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2:15 PM.
Under a phoebe tree at the entrance of the residential community, Wang Yuxin was still babbling on, and Xu Ye was starting to feel depressed. He hadn’t slept well last night, and since early morning, this little girl had been nonstop chattering in his ear. Irritated by the sun and her constant talking, he covered Wang Yuxin’s mouth with his hand.
“Shut up. If you keep talking, I swear I’ll leave you home alone.”
“Mmm~”
Wang Yuxin’s cheeks flushed red. She tried to speak but all that came out were muffled sounds because Xu Ye’s hand blocked her mouth.
“Be quiet!”
Xu Ye raised his voice sharply. Immediately, Wang Yuxin stopped fussing, looking up at him with her big, expressive eyes full of grievance.
Xu Ye couldn’t stand seeing girls with teary eyes—especially since Wang Yuxin was still just a little girl. His heart softened, so he relaxed his grip.
Then, the next moment, Wang Yuxin raised her little fist and swung it at Xu Ye. Quick as a flash, Xu Ye stepped back and immediately pressed his hand against Wang Yuxin’s forehead.
“Stinky big brother!”
“Bad big brother!”
Wang Yuxin threw a series of fierce punches, but Xu Ye was unharmed.
At that moment, Chen Qingqing, who was sitting inside the car, happened to see everything.
The car stopped beside them, and Xu Ye hurriedly called out, “The car’s here. Wang Yuxin, stand still!”
Seeing the car nearby, Wang Yuxin shot an angry glance at Xu Ye before turning her head toward the business van parked by the roadside.
The window slowly rolled down.
A flawless face appeared right before their eyes. Just as Xu Ye was about to speak, Wang Yuxin quickly changed her expression and, like a lovesick puppy, said, “Xu Ye gege, this sister is so pretty!”
“You really have no sense at all. You’re so pretty, and you still call me ‘sister’? Just call me sister-in-law directly.”
Chen Qingqing rarely went out and had never heard anyone compliment her so bluntly face to face before. She felt a little embarrassed.
Xu Ye gently tugged at Wang Yuxin’s hair and pulled her behind him, then stepped forward to open the car door.
“Let me introduce you—this is my cousin, Wang Yuxin. She just graduated from elementary school.”
“Sixth grade isn’t elementary school!”
“Well, I say it is.”
Chen Qingqing hummed in response and said, “Get in the car.”
Xu Ye rubbed his hands together, already feeling the cold air from the car’s air conditioning. “Make some room.”
Chen Qingqing said coldly, “You sit in the passenger seat.”
Xu Ye replied, “My cousin gets carsick if she sits in the back.”
Wang Yuxin quickly retorted, “I don’t get carsick!”
Chen Qingqing repeated firmly, “You sit in the passenger seat. Your cousin sits with me.”
“Okay~” Before Xu Ye could reply, Wang Yuxin pushed him aside and climbed into the car. Chen Qingqing also shifted over to make room for her.
Xu Ye was about to curse under his breath.
He thought to himself, how did I end up bringing such a nuisance along?
Next time—
Next time, I’m definitely not taking her out again!
Xu Ye opened the front passenger door and saw Wang Ruxue sitting in the driver’s seat. He forced a smile and greeted, “Aunt Wang.”
Wang Ruxue asked directly, “Where are we going?”
“To the pedestrian street.”
Chen Qingqing said, “Why not go to the mall if we’re going shopping?”
Xu Ye replied, “Malls have all brand names; we can’t afford them. The clothes on the pedestrian street are cheaper.”
Chen Qingqing just wanted to get some fresh air anyway, and she wasn’t short of clothes, so she didn’t argue.
Seeing this, Wang Ruxue started driving toward the pedestrian street.
“Sister, you’re so pale.”
“…”
“Sister, your legs are so long. You must be about 1.7 meters, right?”
“…”
“Sister, my brother is so dumb. How did you even get to know him?”
“…”
Xu Ye took a deep breath, suppressing his anger. “Wang Yuxin, say one more word and I’ll throw you out of the car.”
“This isn’t your car, what business is it of yours?”
Xu Ye was left speechless by the retort.
Chen Qingqing saw the frustrated look on Xu Ye’s face and smiled slightly. She took the initiative to ask, “How old are you?”
“Thirteen.”
Chen Qingqing and Wang Ruxue—one a chatterbox, the other mostly silent—ended up complementing each other rather than creating the awkward situation Xu Ye had feared. Under Wang Ruxue’s relentless questioning, Chen Qingqing even started chatting back and forth with her.
Xu Ye shook his head with a bitter smile, thinking this little girl actually served some purpose.
Wang Ruxue observed everything in silence as she drove. That evening, she would report everything Chen Qingqing had done during the day to Jiang Meilin—that was part of her job.
Before long,
they arrived near the pedestrian street at the business district. Xu Ye opened the car door and stepped out; Chen Qingqing and Wang Ruxue followed.
Xu Ye pointed at a nearby barbershop. “I want to get a haircut first.”
Before Chen Qingqing could respond, Wang Ruxue took her hand and said, “You go get your haircut. Ruxue and I will go shopping first.”
“I—”
“Sis, let’s go.”
Chen Qingqing was promptly led away by Wang Ruxue. The two hit it off immediately, chatting and laughing as if Xu Ye was the unwanted third wheel.
Xu Ye sighed and walked into a nearby barbershop. Tony, the barber, quickly came over. “Hey handsome, here for a haircut?”
The term “handsome” in a barbershop had about as much credibility as a cat calling itself graceful.
If you were a guy, you’d be called handsome no matter what; if you were a girl, you’d be called beautiful, no matter what.
Xu Ye nodded and went to rinse his hair. Just as he sat in front of the mirror, Tony picked up the clippers beside him.
“Wait, what are you doing?”
“Cutting your hair.”
“Don’t just start with the clippers—did you even tell me how you want it cut?”
Tony thought to himself: Isn’t it always just trimming the sides short, cutting the top shorter, and leaving the bangs untouched?
But seeing Xu Ye so worked up, he still asked, “So how do you want it cut?”
“Give me a micro-textured layered cut.”
“A micro-textured layered cut?”
Seeing Tony’s puzzled look, Xu Ye realized this hairstyle wasn’t popular in China yet. He sighed softly and said, “Forget it, just cut it like I said. Start by putting the clippers down.”
Xu Ye was scared of the clippers. If they gave him a bowl cut, how could he face anyone?
“First, trim both sides, clip the hair on top up. Keep the sides about three centimeters long with a natural fade.”
“The back of the head should be similar, ideally cut with a C-shaped curve to look fuller.”
“Leave the top and bangs around twelve to thirteen centimeters, make the crown fluffy, and texture the bangs a bit.”
“…”
Xu Ye started directing the barber like a teacher.
What should have taken five minutes to cut took a full fifteen.
After finishing, washing his hair, Xu Ye grabbed the blow dryer and dried his hair himself, styling it simply with a side part.
Tony the barber was stunned.
This hairstyle—actually looked a little handsome.
“Handsome guy, what did you call this hairstyle just now?”
“Micro-textured layered cut.”
Xu Ye put down the blow dryer, paid, and walked out with a casual swagger.
What he didn’t know was that from this day forward, he had indirectly pushed the domestic hairdressing industry forward by a big step.
At that moment, inside a women’s clothing store.
“Boss, how much is this dress?”
“One hundred.”
“Fifty, I’ll buy it for fifty.”
“Hey, little girl, since when do you bargain like that—cutting the price in half right off the bat?”
“Are you selling or not? If not, I’m leaving.”
“Little girl, little girl, I’m selling, I’m selling, don’t go!”
“Here, take the money.”
“Little girl, how old are you? What grade are you in?”
“I’ll be starting seventh grade this semester.”
“Small but clever.”
“Boss, if you keep talking, I won’t buy it.”
“I’m complimenting you, you know.”
Chen Qingqing watched as Wang Yuxin, with lightning speed, bargained down a T-shirt originally priced at one hundred yuan to fifty.
The whole process was smooth and effortless.
She never expected to be able to bargain when buying clothes.
Even more surprising was that Wang Yuxin had mastered this skill at such a young age.
Suddenly, she found herself admiring Wang Yuxin a little.
“Jiejie, let’s go.”
Chen Qingqing was puzzled. “Just buying one piece?”
Wang Yuxin smiled. “Yeah, I don’t need many clothes. I want to save some money to buy clothes for Xu Ye gege.”
“Buy for him?”
Wang Yuxin nodded obediently, then tiptoed over and whispered into Chen Qingqing’s ear, “He’s really stingy. This morning, I saw the underwear he hung out on the balcony had a hole in it. Don’t tell anyone, okay? Boys care a lot about face.”
…