The next day, Xu Yan recorded her show until five in the afternoon, then hurried to buy some desserts. The cake shop was a Parisian import that had recently been featured in several fashion magazines. She always stressed over what gifts to bring when visiting Shen Haoming’s house.
In the glass display case, small cupcakes adorned with fondant high heels and wreaths looked like luxurious jewels. The prices were, of course, outrageously high. She finally decided on four. Just then, Qiao Lin called, asking when she would be back. Xu Yan said, "Isn’t there a takeout menu on the fridge? Just order something to eat." Qiao Lin replied, "I’m not hungry. How do you unlock your door? I’m feeling claustrophobic and want to go for a walk." Xu Yan gave her the door code. Qiao Lin repeated it and asked, "If I forget it later, can I call you again?"
After hanging up, Xu Yan looked around the display case once more. Her eyes settled on a cupcake with a tiny dancing figure on it. The figure balanced on one foot, arms raised, as if about to leap into the air. "I’ll take that one," she told the girl behind the counter.
Xu Yan heard Qiao Lin calling her from behind. She had caught up and handed Xu Yan a cloth bag, saying, "I borrowed the dress for you. The neckline is a bit big, but you can pin it with two safety pins." Xu Yan said, "I really don’t want to host the event." Qiao Lin replied, "If you don’t host, then I won’t dance either. We’ll both skip the event." Xu Yan asked, "Why go through so much trouble to help me?" Qiao Lin smiled, "Big Qiao and Little Qiao—it's best if we both stand out together." Back in school, many people already knew they were sisters and had nicknamed them Big Qiao and Little Qiao.
The housekeeper opened the door, offering to help Xu Yan carry her things. Xu Yan held the cake box and said, "I’ll take it to the living room myself." Three women were sitting on the living room sofa, drinking champagne. One, a short-haired woman, looked at Xu Yan with a smile and said to the others, "Haoming likes tall, slender girls like her." The woman with the shawl draped over her shoulders said, "That’s the kind of figure boys like nowadays."
A boy, about eight or nine years old, ran out—it was Shen Haoming’s younger brother, Shen Haocen. He was holding a short-legged dachshund dressed in a blue down vest with a hood. When the dog ran fast, the hood flipped over its face. Shen Haocen dragged the dog to the sofa and introduced it to everyone. "This is Bailey. He’s got a bit of a cold." The woman with arched eyebrows asked, "What happened to the last dog you had?" Shen Haocen said, "We got rid of it. Mom didn’t like it because it kept digging through the trash." The short-haired woman said, "Your mom was crazy about that dog at first." The boy shrugged, "My mom is a hard woman to figure out." The three women laughed. The woman with the shawl said, "Haocen, come here and let Auntie give you a hug." The boy reluctantly took two steps forward, turning his head to the side. "Auntie, I have a cold too." The woman with the shawl patted his head. "You’re growing up fast. No worries about you not reaching your potential." The woman with arched eyebrows put down her champagne glass and said, "Regretting it now, aren’t you? We all told you to have twins with Yulan."
"Who’s talking about me behind my back? I heard that," a short, plump woman walked in, wearing a dark blue silk dress with a white lotus flower at the waist—it was Shen Haoming’s mother, Yu Lan. "Your son," the short-haired woman said, "he said you’re a hard woman to figure out." Yu Lan laughed and said to the boy, "Darling, didn’t you just tell me yesterday that you always know what I’m going to say before I even open my mouth?" The boy replied, "I know what you’re going to say, but I don’t know what you’re thinking." The woman with arched eyebrows said, "Your son is a philosopher."
The boy looked up at Yu Lan and asked, "Can I take Sister Xu Yan out to play?" Yu Lan replied, "Sure." She walked over to Xu Yan with a smile and said, "I didn’t even notice you were here." Xu Yan smiled back and said, "I brought some desserts. We can have them after dinner." "That’s wonderful," Yu Lan said, "I’ll tell Big Li not to buy any more then." Xu Yan quickly calculated in her head—four cupcakes, just enough for the four women if she didn’t eat any.
She followed Shen Haocen to the backyard. There were a few clusters of artificial rocks and a gazebo, with a small frozen pond in front of them. Shen Haocen asked, "Do you think Bailey can ice skate on it?" Xu Yan said, "No, he’ll fall in. Let’s play something else. I’ll help you with your Lego." Shen Haocen shook his head. "I want to stay with Bailey. He’s so lonely." Xu Yan said, "He’s sick. He needs to rest." Shen Haocen said, "It’s all because of my mom. She makes him sleep in the greenhouse." Xu Yan asked, "Why doesn’t she let him sleep in the house?" Shen Haocen said, "My mom says we don’t understand his temperament yet and need to observe him for a while. When Sister Huihui first came, she didn’t let her eat with us either. She said her breath smelled bad and she might have stomach problems."
Through this boy, Xu Yan learned a lot about their family. For instance, when she and Shen Haoming had just started dating, Yu Lan had still been trying to set him up with the daughter of a bank manager. It wasn’t impossible that they had met—she had never asked Shen Haoming about it. In the future, there might be daughters of lawyers, doctors... Clearly, she wasn’t the ideal daughter-in-law, but they hadn’t openly opposed her either. Once, Shen Haocen had said, "My mom says it doesn’t matter what girl my brother brings home. Dating isn’t serious anyway." Xu Yan didn’t think Shen Haocen was dumb enough not to realize that such words shouldn’t be said to her; he was doing it on purpose, to make her feel bad. He also repeated what his mother had said about the maid Sister Huihui, and then stood outside the door listening to her cry quietly in her room. What kind of hobby is that? Xu Yan didn’t know. As Shen Haoming would say, his brother was a dark-hearted kid.
They were eighteen years apart. When Shen Haocen was sucking on a pacifier, Shen Haoming was already wearing a bow tie and attending charity events with their father. He didn’t have much affection for his brother—he even forgot to mention him to Xu Yan at first. Later, he mentioned him in passing, and Xu Yan was surprised. "Why?" she asked. "Why what?" Shen Haoming asked in return. Xu Yan said, "Why were you able to have two children?" Shen Haoming replied, "Oh, my parents got Canadian citizenship. But even if they hadn’t, they could’ve just paid a fine."
Shen Haoming pushed the door open and walked out, saying to Xu Yan, "I’ve been looking all over for you." He gave Shen Haocen a couple of pats on the backside and said, "Stop bothering others. Can’t you play by yourself for a while?" Shen Haocen pleaded, "Can we go out for ice cream later?" Shen Haoming ignored him and pulled Xu Yan away.
Shen Haoming’s father, Shen Jinsong, was sitting on a sofa in a side room with a few male guests. Shen Haoming led Xu Yan over and introduced her to two guests she hadn’t met before. His father said, "Haoming, get a cigar for Uncle Li." As they left the room, Shen Haoming muttered, "How does he even have the nerve to show up here?" "Who are you talking about?" Xu Yan asked. Shen Haoming said, "The guy in the baseball cap. He’s screwed over all his friends in business, and now no one wants anything to do with him." As Shen Haoming was about to return to the side room, Xu Yan stopped him and said, "Smile." Shen Haoming frowned, "Why?" Xu Yan said, "Your anger is written all over your face. It’s not good for the other guests to see that." Shen Haoming forced a smile. Xu Yan smiled back, "Go ahead, I’ll see if your mom needs help with anything."
Xu Yan returned to the main living room and noticed that two more female guests had arrived. There weren’t enough cakes, and she anxiously stared at the white box on the table. "Dinner’s ready," Yu Lan said to her. "Let’s go sit down."
These family dinners were a Shen family tradition, happening once or twice a week. The guests were familiar with one another, so no one felt uncomfortable. Xu Yan looked around and quietly asked Shen Haoming, "Is Uncle Gao not here?" Shen Haoming replied, "He has a meeting, but he’ll come later." The woman with the shawl asked, "Where’s Haocen?" Yu Lan replied, "He’s eating with the nanny. That child talks so much that the adults can’t have a proper conversation."
The man in the baseball cap sat silently next to the women, picking up a peanut each time the dish passed in front of him. "Is your antique shop still open?" a woman next to him asked. "No," he replied, pausing for a few seconds before adding, "but I’m planning to reopen it." The woman asked, "In the same location?" "Uh, yes," he said. A male guest chuckled, "Are you sure? They’ve built new buildings in that area, and the rent has gone up four or five times." Everyone looked at the man in the baseball cap, and the room fell silent. Xu Yan felt more acutely embarrassed than anyone else. She understood the man in the baseball cap—he must be desperate for success but just had bad luck.
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