Rebirth: My Home Has Become a Gathering Place for Young Women with a "Crazy" Spirit

"A pledge of allegiance... Selling cell phones... Let's go to karaoke." Qin Lang took a deep breath after hearing his cousin's words and gave her a long look. The little girl had her head down, her hands behind her back, and her right toe shuffling on the ground, much like when she was caught red-handed stealing the chocolate he had hidden in the cupboard as a child.

Qin Lang's anger dissipated considerably in an instant. He took out his phone and called his aunt to let her know he was safe.

The phone rang twice before being answered, and my aunt's hoarse voice, clearly anxious, immediately came through: "Xiao Lang? Any news about Xiao Xiao?"

"Aunt, we've found him. He's with me now, so don't worry," Qin Lang said, deliberately softening his tone.

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone, followed by a long, relieved sigh, then the voice trembled with tears: "That child... that wretched child... let her answer the phone!"

Qin Lang handed the phone to Wu Xiaoxiao. Wu Xiaoxiao bit her lip, hesitant to take the phone, but after being glared at by Qin Lang, she had no choice but to obediently take it. She had barely put the phone to her ear, before she could even speak, when a barrage of scolding erupted from the receiver.

"You brat, where have you been?"

"Why aren't you answering the phone? Do you know how worried your dad and I were?"

"..."

As the little girl listened, her eyes reddened, her lips trembled slightly, and she whispered, "Mom, I'm okay... I know I was wrong... umm... I'm with my cousin... Going back? Okay, okay..."

After hanging up, she handed the phone back to Qin Lang, sniffed, looked up, and forced a smile: "Brother, you're amazing! How did you find me?"

Qin Lang ignored the conversation, put his phone back in his pocket, and looked at her, saying, "Let's go, I'll take you home."

"I'm not going back." Wu Xiaoxiao refused almost reflexively, taking half a step back and shaking her head like a rattle drum. "Brother, I'm not going back. It's too boring at home. I want to play in the city."

Qin Lang looked at her without saying a word. He was considering that if he forcibly sent her home, it would be difficult for his aunt and paralyzed uncle to keep an eye on her. If she ran away again, it might not be so easy to find her next time.

Seeing that Qin Lang didn't immediately refuse, Wu Xiaoxiao knew she had a chance, so she quickly intensified her offensive. She grabbed his arm with both hands and shook it, saying in a soft voice, "Brother... you're the best! Didn't you always say that your house is my house? Can I stay at your place? Anyway, you're on summer vacation now, right? I'll hang out with you in the city, okay? Please..."

Wu Xiaoxiao's charming and coquettish tactics have been used on Qin Lang since he was a child and have never failed him.

Sure enough, Qin Lang sighed and said, "You can stay at my place, but you must listen to me."

"Yay! You're the most handsome, cousin!" Wu Xiaoxiao immediately smiled and kissed Qin Lang on the cheek, completely changing her pitiful appearance from before.

Looking at her smiling face, Qin Lang suddenly felt like he'd been tricked. But he didn't say anything more and turned to look at the door. At that moment, Xu Han, Ruan Zhihuan, and Su Yue also came out and came to Qin Lang's side.

Wu Xiaoxiao initially thought the three beauties were just passing by, but she noticed they all stopped beside her cousin, seemingly with him. Moreover, all three beauties were staring at her.

Wu Xiaoxiao's gaze swept back and forth between the three women's faces twice, her mind racing. Wasn't her cousin supposed to be withdrawn? How come he suddenly has three beautiful women by his side? What's their relationship with him?

But she didn't dare ask these questions directly. She just obediently followed Qin Lang, looking down at her toes.

The taxi arrived, but the driver, seeing there were five people, considered it overloaded and told Qin Lang he could only take four, asking him to call another taxi. Finally, the driver agreed to let all five people get in, only after Qin Lang promised to pay an extra ten yuan.

Qin Lang, being the biggest, sat in the front passenger seat. Xu Han, Su Yue, Ruan Zhihuan, and Wu Xiaoxiao sat in the back; thankfully, all four girls were slim, so the four of them weren't too crowded.

Wu Xiaoxiao sat in the second seat, with Xu Han on her left and Su Yue and Ruan Zhihuan on her right. Perhaps sensing Xu Han's cold aura, which made her feel oppressed, she unconsciously leaned closer to Su Yue, keeping her shoulder away from Xu Han.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something to her cousin Qin Lang, but didn't know what to say. When they were little, they used to talk about everything, but now, she didn't know where to begin.

Qin Lang glanced at Wu Xiaoxiao in the back seat through the rearview mirror and asked, "Have you eaten yet?"

Wu Xiaoxiao was taken aback for a moment before realizing that her cousin was asking her, and asked in return, "Brother... which meal are you talking about?"

Qin Lang frowned. "Today."

Wu Xiaoxiao: "No..."

"..." Qin Lang didn't say anything more, but after a few seconds, Su Yue, who was sitting next to Wu Xiaoxiao, spoke up: "There's a noodle shop on the south side of the entrance to the community. Let's go there and grab something to eat."

"Hmm." Qin Lang nodded and didn't say anything more.

Twenty minutes later, the car stopped in front of the "Lanzhou Ramen" restaurant at the entrance of the residential area.

Several people got off the bus.

The noodle shop was small, with only four or five tables. The owner, a woman in her fifties, was sitting behind the counter looking at her phone. When she saw someone come in, she quickly stood up.

"Boss, five bowls of beef noodles." Qin Lang announced the number as soon as he entered. Because of his cousin's matter, the group of them hadn't fully enjoyed their barbecue, so he ordered a bowl of noodles for each of them.

The noodles were served quickly, steaming hot, with a rich broth, topped with slices of beef, and sprinkled with scallions and cilantro. Wu Xiaoxiao took a sip of the soup, wincing from the heat, but her eyes lit up. "Delicious," she whispered, then buried her head in her food and ate quickly, clearly starving.

Qin Lang sat opposite her, eating slowly and deliberately, glancing at her every now and then, a hint of heartache flashing in his eyes, but he quickly hid it.

After finishing her noodles, Wu Xiaoxiao patted her stomach, sighed contentedly, and snuggled up to Qin Lang, asking in a low voice, "Brother, where do we go now?"

"My home." Qin Lang said, then got up and walked out of the noodle shop.

Wu Xiaoxiao obediently followed.

When they arrived at the apartment complex and took the elevator, Wu Xiaoxiao stood in a corner, her gaze sweeping over the group of people, lost in thought.

The elevator doors opened, and Qin Lang took out his keys to unlock them. After changing his shoes, he took a pair of guest slippers from the shoe cabinet and placed them next to Wu Xiaoxiao's feet.

Wu Xiaoxiao changed her shoes, stood in the entryway, looked around blankly, and then her gaze fell on the center of the living room, where Xu Han had already sat down on the sofa by himself, in a very casual posture, as if he were in his own home.

Su Yue went to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, looked around, and then asked, "Would you like something to drink? We have water, cola, and oolong tea."

"Cola," Ruan Zhihuan replied casually as she sat down on the sofa.

Xu Han: "Cola."

Su Yue took out a few cans of cola and distributed them to everyone. She opened a can of oolong tea for herself, leaned against the bookshelf, and took a sip.

Wu Xiaoxiao took the cola from Qin Lang, her gaze shifting from Xu Han to Ruan Zhihuan, then to Su Yue, and finally settling on Qin Lang.

She leaned closer to Qin Lang, lowered her voice, and asked in a tone only the two of them could hear, "Brother, are these three... all your wives?"