Aunt Wang got married.
This news shook the entire apartment building, with an impact comparable to an atomic bomb.
On the last day of the National Day holiday, the Uncle Zhao from Nanhui living on the fourth floor, posing as a prospective son-in-law, brought gifts and formally visited Aunt Wang’s parents at her family home on Changle Lane.
According to Chang Leyun’s updates, her mother and Uncle Zhao had already registered their marriage and would hold the official wedding at the end of the year. This winter break, she’d probably be spending it in the countryside of Nanhui.
Following local custom, weddings last three days with banquets and live opera performances.
Because Uncle Zhao worked at the Cultural Center, many colleagues would take the stage to perform, so Beijing opera, Yue opera, Kunqu, Pingtan, Xi opera, Huai opera, and Bangzi opera would rotate throughout the event; livelier than watching TV.
Fan Xia was absolutely envious, wishing he could also spend the New Year in the countryside with them.
However, Chang Leyun also mentioned that locals reportedly go to bed by eight o’clock at night. By nine, the streets are completely empty; no one in sight, not even a ghost.
Fan Xia had been successfully talked out of it.
Ning Xiaobei comforted her, saying at least she could eat as many Nanhui peaches as she wanted every summer. He had been about to add, “Keep at it for another ten years or so, Disneyland’s going to be built in Chuansha soon; the Chuansha Daji1Chuansha Daji (川沙妲己) is the popular nickname for LinaBell, the pink fox character at Shanghai Disneyland. Daji is a fox demon from Chinese old myth, famous for confusing people’s minds is waiting for you,” but he decided against it.
According to real-world Chang Leyun, Uncle Zhao had married her mother back when she was in high school. Now it was several years earlier than that, probably influenced by the butterfly effect Ning Xiaobei had set in motion.
The only question was whether the younger brother who, in Chang Leyun’s original timeline, would be born when she was in college, might appear early. If that happened, their apartment block would only get livelier.
“Local people are very particular about traditions. I heard that Xiao Zhao’s parents even had to go to the Wang family in person to formally propose. And they prepared eighteen pieces of gold jewelry plus a gold bowl and gold chopsticks…tsk tsk. Among the brides in this building over the past two years, even first-time brides didn’t get treatment like this, let alone second marriages.”
“Yes, yes, I’m envious just hearing about it…”
Aunt Tian and Aunt Pang sat at the doorway, shelling edamame and pointing at the Wang family’s front gate.
“Here’s the thing: Xiao Wang is remarried, yes, but Xiao Zhao is marrying for the first time. This is considered being very careful and serious. Once Xiao Wang moves in, she’ll surely live a comfortable life.”
Aunt Zhang leaned on the railing, shelling sunflower seeds. She made a fist of the shells in her hand and tossed them into the plastic bag holding the edamame husks.
“But Xiao Wang treats Xiao Zhao pretty well, too. A few days ago, I was walking past Hengdeli on Nanjing Road, and I saw her buying him a watch. On the counter, there were Omegas or Longines. Each one costs tens of thousands of yuan!”
“So after they get married, will Xiao Wang’s apartment just sit empty? They’ll all live on the fourth floor together, right?”
“I’m more concerned about what will happen to Lele. Xiao Zhao’s an only child, right? Local people are traditional; they’ll definitely want a son. Won’t that make Lele the Little Cabbage2Little Cabbage: suggesting something small, fragile, or overlooked; Usually refers to a neglected, secondary, or unwanted child, often a sibling overshadowed by a preferred child in the opera? Better to have a younger brother than me?”
“Nonsense! Little cabbage only happens when the mother dies and the father marries a stepmother, not when the mother is getting married. It’s a completely different thing.”
“Oh, you two really know how to make trouble out of nothing. Anyway, just wait to eat the wedding feast and the sweets, mind your own business. Heaven will rain, a mother will marry. Uncle Zhao on the fourth floor has a good character. He may not be as good as Xiaobei’s dad, but he’s still better than Lele’s original dad. That’s enough. Now go home and cook.”
After finishing the entire bag of edamame, the aunties officially adjourned, and the hallway finally fell quiet.
“Um… Lele, don’t listen to the nonsense outside. You’re not going to become a little cabbage.
In the Zhao family’s living room, Fan Xia held a ballpoint pen, a little annoyed, and glanced outside before turning back to Chang Leyun sitting across from him.
Chang Leyun had just finished her Chinese homework and pulled out her English test from her backpack, spreading it on the table. She shook her head casually. “I know. Uncle Zhao is good. He’s good to Mom, and he’s good to me. I’m not going to listen to their nonsense.”
A few days ago, she had already met her new grandparents. They spoke entirely in the local Nanhui dialect; she couldn’t understand much, but their eyes made it clear they liked her.
Grandma even tried to slip a solid gold bracelet onto her arm, but Mom stopped her, saying it was too valuable and that the school didn’t allow students to wear jewelry.
Still, the bracelet was eventually accepted. The new grandma said she would give it as a dowry when Leyun grew up and got married.
“That’s right. Don’t underestimate Uncle Zhao, usually quiet as he is. I heard he even went to warn your dad personally. He told him that if he ever harassed you again, he’d tear down his house. That’s why your dad finally settled down.”
Ning Xiaobei added with a sense of admiration.
Apparently, Uncle Zhao from Nanhui was the only university graduate in the whole village. Outwardly, he seemed mild-mannered; the heaviest thing he carried daily was a pen. But as a child, he had worked the fields and swung a hoe.
Chang Weiqiang, when he got rough with his wife or daughter, looked strong and imposing, but when faced with a real tough guy, he immediately shrank back, totally silent.
“Exactly, having a new dad is really good.”
Ding Zheyang, sitting right across from Ning Xiaobei, nodded vigorously in agreement.
He didn’t fully understand what had happened, but following Ning Xiaobei’s opinion was always the safe bet.
“I’m saying, Ding Zheyang, why are you butting in? Do you even live in our building? And… why are you coming to my place to do homework?”
Fan Xia slammed his pen down on the desk with a smack and pointed at Ding Zheyang.
Originally, his study group with Xiaobei had just the two of them. He helps me, I help him (mostly Xiaobei helping him). Then Chang Leyun joined, which he accepted; after all, they were all neighbors. And having a pretty girl sitting beside him, fierce as she was, made things at least visually pleasant.
So why now had this four-eyes joined in too?
All four corners of the little table were taken. This isn’t Chinese New Year mahjong, does it need to be so orderly?
“Well… my parents asked your uncle to discuss business, and since they said they’d have dinner together tonight, I got dragged along,” Ding Zheyang said, pushing up his glasses.
“Wow, you’ve got some nerve saying that. Chang Leyun, you don’t even know how disgusting he is. He waits for Xiaobei to go to the bathroom after class,” Fan Xia couldn’t hold it in and demanded someone arbitrate.
Ever since watching fireworks at Ding Zheyang’s house over National Day, this guy had become like chewing gum or a sticky plaster; constantly clinging to Ning Xiaobei.
If they didn’t live on opposite sides of the Suzhou Creek, he might even try to go home with them.
“What’s wrong with going to the bathroom together? Girls do it all the time,” Chang Leyun said, eyes wide.
“Wow, you girls are so weird!”
Fan Xia yelled.
“Get lost! You don’t know anything,”
Chang Leyun snapped, picking up a ruler and giving his black-clawed hand a smack.
“Murder!”
Fan Xia jumped up.
Ning Xiaobei watched their interactions and found it more and more amusing.
“Isn’t it just what you’d expect from rivals…”
He let out a soft sigh.
Ding Zheyang was seeing this kind of scene for the first time and watched with great interest, completely ignoring Ning Xiaobei’s curious gaze.
What kind of business were Ding Zheyang’s parents discussing with Uncle Zhao, anyway?
Ning Xiaobei bit his lip, growing anxious.
In the real world, Uncle Zhao’s counterfeit designer business was absolutely illegal, and he had to find a way to stop it. Otherwise, the consequences wouldn’t fall only on him, they could drag Dad into trouble too.
But running a business was far more complicated than stopping Comrade Ning Jianguo from buying out years of work. He didn’t have any magic cheat code to show him a sure-fire path to profit.
Besides, back then people didn’t really understand intellectual property protection. Everyone casually bought pirated books, CDs, and clothes, even seeing it as part of the trend.
So if he recklessly told Uncle Zhao that selling counterfeits was illegal, there was zero chance he’d listen.
After a while, Wang Yihong got off work and brought the four kids home for dinner.
It was her first time meeting Ding Zheyang. She noticed he was fair-skinned, spoke softly, and seemed even more delicate than her own daughter. Hearing about his pitiful background, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him, continually piling food onto his plate. Fan Xia, sitting beside him, was jealous and rolled her eyes so dramatically that the contrast of dark skin and white eyes made it even more striking.
“Thank you, Auntie. Your cooking is really delicious,”
Ding Zheyang said, praising the food as he ate. Though his mother now prepared meals every day before leaving for work, and he could just heat them up in the microwave instead of eating instant noodles, freshly cooked food was still unbeatable. Ding Zheyang, in the middle of his growth spurt, kept eating enthusiastically, thoroughly enjoying every bite.
“Oh, what a good kid! You should come to Auntie’s house to eat often. I’m moving to the fourth floor anyway. Whenever you come looking for Xiaobei and Xiao Xia, just come eat at Auntie’s place.”
Wang Yihong chuckled as she ruffled his hair.
Now Fan Xia didn’t just roll his eyes, he ground his teeth, stabbing his rice with his chopsticks.
“A total suck-up, just as I thought…”
He’d underestimated this, completely underestimated it.
He had once thought only Ning Xiaobei liked to lead people home for meals, never expecting Auntie Wang would do the same.
With this, Ding Zheyang had saved the day by a roundabout route, successfully invading his territory in the old apartment building — a feat that even Lin Ziying hadn’t managed.
The more Fan Xia thought about it, the angrier he got. He couldn’t help eating two extra bowls of rice and then collapsed onto the Wang family’s sofa, refusing to move.
“Lift your feet!”
After wiping the table, Ning Xiaobei grabbed the broom to sweep. This wasn’t Uncle Zhao’s home; it felt wrong to leave without helping at least a little.
He set the broom down, glanced at Fan Xia doing a halfhearted Ge You slouch3葛优躺 (Ge You slouch): A viral Chinese internet meme featuring actor Ge You lounging apathetically on a sofa in a scene from the 1993 sitcom I Love My Family on the sofa, then looked at Ding Zheyang in the kitchen washing dishes with Wang Yihong and Chang Leyun, and shook his head.
This guy really had no sense of propriety… no wonder he’d get dumped someday… tsk tsk.
A little embarrassed, Fan Xia got up, waved the broom symbolically a few times, and leaned close to Ning Xiaobei, whispering, “On my way home from school, I passed by the teacher’s office… heard that Geng Enhua is going to get punished.”
Ning Xiaobei immediately pulled him onto the balcony.
“Here’s the deal: apparently he brought students from other schools onto campus. Hiding in the art room to smoke and play cards… almost burned the place down,”
Fan Xia whispered.
Ever since Ding Zheyang started clinging to Ning Xiaobei every day, Geng Enhua and his gang of delinquents had shifted their focus. Even with all his courage, he didn’t dare touch Ning Xiaobei, especially with a mad dog like Fan Xia around.
Then somehow this guy got involved with students from other schools and even dragged them into the school, which finally led to a big disaster.
“Boss, why does it look like you’re not surprised at all?”
Fan Xia stared into Ning Xiaobei’s eyes, uncertain.
“Oh, it’s because I reported it.”
Fan Xia’s jaw dropped.
“I’m the library assistant now, right? Every lunch and afternoon recess I have to help out. The art room is diagonally opposite the fourth-floor library. That day, I was sorting magazines and saw that group sneaking around. Soon enough, I saw smoke, so I reported it to the teacher… and that’s how they got caught.”
Since outsiders were involved, the school didn’t make a public announcement. And because everyone involved was underage, the police had to contact parents to handle it.
Teacher Wang, in charge of the library, said there had been several thefts before. People had taken instruments from the music room, plaster statues from the art room, and even specimens from the biology lab display cases to sell.
At that time there were no cameras, and two security guards alone couldn’t catch the thieves. Now it seemed that this Geng Enhua was highly suspicious.
“Boss, why are you only telling me about such an interesting thing now?”
Fan Xia frowned. “Ah, so now you like Ding Zheyang more than me? Am I not the one you like the most anymore?”
Words said without thinking, but hearts listen closely. Ning Xiaobei felt his heart skip a beat, as if it jumped straight from his chest to his throat.
“You’re insane! Like… like your stupid head, sure.”
He even stuttered a little.
“I already told you, the school doesn’t allow making it public. You know the 【Law on the Protection of Minors】, right?”
“Really? The underage victims get no protection, but the school protects those trashy kids instead?”
Fan Xia was still fuming.
“Anyway, don’t go spreading this outside. Just wait for the school to announce it. That gossip reporter Lin Ziying will definitely be on the front lines, digging up every rumor and insider detail for sure.”
Young Master Lin said that in the future he wanted to study journalism at Fudan University and become an undercover reporter, walking right on the front lines of cracking down on crime. So he’d start with this school bully, Geng Enhua.
“That’s more like it,”
Fan Xia said, clinging onto Ning Xiaobei’s back like a little monkey, pouting and whining, “Then I’m still your favorite person, Xiaobei.”
“No way,”
Ning Xiaobei denied immediately.
“Ah? Then who else? Who ranks ahead of me?”
Fan Xia said, imitating the tone of a concubine in a Qing dynasty drama.
Not long ago, the wildly popular TV series 《My Fair Princess4My Fair Princess (还珠格格): A wildly popular 1998 Chinese TV drama about a spirited orphan girl who enters the Qing imperial palace and becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and romances.》 had aired, and all of Shanghai and even the whole country was swept up in the craze.
Girls argued endlessly over whether Erkang or Fifth Prince was more handsome; Ertai was good too, but a bit dark. Boys, meanwhile, were torn between Xiao Yanzi, Ziwei, and Jin Suo, unsure who their dream girl should be.
Riding the wave of the craze, TV stations re-aired many Qing court dramas: 《The Young Empress Dowager Cixi 5The Young Empress Dowager Cixi(少女慈禧): A TV drama portraying the early life and rise of the powerful Qing empress, Cixi.》, 《Burning of the Yuanmingyuan6Burning of the Yuanmingyuan (火烧圆明园): Historical drama depicting the destruction of the Old Summer Palace during the Second Opium War.》, 《Prime Minister Liu Luoguo7Prime Minister Liu Luoguo (宰相刘罗锅): Comedy-drama about the clever Qing dynasty official Liu Yong, nicknamed Luoguo, famous for wit and justice.》, and also the nationwide hit 《Joking About Qianlong8Joking About Qianlong (戏说乾隆): Satirical drama reimagining the life of Emperor Qianlong with humor, intrigue, and palace antics.》. After all, Adam Cheng was genuinely handsome, and Angie Chiu’s beauty was rare even in the world.
Fan Xia, as a kid of a family running a DVD rental shop, would immerse himself in all the princes and graceful ladies dramas after finishing his homework. He had a real flair for acting; lately, his impersonations of little eunuchs and scheming concubines had even won recognition from girls like Zhuang Li and the others.
“My favorite is definitely my dad”
Ning Xiaobei teased him.
“Oh…”
Losing to Uncle Ning? Fan Xia accepted it with a nod.
“Then after that, it’s gotta be me, right?”
“After that… it’s my grandma.”
“Ah?”
“After that… it’s Azi.”
“Boss…”
“And then Azi had four little kittens…”
“Ning Xiaobei, you’re too much! How dare you trick me!”
Finally realizing he’d been played, Fan Xia grabbed the two chubby cheeks on Ning Xiaobei’s face and kept squishing them.
“I won’t do it, I won’t!”
Ning Xiaobei kept backing up, pouting in surrender. Seizing a careless moment, he jabbed Fan Xiaobei’s elbow, and now it was Fan Xia begging for mercy.
Since he couldn’t win, Fan Xia cleverly clung to Ning Xiaobei, and the two of them started circling in place like puppies chasing their own tails.
Fan Xia held Ning Xiaobei’s shoulders, smelling the faint scent of his Head & Shoulders shampoo on his hair, and caught a glance of Ding Zheyang at the kitchen doorway, looking at them with pure envy.
He lifted his head and shot Ding Zheyang a sharp glare that Ning Xiaobei couldn’t see, then hugged Ning Xiaobei even tighter.
Don’t let Fan Xia’s usual carefree, big-hearted demeanor fool you, kids from remarried families are naturally sensitive.
His mom has a new husband, his dad has a new wife, and even a new child.
But the boss can only be mine. Only mine…
He bared his teeth like a little wolf cub at Ding Zheyang.
The other boy lowered his head, grudgingly, and turned away.
………………
Author’s Note:
This isn’t romance… it’s… more like a little puppy marking its territory.
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『dapotaturs note』
- Beijing Opera (Jingju): Stylized singing, face paint, martial arts, historical & folklore stories.
- Yue Opera (Yueju): Soft, melodic singing, mostly female performers, romantic & family dramas.
- Kunqu: Elegant, poetic, classical scripts, refined movements & orchestration.
- Pingtan: Intimate storytelling with singing, pipa/sanxian, folk & love tales.
- Xi Opera (Xiju): Lively Wuxi style, mix of singing/dialogue/martial arts, folk & historical.
- Huai Opera (Huaiju): Rustic, vigorous singing, everyday life & moral stories.
- Bangzi Opera: Loud, rhythmic, martial gestures, heroic & historical tales.
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