After all, the posture that looks close but unclear and makes it unclear what they are doing is easier to explain than being directly discovered that Xiangzi has put his hand into his classmate's clothes.

Xiangzi pulled her hand out little by little, but there seemed to be some residual warmth on her hand. Although she had pulled it out, she felt as if she was still wrapped in an invisible stream of water.

Looking at Qingchuan Xiang who was looking down at him, Xiangzi looked at the pair of eyes that seemed to be aware of something, and realized that he seemed to have underestimated Xiang's ability to gain emotions from the water source.

I clearly made it all last night, and I deliberately delayed giving it to Xiaoxiang until now.

Even in such a situation, Xiaoxiang could still sense a sense of "crisis"... Xiangzi himself did not realize this. After Qingchuanxiang pointed it out, he was shocked to realize that after the conversation with Qijin yesterday, he had indeed become a little anxious to confirm the relationship with Xiaoxiang more quickly.

It’s not wrong to say it’s a sense of crisis.

"Yesterday, I met Qi Jin-san."

After thinking about it, Xiangzi finally said it out.

"Qi Jin?" Qingchuan Xiang was visibly stunned when he heard the name, but soon revealed a look of sudden realization. "You know? About me and Qi Jin?"

Qingchuan Xiang stood up straight again and maintained a normal conversation with Xiangzi. He looked back at the angle of the door from this position and immediately understood that Xiangzi had probably seen Qi Jin when she came to see him yesterday morning.

Did they run into each other later? Because I wanted to minimize the chances of Xiangzi and her father running into each other, I told Xiangzi yesterday that he could go to the bookstore later recently. Did this lead to Xiangzi running into Qijin while wandering around school?

This can be considered as shooting oneself in the foot.

Qingchuan Xiang suddenly felt a little nervous. Qi Jin had told Xiangzi so much about herself. If she told Xiangzi all the stupid things she had done when she was still immature...

Will Xiangzi suddenly say that he doesn’t want to see me anymore?

As soon as this thought came to his mind, Qingchuan Xiang immediately dismissed it. It shouldn't be that serious, otherwise Xiangzi's attitude towards him today would not be like this.

"I didn't expect that Xiang actually has an ex-girlfriend." Xiangzi looked at Qingchuan Xiang and didn't notice anything unusual about Xiang.

"At that time, I was still more... anthropomorphic, so I agreed to Qi Jin casually. It's not like I deliberately wanted to reject Xiangzi now." Qingchuan Xiang explained, his tone a little soft.

"I know." Seeing Qingchuan Xiang looking a little worried, it was strange. "It's my problem too. I clearly said before that I would make Xiang like me little by little, but now I'm the one who's anxious."

Before Qingchuan Xiang could continue, Xiangzi ended the conversation first: "Here's the juice. Xiang, you're going to RiNG today, right? Go quickly, don't be late. It's not good to always go on time. What if you encounter a rainstorm or something along the way, you'll be late again like last time."

Xiangzi was referring to the day she quit the team and the day Xiang was late because of the rare heavy rain.

"Then I'm leaving?" "Yes."

Qingchuan Xiang walked out of the classroom and looked back in the direction of the classroom after going downstairs. He saw Xiangzi sitting by the window and seemed to be concentrating on reading again.

But for some reason, Qingchuan Xiang always had a subtle feeling in his heart. This sudden episode was like some kind of warning, reminding himself.

I have been making more and more arrangements for the people around me. Originally, I was just intervening in the behavior of a few individuals. It seemed that everything was going smoothly and there would be no problems.

But now, as more and more people are involved, from just giving Xiangzi a job in a bookstore in the beginning, to later guiding Aiyin to find everyone to re-form the band, and now to having more and more interactions with Xiaomu, the intersections between these people who originally had various connections with each other have gradually formed a big network.

What just happened is an example. Although this unexpected development has not had much impact, it is hard to say what will happen next time.

There is a feeling of confusion in my heart, which is invisible and intangible, but lingering and difficult to ignore.

Don’t worry about it for now. What has been done cannot be undone, and there is no point in worrying about things that haven’t happened yet. Maybe you are just worrying about nothing.

Qingchuan Xiang took another sip of the juice given by Xiangzi, suppressed the upset feeling for the time being, and decided to prepare for today's band practice first.

........................

"I didn't expect Xiao Mu to want to come here."

Shu Qingchuan drove Xiaomu all the way to a place she was very familiar with, the sister stores of the Qingchuan family, Qingchuan Bookstore and VA-11.

As for Su Shi, she had already sent her to RiNG on the way, and Xiao Mu directly said that he wanted to come over and sit for a while.

Originally, Qingchuan Shu thought that Xiaomu would take this opportunity to go to some places that would be more beneficial to her "future", and Shu herself did not mind helping Xiaoxiang's friends.

After parking the car in a nearby parking lot, Qingchuan Shu took Xiaomu's hand very intimately, as if she were his own daughter.

Surprisingly, Xiao Mu was not very opposed to Qingchuan Shu's behavior of directly holding her hand. Maybe it was because Qingchuan Xiang had a similar temperament to her, so she felt a little familiar?

But…could Xiaoxiang's habit of not rejecting intimacy with others not be entirely due to her lack of clarity about emotions? It seems to be partly due to a personality quirk inherited from Ms. Kiyokawa Shu.

"Does Xiaomu come here often by himself?" Qingchuan Shu asked curiously.

"Only once." Xiao Mu shook her head. Apart from the first time she came to see Xiangzi, she had never been to VA-11. Xiangzi also didn't like being seen working by people he knew.

"At first, I was just thinking of giving my eldest daughter a library, but then Xiaoxiang started to develop a taste for making beverages, so I bought her a shop next door," Qingchuan Shu recounted. "Xiaoxiang also thought, since we still had to use her sister's name, we might as well just turn it into a bar."

"That won't work..." Xiao Mu felt that if he really did that, it would be no different from throwing rice bugs into the granary.

Recalling the decoration of VA-11, it is clear how deeply Xiaoxiang is obsessed with the failure to successfully open a bar.

When they reached this place, they could see the facade of VA-11 not far away. While imagining Xiaoxiang looking drunk, Xiaomu saw a figure she knew walking out of the door of VA-11.

That was Xiangzi's father.

Chapter 240 Meeting the Parents

After Qingchuan Xiang left school, Xiangzi continued to do today's homework in the classroom.

Although Xiangzi seemed very dissatisfied with Qingchuan Xiang's behavior of leaving her newly bought keyboard in the bookstore without her permission this morning, she had to say that it was precisely because Xiang's keyboard could be borrowed in the bookstore that she was not too disappointed when she learned today that she could not use the piano in the performance club.

Moreover, in the long run, even if Xiangzi can continue to use the piano in the music club after this period of time, it will definitely be a good thing for Xiangzi to have extra practice time in the library.

If it weren't for the conversation with Qi Jin yesterday, Xiangzi probably wouldn't have had any extra thoughts about Qingchuan Xiang putting the keyboard in the library...

But Xiangzi happened to learn from Qi Jin first that Qingchuan Xiang had such an extremely "philanthropic" behavior.

Although Xiang appears to be considerate of other people's feelings, due to her own shortcomings, it has almost become a kind of imposed kindness, and she may even inadvertently guide other people's thoughts according to her own wishes.

Therefore, when he saw the keyboard, Xiangzi had to think more. From the very beginning, Xiangzi did not want to always be in the position of being unilaterally given charity in this relationship with Qingchuan Xiang.

It's not only because of Xiangzi's self-esteem, but also because when facing Qingchuan Xiang, Xiangzi felt strong in another sense.

When I'm with Qingchuan Xiang, I want to be on top!

Qingchuan Xiang must show an expression of "showing weakness", and it cannot be an act!

After finishing his last homework, Xiangzi looked at the time and realized it was almost time to leave. If he left now, he would be able to arrive at the library on time.

Although Xiangzi's habit is to arrive a few minutes early, there is only a little homework left, so he might as well finish it before leaving so that he can work with ease.

Even while walking on the road, Xiangzi's thoughts did not stop, and he thought about the recent situation at home.

On the basis of the initially agreed salary, the store manager Qingchuanyu later gave himself a raise, which made Xiangzi's financial situation much better.

And recently there was another signal that made Xiangzi start to feel more relaxed: his bastard alcoholic father seemed to be drinking less recently.

Before, every time I came home, the beer cans on the floor would cover half of the room. Now, at least I can see how many bottles are there at a glance and I don’t have to count them myself.

……well.

Xiangzi couldn't help but sigh. He had actually reached the point where he would feel relieved about such things. When he thought about it carefully, it was really hard to accept.

She lived frugally, even relying on scholarships to pay for her tuition. The money she earned from working hard was directly used to buy beer. At the beginning, Xiangzi couldn't help but scold her father angrily. What was even more uncomfortable was that her father actually let her scold him like this...

Moreover, Xiangzi had to leave some money for him every time, otherwise she would have to worry about her bastard father borrowing money to buy alcohol, which would really make the situation worse.

As for hoping that my father would suddenly wake up one day...

just forget it.

We arrived near the bookstore. The heat brought by the live broadcast last weekend has not subsided yet. The workload has increased sharply in the past few days, and there are many problems that have nothing to do with the bookstore at all. However, the store manager Yu was also very considerate and gave all employees a temporary salary increase, so it is considered a good thing.

However, the number of people was already a little less yesterday, and I don’t know how many people can be converted into regular customers of the bookstore...

After opening the shop door, Xiangzi was about to say hello to the store manager Yu who was sitting at the counter as usual before going to work, but he didn't see anyone behind the counter.

Where is the store manager?

At this time, Xiangzi heard some noisy noise in the study. He walked around the bookshelf and saw Xiaomu.

For some reason, Xiaomu was not wearing the Tsukinomori school uniform, but a slightly loose and casual hooded short jacket and wide-leg shorts of the same style. Her long green hair was tied into a high ponytail that was full of youth and vitality.

Unlike her usual appearance of being very delicate and lovely but always looking a little silly, her hair is now neatly tied up, revealing clear facial contours and neck lines, making her look more refreshing and neat.

Paired with that very "everyday neighborly" outfit, the soft and comfortable clothing material and the turquoise color of the top match it very well. This vibrant color also makes Xiaomu more energetic.

The lower body is matched with a pair of wide-leg shorts with loose trouser legs, which not only modifies the leg shape but also gives her enough room for movement. The length of the trousers just stays above the knees, revealing her fair calves, adding a touch of lightness to the overall shape. The whole set of clothes adopts a loose design style, without too much sense of restraint.

Even the shoes were not the small leather shoes that Yue Zhisen required her to wear to school, but a pair of simple light blue canvas shoes that complemented the overall casual style.

Next to Xiaomu, Qingchuanyu, who had disappeared from the counter, was standing aside watching the excitement. At the same time, there was a figure that Xiangzi was not familiar with standing in front of Xiaomu, holding a baseball cap in his hand, as if he wanted to put it on Xiaomu, so that Xiaomu could completely change his clothes.

Why is Xiao Mu here? Where did that clothes come from? Who is the person in front of Xiao Mu?

A bunch of questions suddenly popped up in Xiangzi's mind, and he walked forward in confusion.

When Xiao Mu, who seemed to be treated as a changing doll, saw Xiangzi, a rare look of confusion appeared on his expressionless face, as if he had become like this before he even realized it.

"Xiangzi is here." Qing Chuanyu also saw Xiangzi and waved hello. "Let me introduce you. This is my mother. You can just call her Shu, or Ms. Shu. My younger sister always likes to call her that."

The mother of the store manager Yu?! That means Qingchuan Shu, the mother of Qingchuan Xiang?

Shu also turned around at this time and saw Xiangzi. She was obviously Qingchuan Xiang's mother, but she looked younger and more like an older sister. If she didn't have the maturity of an adult, she would definitely be mistaken for her.

"Is this Xiangzi?" Qingchuan Shu waved Xiangzi over, "Come, let me see him."

Xiangzi naturally hurried over, and his heart subconsciously became nervous.

Although to be honest, Qing Chuanyu can be considered as Xiaoxiang's guardian, and Xiangzi has met her parents countless times, but the meaning of being Xiaoxiang's mother is completely different.

Chapter 241 The secret to dealing with Xiaoxiang

Xiangzi looked at the lady who inherited 70% of Qingchuan Xiang's appearance, and almost asked why Xiang's mother came here suddenly today, but he quickly thought it was funny. She didn't need any reason to visit her daughter's store.

After a brief moment of panic at first, Xiangzi immediately regained his composure and bowed slightly to Kiyokawa Shu: "Hello, I'm Toyokawa Xiangzi. It's our first meeting, and I'm grateful for your guidance."

"Okay, don't be so reserved. Our family doesn't really care about these things."

Kiyokawa Shu smiled and told Xiangzi to relax. Her smile was gentle and bright, retaining the traces of maturity of many years, yet so open-minded and cheerful.

For a moment, Xiangzi subconsciously compared his smile with the smile of Qingchuan Xiang in his memory. Compared with Xiaoxiang's mother, Xiaoxiang's own smile was more light and subtle. Even her laughter was a unique whirring sound that required people to listen carefully. It was smart and cute.

"Let's go sit down over there and chat." Kiyokawa Shu pointed to the reading lounge area in the corner of the bookstore specially prepared for guests.

"Sorry, Ms. Shu, I still need to work and the time is almost up..." Xiangzi was still thinking about her job!

"I'll talk to Xiaoyu, it's okay." Qingchuan Shu waved his hand.

This is the first time I hear the name Xiaoyu. It sounds quite cute when Ms. Shu calls the store manager who has the demeanor of a big sister like that?

Feeling a little disrespectful to his superior, Xiangzi hesitated for a moment, but finally accepted Ms. Shu's invitation.

"Okay, then I'll obey your command."

"But before that, Xiangzi, do you want to try changing clothes like Xiaomu?" Qingchuan Shu gently pulled Xiaomu in front of her and proudly showed Xiangzi her masterpiece. "Doesn't Xiaomu look much more lively now than in his school uniform?"

Indeed, the doll-like feeling that Xiao Mu originally gave people has weakened a lot, and he has become much more lively.

but……

"Did Ms. Shu bring the clothes Xiaomu is wearing?" Xiangzi asked curiously. The simple and casual style of Xiaomu's clothes made it hard for her not to think of a possibility.

"These are spare clothes for Xiaoxiang. You should know that she sweats easily." Qingchuan Shu explained, and this just confirmed Xiangzi's guess that they were indeed Xiaoxiang's clothes.

"But the clothes Xiaoxiang left here were all shirts and trousers." Manager Yu, who had been watching the show for a while, added, "The clothes Mu is wearing now are the clothes Mom left in her car."

No, Qingchuan's family would put a few clothes in any place where Xiaoxiang might appear... and a source of drinking water.

"So, Xiangzi, do you want to try it? Although the clothes in my car are bought for Xiaoxiang, they are all selected by me. They are not those cookie-cutter shirts." Qingchuan Shu continued to persuade. It seemed that Ms. Shu was quite dissatisfied with her daughter's lack of ambition in dressing.

"No thanks, thank you..." Xiangzi declined politely.

"Okay~" Ms. Shu touched Xiao Mu's head with some disappointment. It seemed that she really wanted to change clothes for the younger ones.

In the end, Qing Chuanyu went back to work. Since the rest area of the bookstore was mainly for customers to read, the three of them chose to sit in VA-11 next door. Not only could they chat more freely, but they could also order a few drinks to soothe their throats.

“There are more people here now.”

The popularity effect brought by live streaming is quite significant. There are many people sitting in the bar drinking drinks and chatting, or waiting to take away their food.

The shop assistants were busy, and Xiangzi heard one of them complaining about why the most recent regular worker was off work at the busiest time, after most schools were out of school.

VA-11 hired new permanent employees?

Xiangzi knew that VA-11 had only Miss Izumo as a regular employee, and the others were basically part-time temporary workers. Today was the first time he learned that there was a new regular employee.

The three of them didn't enter the store directly from the back door, but instead went through the main entrance. Of course, both Kiyokawa Shu and Xiao Mu had disguised themselves to some degree. Shu wore fashionable sunglasses that covered most of her face, and Xiao Mu, after changing into this outfit, only needed to wear a baseball cap with the brim slightly lowered to make it difficult to associate her with the taciturn daughter of an entertainer on TV shows.

"Xiao Xiang hasn't been coming here much recently, has she?" Qingchuan Shu asked Xiangzi.

"Yes, she said she wanted to keep the hype down, so she hasn't been around lately." Xiangzi nodded, "Also, she's been busy with her band's stuff lately."

The three of them found a seat in an inconspicuous corner against the wall. After an employee handed over the drink menu, Xiao Mu Xiangzi each ordered his usual mango juice and black tea, while Qingchuan Shu ordered a milk tea.

"Xiang herself might not like the current situation." Qingchuan Shu glanced at the scene in the shop again. "When she first pestered for this shop, she envisioned a small, niche bar hidden in a corner of the city. I didn't expect her to actively use live streaming to attract traffic."

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