Chapter 152: You Sound Just Like My Dad Talking When I Close My Eyes

"Yeah, the principal at my old school was named Gong Fan."

"..." Mo Si let out a short laugh. "So it was him."

"Black Hole, you know him?"

"I’ve heard of him."

’A despicable deserter from a military academy actually managed to worm his way into the world of education and become a principal?’

’Are all those people at the Education Center blind?’

Mo Si’s mood clearly darkened, so Jiang Qiuqiu didn’t discuss the matter with him any further.

After a moment, Mo Si’s anger subsided. "I understand now. Thank you for your trouble."

"...Why say that all of a sudden?"

"You’re still so young, yet you have to live on your own."

"Pfft." Hearing his solemn tone, Jiang Qiuqiu laughed. "Black Hole, why are you talking like that? You make it sound like you’re so much older."

"I am older than you."

"I know." Jiang Qiuqiu looked Mo Si up and down. "You do look about three or four years older than me."

"More than that."

"Okay, four or five years at most, then. Based on your face, that’s the biggest possible gap. Any more is impossible."

Jiang Qiuqiu said it casually, but when she saw Mo Si looked like he was about to argue, she added teasingly, "What, are you trying to tell me you’re decades older than me? Are you forty this year?"

"I don’t look it?"

"Are you kidding me?" Jiang Qiuqiu sucked in a breath. "Twenty-six, tops. Not a day more."

"Although, sometimes when I’m talking to you with my eyes closed, your tone of voice sounds very mature and steady. It’s a lot like when my dad encourages me, haha."

Mo Si: ...

Mo Si’s expression stiffened. "Your dad talks like me?"

"Ah... occasionally, the tone is similar." She suddenly missed her own father. A hint of nostalgia appeared in Jiang Qiuqiu’s eyes.

For Mo Si, there was nothing more devastating than seeing that look on her face right when he was about to say something.

’What did this prove? The little girl wasn’t joking. She was serious.’

’Him? A father?!’

’Utter nonsense.’

Angry panda!

-

At noon, everyone finished their tasks and sat down together to enjoy lunch.

Mo Chengyu was exhausted from the morning’s work. She opened her mouth wide and shoveled food in, eating at an incredible speed.

It was so much that even Mo Si, who had been brooding, couldn’t help but look up and say, "Mind your manners."

"..."

"What’s there to mind?" Mo Chengyu swallowed the food in her mouth. "You’re eating this delicious food so coldly. That’s just disrespectful to Qiuqiu!"

"Delicious food is meant to be devoured!"

With that, she lowered her head and went back to eating.

Mo Si looked like he wanted to say more, but before he could speak, Jiang Qiuqiu cut in. "Black Hole, how come you aren’t eating much today? Is my cooking not to your liking?"

"No." Mo Si picked up his chopsticks. "I was just lost in thought."

"...Ah, are you still thinking about what I said earlier?" Jiang Qiuqiu looked embarrassed. "I’m sorry, I won’t say things like that again."

’She hadn’t realized Mo Si was so sensitive about his age.’

"No, it has nothing to do with you. You don’t need to apologize."

"I shouldn’t have made that random comparison."

As the two went back and forth, Mo Chengyu put down her chopsticks, her face a mask of curiosity. "Hey, stop being so evasive! What happened? Can I know?"

Before Jiang Qiuqiu could say anything, Mo Si looked up, his gaze as sharp as a knife. "You can’t."

"Eat your food. Don’t ask questions you shouldn’t ask."

Mo Chengyu: ...

’He’s actually being fierce this time.’

She meekly muttered an "oh."

Silence returned to the table. Watching this scene, the corners of Jiang Qiuqiu’s mouth lifted into a smile.

’This must be what the warmth of family and friends feels like.’

’It’s very interesting.’