Chapter 5, Let's Sleep Together

Xu Ruofan thanked Fang Zhe and then turned to Xu Haibo, saying: "You should compare yourself with others; look at how Fang Zhe knows to find a chair for the lady. Look at you, you have no gentlemanly demeanor at all"

There was nothing on the roof. Anran was sitting on the ground when Fang Zhe said, "Don't sit directly on the ground; it's cold and not good for your waist." Saying this, he went down himself and asked the landlady for two small wooden stools, bringing one each for Anran and Xu Ruofan.

I am your sister, and besides, gentlemanly demeanor should not be differentiated based on whether one is a girlfriend or not

After all, it is a matter that you brought upon yourself

"That one isn't on yet, I just turned it on, it's still not hot. Let me warm up with you guys first." Seeing Xu Ruofan's wary expression, he added, "Oh, are you still afraid that I have ulterior motives towards you? I'm already immune to that, in my eyes, you're just a man."

Xu Ruofan glared at Xu Haibo and turned over to go to sleep

Li Qian: Yes, the one with the lip print

Why is it because of me

It was her first time being so close to the school heartthrob, and she felt too shy to keep staring at him. Taking the opportunity to glance at him while serving food, she realized that the school heartthrob was indeed handsome beyond reproach. However, perhaps due to her awareness of Fang Zhe's previous reputation, she felt that while he was undeniably good-looking, he lacked approachability. Even when he smiled, there was always a sense of distance that made one feel unwelcome.

It was precisely because of this matter that I exchanged a few harsh words at the time. Later, when we met again, it was impossible to have a pleasant expression. Over time, this naturally created a rift between us. Otherwise, I would have gone crazy. I was only in the third grade and hadn't even grown much, yet I was provoking someone from the sixth grade.

Xu Haibo, feeling lazy, said: "It's so late... I am not dirty, so there's no need to wash every day"

Xu Ruofan lay down for a while and felt that Xu Haibo was fidgeting behind her. When she turned her head to look, she saw him pulling his pillow and blanket towards her. It turned out that there was still one person's position between them, and now they were almost touching.

I don't have an electric blanket over there, it's a bit cold

"Enough of the nonsense." Xu Ruofan pulled and kicked Xu Haibo off the kang.

The proprietress was tidying up the kitchen when she overheard their conversation and smiled, saying: "There is nothing inconvenient about it; just treat it like your own home, but be careful not to trip."

Li Qian: You can tell the chief that there is a fan of his in your dormitory who has been suffering from unrequited love for him.

Xiao Xiao: Please send a photo for me to take a look.

Xu Haibo noticed that Xu Ruofan had softened, yet he did not take advantage of the situation; instead, he provided her with a way out as usual

In the small group that had calmed down for a while, Xiao Xiao sent a heart-wrenching GIF, followed by Li Qian and Guan Yijing also starting to share poignant images, and the three of them began to engage in a meme battle in the group.

If you were my sister, wouldn't you take care of me? You should let me sit on your chair

The three of them were chatting quite happily in the small group. Xu Ruofan couldn't help but chuckle and replied with a message: "Stealing | Isn't it inappropriate to take pictures of others? I definitely didn't tease you all, but it seems that the chief really loves his girlfriend. I've seen him several times at school, and I've never seen him smile, but now he is smiling so brightly next to his girlfriend."

Xu Haibo lay down under the blanket, saying: "It stinks, but it's my own smell; I'm not sharing a bed with you."

Guan Yijing: On the light!

Xiao Xiao: Quickly tell me you are joking, the chief doesn't have a girlfriend, is he really with that girl?

The two adults were playing Mahjong in the bedroom of the Xu family, while the three children were passing the time in the Xu household. Xu Haibo and Xu Ruocheng were nestled on the sofa playing video games, while Xu Ruofan returned from a shower and sat on the kang chatting with her dormitory mates on her phone, teasing Xiao Xiao that she had witnessed her chief's lesser-known side today

Li Qian: How can you still hold onto such unrealistic fantasies

Four people passed through a side door at the back of the east wing and entered the old courtyard of the boss's house. The house was slightly lower than the new house they lived in and appeared to be somewhat aged. They climbed up to the roof using a ladder. The boss's house was situated in a high area of the village, and standing on his roof, one could have a complete view of the village. Surrounded by mountains, the scenery was indeed beautiful, especially in the evening when the sunset reflected on the horizon.

Why is it not there, isn't it

What are you doing? Xu Ruofan asked

Looking back, it seems that it really started because of her. Xu Ruofan felt somewhat guilty, but was still unwilling to show weakness, mumbling, "Anyway, I didn't make you fight with anyone."

The four individuals were of similar ages, and Xu Ruofan and Fang Zhe were from the same school. After an initial period of unfamiliarity, they began to converse more comfortably. The four of them chatted on the rooftop for an entire evening, with Xu Ruofan and Xu Haibo often engaging in playful banter, while Fang Zhe and An Ran listened and laughed nearby. Occasionally, when an interesting topic arose, all four would burst into hearty laughter. It was not until nightfall, concerned about disturbing the rest of the boss and his wife, that they descended from the rooftop and returned to their respective rooms to rest.

Watching the two engage in a verbal spar, Anran smiled and said: "You two seem to have quite a good relationship; you must be childhood friends."

As midnight approached, the card game in another room was still in full swing. Xu Ruocheng could no longer hold on and crawled into bed to sleep. Seeing Xu Ruofan looking both tired and weary, he said: "You shouldn't stay up any longer either. I think they will be playing cards until dawn. If you want, you can wash up first and sleep here with us."

Xu Ruofan interrupted, saying: "Aren't you going to take a shower?"

In comparison, his girlfriend Anran appears much more easygoing. She has long been curious about this legendary girl and wants to know what kind of fairy the girl is who provoked Fang Zhe to fight to the point of breaking his hands and feet. Now that she sees the real person, she feels that she is quite different from what she had imagined, resembling more of a neighborly older sister.

"Didn’t you say that washing your feet is also fine?" Xu Haibo said as he climbed onto the kang, stretching his bare feet towards Xu Ruofan, "I washed them with soap, they smell so good."

Xu Haibo stretched his foot in front of Xu Ruofan and laughed, saying: "Smell it, it doesn't smell at all."

Xu Ruofan said: "This is called having a good relationship. Having a childhood friend like him is my misfortune. He used to fight with others all the time when we were young, and he often attracted the attention of older students. On two occasions, when they couldn't catch him, they decided to take me instead because I was familiar with him, which scared me. Fortunately, after we entered middle school, we were no longer in the same school."

During the meal, Xu Ruofan also took the time to send two messages in the dormitory group chat. The first message was sent when they just started eating: I am having dinner with the chief classmate, and I am sitting next to his girlfriend.

Xu Ruofan sat up and kicked Xu Haibo, saying: "Go away, go wash your feet, your stinky feet have made the blanket smell bad."

After that, she switched her phone to silent mode, chatting with Anran while eating. When she had almost finished her meal, she remembered and took out her phone to check the messages from the other three people:

Guan Yijing: No picture, no truth. Are you joking with Xiao Xiao?

Xu Haibo said: "Why are you distorting the truth? The reason I initially fell out with those people was because of you"

Guan Yijing: Just let her sneak into the chief's room and steal a pair of the chief's underwear as a keepsake for Xiao Xiao

You must first learn to respect your sister, so that she can take care of you

Then, should I ask Xiao Xiao for an autograph

After dinner, the adults from the Xu and Xu families went to play Mahjong, while Xu Ruocheng returned to his room to watch television. Xu Ruofan, along with Fang Zhe and An Ran, chatted leisurely in the courtyard

The farmhouse restaurant has only one large round table, where guests dine together. During dinner, everyone sits at the same table, naturally eating and chatting. As the atmosphere becomes more harmonious, Xu Ruofan asks Fang Zhe, "You look particularly familiar to me; are you from University B?"

"That won't do, hurry up!" Xu Ruofan suddenly lifted Xu Haibo's blanket and pulled him forcefully.

There was a gap between imagination and reality; the other party did not have an imposing presence in appearance, which made Xu Ruofan feel that she was much more approachable. The two sat close together during the meal, and at first, Xu Ruofan chatted with Anran out of a bit of gossiping curiosity. However, as they continued to talk, they found themselves increasingly in sync. Upon learning that Anran's major was also in the field of communication, they chatted a bit more and discovered that their interests were similar. Even a romance novel that Xu Ruofan particularly liked was also favored by Anran.

Xu Haibo was actually extremely tired for a long time. He couldn't go back to the room to sleep. Although he and Xu Ruofan had grown up together and usually had no reservations, there remained a distinction between men and women, and he couldn't take the initiative to say he would sleep on her kang. At this moment, she spoke up, and he took the opportunity to follow suit, putting down the game console, pulling a blanket from the side of the kang, and taking off his shoes to get onto the kang.

Anran said: "Isn't the backyard where the owner lives? It might not be very convenient."

"It wasn't because of you. During that big cleanup, you passed by the sixth-grade classroom and threw garbage all over the place. What could they do? They yelled at you, probably scaring you so much that you almost wet your pants. At that time, I stepped forward, enduring humiliation and taking the responsibility to clean up all that garbage for them, apologizing and bowing to them. In the end, I even exchanged a few harsh words with them."

Li Qian: Is this girlfriend the one who caused the chief to lose his hands and feet? Is she good-looking?

Xu Haibo said: "He is taking care of his girlfriend, what are you to me? Why should I be a gentleman to you"

Xu Ruocheng's bed was next to the kang cabinet, and she slept close to Xu Ruocheng. The empty space on her right could accommodate three or four people, and Xu Haibo lay down to her right, separated by one person.

Xu Ruofan said: "What are you washing? Even a splash basin isn't this fast."

"Go away!" Xu Ruofan hurriedly covered her face with the quilt to hide, and when she pulled the quilt down again, Xu Haibo had already climbed onto the kang.

Xu Haibo embraced his body and said: "Can you be a bit more reserved? Is there anyone who lifts a boy's blanket like this? What if I were naked?"

... ...

After a short while, Xu Haibo, who had disappeared after dinner, returned from wandering around and said to the three of them: "I just went to the backyard of the boss's house, there is a ladder that leads to the roof, and the view is particularly good. Do you want to go take a look?"

Xu Ruofan smiled and said, "I am also from B University, a second-year student in the School of Communication."

What do you mean by throwing garbage everywhere? I was just going to take out the trash, but I tripped a bit, didn't hold the dustpan steady, and it spilled

Yes, that time you helped me, but later you had a falling out with others, and that has nothing to do with me

Fang Zhe said: "Yes"

Xiao Xiao: What should I do, what should I do, I both hope you can send me a photo to see, and hope you are just teasing me

Xu Haibo, being under someone else's roof, had no choice but to obediently comply and go out to wash. In just three minutes, he returned to say that he was done washing

Xu Ruofan helplessly said, "Lazy to death," and ignored him, turning over in her own blanket.

"You played basketball for half a day this afternoon, yet you didn't break a sweat," Xu Ruofan said, "I can't be bothered to take a shower, but at least go wash your feet."