Why bother with dating when you already have a cat?

When a group of people go out to play, the girl you like only knows you.

If this girl isn't the type to be overly outgoing, then there's a high probability she'll stick with you throughout the trip.

Being in a crowd can help her lower her guard a little.

Ai Qing learned a lot of new knowledge from Master Kong, but unfortunately, she probably won't have the chance to use it in her lifetime.

I'll try writing it in a book next time; I can't let it go to waste.

About six or seven minutes before seven o'clock, the minibus arrived at the entrance of the residential area.

When Xiao Youqian received the call and saw that everyone hadn't finished eating, she asked the driver to wait a moment. Then she got up, found the aunt at the breakfast shop, ordered a soy milk and a savory pancake, and took the bag to the driver, telling them to eat slowly.

Around 7 o'clock, everyone had almost finished eating, so they got up, took their luggage, and went to the minibus that had been waiting at the entrance of the community. They put their luggage in the trunk of the minibus and then got on the bus.

There are a total of fifteen seats in the back of the minibus.

The last row took up five seats.

There are two rows of double seats ahead, one on each side, for a total of eight seats.

There are two single seats left, which can be folded down, one on the left and one on the right.

For a group of seven, this number of seats is definitely more than enough.

Ai Qing pulled Xiao Yu to sit in the front row double seat with the best view, and let Xiao Yu sit by the window.

This trip to the ski resort was quite a long trip for Xiaoyu.

The farthest place she had ever been before was West Lake and Ai Qing's university.

The ski resort is said to be in Hangzhou, but it is actually in a very remote mountainous area, at a relatively high altitude within the province.

For Xiaoyu, it was her first time going to such a far place, and everything was new and exciting.

As soon as I got on the bus and sat down, I couldn't help but peek out the window.

Even though it's the same familiar entrance to the neighborhood, a feeling of excitement keeps rising within me.

Following behind, Wu Yong and Xie Qiaohe boarded the bus. Based on Kong Fugui's instructions from the previous night, Wu Yong led her directly to sit in the corner of the last row.

The other passengers who boarded later wisely chose front-row seats instead of sitting in the last row with the two of them.

Kong Fugui sat in the double seat next to Ai Qing and Xiao Yu.

Li Qiqi and Xiao Youqian sat hand in hand behind Ai Qing and Xiao Yu.

After confirming that everyone had arrived and boarded the vehicle, Xiao Youqian stood up and called out to the driver, "Driver, we're all here. Please set off now."

"Okay, hold on tight." The driver put down his soy milk, still chewing on a fragrant savory pancake, and started the car.

As the minibus started moving, Little Fish's face lit up with excitement. Sitting in her seat, she fidgeted restlessly, constantly looking out the window.

When the minibus started moving, Xiaoyu excitedly pulled Aiqing, exclaiming, "Brother! It's moving!"

"Okay, okay." Ai Qing smiled as he looked at her excited expression, pinched her cheek, and felt that Xiao Yu was just like him when he was in elementary school.

Back then, the school would organize an autumn outing every year, just like it is now.

However, back then, there were thirty or forty people in the class, and each class would be assigned a very large bus.

When Ai Qing was a child, as the sports committee member, she would carry a red flag with their class's name on it, walk at the front of the class line, follow the homeroom teacher to find the corresponding car, and then get on the car.

The day before the autumn outing, Ai Qing would always suffer from insomnia and would get up from time to time to open the window and see if it was raining outside.

Because if it rains, the autumn outing will be postponed.

Sometimes I go to bed at 10 p.m. but don't fall asleep until 1 or 2 a.m. Then I wake up at 3 or 4 a.m. and wait anxiously until 5 or 6 a.m. to make sure it's not raining. Then I happily go to school early, not sleepy at all.

Mingming usually sleeps in late for school, not getting up until 6:30, and rushing to the classroom by 7:00.

Once on the bus, she was incredibly excited, much like Xiaoyu is now.

As the minibus drove out of the city and onto the highway, the little fish's eyes became brighter and brighter.

To be honest, on the previous trips to West Lake or Ai Qing's university, Ai Qing always took Xiao Yu there by subway.

Although the subway itself is impressive, Xiaoyu got used to it after riding it so many times.

Now, brought out by Ai Qing, they boarded a minibus and drove onto the highway. Xiao Yu was once again awestruck by the steel behemoth that was the city.

"Brother, why are all these bridges so high? Why aren't they built on the ground?"

Xiao Yu quietly leaned close to Ai Qing's ear and asked him.

Ai Qing smiled, then leaned close to Xiao Yu's ear and began whispering in her ear.

"Look at the road we're driving on now, what's the difference between it and the roads on the ground?"

"What's the difference... more spacious? And taller?"

“It’s not just more spacious,” Ai Qing shook her head, “it also doesn’t have traffic lights, didn’t you notice?”

"Oh right! There are no traffic lights here." Xiaoyu suddenly realized, looked out the window for a while, and found that the minibus was indeed driving on without stopping at any traffic lights.

"If you drive on the ground the whole time, there will be traffic lights at every intersection because pedestrians will need to cross the road," Ai Qing explained to Xiao Yu.

"But if we elevate the road high in the air, we don't need to consider the issue of pedestrians crossing the road, and cars won't have to stop and start frequently, greatly reducing travel time."

"Moreover, highways have another advantage: because they are elevated, they can often lead straight to the destination, instead of having to go through twists and turns like on the ground."

The little fish nodded repeatedly, indicating that it had learned some new knowledge, and then couldn't wait to continue peeking out the window.

Looking down at the city from above, one can truly feel its orderly atmosphere.

Looking out, you can't see the end of the city.

And each tiny person lives in such a huge cat cage.

Thinking about this, Xiaoyu suddenly realized that cats and people are not so different.

It's just that we have more living space.

After watching the highway for more than twenty minutes, Xiaoyu's initial excitement gradually faded.

She sat obediently in her seat, then opened the bag of snacks she hadn't put in the trunk, and didn't forget to turn to Xiao Youqian and Li Qiqi in the back to ask what they wanted to eat.

In the back corner of the minibus, Xie Qiaohe was sleepy, perhaps because she had gone to bed late the night before.

He didn't know when he fell asleep, but he was leaning against the back of the minibus seat, swaying back and forth, until his head finally rested on Wu Yong's shoulder, making him too scared to move.

Kong Fugui discovered this early on. Hearing Xiaoyu sharing snacks, he quickly patted Ai Qing's shoulder, pointed in Wu Yong's direction, and then winked at her.

Ai Qing was speechless, but then patted Xiao Yu on the shoulder and whispered among the three people, "Keep your voice down, Old Wu is enjoying himself."

Xiao Youqian and Li Qiqi turned their heads and saw this scene. They immediately covered their mouths and chuckled.

Wu Yong felt a little awkward being stared at, but he still couldn't bear to move and sat there seriously.

Fortunately, Xiao Youqian and Li Qiqi just laughed it off and then quieted down, sharing snacks with Xiaoyu in hushed tones.

"This is so nice, it makes me want to fall in love," Li Qiqi exclaimed softly.

"If you want to date, just go find one," Xiao Youqian chuckled. "You're not bad looking, finding a boyfriend shouldn't be difficult."

"Where can I find one?" Li Qiqi shook her head repeatedly. "After graduation, I have no way to meet new guys. I don't really want to go on blind dates, so how could I possibly find a boyfriend?"

“That’s because you don’t know how to look.” Xiao Youqian shook her head repeatedly. “If you don’t go out and socialize, of course you won’t have any way to meet guys.”

"How does Sister Qian usually go out and socialize?" Li Qiqi asked curiously.

"It depends on your target," Xiao Youqian chuckled. "If you like college guys, the younger kind of 'puppy-like' guys, you could try going to an escape room or a murder mystery game and playing with strangers in a group."

"If you prefer someone more outgoing and cheerful, join some local sports groups, such as badminton, table tennis, swimming, etc., and you can arrange to exercise together."

"If you're interested in guys with good physiques, go to the gym. Even if you're just quietly working out, guys will come up to you and start a conversation."

"If you prefer staying at home, join some gaming groups and find guys to play games with; you'll be very popular."

"In short, there are many methods, the most basic approach is to find something to do."

"First, find something that can be done with a group of people, and then use that thing to get to know strangers. You'll usually have no shortage of new acquaintances."

Li Qiqi opened her mouth, and after listening to Xiao Youqian's words, she was still a little overwhelmed.

"Sister Qian, I haven't really tried that much," Li Qiqi said with a sigh. "But I have to work during the week, so I don't have that much time."

“Then you’ll have to talk to Ai Qing.” Xiao Youqian glanced at Ai Qing sitting in front of her. “He’s your boss, after all.”

"Why are you looking at me?" Ai Qing had been listening intently and had learned a lot of useful little bits of knowledge. "I think what Sister Qian said makes sense. From now on, you can have weekends off and go out and have some fun."

“Weekends are supposed to be holidays, okay?” Li Qiqi rolled her eyes at him. “It’s just that there were fewer people in the store before, so I worked for you seven days a week. Now the shifts have been separated.”

"Huh? Is that so?" Ai Qing hadn't been involved in the specific operation of the cat café for a while, and usually left it to Li Qiqi to manage, so she really didn't know.

Because the cat cafe is making a considerable profit every month, Xiaoyu has hired about three or four new employees.

The beverage section operates on a two-shift system, so Hu Tian's workload wasn't as heavy.

The cat-petting area is similar, with Li Qiqi in charge. She then schedules shifts for the staff to ensure that there are at least two staff members on duty in the cat-petting area at any given time.

One person was responsible for serving drinks to customers and taking care of the cats in the cat petting area, while the other was responsible for selling tickets at the entrance of the cat petting area and cleaning up the drink bottles on the seats in the corridor.

"So you'll have some free time now?" Ai Qing laughed when she heard Xiao Yu say that. "Why don't you try it out when you have some free time? I'm quite curious to see how effective it will be, following Sister Qian's method."

"After all, with Sister Qian's looks, it's quite easy for her to meet guys through these channels."

"But that does have the added benefit of good looks."

"So I'm curious whether this method would be equally effective for someone of your skill level."

"What do you mean?" Li Qiqi was immediately dissatisfied, her eyebrows furrowed and her teeth clenched. "What do you mean by 'my level'? Bro, you really deserve a beating, don't you?"

Because Xie Qiaohe was sleeping in the back row, Li Qiqi couldn't be too loud, and she had to squeeze out the air from between her teeth.

……

There was a lot of fun along the way.

Xie Qiaohe woke up midway and found herself leaning on Wu Yong's shoulder, pretending to be asleep.

It wasn't until Xiao Youqian curiously turned her head and glanced at Xie Qiaohe, who was blinking, that Xie Qiaohe blushed a little and looked up, sitting up straight.

Wu Yong hadn't noticed anything yet, assuming that Xie Qiaohe had just woken up. After seeing her wake up, he rubbed his shoulders to loosen his muscles.

Now that no one was sleeping, the car quickly became lively.

Kong Fugui then pulled out a deck of cards and started playing Turtle Poker right there in the car.