So I Am Happy Every Day

It was early December. The weather was clear, though the clouds were thick. There hadn't been much sun lately, and winter had fully set in.

Temperatures hovered around seven, eight, or nine degrees Celsius, dropping to five at the coldest. In this weather, even Shen Nian had to wear four layers of clothes.

There was only one day left until the so-called Coming of Age Ceremony. The school had already erected a modest wooden archway on the playground.

Good schools always put effort into these events; even the road outside the school gate was lined with event signboards and bunches of colorful balloons.

Although he really didn't want his dad to come, if his dad insisted, there was nothing Shen Nian could do about it.

After all, his mom had already attended the parent-teacher conference, and someone had to watch over the family farm.

Sigh, the Coming of Age Ceremony.

Today was Saturday. Shen Nian had breezed through the weekly tests in just three periods. As a "high-level adventurer," wasn't slaying "low-level monsters" a piece of cake?

He barely wanted to bother with a test of this difficulty. Aside from giving the long-answer questions a second glance, he could spot the answers for everything else instantly. He estimated a perfect score for himself.

During the last self-study period.

Xia Yanchun returned from the teacher's office with a stack of papers in her hand. "Quiet down, everyone, quiet down."

"Tomorrow is the Coming of Age Ceremony. The school is distributing two cafeteria meal vouchers to everyone. You can take your parents to eat in the cafeteria tomorrow. It's free if you have the voucher! If your parents can't make it, you can use them yourself!"

"There's a landline in the office. If you haven't confirmed whether your parents are coming, I suggest you go call them now. Those whose parents can't attend need to register with me, okay?"

After jabbering through the announcement, Xia Yanchun started handing out two vouchers to each person.

When she got to Shen Nian, Xia Yanchun slammed them onto his desk with a thud.

"?" Shen Nian looked at her with wide, confused eyes, already wondering if he had done something wrong.

Yet, he had been pretty well-behaved lately. Was asking for hugs and kisses in the hallway every night really such an excessive thing?

I reckon you didn't refuse me, either, he thought.

Shen Nian immediately shoved the two vouchers over to Ma Mingfan and Chen Dong.

The cafeteria food wasn't good anyway. Since his family was coming, he preferred to go out to a mall to eat; the cafeteria was just for show.

Xia Yanchun's parents might be interested in her daily dining environment, but his dad would just tell him to spend money on something good to eat.

If he didn't have money, he'd get a beating.

Actually, he'd get a beating even if he had money.

Shen Nian liked asking his mom for living expenses; he could get a full eight hundred yuan at once.

If he asked his dad, a fifty-yuan "processing fee" would be deducted.

When it came to "silent fatherly love," Shen Nian was moved to tears—of fear.

And here he was, being so filial. Sigh.

Lunch break.

Several students gathered around Xia Yanchun to register information for the ceremony, while Shen Nian had already rushed to the cafeteria with Chen Dong and Ma Mingfan to fight for chicken legs.

"You really are our Godfather, giving away your vouchers like that."

"Godfather! Godfather!"

Shen Nian grinned, showing his teeth. "Do you guys think I'll be a father in the future?"

Men had their dignity... Fortunately, Ma Mingfan was just an eighteen-year-old high school boy. "You'll definitely be a Sir Best Dad!"

"By the way, you two." Chen Dong shoveled a mouthful of rice. "Which one of you has money on WeChat?"

"What's up?"

"I'm out of money on WeChat. I want to trade some cash for digital balance. I'm too lazy to go to the convenience store to exchange it tomorrow."

"Sure. How much? I'll send it when I have a moment."

"Do you have eight hundred? It's for this month's living expenses."

"Guaranteed."

"I'll give it to you this afternoon."

Shen Nian made an OK sign.

High school students still mostly used cash for meal cards and the school store. Exchanging cash for WeChat credit, and vice versa, was a quintessential part of the high school experience. Every weekend, you could always see a few students going to the off-campus store to exchange money.

After dinner, just as Shen Nian entered the classroom, several girls were leaving in small groups.

He didn't see Xia Yanchun, so he looked inside. Sure enough, Xia Yanchun was still sitting at her desk, writing something in a notebook.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Shen Nian asked casually.

"I'm not hungry. I'll just have some snacks later."

"You have snacks?"

Xia Yanchun chuckled softly. "No, but you have them in your schoolbag."

"So, you've got your eyes on my snacks." Shen Nian pulled his bag back. "Did you ever consider that I might not give them to you?"

"What? Stingy ghost. Fine, I'll go buy food at the school store myself."

"Bring me a Pepsi, thanks."

"Do I know you that well? You have hands and feet, go buy it yourself." Xia Yanchun raised her chin, refusing to play along.

In other relationships, the guy had to buy gifts, take the girl out for big meals, provide emotional support, and wait on her hand and foot.

Shen Nian, on the other hand, was doing the opposite—extracting emotional value without spending a dime.

Even though they weren't officially dating, wasn't Shen Nian at least a little bit at fault?

No matter how you looked at it, Shen Nian was the one with the big problem.

Xia Yanchun was already preparing to sulk and make Shen Nian guess why. If he couldn't guess, she'd punish him by making him give her snacks. If he guessed right, she wouldn't admit it.

If he didn't guess? Punishment: give her snacks.

Her little combo move was all queued up.

"Fine, fine, you can have them. Look at you, acting like a little brat." Shen Nian scooped a handful of snack bags from his backpack and dumped them all onto Xia Yanchun's desk.

Potato chips, cat-ear crackers, spicy strips, spicy konjac snacks, purple rice buns—there was a bit of everything.

Since Shen Nian didn't take the bait, Xia Yanchun had to swallow her combo move. She huffed and puffed, thinking for a good while before speaking.

"At least you know what's good for you."

"Can't help it. Who asked us to be the best duo in the world? Eat the snacks freely."

"Who's the best duo in the world with you?"

"You are." Shen Nian lifted a lock of hair by her ear and tucked it behind her soft, tender ear.

Resting her feet comfortably on the bottom bar of the desk, Xia Yanchun narrowed her eyes, hiding the smile in her brows. She tore open a bag of tomato-flavored Lay's chips. Ignoring whether her hands were washed or not, she pinched a chip and popped it into her mouth.

It was sweet and sour, and her fingertips were stained with the seasoning powder. She glanced sideways at a certain someone who was smiling faintly, her little mouth chattering away.

"I'm not the 'best in the world' with you, you know."

"What do you think 'best in the world' looks like, then?"

Xia Yanchun looked up, tapping her fingertip against her lips in thought. "It must be when you're happiest."

"Are you not happy right now?"

"No. If you had an annoying person bothering you right next to you, you wouldn't be happy either."

Shen Nian leaned his head on Li Shiyan's stack of books and nodded.

"True. But I have someone I like bothering me right next to me, so I'm happy every single day."

The tips of her ears began to turn red. Chewing on her chips, Xia Yanchun felt her face heating up and kept her head low.

She tapped her feet joyfully. "I don't know who you're talking about."

"Take a guess."

"I don't know. You're not allowed to say it. Hush." Xia Yanchun pinched three or four chips and shoved them into Shen Nian's mouth.