Chapter 6: Changes
Walking toward the nearby market, Li Yan felt something strange stirring inside him.
This was a feeling of living life in a way he'd never experienced before.
The warmth of everyday life was actually all around everyone—it's just that most of the time, people were too busy rushing around for survival, working hard just to stay alive, that no one had time or energy to appreciate this so-called warmth of life.
But Li Yan's mindset had changed now.
Money worries seemed to be solved by the system.
Naturally, Li Yan found himself with more time to stop and appreciate the scenery around him.
Even this ordinary street he'd walked many times before—Li Yan could now spot a few unknown wildflowers stubbornly growing through cracks in the stone pavement.
Even the sounds of mischievous children being led by adults, fussing for snacks, seemed so cute and lively.
In his seven years since coming to Hangzhou at eighteen for college and staying to work until now at twenty-five, Li Yan realized he'd never truly integrated into this city.
Of course, that was normal.
Living in the capital ain't easy, the rich kids can stay, us drifters under someone else's roof, the capital don't want us poor folk...
Whether it was Beijing drifters, Shanghai drifters, or now Hangzhou drifters—everyone was basically the same.
Home couldn't support your body, strange cities couldn't support your soul.
Who didn't understand the essence of life?
Who didn't grasp life's true meaning?
Weren't we all just forced into it?
If we could spend time among flowers and moonlight, who'd choose the mechanical 8-to-9 grind for those measly few coins?
Car loans, mortgages, wedding gifts, marriage, kids, supporting family, elderly parents—each of these words carried crushing weight, pressing down on ordinary people like Li Yan.
Walking with some of his gradually fading resentment about life, Li Yan now strolled like a retired cadre with a hefty pension, hands behind his back, taking his sweet time toward the market.
Li Yan discovered that in this market he'd never set foot in before, there were roughly two types of people.
One type was the somewhat hurried working folks, buying ingredients for dinner after getting off work.
The other type moved slowly, usually picking through vegetables and haggling over prices—the locals.
Li Yan entering this decent-sized market was like a third category between those two.
Neither hurried nor particularly picky about prices most of the time.
"Boss, give me some scallions."
"A carton of eggs."
"Some regular peppers and small hot peppers."
"A piece of pork belly."
When Li Yan spent over forty yuan and came out carrying a decent-sized bag of groceries, he checked the time. Instead of walking home slowly, he hailed a taxi back to the rental.
...
"No way! Seriously? You can actually cook! Who would've thought!"
Zhang Qiqi emerged from her bedroom with messy, bird's-nest hair, wearing pink pajamas.
She curiously passed by the kitchen and saw Li Yan skillfully working the wok. She was completely shocked.
"Heh... shows what you know."
Li Yan looked smug, glancing back at the curious Zhang Qiqi.
Cooking was something Li Yan naturally knew how to do.
Setting aside whether it tasted good, as a kid from the countryside, Li Yan had basic skills like cooking and tending fires down pat.
He couldn't handle complex dishes, but whipping up simple home-style cooking was no problem.
Zhang Qiqi looked expectantly at the scallion and egg stir-fry currently in the pan. The aroma of scallions and eggs filled her nostrils, and at least the color and smell were quite appetizing.
For the sake of this dinner, Zhang Qiqi didn't claw at Li Yan for mocking her ignorance like she usually would.
Instead, she put on a slightly gentle, affected voice and wheedled Li Yan.
"Oh my~ Li Yan gege~ Is there enough for us too?"
Zhang Qiqi was twenty-one, fresh out of junior college, currently working as a promoter at a Hangzhou bar.
She had a sweet look, claimed to be 5'7" though Li Yan didn't believe that for a second.
Fair skin, decent figure—at least her long legs were one of the features many guys would chase after.
"Yeah, just two dishes. Scallion scrambled eggs and tiger skin pepper with ground pork. Take this out."
Li Yan plated the finished scallion eggs while directing Zhang Qiqi to carry the food and steamed buns outside.
As a northerner, Li Yan was used to eating wheat-based foods, though he'd adapted to rice during his years in the south.
His decision to buy buns instead of going home to steam rice was mainly because he was too lazy to buy rice and cook it.
"Yes, Li Yan gege~"
Ignoring Zhang Qiqi's deliberately coy act, Li Yan continued with the second dish—tiger skin pepper with ground pork.
Cut the peppers into sections, mince the pork belly, prepare the sauce...
Five minutes later, three heads were crowding the kitchen doorway, making excited noises while holding up phones to record videos and provide running commentary.
Zhang Qiqi, Liang Yuan, and Lulu.
A bar promoter, a bar male model, and a hostess from the same KTV where Li Yan worked.
"Itadakimasu~ Thank you, Li Yan gege~"
"That's 'arigato gozaimasu!'"
"Whatever!"
Aside from Zhang Qiqi, who was busy posting the video of Li Yan cooking to her group chat, Lulu and Liang Yuan played their usual roles as the mood-makers.
Just this girl called Lulu seemed to be in a bad mood, though Li Yan didn't pay much attention.
"Want some drinks?"
"Let's drink!"
"Get the booze!"
Four beer cans popped open, and with noisy toasts, a dinner worth 40,000 yuan to Li Yan officially began.
Eating, drinking, and chatting.
"How's that rich Shanghai sugar mama going? Any updates?"
"Ugh... don't ask. She's keeping five guys at once—I can't compete!"
...
"Didn't that big spender from your livestream ask you out again?"
"Sigh... last time I didn't let him hold my hand at dinner, so he got mad. Still trying to smooth things over..."
...
"What about your ex?"
"Wait... why are we all sighing?"
After Li Yan asked Liang Yuan, then Lulu, now it was Zhang Qiqi's turn, and she couldn't help but sigh too.
"Don't just talk about us—what about you? You seem different today, Li Yan!"
After Zhang Qiqi said this, Liang Yuan and Lulu, who were eating nearby, nodded in agreement.
"Yeah! It feels like..."
"Did something good happen?"
"Exactly!"
Li Yan bit into his steamed bun, looking at his three curious roommates. Without much explanation, he casually said:
"Maybe I got more handsome?"