Chapter 117: Try to Keep the Sound of Cracking Melon Seeds to a Minimum (Bonus Chapter)

At the dining table, Qin Xuan and Qin Lin'er exchanged bewildered glances. The two people sitting across from them were acting very strangely.

Seeing Liu Ruoxi and Nan Zhiyi acting "lovingly" toward each other for the first time, Qin Xuan found himself wondering: when you wake up and your two girlfriends have suddenly stopped fighting, what are you supposed to do?

"Qin Xuan~" Nan Zhiyi set down her steamed bun, looked at the dazed Qin Xuan, and asked in a low voice, "Did I get the wrong flavor? Is it not the one you like?"

"Huh?" Qin Xuan blinked, quickly stuffed a pork-filled bun into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed before waving a hand at Nan Zhiyi. "No, no... I’m just curious, what is this all about?"

"It’s nothing, we just want to make things easier for you," Liu Ruoxi said, reaching out to rest her hand on Nan Zhiyi’s shoulder.

Qin Lin'er, still chewing on a bun, looked up with a confused expression. "What’s easier?"

Qin Xuan, Liu Ruoxi, and Nan Zhiyi: "..."

"Just eat your bun!" Liu Ruoxi grabbed another one from the bag and stuffed it into Qin Lin'er's mouth.

With two buns stuffed in her mouth, Qin Lin'er couldn't even speak. It took her a long time to finally swallow, and in her frustration, she downed two glasses of soy milk—one of which was supposed to be Qin Xuan's.

After the meal, the three of them walked toward the school arm in arm; Nan Zhiyi, however, had to head in a different direction.

"Big brother, big brother! Buy a rose for your girlfriends!" A little girl holding a large bouquet approached them. Qin Xuan looked at the flowers, though they didn't quite look like roses to him.

Still, noticing the gazes of the two girls beside him, he relented.

"How much for one?" Qin Xuan asked, pulling out his phone to scan a code.

"Ten yuan each, big brother!" The little girl remembered her mother’s advice: if a guy was with multiple girls, charge ten yuan; if he was alone, don't even bother asking—a lonely guy buying flowers was just going to cause trouble for others!

Qin Xuan was taken aback but scanned thirty yuan anyway. "I’ll take three."

"Alright, big brother!" The girl handed him three flowers. "You sure have a lot of girlfriends, big brother..."

Qin Xuan felt a bit awkward as he took the roses. He handed one each to Ruoxi and Lin'er, saving the third for Zhiyi later that night.

Qin Lin'er was so happy holding her rose that she felt like she was walking on air, skipping along while holding Qin Xuan’s hand. *Girlfriends, huh? When will that ever become reality?* The moment that thought crossed her mind, her excitement vanished. Her mother was already indifferent to the situation, but her father... that would be difficult. Still, as long as she could win over Qin Xuan, everything else would fall into place.

Back in the classroom, Qin Lin'er pulled out her phone to message her mother.

"Beep, beep, beep. Mom, are you there?"

Wang Manshu was in the middle of a meeting, but when she saw her phone light up, she decided to reply.

"Speak if you have something to say. I'm busy!"

"Mom, help! How do I win over Qin Xuan?" Qin Lin'er was desperate enough to try anything.

Wang Manshu kept a straight face, though she was speechless inside. *I have no experience with this! Back then, Qin Jianguo and I were both in our first relationships; we just went on a blind date and ended up engaged for no reason...*

"I don't know! You should ask your Aunt Yang; she’s the expert!"

Qin Lin'er stared at the message. *Aunt Yang? If she found out who I was after, she’d never give me advice! That’s just asking for trouble.*

"Are you sure about this? Last time I asked, you said you were still thinking about it." Her subordinates watched as Wang Manshu typed furiously, assuming something major had happened, and didn't dare to breathe.

Qin Lin'er looked at her mother's reply and gave a helpless smile. If she didn't hurry, there wouldn't be any room left for her.

Besides, seeing the scene this morning, Sister Ruoxi and Sister Zhiyi seemed to have reached some sort of agreement—surely it wasn't targeting her? Qin Lin'er suddenly felt guilty.

"Of course!"

Wang Manshu felt a bit conflicted reading the message. Her daughter, whom she had raised for so many years, was suddenly...

She wondered what Jianguo would think. He would probably... well, he’d likely beat those two to a pulp. At that point, she would just have to make sure the sound of her eating melon seeds was as quiet as possible.

Throughout the day, Qin Xuan noticed that Lin'er held onto the rose as if her life depended on it. If he hadn't reminded her, she probably would have brought it to lunch.

After their afternoon classes, the three of them went to the market to buy groceries. Nan Zhiyi had finished her hosting duties in the afternoon, and after a long, busy week, she was already home.

When they returned, they found Nan Zhiyi asleep on the sofa.

Qin Xuan put down the groceries, walked over, and swept her up into his arms, intending to carry her to bed.

In her groggy state, Nan Zhiyi opened her eyes, realized she was being carried by Qin Xuan, and slowly drifted back to sleep.

After placing her on the bed and removing her shoes and socks, he pulled the quilt over her. He looked down at her tired face, felt a pang of sympathy, kissed her forehead, tucked her in, and left the room.

"It's a pity I didn't get to see Sister Zhiyi host her show," Qin Lin'er whispered as Qin Xuan sat down on the sofa next to them.

Qin Xuan made a mental note to go watch next time.

"By the way, what do you want to do this weekend?" Qin Xuan asked, curious. He felt like he had been "borrowed" by her for the weekend.

"Uh..." Qin Lin'er paused. "There are still a few days left. You'll find out when the time comes."

"Just go cook! I'm starving!" Qin Lin'er punched him playfully, urging him on.

Qin Xuan stood up and rummaged through the bags. "Should I just stir-fry a couple of dishes?"

"Mm-hmm." Qin Lin'er nodded, eager to move on from the topic.

Once Qin Xuan headed to the kitchen, Liu Ruoxi watched Qin Lin'er fiddling with her phone, curious. "What do you actually want to do this weekend?"

Qin Lin'er frowned. *If I knew, would I be this conflicted? Can I just tell you I want to win Qin Xuan over?*

"We'll see when the time comes. I'm not really sure myself..."

Liu Ruoxi looked at her shy, indecisive behavior and felt impatient on her behalf.

She ran back to her room, returned, and shoved an unopened box into Qin Lin'er's hands. "Take it, take it! How can you be so timid about this?"

Qin Lin'er felt the item in her hand burning hot. *Of course I'm timid!*

Still, she tucked it into her bag and scurried back to her room, but not before noticing Sister Ruoxi looking at her with a complicated expression.

*Lin'er, the rest is up to how you perform.*

Liu Ruoxi looked toward the kitchen at Qin Xuan, watching his skillful technique with the wok. She sighed helplessly. *You’ve taken full advantage of the situation, but who told me I liked you too...*

Half an hour later, Qin Xuan brought the food to the table and called for Qin Lin'er.

"Wait? Aren't you calling Sister Zhiyi?" Qin Lin'er picked up her chopsticks, suddenly remembering her.

"It's fine. Eat your fill; I saved two bowls for her," Qin Xuan said, having prepared in advance.

Qin Lin'er looked at the dishes and was speechless.

"Qin Xuan~ could you have left a little more meat for Sister Zhiyi? This is practically all vegetables..." Qin Lin'er looked at the stir-fried garlic sprouts with pork, feeling aggrieved that only a few bits of meat remained.

"Your Sister Zhiyi likes the meat cooked inside the dish. You can just eat the double-cooked pork," Qin Xuan said, sliding the plate of pork toward her.

Qin Lin'er smelled the aroma, picked up a piece of the crispy pork, and nodded in satisfaction. "That's more like it!"