New Year's Day is approaching, and I keep pestering Yang Tan every day.

Me: "Although we are arch-enemies, we've been classmates for twelve years. Even if you don't care about me, at least pay your respects during the New Year."

He remains unmoved, continuing to fiddle with his necklace, the small deer-shaped pendant becoming even smoother.

Me: "Our family has fallen, don't you want to see and mock it? If you don't go, how will you know the state of my family?"

He still focuses on adjusting the length of the necklace, showing no reaction.

Me: "Yang Tan, are you out of ideas? Is your family's design so tacky that even the giraffes at the zoo would spit on it and say it's not worth associating with?"

He: "Tacky?"

I freeze, looking up at him as he meets my gaze.

I step forward, excitedly saying, "Yang Tan, take me home, I want to go home!"

He lowers his gaze, sets down the necklace, and mutters to himself, "Indeed tacky, but very popular."

I sigh in silence, how could he possibly hear a ghost speaking?

His words remind me of our past debates about our family products, where I stood on a chair, trying to outshine him, saying what's wrong with being tacky, it's just catering to popular taste.

To settle the score, we held a flash mob event, competing by selling the necklaces designed by our families.

In the end, I sold more items, he made more money, and there was no clear winner or loser.

It seems like we are destined to be at odds for a lifetime, inheriting the competition and conflicts between our fathers, growing up influenced by it, and taking over the baton to continue the struggle.

After the college entrance exam, I went abroad to study design, while he stayed in the country to study business management at the best university. Seemingly on completely different paths, we ended up managing the family business after graduation, unable to avoid the inevitable conflict.

Perhaps we are just natural born enemies, fated to be arch-enemies.