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

When Ye Shu and Xia Qing followed Shen Jingwan into the living room, An Jianxing and Ye Guoqiang were already sitting on the sofa. There was an ashtray on the coffee table in front of them, and they were each holding a cigarette and chatting casually.

When An Jianxing saw his daughter enter, he immediately smiled and raised his hand to greet her, then introduced her to Ye Guoqiang:

"Come here, brother, this is my other daughter, Xia Qing."

It's clear that An Jianxing is very satisfied with his daughter, and he introduces her with great pride:

"This girl has been a tomboy since she was little. She's very tough and braver than many boys."

Xia Qing was somewhat embarrassed by her father publicly exposing her shortcomings.

She frowned slightly and secretly rolled her eyes at An Jianxing.

An Jianxing pretended not to see it. The eye roll his daughter gave him felt like a massage, very comfortable!

Xia Qing took a deep breath and tried to adjust her expression to appear more dignified... although the effect was limited.

She carried the gift bag and walked over to Ye Guoqiang.

"Uncle, this...this is a gift for you. I hope you like it."

She held the small paper bag in both hands, bowed slightly, and handed it to Ye Guoqiang.

Ye Guoqiang clearly did not expect the girl to prepare a gift so formally, and to present it with both hands.

He quickly stubbed out the cigarette he had just finished smoking, wiped his hands on his clothes, and then reached out to take it.

"Oh, thank you, honey, that's so thoughtful of you."

An Jianxing watched this scene from the side, his smile widening as he leaned back, his expression saying, "Look at my daughter, how sensible she is! She really makes me proud!"

He said to Ye Guoqiang:

"Brother, please accept this little something from the child. Hey, Xiao Qing, what nice thing did you buy for your Uncle Ye? Why are you being so secretive?"

Ye Guoqiang accepted the gift, which greatly eased Xia Qing's tension. A smile appeared on her face, and she spoke more relaxedly.

"I don't know exactly what Uncle likes, but Ye Shu told me that you usually like to grow flowers."

She pointed to the small bag:

"I've selected some unique flower seeds from this flower market for you. There are quite a few varieties, and I hope you'll like them."

As soon as she finished speaking, the atmosphere in the living room became somewhat awkward, and the others remained silent.

Ye Guoqiang looked down at the bag in his hand, smiling without saying a word.

An Jianxing's "You really made me proud" smile froze, slowly turning into a wry smile.

Shen Jingwan smiled gently beside her, but her gaze toward her daughter held a hint of helplessness.

Ye Shu stood behind Xia Qing, speechless. When he and Xia Qing went to buy a gift earlier, when they arrived at the flower shop, Xia Qing mysteriously wouldn't let him go in, saying she wanted to pick out a special gift herself.

He never expected that Xia Qing's understanding of "special" and "local" characteristics was flower seeds.

Ye Shu bit her lip, suppressing a laugh, and leaned close to Xia Qing's ear, whispering:

"Um... Sister Xia Qing, do you think these flowers are only sold at this flower market?"

Xia Qing was happy because she had given away the gift when Ye Shu suddenly asked her this question. She was a little confused and blinked at Ye Shu's face, which was trying not to laugh.

Ye Shu found her bewildered expression adorable. He suppressed a laugh and whispered in Xia Qing's ear:

"Because... these are mostly southern flowers, and the temperature and humidity are different between the north and south. Where I live, these flowers basically can't survive..."

"What?!"

Xia Qing's eyes widened, and her smile froze. She had only been thinking about catering to their preferences and local specialties, and hadn't considered this at all. Now, her attempt at flattery had backfired spectacularly.

An Jianxing, standing to the side, couldn't bear to watch any longer. He raised one hand to cover his eyes, and judging from the trembling of his shoulders, he was probably trying not to laugh.

Shen Jingwan shook her head helplessly beside her. This child meant well, but she didn't think things through.

Seeing Xia Qing's reaction, Ye Guoqiang not only didn't mind, but found the girl's honesty endearing. He quickly put the bag of flower seeds into his large travel bag.

"It's alright, honey. This gift is really nice. Don't worry, Uncle will take care of it."

Xia Qing knew that Uncle Ye was giving her a way out, which only made her feel more embarrassed:

"Thank you, Uncle... I'm glad you like it..."

Ye Guoqiang looked at Xia Qing and suddenly remembered something. He reached into the inside of his jacket and pulled out a rather thick-looking red envelope. The envelope was new, but the edges were a little wrinkled from being carried around in his pocket for so long.

"My dear daughter, since this is our first meeting, I should have given you this gift when we had dinner together yesterday. But I got carried away with your dad and forgot about it."

As he spoke, he handed the red envelope in his hand to Xia Qing:

"Here, take this. Don't think it's too little. It's a token of our appreciation from your uncle's family. Please accept it."

An Jianxing, who was sitting next to him, saw this and quickly reached out to stop them:

"Hey brother, what are you doing? No need for this, no need to be so polite. As long as the kids are doing well, that's enough. We don't do this kind of thing."

He genuinely believed that Ye Guoqiang was such an honest person that the red envelope he offered must be substantial, and he didn't want his in-laws to spend money.

Shen Jingwan chimed in from the side:

"Yes, Brother Ye, we are already very grateful that you understand the children's situation. We really can't accept this red envelope."

Ye Guoqiang did not retract his hand, but instead used the same reason that was as famous as "Since we're already here" and "It's not worth it":

"Don't stop us from giving it to the children. I understand what you mean, but what's due should be given. This isn't just politeness; it's our Ye family's way of showing our love for our daughter and our hope for the children's future."

He then raised his hand towards Xia Qing:

"Girl, here, take this."

Xia Qing wasn't one to make excuses or drag things out like some people do; she felt that was fake. She looked at the dark-skinned, unassuming middle-aged man in front of her, then accepted the red envelope with both hands.

"Thank you, Uncle."

Her generous, unpretentious, and straightforward nature clearly suited Ye Guoqiang's tastes.

"Okay, okay! This girl is so generous and easygoing, isn't she great! Keep her safe."

Seeing that his daughter had already accepted the red envelope, An Jianxing felt it would be inappropriate to refuse it any further. Refusing it now would be counterproductive and seem like he was looking down on her.

"Brother, you're so kind. We should have a good drink together later."

Xia Qing held the red envelope in her hand, then looked back at Ye Shu. She then gestured with her chin towards Ye Shu and whispered in his ear:

"If you make a nice noise, I'll buy you candy."