Chapter 33 I don’t have anything for you to wear…

"Are you back? Wash your hands and get ready to eat—"

The kitchen door was pushed open from the inside. Before Tao Qian could even utter the word "dinner", he suddenly stopped talking, looked past Tao Siyun, and narrowed his eyes dangerously.

Tao Siyun was startled by his sudden attack and said in disbelief, "Brother, brother, why are you here? When did you come? Why didn't you tell me first?"

Tao Qian was about 5 feet 4 inches tall and wore a Disney-branded apron she had bought at the mall. She pointed a spatula at Xu Ji and looked at Tao Siyun expressionlessly, "Who is he?"

“…”

Tao Qian's expression was not good at all, and his eyes were cold. Tao Siyun was so nervous when asked this question that his heart was in his throat. He felt as helpless as if he had been caught in a premature love affair by his brother. He almost swore to the sky that he didn't recognize this person.

Fortunately, she was still calm and intelligent, and quickly said, "He lives across the street. He's your tenant. He just came back from team building. We met downstairs, and he helped me bring my suitcase up..."

This sentence not only successfully shifted the focus, but also cleverly weakened the inexplicable subtle feeling that existed between himself and Xu Ji at the moment to a certain extent through the relationship between Tao Qian and Xu Ji as landlord and tenant, and completely distanced himself from it.

Sure enough, after Tao Qian looked at Xu Ji for a moment, his eyes became much friendlier. His dual identities as alumnus and tenant instantly made him relax his vigilance.

"Then come in. You'll be alone anyway. How about having dinner with us?"

"?" Tao Siyun was stunned and subconsciously exchanged a glance with Xu Ji. She didn't expect Tao Qian's attitude to change so quickly. Before she could object, she heard four words: "Thank you, senior."

"Don't be polite. We're all not strangers. Don't be so formal."

“…”

"Change your shoes." Tao Qian kicked the pink cotton slippers on the ground over. Tao Siyun stood motionless at the entrance, blocking Xu Ji, not wanting him to come in.

Tao Qian didn't notice the little movements between the two. He found a pair of new slippers, handed them to Xu Ji, and went to the kitchen.

Xu Ji pushed Tao Siyun and put on his slippers. Seeing that she was frowning and looked unhappy, he whispered in her ear as if on purpose, "Your brother let me in."

Then he felt at ease and walked into her house openly.

Tao Siyun stared at Xu Ji's back. He really didn't want to be in the same room with him, so he turned around and hid in the kitchen.

"Brother, why are you here?"

The pork rib soup was simmering on the stove. Tao Qian was preparing the side dishes for the soup. With his back to her, he asked, "Why can't I come?"

"I didn't say you couldn't come. I just wanted to ask how many days you'd be staying in Huxi this time. Do your parents know you're coming?"

"Uncle Nie's branch has a project, and Dad asked me to come over and take a look. If it's suitable, I'll start work next week."

"Is that so?" Tao Siyun suddenly remembered something and after hesitating for a while, he asked in a low voice, "That female rider who sent me back last time...was she your ex-girlfriend?"

Tao Qian paused in his cutting motion, then said in a cold voice, "No."

"Oh, okay." Tao Siyun glanced at Xu Ji, who was sitting on the sofa and treating him as a guest, from time to time through the glass door. His expression was unnatural: "...Brother, I still owe your tenant 520 yuan. How about you transfer it to him later?"

Tao Qian turned around and glanced at her, seemingly unconvinced: "You little girl, you went out and can't even take out 500 yuan?"

Tao Siyun's eyes flickered, his lower back resting against the kitchen counter, and he stammered, "I just accidentally overspent."

"Two or three credit cards aren't enough for you?"

"I didn't bring my credit card with me this time."

Tao Qian snorted, "The phone is in my trouser pocket, get it yourself."

"Oh." Tao Siyun stepped forward, took out Tao Qian's cell phone, and unlocked it skillfully. Just then a call came in. Tao Siyun pressed the answer button and turned on the hands-free mode.

The call was from airport staff.

"Hello Mr. Tao Qian, we have contacted the man who took the wrong suitcase with you. He is currently in Shanghai West. We have two solutions: one is to send it by express delivery within the city; the other is to provide contact information for you to contact privately. He has indicated that express delivery within the city is possible, so we would like to ask for your opinion."

"Okay, then send it by express."

"Okay, we've sent an email to your mailbox. Please fill in your accurate address and reply within 48 hours. We'll then arrange for a courier to pick it up. Sorry to bother you, and I wish you a happy life."

“…”

After hanging up the phone, Tao Siyun couldn't help but complain: "...What's that look in your eyes? You don't even recognize your own suitcase, and you took the wrong one."

"Isn't it normal to get the wrong box if you pick it up from the same model? Open the email and reply with the address."

"oh."

Tao Siyun filled in the contact person, phone number and address as requested in the email, then found Xu Ji's WeChat and transferred 520 to him without any psychological burden.

Xu Ji sat on the sofa in the living room, looking at the numbers on his phone, pursing his lips, his expression frozen for a moment.

***

Tao Qian worked hard for the whole afternoon and cooked a table full of dishes. Tao Siyun ate quietly, occasionally stealing glances at the opposite side.

The two alumni of Jingfu University chatted happily at the dinner table. They didn't seem unfamiliar at all. It didn't seem like they were meeting for the first time. If you didn't know them, you would think they had known each other for a long time...

After learning that Xu Ji had been the top scorer in science, Tao Qian showed a certain fondness for this junior, four years his junior, and asked, "Why don't you stay in Beijing Fuzhou from the School of Computer Science? Most of the major domestic internet companies are concentrated in Beijing Fuzhou now, but there are many foreign companies in the west of Shanghai, and the benefits are really good."

"Well, it's okay. The internet company I'm working for now was recommended by Teacher Chen Jian, and there just happens to be a senior in the R&D department."

Tao Qian exclaimed, "Wow!" and jokingly said, "You're treated quite well as a direct descendant! Dean Chen is notoriously strict. My roommate was in your major at the time, and I never saw him give any students 'backdoor treatment'. It seems only the closed disciples are favored."

“…”

Tao Qian noticed that the soup in Tao Siyun's bowl was almost empty, so he poured her another bowl.

Tao Siyun was absentmindedly stirring the steaming pork rib soup in the bowl, as if he were a ball of air.

"By the way, my sister also went to high school in Shanghai West." Tao Qian patted Tao Siyun on the head. "Hey, which school were you in then?"

"Hmm?" Tao Siyun raised his head in confusion. Before he could react, he met Xu Ji's teasing gaze, and the soup in his mouth choked his throat.

“Cough cough cough!”

"Tsk! What's wrong with you? You're an adult, yet you still choke while eating." Tao Qian patted Tao Siyun's back to help her calm down. "Are you feeling better? I'll go get you a glass of warm water."

After Tao Qian left, there were only two people left at the table.

Xu Ji pulled out a few pieces of paper and handed them to her, then leaned back in his chair, his eyes distracted and teasing. "It's really that serious? Your brother asked a question and you got so excited."

Tao Siyun covered his mouth and coughed twice, his eyes complaining: "Why were you looking at me just now?"

"How do you know I'm looking at you if you don't look at me?"

“…”

***

Around ten o'clock in the evening, Jiang Zhen @Xu Ji in a small group chat with four people, "As your brother of over a decade and your son's temporary guardian, I have no right to interfere, but I should have the right to know about your current personal life, right?"

Cao Wenzheng: [??? You, a married man, please be mindful of your wording @Ji Yao]

Ji Yao: [Hehe]

Jiang Zhen: [Do you and Tao Siyun have a chance? Give me a definite answer. If it does, I'll be patient. If not, take your son away as soon as possible. Thank you!]

Xu Ji: [I had dinner with her brother in the evening]

Cao Wenzheng suddenly became excited: [Fuck Lao Xu, this is so fast! I got to see my brother-in-law so soon?!]

Jiang Zhen's eyes had seen through everything: [You listened to his nonsense, he probably just wanted to eat for free, he was just being polite.]

Ji Yao: [What's wrong with being polite? After all, we've already entered the house and sat at the table. How can this not be considered progress? Let's take care of my brother-in-law first, and happiness will be just around the corner~]

Cao Wenzheng: [Alright, it's not easy to marry a girl with brothers. Brothers-in-law don't care about looks, and same-sex people repel each other, don't you understand? This is much more difficult than dealing with the father-in-law and mother-in-law. Lao Xu, you have come to this day too, hahahahahahaha]

The next second, Xu Ji took a screenshot of the 520 message that Tao Siyun transferred to him from Tao Qian's phone and sent it to the group.

Jiang Zhen: [……]

Cao Wenzheng: [???]

Ji Yao: [Excuse me...is this the gift from Tao Siyun's brother?]

Xu Ji: [Or not?]

Cao Wenzheng couldn't help but send a voice message: "Isn't the number 10001 for meeting gifts supposed to mean one in a million? Or at least something auspicious like 8888 or 6666? Who the hell sends 520, and even transfers it via WeChat? Old Xu, you're such a jerk! You're even taking advantage of your future brother-in-law! What a shame!!"

Ji Yao: [+1, but when will he show his face?]

Jiang Zhen: [+1, he has never had any shame]

Xu Ji was about to reply when he received a message from Tao Siyun: [Are you asleep? ]

Xu Ji glanced at the time, [Not yet]

Tao Siyun bit her lip and asked cautiously: "Can I borrow some clothes?"

She didn't know how deep the bond between her and Xu Ji was. She could be ordered around by Tao Qian even when she was just sitting in the living room eating fruit and watching TV.

***

The bathroom was filled with steam. Tao Qian was humming a song. Halfway through his shower, before rinsing off the foam on his head, he suddenly remembered something important.

I turned off the shower and the sound of water stopped abruptly.

"Tao Siyun, go find Xu Ji next door and lend me some clothes."

"Huh?" Tao Siyun was stunned for a moment, and suddenly remembered that her brother's suitcase was taken by the wrong person at the airport, and it seemed that he had no clothes to wear at the moment...

"Did you hear that?" The urging voice came from the bathroom again.

She was avoiding Xu Ji whenever possible, so how could she possibly take the initiative to look for him? Tao Siyun was struggling, "Brother, why don't you just wear the dirty ones and change them tomorrow..."

"The dirty clothes are spinning in the washing machine, and you want me to go out naked?"

"..." Tao Siyun hesitated for a long time, and after thinking about it, he still refused to go. He almost blurted out, "If it really doesn't work, I'll just find two bath towels to wrap you up. No one will see you anyway."

"Do you have any conscience, girl? I took an early flight to get here, bought groceries, cooked, and even cleaned your house for half a day. Now you're not even going to borrow some clothes. Are you that lazy?"

Tao Qian's repeated accusations finally made her feel a little guilty. "Don't say anything. Can't I go?"

Tao Siyun then reluctantly sent a WeChat message to Xu Ji.

After a long silence, Xu Ji finally replied: [I don’t have your size here]

“…”

“???”

Tao Siyun covered his face. What on earth is this guy thinking about?!

She patiently typed: [Anything in my brother's size will do. He took someone else's suitcase by mistake at the airport and is now in the bathroom with no change of clothes. Can you find him a set of pajamas?]

After a few seconds, Xu Ji finally seemed to react: [Oh, okay, then come over now? ]

She was just about to say I won’t come over, you can just pick anything, but Xu Ji seemed to know what she was thinking and sent another message: [Come and choose by yourself, I don’t know what your brother likes]

Tao Siyun stared at this sentence silently and read the underlying meaning from it: Don't expect me to send it to you.

Okay, if you need help from someone, you have to... well... come to them yourself.