I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 171. Who does Xu Qingfan like?

The alarm clock for his afternoon nap went off and rang again, and the birds perched on the branches changed batch after batch. It wasn't until nearly six o'clock, when the sun was setting, that he groggily got out of bed.

After a nearly four-hour nap, Xu Qingfan felt groggy. He put on his shoes and yawned wearily. Sleeping for too long made him feel more and more tired.

He drew back the tightly closed curtains and turned off the air conditioner that had been running all afternoon. Autumn and winter nights come early, and the sky outside was already a hazy gray, making the bedroom even darker.

"What time is it?" Xu Qingfan muttered casually as he opened the door and left.

The corridor was still pitch black, and the door to the master bedroom across the hall was still tightly closed. A chilly breeze blew out from the cracks and onto Xu Qingfan's feet.

He gently turned the doorknob and peeked inside. He could vaguely see the figures of five girls lying on the bed, and they didn't seem to be getting up.

[She really can sleep a lot.] Xu Qingfan shook his head and chuckled to himself.

Being able to sleep in as late as you want on school days is probably the ultimate enjoyment of student life.

Xu Qingfan closed the door again and tiptoed downstairs to leave.

The aroma of lotus root and pork rib soup wafted from the kitchen, while in the spacious living room, only a cat was taking a nap on the tatami mat.

He turned on the living room light, and the glaring light immediately made the little brother change his sleeping position, putting his paws on his face to block the light.

Just after six o'clock in the evening, the clock in the living room chimed deeply.

"Tsk~ Cooking." Xu Qingfan took the remote, turned on the TV, and went straight to the kitchen.

He opened the electric slow cooker for soup, and the lotus root that had been cooking all afternoon looked like braised pork. When he poked it with chopsticks, it was already quite soft and tender.

The holes in the lotus root were stuffed with mung beans, which gave the soup a fragrant aroma.

Xu Qingfan poured some salt into the soup spoon, stirred it, and then took a spoonful to taste. The flavors of lotus root, mung beans, peanuts, and jujubes blended together, making the soup very sweet and refreshing.

The demanding girls said they wanted claypot rice for dinner tonight, so what could Xu Qingfan say but indulge them?

Place two clean clay pots on the gas stove. Once heated, add two pieces of lard to melt, which will enhance the aroma and prevent sticking.

The Licheng Silky Rice, which had been soaking for an afternoon, was evenly spread on top, and then hot water was added to just cover the rice grains before it was slowly cooked over low heat.

Xu Qingfan felt that the background music from the movie "Eat Drink Man Woman" was perfect for playing at this moment. In the movie, the father cooks for his three daughters, while in reality, he cooks for five young women. Xu Qingfan felt that there was a similarity between them.

After waiting for eight minutes, the water in the casserole will have been almost completely absorbed. At this point, spread the marinated ribs, beef, and preserved meats evenly on top of the rice. Use chopsticks to poke a few small holes in the rice for ventilation. After putting the lid back on, drizzle a ring of peanut oil around the edge of the lid to seal it.

Cooking claypot rice requires a lot of patience. To prevent the bottom from burning due to overheating, you need to rotate the area of ​​the claypot in contact with the heat source clockwise every 30 seconds.

Xu Qingfan put a wet towel over the handle of the pot and operated it with one in each hand.

"Brother Fan smells so good!"

"Brother Qingfan, what time did you get up?!"

"It smells so good!"

"Is this claypot rice? How much longer will it take to cook? I'm so hungry!"

"Brother Fan, let me help you."

Xu Qingfan was still focused on cooking when the five girls suddenly stood at the kitchen door and spoke at the same time.

"You're all up? It'll be ready soon. Xiaoyu, come and wash the vegetables for me. The rest of you, take out the bowls and chopsticks. I've put salt in the soup." Xu Qingfan turned around and said with a smile.

"Yay! Time for soup!"

Upon hearing this, the five girls immediately sprang into action, some grabbing chopsticks, others taking bowls.

"What are you doing? You're picking the good leaves instead of the yellow ones," Xu Qingfan said, slapping Wu Lingyu's head.

"Hehe, I slept for too long." Wu Lingyu scratched the back of her head sheepishly.

"How was it? Skipping class and sleeping in felt great, didn't it?" Xu Qingfan laughed.

"Hmm!" Wu Lingyu perked up at the mention of this, her eyes shining as she said, "When I was in elementary school, I fantasized about not going to school in the afternoon and sleeping in the dormitory all day, but I didn't dare to."

"How could I dare now?" Xu Qingfan poked her forehead with his finger. "Alright, you can go watch TV too. There's only one stir-fried vegetable dish left, I'll make it myself."

"Then I'll take the claypot rice out for you!"

"Take it later, it's too hot now, hurry up and get out of here." Xu Qingfan turned off the stove and pushed the girl out of the kitchen.

After Xu Qingfan returned to the stove and opened the lid of the clay pot, a fragrant aroma wafted out. He sprinkled chopped green onions and steamed fish soy sauce on the surface of the clay pot rice, and the clay pot rice was ready.

The last batch of boiled bok choy was also quickly cooked. Dinner consisted of three simple dishes: two claypot rice dishes, a boiled bok choy dish, and a lotus root and pork rib soup.

When Xu Qingfan carried the last plate of vegetables out, the five girls had already washed their hands, filled their bowls with rice, and sat down at the coffee table. Their bowls were filled with clay pot rice, and they were just waiting for him to sit down so they could start eating.

Unless it's a big meal like hot pot, they usually sit at the coffee table facing the TV when they eat, because they feel that watching TV while eating creates a better atmosphere than sitting at the dining table.

The anime "Katekyo Hitman Reborn!" was playing on the Starry Sky TV channel. Since the main characters in the anime were all in the first year of junior high school, the five girls were watching it with great interest.

The anime had only been airing for a short time, and it happened to be the episode where the disciplinary committee member Hibari made his appearance. Xu Qingfan remembered that he had watched this anime around the same time in his previous life, but unfortunately, he only watched it on TV for a few minutes before he had to go back to school for evening self-study.

It wasn't until I went to high school that I finally finished watching all 200+ episodes of the anime on a pirated website.

Just as the animation says, our time is etched on the ring.

They ate, chatted, and watched TV at the same time. After taking a bite of the crispy rice crust, Wu Lingyu asked, "Are we going back to school tomorrow?"

"I wonder if we still need to take attendance. I really want to sleep at home until nine o'clock!" Xiao Ruanwen looked at Xu Qingfan.

"Trust me, I absolutely won't name names. We'll stay up all night tonight, and tomorrow we'll sleep in!" Xu Qingfan snapped his fingers and said.

"Okay, okay, Brother Qingfan, what are we going to do tonight?" Lin Wanning's eyes lit up as soon as he heard that he could sleep in until he naturally woke up the next day.

"We're at home, what else can we do?" Xu Qingfan patted the girl on the shoulder. "You can continue doing challenges, Three Kingdoms Kill, or watching movies."

"It's boring, I'm tired of it!" Xia Xiaoxiao said, pouting.

The Three Kingdoms Kill game was just released this year, and Xu Qingfan bought a box as soon as possible. The six of them were exactly one lord, one loyalist, two rebels, and two traitors.

Playing board games with a large group of people is quite fun. For example, although Wu Lingyu has high scores in her exams, she looks rather dim-witted. Every time she plays the role of the lord, she gets completely fooled by Xu Qingfan, who plays the traitor, but she always enjoys it.

For example, Xia Xiaoxiao would always kill Xu Qingfan first whenever she drew a loyal subject. After a while, everyone figured out the pattern.

However, the initial version of the card pool was not large, featuring only a few characters such as Da Qiao, Xiao Qiao, Zhen Ji, Sun Shangxiang, and Zhuge Liang. After playing them many times, the five girls became tired of them.

"So where do you want to go? We definitely can't go to Guagreen Square, we'll run into Ruan Wen's mother. That leaves only Licheng Square. Or do you want to go square dancing?" Xu Qingfan counted on his fingers for them.

"Brother Qingfan, let's play Truth or Dare!" Lin Wanning said on a whim.

Truth or Dare, I don't know when it started, suddenly became popular among primary and secondary school students like a tornado.

“Great! Let’s play Truth or Dare!” Xiao Ruanwen’s eyes sparkled as she nodded in agreement.

"I also can."

"Play!"

Xia Xiaoxiao and Zhang Yiyi spoke at the same time.

Xu Qingfan had a vague sense of foreboding. He said, "How about we go to Licheng Square to fish for goldfish?"

"No, taking a taxi is too much trouble. There are six of us, so we'll have to take two taxis. Let's just play Truth or Dare!" Xiao Ruanwen said with her arms crossed.

"Yeah, Qingfan, let's play Truth or Dare!" Lin Wanning clung to his arm and acted coquettishly. "Does Qingfan have some secret he can't tell us?"

"Brother, let's play together!"

Xu Qingfan was defeated by the pretty girl's coquettish charm. He turned his chopsticks around and tapped them on the heads, saying, "Let's talk after we finish eating. The bowls are still full, and Xiaoyu has almost finished hers!"

"Hehe~" After dinner, in order to start the Truth or Dare game as soon as possible, the five girls were busy cleaning up the table, washing the dishes and wiping the floor.

The leftover soup was put back in the kitchen to be used for a late-night noodle dish.

When Xu Qingfan returned after walking the dog and taking out the trash, the five girls were already sitting in the living room waiting for him. The coffee table was full of snacks he had bought from the supermarket that morning, as well as chilled pineapple beer, a famous local liquor.

"Brother Qingfan, come quickly!" Five girls sat around on the tatami mat on the ground, waving to Xu Qingfan to come and sit down.

After washing his hands in the restroom, Xu Qingfan sat down between Lin Wanning and Xia Xiaoxiao and asked, "How do you guys want to play?"

Xia Xiaoxiao pointed to the Pearl River Beer bottles on the ground and said, "Whoever gets the bottle gets it!"

The beer was bought last time we were going to cook. Since none of us had ever drunk alcohol before, we each tried a little bit of the small bottle that was left over. In short, it was awful!

"Does it have to be this exciting?" Xu Qingfan chuckled and placed his hand on the bottle, starting to spin it.

The sake bottle spins rapidly on the tatami mat, then slowly the rotation slows down, pointing counter-clockwise at each person in turn.

All six of them held their breath, waiting for the bottle to finally stop.

"Haha, it's you, Brother Qingfan!"

"Noob!"

"Haha, Fan-ge, you spun around on yourself!"

When they saw that the final direction pointed to Xu Qingfan's location, the five women burst into laughter.

"Can we give this a try and start again in the next round?" Xu Qingfan said with a forced smile.

"no!"

"Truth or Dare, choose now!" Xia Xiaoxiao said, her eyes wide.

"Then let's play truth or dare," Xu Qingfan said, worried that the five girls might cause some trouble.

"Let me ask you, Brother Qingfan, do you have someone you like?" Lin Wanning asked eagerly, raising his hand.

The other four remained silent, waiting for Xu Qingfan's reply.

He smiled slyly and said, "Of course!"

"Ah~ Brother Qingfan, who is the person you like?" The girl looked at Xu Qingfan with a mix of nervousness and anticipation.

"This is the second question!" Xu Qingfan raised his hand and tapped Lin Wanning on the head. "Continue!"

The second person to be moved was Wu Lingyu, who also chose "truth or dare".

Xu Qingfan asked, "Who was the last person you dreamed about?"

The four girls' eyes lit up; they all thought Xu Qingfan's question was very original.

Wu Lingyu hesitated for a moment, then realized that her most recent dream had been during her lunch break, and the person she dreamed about... "It was... it was Brother Fan." Wu Lingyu lowered her head shyly, then added, "It was in the kitchen. I dreamed that Brother Fan and I were cooking in the kitchen!"

"Oh~" Everyone burst into laughter and cheers, and Wu Lingyu lowered her head even further.

"Xiaoyu blushed, ahahaha~"

After mocking Wu Lingyu, Lin Wanning placed his hand on the wine bottle and spun it, hoping to draw Xu Qingfan again.

"Ah! It's Brother Qingfan again!!" The girl exclaimed excitedly when she saw the wine bottle actually stopped in front of Xu Qingfan.

"Brother Fan, hurry up and choose!"

"Then I choose Truth or Dare!"

"Shh~"

"Brother Qingfan, why didn't you choose truth or dare?" Lin Wanning asked dejectedly.

"Brother, it's the truth!"

"Can't I do a dare?" Xu Qingfan grinned smugly, but his smile quickly froze on his face.

Xia Xiao said, "Then you kneel down and sing 'Conquer'!"

"Hahaha~" Laughter from several girls echoed from inside the room.

"I can't take it anymore, I'm dying of laughter, he's kneeling down and singing 'Conquer'!" Xiao Ruanwen said intermittently, clutching her stomach and slapping the floor.

"Sing it then!" Xu Qingfan wasn't one to back down. He grinned at Xia Xiaoxiao, then picked up a pillow from the sofa and placed it on the floor: "Just like that, you've conquered me~ Cutting off all my escape routes."

Laughter filled the living room, and just as several girls were laughing so hard they were about to cry, Xu Qingfan finally finished singing the entire song.

Seeing the girls laughing so hard they were doubled over inside, Xu Qingfan couldn't help but laugh along, saying, "What are you laughing at? Let's keep going!"

He picked up the bottle and spun it, this time aiming precisely at Xia Xiaoxiao.

Seemingly worried that Xu Qingfan would seek revenge, Xia Xiaoxiao raised her head proudly and said, "I choose truth!"

[Naive Xia Xiaoxiao, did you think I couldn't do anything if you chose truth?!]
Xu Qingfan grinned maliciously and asked, "Share the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you!"

Xia Xiaoxiao's smile froze, clearly reminding her of the time in kindergarten when she threw her panties at Xu Qingfan's face.

"I...I..." The girl blushed and hesitated for a moment before organizing her thoughts and saying, "When I was little, Xu Qingfan gave me a goldfish. In winter, I was worried that the goldfish would freeze to death, so I added some hot water to it."

"Hahaha!"

"I never imagined you had such a dark past, Little One!"

Although Xia Xiaoxiao didn't mention anything more embarrassing, it was clear that all four girls accepted this answer.

"Continue, continue."

"."

"Brother Qingfan, it's your turn again! If you choose Truth or Dare again, I'll make you kneel down and sing 'Sweet Honey'!" Lin Wanning complained, pouting.

"Haha~ That's great, Fan-ge, you can continue with the dare!"

"Dream on. I'll choose truth then," Xu Qingfan said, giving Xiao Ruanwen a knowing look.

"So, Brother Qingfan, who is the person you like?" Lin Wanning finally asked the question he had been holding back all night.

"No need to ask, of course it's my mom!"

"Shh-"

"Brother Qingfan, you're cheating!" Lin Wanning said angrily, hands on his hips.

"Alright, alright, I like a lot of people. I like Wan Ning, I like Yi Yi, I like Xiao Xiao, I like Ruan Wen, I like Xiao Yu, I like every single one of you." Xu Qingfan said, patting Lin Wan Ning's head.

"Ugh~ Brother Fan, you're so cheesy!"

"Brother Qingfan, who is your favorite person?" Lin Wanning asked with sparkling eyes.

"And here comes the next question!"

"Then come again!"

Unfortunately, the bottle never landed on Xu Qingfan, even after playing until late at night.

The five girls returned to their room to sleep, feeling regretful and tired.

(End of this chapter)