Old Deng, are you just bored?
Duan Boyuan entered the house, he immediately noticed the doghouse in the corner of the living room.
September was whimpering and scratching at the edge of the doghouse, trying to escape.
"Those are my new puppies," Duan Chan'er boasted. "The bigger one is named September, and the other one is named Barbecue. Aren't they cute?"
"Hmm," Duan Boyuan asked gently, "However, it looks like a mixed breed. Why didn't you tell me you wanted a dog? I could have found you two better breeds."
" September and Barbecue are great! Don't call them 'mixed breeds,' they're a noble hybrid combining the intelligence of a Border Collie and the loyalty and alertness of a Chinese rural dog!" Duan Chan'er snorted. "Besides, adopting them was a spur-of-the-moment decision; the class monitor found them in a roadside trash can."
"Oh?" Duan Boyuan smiled and said, "That young man is quite kind-hearted. What's his name?"
" Zhang Zhaomu, the same as 'morning and Zhaomu '," Duan Chan'er replied.
"Who introduces someone's name like that?" Duan Boyuan tapped Duan Chan'er's forehead. "The phrase ' Zhaomu ' can be first quoted from the ' Rhapsody on Gaotang,' where 'morning' refers to the morning clouds and 'evening' to the passing rain, Zhaomu, under the Yangtai Terrace. Of course, one could also use the more familiar ' Immortal at the Magpie Bridge,' where 'If love between two people lasts forever, why should they be together Zhaomu...'"
"Alright, alright," Duan Chan'er rolled her eyes. "I know the editor-in-chief is very knowledgeable, but there's no need to show off to me all the time, is there?"
"This isn't about showing off," Duan Boyuan said helplessly. "It's just a reminder that people's names have historical origins; don't use grandiose language to introduce them, it makes you seem uncultured."
"Are you afraid I'll embarrass you?" Duan Chan'er said, feigning anger.
"How could that be!" Duan Boyuan waved his hand. "I've always been proud of my Chan'er! You don't know, all my old friends are incredibly envious of you whenever they mention you."
He sniffed, turned his gaze to the dining table, and chuckled, "Why did you cook so many dishes?"
"It's rare for our editor-in-chief to take a moment out of his busy schedule to visit me, so I can't just give you a perfunctory reply, can I?" Duan Chan'er said, "It's all your favorite food. Please sit down, I'll get you some rice."
"Are you being sarcastic and targeting me?" Duan Boyuan said helplessly, "Your mother and I both work in Star City. We wanted you to go to high school in Star City, but you disagreed and insisted on going to Xinxi No. 1 High School."
"And on his own initiative, he rented a house near the school. Your mom has been nagging me about it a lot."
Duan Chan'er said matter-of-factly, "I went to junior high school in Xinxi, and I got into Xinxi No. 1 High School through the regular entrance exam. I don't want to be some privileged class and rely on your connections to get into some good high school in Star City."
The real reason was that Duan Chan'er didn't want to live under her parents' constant surveillance; how could she write novels or secretly study if she did that?
"I'm not arguing with you about this," Duan Boyuan. "Anyway, it doesn't really matter to you which high school you go to. Speaking of which, don't forget to sign up for the essay competition in a while. If you can get a good ranking, it will help you get into university later."
"Okay." Duan Chan'er turned around to serve the rice.
"Oh, right," Duan Boyuan at the dishes on the table and suddenly said, "There's so much food, the two of us can't possibly finish it all. Your friend Zhang Zhaomu hasn't eaten yet, has he?"
"The class monitor has already eaten," Duan Chan'er replied quickly.
"Oh?" Duan Boyuan narrowed his eyes again. "If I remember correctly, your school's lunch break hasn't ended for very long, right? How could he have already eaten?"
Duan Chan'er: ".
Oh no, we've been tricked!
She snapped out of her daze, quickly recalled what had just happened, and instantly understood why Old Deng kept mentioning the squad leader.
It was probably because he noticed my initial panic.
Knowing himself as he did, he naturally knew that if it were just ordinary classmates or even ordinary friends, he wouldn't care about being caught by his family, let alone panic.
It's likely that they misunderstood their relationship with the class monitor, which is why they're subtly probing and trying to gauge the situation.
It's so annoying! Old Deng is so calculating. Can't he just ask me what he wants instead of all this backstabbing and scheming?
"Oh! What's wrong with making an excuse!" Duan Chan'er used her charm to say, "I worked so hard to make these dishes just for you, and you're just going to share them with others?"
Duan Boyuan immediately laughed, "Alright, alright, we won't call him."
He stopped beating around the bush and said, "Then can you tell me about this Zhang Zhaomu? Our Chan'er has never liked making friends with people her own age, and this is the first time I've seen you so close to someone your own age."
Duan Chan'er just wanted to roll her eyes.
How can you blame me? It's all because of your constant influence, making me feel that everyone my age is too immature when I'm with them. I have to be compatible with younger people when we chat, which is exhausting and boring.
"Where are we being close?" she retorted.
"Knowing my daughter as I do, you wouldn't let an ordinary classmate into your rented apartment, much less agree to cook a meal for them." Duan Boyuan's tone was a little sour. "This isn't the first time, is it?"
Duan Chan'er was taken aback for a moment, then raised her eyebrows. "Oh, so you were eavesdropping!"
I heard those two sentences from afar as I went upstairs.
"That's still eavesdropping!" Duan Chan'er said indignantly, "You old rascal! I'm not talking to you anymore!"
Duan Boyuan smiled and said, "Don't dodge the topic. I didn't mean to interrogate you."
"We're just having a normal chat. You know I'm different from your mother. I've always been open to your social interactions. Even if you want to date, there's no need to hide it from me."
Duan Chan'er said coquettishly, "Most fathers are most afraid that their daughters will be kidnapped by blond-haired bastards, so why are you so excited about it?"
"You're at that age now, it's perfectly normal to be curious about love," Duan Boyuan explained. "I've always believed that as long as you keep things in check, teenage romance is essential, and I trust my daughter is someone who can handle that perfectly."
He said with a hint of a joke in his tone, "Besides, that young man looks quite handsome, and judging from his demeanor, he should be well-mannered. He probably wouldn't do something like leaving a will-o'-the-wisp downstairs at my house."
"You're quite up-to-date, you even know about will-o'-the-wisps," Duan Chan'er retorted.
"After all, I work with text, so I'm exposed to all sorts of new vocabulary." Duan Boyuan, then suddenly said earnestly, "I've always worried that your thinking is a bit too precocious, making it easy for you to miss out on many of the wonderful things you should be experiencing at your age. Look at you, from junior high to the first year of high school, you don't even have a close friend."
"So, actually, seeing how you and Zhang Zhaomu were getting along just now, you really seemed like a normal high school girl, which made me quite relieved."
"The class monitor and I are just friends. Neither of us has any intention of developing anything in that direction," Duan Chan'er said irritably. "Sorry to disappoint you."
"Friends are fine too. A guy who can be accepted by my Chan'er must be really outstanding, right?" Duan Boyuan probed, "What does his family do?"
"I don't know." Duan Chan'er pouted. "Making friends isn't like going on a blind date. Why ask someone this?"
"Okay." Duan Boyuan continued, "Then his grades... never mind, your Class 9 in the humanities is a special talent class, is he a special talent student?"
"No."
"This... it seems his academic performance needs improvement." Duan Boyuan naturally knew the nature of the class his daughter was in. "That means he must have some other attractive qualities that draw you in?"
"Dad... Dad." Duan Chan'er's dissatisfaction was almost overflowing, and she almost blurted out the words "Old Deng".
"You're asking these questions because you've already assumed there's something wrong between us. I've already said we're just friends. Making friends doesn't have to be about how outstanding the other person is; as long as we get along, that's enough, right?"
Duan Boyuan said with a smile, "It doesn't look like it to me."
"If you're just ordinary friends, why are you being so evasive and changing the subject? Besides, you seem afraid of me talking to him. You hurriedly chased him away in the stairwell, and now your reaction to my suggestion that he come over for a meal is also very strange."
Duan Chan'er:
Old Deng has finally revealed his true intentions!
Why else? Of course, I'm afraid he might accidentally blow me up!
But this reason is absolutely impossible to say aloud.
She lowered her head and bit her lip. "Fine, fine, I'll take your analysis as correct, okay?"
"I do have a crush on him. I think he's tall and handsome, so is it okay for me to be a fangirl?"
Indeed, one lie requires countless more to cover it up...
"My daughter isn't that shallow." Duan Boyuan shook his head. "Appearance is important, but it's definitely not the reason. Besides, you even used self-deprecating terms like 'being infatuated,' which means you're trying to cover up something deeper!"
Duan Chan'er slammed her hand on the table, furious. "Old Deng, aren't you just bored? I'm your daughter, not your subordinate, much less a character from those detective novels you're interrogating! And you're getting all worked up about deduction?"
"If you don't want to eat these dishes, I'll feed them all to September and Barbecue!"
"I'm not going to say anything more," Duan Boyuan chuckled awkwardly. "Eat, I'll eat right now!"
Oh no, I've angered my little darling.
At home, he wasn't even afraid of his wife; what he feared most was his daughter's tantrums. She could really ignore him for a long time, and no amount of coaxing could soothe her.
However... it's really suspicious that she'd rather turn against me than continue this topic, especially since I don't object to her dating.
Duan Boyuan diligently served food to Duan Chan'er, he pondered to himself.
What secret does that boy Zhang Zhaomu hold that Chan'er absolutely doesn't want her to know?