Chapter 289: Our Objective Is To Oppress All Single Dogs! (1)

Once they were lit, the fireworks sparked for a brief moment before surging upwards. With a bang, they burst apart, and brightly coloured rays of light blossomed in the sky. The people on the ground were enraptured by the sight, tilting their heads upwards in wonderment to take in the view. When the fireworks exploded, the light of the resulting blaze was cast across their faces, rendering them hazy and indistinct for the briefest of moments before it passed.

Zhao Chengning heard a quiet sigh of admiration from his side and turned his head to look.

A slender person stood beside him. When they looked up, he was greeted with a small yet dazzlingly beautiful face. Her bright red lips were slightly parted, lending them an air of allurement. Her eyes were single-mindedly focused upwards, and the sight of the fireworks exploding in the sky could be seen reflected in them. At that moment, those fireworks looked like stars falling into her eyes.

In the cold night air, her breath was visibly condensing.

When Zhao Chengan arrived, Shen Jingchen quietly dragged him off to some other spot, leaving the couple by themselves.

Zhao Chengning discreetly reached for Shen Jingbin's hand and gently rubbed it.

"Mm?" Shen Jingbin looked at him curiously.

Zhao Chengning didn't say anything in reply, opting instead to lean down to her lips and allow his warm breath to brush at her face. Shen Jingbin was briefly startled, but calmed herself down the next moment and accepted his intimacy.

"Bang!"

Another firework exploded in the night sky; it’s scarlet red blaze lighting its surroundings to a vermilion hue.

"F*ck."

Zhao Chengan was watching the fireworks he'd bought being lit up when he heard a man beside him curse in a low voice. He looked curiously down at the man and asked, "What's wrong?"

Shen Jingchen had a constipated look on his face as he motioned to his side.

Zhao Chengan looked over, and under the brilliant glow of the fireworks, a man and a woman were sharing an intimate kiss. You didn't even have to be close to them to tell just how compatible these two were.

"Oh my god, aren't these two being a little too brazen? They're actually doing it in such a public place! I'm going to call the police!" Shen Jingchen went on and on like a broken record while glaring hatefully at the two of them.

Zhao Chengan's expressionless face displayed a rare moment of warmth. He patted the shoulder of the man beside him and said, "It's normal for young people to act like this. Just relax and act like you didn't see anything."

"…" Shen Jingchen turned his head away and shook his fist at the sky.

Being a single dog really! Isn't! Easy! Please treat your friends nicely if they're single dogs too!

There was still a bit of time before midnight when they finished setting off all the fireworks. After mulling over what to do next, the four of them decided to head home and play some mahjong. Shen Jingbin's run of good luck seemed to have continued even outside of the game. She'd been winning right from the very beginning. On the other hand, Shen Jingchen was howling in anguish throughout their entire play session because he was the only person who hadn't won even a single time.

Grandma Shen came knocking at the door when it was almost midnight. "It's nearly midnight; let's go watch the countdown."

Although Shen Jingbin didn't like watching the New Year Celebrations, she didn't mind the countdown.

The four of them grunted in acknowledgement and finished up their round before going over to the living room to wait for the countdown.

"There's only another ten seconds left before we usher in the year of 201x. Let's all count down to the New Year!"

"10, 9, 8, 7…" A dignified-looking presenter on China Central Television was brimming with smiles as he started counting down.

Shen Jingbin silently began to count down as well.

When the count reached 1, almost as if it'd been decided upon beforehand, firecrackers and fireworks began to go off from all around. Looking out the French window to her left, Shen Jingbin found that the jet-black night sky was now lit up with the same intensity that it had been during the day. Flashes of all shapes and sizes could be seen lighting up the sky in succession.

"Happy New Year."

Shen Jingbin suddenly felt a gust of warm air beside her ear and found that Zhao Chengning had taken her into his arms. His head was slightly tilted towards her, and he was staring at her with single-minded concentration. When she looked into his eyes, she could see that there was nothing but affection for her.

"Happy New Year to you too," Shen Jingbin replied with a smile. Noticing that everyone's attention was elsewhere, she worked up her courage to bring herself upwards and planted a kiss on his lips.

Zhao Chengning gave her a satisfied rub on the head.

Once the countdown was over, the old timers didn't force themselves any further and retired to bed. Shen Jingbin and company were also tired after a night of playing around, and they had an early morning the next day, so they too decided to go to bed.

As she wasn't used to sleeping in a different bed, Shen Jingbin woke up a little earlier than she usually did. After washing up, she was walking down to the first floor when she found that her Grandfather and his buddies were already up and chatting in the living room.

Shen Jingbin was in the midst of wishing them a happy New Year with a smile on her face when she unexpectedly received two thick red packets from Old Master Zhao and Old Master Xie. OId Master Zhao's red packet, in particular, was especially thick. She secretly weighed it, thinking that it might be a little too heavy.

After lunch, the Shen family said their farewells and left. Papa and Mama Shen were both busy people, and they'd reached the limit on the amount of time that they could spend in B City. They headed back to their apartment and packed up their belongings before preparing to return to A City that night.

Papa and Mama Shen had initially planned on coming to B City to spend time with their children. At the same time – mm, that's right – they'd have a look at the youngster that had forced them to play matchmaker, and that Old Master Shen had said was very 'compatible' with their daughter.

Since they had nothing to do in B City, Grandpa and Grandma Shen decided to follow the siblings' parents back as well. When they reached the apartment, their elders nagged them for a bit before they packed up and left.

Papa Shen was the last to leave. His glanced back at his daughter several times before he said in a voice that was filled with hidden bitterness, "Young maiden, you must remember to exercise restraint and control yourself. I don't wish to be a Grandfather so soon."

Shen Jingbin was utterly gobsmacked!

Papa Shen then said in a small voice, "I saw everything that happened last night in the living room."

Suddenly, Shen Jingchen's head popped out from behind the door. "I saw it too!"

Following that, the two of them stared at Shen Jingbin like they'd been wronged.

Shen Jingbin felt as if a mountain was weighing her down.

Do the two of you have eyes on the back of your heads when it comes to romance? Why the hell are you eyeing me all day for?!

Papa Shen and Shen Jingchen: This is our way of showing our love and concern for you!

Shen Jingbin: Hah.