My love index is at its maximum.

Tsukasa Tazaki was very pleased with the birthday gift.

As for whether my father-in-law likes it or not... well, never mind. Given his position in the family, it's not his place to say he doesn't like it.

She stood up, went to the kitchen to get a glass of water, and when she came out, Kuriyama Sakura had opened her eyes.

She was enjoying a very good night's sleep, which made her feel quite satisfied. A faint smile lingered in her half-closed eyes.

Then she saw Tsukasa Tazaki.

The smile that was just visible was like a flower petal floating on the water, dragged to the bottom by a fish, leaving no trace.

In a very short time, Kuriyama Sakura regained her usual aloof demeanor, her expression shifting smoothly and effortlessly. Tazaki Tsukasa sighed, thinking to himself that she was the one with the strongest AT field.

"What time is it?" she asked.

Tsukasa Tazaki glanced at his watch: "It's almost midnight."

Kuriyama Sakura turned to look out the window, gazing at the rain-drenched Tokyo nightscape and listening to the patter of the rain, and remarked, "The rainy season is definitely the best time to sleep."

After saying that, she began to tidy her messy ponytail, her expression quite calm, without any embarrassment or nervousness.

Tazaki Tsukasa drank some water and came to the bedside, looking down at the streets in the dead of night. His gaze fell on the commercial district in the direction of West Shinjuku. All the shops along the street had their roller shutters closed, and there was hardly anyone in sight. Only the vending machines quietly awaited the arrival of dawn.

His gaze shifted from the window back to Kuriyama Sakura, and looking at the smooth curve of her calves, he asked, "You seem very tired?"

"generally."

Kuriyama Sakura gripped the top of her stockings with both hands, and slowly slid one leg inside.

Then there was another one...

"Your legs are so beautiful," Tsukasa Tazaki exclaimed.

Don't you know the saying "Don't look at what is improper"?

"I'm not a gentleman, why should I care about those things?"

Kuriyama Sakura raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of smugness appearing in her usually aloof eyes. She asked softly, "A beautiful girl like me sleeping in your bed will definitely leave some special fragrance. If you cover yourself with it again tonight, won't you smell it all night?"

The sound, which originally had the texture of ice colliding, now had a slightly seductive hoarse quality.

It doesn't sound bad; on the contrary, it's quite tempting.

Tsukasa Tazaki shook his head and said seriously, "I will change the blankets."

Kuriyama Sakura's eyes froze for a moment, then she picked up her schoolbag, stood up, and asked coldly, "Why?"

"Hygiene issues."

"health?"

"Yes, I have OCD."

Sakura Kuriyama resisted the urge to stomp on his face and walked barefoot to the door. As she put on her shoes, she tilted her head, then turned and said fiercely, "No changing!"

"..." Tsukasa Tazaki found it unreasonable; how could anyone be like that?

I didn't know how to answer, and Kuriyama Sakura's pouty look was really cute.

"gone."

"Let me give you a ride. Higashi-Shinjuku gets very chaotic at night."

"No need, my driver is waiting downstairs."

Tsukasa Tazaki: "..."

These rich girls are truly... enviable.

Kuriyama Sakura opened the door and left.

Tsukasa Tazaki turned off the light and went back to bed.

The rain was still falling outside, and there was no one on the road. He stared at the raindrops falling on the road for a long time, and then smiled.

He does have obsessive-compulsive disorder related to cleanliness, but it's very mild; he's just quite clean and doesn't have any aversion to the body of a beautiful girl.

I just wanted to annoy her and see her sullen.

Cover yourself with the blanket, close your eyes, and go to sleep.

A delicate fragrance wafts through the soft night sky.

Chapter 142 Family Chatting, Kimono, Bird Without Feet.

The following afternoon, a light drizzle continued to fall.

After leaving school, Tsukasa Tazaki took a taxi to the Jimbocho bookstore district and bought two sets of extracurricular exercise books for each course. Then he took a taxi to Shibuya.

At 5 p.m., I arrived at Xiaoying's family's door.

Four people were waiting on the steps of the gate.

One of them was an elderly woman nearing seventy, dressed in a pure white kimono with a pattern of flowers and deer, her silver hair elegantly coiled at the back of her head, with a wooden hairpin inserted diagonally.

Judging from his appearance, he is a kind old man.

Tsukasa Tazaki carried two large bags of exercise books and walked briskly up the steps.

Hoshino Hanami carefully wiped the sweat from his cheeks, then turned to the old man and asked, "How is it? Doesn't he look better in person than in the photos?"

"Hello, Grandma." Tsukasa Tazaki bowed obediently.

His voice had the hoarseness of a boy going through puberty, trembling slightly, concealing a hint of shyness.

Grandma Hoshino found it pleasant to hear for no reason and nodded repeatedly: "Hana has always praised you in front of me, but I never really believed it. Now that I see you in person, you are indeed much prettier than in the photos."

Hoshino Hanami noticed the satisfied gleam in her grandmother's eyes and smiled smugly: "Besides his appearance, he has many other good qualities. Grandma, you can discover them slowly in the future."

Standing next to her sister, Hoshino Shikami sullenly hummed and stomped her toes hard on the floor tiles as if she were stepping on Tazaki Tsukasa.

“Judging from your appearance, Xiao Si is indeed a good match for you.” Grandma Hoshino nodded, then glanced at Hoshino Takeo with displeasure. “Unlike this big, dumb guy Takeo, when Sakura married into the family, I always felt guilty, thinking that my son was ruining such a beautiful girl.”

The club president shrank back and muttered in a low voice, "Mom, I'm your real son..."

Grandma Hoshino glared at him, about to lecture him, when Hoshino Takeo immediately turned to look at Tazaki Tsukasa, changing the subject: "Isn't school over at 3:30? Why are you only here at 5?"

His voice was loud and powerful, full of the authority of the head of the household (forced).

Hoshino Shikami, who had been sullen, suddenly looked up, her big eyes sparkling with mischievous light: "She must have gone out to play with other girls!"

Before Tazaki Tsukasa could even reply to her malicious slanderous remark, she turned and grabbed her grandmother's arm, drawing out her words, "Grandma~~ let me tell you, this guy is the biggest womanizer. I don't know how many girls at school are close to him!"

Grandma Hoshino frowned and looked at her eldest granddaughter: "What's going on? Is what Shikami said true?"

"Explain yourself." Hoshino Hanami glared at Tazaki Tsukasa with annoyance.

The sister-in-law stared intently at her brother-in-law, her fair and delicate face displaying a mixture of anticipation, joy, and a triumphant smile.

Tsukasa Tazaki lifted the bag in his hand to show everyone: "I bought some practice problems on my way home after class."

"That's good." Grandma Hoshino nodded, looking satisfied.

"He's lying!" the sister-in-law immediately questioned, shouting, "He's already first in the grade, how could he possibly buy so many practice problems? Isn't that just torturing himself? I won't believe him!"

Tazaki Tsukasa looked at his sister-in-law, whose intelligence was less than that of a dog, with affection and said with a smile, "These exercises are all for you. There are more than ten of them. I will personally supervise you to finish them, so don't even think about slacking off."

Hoshino Shikami: "..."

Who cares?

Can you please get the study stuff out of my way and leave me alone!

Grandma Hoshino looked at the two of them with a puzzled expression. Hoshino Hanami smiled and explained to her, "I told him yesterday that you were worried about Shikami's studies, so he immediately went to buy her some practice problems today. With the top student in the grade tutoring Shikami, you can rest assured now, right?"

“Of course,” Tsukasa Tazaki chimed in at the opportune moment. “Shikami is quite smart, just a bit lazy. If someone supervises her, her grades will definitely improve a lot.”

With her granddaughter serving as a stark contrast, Grandma Hoshino looked at Tsukasa Tazaki with increasing satisfaction.

"..."

Sister, you're teaming up with this guy to bully me!

Hoshino Shika's speechless, dumbfounded expression resembled that of a freshly roasted suckling pig.

“I also prepared a birthday present for my father-in-law.” Tsukasa Tazaki took out a folding fan wrapped in a box from his schoolbag. Hanami Hoshino thoughtfully reached out and took the bag from her boyfriend’s hand so that he could present the gift box to his father with both hands.

Hoshino Takeo asked with great interest, "What is it?"

"A folding fan, which I made myself." Tsukasa Tazaki bowed slightly and presented the gift with both hands: "Please take a look, Father-in-law."

"Thank you for your thoughtfulness." Hoshino Takeo nodded in satisfaction, took the box, and opened it.

The exquisitely crafted folding fan was painted with a Chinese ink painting. He didn't know how to appreciate it, but he thought the orchids and bamboo were painted very well, so he kept nodding and saying, "Not bad, very good, this is really beautifully painted."

Hoshino Hanami explained from the side, "In Chinese culture, there is a saying of 'Four Gentlemen,' namely plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum.' Orchids are elegant and ethereal, while bamboo is humble and upright. Xiaosi gave this folding fan to Dad, which means that you have the gentlemanly style of the orchid, which is 'unperturbed when others do not know you,' and the open-mindedness of pursuing your own aspirations without seeking fame or reputation. You also have the unyielding spirit and perseverance of bamboo."

As expected of a Mandarin teacher, her first words were a perfect answer for reading comprehension.

"Haha..." Hoshino Takeo laughed heartily a few times, waved his folding fan and walked around the corridor. His flamboyant posture reminded Tazaki Tsukasa of the scene in Stephen Chow's version of "Flirting Scholar" where the "Four Great Talents of Jiangnan" made their first appearance with cat-like steps.

Grandma Hoshino said disdainfully, "Go back inside and stay there. Don't embarrass yourself at the front door!"

"...Mom, give me some face."

Hoshino Takeo's eye twitched slightly, and a hint of grievance appeared on the face of this middle-aged man.

"Let's go back inside and change your clothes," Hoshino Hanami said, pulling Tazaki Tsukasa into the house. "I've prepared a kimono for you, and I can't wait to see you wear it for me."

Tsukasa Tazaki asked, "Will the teacher change into a kimono?"

"Of course, my own outfit is also very beautiful."

"I'm really looking forward to it too."

As they chatted, they walked into the house. Hoshino Shika, who was biting her hand, snapped out of her daze and rushed to the front, spreading her arms to block the others.

"Grandma, let me explain!"

She gritted her teeth and said with great effort, "I haven't been slacking off, I've been studying very hard! So please don't take me back to Kyoto, I want to stay with my sister."

Grandma Hoshino glanced at her eldest granddaughter, and Hoshino Hanami said helplessly, "If you can get into the top 100 in the final exams, I'll let you stay in Tokyo. This is the only thing your older sister can fight for for you. If you don't, you'd better go back to Kyoto."

The sister-in-law nodded frantically, her eyes flashing with an "SOS" light as she looked at her brother-in-law.

Tazaki Tsukasa winked smugly, indicating that he would do his best to help.