Why bother with dating when you already have a cat?

Not to mention that they didn't even conduct any on-site investigations, relying entirely on online information sources to make unfounded accusations.

Throughout the entire article, only a few pictures are real; the rest are all fabricated.

Even if the pictures are real, the time frame could be several years different.

This situation was causing him a lot of distress, and recently, even though he found a job, his anxiety has only intensified.

In the end, he could only drown his sorrows in alcohol.

I can't drink too much at home, so I sneak out in the middle of the night to find a barbecue restaurant and have a few drinks.

It's also a way to relieve my emotions.

To avoid losing control of myself during the day at work.

But Ai Zhongguo never expected that he would run into his own son while eating meat and drinking on the second floor of this almost deserted barbecue restaurant in the middle of the night.

What's even more outrageous is that this guy came without a word, and he even brought a little girl with him?!

What is this scenario?

He hadn't paid much attention to Ai Qing's movements for the past two months, and before anyone knew it, this kid had given him such a surprise.

"Uh... Dad... It's so late, you're here for barbecue too?"

Hearing Ai Qing's greeting and seeing his embarrassed expression, Ai Zhongguo shook his head helplessly.

However, when his gaze fell on the little girl's face, his eyes momentarily dazed.

Such a beautiful girl... Where did Ai Qing get her from?

But this is, after all, his own son. If he saw him sneaking out for barbecue in the middle of the night, he would have given him a good scolding in the past.

But now Ai Qing has grown up and is about to graduate from university. She has also found her own career, and at least the royalties from her novels can support her.

She is now a completely independent person.

What's more, he brought a little girl with him.

So Ai Zhongguo remained calm and composed, simply nodding and saying, "Yeah, a friend invited me out for a drink. I just took him home, so I'll stay a little longer."

After explaining his situation, Ai Zhongguo looked at Ai Qing and Xiao Yu, tapped his table, and asked, "Come sit down for a while? Your food hasn't been served yet, has it?"

That makes it impossible to refuse.

Ai Qing steeled herself and pulled Xiao Yu to sit down at Ai Zhongguo's table.

He turned to look at Xiaoyu and gave her a look, signaling her to try not to speak.

But Xiaoyu failed to understand his intentions this time, and thought Ai Qing was asking her to send her greetings.

So she straightened her face and immediately greeted Ai Zhongguo politely, "Hello, Dad!"

"Call me uncle!" Ai Qing covered her face with one hand and quickly pressed down on Xiao Yu's hat with the other, pressing down on her head as well.

Xiaoyu thought it was normal to call him "Dad," but since Aiqing said it that way, she reluctantly changed her address: "Hello, Uncle..."

Ai Zhongguo opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, he was silenced by Xiaoyu's greeting and didn't know what to say for a moment.

Finally, he simply nodded and replied, "Yes, hello."

The three of them fell silent for a moment.

Xiaoyu wanted to speak, but when she turned to look at Ai Qing's face, she knew she had said the wrong thing, so she had no choice but to shut up.

Ai Qing and Ai Zhongguo didn't know what to say.

Finally, the father broke the ice, glanced at Xiaoyu, and asked Ai Qing, "What... is this?"

“Friend,” Ai Qing said earnestly.

"Oh, a friend." Ai Zhongguo didn't say much, just nodded to show he understood, then asked, "What do you call your friend?"

“Uh…” Ai Qing was now at a loss and could only say, “Her name is Ai Chiyu.”

"Or from the same clan?" Ai Zhongguo was taken aback, somewhat surprised. "Chiyu? That's a rather intriguing name."

However, after getting closer, Ai Zhongguo glanced at Xiaoyu's appearance a few times and began to have doubts.

I always felt this girl was quite young.

However, he couldn't ask her age directly in person, so he kept it to himself.

After briefly asking their names, Ai Zhongguo didn't ask the two young people any further questions in front of them, and even ate a little faster.

After finishing the last few skewers of barbecue and the beer, Ai Zhongguo stood up and said, "Alright, alright, you two won't feel comfortable here, so I won't bother you anymore."

"Enjoy your meal, and head home early after you're done eating."

"Ai Qing, remember to take them home. Be careful, it's late at night."

"Oh, I see." Ai Qing replied and got up to see her father downstairs.

Watching Ai Zhongguo's figure gradually disappear into the distance, Ai Qing breathed a slight sigh of relief. When she returned to the second floor, she pulled Xiaoyu to sit down at a clean table.

However, his gaze shifted to the table next door, where he looked at the only pair of chopsticks and the five or six bottles of beer beside them, and fell into deep thought.

It seems like Dad is really not in a good mood.

He sneaked out late at night to drink alone.

"What's wrong?" Little Fish asked softly. "Did Little Fish do something wrong? Did she make Dad... um, Uncle angry?"

“It’s not really your business,” Ai Qing shook her head. “He’s probably having some trouble at work.”

However, Ai Qing looked at Xiao Yu and sighed, "This is going to be difficult. Dad saw you, and I need to think about how to explain it to him."

"How do you explain that? Didn't you say we're friends?" Little Fish tilted her head. "But why not say she's my sister?"

"You don't understand yet." Ai Qing rubbed her forehead. "Anyway, when you actually meet my parents in the future, you have to call them uncle and aunt, okay?"

"Oh..." Little Fish asked somewhat reluctantly, "What about Grandpa and Grandma?"

"You can call them Grandpa and Grandma directly."

"Why can't Mom and Dad, but Grandpa and Grandma can?"

Ai Qing: "..."

Good guy.

When Xiaoyu asked this question, Ai Qing didn't know how to answer for a moment.

Fortunately, the barbecue I ordered earlier was ready and brought to the table by the owner.

Ai Qing opened a bottle of soda for Xiao Yu and used the barbecue to shut her up, so she wouldn't ask any more bizarre questions.

"Mmm..." After swallowing the food that was stuffed to the brim, Xiaoyu couldn't help but exclaim, "So delicious! This is super delicious!"

"As long as it tastes good." Ai Qing smiled and picked up another skewer of pork tenderloin. "Try this one too."

While the two were eating, the proprietress brought out the grilled fish. The fish was glowing blue from the charcoal fire, and steam was rising from the plate. It looked delicious.

However, just as Ai Qing was enjoying barbecue and grilled fish with Xiao Yu, his phone vibrated.

When I took it out, I saw it was a message from my dad.

Ai Qing hesitated for a moment, but still clicked on it, and was then shocked.

[Ai Jong-kook]: (Transfer: 6000 yuan)

[Ai Jong-kook]: Don't be stingy when you're out with a girl. She's willing to come out with you for barbecue late at night, so don't treat her badly.

[Ai Jong-kook]: Be careful when you take them home later, or they might get a beating from their parents.

Looking at the chat history on WeChat, Ai Qing opened her mouth.

[Rise, my dear subject]: Father, there's no need for that. It's not like I'm short of money.

[Ai Jong-kook]: Just take it if I give it to you, why are you making so many comments?

[Ai Jong-guk]: There's another question, how old is this girl?

Reluctantly accepting the dating fund sent by her father, Ai Qing was stumped when she saw his next question.

According to Xiao Youqian, when a cat turns one year old, it is roughly equivalent to a human's 16 years old.

When a person turns two years old, they are considered to be 24 years old.

Now that Xiaoyu is over one year and two months old, if we round it up, she should be considered an adult at 18, right?

[Rise, my dear subject]: 20 years old, which means you look quite young.

Seeing Ai Qing busy typing, Xiao Yu picked up a piece of fish and fed it to him, while glancing at his chat history.

"Is Xiaoyu already 20 years old?!"

"I was just saying that," Ai Qing said helplessly. "Are you suggesting I'm only a little over a year old?"

Why not?

"A human is still a baby when he is a little over one year old, and it is impossible for him to be as big as you."

"Is that so?" Little Fish seemed to be thinking. "Then everyone Little Fish's age is 20?"

"I can only give you a rough estimate." Ai Qing coughed twice and said simply, "It should be between 16 and 20 years old, but it's rather vague and hard to estimate."

"How old is your brother?" Little Fish asked curiously, having never asked this question before.

"I'm already 24 years old."

[Ai Jong-kook]: So at that age you're in college?

[Rise, my subject]: No, she didn't go to university.

Ai Qing wouldn't dare say that Xiao Yu was in college; it's best not to make up things that don't exist.

[Ai Jong-kook]: What is that for?

[Rise, my dear subject]: She's looking for a job right now.

[Ai Jong-kook]: Oh, I see. So how did you two meet?

As expected, it has finally come to this.

Ai Qing sighed, pondered for a moment, and came up with a reasonably plausible reason.

[Rise, my dear subject]: She is a reader of my novels, and I met her in my reader group.