Marry a female star at a bargain price

Chapters 323 and 324: The paper airplanes of my childhood have now flown back into my hands.
The song "Rice Fragrance" made the second episode of "Rebirth" a huge hit again.

At 10 p.m., the program officially launched on the Mango Video app. In less than half an hour, the program's popularity officially exceeded 10,000, breaking the record for the fastest program to reach 10,000 popularity on the entire platform.

The female demon Rutdam made history.

Everyone knows that this history was created by Lin Xiao—even though there were six guests on the show.

But Lin Xiao is undoubtedly the king of topics, the god of hype, and the master of traffic!
This occurred long before the program was launched on the app.

When the song aired during prime time that evening, "Lin Xiao's new song" had already become a trending topic on Weibo and quickly climbed to the top of the charts, with the hashtags "hot," "new," and "popular" following the topic.

The comments section was flooded with netizens who said one thing but did another.

In the last episode, everyone cursed Lin Xiao to death, wishing they could dig up the ancestral graves of Lin Family Village. But in the week of waiting for the second episode to be released, everyone was anxious and couldn't eat or sleep, just waiting to see what new tricks this guy would come up with in the second episode.

That's called being despicable—cursing someone while simultaneously unable to stop thinking about them!

This time, "Rice Fragrance" won rave reviews for its quality, and no one dared to say it was bad.

Moreover, the program didn't just feature a song, but a beautiful music video accompanied by gentle waves of rice and a sense of nostalgia. This combination of sound and visuals is more appealing to the senses.

This is why the background music in TV dramas can be very catchy, but when listened to separately from the drama, it often sounds quite ordinary.

Because the entire plot of the series is essentially a long music video.

With the addition of a music video, a song that barely passes the mark can immediately jump to 80 points. If the song itself is already 80 points, it can directly reach 100 points and become a classic.

If the song itself is already a perfect 100.

Coupled with a fitting and appropriate visual context, this scene will be like an expanding nail, firmly embedded in the audience's heart, impossible to remove no matter what.

That's how the term "masterpiece" came about.

Today, "Rice Fragrance" is such a masterpiece that its popularity has spread so quickly even before the program was launched online.

However, although the topic topped the trending searches, the comments section was not entirely positive.

Of course, no one doubts the quality of "Rice Fragrance".

The netizens' suspicions mainly focus on Lin Xiao.

"I came here because of 'Rice Fragrance,' so I'm here to check it out!"

"I fell in love with it the first time I heard it. To be honest, Lin Xiao's songwriting ability is truly top-notch!"

Lin Xiao: You can call me bad, but you can't call me bad!

"I would call this song, 'Rice Fragrance,' the most amazing hit of the year!"

"When 'Little Apple' came out, who was shouting all over the world that Lin Xiao had lost his touch? Now they're trying to elevate him to godlike status?"

"Actually, 'Little Apple' isn't that bad. It does sound catchy at first, but once you get used to it, it's actually quite nice and cheerful!"

"If you didn't have some skills, how could you become popular all over the country? Don't underestimate the preferences of the people!"

"When will the official version of 'Rice Fragrance' be released? I heard it on TV once and fell in love with it completely, but I've been searching for the audio online for ages and still can't find it!"

"Me too! There's no news at all. I can only wait until it goes live on Mango Video at 10 PM to hear it!"

"The song is good, but the person is not a good person!"

"I agree with the comment above. Could Lin Xiao really be trying to debut? He was seen carrying a guitar and taking a child to the rice paddies on the show. It's obviously scripted!"

"There's nothing wrong with debuting. It's a blessing for the mainland music scene to have such a musical genius shine in the industry!"

"No one has ever denied Lin Xiao's creative talent, but on the one hand, he says he wants to be rooted in the grassroots and become a town mayor, while on the other hand, he doesn't forget to go on variety shows to make money. On the one hand, he establishes a loving husband persona to support his wife Han Xixi's career, while on the other hand, he keeps all the songs he writes for himself to sing... This kind of wanting to have it all is really ugly!"

"Talent is real, and so is hypocrisy!"

"I really don't know if Han Xixi was incredibly lucky or incredibly unlucky to marry him!"

"Are you two alright? I watched this episode, and the couple seemed to be getting along very well. Lin Xiao even took the initiative to cook and do housework. It's completely different from the last episode. Why do you say they're hypocritical and don't love their wives?"

"The last episode and this episode were recorded back-to-back. One day he was doing nothing and acting like a big shot, and the next day he became a devoted husband. Do you believe it?"

Here's a joke: This show has no script!

"To be honest, Lin Xiao has such incredible musical talent. If he just releases songs step by step, becoming a huge star would be a natural outcome. Why bother with all this trouble? He's making money while getting criticized, and he's only losing more than he gains!"

"You just don't understand. Becoming famous isn't their goal; making money is! Singers convert fame into wealth at a much lower rate than actors, and even lower than internet celebrities. Lin Xiao is the real smart one. He'd never achieve financial freedom by writing songs and collecting royalties, but now with this hype and this commotion, he's immediately gained massive attention and easily made a fortune! Even if he gets a few insults, he'd still be willing to do it!"

"What a talent! He has completely changed my perception of cadres within the system!"

"Do you think you could win over the mayor's daughter without some tricks up your sleeve?"

"..."

People online are just repeating what they hear, and there are all sorts of opinions.

Lin Xiao had anticipated all of this, so he didn't bother to pay attention.

Even Han Xixi calmed down, went back to sleep after watching TV, and stopped checking the trending topics and comments online.

The whole world knows that the show is a hit again, Lin Xiao is popular again, and the music industry is about to change again.

But this had no impact on Lin Xiao.

The only effect was... I ate too much watermelon at night, so I felt a bit bloated and had to go to the toilet several times in the middle of the night.

The next morning, Lin Xiao was woken up by a phone call from Cao Yuanzhi.

"Hey!!!" Lin Xiao said irritably!

"What are you doing? Still sleeping?"

"Of course! It's Saturday, why would I be sleeping so early in the morning?"

"Screw sleep, get up and party!!"

On the other end of the phone, Old Cao's voice was extremely agitated, as if he had eaten a thousand-year-old ginseng.

Lin Xiao immediately opened his eyes and sat up abruptly.

"Hey, were you fucking insulting me just now?"

"No, you must have misheard me!"

"..."

Lin Xiao choked, never expecting that there could be such a shameless person in the world!
I looked at my watch and it was already 7:30 in the morning.

He yawned widely and said irritably, "What exactly do you want?"

On the other end of the phone, Old Cao's voice was filled with anguish and inconsolable pain!
"Lin Xiao, you're so unfair! You wrote such an amazing new song, why didn't you tell me?"

Old Cao stomped his feet in anger, "Last night, a friend called me and asked when your new song would be officially released. I was completely baffled! We talked about nonsensical things for ages before I found out that you sang another original song on the show, and its quality is so high that it completely surpasses all your previous works!!!"

The more urgently Old Cao spoke, the drier his mouth became, and he kept swallowing his saliva.

"You fucking remember that you spearheaded the founding of a company called 'New Rural Areas'? Your new song 'Rice Fragrance', rice fragrance, is there a song more fitting for the name 'New Rural Areas'?"

"No……"

"I didn't ask you, don't interrupt!"

"Oh!" Lin Xiao replied obediently.

"You, you, you, you wrote a song and why didn't you tell me? Do you even care about me anymore?"

Old Cao's question was so earnest and sincere that it sent chills down Lin Xiao's spine.

I always feel like something is weird.

"Uh... I forgot!"

"forget?!"

"I really forgot, there were too many things to do, I forgot about it as soon as I finished singing!"

"How did that shrew Chen Jiajia know?"

"Chen Jiajia?"

"That's right!" Old Cao was even more furious. "Last Sunday when you were recording the show, I went to Dafeng Village to find you. That shrew argued with me and even said you wrote a song. At the time, I was too angry to think much of it, but now I realize something's wrong... You didn't tell me, fine, but how could you tell that shrew beforehand? Am I your brother or is she your brother?"

"She is my sister."

"...Lin Xiao!!!"

Old Cao was so angry he was about to explode; that shout almost sent Lin Xiao to his death.

He pulled the phone far away, and only put it back to his ear after the noise disappeared. He squinted and said, "Chen Jiajia knows because she was there when the show was being recorded, so she knew!"

"..."

Old Cao immediately calmed down.

"Oh, that's it!"

"Okay, sweetie, don't be angry anymore. You're definitely the most important person in my heart!"

"..."

Old Cao rolled his eyes. "Aren't you disgusting, you sissy!"

Lin Xiao's eyes immediately opened: "Cao Yuanzhi, didn't you ask me that first?"

Old Cao blinked, vaguely remembering that such a thing had indeed happened, but quickly brushed it off.

"Let's get down to business! When are you coming to record the song?" Old Cao asked.

"Recording a song?"

"Yes, it's 'Rice Fragrance'!"

"Oh...who said I was going to record a song?"

"what?!"

This time, Lao Cao was really shocked. He straightened his back and said, "No, brother, don't scare me. I can't take a scare! Do you know how popular your song 'Rice Fragrance' became tonight? The whole internet is looking for the audio source. Just because they couldn't find it, yesterday's episode got nearly 500 million views. 500 million in one night, do you know what that means?"

Lin Xiao scratched his ear: "I know, the concept of an epic viral hit!"

Old Cao jumped up anxiously: "I know you're so eager to record and release the song! While it's still trending, hurry up and release the official version! It will definitely top all the charts on Tencent Music within three days, and you'll become the uncrowned king of the music industry!"

Recalling this magnificent scene, Old Cao's eyes became misty, and in a daze, he felt as if he were sitting on that throne.

However, Lin Xiao remained unmoved.

"Oh."

"……oh?!!"

"Don't get excited, don't get excited!"

Lin Xiao interrupted the opponent's spellcasting and simultaneously activated external activation to avoid being ambushed by the Lion's Roar.

"Even if I don't release the official version, 'Rice Fragrance' will still be a hit, and I'll still be the uncrowned king, won't I?"

"Uh...that's true!"

"Then why would I even release the official version!"

"You're kidding! Of course, releasing the official version is to collect royalties and make money!"

"I don't care about money!"

"..."

Old Cao was completely subdued. In a daze, he seemed to see a master surnamed Ma practicing Tai Chi, which startled him so much that he stammered.

"You, you, you... Even if you don't care about money, you still remember that you are the cultural and tourism ambassador of Nanzhou Province, right? You established the New Rural Music Company to write songs to promote your Nanzhou."

Cao Yuanzhi was so anxious that he kept swallowing hard. "Now you have a new song, and it's of such high quality, with an unusually good online response, but you're not releasing the official version. How are the cultural and tourism departments in Nanzhou supposed to promote it?"

Old Cao felt confident after he finished speaking.

He felt that using Nanzhou Province to coerce Lin Xiao would force him to develop some morals, thus making him comply and record the official version of "Rice Fragrance".

Unexpectedly, Lin Xiao acted unpredictably, sneering and saying, "Old Cao, let me ask you, what kind of visuals are accompanying the version of 'Rice Fragrance' that netizens are hearing now?"

"Oh, the Dafeng Village where you filmed the show!"

Where is Dafeng Village?

Starlight Town!

Where is Starlight Town?

"..."

Old Cao understood what he meant and said helplessly, "I'll just give you a straight answer—it's in Nanzhou Province!"

Lin Xiao chuckled and said, "Hehe, since this song has already become the promotional song for Nanzhou Province, why would I bother to release an official version? Without an official version, netizens who want to listen to this song can only watch the show on the Mango Video app. Every time they listen to it, they're watching the Dafeng Village MV again. The promotional effect is fantastic!"

"Once the official version is released, netizens will just listen to the song directly. Who cares how Nanzhou's cultural tourism promotes itself? 'Little Apple' is a cautionary tale. If Nanzhou's provincial capital uses this song for promotion, others will too. Now that song is a hit across the internet, who still remembers Nanzhou's sand fruit?"

These words left Old Cao speechless.

He's an expert in music production, but when it comes to promoting tourism and leveraging trends, Lin Xiao is far more cunning.

There's a joke about "Little Apple".

As the first song of the "New Homeland" company, the Nanzhou Provincial Bureau of Culture and Tourism had high hopes for it. Before its release, they planned to use it as a promotional song for a type of sand fruit in Nanzhou Province and capitalize on its popularity.

This plan was based on the recognition of Lin Xiao's talent as a songwriter, with the belief that his songs would definitely be a huge hit.

The result was a bombshell explosion, but it was a black bomb!
As soon as "Little Apple" was released, it immediately sparked a wave of criticism online, with various accusations that the lyrics were cheesy and the melody was catchy, and then mocking Lin Xiao for having lost his talent and writing bad songs just to make money.

The shift in public opinion from positive to negative left the Culture and Tourism Bureau completely bewildered.

At this time, the province had already prepared a promotional video, with "Little Apple" as the background music. The original plan was to make an official announcement at the same time as the song was released, so as to ride the first wave of popularity before the song became popular online.

As a result, seeing "Little Apple" being criticized by the entire internet, the Culture and Tourism Bureau hesitated repeatedly and finally abandoned the plan, and did not release the promotional video.

Later, "Little Apple" became a popular song for square dancing, and its reputation went from being negative to positive.

The provincial cultural and tourism bureau's promotional video was finally released, but it was already useless, because all over the country, various official and unofficial accounts were trying to ride the coattails of "Little Apple" and using it in all sorts of promotional videos.

Everyone tried to get a piece of the action, but it was practically the same as nobody getting anything.

The first song of "New Homeland" was given away to netizens across the country for nothing, without giving the officials of Nanzhou Province any benefit.

That initial shot was fired in vain.

Of course, that's not entirely true. As the lyricist, composer, and original singer, Lin Xiao has made a fortune, earning tens of thousands of yuan per hour from copyright revenue—that's no exaggeration!

Learning from the example of "Little Apple".

After listening to Lin Xiao's spiel, Cao Yuanzhi no longer thought that what he said was alarmist. Indeed, whether or not "Rice Fragrance" was officially published would not have much impact on the publicity and promotion of Nanzhou Province.

One could even interpret it this way.

Now that the song "Rice Fragrance" is firmly linked to Nanzhou Province, not officially releasing it will only tighten this bond over time.

Once officially announced, cultural and tourism departments from all over the country will try to capitalize on the hype, and official accounts in various parts of Nanzhou Province may not be able to outdo others in doing so.

"Little Apple" is a perfect example!
Thinking about it this way, Lao Cao had already been persuaded by Lin Xiao.

But a musician's professional mission doesn't allow him to look at good songs and not produce or release them; that would be worse than killing him.

Even if what you say makes sense!

Old Cao said anxiously, "But don't forget, you are the cultural and tourism ambassador for Nanzhou Province, not the ambassador for Dafeng Village. Using such a good song as 'Rice Fragrance' just to promote Dafeng Village is a huge waste of its talent. Are you sure you want to do this?"

Lin Xiao didn't argue with him and agreed, "You're right, so this song still needs an official version, but not now!"

Old Cao saw a glimmer of hope again, and his eyes lit up.

When do you want to send it?

"It's not up to me to decide, it depends on the netizens!" Lin Xiao said with a hint of malice in his voice.

"Looking at netizens? What do you mean?"

"I'll release the official version whenever netizens apologize to me!"

"???"

Cao Yuanzhi felt numb, as if something was stuck in his throat.

He became a music producer right after graduation, and has been in the entertainment industry for almost ten years now.

Over the past decade, he has witnessed countless overnight successes and countless downfalls. He even personally experienced the rollercoaster of a building's rise and fall, making him a man of considerable experience and profound understanding.

And this entire decade of experience.

Old Cao has only ever seen celebrities apologize to netizens, never netizens apologize to celebrities!

To put it bluntly, celebrities are just actors who rely on the audience's generosity for their livelihood; netizens are their bread and butter.

You want your parents to apologize to you? Are you crazy?!
Old Cao was dumbfounded, and after a long while, he sneered, "Junior, are you dreaming?"

Lin Xiao laughed and said, "I was dreaming, but your phone call woke me up!"

Old Cao didn't have time to argue with him.

"No, you really think you can blackmail netizens just because you wrote a good song? This...this..."

"Stop with all this 'this' and 'that'!"

Lin Xiao calmly smiled and said, "You're wrong. I didn't threaten any netizens! I wrote 'Rice Fragrance,' and I can publish it whenever I want, whenever I want. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Yeah, nothing wrong."

"I've been criticized and I'm in a bad mood, so I don't want to post it. Is that a problem?" "No problem."

"It's reasonable for me not to contribute but still support our new rural development initiative, right?"

"That makes perfect sense!"

"Then why should I rush to publish it?"

Lin Xiao lay on the bed with his legs crossed. "I sang this song on the show because I received a contract fee from Hunan TV, so it's only right that I generate buzz for them. Besides, if 'Rice Fragrance' isn't released, the popularity of 'Rebirth' will only increase, because netizens can only listen to this song by watching that video."

"In this way, if I don't publish it, the Provincial Bureau of Culture and Tourism will be satisfied, Hunan TV will be satisfied, but netizens will not be satisfied. They've been cursing me so badly lately, why would I rush to record a song to please them? Would I be so pathetic! Hehe, I won't record it unless they apologize to me online... I'm not threatening anyone, this is testing everyone's feelings for me. After all, you can't just start cursing someone and then expect them to eat, right?"

Cao Yuanzhi was completely convinced.

After a long pause, only a cold laugh came from the other end of the phone: "Fine, just wait and see. I'll see if you can wait until that day!"

Then he angrily hung up the phone.

Lin Xiao didn't take it to heart and lay down to take a nap.

Just then, his wife came in from outside after washing up.

"You're awake~" Xixi said with a smile.

"Ugh, that bastard Lao Cao woke me up!"

"Old Cao? Why did he call you?"

Lin Xiao recounted the entire conversation between the two.

After hearing this, Xi Xi was also surprised by Lin Xiao's unusual request, but because she had been with her husband for a long time and was used to his unconventional ways, Xi Xi's reaction was relatively calm.

Instead of dwelling on the matter, she suddenly moved closer to Lin Xiao with a shy expression.

"Honey, don't you have anything to say to me?"

"Words? What words?"

"I just... asked you!" Xixi blushed, looking incredibly cute.

Lin Xiao was completely confused.

"What day is it today?"

He glanced at his phone. September 1st, it's not an important day!
Schools are reopening?
Wishing my wife a happy start to school? That doesn't seem right!
"What is there to say? There's nothing to say!"

"..."

Xi Xi's shy expression immediately darkened.

"Think about it again carefully!!"

"I've thought about it carefully... but I still can't remember!"

Lin Xiao begged for mercy, "My dear wife, could you give me a hint?"

Xi Xi angrily threw a beautifully packaged box at him and stormed off.

Lin Xiao was completely confused.

Upon opening the box, he found a watch inside. Considering his profession, the watch wasn't a big brand, and its design was simple and elegant, probably worth around a thousand yuan.

However, upon closer inspection, Lin Xiao noticed the letters "LX" on the back of the watch face and immediately realized that it was the abbreviation of his name.

He was delighted, yet even more puzzled.

"Why did you give me a gift... What day is it anyway?"

Lin Xiao scratched his head.

After thinking about it for a while, I realized it wasn't anyone's birthday, nor was it an anniversary, and it had nothing to do with my daughter's birthday.

Lin Xiao was completely baffled.

I could only open the calendar, switch to today, and try to find some clues.

Upon closer inspection, it truly became clear.

On the calendar, below the number "1", the words "Qixi Festival" are clearly written.

I was looking at my phone's screen saver just now, and I only paid attention to the date, without looking at the lunar calendar and the smaller print below.

"Oh my god, it's the day when the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl open their annual bird-themed suites!!"

Lin Xiao scratched his head.

These days I've been busy with work, so I haven't had much time to spend with my wife and kids.

Now that Valentine's Day has finally arrived, it's perfect timing. The young couple doesn't have to go to work or take care of the kids, and they can finally enjoy their long-lost time together as a couple.

Heaven used every ounce of its power to bring them together.

Unexpectedly, the male protagonist made a mistake, forgetting the date and not preparing the gift, which angered the Weaver Girl so much that she blew up the Magpie Bridge!

Lin Xiao: Well, now I really have to become a gigolo!

It was not yet 8 a.m., so there was still hope to salvage the situation.

Lin Xiao thought for a moment, then quickly came up with a wicked idea and revealed a triumphant smile.

Get up, wash up, and eat breakfast.

Lin Xiao acted as if nothing was wrong, discussing buying a computer with his younger brother one minute and persuading his father to learn to drive the next, completely ignoring his wife at the breakfast table.

Xi Xi was waiting for this guy to apologize and act cute, but he showed no remorse and instead took advantage of her kindness.

Xixi was furious. She slurped her porridge loudly, completely abandoning her ladylike demeanor.

Lin Xiao pretended not to hear, but secretly suppressed a laugh.

After breakfast, the two set off for Ninghai, the provincial capital, to visit Xixi's childhood friend, Xie Xiaowei.

This was a plan the two of them had made last night.

Xixi used to live in Ninghai and could visit Xie Xiaowei from time to time. But since she had a baby and moved to Mashan County, it has become too much trouble to go back and forth, so she rarely goes anymore.

Now that I've finally managed to come back, of course I have to go and see.

Throughout the journey, Xixi remained sullen and silent.

Lin Xiao pretended not to know and said with a grin, "Wife, the watch you bought me is so cool, thank you!"

Han Xixi was furious!
No, how can a person be so slow-witted?

With his level of perceptiveness and comprehension, how dare he be the town mayor?

Xi Xi was so angry that she was panting heavily. She simply turned her head to the window and ignored him.

Lin Xiao was so happy he was practically beaming.

They arrived in Ninghai shortly afterward and parked the car downstairs at Xie Xiaowei's house.

The two got out of the car, and Chen Jiajia arrived just then.

Jiajia bought a house in Ninghai a long time ago and lives there when she's not working.

She also got to know Xie Xiaowei, and had even come over for a meal before. In the past year or so, she had visited Xiaowei more often than Han Xixi.

Since we're coming today, we should naturally invite her along.

"Hey, it's Valentine's Day today. Aren't you two going out for some time alone? You've come to see Xiaowei instead?" Chen Jiajia teased.

Mentioning this caused Xixi's anger, which she had managed to suppress, to flare up again.

Lin Xiao feigned surprise: "Oh dear, is today Valentine's Day?"

Chen Jiajia frowned in disgust: "No, brother-in-law, how could you forget such an important day?"

Lin Xiao clapped his hands: "Of course I didn't forget! I even prepared a gift for Xixi!"

Upon hearing this, Xixi's anger, which she had been holding in all the way, instantly dissipated, and she looked at Lin Xiao with her big eyes full of anticipation.

Lin Xiao affectionately pinched her nose.

"You really think I've forgotten? I'm so angry!"

"..."

Hearing this gentle words, Xixi completely forgot her anger and stood downstairs, smiling shamelessly with her eyes crinkled into squinty corners.

Chen Jiajia rolled her eyes at the side.

She's too lazy to even comment on her artist's naive and innocent nature anymore. She used to be so obsessed with this couple, but now that she's her manager, she's so disgusted by their lovey-dovey relationship.

Chen Jiajia: Sure enough, anyone who turns their hobby into a job will go crazy!

"Alright, alright, let's hurry upstairs, I have so much stuff to carry!" Jiajia urged.

"Wait a minute, there's one more person!" Lin Xiao said with a sly grin.

"Who else?"

Jiajia asked.

No sooner had the words left his mouth than an SUV drove up, its massive body almost completely blocking the narrow road.

Chen Jiajia said without any disgust, "Who is it that drives this kind of car in the city? Show-off!"

Before the words were even finished, the car had already pulled up beside them, and the driver's side window rolled down, revealing a familiar head.

What are you doing here?!

Chen Jiajia looked at Cao Yuanzhi in the driver's seat, her voice immediately spitting fire.

Old Cao rolled his eyes: "If you can come, why can't I? Did you build this community? Did you repair these roads? Did you contract these parking spaces?"

Chen Jiajia put down the fruit in her hand, put her hands on her hips, and started eating.

Lin Xiao and Xi Xi vividly recalled the scene of the two of them fighting like cocks last time, and quickly jumped out to interrupt the spellcasting.

One pulled the left and the other the right, stirring up a chaotic mess before finally getting the two troublemakers upstairs.

We arrived at Xie Xiaowei's house.

Xiaowei, sitting in her wheelchair, was overwhelmed with gratitude upon seeing so many people arrive.

She let everyone in.

Xi Xi and Jia Jia were naturally busy talking to Xiao Wei, while Lin Xiao and Cao Yuanzhi were sent to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

In the kitchen, Lao Cao repeated what he had said on the phone that morning.

Lin Xiao, however, remained unmoved, as if his heart was made of stone. He was determined to wait until netizens publicly apologized to him before he would consider officially recording "Rice Fragrance".

Old Cao was so angry his face turned green.

Then he heard his enemy Chen Jiajia's loud laughter coming from the living room, which made him even angrier. He felt that he shouldn't have come today; it was simply torture.

Lunch was ready a little over an hour later.

Xie Xiaowei sat between the two girls, her face full of apology: "You came to see me, but you still have to buy groceries and cook for yourselves. I really feel bad..."

Everyone waved their hands, telling her not to be shy.

Chen Jiajia said bluntly, "Xiaowei, you're being too formal. Are we still sisters? Besides, some people are shameless enough to come here empty-handed and freeload. It's only right that we help them out!"

Everyone knows who the second half of the sentence is referring to.

Today, Lin Xiao, Xi Xi, and Jia Jia all brought gifts.

Cao Yuanzhi was the only one who was empty-handed.

Old Cao was also wronged. Lin Xiao only gave him an address to come for lunch, without saying that he was going to someone else's house, so of course he came empty-handed.

Unexpectedly, it was Han Xixi's childhood friend who was there, and even more unexpectedly, his mortal enemy was also there!

Lin Xiao is even more wronged.

He's called Lao Cao simply because he was tricked into coming from Haicheng by him, and he has no relatives or friends in Ninghai.

Lin Xiao wanted to introduce him to more friends, which is why he called him over.

Little did he know that these two had such fiery tempers; they had argued more than a week ago, and now they were still extremely hostile towards each other when they met.

Hearing Chen Jiajia's sarcastic remarks, Lao Cao had no way to express his bitterness and temporarily lost a round.

Jiajia was extremely proud.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Xie Xiaowei quickly changed the subject, saying, "Lin Xiao, didn't you prepare a Qixi gift for Xixi? Stop keeping us in suspense and show it to us!"

Everyone stared wide-eyed with curiosity, especially Xixi.

Seeing this, Lin Xiao stopped being mysterious and secretly took something out of his pocket.

"Dang-dang-dang!"

After the sound effects started playing, the gift revealed its true form in his palm—it was just a paper airplane.

The expectant expressions on everyone's faces immediately changed.

Chen Jiajia: What am I expecting?
Cao Yuanzhi: Very good, today an even greater injustice than mine is about to be born!

Xie Xiaowei: I haven't been out for a long time either. Are Valentine's Day gifts this simple now?

Han Xixi: ? ? ?

There was a few seconds of silence at the dinner table.

Xie Xiaowei awkwardly asked, "Is there any special meaning behind this gift?"

Chen Jiajia leaned back in her chair with her hands on her hips, looking like she was saying, "You'd better give my sister an explanation."

Lin Xiao smiled and said, "Of course. First of all, I folded this paper airplane myself. It's a small gift but a big sentiment, and this kind of thoughtfulness is the most precious thing!"

Everyone: Are you alright?
Lin Xiao continued, "Also, this is not an ordinary paper airplane, but a paper airplane that carries happiness!"

Everyone:? ? ?
Lin Xiao demonstrated: "Look at these two wings, the left one is an L, and the right one is an X. What do they represent?"

Old Cao: "That means your English is terrible. 'R' should be written as 'R' instead of 'right'!"

Chen Jiajia burst out laughing.

Looking up, they met Cao Yuanzhi's gaze, and the two quickly turned their heads away in disdain.

Lin Xiao glared at Lao Cao with annoyance, unfolded the sides of the plane to reveal two folded sides, on which were two letters—two X's.

"On the left is LX, which is the initials of my name, and on the right is XX, which is the initials of my wife's name."

Lin Xiao smiled smugly, "And if we each take out a letter and put them together in the middle, it also forms two Xs, which is the initials of our daughter Xiaoxi's name. That's also the origin of my daughter's name. So this paper airplane represents our family of three. Isn't this a paper airplane that carries happiness?"

Everyone:"……"

The three of them looked at Lin Xiao with expressions of confusion, helplessness, and disbelief.

Old Cao: Dude, with your girl-chasing skills, how did you even manage to get a wife?
Chen Jiajia: No, bro, I'm just saying, we've made so much money, can't we spend some on a gift?
Xie Xiaowei: Cultured people are just different; they can even make the dead seem alive... How terrifying!
Han Xixi: ~~~
Lin Xiao ignored the strange looks, tossed the paper airplane into the sky, and smiled brightly.

"Of course, this gift also has one last profound meaning!"

After saying that, he flicked his wrist, and the paper airplane flew slowly forward, circled around, and then came back.

As luck would have it, she landed right in Han Xixi's arms.

Xi Xi picked it up and looked at it carefully, her eyes full of tenderness.

Cao Yuanzhi interrupted the spellcasting: "The profound meaning is: This plane can really fly?"

"roll!"

Lin Xiao said irritably, "Three beauties, did anyone guess it?"

Chen Jiajia quickly stepped back, her face clearly showing her disdain, as if to say, "I don't want to guess, I don't want to be a part of your play."

Han Xixi had already guessed it, and her eyes softened with even more tenderness. She smiled sweetly but refused to say anything.

Finally, Xie Xiaowei raised her hand: "Uh...it's that line from the song 'Rice Fragrance' in your program last night, right: 'The paper airplane of my childhood has finally flown back into my hands!'"

"Snapped!"

Lin Xiao snapped his fingers loudly, startling Old Cao.

He took his wife's hand across the table and said, "Paper airplanes were my favorite toy when I was a child, and they are also my fondest childhood memories. Now, I'm giving them to you, which means you've been a part of the first ten years of my life, making our relationship even more complete and pure!"

His words were sincere and moving, but the three audience members were not impressed and their expressions became increasingly uncontrolled.

Chen Jiajia: Ugh... Looks like I can't eat this meal!
Old Cao: Well done, brother! With your ability to spout nonsense, you're a total scumbag!

Xie Xiaowei: As expected of someone who appears on variety shows, she doesn't even feel cheesy saying things like that!
All three of them expressed their dislike.

Chen Jiajia couldn't stand it anymore and slammed her hand on the table, saying, "Sister Xixi, your brother-in-law obviously forgot to prepare a gift and just grabbed something to fool you. You actually believed that?"

Everyone looked at Xixi.

Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes sparkled with spring, and she gently held the paper airplane to her chest, her smile as radiant as the golden waves of rice in a field.

"Believe me~"

The voice is soft, with a rising tone at the end.

The sound waves of happiness were overwhelming.

The three bystanders all lay down, while Lin Xiao and Xi Xi looked at each other and smiled tenderly.

Lin Xiao: That was close! I'm so quick-witted!
(End of this chapter)