The next day at noon, at the Hongyun Restaurant in Nancheng.
A large red banner with gold lettering hung in the second-floor banquet hall.
The Jiang family had reserved ten tables to celebrate Second Grandaunt's seventieth birthday.
Eldest Aunt had specially changed into a new, dark red padded jacket and stood at the entrance of the hall to welcome the guests.
Her voice was loud and clear, easily cutting through the festive music playing in the lobby.
“Oh, Old Wang is here! Yes, yes, this is our Yueyue!”
Neighbor Auntie Wang walked over, carrying a heavy, large fruit basket.
She looked at Jiang Yue, who was helping pour tea by the main table, and sized him up curiously.
“Yueyue, Auntie Wang watched you grow up. I used to think you'd become a great scientist in the future, but I never expected you to go and act in television dramas.”
Auntie Wang gave him a thumbs-up.
“But I get it, that's what you call being talented! Yueyue is smart; he can succeed at anything he does!”
Jiang Yue set down the teapot, took the fruit basket with both hands, and placed it securely on the gift table.
He turned around, poured a cup of hot tea, and handed it to Auntie Wang.
“Auntie Wang, please, have a seat.”
Not a single relative or neighbor from his hometown tried to talk him out of changing careers.
Every time a guest arrived, Eldest Aunt would push him forward a step and introduce him.
In their eyes, Jiang Yue had always gotten good grades since childhood and knew what he was doing.
Since he had chosen to go into acting, he must have his own plans.
On the other side, Second Uncle pulled out his phone whenever he met anyone, smoothly opening his photo album.
It was filled with high-definition stills of Shen Xu.
“Look, that's my nephew!”
Second Uncle showed them to several old friends at his table, unable to suppress the pride in his voice.
Holding a cup of juice, Jiang Yue accompanied Eldest Uncle to toast and thank everyone table by table.
The birthday banquet didn't wind down until three in the afternoon.
Just as Jiang Yue helped Second Grandaunt into the car, Jiang Kaiwen rushed through the restaurant doors clutching an SF Express document envelope.
“Third Brother! The package from Han Song is here! The courier just called, so I ran to the alley entrance to get it!”
Zhou Qiqi, who had been helping Eldest Aunt collect the gift money envelopes, almost dropped her pen when she heard the name “Han Song.”
Jiang Kaiwen tossed the envelope onto the table and tore it open faster than anyone.
Inside lay six autographed photos, neatly arranged, with a name and a blessing written on each.
The top one, which was for Zhou Qiqi, even had an extra line: “Wishing Qiqi success in her studies and happiness every day.”
Holding the photo, Zhou Qiqi stamped her feet in excitement before quickly lowering her voice.
“My idol wrote my name!”
Jiang Tao leaned over to take a look and clicked his tongue.
“You've never looked at your report card this closely in your entire life.”
Zhou Qiqi clutched the photo to her chest. “What do you know? This is a personal autograph!”
Eldest Aunt didn't understand any of this, but knowing it was sent by Jiang Yue's friend, she made an executive decision on the spot.
“Put it away carefully, don't get it dirty. He still remembered our kid, so you must treat him to a nice meal sometime, Yueyue.”
Jiang Yue nodded, indicating he would keep that in mind.
New Year's Eve.
The courtyard of the Jiang family's ancestral home bustled with life.
The families of Eldest Uncle, Second Uncle, and Eldest Aunt had all gathered together.
Two eight-deity tables were pushed together to form a long table. Spread across it were braised pork knuckle, steamed sea bass, and a large pot of local chicken soup right in the center.
After the New Year's Eve dinner, it was time for the Jiang family's unshakeable tradition of giving out red envelopes.
The Jiang family had a rule: regardless of whether you had a job or were married, as long as the elders were still around, you would get a red envelope.
Eldest Uncle cleared his throat and pulled a thick stack of red envelopes from his pocket.
The eldest, Jiang Tao, was the first to step forward. He took his envelope with both hands, grinning from ear to ear.
When it was Jiang Yue's turn, Eldest Uncle stuffed an envelope that was noticeably thicker than the others into his hand.
Eldest Uncle's rough hand pressed down on Jiang Yue's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.
“Work hard out there, eat well, and don't be stingy with your money.”
Jiang Yue didn't decline. He held the red envelope tightly.
He wasn't short on cash, but holding the red envelope in his hand meant far more than any number in a bank account.
From the first to the third day of the Lunar New Year, the Jiang family officially kicked into non-stop relative-visiting mode.
Today, they would eat pork and pickled cabbage dumplings at Eldest Uncle's house; tomorrow, they would feast on sweet and sour ribs at Eldest Aunt's.
The elders didn't ask about his acting pay or life on set; they only kept their eyes glued to Jiang Yue's bowl.
The moment Jiang Yue's bowl emptied, two pairs of chopsticks would instantly pile more meat into it.
There was a kind of hunger known as “your elders thinking you're hungry.”
Within just a few days, Jiang Yue patted his stomach, feeling the weight he had lost while filming returning at an astonishing speed.
On the night of the third day, a cold wind swept away the daytime bustle.
In an open space in Nancheng's old district, Jiang Kaiwen hauled two boxes of fireworks out of the car trunk.
Zhou Qiqi lit a sparkler, tracing bright lines across the night sky.
Wang Yifan held up his phone to find an angle, clicking the shutter repeatedly.
“Third Brother, come over for a photo!”
Jiang Kaiwen waved to Jiang Yue, who was standing under a streetlight.
The seven young people crowded in front of the lens as fireworks burst into the sky behind them.
With a click, the moment was captured.
Zhou Qiqi looked down to select the best shot, her fingers tapping rapidly on the screen.
“This one is so good, I have to post it to my Moments! My roommate posts Shen Xu GIFs in our group chat every single day. I'm going to let her see the real deal!”
“Qiqi, wait a second.”
Jiang Yue stepped forward, blocking her phone screen.
The others paused and looked at him.
“Keep the photos to yourselves. Don't post anything related to me on social media, and don't mention my name.”
Zhou Qiqi froze.
Her older cousin, Zhou Siqian, was quick to catch on.
“Are you worried people will track down our family through the photos?”
Jiang Yue nodded.
“It's not that I'm trying to stop you from posting, but more and more people will recognize me in the future. Don't show faces, don't include names, and turn off your location. Try not to expose house numbers, license plates, schools, or workplaces.”
“If some people like me, others will hate me. If someone actually tracks down your schools, workplaces, or even Eldest Aunt and Eldest Uncle's house because of a photo, deleting the post will be too late.”
Jiang Kaiwen wiped the usual playful grin off his face.
“I get it. Third Brother is a public figure now. If we post stuff just to show off and someone starts a smear campaign, we'd be digging a hole for you.”
Jiang Tao stepped forward and threw an arm around Jiang Yue's shoulders.
“Don't worry. We in the Jiang family know how to keep our mouths shut. Siqian and I will keep an eye on the younger ones.”
Zhou Qiqi deleted the names from her draft caption, leaving only a photo of the fireworks in the empty night sky.
She looked up at Jiang Yue and rubbed her red, cold nose.
“Yue-ge, to be honest, when I first found out you played Shen Xu, I really wanted to go online and brag about it to everyone.”
“You've always had the best grades and been the most sensible one since we were kids. But I always felt like you only forced yourself to be mature to put our elders' minds at ease.”
Zhou Siqian chimed in from the side.
“Yeah. When you won national scholarships in the past, your smiles always felt very polite. Only when you said you wanted to act the other day did I feel like you were truly happy.”
Jiang Yue stared blankly for a few seconds before handing his sparkler to Zhou Qiqi.
Jiang Kaiwen lightly punched Jiang Yue's chest.
“Third Brother, just keep running forward. We'll guard the home front for you, and we'll never hold you back.”
Looking at the red, freezing faces before him, Jiang Yue let out a soft smile.
“Alright.”
He slipped his phone back into his pocket.
“Once I'm done with this busy stretch, I'll take you all on vacation. It's all on me.”
A cheer instantly erupted across the open ground.
Once the fifth day of the Lunar New Year passed, the festivities drew to a close.
Jiang Yue packed his bags, preparing to return to Donghai.
The day before he left Nancheng, he headed straight to the city's appliance center.
Several payouts for his acting roles had landed in his account. Now that he was well-off, there was no reason not to upgrade his family's daily life.
He chose the latest full-body massage chair, an automatic smart foot bath with constant temperature control, and a large-capacity front-load washing machine with high-temperature drying.
Jiang Yue picked three brands that were in stock, drew up a list at the counter, and had the sales assistant print the invoices.
When checking out, he pulled out his bank card to pay.
Spending the money he had earned over the past six months on his family felt the most fulfilling.
At three in the afternoon, a small delivery truck pulled up to the alley entrance.
Several deliverymen worked together to carry the large wooden-framed crates into the courtyard, tearing off the foam packaging on the spot.
Eldest Aunt grabbed the instruction manual and glanced at the price tag, her voice rising involuntarily.
“You silly child! Why did you buy all this? Keep your money for yourself out there!”
Even as she grumbled, she switched to a clean cotton cloth and carefully wiped down the edges of the massage chair, afraid that dust would settle on it and make it harder to return if they decided to do so.
Leaning on her jujube wood cane, Second Grandaunt stepped out of the courtyard gate and pulled over a few passing neighbors, pointing toward the yard to show off.
“See that? My Yueyue bought those for us.”
“You lie down and get massaged for half an hour, and your back feels so much better. It's quite fancy!”
Several old neighbors crowded around the entrance to look, clicking their tongues in amazement.
Second Grandaunt couldn't hide the smile on her face.
Standing in the courtyard, Jiang Yue watched the scene in silence, a warm and bright smile gracing his face.
His phone suddenly vibrated, and a flight reminder for his return to Donghai popped up on the screen.
The Lunar New Year was drawing to a close.
Rate on N.U.
