538. Grandpa’s Place, Fourth Floor
==============================
Maybe it was the familiarity of her conversation with her mother, but someone actually thought they were Lin Nan’s girlfriend.
She couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time; being her own girlfriend? Who knew what was going on in that person’s head?
Lin Nan just wanted to hide away in the bedrooms on the second or third floor from those unfamiliar relatives.
But as soon as she opened the door to Wu Guodong’s room on the second floor, she found a bunch of kids, probably around ten years old, playing games on their phones inside.
They looked up at her as she opened the door, their eyes locking with hers in sheer confusion.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she shut the door and turned to escape to the third floor.
However, when she opened the door on the third floor, she stumbled upon two uncles sneaking a smoke in their room.
Once again, their eyes met in awkward silence, and Lin Nan sighed dramatically, ready to leave.
“Lin Nan, don’t tell your aunt,” one of them piped up.
“Yeah, I got it.”
One of them was Wu Guodong, who had figured out Lin Nan’s identity during the New Year celebrations.
It felt like there was simply no way to escape.
She trudged up to the fourth floor, but it was still in renovation mode—just a bare, dusty shell of a place with no furniture.
Lin Nan walked out onto the balcony of the fourth floor, gazing hopelessly downwards, feeling like there was nowhere left to hide.
If only she’d known she wouldn’t come back for anything!
Hiding on the balcony, she looked down at the packed cars in the small square below and the relatives chatting by the entrance. She pulled out her phone, unsure of what to do next.
Her mother was probably down there trying to explain her identity to those relatives now, right?
Those unfamiliar faces did nothing for Lin Nan’s sense of familial connection, especially with the memory of being teased by the middle-aged relatives in her childhood that made her cringe at the sight of them.
“What are you doing up here?”
Not too long after she was left alone on the balcony, she heard her Uncle’s voice behind her.
Turning around, she saw Wu Guodong holding a freshly warmed Zongzi, looking at her with a blend of exasperation and amusement. “Why aren’t you down there playing?”
“You know why…”
Lin Nan took the Zongzi, untied the string, and asked, “Has grandpa eaten yet?”
“He said you’re a whiz at cooking.”
This made her a bit happier, and she proudly took a bite of the Zongzi, “Of course! I handled everything from buying to steaming it! If it’s not delicious, something’s wrong!”
Plus, she had bought the best rice and meat, courtesy of Zheng Qian, who covered the cooking cost.
Wu Guodong, trying to look busy, sidled up next to Lin Nan, leaning over the balcony and peering down.
After taking a few bites, Lin Nan grew curious and asked, “Aren’t you working overtime lately? I haven’t seen you around during the holidays before.”
“I just quit my job not long ago. My hair’s been falling out like crazy lately; planning to find something less stressful.”
Lin Nan noticed Uncle Wu’s hair was indeed noticeably thinner than before, and she teased, “Don’t they say programmers get more valuable as their hair gets sparser?”
“Stop listening to nonsense from the internet.” Wu Guodong, though jobless, seemed remarkably relaxed. “I’ve been back for half a month. I’m taking another half-month to chill and take care of myself.”
“Cola with goji berries?” Lin Nan caught a glimpse of his dark circles and smirked, “With your late-night habits, no amount of self-care is going to cut it.”
Chatting with Wu Guodong made Lin Nan feel significantly lighter.
She joined him at the balcony edge, leaning over the railing.
Maybe it was from her bungee jumping stint last time; standing four stories high, she felt no fear of heights at all.
“So what about Liu Xuefei? How are things going with you two? I haven’t seen her around lately. She hasn’t been sneaking over to find you, has she?”
“Surprisingly, you guessed correctly. One of the reasons I quit was that she complained about me always working overtime.”
Lin Nan’s eyes widened in astonishment as she elbowed him playfully and leaned closer, “Come on, spill! How far have you two gone?”
Wu Guodong thought for a moment and replied, “Planning to bring her back for the New Year.”
“You know I’m not talking about that…”
“Really?” Wu Guodong turned to see Lin Nan’s displeased expression. “Then how about you tell me how things are progressing with Chen Yao? You spill first, and then I will.”
Seeing her shyly lower her head and back away, Wu Guodong suddenly understood: “Oh, so that’s it? I remember you’re engaged to Chen Yao, right?”
“Not like that!” Lin Nan shot him an annoyed glare.
Wu Guodong didn’t tease her further, recognizing his niece had graduated to someone else’s fiancée. Going too far would be inappropriate, so he switched topics. “How old is Chen Yao, anyway?”
Lin Nan stepped back, her face scrunching up in disgust: “Gross!”
How could you even measure something like that?
“???” Wu Guodong was left baffled by her outburst, scratching his head. “Who’s being gross? I just asked how old he is.”
Her face turned bright red. After all, in one moment, they were discussing relationship progress, and then he switches to age—it was a reasonable leap to think it was something else…
Fine, maybe she had indeed been influenced by Chen Yao.
And there was also the effect of Lilith throwing wild parties every night.
“Twenty years old,” she mumbled, looking away, trying to suppress the flush on her cheeks.
Speaking of age…
Lin Nan suddenly felt a bit spacey. She remembered Chen Yao’s birthday was probably coming up soon, around July.
Opening her phone’s notes, she confirmed that his birthday was indeed mid-July—just two weeks away.
“Uncle.”
“What?”
“What do you get someone who likes basketball and games for a birthday gift?” Lin Nan tilted her head, pondering the question.
She had hardly ever given a birthday gift in her life. Back in college, when a roommate’s birthday rolled around, it was usually a “birthday star” treat everyone to a meal, and a gift meant a cheap virtual game skin or so.
But for Chen Yao…
“Get a game, obviously! Cyberpunk 2077 is available for pre-order now. Want me to get you one too?”
Lin Nan shook her head vigorously, “That gift is way too cliché!”
Just like last time, Chen Yao got Xiong Da the deluxe edition of a game. At first, Xiong Da was thrilled, but once he was done playing, it just gathered dust in the corner.
Sure, a physical game could have sat on a desk as decoration, but Xiong Da’s desk was overflowing with pictures of his wife—no room left for anything else.
Or maybe some sneakers?
But Chen Yao didn’t need any more sneakers.
Wu Guodong thought for a moment longer: “Simple. Just give him yourself!”
“Are you out of your mind?” She completely dismissed that idea, feeling it sounded too much like objectifying herself.
“I should go down and entertain the guests. We’ve been chatting too long,” Wu Guodong sighed, yawning as he headed downstairs.
“Let me know if no one’s around on the second or third floor, alright?” Lin Nan called after him.
“Sure, got it.”
