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"Okay."
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Xu Qingfan smiled as he hung up the phone, drew the open curtains, and quickly went to the bathroom to wash his face, rinse his feet, and brush his teeth before lying down for his afternoon nap.
...
Two o’clock in the afternoon.
Xu Qingfan was still in the midst of his dreams when he was roused by the enthusiastic knocking and shouting of Guan Biyue.
"Xu Qingfan, get up! We’re leaving in ten minutes. If you’re late, just stay in the hotel by yourself!" Having grown familiar with Xu Qingfan, Guan Biyue had shed any semblance of a typical teacher.
Knowing that a woman’s "ten minutes" was a conservative estimate and could easily turn into half an hour, Xu Qingfan was all too aware. He turned over and continued sleeping.
And sure enough, after he lay for another twenty minutes, got up, put on his shoes, and went out, Guan Biyue and Zhong Wenqing were still in the bathroom applying their makeup.
"Are you teachers done yet?"
"Blo..."
"What ’blow’? We’ll be ready in a sec!" Guan Biyue had barely begun to speak her first word when Xu Qingfan anticipated her prediction and continued for her.
"You little rascal~ Just wait two more minutes."
Xu Qingfan shrugged, then sat down with Xia Xiaoxiao and Wu Lingyu to look at the photos he had taken that morning.
"This one looks great!" Wu Lingyu pointed at the display and said.
In the photo, Xia Xiaoxiao was smiling at Xu Qingfan right after finishing an exam, a moment he had captured.
"You have one too," Xu Qingfan switched to the next photo. It was Wu Lingyu, sitting upright with her arms on the desk, waiting for the teacher to collect the exam papers. "My photography skills are impressive, aren’t they?"
"Mm... Brother Fan, thank you." Wu Lingyu shyly stole a glance at him and expressed her gratitude.
"Psh~ It’s nothing."
"Why don’t you have any photos of yourself?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked.
"How about you take one of me now?" Xu Qingfan handed her the camera.
"Then sit properly!" Xia Xiaoxiao took the camera and directed Xu Qingfan into various poses.
"Are you done?"
"One last shot... Okay!" Xia Xiaoxiao handled her photography with skill and poise.
"Let me see." Xu Qingfan took back the camera, "Not bad. From a distance, I could pass for Liu Dehua, up close, Liang Chaowei."
"Shameless~"
After waiting another twenty minutes for Guan Biyue, they finally set off.
The first McDonald’s in the country, with its stylish Western architecture, served as another scene Xu Qingfan had only seen in his middle school English textbooks. He walked along Wangfujing Street with interest, holding hands with Xia Xiaoxiao and Wu Lingyu.
However, an hour later, when Guan Biyue and Zhong Wenqing showed no signs of fatigue hopping from one shop to the next trying on clothes, the three youngsters were completely worn out.
"Teacher, we’ll sit in the cafe for a bit. You can come to find us after you’re done shopping," he suggested, patting Guan Biyue’s arm and pointing to the Starbucks across the street.
"No way! It’s crowded because of the holidays, and I can’t rest easy if you’re not under my watch." After a moment’s thought, Guan Biyue shook her head.
Xu Qingfan thought to himself that she was aware of the crowds—they were nearly squeezed into meatloaf. "We’ll just sit there, we definitely won’t run off. Teacher Guan, leave us your phone. If any strangers come up to us, I’ll dial 110 and report it immediately."
Guan Biyue looked down at Xu Qingfan. The boy was pretty reliable, "Alright then. Remember not to run off. The teacher will be over shortly!" She took out a pager from her pocket and handed it to Xu Qingfan, "Remember you can only stay in the cafe. If a stranger talks to you, just shout ’kidnapper’."
"Got it, got it." Xu Qingfan took the phone eagerly and pulled the other two through the crowd.
"Do you have any money..." Guan Biyue originally wanted to ask Xu Qingfan if he had money for coffee, but in the blink of an eye, the shadows of the three youngsters had disappeared.
"There’s a spot!" Right as a table of customers was leaving, Xu Qingfan quickly ran over with the others to grab the seats.
"You guys sit here; I’ll go order." He patted their heads and stood up to join the queue at the counter.
Three matcha Frappuccinos cost him over eighty bucks. Xu Qingfan paid and was speechless, "Yanjing must have a lot of rich folks; at this price in Li City, even dogs wouldn’t buy it." He grabbed a menu and returned to his seat.
"Order’s up, it’s cold, you guys aren’t afraid of that, are you?"
"Oh, Xu Qingfan, is this really delicious? Why are so many people in line?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked curiously, looking around.
"It’s average. Plain coffee isn’t tasty; it tastes about the same as water boiled in a rusty pot."
"What?" Hearing Xu Qingfan’s description, the little girl felt a rust taste forming in her throat, "Then why are so many people still buying it?"
"Who knows?" Xu Qingfan shrugged.
Wu Lingyu listened attentively to the conversation between Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao. It was her first time in such an exquisitely decorated restaurant, and she was afraid of making a fool of herself due to her lack of experience.
Especially when Xu Qingfan was away, and she faced the gaze of passersby, Wu Lingyu always felt they were mocking her, her anxiety only settling down after Xu Qingfan returned.
"At least my clothes and shoes are new, I won’t embarrass Brother Fan," Wu Lingyu thought to herself.
The server quickly brought over three beautifully made matcha Frappuccinos, "Enjoy your drink."
The two girls’ eyes lit up, and Xia Xiaoxiao said, "It’s so pretty!"
Xu Qingfan:...
Now he probably understood why so many people were buying.
The three of them each held a Frappuccino in hand, huddling together as Xu Qingfan took photos with his camera in his right hand.
"Alright, done taking pictures, let’s drink."
"Hmm!"
"It’s tasty! Xu Qingfan, how much did this cost?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked, sipping and squinting her eyes.
"The one in your hand could buy you 28 cups of pudding milk tea."
"That expensive? It’s just average in taste~" The little girl suddenly felt the Starbucks in her hand was no longer enticing.
After sitting in the store for over ten minutes, Guan Biyue and Zhong Wenqing finally arrived late.
"Teacher, over here!" Xu Qingfan had been holding his pee for a long time but didn’t dare to leave the two young girls alone. Seeing his saviors finally arrive, he rushed out eagerly, "I’m going to the bathroom, I’ll be right back!"
"Eh! Do you know where the bathroom is?"
"I know!"
Finally reaching the bathroom, that moment of release made him feel as if his entire being was transcending, "That’s better."
"Guofu, you should go back tomorrow. I’m already moved that you came to see our son and me. I don’t want to be the reason your family is ruined."
[Playing the innocent!] Xu Qingfan had just finished in the bathroom and was washing his hands when he overheard the juicy gossip outside.
"What do you mean ’your son, our family’? He’s my son too; we’re a family."
Xu Qingfan’s pupils shrank, [??? Why does this man’s voice sound so much like Xia Xiaoxiao’s dad?]
"Guofu~"
"Stop it, Axiang. I already feel guilty for not being with you and our son during the New Year. I’ll leave after helping our family stick up the Spring Festival couplets on the 28th."
As the voices grew fainter, Xu Qingfan didn’t even bother to turn off the tap and dashed out of the bathroom.
But looking around, there was no sign of Xia Guofu.
[It must be someone with a similar voice, otherwise, how could he have disappeared so quickly?] He comforted himself internally.
Remembering what the man said about being home on the 28th to post the couplets... if Uncle Xia really isn’t at home on the 28th...
Xu Qingfan sighed, his face a complex mix of emotions as he returned to Starbucks.
