Yi Zhe hurried home.

The house was still in the same state of mess and disarray it was when he left. As expected, Xiang Xiyi had gone out. Yi Zhe shot a look at her opened bedroom door—the large black suitcase had been taken away.

Then, that meant that it would be a long time before she was back. Yi Zhe relaxed at the thought. Recalling that Xu Tangcheng might come over in a while, he took the broom and the dustpan, ready to clean up the terribly messy floor, but he had just gotten started when he smelled something strange.

He stopped. His brows furrowed as he sniffed carefully. Finally, he found the source of the smell—maybe it was because he had wandered around outside for too long, the smell of saltpetre from the firecrackers was on his body.

To Yi Zhe, the smell of saltpetre was the smell of Spring Festival. The recognition of the smell made Yi Zhe irritated all of a sudden and he kicked furiously at the floor. His shoes hit a porcelain piece on the floor, sending it sliding swiftly forward to crash against the dustpan standing there. As though Yi Zhe was not agitated enough, there was a chain of disorderly crashes, like they were in a hurry to join the excitement and pound on his head.

Yi Zhe bit his lower lip and stared fixedly at a corner of the house, trying to calm himself down again.

But beyond that spot, there was a pair of gloves lying in a puddle of spilled coffee that was already dried.

He stood still for a very long time. Then, he stepped over the mess on the ground and walked over to the spot where his eyes had been staring at just now, bent down, and picked up the pair of gloves.

The smell of saltpetre was still slipping into his nose and there even seemed to be a bit of a coffee smell mixed in. Yi Zhe gripped the dirty gloves and suddenly recalled how Xu Tangcheng had looked like when he gave them to him the other day.

Once this thought appeared in his mind, the sudden crushing sorrow hit him hard enough to make him give up.

He threw the broom aside and walked to the window to look at the person downstairs.

Xu Tangcheng was still teaching the boy. The boy should be getting the hang of it and was already cycling ahead on his own. Xu Tangcheng chased after him, his mouth calling out "I'm letting go," yet his hands hovered over the pillion seat the whole time.

The handlebar turned and the little boy shouted in a panic. Xu Tangcheng immediately steadied the bike with both hands and did not let him fall.

Yi Zhe lowered his eyes and watched quietly for a while. He dug out a pack of cigarettes and lit a stick.

When someone knocked on the front door, Yi Zhe hadn't yet managed to tidy up the messy floor. He placed the gloves in a drawer and closed it, then walked over to open the door. He was still wearing the black down jacket. After opening the door, he remained standing there. He did not look at Xu Tangcheng; his head was lowered, his eyes fixed on the floor the whole time.

"The house's a little messy. I haven't had the time to clean up yet."

Outside the door, Xu Tangcheng immediately understood why Yi Zhe looked so dejected. He smiled and stepped forward to enter the house. His hands shrank back into his sleeves. "It's so cold outside today."

Yi Zhe closed the door. Silently, he walked to the side and turned on the water dispenser.

"I'll boil some water for you to drink."

The small red light on the water dispenser lit up. Only then did he realise that it would take a while before the water boiled. Meanwhile, Xu Tangcheng probably wouldn't stay here for that long.

"Mm." Behind him, Xu Tangcheng made a noise in response. "You don't have a cold, do you?"

"No. I was just having a bit of a runny nose just now."

Hearing that his voice had indeed regained its usual tone, Xu Tangcheng finally felt reassured. "That's good. But you should still keep yourself warm."

There was the sound of footsteps, coming closer and closer.

Xu Tangcheng stood beside Yi Zhe and shook the water container. "It's nearly out of water. During the few days of Lunar New Year, the people at the water station are on leave. I asked for a few extra barrels, I'll get you one later…"

Thinking of his poor lower back that wasn't very dexterous, Xu Tangcheng changed his words. "Come with me and take a barrel later."

Just like that, Yi Zhe's thoughts that had drifted far away were yanked back by a barrel of water. On the water dispenser, the surface of the water bubbled. Yi Zhe looked at the person standing before him and didn't know how he should react.

While Yi Zhe was still maintaining his silence, Xu Tangcheng had already picked up the fallen broom and started tidying the things on the floor. His movements only made a very slight noise and it was when he heard the sound of the porcelain pieces clinking against each other that Yi Zhe finally turned around in a fluster and went over to stop his hands.

"Don't," he said in a low voice. "I'll clean it up myself later."

"It's fine." Xu Tangcheng answered, unbothered. He wanted to continue sweeping but his wrists were gripped by an unusually obstinate strength. He couldn't fight free.

Xu Tangcheng looked up in resignation. The young man's eyes were as calm and steadfast as ever, silently telling him that in this matter, there was no room for argument.

"How about this." Xu Tangcheng thought for a while, then put on an appearance of compromise and negotiation. "I'll help you sweep the floor. After that, you'll agree to something for me. All right?"

Yi Zhe shook his head.

"I agree. You don't need to sweep the floor."

This answer was not within Xu Tangcheng's expectations. The person he was negotiating with was not playing his cards according to the sequence at all and had easily and lightly robbed him of the resources he was using to negotiate. His mind went blank and Yi Zhe's words made him break out in laughter. Yi Zhe took the chance; his other hand reached out and snatched the broom away from Xu Tangcheng's hands.

There was really no way to out-stubborn him and Xu Tangcheng was left with no choice but to say, "Come over to my place for lunch."

The stunned look on the face of the person who had just taken the broom gave him the feeling of having recaptured a city in a war. Xu Tangcheng's lips stretched in a smile. "You agreed just now."

Yi Zhe's mouth opened. He was suddenly realising that he had subconsciously taken Xu Tangcheng's "something" as "a favour."

But he had suddenly extended an invitation instead.

"The little boy you saw just now is Tangxi's godmother's son. His home is not around here. His mum left him with us this morning and went to visit her relatives over here. There won't be any outsiders during lunch, come and join us."

"No thanks." After staying silent for a while, Yi Zhe slowly shook his head.

"Don't say that. What will you eat at home? The shops aren't…"

Xu Tangcheng swallowed back down the words at the end but the house still fell into sudden silence. During the two days of Lunar New Year, even if the restaurants were open, the only food provided was the set menu for the New Year's Eve feast that the customers had pre-ordered much earlier.

"Even helping you sweep the floor doesn't work?" Xu Tangcheng sighed and lowered his voice. "I only want to invite you to a meal."

Yi Zhe didn't know how to explain to him. To him, "a favour" was very easily done but "an invitation" was not.

In actual fact, his response was within Xu Tangcheng's expectations. If Yi Zhe was a thoughtless and heartless person who didn't care about anything, he wouldn't have voluntarily kept his distance from them after Xu Tangcheng's mother and Xiang Xiyi had a complete falling out.

"Then, can you treat it as a gift in return?"

This line that came out of nowhere tested Yi Zhe's comprehension ability.

"You bought a jacket for Tangxi, didn't you? We have always been wondering how to thank you. As you know, Tangxi really can't catch a cold. Inviting you to join us for a meal can coincidentally be considered as giving you a gift in return. Don't refuse it just because it's not much, okay?"

The way Xu Tangcheng put it made him unable to find a reason to refuse. Yi Zhe's body swayed, his hand also swaying along.

He lowered his head and his eyes swept across the jacket he was wearing. He said in a muffled tone, "You also bought a jacket for me. You don't need to thank me again."

"Me buying a jacket for you has nothing to do with this." Afraid that he would misunderstand, Xu Tangcheng emphasised in a firm tone. "And that includes the gloves. Those are presents, got it?"

The words spoken in a suddenly louder tone made Yi Zhe automatically nod his head.

Afraid that he would again say something to reverse the situation, Xu Tangcheng quickly snatched the broom back from his hands and closed the deal unilaterally. "That's decided. You're coming over to my house to eat later."

After he finished speaking, he walked off on his own without looking at Yi Zhe. Yi Zhe took a step after him, his lips just starting to move when Xu Tangcheng suddenly turned around in front of him and lifted the broom in his hand slightly to point at him. "You're not allowed to follow me."

Yi Zhe stopped. He blinked and let out an "Okay."

"It'll be quicker if two people clean up. When we're done, we'll be just in time to eat." Xu Tangcheng pointed at the bathroom. "I'll sweep the floor, you'll rinse the mop and mop the floor. My back aches the moment I start mopping, I won't fight you for that."

Yi Zhe listened and obediently headed to the bathroom.

Xu Tangcheng shook his head to himself, his heart thinking that it sure wasn't easy to invite someone to a meal. He was just feeling relieved when Yi Zhe stopped and turned his head around.

Two pairs of eyes met. Xu Tangcheng's heart was in his throat, afraid that Yi Zhe would say some words of refusal again and that he would have to do another round of persuasion.

Luckily, Yi Zhe only asked a question. "What happened to your back?"

When they were done cleaning, Yi Zhe followed Xu Tangcheng over to his house.

The moment they entered, Zhou Hui and Xu Yueliang came out to welcome him and greeted him very warmly. Yi Zhe lowered his head. He looked at the neat rows of shoes on the shoe cabinet at the door and asked Xu Tangcheng if he should change his shoes.

Zhou Hui happened to hear him and immediately waved. "No need, no need. Just come right in."

Xu Tangcheng was just about to also say "No need" but when his gaze shifted to the shoes Cheng-Cheng had left at the door, he changed his mind. He bent down and picked up a pair of grey slippers on the floor and put them beside Yi Zhe's feet. "Why don't you change into this pair?"

The grey cotton slippers were printed with the picture of a bear. It was very obviously the same type as the ones on Zhou Hui's feet.

Xu Tangcheng crouched down and rummaged in the shoe cabinet, taking out a pair of sandals.

Xu Tangxi and Cheng-Cheng were nestled on the sofa and playing video games, too busy to greet Yi Zhe. Xu Tangcheng walked into the living room, shot a glance at the sofa, then turned his head and quirked his lips at Yi Zhe. Under Yi Zhe's puzzled gaze, he slowly walked forward and stood firmly in front of the coffee table, neatly blocking the entire screen.

"Ah! Ge!"

"Tangcheng-gege!"

Two solemn-faced kids shouted in unison but Xu Tangcheng gave them an evil smile and refused to budge.

"Ge, go away!"

"Didn't you see that your Yi Zhe-ge is here? You didn't even say hello."

"Hi, Yi Zhe-ge, hi!" Xu Tangxi immediately called out. She strained to lean her body to one side, trying hard to see the screen. "It won't be the same if I continue playing later! Quick, move…"

Before she could finish speaking, the T.V. was already playing the "Game Over" music. Xu Tangxi and the little boy let out wails of anguish and glared at Xu Tangcheng.

"Cheng-Cheng, don't learn from your Tangxi-jie." Xu Tangcheng ignored both their glares. He lifted his chin at Yi Zhe and said to Cheng-Cheng, "Call him Yi Zhe-gege."

Cheng-Cheng might be upset but he was still a sensible child. He put down the controller obediently and called out, "Hello, Yi Zhe-gege."

Compared to the little child who was saying hello, the one being called gege was even more flustered. Yi Zhe coughed lightly and replied, "Hello."

After replying, he looked at Xu Tangcheng and saw him already walking away from that spot with a laugh, coming back to stand beside him.

Under Cheng-Cheng's urging, Xu Tangxi operated the controller and restarted the game. Yi Zhe finally could focus enough to look at the screen and when he looked over, he realised with a start that the screen was very familiar.

It was just that the cursor was shifting across "1 player," sliding down to the next box: "2 players."

Now this was something unfamiliar.

Yi Zhe could not operate two controllers on his own so he had never played the two-player mode.

He stood there and watched the T.V. screen. Xu Tangcheng turned his head and noticed this, and thought that he wanted to play.

"Cheng-Cheng, I remember that your mummy said that you can only play video games for half an hour a day. Before we went out to cycle, I think you already played."

When children faced a question that was disadvantageous to them, the most common response was to evade. Cheng-Cheng pressed energetically on the controller, focusing intently on the screen and pretending not to have heard Xu Tangcheng's words.

"Cheng-Cheng," Xu Tangcheng called again. "If you don't say something, I'm going to block the screen."

"Don't block, don't block." Cheng-Cheng's face reddened and he finally looked at Xu Tangcheng. He pleaded pitifully, "I'll play just one more round and then I'll stop."

"Okay, just one more round. After that, you'll let your Yi Zhe-gege play."

All three people in the living room turned their eyes towards Xu Tangcheng.

Xu Tangcheng picked Xu Tangxi's look and replied to her. "You too. Cheng-Cheng at least went out to cycle. You've been button-mashing here for an entire afternoon. Didn't you say yesterday that you weren't feeling well?"

Xu Tangxi also felt guilty and obediently said, "Okay."

When Xu Tangcheng stuffed the controller into his hands, Yi Zhe was still mulling futilely over one question: How much of his actual skills should he use?

Even though he had never played the two-player mode, he could not be any more familiar with the single player mode. Once the battle screen loaded, he took one glance and already knew how the route should be played. He furtively shot a look at Xu Tangcheng and thought that perhaps he should hold back his actual skills after all and give this person beside him a chance to perform.

But Xu Tangcheng suddenly turned around and asked him, "Do you know how to play?"

Yi Zhe paused. In his heart, he overturned his previous thoughts.

Maybe he should show off his might after all.

The noise in his ears was still the familiar music he had heard thousands of times. But this time, he anticipated the start of the battle more than he ever had.

Once the battle started, Yi Zhe's tiny tank swooshed and charged to the middle of two walls. Next to him, Xu Tangcheng exclaimed in surprise. "Why did you run so fast?"

Yi Zhe was ahead of him, charging through the enemy lines. Xu Tangcheng looked at the situation and realised that there was no need at all for him to move up. He went up a couple of steps, then squatted at the entrance to guard their base.

At the side, Cheng-Cheng was eating tangerines but that did not stop his mouth. "Tangcheng-gege, why aren't you running up?"

"Your Yi Zhe-gege can handle it on his own," Xu Tangcheng explained very professionally. "Someone has to stay near home and watch the house, don't you know?"

Cheng-Cheng smacked his lips. "I know."

After watching another two rounds, Cheng-Cheng peeled off the wrapper on a candy and put it in his mouth. "Why are you always watching the house?"

Xu Tangcheng didn't say anything.

"The person watching the house is the person who plays badly. When I play with Tangxi-jiejie, she makes me move up and fight while she stays at the bottom and watches the house.

Those words were extremely impertinent. Distracted, Xu Tangcheng shot a look at the child who was twisting his head around.

"Why are you eating candy sneakily again? You're not allowed to eat anymore. Your mummy…"

Halfway through his words, Xu Tangcheng felt that something was not right. When he looked up again, as expected, he saw that the phoenix symbol in his and Yi Zhe's base was destroyed.

Cheng-Cheng puffed up his cheeks and twisted towards him, not at all hiding the fact that he was laughing at Xu Tangcheng. "Tangcheng-gege, why can't you even watch the house properly?"

Xu Tangcheng drew a breath. "Spit out that candy."

The four of them joked and played for a while before Zhou Hui called them to eat. When everyone was seated, she brought a plate of dumplings to the table. Xu Tangcheng took two for Cheng-Cheng, another two for Yi Zhe, and finally, another two for Xu Tangxi.

As they ate, Cheng-Cheng suddenly shouted, his words rather unclear, "I got candy in mine!"

Just like when he was even younger, Cheng-Cheng still loved the feeling of getting candy in his dumpling. Zhou Hui and Xu Tangcheng both exchanged a look and smiled.

Xu Tangxi was no longer a child and had long since known that Zhou Hui and Xu Tangcheng had actually arranged ahead of time who would get the lucky candy in their dumplings. But she also cooperated and shouted in joy, saying that she had gotten a candy in hers too.

"Tangcheng-gege, did you get it?" Cheng-Cheng poked his head over to look.

Xu Tangcheng shook his head. He picked up a dumpling and pretended to check it for candy. But he was watching Yi Zhe beside him the whole time out of the corner of his eye.

Everyone reacted in a very lively and spirited manner. The only exception was Yi Zhe. When he bit on something bursting in sweetness, his throat suddenly stiffened.

He lowered his head and maneuvered the candy so that it was held between his teeth on one side. His tongue pressed against it, licking to get a taste of the candy's sweetness.

Xu Tangcheng was initially worried that he would overlook it and swallow the candy right down. When he noticed Yi Zhe's movements suddenly slowing down, he finally felt reassured. He brought the already-cold dumpling between his chopsticks to his mouth and swallowed, then realised that the person sitting next to him was not making any new movements.

He no longer sneaked looks this time and instead, turned his head to look directly at the person.

Unexpectedly, the person beside him was also looking at him.

It was very mysterious. When they made eye contact, Xu Tangcheng felt that he now understood what the girls in his class meant by "overflowing maternal instincts." When he saw the corners of Yi Zhe's eyes droop, he suddenly really wanted to give him a hug.

He also suddenly felt very regretful that he had not been able to wish him "Happy New Year" in person.

Everyone else at the table was chatting noisily. Yi Zhe knew that the way he looked right now with one cheek bulging must be very silly. As he bit on the candy, he thought that in Xu Tangcheng's eyes, he probably was just like a village bumpkin who had never seen the outside world and didn't even know how to shout with joy when he got a candy in his dumpling.

But still he remained staring foolishly at him.

This was the last piece of candy. When making the dumplings, Xu Tangcheng had yet to bump into Yi Zhe and had not included Yi Zhe in the list of people who would be eating. Hence, there were only three dumplings with candy inside.

The candy between Yi Zhe’s teeth had melted a little, sliding onto his tongue. Yi Zhe wanted to quirk his lips at Xu Tangcheng to let him know that he was also happy. But his face was frozen and very unfortunately did not listen to his commands at all.

Xu Tangcheng, who had also been looking at him the whole time, suddenly put down the chopsticks in his right hand and turned his body to face Yi Zhe completely.

Two fingers pressed on the corners of Yi Zhe's mouth and pushed upwards lightly, lifting them up.

Yi Zhe stared blankly at the smiling face in front of him.

"Aren't you happy that you got the candy?" Xu Tangcheng asked him.

How could he not be?

That piece of candy was a sweetness he had never tasted before. It was like waking up naturally in the early morning, sunlight folding into last night's beautiful dream.

And when he smiled at him, even the dream dazzled.

Cheng-Cheng was still bugging Xu Tangcheng, asking if he got the candy. As Yi Zhe lowered his head in a fluster, he heard Xu Tangcheng repeat laughingly, "I did, I did."