Chapter 62 Ice Cream "Mom, we're playing role-playing."...
There were still people queuing behind them.
After saying that, Jiang Xiliu stormed off.
You could tell she was really angry just by looking at her back.
The perfectly shaped ice cream that Jin Zhao had prepared for her, which was a size larger than the other children's, ended up in Ye Qishan's hands.
Ye Qishan squinted and carefully examined the fully armed man in front of him: "Oh my, I didn't even recognize you if you hadn't spoken. Xiliu and I will take our leave now, you can continue with your work."
He rushed off to catch up with Jiang Xiliu after he finished speaking, without waiting for Jin Zhao's reply.
In fact, Jin Zhao had nothing to say.
However, he wasn't there to earn extra money; the owner of this ice cream shop was the son of a supermarket owner near his home.
When Grandma Jin fainted from illness before, the streets in the old town were full of parked cars, and the ambulance couldn't get in. It was the supermarket owner who helped take her out on his tricycle.
When Jin Zhao was a child, the supermarket owner took pity on him and his grandmother and would give them any food or household items that were about to expire for free.
The supermarket owner's son was opening a store and needed manpower on the first day. Knowing that Jin Zhao usually worked part-time, the supermarket owner asked him for help without hesitation.
Jin Zhao couldn't refuse, not because he couldn't refuse the money, but because he couldn't refuse the favor he owed.
Jin Zhao never expected to see Jiang Xiliu here.
Actually, Jin Zhao saw her when she was in the middle of the line.
Among a group of cheerful little kids, the stern-faced young lady stood out dazzlingly.
As for Ye Qishan standing next to her, he had noticed him long ago and found him particularly conspicuous in the group.
But Jin Zhao knew he couldn't explain to the young lady that Sister Qiao, who was standing next to him, was the supermarket owner's daughter. It would be somewhat heartless to say that he was there to repay a favor in front of her family.
Why is lending a hand involving personal relationships?
Jin Zhao himself knew that this was not enough to repay the favor, but he was indeed standing here because of the favor.
Jiang Xiliu wouldn't understand, and whether she understood or not didn't matter; the result was obvious: she was unhappy because of it.
Jin Zhao was already thinking about how to coax him.
Jin Zhao thought Jiang Xiliu was only angry because he didn't tell her, but that wasn't what Jiang Xiliu was angry about.
Jiang Xiliu had been feeling down these past few days, though she wasn't sure why.
Perhaps it's a subordinate's mistake that's so simple it's baffling, or perhaps it's a period that doesn't hurt but still causes dramatic fluctuations in hormone levels... or maybe it's just a habit?
Jin Zhao cooked for her for more than three months, about a hundred days.
For more than three months, apart from occasional social engagements, she went back to eat almost every meal.
At the time, she didn't think anything was wrong.
But now it seems that either Jin Zhao put something addictive in the food he made for her, or the evil system used some kind of tool to influence her.
[System 0777: ...Injustice!]
Jiang Xiliu crunched on her food, asking, "Who's innocent?"
[System 0777: They've all been wronged.]
When Jiang Xiliu goes to work, she makes a point of leaving the hamster at home so that it can "monitor" Jin Zhao.
Jiang Xiliu was skeptical: "Heh, you two are the real family. I was almost fooled by your sweet talk these past few days, forgetting that you're part of the main character's faction, and how could a supporting character like me be worthy of joining you?"
System 0777: ...
[System 0777: Young Miss, my loyalty is as clear as day!]
Jiang Xiliu was too lazy to pay attention to the overly arrogant System 0777, and she didn't want to go back to her apartment near the company to stay by herself today.
Since it was the weekend, she decided to go back to her old house.
Jiang Fuhuai is away on a business trip, and only Xi Zhen is at home.
Because Jiang Xiliu hadn't mentioned it before returning, Xi Zhen had already finished her meal when she arrived home.
"What do you want to eat tonight?" Xi Zhen glanced behind her daughter. "Have the nanny prepare it."
Jiang Xiliu hugged her mother's arm and sat down next to her, saying weakly, "I don't want to eat anything, I have no appetite."
"What's wrong? Did you have a fight with Xiao Jin?" Xi Zhen observed her daughter carefully. "Did he bully you?"
“He lied to me.” Jiang Xiliu said to her mother, feeling wronged. “He said he had work to do in the school lab, so he moved back to school.”
"but!"
Xi Zhen's eyelids twitched in surprise.
"He actually works part-time at an ice cream shop!"
Xi Zhen breathed a sigh of relief. She thought it was something serious: "Jin Zhao's family is not well-off. No one in his family pays for his living expenses and tuition. And he still has to go to school... Wait, didn't you say before that you would let him stay at home as a stay-at-home dad and not give him any pocket money?"
Jiang Xiliu blinked and answered matter-of-factly, "He doesn't need to spend money at home. I'm already being lenient by not asking him for money, so how could I possibly give him pocket money?"
The house he lives in is in her name, and his daily necessities and groceries are purchased by a dedicated person. If he needs to go out, he even has a driver to pick him up.
This extravagant life of wealth was all given to him by her.
Jin Zhao only needs to cook at home and occasionally accompany her to necessary occasions to receive so much.
Jiang Xiliu felt that she had lost out big time.
Xi Zhen looked at her daughter and said, "You know what you're doing."
"However, my mother's advice was either to control him too tightly, leaving him no way or opportunity to contact the outside world, or to give him some pocket money so that he wouldn't have any other thoughts because he didn't have any money."
Jiang Xiliu hadn't expected Xi Zhen to say that. She now suspected that her parents had helped her imprison Jin Zhao in the original story.
Jiang Xiliu suddenly remembered that once at an auction, her father said he wanted to prepare a surprise for her mother, and worried that if she paid for it, her mother would find out about the surprise in advance, so he asked her to pay for it first.
She casually asked, "...And my dad?"
“Your father certainly has money, but he doesn’t have any large amounts of liquid assets,” Xi Zhen smiled. “However, your father only has a few hobbies, and there aren’t many other things that cost him money.”
As the mother and daughter were discussing these things, Jiang Xiliu's phone suddenly rang.
Jiang Xiliu answered the call in front of Xi Zhen, remaining silent and listening to what the person on the other end wanted to do.
"Aren't you off work yet?" Whether Jin Zhao was pretending or was genuinely tired, you could hear the weariness in his voice even through the receiver.
Jiang Xiliu felt that he must know she was with her mother and was deliberately putting on an act. She frowned and asked, "What?"
"I'll wait for you downstairs at your company." The weather wasn't warm, and you could see the white mist in Jin Zhao's breath. "How much longer until you finish?"
He went home first, but found that Jiang Xiliu was not there, so he went to the company building by himself.
“…You go back first.” Jiang Xiliu stood up. “It will take me more than an hour to get home.”
Jin Zhao looked up at the brightly lit building, then at the thermos he was holding: "I brought you something, but I'm worried it won't keep long. Could you ask the receptionist to swipe their access card for me?"
Of course it's inconvenient, and it can't be convenient.
Because she wasn't at the company at all, he couldn't find her even if he went up there.
Jiang Xiliu naturally refused: "It's inconvenient, go home and wait for me."
Jin Zhao didn't say anything more. He had already upset her today, and it was already quite good that Jiang Xiliu was willing to answer his call and communicate with him.
"Okay, then I'll go home and cook dinner for you. Don't be upset."
Jiang Xiliu gave an impatient reply and hung up the phone immediately.
Jiang Xiliu glanced at her mother and coughed lightly, "Mom, I'm going home for dinner."
Xi Zhen took a sip of her tea and said with a smile, "You've got an appetite again?"
Jiang Xiliu stubbornly replied, "...Eating isn't the main purpose; I'm going home to argue with him."
“Okay.” Xi Zhen naturally wouldn’t expose her daughter’s mistake. “But what’s the meaning behind the nickname you gave Xiao Jin?”
Xi Zhen noticed Jiang Xiliu's strange nickname in the contact list.
Instantly, the system alarm in my brain was automatically triggered.
[System 0777: Warning! Warning! Host has been detected leaking the truth of the world. Punishment will be imposed in ten seconds.]
As the alarm sounded, the system was also offering suggestions.
[System 0777: Miss! Quickly give a brief explanation. You have ten seconds. If you explain clearly, you won't be punished.]
"Mom, we're playing a role-playing game." Jiang Xiliu calmly replied in less than ten seconds, "We changed the nickname when we played last time, but forgot to change it back."
Xi Zhen's expression was somewhat complicated. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, let's go."
It takes forty to fifty minutes to drive back to the city from the old house, but Jiang Xiliu told the driver to drive faster, and they arrived at their building in just half an hour.
As she was about to get off the bus, Jiang Xiliu felt something was off. She had said she would be off work in an hour, but now she was so early, it made it seem like she was in a hurry to see Jin Zhao.
Jiang Xiliu checked the time and sat in the car for a full hour before getting off.
When she opened the door with her chin raised, the lights in the living room were off.
Jiang Xiliu looked at the dark house, and her face turned very pale.
"You're back?" Jin Zhao, who thought Jiang Xiliu had left, suddenly stood up from the sofa. He turned on the light, walked to the door, took Jiang Xiliu's bag and put it away. He asked with concern, "Has the company been very busy lately? You rarely worked overtime this late before."
Jiang Xiliu never wastes time at the company; except for social engagements, she always leaves work on time.
He was about to go to the kitchen to get the dishes when he noticed Jiang Xiliu standing at the door without moving.
Jiang Xiliu raised her eyes slightly, her face stern, her gaze fixed on him, still looking very unhappy.
Jin Zhao paused in his footing motion, then turned and walked towards her, taking off her coat for her. As he lifted her arm, he explained, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have gone to work part-time without your permission. I'll keep you updated on my schedule from now on, okay?"
Jiang Xiliu snorted coldly.
That was her entire response.
But at least they were willing to come in.
Several dishes were already set on the table. Jin Zhao went to the kitchen to get the soup, while Jiang Xiliu sat down at the table first.
She immediately noticed a large, rough stainless steel bucket that seemed out of place with her tableware.
Jin Zhao came in and served her soup.
"What is this?" Jiang Xiliu pointed at the ugly thing. "Did you bring this?"
"It's for holding ice cream." Jin Zhao gripped his chopsticks tightly. "I bought some of each flavor, afraid they would melt on the way, so I bought a new insulated container at the supermarket to hold them. Now the ice cream is in the refrigerator, and we'll eat it after we finish eating."
Jiang Xiliu: "I don't eat these kinds of products that don't have proper labeling."
She picked up the spoon, took a sip of soup, and threw the spoon on the table: "Are you trying to scald me to death?"
The anger she felt today hasn't subsided at all.
Upon tasting the flavor in her mouth, her body reacted in a completely opposite way to her words; she felt so comfortable that she wanted to stretch her body.
Jin Zhao took a sip of his own drink, then touched her bowl, walked over to her and bent down: "Stick out your tongue, let me see if you're burned?"
He frowned, looking like he really cared about her.
Jiang Xiliu only felt that Jin's acting skills were better than before, but she would never fall for his tricks.
She pushed him away: "Get out of here."
She stood up from her chair and said without any room for negotiation, "I don't care what else you have to do at school."
"Move it back."
"Tomorrow."
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Author's Note: Jin Zhao: Miss - dazzling; Ye Qishan - an eyesore.
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