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There weren't many internet cafes still open on New Year's Eve, and Chen Dong and his friends walked several streets before finding one.

Chen Yuan turned on four computers and a pack of cigarettes, familiarly opened them, took out two cigarettes, and handed one to Chen Dong.

"I've quit." Chen Dong smiled slightly and declined the cigarette Chen Yuan offered.

"Wow, you actually managed to quit this stuff?"

Chen Yuan looked at Chen Dong with surprise and said something meaningful, "I really doubt if you're my brother."

Huang Mao cut his hair whenever he wanted, studied whenever he wanted, and his grades skyrocketed to their peak. Now he can even quit his favorite cigarettes.

Is this still the younger brother he knows?

Where did that cool buddy with blond hair, smoking a cigarette with one hand, and that awesome lung-bursting style go?

"Brother, why don't you quit too? What's so great about smoking? It's choking." Chen Lin looked at Chen Dong with surprise, then at Chen Yuan.

"Quit?"

Chen Yuan scoffed, flicked his wrist to precisely bite down on a cigarette, lit it with a snap, took a deep drag, and skillfully exhaled a ring of smoke, saying with relish:

"Tobacco is the king of herbs; the more you smoke, the longer you live."

This one is clearly an old-fashioned chimney, unlike Liu Yumo who would only sneak a cigarette during breaks at school, so quitting would be easy for him.

"I might only be able to quit when I follow the doctor's orders," Chen Dong joked.

Chen Yuan didn't care about that. He was young and didn't understand the future. Or rather, it wasn't that he didn't understand, since the cigarette packs said that smoking was harmful to his health. He just hadn't reached the point where he understood it yet.

"Don't say anything unlucky during the New Year. Come on, let's play a few games." Chen Yuan put down his cigarette and lighter and invited everyone to play games.

Boys and girls play different games, but there's one game that boys find very interesting and that girls also play quite a bit of: go-karting.

For Chen Dong, this is a game full of nostalgia and memories, but it was most popular in this era.

It's loved by countless boys and girls.

Chen Yuan skillfully set up a room and invited his friends. Chen Dong wasn't particularly interested in the game, but he couldn't resist the enthusiasm of the others and had to play a few rounds.

"Wow, bro, you're pretty good. Your skills have improved, but you're still a little bit behind me."

"Who threw that banana?"

"Damn it, just you wait!"

Chen Yuan is a rather extroverted person. He kept talking while playing the game, and Chen Lin and Zhang Mengjin responded, creating a burst of laughter.

They're all regulars at internet cafes. These days, it's not just bad students who skip class to go to internet cafes; good students are just as curious about the internet.

It's estimated that only children in Ye Wanwan's kind of environment would have difficulty accessing these things.

Speaking of Ye Wanwan, Chen Dong missed her a little. It was a pity that the silly girl didn't have a phone at home, and it wasn't a good time to call the village chief at this hour.

"You guys play, I'll play something else." After playing a few rounds of go-karting, Chen Dong exited the page.

"What games do you play?" Chen Yuan asked curiously.

"What I'm doing is something you can't do," Chen Dong said with a mysterious smile.

"Tch, I admit my grades are worse than yours, I can't bear to cut my cool hair, and I don't have your willpower to quit smoking, but when it comes to games, you'll always be the underdog," Chen Yuan said confidently.

Chen Dong logged into QQ, then opened a blank document and typed a few words: Winter Vacation Composition.

"Want to come and play?" he asked, pointing to the title.

Chen Yuan immediately backed down and gave Chen Dong a thumbs up.

"You're awesome, you're amazing. You keep playing, I'm going to play some Legend of Mir."

Chen Lin and Zhang Mengjin were speechless when they saw the title. On New Year's Eve, what kid would go to an internet cafe to practice writing essays? No wonder Dong Ge's grades improved so quickly; his fighting spirit is beyond words.

They didn't have that kind of perseverance, so they quit go-karting and started playing Audition Online.

Chen Dong smiled without explaining. Of course, he wasn't writing an essay; he just wanted to use this time to write something, but he didn't want them to know.

"Crackling and popping."

The keyboard was filled with the rhythm of the dance moves. Chen Lin and Zhang Mengjin kept typing, their fingertips flying, their speed no slower than Chen Dong's.

"Cough cough~"

Just as Chen Dong was engrossed in writing, the penguin icon in the lower right corner started popping up; it was a message from Han Ning'er.

"What are you doing?"

A smile appeared on Chen Dong's lips. "At an internet cafe."

Han Ning'er: "???"

Chen Dong: "I'm really at an internet cafe. My cousin and two younger cousins ​​are there too. We came out to hang out for a while after dinner. What about you? Are you at your grandparents' house?"

Han Ning'er: "Yeah, they're still drinking. I'm getting a little bored, and then I saw you came online on QQ."

Chen Dong glanced at the time; it was only eight o'clock.

How about we call Ning'er over to play for a while?

But after thinking about it, he decided against it and typed in response, "Who's here tonight? Not a single friend?"

Han Ning'er: "It's just my grandparents and my dad. In the past, a few of my uncles' families would come over, but they haven't come in recent years. They have to wait a few days before they come back."

Chen Dong could roughly understand what was going on.

After all, given Wu Jie's status, it's inevitable that her relatives and friends would make requests. However, Wu Jie has her bottom line, and over time, some relatives have started to have opinions about her.

He asked tentatively, "Where's your mother?"

After sending the message, there was a long silence on the other end.

"She's still busy."

The four simple words seemed calm, but Han Ning'er's silence made it easy to guess that there was some emotion behind them.

Chen Dong sighed softly to himself.

He believed that Han Jiancheng must have contacted Wu Jie, which was why he hadn't invited Han Ning'er over. He trusted that Wu Jie would definitely return when she had time.

However, the nature of the job sometimes leaves one with little choice.

After hesitating for a moment, Chen Dong continued to edit and send the message: "When we came out just now, there were hardly any people on the streets, and most of the shops were closed. We walked several streets before we found an internet cafe."

Han Ning'er: "Hehe, it's New Year's Eve, everyone wants to be with their family, who would want to go out for no reason?"

Chen Dong: "Yes, on New Year's Eve, everyone wants to reunite with their family. If given the choice, who wouldn't want to spend time with their family? Being busy outside at this time is actually quite lonely."

When a family reunites but one person is missing, isn't that person also experiencing loneliness?

Han Ning'er was very smart, and besides, Chen Dong's words weren't too subtle, so she naturally understood what he meant.

She just didn't bring up that topic.

Chen Dong didn't say much.

The two chatted about other topics.

"She's back, I'll talk to you later, Dong-ge." Han Ning'er suddenly sent this message, and Chen Dong's smile widened as he replied with an "okay".

Close the window and continue typing.

……

At ten o'clock, Zeng Ling called and told them to go back.

Chen Dong had just finished writing two chapters when Chen Lin and Zhang Mengjin turned off the game. They weren't addicted to the internet; they only went online occasionally as a way to balance work and rest.

Chen Yuan is different. He's having a great time right now, but his father is definitely unhappy about the stark contrast Chen Dong has brought, so he doesn't dare to be too unrestrained.

Reluctantly, I shut down my computer and went back.

"Mengjin, do you want to sleep at your grandparents' place tonight, or go to your second uncle's place? Your eldest uncle and his family are coming over," Chen Zhenying asked Zhang Mengjin.

The apartment in Xingfu Community is old and dilapidated, with only two bedrooms. When Zhang Yanqing was very young, he could squeeze into one bed with his wife and daughter. When Zhang Mengjin got a little older, she could squeeze in with her mother and grandmother.

But now that he's a high school student, he already has his own space, and he probably won't be used to squeezing in with his mom and grandma anymore.

"I'm going to my second uncle's place to sleep with Sister Lin," Zhang Mengjin said.

"Alright, let's see what we need to bring. Go over and rest early, we'll come back tomorrow," Chen Zhenying readily agreed and reminded him.

Chen Zhennan and his family of four packed some things and prepared to go to Chen Zhenjiang's place.

"Dad, Mom, little sister, brother-in-law, we'll head over now. You all get some rest." Chen Zhenjiang and the others said goodbye and prepared to leave.

"Okay, drive carefully, and get some rest when you get back," Chen Fumin and the others replied with smiles.

They escorted them downstairs, and Qiu Shuying and Chen Zhenying took out several red envelopes from somewhere and handed them out to Chen Dong and the other younger members of the family.

Zeng Ling and Lin Yuxian were also prepared.

New Year's money is a perennial benefit, and Chen Dong and his friends always accept it without hesitation, happily pocketing it.

"Have you driven yet?"

After Chen Fumin and the others went upstairs, Chen Zhennan took out the car keys and handed them to Lin Yuxian, while looking at Chen Zhenjiang.

"No, I drank alcohol at noon, and Ling'er didn't bring her driver's license," Chen Zhenjiang shook his head.

Although Chen Zhennan had also been drinking, Lin Yuxian knew how to drive, but a small car couldn't possibly fit eight people. Let alone traffic laws, it simply wouldn't be able to fit them all.

"We'll take a taxi, you guys go ahead," Chen Zhenjiang gestured for them to leave first.

"Okay, Mengjin, come with us. We can give you one more ride." Chen Zhennan nodded and waved to Zhang Mengjin.

The five people set off in one car, and Chen Dong and the others hailed a taxi at the street corner.

Luckily, there was a car right at the street corner, and Chen Zhennan and the others arrived one after the other.

Do you take a shower?

As Zeng Ling opened the door and entered the house, she asked while taking out her slippers.

"They all came back after taking a shower," Lin Yuxian said with a smile.

Visiting relatives is actually a very tiring thing. We should try to minimize unnecessary trouble. Fortunately, we don't need to shower every day in winter. Taking a shower before going out and staying for two or three days is just right before returning home.

"Son, Xiaoyuan will sleep with you tonight, and your uncle and the others will sleep downstairs." Zeng Ling said after getting the slippers and arranging for the night's rest.

Although this is a duplex, it only has four bedrooms. Chen Zhenjiang and Zeng Ling sleep in one room, Chen Zhennan and Lin Yuxian sleep in another, Chen Lin and Zhang Mengjin need one room, and Chen Yuan can only sleep in the same room as Chen Dong.

"Okay." Chen Dong had no problem.

Although Zhang Mengjin used to sleep at his grandparents' house, his uncle's family had the father taking care of the son and the mother taking care of the daughter, so his bedroom was undisturbed.

But he wasn't the kind of person who was particular or had a cleanliness obsession, and he was definitely not one to "give".

"Brother, would you like some more tea?"

Zeng Ling took out a paper cup to prepare tea.

"Are you still keeping watch?" Chen Zhennan asked instead of answering directly.

"Keep it; we can't lose this long-standing tradition," Chen Zhenjiang said with a smile.

"Let's have some tea and watch the Spring Festival Gala," Chen Zhennan said with a smile.

"Old Chen, you make some tea. I'll go boil some water so everyone can wash up and soak their feet first," Zeng Ling called to Chen Zhenjiang.

Washing your face and soaking your feet feels so good.

Chen Dong and the others didn't keep watch; they went back to their bedrooms after washing up.