I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 246. The Silly Daughter

For the next few days, he couldn't find an opportunity to be alone with Lin Wanning. In addition, the girl hadn't been sneaking into his bed at night recently, so the lecture was put on hold again and again.

Before we knew it, it was the weekend again. At the end of March, Licheng showed no signs of spring. Whether swimming in the water, flying in the sky, or running on the ground, the high temperature of over 30 degrees Celsius made all the animals feel like dogs.

Speaking of dogs, Da Huang has been gone for a while now, and Xu Qingfan has gradually gotten used to the Lotus Courtyard without Da Huang.

At the end of 2008, their family pre-purchased a two-story duplex in Donghui City, next to Licheng Plaza. Now, more than a year later, the house is almost finished.

After having breakfast today, both families drove to Donghui City early to look at apartments.

"Why are you opening the window when the air conditioner is on?" Xu Aiguo saw in the rearview mirror that his son had fully opened the rear window and then closed it again for him.

"It smells a bit awful. Your beat-up Hyundai smells much better, Dad. This car smells like leather." Xu Qingfan opened the door a crack again and said, pinching his nose.

"Haha~ Wild boars aren't used to eating fine food." Xu Aiguo just smiled and kept his eyes on the road, focusing on driving.

Actually, that Hyundai still had a slightly unpleasant car smell. The only car Xu Qingfan had ever ridden in without any odor was the Wuling Hongguang. It was probably because the ventilation was so good that he couldn't smell anything at all.

Compared to Donghui City, which was a flat plain a little over a year ago, Donghui City has now become a complete steel forest.

Honestly, as long as there are no unfinished buildings, you can always trust the speed of China's development.

They originally bought the first phase of the residential building, which was topped out last month. Today, the finishing touches were completed, and what appeared before the five of them was a tall building, fifty or sixty meters high, with a roof that looked like a cockroach's head.

The building's quality looks quite good, and there's plenty of steel reinforcement. However, Xu Qingfan has some reservations about the design institute's aesthetic sense.
They originally bought the seventh and eighth floors. The houses were still unfinished, with only a door installed on the outside; the inside was still bare cement mortar.

The house had already been inspected, and the keys were naturally in Yao Jinping's hands. She took out the keys, opened the door, and the others followed her in.

The most eye-catching feature upon entering is a spiral staircase connecting the two floors. The developer called the couple to ask if they wanted to install a small elevator inside, but they both felt it was pointless and opted for a spiral staircase that doesn't take up much space.

It was the first time for both him and Xia Xiaoxiao to come here. The two of them quickly walked around the first floor and then went up the stairs to the second floor.

The balcony wasn't enclosed, but a handrail wall over a meter high was installed. Looking down from the eighth floor, you can see the Licheng Square in the distance, with willows swaying and the lake water emerald green. Although you can't see the Zengjiang River, the mother river, or touch the banyan leaves with your window like you can in the Lotus Courtyard, it still has a unique charm.

"Let's go, let's go to your house and take a look." Xu Qingfan looked away, took Xia Xiaoxiao's wrist and went downstairs.

Downstairs, Yao Jinping and Xu Aiguo were discussing how to renovate the house, but Xu Qingfan didn't want to join in. He was well aware that he would only spend less and less time in this house in the future, after high school, college, and work.

"How was it upstairs? Which room does Xiaoxiao like? Auntie will save one for you," Yao Jinping said with a smile as she saw the two of them coming down hand in hand.

"Ah, Auntie, you have a room for me?" This was clearly unexpected for Xia Xiaoxiao. Her face showed surprise at first, then joy.

"Of course! Xiaoxiao is practically my daughter, so of course I'll save a room for you!"

"Auntie is the best!" Xia Xiaoxin was touched and ran forward to give Yao's mother a big hug.

Xu Qingfan pursed his lips. Shouldn't they have asked his own son's opinion first when choosing a room?
After the mother and daughter had been enjoying their time together for a while, Xia Xiaoxiao broke free from the embrace and said, "I think every room is nice. Auntie, can you help me pick one?"

The girl had enough emotional intelligence; after all, it wasn't really her own home, and she couldn't possibly skip Xu Qingfan and start choosing. Yao Jinping's thoughts were not for outsiders to know. She actually wanted to reserve a room for Wu Lingyu, but she was worried about not being fair to everyone, since Xiaoxiao was the child she had watched grow up. So she decided to reserve a room for Xia Xiaoxiao as well.

"Okay~ Auntie promises to decorate your room beautifully." As she said this, she glanced at her son with a disdainful look, and it was unclear what she was thinking.

Xu Qingfan was inexplicably targeted and was completely baffled.

"Hehe~ Thank you, Auntie!" Although Xia Xiaoxiao is usually aloof, that depends on the person. When facing Yao Jinping and Lin Jing, she will always be that little girl who never grows up.

On the other side, Xia Xiaoxiao's home has a simpler layout. It's over 80 square meters and still has the familiar three bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, and one bathroom. After entering the house, Lin Jing pointed to one of the rooms and asked Xu Qingfan, "Do you want Auntie to save a room for you? You can come and stay here if you quarrel with your mother in the future."

This was mostly a joke, of course. Xu Qingfan wasn't some ignorant little kid anymore; how could he possibly have a conflict with his parents?

“Okay, Auntie, my mom also said that the next room will be reserved for Xiaoxiao, so I’ll stay here with you from now on!” Xu Qingfan finally got to show off. He jogged up behind Lin Jing and massaged her shoulders, his hand making a soft sound as it struck her flesh.

"Hmm~ Not bad, a little higher." Lin Jing squinted her eyes to enjoy it, but out of the corner of her eye she saw her daughter turn and walk away.

[Would she even be jealous of her mother?] she couldn't help but chuckle to herself.

The house viewing was completed quickly, since it was just a bare-bones apartment and there wasn't much to see.

It must be said that the salesperson was not lying when selling the apartment; the materials used in the apartment were indeed quite substantial, with thick walls and ample ceiling materials between floors, so there should be no need to worry about sound insulation.

They glanced back at the cockroach-shaped building one last time. Just a few steps away was the best shopping center and the largest square in the district, and life after moving in would be quite luxurious.

After having tea at Zhengwumen for lunch, Xu Qingfan said to his father, "Dad, take me to Biguiyuan first. I have plans with Wanning."

"Why aren't you home taking a nap? What are you doing out there?" Yao Jinping glanced at her son, who was never home, with displeasure.

"It's about the comic; a new comic is coming out." He was actually going to give Lin Wanning a lesson on physiology and hygiene, but of course he couldn't say it to her face.

"Oh, another new comic is coming out." Yao Jinping nodded. That's fine then. It's good to draw more and earn more money. If Xiao Deng doesn't work hard, how can Zhong Deng live a peaceful life?

"Is it another one of those hilarious everyday jokes? Auntie wants to be your first reader," Lin Jing asked with a smile.

"No, this time it's a long one, I want to give it a try."

"Then Auntie will be your first reader."

"Okay, show the painting to Auntie when it's finished." The tea house wasn't far from Bi Gui Yuan, and the car arrived quickly. Xu Qingfan opened the door, got out of the car, and answered without turning his head.

The car door closed again, and Lin Jing, seeing her daughter still sitting in the car, couldn't help but ask, "Xiao Xiao, aren't you going?"

"I can't get a word in edgewise when they're drawing comics, so why should I go?" Xia Xiaoxiao said nonchalantly, as she hadn't even finished her daily racing game tasks for the day.

The car quickly restarted. Lin Jing glanced at Xia Xiaoxiao, who was looking down at her phone, and thought to herself:
What am I going to do with my silly daughter?
(End of this chapter)