NOVPUBAfter lunch at the Xiao’s, they stayed a bit longer before a few of them suggested it was time to leave.
"Auntie, Uncle, school starts tomorrow, we still need to go back and clean up." Xu Qingfan sat up straight as he spoke.
"Well, then you guys go ahead. Are you coming back here for dinner tonight?" Zhao YueMin smiled and nodded.
"I promised my parents I’d have dinner at home tonight." Lin Wanning said somewhat sheepishly, raising her hand.
"Haha right, school starts tomorrow, you should really have the last dinner with your family."
"Hehe~ Then Mom, I’ll come back for dinner tonight, spend more time with Dad and you." Xiao Ruawen, after changing her clothes, pecked her mother on the cheek.
"Uncle, Auntie, Grandpa, Grandma, goodbye!" After escorting them to the door, they waved goodbye to the adults inside.
"Yes, be careful on the road." Xiao Jianbiao nodded his head and waited for them to disappear around the stairwell corner before he closed the iron gate again.
"What are you doing, it’s broad daylight..." Seeing her husband pull her into their room without another word after the kids had left, Zhao YueMin rolled her eyes at him flirtatiously.
"Hmm~ Wife, your mind’s wandering." Xiao Jianbiao laughed heartily, exhausted from the busy days, he was genuinely fatigued, "I wanted to ask you about Xiao Fan."
Realizing her misunderstanding, Zhao YueMin playfully scolded, "Xiao Fan is such a good kid, what about him?"
"I think he’s a good kid too, mature and responsible. Our daughter says he cooks well and he’s even a writer; he reminds me of myself when I was young." Xiao Jianbiao sat down on the bed with his arm around his wife, laughing.
"Stop flattering yourself; Xiao Fan was way more impressive than you back in your day, I don’t even know who used to write love letters that were nothing but copied song lyrics." Zhao YueMin rested her head on her husband’s shoulder, cherishing the rare moments of reunion due to their often separate lives.
"Tsk~ Do you think our daughter has feelings for Xiao Fan?" He wrapped his arms around his wife’s shoulders, asking.
"Ah?" Zhao YueMin blinked in surprise, "I don’t think so. I haven’t noticed, and they are both still so young."
"Not that young, weren’t we also in middle school..."
"Oh you, stop it!"
"Haha alright, alright, let’s not talk about us. Every time Ruan Wen comes to visit me, she talks about Xiao Fan the most, even more than about all four of her other female classmates combined; isn’t there something there?" Xiao Jianbiao laughed loudly.
"As a mother, I really haven’t noticed. Besides, it’s normal for Xiao Fan to be a popular topic since he’s so outstanding." Zhao YueMin recalled, she truly hadn’t seen any particular look in her daughter’s eyes when she looked at Xiao Fan.
On the other hand, that girl called Lin Wanning, her eyes said it all, clearly filled with feelings for Xu Qingfan.
"Really not?" Xiao Jianbiao was still skeptical.
"Wait for our daughter to come back and ask her yourself!" Zhao YueMin rolled her eyes at him.
"I think that’s a good idea, after all, we’re not those conservative parents. Just so long as there’s nothing over the line, like us back in middle school, having a puppy love was quite nice."
"You scoundrel!"
Zhao YueMin playfully fell onto him, and what followed was ten thousand unmentionable characters.
...
Although the past couple of days had been humid, the house at their secret base remained unaffected thanks to the tightly shut doors and windows.
However, the yard outside was a disaster area. A light scrape on the swing would leave a thick layer of dust.
The weather was exceptionally clear today, perfect for a big cleaning and sunning bedding. After Xu Qingfan delegated tasks, everyone got busy.
The adhesive tape on the door couplet had loosened a bit after the humid days, he fixed it with clear tape; the rugs on the floor were sticky and uncomfortable to step on, so he took them out to the yard to scrub.
The leisurely time in the afternoon was suitable for a nap, but it was also good for gathering a few friends to clean and chat.
A gentle breeze flowed, branches swayed, a cuckoo flew across the sky, calling "cuckoo, cuckoo."
One thing nice about the south is that the trees are evergreen all year round. When the wind blows, it’s like numerous windmills spinning, making a ’swish swish’ sound that’s very comforting to hear.
After busying for more than an hour, they finally hung the freshly washed sheets to dry. Then, they comfortably sat in the yard’s swing chair to rest.
Each held a stick of fifty cents pudding or green tongue ice pop, the sunlight filtered through the trees onto their skin, soft and warm.
"School starts again tomorrow, huh." Lin Wanning rested her head on Xu Qingfan’s shoulder, squinting at the sun overhead.
"I really want to just sit here forever." Xiao Ruawen spoke unclearly with a small pudding in her mouth that she was about to finish.
"Then you’d become a statue, and after eroding, you’d turn into a sand sculpture," Xu Qingfan said, squinting and smiling as the dazzling sunlight made him drowsy.
"Sand sculpture? You’re the sand sculpture, Brother Fan, why are you insulting people!"
"Hahaha..."
...
The six of them sat idly in the yard until it was time to eat, then reluctantly said their goodbyes and went back to their respective homes.
"See you all tomorrow!"
"See you tomorrow!"
After a brief relaxation, Xiao Ruawen was in a good mood. She hummed the tune of "Apple" cheerfully as she took out her keys to open the door.
"Girl, you’re back."
"What’s up, why are you both looking at me like that?" Seeing her parents staring oddly at her, Xiao Ruawen took a step back and asked in confusion.
"Come here, your dad has something he wants to ask you." Zhao YueMin waved her hand to signal her daughter to come sit.
"Oh okay." Xiao Ruawen nodded, changed her shoes, and obediently lay in her mother’s arms.
"Girl, dad has a question for you," Xiao Jianbiao observed his daughter’s expression as he began to speak.
"Dad, just ask."
"Do you like that little classmate called Xiao Fan?" Xiao Jianbiao finally asked, staring at his daughter without blinking, hoping to catch any expressive details that might indicate if she was lying.
"Pfft~cough cough cough!" Xiao Ruawen, as if hearing the funniest joke, couldn’t hold back and started coughing.
"Cough cough... What, what are you talking about, dad!" It took her a while to stop coughing, her expression annoyed as she glared at her old man.
"Liking him is fine, mom and dad don’t oppose. Xiao Fan is a good kid, as long as it doesn’t go too far, mom and dad support you," Zhao YueMin, clearly tired from the afternoon’s work, was persuaded by her husband and she said with a smile.
"Mom~ what are you both talking about, how could I possibly like Brother Fan!" Xiao Ruawen shook her head and added, "Of course, I do like Brother Fan, but definitely not in that way. I just admire him like a really cool big brother, there’s nothing romantic about it!"
She rebuked her parents seriously, her expression sincere.
Ever since she was young, Xu Qingfan was the only highly commendable male friend she had, and Xiao Ruawen had developed a faint affection for him from a young age, not really understanding if it was truly love.
Since middle school, their six-person gang exclusively included her in their secret base shared living; maybe out of comparison, because the other girls could spend day and night with Brother Fan and she couldn’t. She began to pay more and more attention to Xu Qingfan’s words and actions.
For a time, she even secretly blushed and her heart raced when facing Xu Qingfan, making her interactions less comfortable than before.
But since she also joined the communal living arrangement, Xiao Ruawen realized it wasn’t really like that. She truly saw Xu Qingfan as a reliable big brother, her affection for him completely platonic. The previous illusions were only driven by jealousy due to spending the least time with Brother Fan.
Having come to understand this, Xiao Ruawen found it much easier to interact with Xu Qingfan again.
Regardless of whether she might fall for Xu Qingfan in the future, the young girl in front of her parents truly only saw him as a big brother, the kind in anime who is remarkably dependable, like an ’Onii-chan’!
Xiao Ruawen openly shared her thoughts about Xu Qingfan with her parents: "I really think Brother Fan is a great big brother, that’s why I told you, dad. If you keep thinking like this, I won’t say anything in the future!"
"Alright, your dad apologizes. I misunderstood."
"Hmph!"
"Really not even a little bit?"
"Dad!"
...
