I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 199. The Sky Cleared

The rain was still pouring down outside the window, and the pine trees in the pot swayed in the rain. Although it was broad daylight, all the lights inside were on.

An incense burner was lit in one corner of the room, and the aroma of tea and sandalwood blended together to create a unique olfactory experience.

Zhang Yiyi stared blankly at a brother and sister not far away. The girl had heard her second uncle mention a long time ago that she had a pair of half-siblings, but today was the first time she had met them.

Judging from their appearance, they were only in the second or third grade of elementary school. The boy was wearing a children's version of a Zhongshan suit, while the girl wore a white long dress with pearls embroidered on the collar, paired with a hat often worn by princesses in fairy tales. The boy stood upright behind his father, while the girl nestled on her mother's lap, acting coquettishly. They looked like a happy and warm family.

She couldn't quite describe feelings of envy or jealousy, but for some reason, Zhang Yiyi still felt vaguely unhappy, like a wronged white dog in an emoji, and her mood plummeted.

The dinner party officially began shortly afterward. The mahogany round table in the living room could seat more than twenty people, so there was no need to divide the table into smaller groups.

Before long, a waiter brought him a small portion of food on a wooden plate. Xu Qingfan didn't really like this way of eating, so he finished the food in a few bites and waited for the next batch of food to be served.

However, this plum wine was quite good. Xu Qingfan's eyes lit up after taking a sip; it was refreshing, cool, and very sweet.

Through casual conversation, he also roughly learned the reason for organizing today's dinner: because of the outstanding investment promotion work at the end of last year, Zhang Chunxue's elder brother will soon be parachuted back to Gangcheng from Meicheng to become the top leader.

Of course, it would be difficult to mobilize Zhang Chunxue's help alone, since Gangcheng is the provincial capital, and the two families must have contributed a great deal behind the scenes.

Zhang Chunxue's father is 65 years old this year. Unable to advance further, he retired to a less demanding role last year. However, with her older brother taking over, the Zhang family has not shown any signs of decline.

"This toast is for Brother Zhang, wishing you all the best in your future career!" Midway through the meal, Li Sansheng, Zhang Yiyi's biological father, raised his glass and said.

"it is good!"

Everyone clapped and cheered, and the atmosphere in the room instantly became lively as people took turns offering their congratulations.

When it was Xu Qingfan's turn, he stood up and said, "Then I wish in advance that under my uncle's wise leadership, Hong Kong will have more than three Fortune 500 companies with a market value of over one trillion, and Auntie's Delicious Takeout will be one of them!"

"Haha, good, Uncle, I appreciate your kind words!" Zhang Junzheng clearly liked hearing this and laughed heartily.

The closest people in the Zhang family knew about the child's eccentricities. This included the duck neck, milk tea, and Haowei takeout, as well as last year's disaster relief supplies. Zhang Chunxue started doing all of these things after listening to his advice, and each one she did was a success.

Many of the Li family members and Zhang family's distant relatives were surprised and couldn't understand why Zhang Junzheng was so happy about the child's boastful words. Even Zhang Youwen and his wife nodded in agreement.

Despite their doubts, they still elevated Xu Qingfan's status in their hearts considerably.

The dinner party ended not long after, amidst everyone's laughter. The heavy rain, which had been falling for over an hour, continued to drizzle.

A rainstorm trapped them here, and none of them could leave.

Xu Qingfan originally wanted to stay by Zhang Chunxue's side and listen to their conversation, but a group of children insisted on dragging him to play hide-and-seek, so he had no choice but to be forced to play with the group of little brats.

Just as he was about to take Zhang Yiyi to hide in the women's restroom, the twins from before suddenly ran up to him.

"Wait a minute!" one of the girls said.

"What?" Xu Qingfan wasn't going to be nice to such an impolite brat. He held Zhang Yiyi's hand and asked condescendingly.

"Hehehe~ It's none of your business!" the younger sister said, making a face at Xu Qingfan.

"Little sister, you're not allowed to be rude! What did you just say?!" The boy's attitude was relatively good as he scolded her.

"You're not allowed to tell Mommy!" The little girl put her hands on her hips and pointed at Zhang Yiyi, saying, "You're not my sister!"

Although it was still a child's voice, it was resounding and powerful.

"You're so rude! Everyone older than you is your brother or sister!" Xu Qingfan raised his hand and slapped her on the head, but not with much force.

Zhang Yiyi, standing to the side, simply blinked innocently; even if she was unhappy, the girl wouldn't show it on her face. "Waaah~ Waaah, you're bad people!" The little girl sobbed a few times before bursting into loud sobs.

"Brother Fan saw you!"

Xu Qingfan saw the ghost in the distance responsible for catching people, grabbed Zhang Yiyi who was still in a daze, and they started running in the corridor.

"You saw it wrong!"

"Don't run!"

For a moment, only the brother and sister remained in the corridor. The little girl forgot to cry and angrily said to her brother, "Mom wants us to call her 'sister,' but I won't!"

He and Zhang Yiyi were eventually caught, but the game continued. After they were eliminated, they had time to chat while watching the drizzle.

"If you're unhappy, just tell me. Don't keep it to yourself." Xu Qingfan leaned against the bluestone wall with the girl, his left hand resting on her.

Zhang Yi looked up at him, smiled faintly, and shook her head.

“There’s standing water,” she said, pointing to the rainwater covering the grass.

Xu Qingfan simply held her in his arms and didn't say anything more.

The girl didn't speak again, quietly resting her head on his shoulder, savoring the unique warmth the boy in front of her brought her.

Occasionally, a kapok flower falls from a tree several meters high, splashing up a small amount of water.

The two stood outside for a long time, counting the number of raindrops falling from the eaves, losing track of time.

It wasn't until Zhang Chunxue came to them to say she was going back that the two exchanged a smile.

The heavy rain that had been falling for more than two hours finally stopped, but the sky was still overcast, and the scattered puddles and drooping grass on the ground spoke of the intensity of the rain.

"Daddy, carry me on your back, or my dress will get dirty!" the little girl complained as they passed a section of road completely submerged in floodwater.

Watching the man squat down and carry his daughter on his back, Zhang Yiyi felt a strange pang of envy—it was the first time she had ever felt this way.

next second.

"What are you standing there for? Come on up." Xu Qingfan said.

When Zhang Yi looked down, the familiar boy had already squatted on the ground.

The girl's eyes lit up at that moment, and she almost choked up as she replied, "Yes!"

She gently leaned onto the boy's broad back, and Xu Qingfan steadily and powerfully stood up, carrying her across the muddy path.

Zhang Yi buried her head in his shoulder, her nose gently touching the boy's fair neck, a reassuring scent.

People around them were teasing and joking, but the girl couldn't hear a word they said.

At this moment, Xu Qingfan was the only person in her world.

"Brother," Zhang Yiyi murmured softly.

"how?"

"The sky has cleared up!"

(End of this chapter)