Chapter 70: Birthday
"Oh~ You even dressed up in such a pretty dress today?"
As soon as Chen Cheng stepped inside, her mother greeted her with a teasing smile, eyeing her up and down.
"I couldn’t get you to come, but apparently An Yuan could."
Chen Cheng felt like her mother was being a bit passive-aggressive.
"Well… it is his birthday, after all."
She looked back at An Yuan with a bit of unease, using her eyes to ask him if her mother had noticed anything strange that day.
An Yuan shook his head. He had no idea either.
"Chengcheng, you’re here!"
An Yuan’s mother came out from the dining room, welcoming her warmly. "Come eat some cake! We’ve got a whole table full of hot pot waiting for you!"
"Wow! You look so beautiful today, like a fairy! You really dressed up for this brat, huh?"
When An Yuan’s mother saw Chen Cheng's outfit, her eyes lit up a bit. She sized up the future daughter-in-law, admiring her slender waist and perky breasts. The more she looked, the more satisfied she was.
"You guys didn’t have to wait for me. It’s not my birthday."
Feeling self-conscious under An Yuan’s mother’s scrutiny, Chen Cheng awkwardly stared at her feet, hiding her hands behind her back. Dressed in a delicate dress, she looked just like a well-mannered young lady from a wealthy family.
An Yuan’s mother linked arms with her and pulled her toward the kitchen. "I bought a ton of seafood today, and I even went to the market to get the freshest beef for the hot pot…"
As they disappeared into the dining room, Chen Cheng’s mother glanced at An Yuan, who was left behind in the living room.
He felt a chill run down his spine. His whole body tensed as he forced a smile. "Auntie… what’s up?"
"I got you a little gift."
"Ah… thank you, Auntie."
She walked over to the sofa, pulled a stack of workbooks out of a plastic bag, and handed them to him. "I heard these are great for college entrance exam prep. Make sure you finish them over winter break. Work hard and get into a good university."
An Yuan’s smile twitched.
His life was already filled with endless studying. The only break he got was occasionally flirting with Chen Cheng to relieve stress. And now? Now, he had even more workbooks to do.
"Which university are you planning to apply to?"
"Uh… I guess I’ll just go wherever Chen Cheng goes?"
"That won’t do. Boys need to study hard and get into a good school if they want a bright future. It’s different for girls, Chengcheng just needs a stable job after graduation."
An Yuan didn’t even need to think to know how furious Chen Cheng would be if she heard that.
She hated working and rebelled against anything her family planned for her. If they pissed her off, she might just move to another city again and refuse to come home for years.
"An Yuan! Come eat hot pot!"
"Coming!"
Hearing his mom’s call, An Yuan felt like he had just been granted a royal pardon. He rushed into the dining room.
Still, he had a nagging feeling that someone had found out about what happened a few days ago. Maybe Chen Cheng’s mom was just pretending not to know? But he couldn’t exactly ask, what if he was just overthinking it? That’d be like confessing on the spot.
The round dining table had a hot pot bubbling in the middle, and on a nearby cabinet sat a small, eight-inch cake. Neither family was big on sweets, so they had only bought a small one.
Chen Cheng’s bowl was already piled high with meat rolls and fish balls. An Yuan, arriving last, picked up the cake. "Make some space, I’m cutting the cake."
An Yuan’s mother moved the hot pot ingredients to the side and smiled. "Why don’t you light the candles and make a wish first?"
"Uh… that’s kinda childish."
He felt awkward about the whole candle-lighting and wish-making ritual. Standing there, he was visibly embarrassed.
"What’s childish about it?"
Ignoring him, An Yuan’s mother stuck a few candles into the cake, lit them, and called out, "Xiuying, turn off the lights."
The next second, the room darkened, leaving only the flickering candlelight, which cast a warm glow on An Yuan’s slightly flushed face.
An Yuan’s mother, full of enthusiasm, clapped her hands and started singing, "Happy birthday to you~"
"Chengcheng, sing along!"
Now Chen Cheng was the one feeling awkward. She curled her toes inside her shoes, clearly uncomfortable.
As an introvert with social anxiety, she hated moments like this, especially when the extroverts in the room were trying so hard to set the mood. Sing? Don’t sing? Either way, it felt wrong.
"Happy birthday to you..."
Chen Cheng’s voice was so soft it was barely louder than a mosquito, and there wasn’t much of a tune to it either.
"Xiuying, hurry up, we’re all family here."
Chen Cheng’s mother’s expression stiffened. This whole family was a bit on the introverted side.
"Alright, alright, I’ll make a wish and blow out the candles now."
Noticing how awkward everyone felt, An Yuan quickly clasped his hands together and closed his eyes, hoping to ease the tension in the room.
A wish, huh?
He had planned to casually think of something simple like "good health" or "lots of money," but now that he actually had to make a wish, he found himself hesitating.
What if? What if wishes really could come true?
After all, he had already traveled through time. Parallel worlds existed. Even Chen Cheng had "wished" herself into becoming a girl...
Should he wish to start a company and become the richest man in the world? Have a life surrounded by beautiful women? World peace with no more suffering?
The room fell completely silent. Everyone exchanged glances, confused as to why An Yuan was taking so long.
Under the table, Chen Cheng lightly kicked An Yuan, signaling him to hurry up so she could keep eating her hot pot.
Thinking she was just provoking him, An Yuan quickly kicked her back.
Oh, you little—!
A small battle broke out under the table, their feet clashing back and forth. Meanwhile, the others were still staring at An Yuan, waiting for him to finish his wish.
"Whoo!"
Finally, An Yuan opened his eyes and blew out the candles in one breath. He discreetly rubbed his sore leg.
Did she have to kick that hard?
"What did you wish for?"
Chen Cheng immediately asked, only to get a sharp look from her mother, making her sit back down properly.
Better not act too familiar with An Yuan under her mom’s watchful eye.
"If I say it out loud, it won’t come true," An Yuan said with a grin. He picked up a plastic knife, cut a small piece of cake, and handed it to Chen Cheng. "Here, if it’s not enough, I’ll get you more."
"This is plenty."
Chen Cheng wasn’t a big fan of sweets, just a small piece was enough for her to eat for a long time.
"Mom, Auntie." An Yuan cut two more pieces and gave them to the two mothers before finally sitting down to eat.
"An Yuan is so thoughtful. Chengcheng is as lazy as a pig at home."
Chen Cheng’s eyes twitched. Here we go again. She decided to pretend she didn’t hear it.
"Oh, Chengcheng is such a sweet girl~" An Yuan’s mother linked arms with Chen Cheng’s mother, pulling her out of the dining room to chat in the living room, leaving the young couple alone.
"What’s there to talk about..."
As soon as the two moms left, Chen Cheng immediately stood up, dashed to the doorway, and peeked around the corner to eavesdrop.
A moment later, she stormed back, puffing her cheeks in frustration.
"What’s wrong?" An Yuan asked, just about to dip a piece of beef into the hot pot.
Chen Cheng, without hesitation, snatched the beef for herself and grumbled, "Auntie is already discussing the bride price with my mom. They’re getting ahead of themselves!"
"Isn’t that too early? And what did your mom say?"
"Yes, that's exactly what my mom said, ‘It’s way too early for that’."
Chen Cheng leaned in, lowering her voice. "Hey, isn’t the betrothal gift around here super expensive? I heard it’s like hundreds of thousands."
"Yeah, usually it’s several hundred thousand. But the bride’s family also gives a dowry, usually a house or a car, something of equal value. Otherwise, people would say they’re ‘selling’ their daughter."
"Oh~ What about her?"
"She’s from another province. They don’t have this tradition there," An Yuan said, rubbing his temples. "Can we not talk about her?"
"But it just came up naturally!"
Chen Cheng glanced toward the living room, then leaned in again and whispered, "Hey, An Yuan, what did you wish for? You took forever to decide."
"I wished for you to be happy forever."
"Yeah, right."
Chen Cheng gave him a skeptical look, clearly not buying it. "Why didn’t you wish for me to have unlimited money instead?"
An Yuan was baffled. Hasn't he always been good to her? Why didn’t she believe him when he told the truth?