NOVPUBIn Licheng Middle School, students, chatting and laughing, walked out of the campus, discussing where to go for the winter vacation, naturally including their group of six.
Lin Wanning was especially happy. Worried that her certificate might get damaged in her bag, she carefully rolled it up and held it in her hand, deftly avoiding shadows on the ground with her steps.
As they reached the school gate, Xu Qingfan called back the bouncing girl leading the way: "Wanning, come back for a sec."
"Coming~ What’s up, Brother Qingfan?" Lin Wanning trotted back to him.
"Time for a photo, come over here and stand." He pulled Lin Wanning next to Zhang Yiyi, then stepped forward to stand in front of the five.
"Oh, right, right!" She giggled, grabbing her best friend Zhang Yiyi’s wrist, posing with a girly scissor hand gesture.
Xu Qingfan opened the camera on his phone, and soon the screen showed a close-up of the six of them, his face appearing the largest since he was holding the camera.
"Xia Xiaoxiao, smile. Ruan Wen, tickle his armpit."
"Hehe, got it!"
"Stinky NaNi, what are you up to~"
"Xiaoxiao, you’re asking for it!"
All the faces in the frame beamed with smiles as Xu Qingfan pressed the volume key to take the photo, capturing a serene moment of their growth.
After taking several shots from different angles, he finally lowered his hand and said, "Alright, let’s go eat."
"Brother Fan, hurry and post them in the group."
As soon as Xu Qingfan uploaded all the photos, the sidewalk suddenly filled with five people looking down at their phones.
"Brother Qingfan, your face is so big, haha!"
"Goose goose goose~ It looks even bigger than Warm Sheep’s." Xiao Ruawen’s cross-referenced metaphor suddenly made the other four girls burst into laughter.
Xu Qingfan playfully tapped everyone on the head and glared, "Let’s see who else laughs, next time she’ll hold the phone for photos!"
"Hmm~" The girls covered their mouths, struggling to hold back their laughter, and turned away when they couldn’t help themselves so that Xu Qingfan wouldn’t see.
"Caught you, Xia Xiaoxiao is still laughing, next time you stand in front for the photo."
"I wasn’t!" The girl couldn’t laugh anymore. She put her hands on her hips and retorted, "I was just thinking of something happy!"
"I’m not listening, nonsense!" Xu Qingfan turned and walked away, the other four morosely followed, smiling cheekily.
"Stinky Xu Qingfan, halt!" Xia Xiaoxiao stood sullenly for a few seconds before scrambling to catch up with the others who had moved ahead five or six meters.
"It was me who laughed at Brother Fan first, I’ll stand in front next time." Xiao Ruawen said to everyone after Xia Xiaoxiao rejoined the group.
"Or I’ll do it; it was me who said Brother Qingfan’s face was big first, sorry Brother Qingfan." Seeing this, Lin Wanning spoke up as well.
"I’ll take it, I’ve never held it for photos before." Wu Lingyu chimed in.
Zhang Yiyi said nothing, jogging forward to the front of the group, then pulled out her phone and took a photo when all six were on the screen.
"Alright, enough with the modesty, next time I’ll take it and make sure you all look beautiful." Xu Qingfan couldn’t wrap his head around the girls’ quick shifts, just a moment ago they were all avoiding it, now they were all being so yielding.
"Hmph~ No need, I’ll do it, just to take your ugly photos!" Xia Xiaoxiao gave him a sideways glance, her eyes gleaming as she glared at him.
"Damn, Xia Xiaoxiao, be a person!"
"Hahaha!"
It wasn’t long before the group split into five girls walking ahead, while he followed like a professional guardian.
Just then, as they were chatting and laughing, Xu Qingfan suddenly thought of an item that had been extremely popular in his previous life—a selfie stick.
It looked like a simple stick, but it represented a market worth tens of billions nationwide each year.
Selling selfie sticks was obviously a short-term solution, but Xu Qingfan’s plan was to spend some time developing one and then apply for a patent first.
The rapid expansion of Good Taste Takeout had been sustained by steady revenue from duck neck shops and milk tea shops, but future investments in e-commerce and short videos would all require money, so finding a new way to make money was urgent.
Xu Qingfan felt that licensing the patent to major mobile phone manufacturers would easily achieve his modest annual financial goals.
As for making money from Bitcoin, that would be a matter for 2013 or 2014, so it was pointless to think about it now.
[I should talk to Aunt Zhang sometime, it’s been a while since I last gave her a massage.] He thought to himself, his pace unconsciously slowing down.
"Brother Qing Fan, why are you lagging further and further behind, duck!" Lin Wanning would look back at Xu Qingfan every so often, and seeing that he was falling farther behind, she called out loudly to remind him.
"Oh, coming!"
Xu Qingfan ran forward, and the girls turned around to wait for him.
"Hehe~ Brother Fan, you weren’t thinking of sneaking off without treating us, were you? I can pay too, you know."
"You talk too much, I’ll treat you all to a feast, let’s go." He playfully tapped Xiao Ruawen on the head and squeezed into the middle of the group.
It had only been a few months, but his height had once again reached a "bulging" state, thanks in no small part to the double-layer insoles he was wearing.
"Winter break officially starts now, cheers everyone!" 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
"Cheers!!!"
The six of them held their plum juice high above their heads and said in unison.
.....
The arrival of the winter break also signified the complete passing of an unforgettable 2009.
The year 2009 was just as exciting compared to 2008.
Love Apartment aired for the first time this year, Meteor Shower and Immortal Sword Heroes III became the two most discussed TV shows among middle school students.
The love story of Jingtian and Xuejian moved countless people to tears, and young couples started to affectionately call each other "Pighead," and the phrase "What you see when you look up is not the clouds, but the sky" became the personal signature of many.
Of course, there was also the classic, "Firstly, I am not being haughty, I am just angry…"
The hottest post of the year was ’Jia Junpeng, your mom is calling you home for dinner,’ and fighting for parking spaces and playing QQ Farm were pastimes for countless people after meals.
Nokia’s N97 was the last highlight of the Symbian system, and the Meizu M8 was the first domestically produced smart phone launched.
In sports, Jamaica’s lightning Bolt set record-breaking speeds, and Barcelona was crowned with a six-championship title.
Girls’ Generation’s catchy song "Gee" and Murong Xiaoxiao’s "Love Trading" were the most played songs in every street corner.
Xu Song’s new album "Self-defined" was released this year, marking the beginning of a new era.
In Super Girl, Zeng Yike’s "Lion" became explosively popular amid controversy.
This year, the successful moon landing of Chang’e-1, the smooth completion of the Kunlun Station, and the full operation of the Harmony high-speed trains were notable achievements.
And most importantly, the 60th anniversary celebrations of our motherland!
Time flies swiftly by, in the blink of an eye.
Pack a piece of your memory, sealed in this unforgettable year of 2009...
