My hometown is far away in Moscow.

027 New Year's Eve

Hu Yi was conflicted. He had witnessed the chicken fall into the toilet, spin around a few times, and then be fished out by Peng Song. He was determined not to touch it later. It seemed unfair to keep this a secret from others; but if everyone knew and didn't touch it, it would definitely embarrass Peng Song in public on New Year's Eve.

He held back for a while, and while everyone else in the room was busy setting out chairs and preparing tableware, he gently tugged at Yu Feifei's sleeve and whispered, "Hey, Peng Song's chicken just fell into the toilet."

"What?" Yu Feifei stared wide-eyed at Peng Song, who was diligently stirring the food, then looked at Hu Yi: "Then, what do we do?"

"What should we do? Don't eat it." Hu Yi winked at her, "Don't tell anyone else yet."

Yu Feifei nodded uneasily, wanting to say something more, but then she saw Li Baoqing stride into the house and gesture to Masha and the Ugandan behind him: "Sit, please sit."

According to Chinese hospitality, since the neighbor was home alone, it was only natural to invite him to such a lively occasion as the Lunar New Year. The Ugandan didn't stand on ceremony and gladly accepted.

Li Baoqing arranged for two foreign friends to sit on either side of him, and then, holding an electronic dictionary, introduced the ingredients of each dish to them one by one. Just as Hu Yi was about to sneak a peek at the chicken's tragic fate, Peng Song, beaming, walked to the table carrying a wok: "Everyone! Freshly cooked Zaozhuang spicy chicken! All the dishes are ready!"

Everyone applauded and gestured for Peng Song to take a seat. The table was already laden with containers of all sizes. Peng Song glanced at Hu Yi and noticed his expression was somewhat stiff, so he placed the wok in front of Li Baoqing: "Come on, Baoqing, let our foreign friends have some, eat it while it's hot!"

It must be said that Peng Song's spicy chicken was indeed bright in color and incredibly fragrant, overshadowing all the other dishes as soon as it was served. Even Hu Yi, who had just witnessed its journey to the toilet, couldn't help but salivate.

Martha shivered from the spiciness of the chili peppers and recoiled, a look of hesitation on her face. Li Baoqing solicitously picked up a piece of chicken and placed it in her bowl: "Miss, please eat first."

Martha smiled and said thank you, then politely forked a piece of chicken, put it in her mouth, chewed it a few times, and then let out a soft "Ouch!" before closing her eyes and covering her mouth and nose with her hands: "Oh! It's delicious, but it's too spicy, too spicy!"

The Chinese students burst into laughter and eagerly reached for the chicken pieces with their chopsticks. Li Baoqing took a bite, his eyes immediately lighting up. He slapped Peng Song hard on the shoulder: "Not bad! You're really something!"

Peng Song almost fell off his chair when he was patted on the shoulder. He swayed a couple of times and said with a forced smile, "Hehe, my dad's cooking is really delicious. I used to help him a lot, but this is the first time I've cooked it myself."

"Excellent, very good." Li Baoqing was very satisfied and called to Hu Yi and Yu Feifei sitting opposite him, "Old Hu, Feifei, come and try it! Damn, I didn't expect Peng Song to have this skill. From now on, he'll be in charge of the fried chicken!"

Yu Feifei agreed, then somewhat embarrassedly picked up her chopsticks slowly, glancing furtively at Hu Yi. Hu Yi hesitated for a moment, then reached out and tapped his glass lightly on the table twice: "Hey, hey, don't rush to eat. It's New Year's Eve today, shouldn't we pour ourselves a drink first?"

Everyone agreed and poured their beer into their glasses. Hu Yi pointed to the rows of bottles of beer along the wall and asked, "Martha, what do you want to drink? Vodka? Beer? Wine?"

"Either is fine," Martha shrugged. A classmate next to her grinned maliciously at Li Baoqing and said, "Martha's definitely going to drink vodka. Baoqing, aren't you going to drink with her?"

"Of course I'll go with her." Li Baoqing's heroic spirit surged. He grabbed a bottle of vodka and poured half a glass for Martha and himself. He brought it up to smell it, then frowned: "But this stuff is really hard to swallow. It tastes just like the alcohol in the hospital."

Hu Yi winked at him: "It's okay, it's only 40 degrees. How about this, we'll have two bottles of beer, and you guys can have one glass of baijiu, how about that?"

Li Baoqing quickly waved his hand, "No, no, no, it's vodka after all, we can't underestimate it. Besides, this glass is too big, you guys drink two bottles, we'll drink half a glass." Without waiting for Hu Yi's reply, he raised his glass and shouted loudly, "Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year!" "Happy Chinese New Year!" "Wishing you good fortune in the Year of the Snake!" Various wine vessels collided in the air, and the homesickness that had accumulated in everyone's hearts over the past few months temporarily dissipated with the sound of the clinking of cups and bowls.

"Happy Chinese New Year!" Hu Yi shouted to Masha and the Ugandans in Russian, finishing his beer in one gulp.

"Happy New Year." Martha smiled and wished everyone a happy new year, then, like the others, tilted her head back and drank half a glass of vodka in one gulp.

"Holy crap?!" Hu Yi exclaimed in surprise, quickly asking Li Baoqing, "How much did you pour for her?"

Li Baoqing looked down at his glass, then at the remaining wine in the bottle: "About... two ounces?"

The table was completely silent. A dozen or so Chinese people stared wide-eyed at Masha, while the Ugandan was shoving chicken nuggets into his mouth while slapping his tongue.

"What?" Martha was a little flustered, thinking that she had done something that was against Chinese New Year etiquette.

"I don't need to drink it all." Li Baoqing gestured with his thumb and forefinger: "Just a little bit, just a little bit."

"I only drank a little." Martha swirled her empty glass, then looked down at Li Baoqing's glass, and asked in surprise, "Huh? Why didn't you drink any?"

"I...I drank some, just a little." Li Baoqing was both amused and exasperated, then turned to his compatriots and said, "She's amazing, absolutely amazing."

Hu Yi grinned mischievously, "Then you can finish it all!"

"Me? No, no." Li Baoqing shook his head repeatedly.

"Cheers! Don't let people think we're being stingy with the liquor." Hu Yi coaxed patiently, "Besides, you're the only one drinking baijiu, don't embarrass us Chinese. Dying from drinking is a small matter, losing face is a big deal."

The classmates around him chimed in, "Yeah, now's your chance to show off your prowess in front of the pretty girls! We're rooting for you!"

Li Baoqing couldn't resist the provocation. His face flushed red and then turned pale. He gritted his teeth, raised his glass, and downed the rest of the vodka in one gulp. Cheers erupted in the room. Martha looked at him with a smile. Li Baoqing painfully closed his eyes for ten seconds to catch his breath, then silently picked up several mouthfuls of cold dishes, stuffing his mouth full.

The New Year's Eve dinner was a delightful affair, with everyone praising each dish on the table. According to Beijing time, the New Year's Eve bells had already rung, ushering in the new year. People from other rooms would occasionally come to visit, bringing wine glasses and exchanging New Year's greetings, and Hu Yi and the others would return the visits one after another.

Most of Maji's Chinese students come from the north, with Shandong being the most common. Local traditions regard drinking as an important way to enhance relationships and show one's generosity. Young people are easily influenced in this regard, and at the drinking table, they are all eager to keep up. Although their drinking capacity may not be particularly large, their boldness in drinking surpasses that of their parents' generation.

As midnight approached, the room was a mess of dishes and glasses, with bottles scattered on the floor. At the table, some people were crying, some were laughing, some were confused, and some were making a ruckus, creating a chaotic scene.

Yu Feifei drank two bottles of beer tonight. She, who usually doesn't drink at all, felt a little dizzy and sat quietly listening to the boys brag and chatter. After most of the people in the room had left, she got up, took the leftovers into the kitchen, washed the dishes, and then laboriously picked up the pot and utensils she had brought, saying to the others, "You guys keep drinking, I'm going back to rest now."

"Let me take it for you!" Hu Yi stood up and took the pot from her hands. Yu Feifei smiled slightly and followed him out of the room.

"That was quite a lively day, I'm a little tipsy," Hu Yi said, swaying and reeking of alcohol. "It's almost midnight, Dam should be asleep by now, right?"

Yu Feifei raised her wrist to check the time: "She said she's going to a friend's house for the New Year tonight and might stay out overnight, so I don't need to wait for her."

"Chinese New Year?" Hu Yi asked curiously, "They celebrate Chinese New Year too?"

"Yes, Vietnamese people also celebrate the Lunar New Year, on the same day as us."

Arriving at Yu Feifei's dormitory, Dam was indeed not there. Hu Yi quietly went into the kitchen, put down what he was carrying, and came out to find Yu Feifei making her bed. Suddenly, he sensed that the atmosphere was a little awkward. He stood there for a few seconds, rubbed his hands on his clothes, and put his hands in his pockets, saying, "Feifei, you've really worked hard, cooking and cleaning. You've been busy all day from morning till night. Go and rest."

"It's quite tiring, but I'm so happy today." Yu Feifei turned around, sat down, and let out a soft sigh, her face flushed. "It's my first time spending Chinese New Year abroad, and I didn't expect it to be so interesting."

"Yeah, we left Beijing in October, and now it's already Chinese New Year." Hu Yi, emboldened by the alcohol, plopped down on a chair next to Yu Feifei's bed. "Do you remember? Back then, the days on the train felt incredibly long. Every day we looked forward to arriving at our destination. Time is such a strange thing. The more you rush, the slower it seems to pass; but if you don't pay attention to it, it just 'whoosh's over."

Yu Feifei braced herself on the edge of the bed and gave Hu Yi a sweet smile: "Oh yeah, back then on the train I thought you were like a delinquent, and I was a little afraid to talk to you."

"Really?" Hu Yi touched his ear, explaining somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm not some kind of delinquent. Actually, I was a pretty good student when I was little, but then in high school..."

Before he could finish speaking, a series of hurried footsteps came from the corridor, and then the bedroom door was pushed open. Dam staggered in, his big eyes red and swollen, his nose twitching, clearly having just cried. Behind him was a Vietnamese female student with a sorrowful face.

"Dam? What's wrong?" Yu Feifei got up and went to greet him with surprise and doubt.

"Feifei, Anton, I wish you... a Happy New Year." Dam forced a smile, then his lips twitched and tears welled up in his eyes again.

Yu Feifei helped her sit down in a chair and gently comforted her, "Don't cry, don't cry, what happened?"

Dam sobbed, saying slowly and deliberately, "My boyfriend... he's in the hospital."

Yu Feifei took a pack of tissues from the table and handed it to Dam, then squatted down beside her and asked, "What's wrong with him? Is he sick?"

Dam didn't answer, she just kept wiping away her tears. The Vietnamese girl who followed her in shook her head, her eyes filled with unease: "It's the skinheads."

"Skinheads?" Yu Feifei turned to look at Hu Yi in surprise. Hu Yi frowned and blinked. "Who got beaten up by the skinheads? Leo Ku?"