'll just go to Chengdu; I'll definitely be able to find it."

"That's true." Shen Weiyue nodded. "It's not like the old days; nowadays, as long as you have money, you can buy anything."

While mixing the sauce, he said casually, "If there's an opportunity in the future, I can still make it for you again."

"Really? Then it's a deal. I'm taking you seriously!" Liang Yuting leaned in, sniffing the air as she smelled the aroma from the pot.

Seeing her looking so cute and funny, Shen Weiyue had a momentary lapse in judgment and swiped his starch-covered fingertip across her nose. Liang Yuting froze instantly.

"Hahaha, look at you, little cat face."

"Shen Weiyue! Have you gone crazy? You dare to tease me!"

Unable to contain her anger, Liang Yuting grabbed his ear and scolded him loudly.

"It's falling off, it's falling off! The fish is ready, let go! I need to reduce the sauce on high heat..."

For the sake of the delicious food, Liang Yuting let him go.

A beautifully presented Squirrel-Shaped Mandarin Fish was finished. Shen Weiyue stir-fried two more side dishes, Liang Yuting plated the steamed oysters and abalone, and the chicken soup was served. The birthday dinner looked quite professional.

When everything was ready, the two sat opposite each other.

Liang Yuting took out two glasses, pointed at the beverage and the red wine, and asked, "What are we drinking?"

"Whatever, I'm fine with either."

"Then let's drink the beverage."

Shen Weiyue opened the juice, filled both glasses, then raised his glass for a toast: "Thank you, Teacher Liang, for your diligent teaching. Happy Birthday!"

Liang Yuting met his gaze, feeling a softness in her heart. She smiled and said, "It's 'Happy Birthday to Us.' Congratulations, Student Shen, you've graduated!"

Shen Weiyue laughed as well.

The dinner officially began. After eating for a while, Liang Yuting suddenly said, "Should we have some wine? We could turn off the lights and light some candles; it would be more festive for a birthday."

"Sure, I'm fine with that."

Shen Weiyue was confident he wouldn't get drunk; it was just a little red wine, he could handle it.

So, Liang Yuting found a wine opener, and Shen Weiyue removed the cork. With a pop, the aroma of the wine wafted out.

Once they started drinking, the atmosphere became more relaxed.

Liang Yuting asked about Shen Weiyue's plans for summer vacation. Shen Weiyue said he would return to his hometown in a couple of days to stay with his aunt for a few days, and after filling out his college applications, he would go to Shenzhen to look around and visit his parents.

The house in his hometown had collapsed from being unoccupied, so now, wherever his parents were, that was home.

"Then where will your admission letter be sent?"

"Send it to the school. I'll tell Teacher Han later and ask him to help me collect it..."

"You can send it to me here; I'll collect it for you."

"That would be great. Then I'll have it sent here, and I'll come back to pick it up later."

Shen Weiyue happily filled her glass again and toasted her in thanks. Liang Yuting's face was already flushed like peach blossoms; she was a little tipsy.

"Sigh, Student Shen, I actually really envy you all. I really envy this feeling of being in the prime of youth..."

"Why do you say that? Aren't you doing quite well right now?"

"I don't know. I can't describe the feeling. I just feel like my life now is visible from beginning to end. In this small county town, there's nothing worth looking forward to in the future."

Liang Yuting took a big gulp of red wine and said bitterly, "Do you know? I've never even left the province until now."

"High school was in the city, university was in Chengdu, and I came straight here for work. I haven't even seen the Huangpu River, the Great Wall, or the West Lake..."

"Sometimes, I feel so unwilling to accept this."