“When will good things like this ever come our way?” William Reed said, “I’m too full, I need to go back and sleep. Let’s all head out, let Little David get to bed early too.”

A few of the close friends left, burping as they said their goodbyes, with several packs of Hong Shuangxi cigarettes that David Clark had stuffed into their pockets. They were all sworn brothers who used to skip class and get into fights with David Clark back in the day—sharing fortune and hardship alike. Whenever David Clark had good cigarettes or liquor, they never held back.

“Bro, the fish you made was really delicious, I haven’t had enough yet. Can we have it once a month from now on?” After seeing off Eric Bell and the others, Emily Clark was tidying up the dishes while sharing her grand ambition with David Clark. Earlier, with so many people around, she didn’t feel comfortable eating more, but now, looking at the empty serving bowl, she felt quite nostalgic. It was also because David Clark’s friends could really eat—they even drank up all the chili oil in the bowl.

David Clark reached out and ruffled Emily Clark’s hair, laughing as he said, “If you want to eat it, just buy another fish tomorrow. I’ll make it for you, and you can eat your fill all by yourself.”

Emily Clark was already starting to get used to her brother’s affectionate gestures. The siblings hadn’t been this close in years, and this feeling made Emily Clark’s heart feel warm. But she didn’t quite agree with her brother’s suggestion: “Good things aren’t for every day. This fish costs more than a yuan, not to mention all the oil you used.”

David Clark said, “Little Emily, now that I’m back, our life will only get better and better. I promise you, within a year, I’ll make sure you can eat fish like this every day, until you get tired of it.”

“You’re dreaming.” Emily Clark said, “When we write essays at school about ‘A Day in the Year 2000,’ none of us dared to say we’d eat fish like this every day.”

“So what did you write?” David Clark asked with interest. He really wanted to know what people back then imagined a day in the year 2000 would be like.

“I’m not telling you what I wrote. The model essay our teacher read said that in the morning, you put rice in a special pot, plug it in, and then go to work. By the time you come home for lunch, the rice is already cooked and still hot. Isn’t that amazing?” Emily Clark said.

David Clark couldn’t help but laugh: “Sis, your dream is just to have a rice cooker?”

“What’s a rice cooker?” Emily Clark asked, puzzled.

David Clark thought for a moment and nodded: “You won’t have to wait until the year 2000 for that dream. I’ll make you one in 1980 as soon as I find the right materials.”

“Bro, you really know how to brag.” Emily Clark felt she had finally seen her brother’s true colors. “You think it’s just an electric stove? The rice cooker shuts off automatically when the rice is done—it’s controlled by a robot.”

“You don’t need a robot for that.” David Clark was amused by Emily Clark’s words. “The temperature controller in a rice cooker is just a regular bimetallic strip—one side iron, one side copper. They expand at different rates when heated, so when the temperature gets high, it bends and cuts off the power. It’s purely mechanical, not even a single transistor needed.”

Hearing David Clark speak so seriously, Emily Clark couldn’t help but believe him a little: “Bro, do you really know this stuff? You’re not just bragging?”

“Come on, I don’t have the time to brag. If you gave me a cow, I’d just butcher it and eat it. Oh, right, Little Emily, one of these days I’ll make you boiled beef—it’s even better than boiled fish…”

After washing the dishes and tidying up the house, the siblings went to bed separately. According to David Clark’s old habits, he would never go to bed before eleven, but after traveling to this era, he could only go with the flow. There was no internet, no TV, and the only nightlife for young workers at the factory was playing cards. The previous David Clark had been quite fond of playing cards, but the current David Clark had no interest, so all he could do was sleep.

Before going to bed, David Clark realized that there was only a cloth curtain, not a door, between his and Emily Clark’s rooms, which made him feel a bit awkward. In his previous life, David Clark was an only child with no sisters, and he’d never lived with a girlfriend, so sharing a home with a girl felt a bit uncomfortable.

“Wouldn’t this be inconvenient? Maybe I should make a door one of these days,” David Clark said to Emily Clark.

“Why make a door?” Emily Clark asked in surprise. She had never thought of it as inconvenient. Before their parents passed away, she had always shared a room with David Clark. Even now, there were still plenty of sixteen- or seventeen-year-old brothers and sisters sharing a room in the factory. In an era when the average living space per person was only eight square meters, this was hardly unusual.

“You’re a girl…”

“Bang!” Before David Clark could finish, Emily Clark knocked him on the head. With her almond-shaped eyes wide, she glared at David Clark and said, “Did two years in the army turn you into an idiot? I’m your sister! What’s inconvenient about that?”

“Uh… It’s just that I’ve been living with guys for years, so I need some time to get used to it.” David Clark silently cursed himself, turned off the light, and crawled into bed to sleep.