I won't be a loser.

"Nothing, I just didn't know what to do, so I came to check on Setsuna. Since she's out, there's nothing else to do. By the way, are you planning to wait for the sunrise tonight?"

Looking at the wise man who suddenly lay on her legs, Qingpu Mai gently stroked his hair.

"I'm not a young man anymore. I no longer have that kind of energy and interest. I probably won't stay up late. Are you and Setsuna planning to stay up late together?"

"I don't have such an idea, but Setsuna might be interested, so I'm going to take a short break now."

"Just rest on my lap?"

"no?"

"That's not impossible. Just have a good rest."

Looking at the TV in front of him, Xianren felt a little sleepy. He closed his eyes and lay quietly on Qingpu Mai's legs. He was not that sleepy, but he fell asleep unknowingly.

He didn't sleep for very long, about an hour, and then he opened his eyes again. Looking at Qingpu Wu who was also sleeping on the sofa, he slowly sat up, stretched out his arms, carried Qingpu Wu into the room, covered her with a quilt, and then returned to his apartment.

In the evening, I received a text message from Qingpu Setsuna and learned that she had returned home. I went back to Qingpu's house and saw that Qingpu Mai had woken up and had prepared dinner.

"Yuko and Sekai will be here soon."

"Are the two families celebrating together tonight?"

He looked at Qingpu Mai with a little surprise, then looked at Qingpu Setsuna beside him.

"Well, the world she is actually very lonely."

Xianren didn't think there was anything wrong with being able to understand his friend, but he felt a little weird. He sat quietly in the living room, watching the busy Qingpu Mai, and then looked at Qingpu Setsuna again.

"About when will you come?"

"Wait a minute, maybe half an hour or so?"

After a while, Xianren stood up and helped Qingpu Mai prepare dinner.

After all the preparations were made, a little over half an hour later, Saionji Sekai and Saionji Yuko appeared at the door.

"You, don't you want to invite Ogihara?"

When inviting Saionji Sekai and Saionji Yuko, who were holding gifts, into the house, Kiyoura Setsuna suddenly spoke and whispered to Kento about Ogiwara Sayu.

- - - -

Catch up on anime, watch anime, and think about new books

Thanks to Huan Xin Hai, White-haired Sage Meteora, Magical Shuke, Working as a Housewife, Netherworld Labinu, Digarex22, Salty Fish from Heaven111, Magical Shuke, hha, Qiuyue Xiaosan@, Baihe Xiaoniao, Wangxing Agent76, Working as a Housewife, Yeyue Xixiao, Mu Chen, and Yingming for their monthly tickets and blades! Thank you all for your recommendations!

Summer Cicadas: 294. Red and White Song Contest

"I met her today. She seemed to be partying with her friends."

Looking at the apartment opposite, he noticed that Ogiwara Sayu's apartment was indeed pitch black, so she must not be at home. Kiyoura Setsuna nodded and didn't pay any more attention to it. He returned to the living room with Kento and entertained the mother and daughter of the Saionji family.

Saionji Yuko hadn't seen Kento for a while. Last time, she learned from Kiyoura Mai that he had a minor accident, and she had gone to the hospital to visit Kento who was still in a coma.

"It's been a long time since we last met. How's your recovery?"

"It's nothing serious now. Has it been hard working lately?"

"During holidays, there are more people, but the restaurant is still a little short-staffed. Isn't that girl named Ogihara here?"

"She went to a party with her friends."

Standing in the living room, the five people started talking to each other. Kiyoura Mai looked at Saionji Oko who was talking with Kento. After the two finished talking, Saionji Oko took out two bottles of red wine.

"This is the red wine I bought on the road. I don't have much time on weekdays, so let's have a good drink tonight."

When she saw the red wine, Kiyoura Mai suddenly remembered what happened in the hotel that day. Looking at Saionji Yuko in front of her, she was silent for a moment. Her eyes couldn't help but look at Kento, and she noticed that Kento was talking to the girls and didn't notice here.

Her gaze remained steadily on Saionji Yuko's face, and seeing the faint smile on her face, she originally wanted to refuse, but then she thought that she hadn't had a drink for a long time, and today was New Year's Eve, so there was no need to be so serious.

"Only drink a little."

"Ok?"

After hearing what Kiyoura Mai said, Saionji Yuko didn't quite understand, but when she saw Kiyoura Mai's serious look, Saionji Yuko couldn't help but curl the corners of her mouth and chuckled.

"Yes, today, let's just drink a little."

Dinner had been prepared before the arrival of Saionji and her daughter. Now that everyone was present, they took their seats and started having dinner.

"Cheers~"

The three underage children drank fruit juice, while Kiyoura Mai and Saionji Yuko drank red wine.

When they were toasting, Saionji Yuuko glanced at Kento, but Kento didn't notice Saionji Yuuko's gaze. After the toast, the five of them ate together and talked about what happened this year and their expectations for next year.

"My work isn't very busy, but I hope to get a promotion next year if I have the chance."

Qingpu Mai doesn't have much work to do. Compared with other employees, she is considered a small leader in the office. Basically, she doesn't need to be responsible for any troublesome things, and her relationship with her colleagues is also okay. She just hopes to get a promotion and increase her stable salary a little bit.

"I also want to have a leisurely job in an office. In a restaurant, I have to deal with various accounts and troublesome customers every day."

After hearing what Kiyoura Mai said, Saionji Yuko also talked about her own work. Even if she ran a restaurant, not everything was good. There were many things to deal with every day, and she had to pay attention to the situation in the restaurant when she was free.

During the holidays, it is very troublesome to recruit part-time students and teach them how to entertain guests.

“But isn’t his income much higher than mine?”

"Well."

Saionji Yuko sighed. She kept an eye on the part-time students in the restaurant every day, fearing that they would cause trouble when she was not around. Once something happened, the business of her restaurant might be seriously affected, so she couldn't relax at all.

Kiyoura Setsuna and Saionji Sekai don't know much about work matters. Saionji Sekai only helps out occasionally at her own restaurant, and she hasn't touched on matters like accounting.

Even Saionji Yuko would not let her daughter get involved in such things so early.

"Next year, we'll all be entering second grade. By then, shouldn't we be filling out the application form?"

"Have you decided on your aspirations?"

As Xiyuanji Sekai listened to the adults' discussion, she also thought about herself. She would be promoted to the second grade next spring, and then she would have to start determining her own academic wishes. In the third grade, she would be divided into classes, and would start targeted teaching based on different wishes.

During the first year, it's not that she hadn't thought about this matter, but Saionji Sekai was not sure which one she should choose.

"liberal arts."

"It should be the same as the wise man, right?"

"Ah."

I have discussed this topic with Setsuna more than once, so it is not surprising that Saionji Sekai knows about it.

"Are you two going to the same university?"

"I haven't considered this yet. Maybe it's like this. I still have to see if I can get into the university of my choice."

As for whether it is the same university, Xianren has already had a clear goal, but he is not clear about Qingpu Shunsuna's goal. He is not sure whether it is the same university, but it is very likely that they are aiming for the same university.

"Should I also aim for the liberal arts?"

A thoughtful expression appeared on Saionji Sekai's face. The two people opposite her were both aiming for liberal arts, but she was the only one who didn't set liberal arts as her goal. Wasn't she a little out of place?

"There's no need for that. You still have to choose a major that you like and enjoy. Otherwise, you might regret it when you enter society."

"Yeah, I have to think about it carefully."

After such a chat, Saionji Sekai also began to think about this issue seriously.

As for her future life choices, she closed her eyes and thought about it. She was not very interested in other things. Maybe she would become a teacher?

"How about being a teacher? Becoming a high school teacher seems like it would be interesting."

Kiyoura Setsuna didn't comment, but looked at the expression of interest on her face and imagined what she would look like as a teacher in his mind. Xianren smiled slightly.

“There’s nothing wrong with being a teacher.”

"...I always feel that the reactions of the two of you are very subtle."

Saionji Yuko also heard what Saionji Sekai said. She turned her head to glance at her daughter and imagined what her daughter would look like as a teacher. Her mood suddenly became subtle.

"Why don't you consider other careers? I think there's nothing wrong with being an ordinary office worker."

After dinner, everyone sat in the living room to rest for a while. Kento was squeezed in the middle by two girls, while Kiyoura Mai and Saionji Yuko sat around the prepared dining table, drinking red wine and watching the boys and girls watching TV.

"Is it okay for you to stay overnight tonight?"

"It's okay for me. I'm not planning on staying up late tonight and will probably go to bed early. How about you?"

"sleep?"

"Don't let your imagination run wild."

"Don't you feel lonely?"

Kiyoura Mai looked at Saionji Yuko, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly. She didn't feel lonely at all, but Saionji Yuko herself might feel lonely.

Being watched by Kiyoura Mai, Saionji Yuko picked up the red wine in front of her, drank the rosy red wine in one gulp, put the glass back on the table, and then looked at the two girls sitting in the living room and the only boy, feeling a little disappointed.

I originally thought that my daughter had some chance, but now it seems that the relationship between Xianren and the daughter of the Qingpu family seems to be closer, and my daughter seems a little dispensable.

The most famous program during this period is probably the Red and White Song Festival on New Year's Eve.

It started in 1951 and has now gone through 64 sessions. This year is the 65th session. The invited guests and singers are divided into two groups, the red group and the white group.

Let the audience vote for their favorite program. At the last moment of the program, the total votes will be calculated. The winning team will present the winning flag to the captain or the host. Popular singers and idols are invited every year.

The show starts at 19:15 in the evening and ends at 23:45. It is divided into two parts, with a 5-minute news segment in between.

After all the performances are over, the host will take over the show. Everyone will wait until 0:00 and then congratulate the new year together, and then the show will end.

When I was sitting in front of the TV, the show had already started. The performance was "Drinking for One" by Natsuko Goshiro. A gentle lady in traditional costumes sang popular songs from the past on the stage, which made people feel emotional about the passage of time and the preciousness of youth.

"Xianren, do you like it?"

Qingura Setsuna's sudden words made Xianren, who was watching the show, turn his head to look at the girl next to him.

"Rather than saying I like her, I feel the passage of time through her, and I feel a little emotional."

She was a little confused and couldn't quite understand Xian's stream-of-consciousness answer. Looking at the TV screen in front of her again, she couldn't understand the so-called passage of time and had little interest in such a song that was full of the sense of the times.

Songs from different eras all have the characteristics of each era. For example, the popular songs of the last century can be distinguished from modern ones just by listening to the prelude.

After Natsuko Goshiro's "One Person's Drink," the third generation J Soul Brothers, known as the "migrant workers' group," became quite popular today.

"The host, Yoshitaka Yuriko, seems very cute."

"Don't you think your accent is heavy? A big tongue?"

"It actually makes her look even cuter. Boys might like girls like this, right?"

Saionji Sekai's gaze fell on Kento. Currently, there was only one boy in the entire room, and the only person who could be used as a reference for advice was Kento.

It is indeed very troublesome to directly comment on a strange girl, especially when the two girls next to him have a very close relationship with him. Any comment is likely to affect the thoughts of the two girls next to him.

"It sounds kind of cute, but kind of fake."

"Don't you like it?"

"When asked if I like her, my answer is average. She's a little cute, but not my type. Maybe she seems okay at first glance, but after spending a long time with her, I might not be able to accept her."

He turned his gaze back to the program, looking at Yoshitaka Yuriko with a very calm expression.

"Girls like this might actually be quite troublesome in real life."

After briefly commenting on the female host, Xianren looked at the two girls beside him and asked them what they thought of those male idols. Kiyoura Setsuna said frankly that she didn't like idols, while Saionji Sekai thought about it for a while.

"Matsumoto Jun and Sakurai Sho in 'Arashi' both seem very elegant, and they're the type most girls would like."

"Do you like those two people?"

"Sakurai Sho graduated from Keio, and he's a popular 'Keio boy' among girls. He has a lot of fans, but I'm just a normal fan, right? Is that how you treat an idol?"

Sekai Saionji doesn't have any special pursuit for idols, nor does she really like them. It's just that when she looks at the people on TV, she feels like they're out of reach, which makes her feel a little special.

"They are all idols from J-House. It's highly likely that they wouldn't date girls before their group disbanded."

Among all the artist agencies, only J-Agency is very strict in managing its idols. For example, regarding portrait rights, almost all programs will face lawsuits if an idol of J-Agency appears in the program before obtaining the right to use the image rights.

Faced with the giant in the industry, no one dares to touch J's tiger whiskers.

After watching the show, at around nine o'clock, Kiyoura Mai started to feel sleepy and went to rest first. Saionji Yuko also smiled and accompanied Kiyoura Mai to the bathroom.

"Want to stay tonight?"

When Sekai Saionji heard what her mother said, her face was full of disbelief.