Upon returning home on Friday evening, feeling a bit tired after a full day of classes, Xu Lin received a phone call.
It was from Cui Niancheng, Uncle Cui, who had given him a free shop.
"It's been a while since we last talked."
"No worries, I've been too busy to contact you. I've already arranged for the people; they'll come over tomorrow afternoon."
"You should find someone to keep an eye on things. I'll send you their number. The process is quick."
"We have a standard procedure; it should be done in 2-3 days. There's no formaldehyde or anything like that. Just ventilate for a few days, and it will be fine."
"Alright, thank you, Uncle."
"No problem. I won't be able to see you open your shop, so I wish you all the best in advance."
"You've already helped me a lot."
"Ha ha, it's nothing much. Well..."
Cui Niancheng's voice suddenly turned more solemn, prompting Xu Lin to lower his voice as well.
"If there's anything I can help with, I'll do my best."
"It's not a big deal. It's just... my daughter... never mind, we'll talk about it some other time."
"The construction team will call you when they arrive. That's all, goodbye."
"Goodbye, thank you, Uncle Cui."
With a few words of hesitation, the call ended.
Worried about his daughter, it seems. Even rich people can't always take care of their kids. It's a kind of helplessness.
I remember he mentioned last time that he divorced his wife and his daughter stayed with her in Linshui. He probably wanted to say something about it just now.
Maybe he wanted me to check on her, but in the end, he wasn't entirely comfortable asking me, given that we've only met once and I'm just a stranger to him.
"Better not to get involved in other people's family matters. I should get back to writing. I feel like I'm becoming more and more of a corporate drone. What happened to my original plan to be a slacker?"
...
Early the next morning, Xu Lin woke up to find that Li Bin hadn't arrived, which felt a bit strange.
But there was a lot to do today. He needed to arrange a few things. Last night, he finished writing the chapters to be updated today.
Today he had to handle the renovation, pick up Liu Qinnuan, plan a meal, and check on Bai Xiaoxiao's father's health.
"I'm really busy these days."
When he arrived at Chu Qingchan's house, Ji Yun opened the door for him, but it was clear that it wasn't just Chu Qingchan and Chu Fengyi inside.
Entering the living room, he saw two unexpected people: the graceful Su Qingwan in a white dress and Qin Yunhe, dressed in leather jacket and pants, looking very cool.
"Hey? What are you guys doing here?"
"Our big playboy Xu has arrived~" Qin Yunhe teased. Xu Lin laughed awkwardly, unable to refute since they all knew each other well.
But Teacher Su still ignored him. Qin Yunhe had already informed him two nights ago that she had been completely honest with her.
No wonder Su Qingwan had been acting this way, though not as extreme as he had imagined.
Knowing that her best friend was in a relationship with the guy she liked, he thought Teacher Su would have a bigger reaction.
"Are you all planning to go out?"
"We're going to look at a villa." Chu Fengyi played with her hair, as if a villa was just a toy car to her.
"Hey? A villa?"
"Yes, the one you saw in the advertisement the other day."
"Oh, right." When Chu Qingchan mentioned it, he remembered Ms. Ye had brought it up in their conversation.
Chu Qingchan and the others had said they wanted to buy one, but then Ms. Ye left the next day, and he thought the idea had been shelved.
"Is Sister Qin and Teacher Su going too?"
"Yes, Miss Chu called me, saying she wanted me to take her to the gym. Then she said we'd also check out the villa, and I got interested."
Qin Yunhe originally only planned to exercise with Wanwan, but upon hearing that Chu Qingchan also wanted to exercise, she brought Su Qingwan along as well.
"Well then, I hope you all have fun. If you're not going for a morning run, I'll take my leave."
"Hey, hey, we're waiting for you to cook!"
Chu Qingchan tugged at him, and Xu Lin smiled helplessly before heading straight to the kitchen.
The girls watched Xu Lin's back and laughed. Only Su Qingwan pouted, but Qin Yunhe immediately pinched her.
"What are you doing? Everyone's happy."
"I can't be happy. Aren't you nervous? So many... beautiful girls."
"I'm confident."
"Confident, my foot! It'll be fun if we all get eliminated."
Su Qingwan was also amused by her friend and rolled her eyes helplessly.
"What do you want to eat?"
"Nothing that makes us fat! No carbs!"
Hearing the girls' shouts, Xu Lin opened the fridge and saw nothing but fruits on the top shelf, clicking his tongue.
"Ladies, it'll have to be salad."
"Okay!"
Xu Lin prepared a yogurt salad and some whole grain bread and brought it out.
"What about you?"
Ji Yun took the bowls and noticed there were only five small bowls for them and none for Xu Lin.
"There's not enough. You guys eat; I'm not hungry."
"Eat something on your way to school."
"Alright."
As everyone started eating, Xu Lin picked up a broom and began to clean up.
Chu Qingchan certainly wouldn't clean. Usually, an auntie would come every two days to clean up thoroughly.
It seemed they hadn't had anyone over for two or three days, but fortunately, Ji Yun usually helped clean up a bit.
Chu Qingchan, aside from being pretty, needed a lot of help with many things, no less than the wealthy daughter Chu Fengyi.
However, seeing Xu Lin cleaning while they ate made the girls feel a bit embarrassed. He was working without having eaten anything.
A few minutes later, Xu Lin finished sweeping and returned to the table, finding an extra small bowl with yogurt salad in it.
"What's this?"
"We each gave you a bit, eat up."
"Alright."
Looking at the five girls, Xu Lin couldn't help but smile. Wasn't he striving so hard for moments like this?
While eating, Xu Lin remembered something important and put down his spoon.
"By the way, can any of you do me a favor?"
"Say it."
Qin Yunhe responded immediately, and Xu Lin nodded, thinking his wife Yunhe treated him best~
"I'm planning to open a chain of spicy hotpot restaurants. The construction team is coming this afternoon, but I have classes. If any of you are free, could you go there for me?"
"I'll go."
"Here are the keys." Xu Lin handed the keys to Qin Yunhe, who took them.
"What about a phone number? Give me one."
"Alright, I'll send it to you on WeChat. Contact them then, thanks."
"We don't need to say thanks."
"Alright." Xu Lin nodded and then felt the gaze of three other pairs of eyes on him.
"There's one more thing. Can one of you go pick someone up for me?"
"Who?" Chu Qingchan asked.
Xu Lin suddenly remembered that last time in Jinling, Chu Qingchan had initially liked Liu Qinnuan quite a bit. But because of that incident, she ended up having some issues with her.
"Uh... Liu Qinnuan."
"You still keep in touch with her?" Chu Qingchan's face instantly changed, while Chu Fengyi found it amusing and asked, "You didn't get played by that little manipulator, did you?"
"No, her hometown is around here, and she's just coming over for a visit."
"Then why is she looking for you?"
"That I don't know."
"Oh, I see. Leave it to me. I'll help you teach her a lesson."
Chu Qingchan narrowed her eyes, looking as if dealing with a girl like her was no big deal.
What's with the 'help me' part? Xu Lin thought. That girl is crafty.
Without Chu Fengyi around, I'm really worried you might get tricked by her.