I turned reality into a romantic comedy.

"Lin Guo, we have guests at home. Chen Junqian, the top student in your grade, will be your neighbor from now on. Mom, didn't you pick a good location for this house?"

When Gu Linguo came out, seeing that the two didn't seem like they were meeting for the first time, Gu's mother asked her a question out of curiosity.

“My sister and Lin Guo are in the same class and are very good friends, so I’ve met them before. Auntie doesn’t need to worry about whether she’s first in the grade or not. In my opinion, Lin Guo also has the opportunity to get such good grades.”

Chen Junqian knew very well that if he simply said that Gu Lingguo was also very smart, according to the other person's way of thinking, they would only jump to the logic of 'she must not have studied hard enough yet', so he nodded again and added:

"Because I'm a good student, my homeroom teacher asked me to help my classmates and start a study group. It's been working quite well so far. We're all neighbors now, so it's easy for us to visit each other. If Lin Guo is willing, she can join in and study together."

"Why wouldn't I agree? This is a great thing! I'll agree on behalf of Lin Guo. If Lin Guo's grades improve in the future, Auntie will treat you to a meal!"

Looking at her mother's smiling face, Gu Linguo felt that she had already anticipated that after Chen Junqian left, he would act as if to say, "Mom went to great lengths to ask for such a favor for you, so you'd better take advantage of it in the future." But just as this thought arose, the boy sitting next to her, who had just lied for her, took advantage of her mother turning around and grabbed her hand under the sofa.

If no one cared about her before, she wouldn't feel uncomfortable when she was cold. But when someone suddenly treats her well and warmly puts her in their heart, she will suddenly learn to feel pain. The feelings that were once dulled will always surge more and more intensely after they return.

Neither the bathroom nor her parents' arms were places where Gu Lingguo could cry.

After all, reality and the world of anime are definitely different.

But in that instant, she still felt that she had finally found a real place where she could rush over and cry for a little while.

Chapter 50: Older Sister and Younger Sister (Combined)

In the last two days before the Lunar New Year, Chen Junqian's main task was to help his mother run the shop.

After several months of preparation, their small mahjong parlor finally opened for business. The fully automatic mahjong machine and good service couldn't make them rich overnight, but it was much more leisurely than working in a factory, and the income was quite good.

After all, as a seasoned mahjong player with over twenty years of experience, Wang Hongling was well aware that the competitiveness of a mahjong parlor lay in both hardware and software. The former was, of course, the fully automatic mahjong machine that was still a rare sight in Guoning, a small county town, which didn't require hand washing. The latter included service aspects such as the environment, food, and attitude.

Wang Hongling herself had previously complained that many mahjong parlors were stingy with their tea and snacks. For a table of four people, they would only serve two or three of each item, which meant that each person wouldn't even get one. Moreover, the hygiene was poor, which made people feel uneasy coming to the parlor.

With this empathetic mindset, Chen Junqian's small mahjong parlor did quite well. Thanks to the promotion by Wang Hongling's mahjong friends, it quickly became a minor hit on social media. Especially now, during the Lunar New Year season, the rooms are almost always full every afternoon and evening, generating considerable revenue from table fees.

Just like the saying goes, "To judge whether a Chinese restaurant abroad is authentic, you only need to see if there are any children doing their homework behind the counter," Chen Junqian thus became a small business owner who did his homework behind the counter while also minding the shop, and also served tea and water on the side.

However, his younger sister was with him today. Chen Junqian's godmother was also a mahjong enthusiast and was very supportive of her sister-in-law's mahjong room. So Chen Xi came along and brought her own laptop. They sat side by side at the front desk and watched TV dramas together.

The hottest drama of the beginning of 2012 should be "Beijing Love Story", which aired at the beginning of the month. However, the brother and sister were not very interested in this drama. They were watching "Empresses in the Palace", which aired last November but immediately became the hottest drama of the year.

Although Chen Junqian can only think of Cao Cao in "New Three Kingdoms" when he sees Chen Jianbin's old face now, which left him with a completely negative impression, the overall quality of the series is still quite good. Not to mention him and Chen Xi, even their mothers quite like watching it.

When Chen Junqian heard the ending theme song and saw that the singer was Yao Beina, he was still a little dazed. His initial impression of this female singer came from the second season of the national variety show "The Voice of China", which will be broadcast next year. But in fact, before that, she had already achieved great success and is still remembered by many fans after her death.

Thinking of "The Voice of China," which is set to premiere next year, Chen Junqian turned to his sister and asked her a question:

"Does Xixi want to continue pursuing a career in singing in the future?"

"Wow, my brother asked me the exact same question as my dad."

"Huh? Really?"

"Yes, my dad asked me about this a couple of days ago after he came back from Xinjiang, but I haven't thought about it yet."

Unlike Lin Mu's family, in Chen Junqian's eyes, his sister's family situation had undergone a clear transformation, and the key to this transformation was his uncle's business.

In his previous life, Chen Junqian had met a college classmate who posted a long article on his WeChat Moments that left a deep impression on him. Perhaps this article could explain his sister's current situation.

The saying "poverty makes a couple miserable" is not limited to couples. Sometimes it's not that they don't love each other, but that they don't have money. What gives me confidence is my parents' love, but the premise for my parents to love me wholeheartedly and not want me to suffer too much pressure and be in a bad mood is that they have money.

I've always tried to put myself in others' shoes. If I were my parents, I definitely couldn't do any better than them. I probably would have given up long ago, and I would be more stingy, more frugal, more irritable, and more worried. So every time I think about this, I feel like I'll never have children.

Because I'm not sure if I'll take my anger out on my child and tell her that I've become like this because I've sacrificed so much for her. I don't know if I'll be driven by the pressure of life to the point of hysterically losing my temper with my child, demanding that he study hard for a better future, or crying and asking him what will happen to the family if he doesn't study.

Without money, my stress becomes my child's stress, my unhappiness becomes my child's unhappiness, and my child's stress and unhappiness are things that would have fallen on my shoulders anyway.

Sigh, I really wish I could become rich overnight. If not, at least my parents could become rich. Their love would flow in with the money, and we could become the happy family that everyone online envies.

Actually, Chen Junqian's aunt and uncle used to be a bit of a "tiger mom," but compared to Gu Linguo's mother, even Chen Xi herself felt that her mother was quite understanding. Moreover, with the great success of Chen Junqian's uncle's career, the atmosphere of the whole family became more harmonious, which also gave Chen Xi more choices.

Of course, Chen Xi was also well aware that all of this was thanks to her brother, who sat next to her, warming his feet in the same electric brazier and chatting with her.

"Don't worry too much if you haven't decided yet. After all, Xixi's grades are pretty good. Let's talk about it in junior high. Besides, I think you prefer humanities subjects to art."

Chen Junqian didn't know about the other girls' subsequent academic performance, but he did know about his younger sister. In his previous life, without his interference, she was able to rank around 3,000th in the province's liberal arts college entrance examination and go to a 211 university specializing in liberal arts. She definitely had a talent for learning.

However, regarding whether his interference will improve or worsen his sister's grades, Chen Junqian remains quite optimistic. Moreover, as things have progressed, his sister now has other paths to choose from more freely.

"Yes, I'll definitely choose to be a humanities student when I choose my major later."

Although she felt it was a bit early to ask this, since the conversation had already progressed this far, Chen Xi still asked one more question:

"What about your brother? Will he choose humanities or sciences in the future?"

"It's most likely a humanities major."

"I heard there are a lot of girls in the humanities classes."

"That's normal. In some liberal arts classes, the male-to-female ratio can be as high as 10 to 1."

In his previous life, Chen Junqian's liberal arts class only had seven boys.

After all, this topic was still somewhat distant for the two of them at the moment, so Chen Xi quickly brought the conversation back to the near future.

"Actually, our family is also planning to buy a new house in Yunqi Jinyuan."

“I’ve heard my mom mention this before; Xixi is indeed going to junior high school.”

"I originally wanted to buy the house next to my brother's, but it was a bit late. But I didn't expect Lin Guo to live there, so it's about the same? Our new house is downstairs from you two, so it feels like we can go to and from school together sometime."

Just by describing this scene, Chen Xi already felt genuinely satisfied and expectant. Unconsciously, she moved her feet, which were covered by clothes and placed in the electric brazier, closer to her brother, trying to touch his soles.

It snowed this year, just like last year.

She will stay there on New Year's Eve just like last year, and the little dog at the door will still be there wagging its tail to welcome her.

In a rapidly changing era, things that remain unchanged amidst the slow passage of time always bring a sense of peace. If growing up is a matter of a moment, then the time before growing up is always so sluggish that it almost stagnates, making girls today want to lean on their older brother's shoulder and take a nap.

----------------------------------

Of course, the improved family atmosphere was not limited to Chen Xi's family; Chen Junqian's own family was also filled with laughter and peace during the Spring Festival.

Even if they didn't know what Chen Junqian's e-commerce venture was all about, they could see that Chen Jun's promotion and Wang Hongling's small mahjong parlor business was doing well. In addition, the new house was renovated and they had officially moved in. So Chen Junqian's grandparents were also in a good mood, and they had a very enjoyable New Year's Eve dinner.

The 2012 Spring Festival Gala was the first without Zhao Benshan, and also the first Spring Festival Gala for Shen Teng and the Happy Twist team. It was like a kind of generational change. Shen Teng, who appeared under the name "Hao Jian", replaced Zhao Benshan and Song Dandan, who were known as "Baiyun and Heitu", and became a regular on the Spring Festival Gala.

Although Chen Junqian hadn't watched the Spring Festival Gala much since 2014, he still had a good impression of Shen Teng and Happy Twist's sketches from 2012 to 2014, such as "Today's Happiness", "Today's Happiness 2" and "To Help or Not to Help". Mainly because of the contrast with the later years, the quality was still acceptable, at least they were comedy sketches that could make people laugh.

Anyway, when they saw Shen Teng pop out of the TV and start pretending to be the eldest son who had traveled from twenty years in the future, Chen Junqian and Chen Xi were still laughing happily in the room. Even Shen Nianqiu on the other end of his phone sent a series of "hahahahaha" messages at the same time.

Just like last year, the younger sister, who is not good at staying up late, fell asleep on the sofa around 9 or 10 pm. However, this year she did not lie on Chen Junqian's lap, giving him a chance to get up and go outside to call his sister.

"Your younger brother came to visit me on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, right?"

The two naturally discussed their meeting a few days later. After all, if you think about it, their last meeting was almost two years ago during the Shanghai World Expo. Now it's almost 2012, and the London Olympics are about to begin. It has indeed been a long time since they last met.

"Yes, I went there with a friend on the morning of the fifth day of the Lunar New Year."

"My brother must have grown quite a bit taller since then, right?"

"Of course."

At least I won't be pulled up to chest level by the other person anymore.

"I haven't grown much in the last two years, so I hope my younger brother will give me a surprise when we meet. After all, I still prefer boys who are taller than me."

Shen Nianqiu, who is almost in her final year of junior high school, has almost finished the early puberty period that girls usually experience, and her rapid growth has been slowed down. However, she is already very satisfied with her current height and doesn't need to comfort herself with self-deceptive words like "some girls are still growing in high school" like some kids who are dissatisfied with their height.

"Is your sister still watching 'Fireworks'?"

"Haven't watched it in a while, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I was just curious. After all, my sister is living at school now, so I was wondering what would happen if she read magazines?"

"If you live on campus, there are newsstands and convenience stores. Some students in my class would rush over to buy snacks during the few minutes between classes. If you want to read, you can still read. If a friend buys something, I'll borrow it to flip through. But I'm not as interested as I used to be, and I don't buy every single issue without fail."

Compared to "Fireworks," Shen Nianqiu now undoubtedly values ​​this long-awaited reunion with Chen Junqian more. So, after only a few words, she steered the conversation back to a weighty question that left Chen Junqian speechless and unable to answer.

"How many days does your younger brother plan to stay this time?"

"...What do you mean by staying for a few days? It's definitely a same-day trip, and I already said that before, didn't I?"

"I'm sure I'm still thinking that maybe they've changed their plans again. Last time we met, we spent four or five days together. Even if we cut it in half, we should at least stay for two or three days this time. I'm a little sad."

Although Chen Junqian had heard girls act coquettishly before, compared to the children around him, Shen Nianqiu, who was already approaching sixteen and had completely passed puberty, still made Chen Junqian on the other end of the phone feel a little strange when she deliberately spoke in a childish tone. It was a slight itch in his heart that made him want to agree without thinking.

"It's definitely possible during summer vacation, but there's really no way during winter vacation and Chinese New Year. Besides, I had to secretly keep it a secret from my family this time."

Only after receiving Chen Junqian's promise of a summer vacation did Shen Nianqiu finally let him go, satisfied.

"Actually, I've been keeping this from my family. You came to see me this time, so next time I'll come to see you."

She could hear Eason Chan and Faye Wong singing "Because of Love" on the TV in the room, so Shen Nianqiu gently hummed along to the tune on the other end of the line, "Sometimes I suddenly forget that I still love you." After that, she leaned in and kissed the other end of the receiver with a light touch that Chen Junqian could hear.

"Happy New Year."

as well as.

I miss you so much.

Chapter 51: 2012 Means the End of the World (Part 2)

If there's anything that makes Hsu Yu-Wei happy about on the first day of the Lunar New Year of the Dragon, it's probably Chen Chun-Chien's New Year's greetings.

Just like last year, on the first day of the Lunar New Year this year, Chen Jun still had to bring gifts to visit the old leader who promoted him. Chen Junqian naturally had to follow suit. However, unlike last year when they rode motorcycles in the howling north wind and fluttering snow, this year the father and son were sitting in a comfortable car, truly a transformation from bird guns to cannons.

On the way to Xu Youwei's house, Chen Junqian looked at the winter scenery rushing past the car window, and unconsciously recalled the magical prophecy that Xu Youwei had told him about the first glimpse of the new year last year.

All I can say is that 2011 was a year of great fortune for him and his family. They got a new house and a new car, his parents' jobs were thriving, and even Chen Junqian himself caught the wave of the times, to the point that he really started to doubt the reliability of this prophecy.

Of course, the main reason was what he saw when he opened his eyes this morning. It was the same scene as last year. Although he was a year older than last year, Chen Junqian felt that he and his sister were closer. This time, not only were her feet stretched next to his face, but his own legs were also being held by his sister. As a result, Chen Junqian could not get up by himself without waking his sister like he did last year. In the end, he could only lift Chen Xi up with him.

"arrive."

Chen Jun's words and the slowly stopping car interrupted Chen Junqian's thoughts. Although it had been almost a year since they last met, Xu Zhiling seemed to have changed little. After all, if you count his age, he was only in his early forties, in the prime of his life, the golden age of a capitalist who is ambitious and energetic. However, when faced with the arrival of Chen Junqian and his son, he still showed a very friendly side and did not have the airs of a big boss at all.

"Youyou is in her own room, go up and find her."

After welcoming the two into the house, Xu Zhiling instructed the housekeeper to serve tea, and then pointed to the second floor, indicating that he could go up directly.

"Your father and I need to talk about some work-related matters alone, so it's okay if you stay upstairs a little longer. Youyou has been looking forward to your arrival since yesterday."

Chen Junqian politely responded to Xu Zhiling's enthusiasm, then went up the stairs to the second floor and successfully found Xu Youwei's room by following his memory from last year.

He first knocked lightly on the door, but there was no response from inside. So Chen Junqian turned the doorknob and pushed the door open from the outside in, and then saw a girl lying on the bed who seemed to be still in bed.