The landlord has multiple personalities and wants everyone to pay him.

Seeing that Xia Qing was eating seriously, Ye Shu felt relieved and began to plan the rest of the trip.

Before doing anything, he habitually goes through it in his mind: what time to leave, how long it will take to get there, what situations he might encounter, the approximate time... so that even if there are unexpected situations, he won't be caught off guard.

I picked up my dad from the hotel, and then we went to settle down together.

As he was thinking, Xia Qing had finished the last mouthful of porridge and was scraping the rim of the bowl with the spoon in her hand. She didn't look at Ye Shu, but just looked down at the empty bowl.

Suddenly, Xia Qing spoke up:

"Feed".

"First of all, I'm not called 'Hey,' I'm called..."

Ye Shu casually chimed in, but was interrupted by Xia Qing's serious expression.

"Seriously though."

Xia Qing continued scraping the bowl with her spoon and asked:

"To see your dad..."

As soon as she said it, she seemed to realize that the way she addressed her was a bit too direct and impolite, so she changed her mind at the last minute:

"Is there anything I should be careful about when meeting your uncle?"

After asking the question, she finally looked up at Ye Shu. Her eyebrows were slightly furrowed, her lips were pursed, and her eyes clearly showed nervousness, because she started shaking her leg.

Looking at her like this, Ye Shu said:

"Xia Qing, are you nervous? You've met my dad before, haven't you? He had a good chat with me at my house last time, didn't he?"

This time, Xia Qing didn't directly retort or argue as usual. She simply pursed her lips and increased the amplitude of her leg shaking. She lowered her head, looking again at the spoon that was catching air in her bowl, her voice unusually conflicted:

"That...that's different. Last time I was pretending to be Zhi Qiu..."

Speaking of this, she remembered that morning when she awkwardly pretended to be quiet and gentle in order to impersonate Zhi Qiu, and it seemed that Ye Shu had laughed at her.

Thinking of this, she even rolled her eyes at Ye Shu, which could be considered as returning the favor.

"Since it's not really me, I don't feel that much pressure, but this time..."

This time, she was meeting Ye Shu's father formally as Xia Qing, as Ye Shu's girlfriend, which made it all the more meaningful.

She didn't need to pretend; she had to face things as her true self. This pressure made her, who was usually fearless, a little uneasy.

Because of her personality, which is a bit too impulsive, will Ye Shu's father dislike her personality? Generally, older generations prefer Zhi Qiu's kind of personality, right?

Ye Shu understood what she meant and lost interest in joking. He said seriously:

"It's okay, there's really no need to be nervous. My dad is actually quite easy to get along with, not that serious. He had a very good impression of Sister Zhi Qiu last time, and he'll be even happier knowing it's you. Just be yourself, Sister Xia Qing."

Just be yourself.

Xia Qing was touched by those words, remained silent for a few seconds, and relaxed slightly. After a while, she looked up and asked:

"Well... what does Uncle like? Since this is our first formal meeting, I'd like to... bring a gift. It wouldn't be appropriate to go empty-handed."

What do you like?

This was a very practical question, but it made Ye Shu's expression stiffen for a moment.

What do you like...?

He opened his mouth, but couldn't answer for a moment. Then it dawned on him that he seemed to have no idea what his father liked.

Ye Shu's mind began to rapidly flash through various images of her father, but no matter how much she thought about it, her father seemed to be just like many other ordinary, silent, middle-aged men who held up the sky for their families, with simple and vague hobbies.

I enjoy drinking, especially having a couple of drinks with dinner. I tend to talk a lot when I drink too much.

He enjoys smoking and has a strong addiction, often taking out a cigarette whenever he feels like it. However, he tries to refrain from smoking when relatives visit or when he goes to visit other people's homes.

I enjoy watching the news; I watch all the news channels on TV every day without fail.

Are these considered hobbies?

I guess so.

But it seems too ordinary, too standard, so ordinary that Ye Shu can no longer say with certainty, "My dad especially likes such and such things."

As for other, deeper, more specific preferences... I don't really seem to know much about them.

The father and son usually talk about the most basic aspects of life, such as "Have you eaten?", "Do you have enough money?", "How's work?", and "Take care of your health".

There is a tacit understanding between them that is unique to father and son. Often, a single glance or gesture is enough for them to understand each other without needing to say a word.

But it was precisely because of this tacit understanding that their communication was put on hold.

It's not that the relationship is bad; on the contrary, it's because the relationship is so stable that we feel those idle chatter sessions are unnecessary.

But now, when Xia Qing earnestly asked, "What does Uncle like?" and needed him to give a specific answer, Ye Shu suddenly realized that his understanding of his father seemed... a little shallow.

A feeling of shame washed over me because I couldn't even clearly explain my own father's preferences.

Seeing Ye Shu's silence, Xia Qing roughly understood what was going on. She didn't urge him, but just kept twirling the spoon, waiting for Ye Shu to speak.

After a while, Ye Shu smiled a little embarrassedly:

"Now that you ask, I'm a little stumped. My dad... doesn't seem to have any other hobbies..."

Suddenly, he remembered the potted plants by his window at home, such as dragon claw plants and succulents.

"Oh, right, my dad... seems to really enjoy growing flowers. He takes care of all the plants in my house, so I guess that counts?"

Xia Qing nodded, her face not showing disappointment or an expression of "How come you don't even know this?" Instead, she nodded.

Ye Shu's honesty actually eased some of the tension in her heart.

It turns out that he didn't fully understand either.

It turns out that even the usually reliable Ye Shu has moments of uncertainty when facing his father.

This feeling of facing things together actually made Xia Qing feel good. In a relationship, she hated it when either party was the one being taken care of; what she wanted was precisely this feeling of facing things together.

"Growing flowers..."

Xia Qing put down her spoon and stared at Ye Shu, seemingly pondering something, as if Ye Shu were a flower in bloom.

After examining it carefully for a while, she stood up, holding the bowl:

"Okay, I'll go wash the dishes. You...you eat quickly, then we'll go out to buy a gift."

Ye Shu finished his porridge in a few gulps, then took the bowl to the kitchen doorway. Xia Qing was washing her own dishes under the tap with her back to him. Seeing Ye Shu approach, she took his bowl as well.

Ye Shu leaned against the door frame, looking at Xia Qing's back, speechless.

You could tell she was really nervous; Xia Qing even started doing housework!

"Sister Xia Qing, you really don't need to buy any special gifts."

"That won't work."

Xia Qing turned to look at Ye Shu and said:

"This is... my first formal meeting with Uncle. Going empty-handed might make him think I don't value you at all."

At this point, she seemed to realize what she had just said, her face flushed, and she quickly turned her head back, muttering softly:

"Besides... I also want to leave a good impression on my uncle."