“Shall we go take a look?” Su Qingwan, too, seemed eager to watch the excitement.
“Teacher Su, what do you want to watch? Get in line and buy me an ice cream, and also a glass of lemonade.”
“I’ll treat, but as my boyfriend, aren’t you embarrassed to let me stand in line myself?”
“Not at all.”
“I don’t want to go~” Su Qingwan said, tugging on his sleeve and pouting, just like a child pestering their parents to buy something.
“I’ll go. What would you like to drink?”
“Lemonade for me too, and an ice cream.”
“Then we won’t get the ice cream from up ahead?”
“Of course we will, but let’s get some drinks first.”
“It’s freezing outside. Aren’t you worried about getting a stomach ache?”“Hmph! Just go.”
“Alrighty.”
Xu Lin went to stand in line. Su Qingwan suddenly thought of her friends who doubted she had a boyfriend and suspected she was faking it.
Today, she decided to provide a bit of proof. Though she usually posted photos of them without showing their faces, some people still didn’t believe her.
So, she took out her phone and snapped a picture of the queue, editing out everyone’s faces except for Xu Lin’s handsome profile.
He looked quite dashing, having just gotten a haircut. In the night, his side profile wasn’t too conspicuous. Even those who knew Xu Lin might not recognize him.
She posted the picture with a caption: “Boyfriend, in line~”
After thinking it sounded too showy, she edited it down to just: “In line~”
Within seconds of posting it, she received five comments—three from her friends and two from teachers at her school.
“So handsome, did you swipe this picture from somewhere?”
“Wow, first time showing his face! Is he too handsome, is that why you’ve been hiding him?”
“Take a clear photo for us.”
The other two comments were emojis. Su Qingwan smiled, satisfied with the reactions.
As she started replying to the comments, they quickly jumped to sixteen, including one from her mom.
“Come home for dinner soon!”
She hurriedly put her phone away. In fact, her dad wasn’t working late; she just wanted to spend some time alone with Xu Lin.
But to avoid her mom calling to rush her, she sent a message: “I’m out with your future son-in-law buying gifts for you, and I wanted some ice cream.”
Her mom replied instantly, “No need for gifts, just come home. And why ice cream in this cold weather?”
“We’ll head back soon.”
“Hurry up, dinner’s almost ready.”
“Okay, Mom.”
After waiting two or three minutes, Xu Lin came back with the drinks and ice cream.
“My mom just urged us to come home for dinner.”
“Huh? Are we still getting the ice cream up ahead?”
“Yes, we’ll stroll around. We don’t get much time to walk together.”
“Okay.”
Xu Lin nodded. Actually, while getting his hair cut, he realized she definitely dragged him out on purpose.
But a date with a pretty girl was much better than dealing with her parents, at least he didn’t have to worry about what to say.
So, they started a typical date, chatting and walking.
They bought whatever food looked good, tried out fun things, and checked out clothes they liked.
Their conversations weren’t private, mostly strategizing about how to deal with Su Qingwan’s parents.
She summarized some key points for him to remember, to avoid hitting any sensitive topics.
An hour later, Su Qingwan received a call from her mom, who scolded her thoroughly.
“It looks like we have to hurry back.”
“Then let’s go. But why do you seem more nervous than I am?”
Xu Lin laughed as he looked at Su Qingwan, who instantly became serious and tense at the mention of going home.
“You must keep calm and show off your acting skills.”
“Okay.”
“Also, do you remember the details about my parents?”
“I remember.”
“Then let me ask you, what does my dad like to drink?”
“Orange juice. Speaking of which, not many people his age like orange juice.”
Not just people of his father’s age, even his uncles and aunts mostly drink mineral water and tea, though they do drink beverages. However, his dad was an exception. He had loved soda since Xu Lin was a child.
Even now, he drinks a bottle a day. Xu Lin’s love for soda actually came from his father.
“What about my mom?”
“Auntie likes chrysanthemum tea.”
“Okay, let’s go then. Mom might already be impatient.”
“Aren’t you just adding pressure on me? It’s my first visit and we’re already late.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ll just say I dragged you along.”
“Speaking of which, it’s my first time visiting your home and I didn’t buy anything. Should I buy some chrysanthemum tea for Auntie and some red wine for Uncle? Didn’t you say he likes red wine too?”
“No, no, don’t waste your money. Even though they like it, my parents don’t appreciate wastefulness.”
“Now I understand why Jia Qing is so stingy. He always takes you to eat at buffets.”
“Don’t mention him, bad luck!”
“Hahaha, but chrysanthemum tea and red wine don’t cost that much.”
“But are you planning to buy a 15 yuan bottle of red wine?”
“Hey~ I get it. I should buy something appropriate without being too cheap.”
Meanwhile, at the Su family home, a smart looking man with a bald head and a chubby woman with glasses were sitting on the sofa watching TV.
“Why hasn’t Wanwan come back yet?”
“She said she wanted to eat ice cream and asked her boyfriend to take her to buy some.”
“She’s an adult now~” Father Su shook his head while Mother Su chuckled.
“What are you laughing at?”
“I think you’re still not satisfied with Xu Lin.”
“I haven’t even met him yet. How can I be dissatisfied? I just think that since things didn’t work out with the Jia family, we don’t need to rush her into finding someone.”
“Ah! Old Su, that day your daughter called you snobbish and you got upset. Now you’ve exposed yourself, haven’t you?”
Mother Su was a bit displeased hearing her husband say that. Personally, she liked Xu Lin. He looked good, and he had voluntarily helped her last time, which showed he was kind-hearted. Apart from not being very wealthy, he was down-to-earth and much better than those rich playboys.
“I’m not! It’s just that young people nowadays, especially someone younger than Wanwan, make me uneasy. What if Wanwan gets deceived?”
“What do you mean deceived? Breaking up just means they’re not compatible. There are plenty of incompatible couples out there.”
“That’s not acceptable. Didn’t your daughter say they’ve lived together before?”
“No way. You know your daughter well enough to tell if she’s serious or just talking.” Mother Su was very confident in her understanding of her daughter.
“Alright, if you think he’s good, then I’ll take a look at this young man you speak highly of.”
Just as the words were spoken, the doorbell rang. There was a click, and the door opened. Both of them stood up, and Mother Su went to greet the visitors first.
She saw a handsome young man walking in behind her daughter.
Mother Su approached him first, while Father Su observed from a short distance.
He looks quite good, dressed neatly and cleanly, neither flashy nor sloppy.
Xu Lin felt the gaze from a distance but didn’t look up immediately. Instead, he paused.
“Do I need to change shoes?”
“No need, come in.”
“Long time no see, Xu Lin.”
“Hello, Auntie! Hello, Uncle! Sorry to bother you.”
“Oh, it’s fine. Why did you bring stuff? I told you not to.”
“Well, I couldn’t come empty-handed the first time. It’s nothing expensive. I heard Auntie likes chrysanthemum tea, so I brought some.”
“I also heard Uncle likes orange juice, so I went to a fresh fruit store and got 5 pounds of fresh-squeezed orange juice. It can last a few drinks if kept in the fridge.”
“But later, I heard from Wanwan that Uncle also likes red wine. We were almost here already, so next time I’ll bring a good bottle.”
As he spoke, he looked at Father Su with a nervous, restrained expression, but his eyes did not dodge, giving a sense of energy and steadiness.
Father Su seemed momentarily distracted, then nodded.
“No need for red wine, I like orange juice, especially fresh. Let’s sit down and eat, we can chat over the meal.”
“I’ll go serve the dishes,” Mother Su said as she walked toward the kitchen.
“I’ll help,” Su Qingwan said.
“You just sit, the food is ready,” Mother Su smiled, waving her hand, and went into the kitchen. Father Su followed her.
Xu Lin sat down with Su Qingwan. He glanced at her and lowered his voice.
“How did I do?”
“Great, your acting is good. You didn’t seem nervous at all.”
“Who says I wasn’t nervous!? I felt your dad’s pressure; he’s a bit intimidating.”
“He’s always like that. Just stay steady.”
“Okay.”
Xu Lin didn’t expect to be thrown into a meet-the-parents situation so early, now feeling the pressure intensely!
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