I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 493. Awkward! Everyone thought the other party would come.

Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao stood there, watching the two children cross the road hand in hand.

Once they reached the other side, the little girl suddenly turned around, waved enthusiastically, and shouted to them, "Goodbye, sister! Goodbye, brother!"

"Goodbye." The little boy seemed threatened, and soon he also waved his little hand weakly.

"Goodbye, kids." Xia Xiaoxiao waved happily, gently rested her head on Xu Qingfan's shoulder, and watched the two of them slowly walk away.

"See? That way you won't get scolded by Auntie." She raised an eyebrow at Xu Qingfan triumphantly.

"When they get back, their mothers will scold them just the same way for eating food given to them by strangers!" Xu Qingfan said, imitating the tone Yao Jinping used to scold him when he was a child.

"Pfft, you think everyone's as stupid as you!" Xia Xiaoxiao burst out laughing. "Such a smart little girl would definitely finish eating before going home, hmph~"

The girl raised her pointed chin.

"She is quite pretty." Xu Qingfan imitated a scene from a movie, extending his index finger to lift her chin.

"Get lost!" Xia Xiaoxiao slapped his hand away in annoyance and walked home with the stinky dog's arm.

Coming from Donghui City to the Old Market feels like being pulled back from the 21st century to the 1980s or 90s.

In a handmade leather shoe shop that is about to be swept into the dust of history, the radio is playing Priscilla Chan's "Language Gone By".

Slogans for garbage sorting are painted on the faded walls, and brightly colored recycling bins are neatly arranged, yet they seem out of place with their surroundings.

Xia Xiaoxiao held a hot milk tea in her hands, taking sips now and then, and pulled him to wander around the old market.

At the entrance of the two-yuan boutique, a loudspeaker plays the catchy slogan "Everything is two yuan, all two yuan" on a loop.

When they were young, they didn't have much money, but they still wanted to give their best friends birthday gifts, so they often went there.

But those were Xu Qingfan's memories from his previous life. After his rebirth, he and the five girls had never lacked pocket money since childhood.

"Shall we go in and take a look?" he suddenly said, grabbing Xia Xiaoxiao's arm.

"Whatever you want." Xia Xiaoxiao glanced at the goods piled up by the door, ranging from small items like nail clippers and ear picks to large items like brooms, kitchen knives, pots and pans.

"Buy whatever you like, don't worry about saving me money." Xu Qingfan pulled out a huge ten-yuan bill from his pocket and swaggered in with Xia Xiaoxiao.

People around them were looking at them with strange eyes, and Xia Xiaoxiao really wanted to pretend that she didn't know him.

Xu Qingfan didn't care at all. Ten yuan could buy five items at a two-yuan store, so how could it not be a huge sum of money!
You can sometimes find some good stuff at two-dollar stores, such as in the book section. Textbooks that cost a few cents a pound at the recycling station are simply disinfected and then sold at the two-dollar store.

Sometimes you can try your luck here if you lose your textbooks, and it's a steal if you find one with notes from a top student.

"A golden piggy bank, want one? I'll buy it for you to save money in," Xu Qingfan enthusiastically promoted.

"Want this? It's a big butterfly hair clip." Xu Qingfan picked up the hair clip and started clipping it onto her.

"This stone glows at night, do you want it?" Xu Qingfan introduced it wherever he went.

"Hey, do you like this one? It's a big golden cup. Hey, hey, why are you pulling me?"

After Xia Xiaoxiao snatched the big golden cup and put it back on the shelf, she felt embarrassed and quickly covered her face and ran away.

The two left the two-dollar store empty-handed. After they had walked a distance, Xia Xiaoxiao gave him a disgruntled look.

"How old are you? Aren't you ashamed?!"

Xu Qingfan really wanted to tell her she was 18, but since they were on the street, she decided not to drive.

"Why should I save money? Here, take it." He stuffed the ten yuan note he hadn't spent into Xia Xiaoxiao's pocket and held her hand with his own.

Xia Xiaoxiao's anger vanished instantly. She stole a glance at their hands and remained silent.

Walking on the familiar streets, she felt uneasy, worried about running into acquaintances, yet also hoping to do so.

It's a contradictory feeling, but not hard to understand.

"Hello Auntie."

However, when she actually ran into someone she knew, Xia Xiaoxiao quickly pulled her hand back.

"Oh, it's you two kids! You went to high school together?"

"Hello, Auntie. Yes, we were still studying together." Xu Qingfan greeted his childhood neighbor with a smile.

"Very good, very good."

"Ah."

After exchanging a few brief pleasantries, the two continued on their way.

But whether Xu Qingfan did it on purpose or forgot, he walked a long way without taking Xia Xiaoxiao's hand again.

Xia Xiaoxiao gently nudged him with the back of her hand to signal him, but Xu Qingfan seemed not to understand or notice and did not react.

Xia Xiaoxiao pouted, looking aggrieved: [Fine, I won't hold your hand then! I don't care!]
She threw the empty milk tea into the trash can, put her hands in her pockets, and acted as if she didn't care about anyone.

Xu Qingfan chuckled to himself as he watched from behind. He had done it on purpose, never expecting that this proud and arrogant little girl would give up so quickly.

"Oh dear, my hands are so cold in the middle of winter," he said, deliberately walking up to Xia Xiaoxiao after throwing away the trash cup.

"I hope you freeze to death!" Xia Xiaoxiao tossed her head, trying to flick her high ponytail at his face, but she failed.

"I warmed your hands just now, now it's your turn to warm mine." Xu Qingfan said without asking Xia Xiaoxiao's consent, and directly stuffed his right hand into the girl's pocket.

Xu Qingfan wanted to hold hands, but Xia Xiaoxiao deliberately clenched her fists and wouldn't let him.

Xu Qingfan wasn't annoyed. He simply covered her small hand with his large hand, turned his head, and smiled, "Warm, isn't it?"

"Hmph~" Xia Xiaoxiao bit her lower lip lightly, her face slightly flushed, and deliberately turned her head to pretend to look at the bus.

In winter, many of the roadside trees are bare, and the road appears as a straight line with no end in sight.

Xia Xiaoxiao hoped that the stinky dog ​​could lead her on her journey forever, and Xu Qingfan wanted the same.

Unfortunately, Yao Jinping's phone call to invite the two of them back for dinner ruined the atmosphere.

"There's no other way. Let's take a taxi back. My mom's calling us to go home for dinner." Xu Qingfan hung up the phone and shrugged at Xia Xiaoxiao.

"Okay." Xia Xiaoxiao nodded and noted down their current coordinates.

[Next time I have time, I'll start from here again!]
After hailing a taxi, Xia Xiaoxiao glanced longingly at the end of the road before quickly following Xu Qingfan into the back seat.

The starting fare for taxis in Licheng is 10 yuan for the first two kilometers. It's less than two kilometers from here to Donghui City, and I just happened to have the 10 yuan note I had left at the two-yuan store to pay the fare.

"It would be so convenient if there were shared electric bikes," Xu Qingfan muttered casually after getting off the bike.

"What shared electric bikes?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked with a puzzled look.

"No, it was just a sudden idea. We'll put a few electric bikes in every corner of the city, and people can ride them by scanning a QR code with their phones," Xu Qingfan explained.

"The car was thrown in this morning, and the wheels were stolen last night," Xia Xiaoxiao said, unusually telling a lame joke.

This does indeed reflect the current situation; even the tulips planted in their community's flowerbeds were dug up in the middle of the night. And the ornamental carp in the pond—who knows which heartless scoundrel stole them?

“Once the city is fully covered by surveillance, it won’t be so easy to steal. Besides, we can start with university campuses, where students are more civilized.”

Xu Qingfan reached out his left hand and ruffled her hair, while the two of them had kept their hands clasped together since before they got into the car.

Xia Xiaoxiao gave him her familiar deadpan look, and only after he stopped moving did she say with disdain, "If you keep dawdling, Auntie will scold you later."

Xu Qingfan surrendered with one hand and pulled her into the elevator to go home.

“I knitted sweaters for you all. Take them to school this week. The weather forecast says a cold front is coming next week,” Yao Jinping suddenly said at the dinner table.

Xu Qingfan immediately became alert. He pretended to be nonchalant and asked, "Mom, how many pieces did you knit in total?"

After hearing this, Xia Xiaoxiao also perked up her ears to listen.

"What do you mean several pieces? Just two! I knitted them with pure wool, I guarantee they're even warmer than down jackets." Yao Jinping didn't catch the underlying meaning in her son's words and continued to promote the warmth of her sweaters.

"Thank you, Auntie!" Xia Xiaoxiao was delighted and put down her bowl, thanking her with a smile.

Seeing this, Xu Qingfan could only awkwardly shut his mouth.

He could already imagine that when they got back, Xiao Ruanwen would ask curiously, "Wow~ Xiaoxiao, is your sweater hand-knitted?"

Xia Xiaoxiao subtly boasted, "Yes, it was knitted by my aunt, it's especially warm!"

[This mom of mine, isn't she just making my life even more difficult?]
"Xiao Fan was just asking if she had knitted any for Xiao Yu and the others, right? Your mother started last month, and she's only finished two pieces so far," Lin Jing said with a smile.

"Yes, if this winter is a little longer, Xiaoyu and the others should be able to wear the sweaters I knitted." Yao Jinping nodded.

Speaking of which, apart from Xu Qingfan's sweater, the other five girls' sweaters were all one-size-fits-all. If it were Wu Lingyu instead of Xia Xiaoxiao sitting here eating today, Yao Jinping would have said that the sweater was knitted for Xiaoyu.

Xu Qingfan chuckled awkwardly and continued eating with his head down.

After dinner, the two received the sweaters knitted by Yao Jinping and tried them on.

Xia Xiaoxiao tried it on, then took it off and held it in her hand, unable to put it down.

"Xu Qingfan, aren't you going to try it on?" Xia Xiaoxiao lay on Xu Qingfan's bed, turning her head to look at him as he sat in front of the computer working.

"If my mom can even knit the wrong size sweater for me, I'll have to consider getting a new mom," Xu Qingfan said to Xia Xiaoxiao while typing away at a document.

Xia Xiaoxiao felt that made sense, so she didn't continue the topic.

She rolled over and lay face down on Xu Qingfan's bed, noted the time on her phone, and then did a three-minute plank exercise.

A minute later, Xia Xiaoxiao began to feel tired. To distract herself, she began to carefully examine Xu Qingfan's pillow, checking for Xiaoyu's hair or anything like that.

Sure enough, upon closer inspection, she actually found a strand of hair that didn't belong to Xu Qingfan.

"Hmm~"

After Xia Xiaoxiao persisted for the last minute or so, she immediately picked up the hair to examine it.

A very ordinary long black hair. Xia Xiaoxiao compared it to her own hair, and she couldn't tell whether this hair was hers, Xiaoyu's, or someone else's.

But that doesn't stop Xia Xiaoxiao from giving him a good thrashing.

"Xu Qingfan, why is there Xiaoyu's hair on your pillow?" She picked up the strand of hair and confronted Xu Qingfan.

The scoundrel was suddenly questioned, and his heart skipped a beat. After all, he had indeed done something naughty with Xiaoyu in bed last week.

"What's so strange about having Xiaoyu's hair? You guys always like to lie on my bed." Xu Qingfan replied calmly without even glancing at it.

"Really?" Xia Xiaoxiao looked at him suspiciously, but seeing nothing amiss, she had no choice but to throw the strand of hair into the trash can.

Xu Qingfan secretly breathed a sigh of relief and casually asked, "Are you sleeping here tonight, or next door?"

"I'll sleep here," Xia Xiaoxiao said after thinking for a moment.

Xu Qingfan understood; tonight would be another night of battle.

Speaking of which, Xia Xiaoxiao hasn't crawled into Xu Qingfan's bed for a long time since that time she and Xiaoyu took turns raiding Xu Qingfan's bedroom at night.

This is something Xu Qingfan knows.

What he didn't know was that just last month, Xia Xiaoxiao wanted to sneak up on Xu Qingfan after everyone had gone to sleep. But as soon as she sneaked out of the room, Wu Lingyu opened the door and came out as well.

"Ah!" Xia Xiaoxiao screamed in fright.

"Xiao Xiao?" Xiao Yu, who was waiting patiently, was also startled, then pretended to be surprised.

"Xiaoyu, I'm going to the toilet." After saying that, Xia Xiaoyu went to the toilet barefoot, holding her slippers.

Wu Lingyu stood there watching her disheveled figure, covering her mouth and chuckling to herself.

Xia Xiaoxiao, who had done something wrong, was caught red-handed. Fortunately, she could explain that she was going to the toilet, but even so, Xia Xiaoxiao was still terrified.

As a result of PTSD, Xia Xiaoxiao dared not visit Xu Qingfan whenever Wu Lingyu was home.

Xia Xiaoxiao also figured it out: it's not her who's comfortable, so why should she always be the one to launch night raids? She'll just refuse to go and see who can't hold back first!
Xia Xiaoxiao withdrew her gaze from Xu Qingfan and absentmindedly scrolled through her phone.

[Anyway, I'm absolutely not leaving my bedroom tonight. Come or don't come!]
[It's best not to come!]
[Hmph~ Locking the door will make you mad!]
Xia Xiaoxiao couldn't help but laugh at the thought of Xu Qingfan excitedly opening her bedroom door in the middle of the night, only to find it locked from the inside.

Xu Qingfan glanced at the girl lying on his bed, grinning foolishly, and shook his head: This child is probably beyond saving.

Twelve o'clock in the morning.

Xia Xiaoxiao tossed and turned on her bed, worried that she might miss the sound of Xu Qingfan opening the door. She kept her ears perked up and listened intently.

But more than half an hour had passed since I went to bed, and there wasn't a sound, not even a mosquito, let alone the sound of the door opening.

In Xu Qingfan's room, the scoundrel was also lying on the bed, tossing and turning.

"It's already midnight. If Xia Xiaoxiao doesn't come soon, I'm really going to sleep." Xu Qingfan kicked off the blanket. Even though the heating wasn't on, he still felt unbearably hot.

One o'clock.

"Why isn't he here yet? Is he asleep?" Xia Xiaoxiao got up and looked at the bedroom door. After thinking for a moment, she got up, put on her slippers, and went to unlock the door.

That's all there is to it. Expecting her to take the initiative? No way!
same.

"Why isn't Xia Xiaoxiao here yet? Is she asleep?" Xu Qingfan glanced at the time on his phone, sat up, and looked towards the door.

Two o'clock in the morning.

[If you're not coming, fine, I'm going to sleep!]
[Could he really be asleep?]
Three o'clock in the morning.

"Xu Qingfan, you're a dog."

"Xia Xiaoxiao, you're such a dog!"

(End of this chapter)