I have few friends, but many childhood sweethearts.

Chapter 494. A Strange Sense of Accomplishment

The next day.

It was almost afternoon when Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao, who had just woken up, met in the living room.

"puff"

When they saw the dark circles under each other's eyes, they couldn't help but laugh at the same time.

"What are you laughing at? Move aside!" Xia Xiaoxiao glared at Xu Qingfan reproachfully, stepped over him, and went into the kitchen.

Xu Qingfan followed her into the kitchen.

The rice cooker was keeping the lunch that the two of them were going to eat. Since Xu Qingfan and Xia Xiaoxiao hadn't gotten up yet, the three adults started eating before they even got up.

"Go get the bowls and chopsticks, I'll carry the whole rice cooker out," Xu Qingfan said to the girl as he picked up the rice cooker.

Xia Xiaoxiao obediently did as she was told, taking out two bowls and chopsticks from the sterilizing cabinet, then opening the refrigerator and taking out two bottles of juice before closing the refrigerator door with her arm and leaving.

Xu Qingfan placed the rice cooker on the coffee table and used the remote to find a movie to watch while eating.

It's been a while since the premiere of the second season of Love Apartment ended, and several TV stations have started broadcasting it a second and third time.

Xu Qingfan searched for a long time but couldn't find a show he wanted to watch, so he could only continue watching Love Apartment.

When he put down the remote, Xia Xiaoxiao had already taken the food out of the rice cooker and filled two bowls with rice.

Xu Qingfan picked up one of the bowls and started eating, while Xia Xiaoxiao also started eating while watching TV.

Neither of them mentioned being stood up last night.

"Hahaha"

When the host asked Zeng Xiaoxian if he usually plays online games, Zeng Xiaoxian cheekily replied that he plays Connect Four. Although it wasn't the first time he had played it, the two still couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"When will the third season be released?" Xia Xiaoxiao suddenly turned to ask Xu Qingfan.

"Next year, I don't remember which month," Xu Qingfan said uncertainly after recalling for a while.

He only remembered that when the third season of Love Apartment aired in his previous life, someone in the dormitory downloaded it to an MP4 player and brought it to the dormitory to watch.

[It seems to have happened in the second year of high school]
"It's coming out next year? Did the production company tell you that?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked curiously.

"Uh, no, I saw it on Weibo from some marketing account. It seems like it's been scheduled for release, probably next year," Xu Qingfan replied ambiguously.

Knowing full well that the show would be a huge hit, Xu Qingfan naturally had Zhang Chunxue buy product placements beforehand, which is why this version of "iPartment" features many elements related to the show's appeal.

However, neither Xu Qingfan nor the five girls were fans of celebrities, so they did not take the opportunity to exercise any special privileges as sponsors.

"Oh." Xia Xiaoxiao regained her indifference.

"Hmm." Xu Qingfan nodded with relief upon seeing this.

The TV show quickly came to an end. After Zeng Xiaoxian's flashback, the scene switched back to the set of "Who Can Become a Millionaire?" The last question was whether to choose B or D.

"Will they choose B? I checked that website a few days ago, and the voting has already ended. The most people chose B." Xia Xiao finished the last bite of her rice, put down her chopsticks, and looked at Xu Qingfan.

"Should I call Zeng Xiaoxian for you?" Xu Qingfan looked at her speechlessly.

Xia Xiaoxiao looked listless, picked up the bowls and chopsticks from the coffee table, and went back to the kitchen: "Take the rice cooker back yourself, and remember to wipe the table!"

"Do you need to teach me?"

Xu Qingfan watched her departing figure, a faint smile appearing on his face.

No one was home, so the two of them spent the entire afternoon watching movies in the living room.

Xia Xiaoxiao felt cold, so Xu Qingfan took a blanket out of the drawer.

Two people shared one blanket, and they slowly huddled together.

At some point, Xia Xiaoxiao's legs were placed on Xu Qingfan's thighs, and after an unknown amount of time, Xia Xiaoxiao was sitting in Xu Qingfan's lap.

then.

Thirty-five minutes into the movie, the two of them forgot all about the plot, completely absorbed in their training.

At five o'clock in the evening, the two-and-a-half-hour movie, which was full of exciting moments, ended. Xia Xiaoxiao gently closed her eyes and nestled in Xu Qingfan's arms, barely breathing.

Xu Qingfan gently brushed aside her bangs and kissed her forehead, which was damp with sweat.

Xia Xiaoxiao gave him a resentful look, reached behind her to re-button her clothes, and manually adjusted the position until it finally felt comfortable against her skin.

"I'll let it go this time, but if you do it again next time, I...I'll tell Auntie!"

Xia Xiaoxiao's cheeks started to burn again. After saying that, she hurriedly got off the dog's lap, bent down to pick up a few wads of tissues from the ground, and ran upstairs as fast as she could.

Xu Qingfan remained lying motionless on the sofa. The tingling, dreamlike, and exhilarating feeling he had just experienced was slowly fading away. All he wanted to do was lie there until the end of time.

The scoundrel admitted that he had indeed taken the initiative just now, in broad daylight and in front of everyone, "forcing" Xia Xiaoxiao to take the helm.

Although her skills weren't as refined as Xiaoyu, Wanning, and Yiyi's, Xia Xiaoxiao's grumpy face and unwilling yet obliging demeanor were incredibly intoxicating to the scoundrel.

Great sense of accomplishment.

Well, we've gotten a bit off-topic.
Xu Qingfan silently recited the core socialist values ​​in his mind before reopening his eyes.

Xu Qingfan checked it carefully again and confirmed that except for one corner of the blanket being dirty, the rest of the blanket was still clean.

In just a short while, a gust of wind made him feel a chill in his groin.

The dog-man draped the blanket over himself and quickly went upstairs to the second floor.

Half an hour later.

The two, feeling refreshed, met again in the living room.

"Auntie said we'll cook dinner, but I just checked the fridge and there's not much food left." Xia Xiaoxiao looked out the window, trying to appear calm as she chatted with Xu Qingfan.

"I'll go cook the rice first, then we'll go to the market together." Xu Qingfan said with a cheerful smile, whistling as he went into the kitchen.

Xia Xiaoxiao glared at his retreating figure, but a faint smile quickly appeared on her face.

"Let's go buy groceries."

After cooking, Xu Qingfan didn't ask Xia Xiaoxiao's opinion. He took his wallet, keys, and phone and then pulled her out the door.

Xia Xiaoxiao wanted to go along anyway, so she obediently let him lead her.

They took the elevator to the underground parking garage, and the two quickly rode their beloved electric scooter onto the road.

The winter wind was strong. Xu Qingfan was wearing a windbreaker, with the zipper pulled up to the back of the hood and a helmet on. Xia Xiaoxiao, sitting behind him, was completely protected from the wind.

"What do you want to eat tonight?" Xu Qingfan shouted loudly, trying to keep up with the sound of the wind.

"Whatever," Xia Xiaoxiao replied softly.

Xu Qingfan only heard two words, but he couldn't make out what Xia Xiaoxiao said. However, based on his familiarity with the girl, he would guess that she said "whatever" or "I don't know".

Having grown accustomed to speaking Mandarin, Xia Xiaoxiao still manages to be quite adorable when she occasionally speaks Cantonese.

They speak Cantonese when communicating with their parents, but speak Mandarin at school or with friends.

Sometimes Xu Qingfan would answer his mother's questions in Cantonese, and then immediately switch to Mandarin to talk to Xia Xiaoxiao; they were used to it.

Upon arriving at Fupeng Market, Xu Qingfan first dropped Xia Xiaoxiao off, parked the car, and then returned to take her hand.

Xia Xiaoxiao's down jacket had large pockets, and this time the two of them put their hands in her pockets. "What's in the fridge? I forgot to check," Xu Qingfan asked.

“We have Shantou beef tendon balls, fish maw, and green vegetables,” Xia Xiaoxiao replied after thinking for a moment.

"Are they asking us to have hot pot?"

"Or fish maw and beef tendon balls can be boiled together."

"It will be all right."

Although Xia Xiaoxiao didn't try to get free food or drinks while watching the movie, the two of them ate lunch from 1:00 to 2:30. The girl wasn't hungry yet, so she wasn't very interested in eating.

Xu Qingfan tried to freeload, but Xia Xiaoxiao sternly refused.
"Well, let's have hot pot then. I don't know what else to eat." Xu Qingfan scratched his head and pulled her to browse the individual vendors' stalls.

"These are free-range chickens. Can you help me kill them?" Xu Qingfan asked an old man selling free-range chickens as the two strolled around.

"Sure, you can have a rooster or a hen. A rooster is 20, and a hen is 13," the old man asked in Mandarin with a regional accent.

"I want this one, please kill it for me," Xu Qingfan said to the shopkeeper, picking out a rooster wearing glasses.

"Okay, you've picked a good one! This chicken is beautiful. Boss, would you like some chicken blood?" The old man glanced at him again because this rooster was the best quality among all the chickens in the cage.

"No, please pluck the hairs more cleanly, thank you."

"You want what you want."

Xu Qingfan watched him weigh the throat and then took out his wallet to pay: "Boss, we'll come back to pick it up later, pay first."

"You want what you want."

After paying, Xu Qingfan pulled Xia Xiaoxiao along as they continued shopping.

"You can even pick chickens?" Xia Xiaoxiao looked at Xu Qingfan curiously, clearly having taken the old man's words to heart.

"No, I chose that rooster because it was wearing glasses and had an external soul bone on its ankle." Xu Qingfan shrugged.

"Hmm?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked in surprise.

"None of the other chickens are wearing glasses, only that one. You don't think that only that chicken is nearsighted, do you?"

"Isn't that right?" Xia Xiaoxiao had lived in the city since she was a child and really didn't know these things.

“I heard my grandfather say that roosters love to fight, so he put glasses on them so they can’t see the road and can’t fight.”

"A dog that likes to fight is active, so its meat quality must be good."

Xu Qingfan explained to her the logic behind his choice of chicken.

"Oh." Xia Xiaoxiao nodded, adding one more useless life hack to her list.

After buying the essentials for hot pot, such as dried bean curd sticks and tofu, the two returned to the chicken stall where they had just sold chicken.

"Your chicken." The old man handed the two men a rooster that was in a large red plastic bag as they returned.

"Let me check if the hair has been plucked clean." Xu Qingfan handed the bag to Xia Xiaoxiao and opened it in front of the boss.

The comb and feet were from the same chicken he had just chosen; the owner was an honest man.

"I've cleaned it all out. I don't know if you're worshipping gods, but there are still a few tufts of chicken butt left." The old man, unaware of the city's complexities, explained himself.

"Thank you, sir. I'll come back to you next time I need to buy chicken."

"I haven't been here for a long time since I sold these chickens."

After spending five yuan to have the chicken deboned at a chicken stall, the two carried the rooster they had bought back home.

Chicken feet, chicken bones, and medicinal herbs such as ginseng, red dates, and cordyceps flowers are cooked together to make a soup base. The chicken meat does not need to be marinated in advance; fresh, high-quality chicken is delicious simply cooked in the broth.

"It's almost done. Call them and tell them to come back for dinner," Xu Qingfan said to Xia Xiaoxiao, who was watching him, after skimming off the foam from the soup.

"Oh."

Xia Xiaoxiao obediently took out her phone and tagged Xu Aiguo, Yao Jinping, and Lin Jing in the WeChat group.

The little brother smelled the aroma of chicken and jumped onto the dining table with a powerful push of his hind legs.

Xia Xiaoxiao quickly hugged it to her chest, while glancing guiltily at Xu Qingfan, who was busy in the kitchen.

"If Dad sees this, he'll scold you, but Mom will secretly give you some meat to eat," she whispered, putting her mouth close to her little brother's ear.

"Meow~" The little brother seemed to understand and responded with a meow.

Xia Xiaoxiao stroked her little brother's head and stood at the kitchen door with him in her arms.

Hearing the noise, Xu Qingfan glanced towards the door and saw that she had let the cat out again. He said irritably, "Why did you let it out again? If it knocks over the induction cooker, you'll be in for a scolding."

Xia Xiaoxiao obediently did not refute him. After Xu Qingfan turned around again, she made a funny face at his back.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked softly.

"Not for now. Just keep an eye on my little brother, give him a can of food, and don't let him try to steal my chicken." Xu Qingfan saw through her little trick at a glance and turned around to say.

Xia Xiaoxiao bit her lip, glared at him, and then left the kitchen with the cat in her arms.

"Chicken isn't tasty, it's not tasty at all. Let's eat some delicious cat food." Xia Xiaoxiao locked the cat back in its cat house, but still rewarded it with a can of food.

The little guy isn't picky at all; he immediately buries himself in food when there's something delicious to eat.

"Xu Qingfan, the water in the induction cooker is boiling!"

The temperature outside was only eight degrees Celsius, but staying around the induction cooker felt like springtime.

"Just turn the heat down to the lowest setting once the water boils, do you even need to ask me?" Xu Qingfan's disdainful voice came from the kitchen.

"I already made the transfer, I was just letting you know!" Xia Xiaoxiao clenched her fists in annoyance and retorted loudly.

"You're so awesome!" Xu Qingfan's infuriating voice rang out again.

Xia Xiaoxiao:
"If you keep being sarcastic, I'll tell Auntie when she gets back that you... uh."

Before Xia Xiaoxiao could finish yelling, the living room door was suddenly opened, revealing Yao Jinping and Lin Jing.

"Little one, is there anything you want to tell me?"

"Yes, what happened to Xiaoxiao and Xiaofan this afternoon?"

They both asked at the same time.

"Hehehehe"

Xia Xiaoxiao was visibly nervous. What happened between her and Xu Qingfan that afternoon? Of course, they were exercising!

"No, it's nothing, Auntie was just joking," she said, waving her hand awkwardly.

"It's nothing. In the afternoon, I lied to her and said that my watch was fluorescent. I let Xiaoxiao and me go under the covers to look at it, and then I farted inside."

Xu Qingfan came out of the kitchen and said casually.

Xia Xiaoxiao, Yao Jinping, Lin Jing: ???

"Xu Qingfan, go to hell!"

"Pfft hahaha!"

(End of this chapter)