Chapter 24

Xiaofei also took the opportunity to get a haircut, opting for a 3-7 part. After looking in the mirror, he instantly felt that his originally plain face had become a bit more handsome.

Xiaoyang also finished his haircut, with the same 3-7 part. In this era, various parts were very popular, and yes, there were also half-long messy hair and long enough hair for men to tie into a braid.

This was an era where individuality began to flourish in various ways.

Xiaoyang looked at himself in the mirror for a long time, completely entranced.

He probably didn't even recognize his drastically changed appearance anymore.

The two brothers, looking handsome and smelling fresh, came out of the barbershop. Even though the sun was scorching, their spirits were high. Xiaoyang, who used to walk with his head down and eyes darting around, now held his head high, looking around confidently.

It was already 11:30 in the morning.

Having left home early in the morning, traveled a long distance, and wandered around for half a day, both of them were a bit hungry.

Xiaoyang said, "Fei, let's go home?"

"No rush, brother. Let's go to one more place," Xiaofei didn't plan to ride back home on an empty stomach after a fifty-mile trip.

He thought, since it was not easy to come to the county town, they should visit Wu Aizhen.

They could also have a meal in the county town.

The article for the Z City Evening News had been sent out for several days. If everything went well, it might have been published already.

The Z City Evening News was a party newspaper and a metropolitan newspaper, very famous in H Province, with good distribution. There were retail points in Heyang County.

The book and newspaper stand where Wu Aizhen worked was the retail point for the Z City Evening News in the county.

The two brothers rode their bikes to the cross street in the county town and found the book and newspaper stand.

Wu Aizhen was both surprised and delighted to see Xiaofei. "Oh! Xiaofei, you came to the city. I was just looking for you. If you hadn't come today, I planned to visit your home tomorrow afternoon after my shift."

Xiaoyang stood next to Xiaofei, winking at his brother with a teasing look. He hadn't expected that his brother seemed to be quite familiar with this pretty girl.

There must be some gossip!

Could it be that Xiaofei had a girlfriend?

This would be big news. Their parents would be very happy to know. Yes! It would be great to show this to Wang Guizhi, that cheap woman. My family's second son has found such a beautiful wife, how capable!

Our family's brothers couldn't possibly both end up as bachelors.

Xiaoyang felt a sense of relief.

Seeing his brother's expression, Xiaofei knew he had misunderstood.

Bringing him here today was a mistake.

He would explain it to him later.

Hearing Wu Aizhen's words, Xiaofei's heart beat a little faster. Was the article published? She had said that if she saw his work published, she would keep a copy or even send it to his home.

"What's the matter, Wu Aizhen? Is there something urgent?" Xiaofei asked with a smile.

Wu Aizhen bent down and took out a newspaper, handing it to Xiaofei. "Your article is in today's Z City Evening News. It's called 'Chicken Soup for the Soul or Spiritual Opium.' Look, there's a small introduction about you below the article. It shouldn't be someone else with the same name, right?"

Xiaofei took the newspaper.

At that time, newspapers were not as thick as they were in the future, with fewer advertisements. Today's Z City Evening News only had 16 pages.

He skillfully flipped to the Baihuatai supplement section and took a careful look.

Sure enough, his article was prominently featured at the top of the page, with a bold and large title, very eye-catching. Moreover, there were four words in the upper left corner that made Xiaofei even more excited.

Those words were: "Xiaofei Column!"

It was actually a column!

Liu Zelai had done a great job, quietly setting up a column for him and publishing the article quickly. According to Xiaofei's estimate, it took three days for his submission to reach the Z City Evening News office, and it had only been six days since then.

This meant that Liu Zelai had immediately recommended his article to the leadership and applied for a column for him, then launched it grandly the next day.

This moved Xiaofei deeply.

In the late 1990s, it was still quite difficult to set up a column in a newspaper supplement, even for famous writers.

After all, the space was limited, and there were too many famous writers contributing to the supplement, making the space very tight.

He was just a 19-year-old boy, and it was his first submission to the Z City Evening News. Getting published was already good, and having a column was a great favor.

In his previous life, Liu Zelai had always been very supportive of Xiaofei.

Xiaofei's first newspaper column was also set up by him.

Liu Zelai was a truly good person.

This friendship needed to be maintained.

Moreover, Xiaofei had other more ambitious plans, and Liu Zelai was a good partner.

He thought that he should visit him in the provincial capital in the near future.

The article had been published, but he didn't know what kind of impact the series of ten articles would have domestically. Would it fail to cause any reaction at all?

After all, his anti-chicken-soup argument was a bit too advanced.

People at that time didn't have so many negative views on chicken soup.

If there was no reaction, Xiaofei would be disappointed. Without debate, there would be no sensation, and being ignored by public opinion would mean that his goal of stirring up a storm and gaining fame and fortune would be in vain.

"What's the matter? Fei, is your article published?" Xiaoyang stretched his neck to look at the newspaper in Xiaofei's hand.

He saw that there was an article with Xiaofei's name under the title.

Xiaoyang was delighted. "Congratulations, Fei! You'll get another payment. How much will this article earn you?"

Xiaofei rolled his eyes. He was just moved, and Xiaoyang asked such a vulgar question. But he still answered, "Not much, probably just 50 yuan."

"Oh, only 50? That's so little?" Having been洗礼 by the 3000 yuan he earned from selling turtles, Xiaoyang's standards had risen, and he looked down on the small 50 yuan payment.

"This brother, 50 yuan is not little. My monthly salary is only 300 yuan," Wu Aizhen said with a smile.

Xiaofei then realized he hadn't introduced his brother to Wu Aizhen.

"Brother, this is a friend of mine, Wu Aizhen. Aizhen has always been very kind to me."

"Wu Aizhen, this is my brother, Xiaoyang."

He introduced them, and a thought suddenly came to him. If he could match his brother with Wu Aizhen, it would remove a burden from his heart.

Seeing that it was almost noon, Xiaofei invited Wu Aizhen to have a meal, but she had to watch the stand and couldn't leave. So, Xiaofei bought some fruits and snacks nearby and asked his brother Xiaoyang to deliver them to Wu Aizhen, hoping to create an opportunity for them to spend time together.

Unfortunately, his brother soon returned, looking dejected.

"She refused to accept them, very firmly," Xiaoyang said.

"Oh?" Xiaofei blinked. "What did you say to her?"

Xiaoyang scratched his head. "I said it was my way of showing gratitude for her taking care of you, but she didn't look happy."

Xiaofei was frustrated and had to buy an ice cream and go back himself with the things he had bought.

Wu Aizhen smiled mischievously when she saw Xiaofei. "I know what you're up to. You want to introduce your brother to me, right?"

Her words were too direct.

Xiaofei didn't know how to respond and could only laugh awkwardly.

"My brother is quite handsome."

"But I'm not interested in him. What can I do? You can't force me to like him just because he's your brother," Wu Aizhen looked at Xiaofei with her expressive eyes, half-smiling.

His intention had been seen through.

"Here, have an ice cream." To relieve the awkwardness, Xiaofei quickly handed the ice cream he had just bought to Wu Aizhen.

"Thank you." Wu Aizhen took it, peeled off the paper, and gently licked it with her pink tongue, making Xiaofei sweat profusely.

The action was too suggestive, reminding him of scenes from love action movies in the future.

"Wu Aizhen, these things are for you. You won't refuse them, right? It's just a way to show gratitude," Xiaofei handed the fruits and snacks to Wu Aizhen.

This time, Wu Aizhen smiled lightly and took them. "Don't call me by my full name, okay? It sounds too stiff. I'm two years older than you, so call me 'Aizhen.' Since the younger brother wants to show respect to the older sister, I'll accept them without being too polite."

This made Xiaofei even more cautious.

He must not get involved in any emotional entanglements with Wu Aizhen. She was a good girl, and he must not hurt her.