"..."
Yu He had thought that on New Year's Eve, at least everyone would gather in the living room to watch the Spring Festival Gala and stay up late.
Then, after midnight, they would say: Happy New Year, Happy Birthday.
Because her grandmother always celebrated her birthday like this.
But now, Yu He looked at the empty living room and then at WeChat. Qin Beiting had not replied.
She couldn't help but send another "peeking" sticker, but there was still no reply.
In her memory, the Qin family was very busy on New Year's Eve, but not so busy that they didn't even have time to check their phones.
Yu He felt a little gloomy and decided to go back to her room to assemble her laptop.
Three hours later.
A brand-new, high-end laptop was born under Yu He's delicate hands.
She went online, hid her network IP address, and quickly typed the address of the domestic hacker network into her browser. Upon entering, she logged in with the account that Shibānbān had newly registered for her.
Nickname: Not a Smurf
Level: Novice
Yu He: "..."
What kind of nickname is this, is it afraid people won't know it's a smurf?
Hacker network registration nicknames cannot be changed, so Yu He had to browse the forum with this nickname first, looking for any tasks to take to level up.
Probably because it was New Year's Eve, there weren't many new posts on the forum. The hottest post at the top was [This ultra-high-spec, portable laptop, you'll definitely be begging for it].
Yu He clicked on it, wondering what model and configuration it was.
A handwritten list of configurations appeared on the screen, with bold and flowing calligraphy. It was exactly the list she had given to Ye Zizheng.
Yu He: "..."
"Hmph hmph." At this moment, a little piggy holding a mobile phone jumped onto the desktop and "slapped" the phone onto her hand.
Yu He picked up the phone. The waist bar on the screen showed a new WeChat message.
She clicked on it. Qin Beiting, who had disappeared for a day, finally replied to her.
23:58
Ting Ge: [Baby, Happy New Year's Eve.]
Followed by a transfer:
Received transfer: 5201314.00 yuan, lucky money.
Yu He: "..."
Heh, men!
As soon as she clicked to confirm receipt, the other party's call immediately came through.
"Busy person, finally finished being busy?" Yu He answered the phone.
Qin Beiting, on the other end of the line, heard her sarcastic tone and said dotingly, "You missed me so much after only one day apart?"
"It's 24 hours and 59 minutes, almost 25 hours," Yu He glanced at the time on the computer screen.
Qin Beiting chuckled a couple of times, "Counting so precisely?"
Yu He: "..."
"Say it again."
"Say what?"
"Say you missed me, I want to hear it."
"..."
Yu He thought, if I say it, you won't suddenly appear, so who are you tormenting?
But her pink lips parted, and she said, "I missed you, Ting Ge."
At this moment, the time on the computer screen just jumped to midnight.
"Bang, bang, bang—"
Fireworks suddenly exploded outside the window, colorful and illuminating the entire night sky, a breathtaking sight.
Yu He walked out onto the balcony, the view even more expansive and stunning. Fireworks filled the sky, brilliant and dazzling, in a myriad of colors.
It wasn't that she had never seen fireworks before, but she had never seen such a grand fireworks display, as if the entire night sky was about to explode, lasting for a full ten minutes without stopping.
"Yu He, Happy Birthday..."
The sound of the fireworks was too loud, and Yu He didn't hear clearly, "What did you say? I didn't hear you."
At this moment, the sound of fireworks gradually subsided. The magnificent, colorful fireworks in the sky vanished like a fleeting moment, and the night sky darkened again, plunging the surroundings into silence.
"Open the door." A man's magnetic voice sounded in her ear.
Yu He's eyelashes trembled. Could it be he was really here?
She suddenly turned around to open the door.
However, the person she wanted to see was not outside the door.
Her mood felt like a roller coaster, her elevated spirits instantly plummeted to the depths.
On New Year's Eve, how could the Qin family let him leave?
"You lied to me..."
She lowered her eyes sadly, only then noticing that two trails of red rose petals had appeared on the carpet at some point.
The petals led from her doorstep along the corridor, directly towards the stairs.
She followed the petals downstairs to the living room, where they ended at a pair of white leather shoes.
Yu He's eyelashes fluttered upwards, and in her dark eyes, she saw the man's chiseled, handsome face.
Qin Beiting stood before her, holding a large bouquet of red roses. His handsome face was gentle, his thin lips curved upwards.
"Happy Birthday," he handed her the flowers, "Did you think I forgot your birthday?"
"You did it on purpose!" Yu He's heart surged, and she rushed forward, throwing her arms around him.
Qin Beiting held her tightly with one arm, deeply inhaling the faint scent of the girl to fill the longing of these past few days.
"Ahem, we've already eaten enough at the New Year's Eve dinner, can you stop feeding us dog food?" At this moment, Ye Zizheng's voice suddenly sounded.
Yu He came to her senses and let go of Qin Beiting, only then realizing that her family was all standing by.
The living room had somehow been decorated like a birthday party.
"Hehe, Happy Birthday," Cheng Lizhu pushed a delicate cake tower out of the kitchen, with eighteen candles on it.
"Happy birthday to you..." Ye Qichen led the singing of the birthday song and placed the birthday crown on Yu He's head.
Yu He looked at everyone, and a warmth surged through her, touching her softest spot. So they had all deliberately set this up.
They deliberately neglected her, and after she went back to her room, they secretly prepared this surprise for her.
Yu He clasped her hands together in front of her chest, made a wish, and blew out the candles.
"Here, your birthday gift," Ye Zizheng took a gift box from behind him and handed it to Yu He.
Afterward, Ye Qichen and Ye Jianming both gave Yu He share certificates, representing 10% of the company shares in Shixun and Ye's.
Cheng Lizhu took out a red property deed and handed it to her.
"You're going to study in Beijing next year. This apartment is a bit small, but at least it's better than a dorm."
Yu He: "..."
The housing prices in Beijing don't seem cheap!
"You're eighteen now, a young lady. You should study, and you should also date, but don't date carelessly," Grandma Ye exhorted earnestly.
Then, she took out a piece of red cloth, opened it, and inside was a silver bracelet.
It was a classic round silver bracelet, which didn't seem very valuable, but Ye Jianming and Cheng Lizhu both knew that it was the token of love that Old Master Ye had given to Grandma Ye back then.
Grandma Ye had always cherished it and never wore it.
She put the silver bracelet on Yu He's right wrist, then took Qin Beiting's left hand and placed their hands together.
"Master Qin Qi is quite good; we are all satisfied. In your young people's words: you two should get married right away."
Yu He: "..."
"Grandma, Sister has just become an adult, she's not of legal marriageable age yet!" Ye Qichen couldn't help but remind her.
Grandma Ye said, "In our time, eighteen-year-olds were already mothers of two children."
Ye Qichen was speechless.
After receiving her family's gifts one by one, Yu He looked at Qin Beiting, "Where's your gift?"