Chapter 278: One More Person in the Family

After the glitz and glam, all an upright man felt was the emptiness and loneliness after a hangover.

By July 4th, Jiang Qin had decided not to continue socializing. He packed his bags to go home. Although invitations to subsequent banquets kept pouring in, he dodged them all.

Sorry Mr. X, I’m on summer break. Did you forget I’m only 19, still a college student?

The bosses who took this call were all dumbfounded. After hanging up, they all fell into contemplation, wondering what they were doing at 19.

Just like that, he kept packing until after 10, then got in the car and embarked on his journey home.

“Mom, Da I’m back! Your dear dog son is back!”

“?”

At noon, Jiang Qin stood at the door calling for a long time, but there was no movement in the house at all, completely unoccupied.

Jiang Qin couldn’t help but take out his phone to check the time, thinking it was the weekend, where did the old couple go? Their precious son has returned to his hometown and they’re not home waiting.

Jiang Qin lifted the doormat, took out the spare key from underneath, and opened the door.

The home environment was unchanged, still the small tea table, small sofa and small TV, full of familiar formulas and familiar smells.

Jiang Qin put his bag on the shoe cabinet and squatted in the entrance to change into slippers. His eyes swept and he noticed an unfamiliar pair of pink slippers in the cabinet, with a cute cartoon ear design that looked very cute, clearly for a girl.

Hmm?

Jiang Qin felt quite puzzled.

There were only three people in this family, an old mother approaching menopause, a mighty tall old father, and a dashing eldest son. Who would wear such slippers?

Was it cousin from uncle’s family? Or cousin from third uncle’s family?

Jiang Qin didn’t think too much. He changed into slippers and went to the bathroom, planning to wash up and then go back to the room to take a nap.

But when he got to the bathroom, he found a white rabbit-shaped toothbrush holder on the vanity, with a pink toothbrush inside that looked brand new.

He lightly touched the bristles with his hand, feeling a slight dampness, obviously used by someone.

It’s really weird. I haven’t been home for half a year, and it’s like another person appeared out of nowhere.

“…”

Jiang Qin brushed his teeth and walked out of the bathroom to the stairwell to look at his family’s door number.

No mistake. This is clearly his home.

He felt a bit inexplicable, but because he had been driving all morning, he was really a bit tired. So he didn’t dwell on it. After rinsing his mouth, he went back to his room.

As soon as he opened the door, the pink bedding set and pink teddy bear, Jiang Qin was instantly suffocated by the overwhelming pink.

Damn it, definitely entered the wrong room. This is clearly a family with a daughter!

He had seen a skit before, saying that the screws on the door numbers downstairs fell off due to renovation upstairs, causing 6 to become 9. The upstairs household hired a repairman, big hammer eighty, small hammer forty, smashing people’s homes to pieces.

Jiang Qin smacked his lips, never expecting that entering the wrong house could happen to him too.

Then why are the furniture and appliances in the house exactly the same? This also has a basis. Because in the era when online shopping was not developed, everyone would go to department stores to buy things, and the popular styles were generally just a few, basically the ones with high profit margins and mainly promoted by merchants.

What you bought is like this, what I bought is also like this. Otherwise, why would many blankets, tea trays, and bedspreads be nationally unified?

But…

Jiang Qin walked to the living room and took a look, thinking that the family photo on the TV couldn’t be the same version, right!

This mom looks like my mom, this dad looks like my dad, and the person standing in the middle is as handsome as a pine.

“I must be dizzy. I need to go to sleep first. When I wake up, everything will be normal.”

Jiang Qin turned around and went back to the room, covered himself with the quilt and fell into a deep sleep.

Who knows how long this nap lasted. When he opened his eyes again, Jiang Qin found light constantly shining through the crack of the door, and at the same time, the sound of conversation kept coming.

Jiang Qin threw off the covers, scratched his head and walked out of the room, and found Jiang Zhenghong sitting on the sofa, drinking tea and watching TV, while the talking voice came from the kitchen.

“Dad, drinking tea?”

“You brat, you still know to come home? It’s been three days since the holiday.” Jiang Zhenghong lectured him with a straight face.

Jiang Qin yawned and turned to look in the direction of the kitchen: “These three days have been too busy, delayed for a while. By the way, did a guest come to the house?”

“Heh, you brat, quite self-aware, already know you’re a guest?”

“?”

Jiang Qin froze for a moment: “What do you mean, Old Jiang, I’ve only been away from home for half a year, you wouldn’t have replaced your son, right?”

Jiang Zhenghong pondered for a moment: “If you put it that way, it’s not wrong either.”

“…”

Jiang Qin headed straight for the kitchen, thinking to see who was occupying his nest. As soon as he entered the door, he saw Yuan Youqin cooking, and a girl helping her cook beside her.

She had a tall and slender figure, long legs and a thin waist, her soft black hair cascading over her shoulders. Her profile was gentle and beautiful, her eyebrows and eyes moving, her long eyelashes illuminated by the kitchen lights, her cool expression looking both cool and dazed.

And on her feet were the slippers Jiang Qin had found in the shoe cabinet when he came back.

Just then, Yuan Youqin scooped a spoonful of soup from the pot and passed it over. The girl gently opened her mouth, blew on it twice and slurped it, then made a satisfied sound, her eyes shining.

“Is it good?”

“Delicious. Everything Auntie makes is delicious.”

Damn, what’s with this filial piety and family happiness? Jiang Qin’s head was spinning.

He was the only son of the Jiang family! Never heard of the only son not being home yet, and the family being happy first. What kind of logic is this?

Could the sudden addition of a person to the family really be so natural?

Jiang Qin was in a daze when he found the girl in front had turned her head and was looking at him coolly like a rich girl, but her eyes were clearly joyful.

“Little rich girl, why are you in my house?”

“You didn’t come back, so I came to play.” Feng Nanshu spoke in a righteous manner.

“But when I got home, no one was there. Where did you go?”

“Auntie took me to the vegetable market to buy vegetables.”

Yuan Youqin covered the pot: “Nanshu came over on the first day of the holiday, asking if you were back. I thought since you weren’t there anyway and the room was empty, I let her stay at home for two days.”

“Mom, forcibly keeping a female classmate at our house is not polite.” Jiang Qin frowned slightly.

“She said she would be eating alone at home too. As a mother, how could I not feel distressed? Even if it was a stranger, I couldn’t possibly watch her leave pitifully, right Nanshu?”

Feng Nanshu nodded solemnly: “Eating alone, very pitiful.”

Jiang Qin stared at her beautiful eyes curiously: “Where on earth did you learn these things from? Even I can’t do this!”

“I don’t know.”

Yuan Youqin suddenly handed him a pair of chopsticks: “You brat, as soon as you come back you start asking this and that. Hurry and take the dishes out, it’s time to eat.”

Jiang Qin said oh, took the dishes to the table, then turned back: “Mom, have you watched the news recently?”

“What news?”

“Just the morning news and lifestyle programs on Linchuan local channel, did you watch it?”

Yuan Youqin covered the pot: “I used to be able to watch it, but now I can’t seem to find it? Why don’t you go ask your dad.”

Jiang Qin turned to the living room: “Dad, have you watched Linchuan news recently? Morning news or lifestyle programs.”

“Linchuan? Our family used to be able to watch it when we used a satellite dish, but there was a crackdown for a while and the whole city switched to closed-circuit TV. Except for major satellite channels and CCTV, those local channels have long been unwatchable. Why do you ask?”

“…”

Jiang Qin felt a bit uncomfortable, thinking that if such a high-profile thing on TV wasn’t “accidentally” seen and widely spread, then “accidentally” passed to his parents’ ears, then it was equivalent to not happening at all, with no effect of making people feel happy.

Damn, if I had known, I would have gone to Jizhou Vocational and Technical School. Although it’s a junior college, once on TV, it would instantly spread throughout Jizhou.

It seems that the spread of local channels is still not enough. Except for some elderly people who like to watch it, no one is willing to take a second look.

But it doesn’t matter. At the latest next year, mom and dad will definitely be able to see my news with their own eyes.

“Jiang Qin, call your dad to eat!”

“Just over a hundred square meters, and still need to send smoke signals.” Jiang Qin couldn’t help but tut-tut.

Feng Nanshu also came out of the kitchen at this time and sat obediently beside Jiang Qin: “Jiang Qin, I like your family.”

“Damn, so Versailles? I like your garden villa. Let’s swap, this two-bedroom is all yours.”

“I like your family’s people.” Feng Nanshu’s eyes sparkled.

Jiang Qin glanced back and forth, seeing that his parents hadn’t come yet, so he pinched a wood ear and fed it into her mouth: “We’re about the same. I like your family’s money.”

Yuan Youqin came over with a plate at this time: “Time to eat. Did you two wash your hands?”

“I washed.” Feng Nanshu held out two clean little hands.

“I didn’t wash, but I’m very brave.”

Jiang Qin reached out to grab the chopsticks, but was hit on the back of his hand. He could only shout that he would wash, then darted into the bathroom.

During the meal, Yuan Youqin announced one thing: “Tomorrow afternoon, when the temperature cools down a bit, our whole family will go to Seagull Photo Studio to take a family portrait.”

“Doesn’t our family have a family portrait?”

“That family portrait is very old. Your dad and I are old now, and you’ve grown up. Let’s take a new one.”

Jiang Qin turned to look at the family portrait on the TV: “It’s not that exaggerated. I remember that family portrait was just taken last year?”

Yuan Youqin put a piece of meat with a good ratio of fat and lean in Feng Nanshu’s bowl: “I aged the fastest this year because you annoyed me the most this year. Going to school is like being kidnapped, not calling home for ten days to half a month.”

“I agree with this statement.” Jiang Zhenghong went with the flow.

“Then… let’s take it.”

Jiang Qin decided not to express any more opinions because his mother had a special talent. No matter what topic you started with, the trouble would always end up being your fault. Responding would be akin to adding fuel to the fire

Yuan Youqin thought for a moment, “Nanshu, remember to wear that little white dress tomorrow. Auntie likes it when you dress like that. It makes you look especially pretty.”

Feng Nanshu was coaxed by Yuan Youqin and couldn’t help but feel delighted. However, she still nodded seriously, “I understand.”

“?”

Jiang Qin looked at his mother and then at the little rich girl, “Including Feng Nanshu? Taking a family portrait with four people?”

“What else?”

“No, mom, this is a bit too much. Who brings their good friend to take a family portrait? I’ve never even heard of that.”

“You just got back, so don’t say too much. Eat first. If anyone else has any other opinions about the family portrait plan, we can discuss it after we take the portrait.”