The food at LvShan Restaurant was still quite good, but the restaurant seemed a bit old - the wide door frame was dilapidated, only faintly reminiscent of its former grandeur.
Xiao Qi was still wearing her jeans, sweater, and cotton coat.
Auntie wore a dress and coat, with a pair of red leather shoes.
Those in love are different - as she walked, Auntie seemed to radiate a joyful aura.
Xiao Qi thought to herself, is this how I would be with Zaizai? It seemed she was the more mature one instead.
As they entered, a server led them to where a man stood up in the distance while a girl, likely his daughter, remained seated and played on her phone impatiently. Xiao Qi felt uneasy, sensing this might not go smoothly.
After all, she was meeting her aunt's potential stepchild. Naturally, she saw her Auntie in a positive light, but the girl might not feel the same way. Xiao Qi tried to understand - if some aunt was her father's date, she'd feel gloomy too, let alone have positive feelings.
But they were here now, so they had to face it. That's life.
As they approached, the girl reluctantly stood up, her demeanor reeking of displeasure.
Xiao Qi's Auntie introduced them, and Xiao Qi politely greeted, "Hello Uncle Gao, hello Sister Wen Wen."
At this moment, Gao Wenwen was stunned.
Just then, she had been watching videos of her idol on TikTok, which she often downloaded to watch later.
But this living, breathing idol standing right in front of her - was it real?
It had to be, she looked even better than in the TikTok videos.
Gao Wenwen suddenly understood the idiom "Ye Gong admiring the dragon" - she had always adored Su Xiaoqi, sleeping with her phone to watch her videos every night. Truly, Su Xiaoqi was so inspiring that when Gao Wenwen felt tired from studying, watching her videos would reenergize her to stay awake. But now this real person stood before her, and she was speechless.
Just like those fangirls who called their idol "my husband" or "my boyfriend" - when they actually met them, they couldn't utter a word and might even hide. That was exactly how Gao Wenwen felt.
But to her father, it seemed like his daughter was just displeased and zoning out with a stony face.
As his only child, he doted on her, though her attitude wasn't ideal. But he didn't want to say anything then, so he invited Xiao Qi and her aunt to be seated.
Then Xiao Qi's Auntie sat beside Uncle Gao, while Xiao Qi sat beside Gao Wenwen.
The man fumbled as he poured water, spilling some on the table. He and Auntie wiped it together, their hands touching before separating. Then he called a server to order dishes.
He took the menu and first handed it to Auntie, who blushed and refused, "Anything is fine with me."
So the man handed the menu to Xiao Qi instead.
Xiao Qi took it graciously and said, "Last time I came here with my parents, the braised pork was delicious, so I'll order that. Sister Wen Wen, what would you like?"
She's talking to me...and she called me Sister... Aaahhhh!!! It took Gao Wenwen a while before she said, "I like sweets."
"Then the sweet and sour fish here is great - they use wild fish from the Lv River," Xiao Qi handed her the menu.
Gao Wenwen woodenly took the menu, ordered the sweet and sour fish, then passed it to her dad.
Gao Muen sighed in relief that his daughter was at least being polite, despite her poor attitude earlier.
He ordered three more dishes, but Auntie quickly said, "That's enough, Gao. Don't order too much and waste food."
"It's fine, the kids are here and need to eat to grow," he said, ordering two more dishes and a soup.
After ordering, they began chatting... Xiao Qi felt it was a bit awkward.
But Auntie seemed happy, though much more restrained than usual as she sat rather uneasily.
Xiao Qi didn't know what to talk about either.
Then suddenly, the cool Sister Wen Wen beside her spoke up, "Su... Su... Su Xiaoqi, can you sign an autograph for me?"
Xiao Qi: ...Huh?
"You're my idol, I've watched all your videos and saved them. Really, I've liked and commented on them, but you never replied." Gao Wenwen blurted out excitedly, or else she might have exploded holding it in.
She felt life was so wondrous.
Just a second ago, she thought the world was ending and her dad wouldn't really be her dad anymore - she'd be a lone little wolf, left to lick her own wounds while clutching her idol's videos for solace and motivation.
But the next second, her idol appeared right in front of her! Su Xiaoqi was hugely popular, Gao Wenwen's whole dorm at Qingmeng University knew her. Not only was she excellent at English, but also horseback riding and swimming - she was ranked first academically too. She knew Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, and Portuguese, and was a computer prodigy as well.
Su Xiaoqi truly was her idol. Gao Wenwen struggled with just English, finding it exhausting, but seeing Su Xiaoqi made her realize her own shortcomings - she just hadn't tried hard enough, which is why she couldn't learn well.
And Gao Wenwen's words left not just Xiao Qi stunned, but also her Auntie and Gao Wenwen's father bewildered.
"Wen Wen, you two know each other?"
Gao Wenwen shook her head, then nodded, "Dad, she's the amazing girl I always tell you about."
Gao Muen vaguely recalled - his daughter would come home during breaks and stay glued to her phone, not for games but to watch her idol, an extraordinarily talented girl skilled at everything and ranked first, who could speak six or seven languages.
He remembered Xiao Qi had mentioned her brilliant niece at some private university. He didn't think much of private universities, since his own daughter attended Qingmeng University. But the two were in a passionate relationship, so he didn't want to refute Xiao Qi's high praise for her niece.
A woman who doted so much on her nephew's child would surely treat his own daughter well after marriage, if not like her own, at least decently.
"Thank you, I'm not that amazing. Sister Wen Wen is the impressive one - my Auntie said you were third in your class at No.1 Middle School and got into Qingmeng University. That's truly impressive," Xiao Qi responded graciously.
This was much calmer than her encounter with Jiajia that afternoon, where Jiajia said all her classmates were Xiao Qi's fangirls and showed a video of screaming girls. Xiao Qi didn't understand the situation then, but compared to that, Sister Wen Wen was much more composed now.
Then they fell into mutually complimenting each other...
Xiao Qi was at a loss for words.
Originally dreading this meal where she accompanied her Auntie on a blind date to meet the man's daughter, she never expected the girl to be one of her fans.
And then for her aunt, the girl didn't even call her Su Auntie anymore, following Xiao Qi in calling her Auntie instead.
Gao Muen: ...
You call me Dad, you call my girlfriend Auntie!!
Then she told Xiao Qi to call her Sister, saying she'd find her at Qingmeng University later for sure.
Xiao Qi mentioned that Lin Min was her Auntie Su Simei's neighbor, also at Qingmeng, and asked if Gao Wenwen knew her.
Gao Wenwen was even more surprised. Of course she knew him - the business prodigy Lin Min from freshman year. Handsome and money-making, he was actually Xiao Qi's neighbor. The girls in their dorm were always going on about wanting to date the young stud. Apparently, even after the new freshman campus belle confessed to him, that underclassman firmly rejected her.
Originally, Gao Wenwen was utterly disgusted by the "Auntie Su" her dad mentioned. But it turned out Auntie Su was such a legendary figure.
Her idol had been living with this aunty for three years of high school, and this aunty's neighbor was the famous freshman at their university.
Wow!
If Gao Wenwen lived with this aunty, could she become amazing too?
Not to mention other things, at least Xiao Qi was taught so well - her relationship with her aunt was super close, like mother and daughter. Gao Wenwen felt her eyes getting moist just watching them; it had been so long since she had an older female figure in her life.
The meal was a delight for both hosts and guests.
Xiao Qi and Auntie had huge appetites, cleaning their plates thoroughly, which surprised the Gao family father and daughter.
After the meal, they were warmly invited to visit the hosts' home.
This wasn't originally part of the plan.
But Gao Wenwen simply couldn't bear to let her idol leave like that, insisting they go back with them.
Her father could only laugh helplessly - his daughter was even more eager than him.
He had wanted to bring Su home early on but was worried his daughter would object, so he hadn't dared.
Their home wasn't far from No.1 Middle School, just four stops away.
In a small building next to the municipal committee, with a fruit shop downstairs, that was their place.
Xiao Qi had thought they just ran a fruit stall, but upon arrival learned the family was quite well-off. The shop front was theirs, and they lived in an old municipal committee building - Gao Wenwen's grandfather was a minor official and this was his allotted housing, making her a proper minor official's granddaughter.
The three-bedroom apartment, though not luxuriously renovated, was very tidy. With two bedrooms, one study/guest room, the unit was distributed by the work unit but had been downsized with no calculated communal area - probably over 130 square meters in reality despite being listed at 100, quite spacious and bright.
Su Simei was taken aback too; she had prepared herself for a struggling life helping at a fruit stall. Instead, the shop had employees - it wasn't labor-intensive, just handling online orders and supplying the municipal committee, apparently doing good business.
After the house tour it had grown late.
Xiao Qi added Gao Wenwen on WeChat, then said goodbye with Auntie and left.
No sooner were they out the door than the mechanical voice rang in Xiao Qi's ear: "Host's proactive life attitude has positively influenced those around her, changing their destinies. Rewarding host with +1 Mental Agility."v
The food at LvShan Restaurant was still quite good, but the restaurant seemed a bit old - the wide door frame was dilapidated, only faintly reminiscent of its former grandeur.
Xiao Qi was still wearing her jeans, sweater, and cotton coat.
Auntie wore a dress and coat, with a pair of red leather shoes.
Those in love are different - as she walked, Auntie seemed to radiate a joyful aura.
Xiao Qi thought to herself, is this how I would be with Zaizai? It seemed she was the more mature one instead.
As they entered, a server led them to where a man stood up in the distance while a girl, likely his daughter, remained seated and played on her phone impatiently. Xiao Qi felt uneasy, sensing this might not go smoothly.
After all, she was meeting her aunt's potential stepchild. Naturally, she saw her Auntie in a positive light, but the girl might not feel the same way. Xiao Qi tried to understand - if some aunt was her father's date, she'd feel gloomy too, let alone have positive feelings.
But they were here now, so they had to face it. That's life.
As they approached, the girl reluctantly stood up, her demeanor reeking of displeasure.
Xiao Qi's Auntie introduced them, and Xiao Qi politely greeted, "Hello Uncle Gao, hello Sister Wen Wen."
At this moment, Gao Wenwen was stunned.
Just then, she had been watching videos of her idol on TikTok, which she often downloaded to watch later.
But this living, breathing idol standing right in front of her - was it real?
It had to be, she looked even better than in the TikTok videos.
Gao Wenwen suddenly understood the idiom "Ye Gong admiring the dragon" - she had always adored Su Xiaoqi, sleeping with her phone to watch her videos every night. Truly, Su Xiaoqi was so inspiring that when Gao Wenwen felt tired from studying, watching her videos would reenergize her to stay awake. But now this real person stood before her, and she was speechless.
Just like those fangirls who called their idol "my husband" or "my boyfriend" - when they actually met them, they couldn't utter a word and might even hide. That was exactly how Gao Wenwen felt.
But to her father, it seemed like his daughter was just displeased and zoning out with a stony face.
As his only child, he doted on her, though her attitude wasn't ideal. But he didn't want to say anything then, so he invited Xiao Qi and her aunt to be seated.
Then Xiao Qi's Auntie sat beside Uncle Gao, while Xiao Qi sat beside Gao Wenwen.
The man fumbled as he poured water, spilling some on the table. He and Auntie wiped it together, their hands touching before separating. Then he called a server to order dishes.
He took the menu and first handed it to Auntie, who blushed and refused, "Anything is fine with me."
So the man handed the menu to Xiao Qi instead.
Xiao Qi took it graciously and said, "Last time I came here with my parents, the braised pork was delicious, so I'll order that. Sister Wen Wen, what would you like?"
She's talking to me...and she called me Sister... Aaahhhh!!! It took Gao Wenwen a while before she said, "I like sweets."
"Then the sweet and sour fish here is great - they use wild fish from the Lv River," Xiao Qi handed her the menu.
Gao Wenwen woodenly took the menu, ordered the sweet and sour fish, then passed it to her dad.
Gao Muen sighed in relief that his daughter was at least being polite, despite her poor attitude earlier.
He ordered three more dishes, but Auntie quickly said, "That's enough, Gao. Don't order too much and waste food."
"It's fine, the kids are here and need to eat to grow," he said, ordering two more dishes and a soup.
After ordering, they began chatting... Xiao Qi felt it was a bit awkward.
But Auntie seemed happy, though much more restrained than usual as she sat rather uneasily.
Xiao Qi didn't know what to talk about either.
Then suddenly, the cool Sister Wen Wen beside her spoke up, "Su... Su... Su Xiaoqi, can you sign an autograph for me?"
Xiao Qi: ...Huh?
"You're my idol, I've watched all your videos and saved them. Really, I've liked and commented on them, but you never replied." Gao Wenwen blurted out excitedly, or else she might have exploded holding it in.
She felt life was so wondrous.
Just a second ago, she thought the world was ending and her dad wouldn't really be her dad anymore - she'd be a lone little wolf, left to lick her own wounds while clutching her idol's videos for solace and motivation.
But the next second, her idol appeared right in front of her! Su Xiaoqi was hugely popular, Gao Wenwen's whole dorm at Qingmeng University knew her. Not only was she excellent at English, but also horseback riding and swimming - she was ranked first academically too. She knew Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, and Portuguese, and was a computer prodigy as well.
Su Xiaoqi truly was her idol. Gao Wenwen struggled with just English, finding it exhausting, but seeing Su Xiaoqi made her realize her own shortcomings - she just hadn't tried hard enough, which is why she couldn't learn well.
And Gao Wenwen's words left not just Xiao Qi stunned, but also her Auntie and Gao Wenwen's father bewildered.
"Wen Wen, you two know each other?"
Gao Wenwen shook her head, then nodded, "Dad, she's the amazing girl I always tell you about."
Gao Muen vaguely recalled - his daughter would come home during breaks and stay glued to her phone, not for games but to watch her idol, an extraordinarily talented girl skilled at everything and ranked first, who could speak six or seven languages.
He remembered Xiao Qi had mentioned her brilliant niece at some private university. He didn't think much of private universities, since his own daughter attended Qingmeng University. But the two were in a passionate relationship, so he didn't want to refute Xiao Qi's high praise for her niece.
A woman who doted so much on her nephew's child would surely treat his own daughter well after marriage, if not like her own, at least decently.
"Thank you, I'm not that amazing. Sister Wen Wen is the impressive one - my Auntie said you were third in your class at No.1 Middle School and got into Qingmeng University. That's truly impressive," Xiao Qi responded graciously.
This was much calmer than her encounter with Jiajia that afternoon, where Jiajia said all her classmates were Xiao Qi's fangirls and showed a video of screaming girls. Xiao Qi didn't understand the situation then, but compared to that, Sister Wen Wen was much more composed now.
Then they fell into mutually complimenting each other...
Xiao Qi was at a loss for words.
Originally dreading this meal where she accompanied her Auntie on a blind date to meet the man's daughter, she never expected the girl to be one of her fans.
And then for her aunt, the girl didn't even call her Su Auntie anymore, following Xiao Qi in calling her Auntie instead.
Gao Muen: ...
You call me Dad, you call my girlfriend Auntie!!
Then she told Xiao Qi to call her Sister, saying she'd find her at Qingmeng University later for sure.
Xiao Qi mentioned that Lin Min was her Auntie Su Simei's neighbor, also at Qingmeng, and asked if Gao Wenwen knew her.
Gao Wenwen was even more surprised. Of course she knew him - the business prodigy Lin Min from freshman year. Handsome and money-making, he was actually Xiao Qi's neighbor. The girls in their dorm were always going on about wanting to date the young stud. Apparently, even after the new freshman campus belle confessed to him, that underclassman firmly rejected her.
Originally, Gao Wenwen was utterly disgusted by the "Auntie Su" her dad mentioned. But it turned out Auntie Su was such a legendary figure.
Her idol had been living with this aunty for three years of high school, and this aunty's neighbor was the famous freshman at their university.
Wow!
If Gao Wenwen lived with this aunty, could she become amazing too?
Not to mention other things, at least Xiao Qi was taught so well - her relationship with her aunt was super close, like mother and daughter. Gao Wenwen felt her eyes getting moist just watching them; it had been so long since she had an older female figure in her life.
The meal was a delight for both hosts and guests.
Xiao Qi and Auntie had huge appetites, cleaning their plates thoroughly, which surprised the Gao family father and daughter.
After the meal, they were warmly invited to visit the hosts' home.
This wasn't originally part of the plan.
But Gao Wenwen simply couldn't bear to let her idol leave like that, insisting they go back with them.
Her father could only laugh helplessly - his daughter was even more eager than him.
He had wanted to bring Su home early on but was worried his daughter would object, so he hadn't dared.
Their home wasn't far from No.1 Middle School, just four stops away.
In a small building next to the municipal committee, with a fruit shop downstairs, that was their place.
Xiao Qi had thought they just ran a fruit stall, but upon arrival learned the family was quite well-off. The shop front was theirs, and they lived in an old municipal committee building - Gao Wenwen's grandfather was a minor official and this was his allotted housing, making her a proper minor official's granddaughter.
The three-bedroom apartment, though not luxuriously renovated, was very tidy. With two bedrooms, one study/guest room, the unit was distributed by the work unit but had been downsized with no calculated communal area - probably over 130 square meters in reality despite being listed at 100, quite spacious and bright.
Su Simei was taken aback too; she had prepared herself for a struggling life helping at a fruit stall. Instead, the shop had employees - it wasn't labor-intensive, just handling online orders and supplying the municipal committee, apparently doing good business.
After the house tour it had grown late.
Xiao Qi added Gao Wenwen on WeChat, then said goodbye with Auntie and left.
No sooner were they out the door than the mechanical voice rang in Xiao Qi's ear: "Host's proactive life attitude has positively influenced those around her, changing their destinies. Rewarding host with +1 Mental Agility."v
