Chapter 058 Sweetheart Rice Dumplings

Taking five thousand from home and another twenty thousand from Mr. and Mrs. Zhang Qiang, Yang Tian only needed to come up with another five thousand to make it thirty thousand. With a plan in mind, as soon as he returned to school, he headed straight for Hongyu Internet Café to find Zhang Zhi and borrow money from him.

Zhang Zhi was a man of loyalty. Though he’d known Yang Tian for less than a month, he handed over five thousand without hesitation. Yang Tian had intended to borrow ten thousand, even offering to leave his student ID as collateral and pay it back with his monthly wages. Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhi refused the student ID and told him to keep his wages; the money could wait until Yang Tian found a job in the future.

There isn’t much need for words of gratitude between men. The warmth was felt in his heart. Whether it was the help from Mr. and Mrs. Zhang or Zhang Zhi’s support, Yang Tian felt deeply moved. Although he had expected them to lend him the money, the moment it was placed in his hands, he was still overwhelmed by a sense of comfort.

Before he was reborn, he had no friends, and even his relatives had little faith in him. Borrowing money was out of the question; they weren’t even very welcoming if he visited. Not that he visited them often, for that matter.

Now, his sincerity had earned him others’ trust, and Yang Tian was delighted. Trust is a priceless treasure, beyond any measure of wealth.

“How… How did you manage to gather so much money?” When Yang Tian handed the fifty thousand they’d scraped together to An Qi’s mother, she was stunned, her voice trembling with emotion.

“Auntie, don’t worry about how we did it! We just want An Qi to go back to school,” Huang Juan stepped forward, gently taking her hand and speaking softly.

Helping a friend with all her might for the first time, Huang Juan felt truly at peace. She glanced at Yang Tian, smiling with satisfaction. She knew that without him, they could never have helped An Qi—he was the one who let her experience the happiness of lending a hand.

“That’s right, Auntie. Don’t worry. If the shop gets busy, we’ll all come and help you!” Chen Ming added, cheerful. He’d thought he could do nothing for An Qi, but in the end, they’d truly helped her. The thought made him reach out and clap Yang Tian’s shoulder, grinning brightly.

An Qi’s mother burst into tears. She, too, wanted nothing more than for her daughter to keep studying. An Qi’s dropping out wasn’t her wish; the girl had sacrificed her own future, seeing how hard things were at home. Every day, her mother pleaded with her to go back, but An Qi wouldn’t listen.

She knew her daughter was sensible and filial, but that only deepened her guilt. She didn’t want An Qi to follow in her own footsteps, living in hardship all her life.

“Thank you… But Yang Tian won’t let me say thank you, so I don’t know what else to say!” An Qi was overjoyed but at a loss for words, making everyone around her laugh. Even her mother managed a watery smile. “Go back to school and study hard, Qi! With classmates and a teacher like this, I’m so happy for you!”

With the money in hand, An Qi’s mother went to pay off the loan shark. Their homeroom teacher, Bao Yuehong, returned to school, while Yang Tian, Huang Juan, and Chen Ming stayed behind to help run the food stall.

It was Sunday, and there were still customers, mostly coming for noodles. An Qi and Chen Ming bustled at the front, cooking noodles and greeting guests, while Yang Tian and Huang Juan busied themselves in the back with their “little project”—something they’d discussed on the way home the day before.

Their plan was to improve the food stall’s menu. As for stir-fried dishes, neither of them knew how to make them yet, and cooking those would mean buying ingredients, preparing vegetables, dealing with oil and sauces—a hassle for another day.

But clever Huang Juan soon came up with something special: sweet rice dumplings. Since Yang Tian had secretly bought her one last time, she’d fallen in love with them. That was her first time tasting one—the soft glutinous rice, the sweet dates—she remembered it fondly, especially because Yang Tian had bought it for her.

So she suggested they make sweet rice dumplings for An Qi’s family stall, hoping to attract more customers.

She brought glutinous rice and dates from home. The sweet dates her family used would make dumplings far tastier than those sold on the street—the dumplings were sure to sell well.

Huang Juan cooked the rice, a task she often did at home, while Yang Tian washed the bamboo leaves—a rare commodity. If not for Old Mr. Yang Qingtang’s advice, Yang Tian would never have found such fresh leaves for free.

They came from Yang Yang’s family—Yang Tian’s uncle’s house.

After learning this, Yang Tian quietly rode his bike there on Saturday afternoon. Originally, he just wanted some leaves, but his uncle and aunt surprised him with their hospitality—a stark contrast to before his rebirth, when their attitudes had been cold. Back then, his family was poorer than theirs, and he was less accomplished than his cousin Yang Yang.

Now, their attitude had completely changed, which surprised Yang Tian. Deep inside, a rare sense of confidence began to grow; he knew that his own hard work, and his parents’, had changed everyone’s view of their family.

Yang Tian and Huang Juan worked together. When the glutinous rice was cooked and the leaves softened, they happily began wrapping the dumplings.

“Xiao Tian, why do mine always come out wrong? How did you make yours like that?” Seeing Yang Tian had already finished two, while she hadn’t managed one, Huang Juan grew flustered and leaned over, smiling.

“If you can’t do it, just wrap them into triangles, or make a pointed end! As long as you tie the string tight, that’s all that matters,” Yang Tian chuckled.

“No, I want mine to look the best. I want to shape it like a chicken heart, so it’s truly a ‘sweetheart dumpling!’ At least my first one must look like that!” Huang Juan thought for a moment, then laughed sweetly.

Yang Tian shook his head, smiling. Seeing Huang Juan so happy, and Chen Ming and An Qi busy and cheerful outside, he felt content. He cherished this warm, lively atmosphere—something he’d never experienced before his rebirth, when he was always alone.

“They’re wrapped, they’re wrapped!” After a while, Huang Juan suddenly laughed with delight. She’d finally made a chicken heart-shaped dumpling and immediately held it up for Yang Tian to see, blushing. “This is for you! From today on, I’ll work hard with you!”

“Huh?!” Yang Tian took the dumpling, stunned, not quite understanding what she meant by “work hard together.”

“It’s a secret for now! Hurry and eat—it won’t be the last thing I make for you!” Huang Juan grinned mischievously, gently unwrapping the dumpling and holding it to Yang Tian’s lips.

“Oh, how sweet you two are when we’re not around!” Just as Yang Tian opened his mouth, Chen Ming and An Qi walked in. Chen Ming teased them with a wicked grin.

“It’s not like that! I just wanted him to taste it,” Huang Juan grew flustered, quickly putting the dumpling in Yang Tian’s hand and ducking her head to keep wrapping.

“Then why don’t you taste it yourself?” An Qi, her worries now resolved, had regained her cheerful spirit.

“You little rascal, just wait—I’ll get you!” Embarrassed, Huang Juan chased after An Qi, rice still clinging to her hands, and laughter filled the small room, brimming with warmth and joy.