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After watching the movie, it was already past four in the afternoon.
Xu Ye rubbed his stomach. He had finished the entire bucket of popcorn and the soda by himself, and now his belly felt a bit full.
“That group photo should be enough, right? If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back first.”
Chen Qingqing said, “Didn’t you say we were going to eat afterward?”
“I’m full. I can’t eat anymore.”
Chen Qingqing tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Stepping out of the theater, the warmth outside made her feel a bit hot. She pulled a black hair tie from her pocket, held it between her teeth, and skillfully tied her hair up.
Today, she wore a creamy yellow sweatshirt, black pants, and a pair of white Converse. Once her high ponytail was done, she looked graceful and charming.
Xu Ye watched her tie her hair without blinking. Feeling a little shy, he took the initiative to start a conversation. “Chen Qingqing, how old are you?”
“Eighteen.”
“Just finished the college entrance exam too?”
“Mm.”
Xu Ye smiled, “Which city are you planning to attend university in?”
Chen Qingqing eyed him warily and didn’t answer. Xu Ye felt a bit speechless and shrugged, “If you don’t want to say, that’s fine. Just asking casually.”
“And you? Which city are you headed to?”
“Modu.”
Hearing this, Chen Qingqing fell silent for a moment.
He was considering only two schools: one was Modu Music Academy, and the other was Zhongyang Music Academy. Deep down, she leaned more toward Modu Music Academy. Having lived in the South all her life, she worried she might not adapt well to the North.
“That… you brought me here. Could you ask your Aunt Wang to take me back?”
Chen Qingqing nodded softly. “I’m going to the restroom first.”
“Okay.”
Xu Ye put his hands in his pockets and looked around. Seeing several claw machines lined up against the wall, he hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and exchanged some game tokens.
These claw machines required skill. Fortunately, in his previous life, Xu Ye had grabbed countless plush toys to cheer up Gu Mengyao, so it didn’t take him long to catch a Doraemon from the machine.
When Chen Qingqing came out of the restroom, Xu Ye handed her the blue, round plush.
Chen Qingqing looked at the doll in Xu Ye’s hand, then looked up at him with a puzzled expression.
Xu Ye smiled, “Consider it a birthday gift from me.”
Chen Qingqing had received many expensive birthday gifts before, some from her Father and Mother, and others from her parents’ colleagues, but she had always accepted them without any hesitation or guilt.
But now, she felt a little hesitant.
Seeing her indifferent reaction, Xu Ye said helplessly, “Forget it, never mind.”
He was just about to withdraw his hand.
Chen Qingqing quickly reached out and snatched the plush toy away. “I treated you to the movie, and you gave me a doll. That’s fair.”
“Yeah.”
The two walked side by side out of the mall. After Chen Qingqing sent a message to Wang Ruxue, the car soon pulled up in front of them.
“Aunt Wang, please take him home first.”
Wang Ruxue turned her head and asked, “Your name is Xu Ye, right? Where do you live?”
Xu Ye smiled, “Just take me straight to the tavern. I have to work tonight, sorry for the trouble.”
…
Half an hour later.
Xu Ye got out of the car at the tavern’s entrance, while Wang Ruxue didn’t stop and drove straight back to Hongye Courtyard.
“Your Mother just called me. She’ll rush home tonight.”
Seeing Chen Qingqing remain silent, Wang Ruxue added, “Your Father might come over tonight too.”
Hearing this, Chen Qingqing smiled, a very happy smile.
She hadn’t expected that photo to be so effective—enough to make her parents, who usually valued work more than family, drop everything and hurry back from outside.
Chen Qingqing placed the Doraemon plush on her lap, then opened her phone and found the group photo already posted on her Moments feed.
After a moment’s thought, she tapped on the photo settings and chose “Set as Wallpaper.”
Returning to the phone’s home screen, the default wallpaper had changed to the group photo of her and Xu Ye.
After dark, the sound of a car parking came from the Courtyard. Chen Qingqing knew her Mother had returned. She lay still on the sofa.
Jiang Meilin got out of the car, opened the front passenger door, and carried a delicate Black Forest cake in her hand as she stepped into the living room.
“Qingqing, Qingqing?”
Seeing Chen Qingqing lying on the sofa playing with her phone, Jiang Meilin gently placed the cake on the coffee table, then carefully sat down by Chen Qingqing’s feet. She patiently asked, “Qingqing, Mom wants to ask you, who exactly is that Xu Ye?”
“Didn’t I already say he’s my boyfriend?”
“Don’t lie to Mom. I know you told your Father that just to blame him for not having time to celebrate your birthday with you. You did it on purpose to make him feel guilty…”
Chen Qingqing held up the Doraemon plush in her hand and said, “You’re overthinking. We’ve already confirmed our relationship. This afternoon, we watched a movie together and even went to catch toys. See, this is the one he gave me.”
Jiang Meilin glanced at Wang Ruxue. Seeing Wang Ruxue nod, Jiang Meilin’s expression darkened.
“Do you really want to upset me like this?”
Jiang Meilin stood up, her emotions flaring. “Yes, your Father and I have failed in our responsibilities as parents, but in terms of material things, we’ve never let you down. If I didn’t work, could you live in such a big house? If I didn’t work, what would you eat and drink every day?”
Chen Qingqing also sat up from the sofa, her eyes red and watery. “Yes, everything is for me. It’s all my fault. If you hadn’t given birth to me back then, none of this would have happened.”
After saying that, Chen Qingqing ran upstairs.
“Qingqing!”
Jiang Meilin watched her daughter wipe her tears as she went upstairs, immediately feeling regret.
Not long after, Chen Hansong arrived home by car. As soon as he came in, he anxiously asked, “Where’s Qingqing?”
“It’s all your fault! You even forgot your own daughter’s birthday. Are you even a father?”
“I just didn’t think about it at the moment,” Chen Hansong quickly defended himself. “And you still have the nerve to say that? You knew it was Qingqing’s birthday today and left her home alone.”
“Yes, it’s all my fault. You, as a father, have no responsibility at all.”
“Jiang Meilin, I don’t want to argue with you today. Where is Qingqing? I want to talk to her.”
Jiang Meilin turned aside and picked up the doll from the sofa, choking on her words. “She probably doesn’t want to see you right now, or me either.”
“Did you ask clearly? What exactly is the relationship between that Xu Ye and our Qingqing?”
Jiang Meilin picked up the phone Chen Qingqing had left downstairs. After unlocking the screen, she held it up and said, “She’s already set that photo as her wallpaper.”
“So, what do we do now?”
Jiang Meilin sniffed, then stood up. “I’m going upstairs to call Qingqing down to eat the cake. You don’t say much later. As for Xu Ye, I’ll find time to talk to him directly. You know your daughter’s personality—there’s no way we’ll get answers from her.”
Chen Hansong remained silent.
…