The next evening.
Liu Yu arrived.
Seeing that Xu Feng and his daughter were safe and sound, she was clearly delighted.
The neighbors rarely got together, and Xu Feng didn't want to spoil the mood. He took the initiative to cook, while Liu Yu helped him prepare the food.
Outside the kitchen.
Wang Long and Huang Sen excitedly discussed yesterday's broadcast about the Outstanding Contribution Award.
"Did you hear? The expert who helped the authorities kill the Eagle Alliance martial artists has the surname Xu too!"
"Not only that. I heard they found several Flying Blades lodged in alloy materials at the scene!"
"Heh, what a coincidence. Old Xu's Flying Blades are pretty impressive too!"
"Old Xu, look at that guy. Outstanding Contribution, a two-hundred-thousand reward! You're a Flying Blade expert too, so how come you never got an opportunity like that?"
"Hey, what's the point of bringing that up? We should be glad those people are dead. Otherwise, who knows what kind of threats Old Xu might still be facing!
"You don't know? When they tried to recruit Old Xu, they were planning to threaten him with Xiao Dan!"
"Damn! Those beasts actually dared to threaten him with Xiao Dan? Old Xu, why didn't you kill them all?!"
Fatty Wang Long slapped the table excitedly, but as soon as he finished speaking, he and Huang Sen fell silent at the same time.
"..."
(ΩДΩ)!!
Threatened Xiao Dan.
Killed.
Flying Blade expert.
Surname Xu.
The two suddenly looked at each other, both seeing the shock on the other's face.
At the table.
Xiao Dan kept her head down, her eyes darting around. She didn't dare say a word.
Just then.
Xu Feng came out of the kitchen carrying the food, smiling as he said, "That's enough, you two. Keep going and I'll end up being that expert.
"There are plenty of people with the surname Xu around here. That Secret Blade Technique costs five hundred yuan a copy; it's common as dirt.
"If I really had that kind of skill, I'd have joined the Patrol Squad and moved into the base ages ago."
Liu Yu came out of the kitchen with a plate of stir-fried pork with green peppers and fish-fragrant shredded pork. She laughed, "You two were so convincing, I almost believed you."
The spicy aroma of the peppers and the lychee-like flavor of the fish-fragrant dish immediately drew everyone's attention.
"Exactly." Fatty immediately breathed a sigh of relief, patting his chest as he laughed. "You scared me. I thought a top expert was living right next door! Hahaha!"
As he spoke, he grabbed his chopsticks and reached over to sneak a taste.
"Haha, it really is easy to jump to conclusions."
Huang Sen gave an awkward laugh, but the way he looked at Xu Feng had changed slightly.
He remembered what Xu Feng had told him that night, as well as the blood he had coughed up.
If he remembered correctly, it was not long after Xu Feng had returned home that the area was locked down.
Xu Feng had been out for a full hour that day.
He was certain that the Eagle Alliance martial artists had been killed at around the same time.
Huang Sen had already begun to form a suspicion.
Good grief.
Damn!
That had to be it!
The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
The award-winning expert was Old Xu, who had been missing for a week!
That was right! Old Xu must have been injured in the fight, which was why the base had taken him in for treatment!
But he didn't dare say it aloud, because Xu Feng clearly didn't want anyone to know.
He understood why, so after giving a laugh, Huang Sen deliberately changed the subject.
"Summer's coming. Summers in the Dimension Realm are especially hard to get through.
"I checked the forecast a couple of days ago. The temperature might reach fifty or sixty degrees this year, so everyone should prepare early."
After dinner, everyone went home.
Only Liu Yu stayed behind.
Seeing Liu Yu volunteer to wash the dishes in the kitchen, Xiao Dan went over to Xu Feng and asked worriedly, "Dad, you won't get caught, will you?"
"Caught doing what?" Xu Feng was thinking about how to improve his footwork and looked at her in confusion.
"You and Teacher Lu! Sneaking around behind Sister Liu's back—" Before Xiao Dan could finish, Xu Feng clapped a hand over her mouth.
"Don't say such nonsense!" Xu Feng glared at her. "You make me sound like I'm cheating!"
"What does cheating mean?" Xiao Dan asked innocently.
"Oh, never mind! Go study!" Xu Feng flicked her forehead.
"Ow!" Xiao Dan covered her head resentfully and went to do her homework.
Xu Feng furrowed his brows and fell into thought.
Although the little girl hadn't meant anything by it, there was some truth to her words.
Liu Yu's behavior clearly suggested she was interested in him.
But Xu Feng understood that what she felt was mostly gratitude for him saving her life that night.
It didn't necessarily mean she liked or loved him.
And to be honest, what he felt for Liu Yu was more lust than love.
So he decided to be a decent person.
At the very least, he shouldn't hold her back.
"Ah, the adult world is so complicated."
"Being a kid is better."
Xu Feng looked at Xiao Dan and fell into thought.
Ten minutes later.
Xu Feng walked Liu Yu home with Xiao Dan.
The little girl ran ahead, chasing butterflies, while Xu Feng and Liu Yu walked side by side behind her.
The atmosphere grew somewhat stifling.
"How did things go with that boy who confessed to you last time? Has he stopped pursuing you?"
Xu Feng brought it up first.
"No. We're not what you think we are. I don't like him."
Liu Yu hurried to explain.
"That's your private business. You don't need to explain it to me. You're not a kid anymore, so you should come over to my place less often from now on.
"Otherwise, if you meet a nice guy who likes you, he might get the wrong idea. Hahaha."
Xu Feng delivered his true feelings in the form of a joke.
Liu Yu was taken aback. She lowered her head, looking dejected, and forced a smile. "I... I understand."
Seeing that she'd understood, Xu Feng said no more and changed the subject.
After walking Liu Yu home, Xu Feng felt somewhat down.
"Dad, why do you look unhappy?" Xiao Dan asked. She was perched on Xu Feng's shoulders, her chin resting on his head as she hugged him.
"Heh, what would a little kid like you know? Let's not talk about that."
Xu Feng chuckled.
"I want to buy your Teacher Lu a gift to thank her for helping us this time. Help me pick something later, okay?"
"Sure!" Xiao Dan immediately grabbed Xu Feng's hair and sat up straight. "Dad, are you finally going to pursue Teacher Lu?"
"Pursue her, my foot. It's a thank-you gift for helping us find a hospital room and a doctor.
"Do you think staying in the hospital didn't cost anything? Teacher Lu paid for all of it, and she even helped clean up after us. Of course we should thank her."
Xu Feng meant every word.
"Ew—" Xiao Dan looked disgusted. "You're a grown-up. Why do you still need someone to wipe your butt?"
"Wipe—" Xu Feng took a deep breath. "It's a figure of speech! A figure of speech, understand? Nobody actually wiped anything! Forget it, you wouldn't understand."
Xiao Dan snickered and lay back down on Xu Feng's head.
"Dad, you've never carried me like this before."
Suddenly, the little girl's offhand remark left Xu Feng in silence for a long time.
His heart gave a small tremor, but he quickly laughed and said, "Actually, I'm not your dad. I'm an Outer Realm Heavenly Demon who descended upon this world!
"I've possessed your dad! I'm going to eat your little heart! Hehehehe!"
"Ahhh!"
Xiao Dan immediately let out a "terrified" scream.
As Xu Feng tickled her, she soon burst into laughter.
Then she hugged his neck tightly, refusing to let go.
Ten minutes later.
At the Tianyue Official Second-hand Shop in the Trading Zone.
"I don't have a dad like you! What kind of taste is that? It's so ugly!"
Xiao Dan looked at the dark green metallic Combat Watch in Xu Feng's hand and pouted in disgust.
"What about this one? It's got a cool moonlight-silver finish!"
Xu Feng picked up another watch and asked.
"Ugly, ugly, ugly!"
Xiao Dan shook her head again.
The shop owner watched the father and daughter pick one thing up after another, smiling without hurrying them.
It wasn't every day that a big customer came in. He couldn't let the opportunity slip away.
He had decided: today, he would make Xu Feng spend a fortune and earn back all the money he'd lost before.
Before you continue