Dating

Perhaps it was because I had been drinking, but I had trouble falling asleep last night. Combined with the sound of people drinking outside, I barely slept at all. I woke up early in the morning, took a shower, put on my suit and dress shoes, and went downstairs with Huanhuan to have breakfast before heading to the exam site. I had thought wearing a suit might make me stand out, but when I arrived, I noticed everyone else was also dressed formally, which put me at ease. I also ran into many younger classmates, who clearly had a fresh, student-like vibe. One junior was struggling to button the top button of his shirt—it was obviously too tight. I reassured him, “It’s fine, you don’t have to button it. It might affect your performance, and the examiners won’t mind. You’ll feel better if you’re more comfortable.” ...

12:20 Taking Bus No. 5 to the Train Station This morning, I had a medical check-up arranged by the Emergency Management Bureau. First, I went to the bureau, where Section Chief Wang from the Personnel Department and another colleague accompanied me to the People’s Hospital for the examination. These two colleagues were quite strict at first but later seemed a bit tired and couldn’t keep up. After the check-up, I took the bus back by myself—they still had some things to wrap up. When I got back, I had a bowl of beef dumpling skins with some Laba garlic. It was quite tasty and not too pungent. ...

Last night, I stayed up until 1:30 AM playing games—completely immersed and forgetting to eat or sleep. Twin Shadow Wonderland was just too much fun. This morning, we played for another hour and finally managed to finish the entire game. Huanhuan had to leave for Guiyang today to report for training, so after packing lightly, it was time to go. We wanted to eat bean rice hotpot, but the place wasn’t open, so we took a ride to Lucky Dog for burgers and hot dogs, which weren’t very good. ...

Today was a happy day—Huanhuan’s stomach felt much better. After having corn in the morning, my mom came to see us. We had a bowl of lamb rice noodles together, then headed to Caojiawan Agricultural and Sideline Products Wholesale Market. Since it was Sunday, the market was bustling with people. We bought some incredibly delicious loquats and peaches, though the bayberries weren’t great. We also picked up some water spinach and free-range eggs. ...

06:34 Discovered a Fascinating Phenomenon People only yawn when their eyes are open. 06:36 Noodles and Pastry Are Quite Tricky to Make I tried steaming buns once before and failed. Yesterday, I attempted making pancakes and nearly failed again. Mastering the properties of ingredients and controlling the heat really requires a lot of experience. Huanhuan has had diarrhea since Friday, so I haven’t made anything particularly tasty these past couple of days. ...

Today is the last day of the Dragon Boat Festival, which also means the end of our family’s brief reunion. Early in the morning, Mom and Dad were busy reheating and eating the leftovers. After breakfast, they had to catch their bus, so Huanhuan and I washed the dishes. Then we went to my sister’s place to hang out for a while and help carry some things. Ningning always struggles the most with goodbyes, unable to hold back her emotions. Manman, being a little older now, has gotten better at masking and disguising her feelings, trying to be the well-behaved child in Mom’s eyes. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not. ...

I’m really feeling a bit homesick. Huanhuan and I got up early to catch the bus home, and Auntie cooked us some delicious congee. We bought a big rolled rice pancake at Sige, and as soon as we got home, we started eating again. These past few days have been nonstop eating. My parents planned to sell the corn to avoid it getting infested with bugs or mold from sitting around unused. They decided to sell it to my fourth aunt’s family for 1.2 yuan per jin. Before long, they arrived. ...