Leisurely time always flies by. In the blink of an eye, there are only a few days left before the start of school. The house in the county town has already been built with a large frame. The next step is to install windows, tidy up the yard, decorate the house, and repair the courtyard wall.

Old Ma is always busy, but he enjoys it.

Village Chief Guo would occasionally take a look at the house in the county town. Mo Xue had told him that it would be used as an office in the future, so he was looking forward to the house being renovated as soon as possible, so that the day when the investment company Mo Xue mentioned would come would not be far away.

As the start of the school year approached, An Moxue and Ai Guo boarded the train back to Kyoto with their bags on their backs.

On the train, Ai Guo asked a question that had been bothering him: "Mo Xue, you've already gone back to Kyoto, so why are you still building such a big house in Anping County? What are you planning to do with it? And why build it so nicely?"

An Moxue smiled mysteriously and said, "You'll know in a year or two."

"So mysterious!" Ai Guo was even more curious.

"Hmm, so what do you think? How is the North different from what you imagined?"

"It's better than I expected, especially the people, they're so welcoming. I think you really like it there."

“Of course. That’s my second hometown.” An Moxue looked at the scenery rushing past the window, her eyes filled with a depth that Ai Guo couldn’t understand.

The two of them chatted and laughed on their journey, and soon they arrived in Kyoto.

Ai Guo wailed, "Mo Xue, I don't want to go home, I don't want to go to school."

An Moxue waved her hand and said, "Come on, I'll treat you to something delicious, and then we'll go home together."

"Hey! We need to eat, so let's skip going home. You're alone, so I'll just go back to my own place. It's not convenient."

He changed the subject abruptly, leaning close to An Moxue and asking, "But what delicious food are we going to eat later?"

An Moxue slapped him hard on the shoulder with a loud "smack," and then said, "You're so pathetic! What do you want to eat? Tell me, I'll pay."

Ai Guo let out an exaggerated "Ouch!" and asked with ill intent, "Anything is fine?"

An Moxue said generously, "Anything is fine."

"Kyoto Grand Hotel! How about that?"

"Alright! Let's go! You're welcome."

The two chatted and laughed as they boarded the bus to the Kyoto Grand Hotel.

On the bus, Ai Guo was still being irresponsible, saying, "Why do we have to squeeze onto the bus when we can eat at the Kyoto Grand Hotel?"

"Because we're not foreign guests, we can't get a taxi. Do you want to take a pedicab? That's even slower, and you'll easily get covered in dust."

"Fine! You're in the right if you pay."

Just then, an old man nearby overheard their conversation and scoffed, "Who are you? You're really putting on airs, eating at the Kyoto Grand Hotel? Those who can afford to eat at the Kyoto Grand Hotel are either foreign dignitaries who can afford to take a taxi or they have government cars to pick them up. What do you two have? Nothing at all, yet you're bragging here."

“Hey, I’m telling you, grandpa…” Ai Guo interrupted, wanting to have a word with the old man, but An Moxue pulled him back and covered his mouth.

He glared at her, his eyes full of resentment. Just then, the bus arrived at the next stop, and An Moxue pulled him off the bus.

After getting off the bus, An Moxue let go of his hand, and Ai Guo questioned her indignantly, "Why did you cover my mouth? That old man is so disrespectful. We were clearly going to the Kyoto Grand Hotel for dinner!"

Just then, another bus came by, and An Moxue pulled him onto the bus. After paying the fare, she said, "See, if you had argued with him back then, you would have missed your stop and missed this bus. You would have had to wait for the next one, which would have made you half an hour late. We would have been half an hour late. Aren't you hungry?"

After hearing what An Moxue said, Ai Guojing, who hadn't felt hungry before, suddenly felt incredibly hungry. He glanced at his watch and realized he was starving.

The two got out of the car and headed straight for the Kyoto Grand Hotel. Ai Guo saw the hotel sign, looked at the two of them, and jokingly asked, "Are we the most shabby guests? Will someone kick us out in a bit?"

An Moxue gave him a disdainful look, then said confidently, "I guarantee I won't be kicked out. As for you, if you don't stick close to me, that's another story. But we'll definitely be the most slovenly-dressed guests." After saying that, An Moxue strolled into the Kyoto Grand Hotel.

Looking at the two of them, who were both traveling and looking rather disheveled, Ai Guo wondered why he looked so down and out, while Mo Xue seemed to have a free and easy spirit, as well as an undeniable aura that made her look like someone not to be trifled with.

He hurriedly followed An Moxue's steps, just like her, afraid of being kicked out, because he didn't have the credentials to freely enter and leave this place, only An Moxue did.

An Moxue walked into the hall and saw a waiter approaching. She handed over her ID and said casually, "We're here to dine. We'll just find a quiet table for two."

The waiter had initially intended to reprimand the two of them, but after seeing An Moxue's identification, his attitude immediately became much more respectful. "Please come this way, guests. There's a seat by the window in a corner. Would that be alright for you two?" he asked, pointing to a table not far away.

An Moxue said calmly, "Okay."

Ai Guo followed closely behind, but his mouth didn't stop talking, "Mo Xue, you know, it's already this late, and there are still so many people here. The peak dining hours are over."

"We're still here to eat even though it's past our usual time, right? There are plenty of people like us, and good places are never short of customers. What would you like to eat?"

Ai Guo said quite bluntly, "It's delicious, give me a little bit of all the specialties!"

"Okay, let's split up a bit then. I want to eat something light. On this hot day, something refreshing is easier to swallow."

"I want to eat meat, I'm not afraid of the heat."

As they spoke, the two sat down and began ordering from the menu. After An Moxue finished ordering, Ai Guo ordered, pointing left and right on the menu. The waiter, seeing that there was too much food, interrupted him and kindly reminded him, "Sir, our dishes are quite large. Are you sure you can finish all this for just the two of you?"

Ai Guo glanced at An Moxue, who said, "It's alright, he has a big appetite and can eat. Just bring it up. Please hurry, we've been traveling all the way and we're tired. Bring up the cold drinks I ordered first."

"Yes, sir."

The waiter calculated the bill, collected the money, issued a receipt, and then left.

As soon as I turned around, a waiter brought me a cold drink.

Ai Guo took a sip of his cold drink and said with a sigh, "It feels so good to be eating in an open space with the fan blowing and a cold drink in hand."

"Then you should try your best! Aim to do this every day."

Ai Guo glanced at her and said obsequiously, "I have you! There's no need for me to work hard at all, so just stick close to you. Having you is enough."

An Moxue sneered inwardly, only giving him two words, "Heh heh!" Just wait and see how I'll put a bad word for you in front of Uncle Ai, so you won't be ambitious and you'll have to be punished by Uncle Ai's whip.