covered Zhao Yanzǐ’s mouth.Zhao Yanzǐ immediately closed her mouth, “Okay, I won’t mention it!”She and Xiaolíng were very good friends. She instantly understood the reason why Xiaolíng had switched t...Chapter 278: A Large Family...
"Ah!" Upon hearing this news, even Zhao Guang, who usually remains calm in the face of all sorts of situations, was greatly surprised.
"I don't know if there's any trickery involved," Zhao Guang said. "Tomorrow evening, Xi Hai Long Gong's chief minister will personally come to Dong Hai Long Gong with gifts and take Zeng Yitao back."
"Considering the style of Xi Hai, they wouldn't act in such a roundabout manner unless there is real strength behind it," Zhao Hongyu softly analyzed.
Hao Ren, standing by the side, couldn't understand why Xi Hai would suddenly make such an abrupt change in attitude.
"Mom! I've taken out the pot. Do we need to wash it" Zhao Yanzi, standing at the other end of the living room with a dingy electric hotpot in her hands, asked.
Zhao Hongyu turned to look at Zhao Guang and said, "Let's discuss this when we get back." Then she looked at Zhao Yanzi. "Of course it needs washing! It’s so dirty!"
"Okay!" Zhao Yanzi nodded and then walked straight up to Hao Ren. She held the handle of the hotpot and placed it in his hands, raising her eyebrows. "Hurry up and wash it!"
"Yanzi, you do it yourself!" Zhao Hongyu helplessly glanced at Zhao Yanzi.
"I don't know how to clean their pot. I好不容易從儲物室裡找出來的." Zhao Yanzi said with sparkling eyes.
Hao Ren saw that her clothes and arms were covered in spider webs, indicating she had indeed dug out this long-unused hotpot from a pile of clutter. He didn't argue with her and took the pot to wash it in the kitchen.
"Linlin, Lily, come help me wash the vegetables," Zhao Hongyu called out to Lu Linlin and Lu Lili.
"Sure!" The Lu sisters answered in unison.
Even though they were having hotpot, some vegetables needed to be washed and soaked beforehand, and some meat had to be sliced.
Lu Linlin and Lu Lili obediently followed Zhao Hongyu outside the back door on the first floor to help with washing in the garden.
This left Zhao Yanzi without anything to do. Seeing her grandmother talking to her father, she stood alone in the living room feeling aimless.
She thought for a moment and ran into the kitchen, standing beside Hao Ren.
Hao Ren was scrubbing the dirty pot with a cloth when he saw Zhao Yanzi come over but deliberately ignored her.
Zhao Yanzi didn't speak and watched him from the side. "What for" Hao Ren slightly turned his neck towards her.
"No reason," Zhao Yanzi said with a pout.
Hao Ren used hot water to rinse the pot, then scrubbed off some stubborn stains with a steel wool pad.
"Hey!" Zhao Yanzi suddenly called out.
Hao Ren ignored her and continued cleaning the pot carefully.
"Hey!" Zhao Yanzi couldn't resist calling out again.
Seeing that Hao Ren didn't pay attention to her, she suddenly said, "Shall I call your班長over"
"Are you deliberately provoking me" Hao Ren helplessly looked at her.
"I'm not provoking you. Aren't you thinking about her" Zhao Yanzi tilted her head up to look at Hao Ren and deliberately said it as such.
Hao Ren didn’t mind her, scrubbing the pot inside and out.
"Give me your phone, I'll call her." Zhao Yanzi reached out her hand towards Hao Ren.
"I'm too lazy to deal with you," Hao Ren held onto the pot and moved it to another sink.
Zhao Yanzi followed closely behind. Seeing that Hao Ren had one hand holding a cloth and the other carrying the pot, she simply reached into his pocket to grab the phone.
Hao Ren twisted his waist to dodge, but Zhao Yanzi's palm continuously searched inside his pocket, making Hao Ren anxious for a moment.
Slap! Finally, Zhao Yanzi grabbed the phone from Hao Ren's pocket.
"Hey, give it back!" Hao Ren chased after her with the pot in hand. But Zhao Yanzi was nimble and ran out of the kitchen directly to outside the villa to make the call.
Holding onto the pot, Hao Ren couldn't chase after her beyond the kitchen; he could only watch helplessly as she made the phone call from outside.
After a few minutes, Zhao Yanzi returned to the kitchen with Hao Ren's phone.
"Are you done" Hao Ren looked at her.
"Bah, just fooling you, I didn't call her at all." Zhao Yanzǐ put the phone back in Hao Ren's pocket and ran out of the kitchen to the backyard garden to see Zhao Hongyu and the Lu sisters.
Hao Ren wouldn't believe her nonsense; he wiped Xiao Qin and took out his phone, flipping through it to find Xie Yujiā’s call records from a few minutes ago.
He dialed Xie Yujiā's number. The phone rang twice before being picked up.
"Yujiā" Hao Ren asked proactively.
"Yes, it's me." Xie Yujiā answered from the other end.
"Was Zhao Yanzǐ just calling you" Hao Ren inquired.
"Yeah, she suddenly called." Xie Yujiā replied indifferently.
"What did she say" Hao Ren asked cautiously.
"Nothing much. She invited me to have hotpot or something like that." After a brief pause, Xie Yujiā continued, "Are you with her now"
“Yeah, she’s at my place, along with her parents.”
“Oh,” there was an awkward silence.
Hao Ren hurriedly asked again, “What are you doing”
"Studying."
"Are you alone at home" Hao Ren inquired further.
"Yeah," Xie Yujiā replied softly but calmly.
"Well… why don't you come over and have hotpot with us Lu Yilan and Lu Lili are here too."
“No need, I'll just cook something myself.”
“Oh,” now it was Hao Ren's turn to be at a loss for words.
"Have fun and I'll continue reading," said Xie Yujia, with an obvious hint of hanging up the phone.
"Alright. Oh, by the way, Grandma asked you to come over and play sometime," said Hao Ren.
"I know," replied Xie Yujia softly before hanging up.
At that moment, Hao Ren felt a bit disappointed and lost.
He could imagine Xie Yujia in the narrow room without windows, reading quietly under the light of a yellow lamp.
Seeing Zhao Yanzi playing with Zhao Hongyu outside the northern gate of the villa, Hao Ren really didn't know whether Zhao Yanzi was just joking around when she called Xie Yujia or deliberately provoking her.
"Ah Ren! Have you finished washing the pot" Grandma shouted from outside.
“Yes, I have,” Hao Ren quickly answered his grandma and carried out the pot.
In this way, everyone was bustling around. The family hotpot party started with laughter and chatter as they gathered around Grandma, bringing them closer together.
Zhao Guang was in high spirits; he ate a lot, drank a lot, and talked a lot. Grandma rarely had so many people to accompany her for meals over the years, naturally making her very happy too.
As night fell, Zhao Hongyu and Lu family sisters helped Hao Ren clean up the table, signaling it was time for them to leave.
Grandma stood at the door, reluctant to see them go.
The car had two empty seats left, allowing Zhao Guang’s family to take Lu Linlin and Lu Feili back into town. Broadly speaking, since Linlin and Feili were Lu Qing's "granddaughters," they could be considered part of the Zhao family too.
The black Chevrolet slowly departed under the night sky. Grandma watched them leave and sighed softly.
After the bustle comes loneliness.
Hao Ren understood her feelings and gently supported Grandma, guiding her back into the house.
"I called Little Yujia today but unfortunately she said she had something to do and couldn't come over," Grandma lamented as they entered the villa.
“She must be busy too,” Hao Ren replied helplessly.
"Oh well, oh well. Nothing in this world is perfect." Grandma waved her hand and shuffled into the bright villa.Mr. Yue Zilong graduated from the Department of Education at Cambridge University in England and is not much older than you all. If there are any issues for the Mechanical and Electronic Engineering d...