A Toast to Friendship

The once bustling Yudong secondhand market was deserted today, the shops quiet and the streets nearly empty. The three of them moved from Section A to Section B, passing countless shopkeepers inviting them in along the way.

Though it was called a secondhand market, some stores also sold small-brand new home appliances at prices lower than those in department stores. But Li An had a clear purpose for this trip. He walked through Section B into Section C, where a damp, woody scent greeted them.

When it came to buying a bed, his only requirement was to get the largest one possible within his price range, as long as the quality was decent. For him, a bed was nothing more than a place to sleep.

After browsing three shops, Li An settled on his target: a 1.5 by 2 meter composite plywood bed, without a mattress, for which the owner was asking 240.

“Li An, I think that 2 by 1.8 meter one we saw earlier was pretty good, and it even had a soft headboard—340 is a fair price,” Ma Tao suggested, believing they could bargain it down to 300.

“There’s no need,” Li An replied. He didn’t care for an extra headboard, so he took the other two back to the first shop and immediately began haggling as soon as they entered.

“Boss, this set of table and chairs,” Li An said, tapping the plywood table with his left hand, “plus that bed and the cabinet from earlier—300 for all three.”

Xu Hongxin, standing nearby, immediately turned away and pretended to examine another table, too embarrassed to look at the owner.

The bed was priced at 260, the table and chairs at 130, and the cabinet at 120. He’d never seen anyone bargain like this before.

But the owner, experienced after more than twenty years in business, was unfazed. With a smile, he launched into his usual tales of hardship. After a round of bargaining, Li An managed to secure all three items for 300.

Ma Tao was left dumbfounded.

Delivery cost extra, as had been agreed at the start: 30 to bring it downstairs, an additional 20 if there was an elevator, or 50 without. With two friends to help, Li An naturally chose the first option.

After leaving his address, Li An paid the owner 330, ending up with seventy left over from his budget. If not for the bad weather keeping customers away, the owner probably wouldn’t have let all three items go for less than 350 or 360.

An hour later, the three of them carried everything into the apartment.

“Where’s Xuan?” Ma Tao asked.

“She probably went back to rest,” Li An replied. “We’ll call her when it’s time to eat. Are you two free tonight?”

Both shook their heads.

Li An was mainly concerned about Xu Hongxin, who had a girlfriend—helping out for two days in a row might cause problems.

“Why don’t you invite your girlfriend to join us tonight?” he suggested.

Xu Hongxin waved him off. “We agreed the first gathering at the office would just be the four of us. Next time.”

Seeing this, Li An dropped the subject. “Alright, you two can take a break. I’ll handle the rest myself.”

Xu Hongxin, who’d long been eyeing Li An’s computer, piped up, “Let me help you set up your computer. Which room should it go in?”

“The living room, just against a wall,” Li An replied.

“Got it,” Xu Hongxin said.

“Li An, is it okay to smoke in here?” Ma Tao asked.

“Smoke as much as you want,” Li An said, returning to his tasks.

He organized his clothes into the wardrobe, made the bed, set the fan by the headboard, arranged toiletries in the bathroom, and cleaned the kitchenware. The rest of the odds and ends he left in the kitchen for now.

Another hour passed. Li An wiped the water from his hands and walked over to where the two were playing on the computer.

“How much did you spend on this setup?” Xu Hongxin asked.

Li An thought back. The original owner had spent almost twenty thousand on it.

A thought occurred to him—why couldn’t he sell the computer? He’d never considered it before, maybe because the previous owner had been so attached to it. But it seemed feasible; he could probably get three to five thousand for it.

He hadn’t expected moving to bring him an unexpected windfall.

“Less than twenty thousand,” Li An said, glossing over the subject. It was already past five; time for dinner.

“I’ll go get Chen Xuan.”

He walked over to apartment 2502 and knocked on the door. No response. After knocking again with no answer, he returned to 2501 and called her.

Five minutes later, Chen Xuan returned, looking much more refreshed.

The four of them were debating between hot pot and Xiao Long Kan for dinner when a sudden gale rattled the windows, rain pounding on the glass.

Li An glanced out and saw the books at the entrance of the Yudong office building nearly blown over. He cursed his luck.

“Perfect!” Xu Hongxin clapped. “Just the weather for a housewarming hot pot.”

Ma Tao agreed. “Nothing better than hot pot on a rainy night.”

Li An saw everyone was set on the idea.

“Let’s eat at home,” Chen Xuan suggested again.

With three expectant faces turned toward him, Li An waved his hand. “Let’s do it.”

They sprang into action. Li An went downstairs to buy ingredients, Xu Hongxin went for drinks, Ma Tao tidied the table, and Chen Xuan brought usable food from her fridge and began arranging plates.

Twenty minutes later, Xu Hongxin came back with two cases of beer. “If this isn’t enough, I’ll go get more.”

Ma Tao looked worried. “Can we really drink all that?”

Xu Hongxin grinned. “Li An said he’s definitely going to drink with you tonight.”

Thirty minutes later, Li An returned with two large bags of groceries and joined Chen Xuan in the kitchen.

“Give me the knife; you go wash the cabbage,” he said.

“Isn’t this baby bok choy?”

“Then wash the baby bok choy.”

“Alright.”

After a flurry of activity, the four of them gathered around the bubbling, spicy hot pot, raising their glasses together.

“First, congratulations to Li An on moving. And also, after much hardship, we finally have four people in our west office. As this is our first gathering here, let me just say, I’m truly happy to know you all,” Xu Hongxin began.

Ma Tao, a bit emotional, took over. “I’m not good with words, but I’m happy today. Whatever happens in the future, just call me anytime and I’ll be there.”

Chen Xuan’s turn came. Unaccustomed to such occasions, she struggled to find the words, but at that moment, her true feelings were clear: “Coming to Rong City was the best decision I’ve ever made. Thank you all for your help and kindness.”

She felt a weight lift off her chest. She’d wanted to say thank you to her colleagues for a long time.

Li An smiled. “If there’s any thanks to be given, it should be from me to you. You’ve saved me at least five or six hundred in labor these past two days.”

“I’ll drink to that.”

He downed his glass in one go and refilled it.

A brief silence fell.

“In the future, some may come, some may go. But I hope that no matter what, the four of us will always remain friends. Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

“Cheers!”

“Let’s eat, I’m starving,” someone said.

None of them had eaten a proper meal in days. Now, seated around the fragrant, spicy hot pot, even Chen Xuan found her appetite rekindled, and everyone dug in.

“Ma Tao, put on some music from the computer. Let’s get the atmosphere going.”

“What do you want to hear?”

“Anything, just pick something from Li An’s playlist.”

Ma Tao, paralyzed by indecision, scanned the list and randomly clicked on a playlist with a name he didn’t recognize.

Melancholy piano music, like the background of a heartbroken heroine in a TV drama, flowed from the speakers.

Xu Hongxin teased, “I never would’ve guessed, Li An.”