Huan

This morning, after having breakfast, I went to work overtime with Huanhuan. I checked into a hotel nearby, planning to prepare some materials in the room. However, I ended up just gathering some information on my phone and lying in bed for a while. After Huanhuan finished her overtime, we chatted for a bit, and then her parents called us back for dinner. After eating, we went to the hospital to visit Fengxian, who is about to give birth. We originally wanted to buy flowers, but since it was quite late, we checked two shops but couldn’t find any. ...

I woke up at 5 AM this morning and bought the earliest ticket to Guiyang. After taking a shower, I had no appetite for breakfast. As soon as I arrived in Guiyang, I messaged my mentor. He was so excited that he came early to wait for me at the entrance of the office. When we met, I immediately gave Master Guo a big hug—haha, he seemed a little embarrassed. ...

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, we planned to go to Huanhuan’s maternal grandmother’s house. She had been inviting us to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival in Chengguan for a while. Huanhuan’s father went ahead first, while we took our time at home before heading over. We also carried a bag of rice that Huanhuan had received from her workplace. The second aunt was there too and prepared a big table full of delicious dishes for us. We went out to buy some fruit—lychees were particularly expensive at 10 yuan per pound, but they didn’t taste very good. We’ll have to buy fewer next time. We also bought a pineapple (I’ve always thought it was just another name for the same fruit). The vendor’s “Dubai knife skills” turned a whole large pineapple into just a tiny box of fruit. It might have been better to peel the pineapple ourselves during the family gathering—that way, we could have avoided sitting around with nothing to do but play on our phones. ...

This morning, I made lobster tail pasta, and it turned out pretty good. It’s just not as tasty as live crayfish, but it’s fine to have occasionally. After a short nap in the afternoon, we went to the seafood street and bought some oysters (¥3 each, opened on the spot) and clams (¥7 per pound—the vendor even threw out the bad ones). It was quite a good deal. Then we headed to the supermarket to pick up some side ingredients and seasonings. ...

A few days ago, my older brother went to Henan for a university classmate’s wedding. Yesterday afternoon, he called me to share what he had learned, mainly about the cost-effectiveness of studying abroad, the difficulties of studying overseas, the challenges of growing older, and the situation after returning to China. I was already aware of these things, but hearing him reiterate them made me even more anxious. Last night, when I video-called Huanhuan, I sensed she seemed a bit down. I asked her what was wrong, but she said it was nothing. ...

This morning, my mom called and told me to go to the sports center tomorrow morning to eat stewed goose. I really didn’t want to go, but my second aunt and my sister Lian kept nagging nonstop on the other end of the line, making it impossible to refuse. I quickly got up, cooked a bowl of noodles, and shared some with Xiaohuanhuan. Then, I prepared the materials for tomorrow’s qualification review while Huanhuan helped me wash the dishes and tidy up neatly. ...