Chapter 329: Uncle, You Won’t Make Any Friends Like This

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

“Dad, could you please lower your head a little,” said Qi Youxuan as he tiptoed to reach his dad excitedly.

A warm feeling spread in his heart as he gazed at his child’s adorable little face getting excited over small things, so he lowered his head for the little kid to immediately kiss his cheeks with his greasy lips. Satisfied, he rushed back to his seat, continuing to devour that drumstick.

“...” Qi Chenglin was speechless as he did not know how to react in situations like these. His face was smeared with oil from the kiss bestowed by Qi Youxuan earlier. He did not know whether to thank his son or to wipe the grease off his face.

“Come wipe my face for me,” Qi Chenglin said to Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen pulled out a piece of tissue from the tissue box and started wiping his face, all while laughing at him.

The entire interaction between Ruan Danchen and Qi Chenglin made both Grandfather Qi and Grandmother Qi very happy. They too knew about the little phone trick Qi Chenglin tried to hide earlier.

It certainly was rare for him to be so submissive to a lady. It showed just how much this lady meant to him.

Everyone present could not help but feel like a wedding would soon be expected.

...

...

After the delicious meal, everyone sat around making small talk until it was around three in the evening.

Qi Youxuan could not keep himself awake for more than thirty minutes after a heavy lunch as he had a habit of taking an afternoon nap in his preschool. He thus went to his room and took a nap.

Like an innocent child he was, he kept telling Ruan Danchen to promise him that she would stay until he would wake up from his nap.

Ruan Danchen promised him immediately, musing to herself about how long a child’s nap could be. However, even after everyone had left and the time showed to be exactly three in the evening, there was not a sign of this kid waking up anytime soon.

She had no clue that Youxuan had already woken up from his nap and was instead playing with his toys in his room.

He had apparently come up with a plan of making sure than Ruan Danchen would not leave. He would pretend to be asleep until tonight so that Ruan Danchen had no choice but to hold up her end of their promise.

While helping Aunt Zheng clean up the place, she noticed Qi Chenglin staring at his phone, happily grinning away. She wondered what was making him happy.

Upon close inspection, she realized that he was staring at his wallpaper—a wallpaper with all three of them.

Sensing that Ruan Danchen was getting closer to him, he pulled her directly into him, swiftly wrapping his arms around her and forcing her into his warm embrace.

“Aunt Zheng will see us when she gets out,” Ruan Danchen argued weakly.

“What are you afraid of?” teased Qi Chenglin with lips perked. Giving her a quick stare, he added, “Where did that temper come from?”

Knowing that he was talking about the wallpaper incident earlier, she softly replied, “I just didn’t want to disappoint Youxuan.”

“I was just thinking about making you stay the night,” he said while getting closer to her. Seeing her blush somehow made him excited as he could feel the blood rushing down south.

“We’ve only been dating for a few days, don’t you think we’re progressing a little too fast?” countered Ruan Danchen as her face reddened even more.

Playfully, Qi Chenglin replied, “7 years wasn’t fast.” A huge grin plastered on his face, he then added, “Don’t you want to spend a little more time with Youxuan?”

The last sentence made her hesitate a little. She felt conflicted as she thought about how fast her relationship was progressing.

“I don’t think I can hold back my urges any longer. If I keep holding back my urges, I’m afraid it’ll stop functioning normally,” said Qi Chenglin before he let out a sigh. He could not resist his lustful urges as he started to kiss her lips.

However, just as they started their passionate kissing, a loud ringing sound emanated from Chenglin’s phone. Qi Chenglin gave her a grin and seductive look, signaling her as if he was letting her go temporarily. The entire while he kept her in his warm embrace, not letting go to her.

“Are you not going to pick up?” sassed Ruan Danchen as she was locked in his thick strong arms. He had no intention of moving a muscle, and she was completely locked in his embrace. Her blush deepened even more as she could not move away from him.

“I’m busy hugging you, can’t seem to reach my pocket,” Qi Chenglin teasingly replied as he ignored the call, hugging her tighter than before.

Ruan Danchen was stunned from his reply—this man’s tongue sure had his way with words. ‘Not only was he not ashamed for making that statement in a public space, but he owned it with pride too!’ Ruan Danchen thought to herself.

“Take my phone out for me,” insisted Qi Chenglin as he gently brushed his lips against her earlobes. He found it adorable, staring at the tiny follicles protruding from her warm blushing ears—they looked like tiny animals.

“Get it yourself,” Ruan Danchen playfully protested—he was not crippled, after all.

“Come on now,” Qi Chenglin’s teasing amplified. “You wouldn’t want it to keep ringing now would you?” Qi Chenglin added.

While saying that, he kept brushing his soft, warm lips against her ears, slowly progressing toward the corner of her eyes.

Ruan Danchen had no options left as he kissed her softly on her forehead. She reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Looking at the screen for the caller I.D., it simply showed, [Young Master Cheng].

Still kissing her at the moment, he noticed just how flushed her face looked. It was so adorable to him—he could not help himself but love her even more like this.

Without any moment of hesitation, Qi Chenglin scooped her up and sat her on his lap while teasing her. “Just go ahead and call me big brother, stop it with the Young Master Cheng. It’s like we’re complete strangers.”

“Are you going to pick up the phone or not?” Ruan Danchen was annoyed by his constant kissing and teasing. She felt like the flames of lust had completely engulfed her.

“I can’t let go, why don’t you hold the phone for me.” Said Qi Chenglin as his gaze now locked at her soft lips. He leaned in for another kiss. This time on her lips.

Just as things were beginning to heat up, the phone rang again.

Ruan Danchen felt guilty, what if it were something urgent from Young Master Cheng. This time, she dared not to hesitate, she picked up the call and placed it on Qi Chenglin’s ears.

Qi Chenglin had both his hands on her waist, they both were in an awkward position, he playfully pinched at her waist as he tried to answer the call in the most normal voice possible, he said. “What’s wrong?”

“Why didn’t you pick up earlier?” a voice said through the phone’s speakers.

Since they were so close to each other, she could hear everything Young Master Cheng said on the phone. She felt extremely guilty.

Feeling embarrassed for the ability to eavesdrop on his call, she poked at his stomach playfully. ‘Why is he answering the call now, stop fooling around,’ she thought to herself.

“Look at the Wechat text,” the voice said. The phone call ended abruptly after that last line.

Upon hearing this, Qi Chengling finally let go of one hand, looking through his Wechat messages. He noticed the [8by8group] had been quite active lately.

He did not know how or what caused such an uproar, but he had a feeling that he might know what caused it.

The moment he opened the group chat, he was immediately bombarded by what the members had sent. [Whoa! Qi Chenglin had found himself a girlfriend. How absurd is this?] texted Han Zhuoli.

[It was Miss Ruan all along, no wonder he kicked us out the group last time. Keep your guard up, guys.] Gui Zhiqian texted.

[Some brother he is. How dare he keep this from us?] Yan Beicheng replied.

[Since she had already met the parents, it’s about time we invite her in.] Wei Ziqi added.

Qi Chenglin had a grin on his face—he knew exactly what this meant. He knew it was payback by Qi Chengzhi since he too joined in on the fun of teasing him when Qi Chengzhi was dating Song Yu.

He had zero intentions to keep this a secret from those guys, so he immediately added Ruan Danchen into the group.

After a few clicks on the screen, he simply told Ruan Danchen, “Go say hi to the boys.”

Ruan Danchen was observing his every move. She knew Song Yu was once in her shoes, and she had no idea how Song Yu managed to find the courage to even show up in the group. It was rather daunting for her.

Ruan Danchen was trying to stall as she wanted to pretend to ask for his permission but seeing as Qi Chenglin was enjoying himself while making fun of her, she held back.

She took out her phone and booted up the app. Her phone instantly came to life as the messages came flooding in while her phone chimed away. Seeing who was in that group made her nervous as her palms began to sweat, she pushed herself to send, [Hi everyone.]

[What’s up Xiao Ruan.] Yan Beicheng texted in reply.

[Seeing how everyone is all romantic with each other upon entering the group, I feel very excluded!] Han Zhuoli replied.

Gui Zhiqian then texted, [You need to bring out the shameless personality, Lao Han. Look at all of us—we only got to be in a relationship by being extremely shameless. Wei Ziqi was a great example, the moment he became a man, someone had already taken him. Now look at Qi Chengzhi and Qi Chenglin, both of them are absolute delinquents. They are really cunning, you know. So be brave and shameless my brother.]

[Word! Now be shameless Lao Han!] Yan Beicheng replied.

[...] Han Zhuoli was at a loss of words.

[Show yourself Qi Chenglin, you have some explaining to do.] Yan Beicheng added.

[What do you want?] Qi Chenglin texted.

He sent that text with full arrogance, making the ones who were single mad jealous at him.

[Since you’ve found yourself a girlfriend, let’s all plan a date to meet up at night for some dinner.] Yan Beicheng suggested.

[Alright.] Qi Chenglin replied.

He planned the date with his boys before he went upstairs for a change of clothes in order to check on Youxuan. Ruan Danchen followed behind.

Upon reaching Qi Chenglin’s bedroom door, she was stopped by Qi Chenglin. “Are you coming in with me?” he said seductively.

This made her blushed a little. “Go alone,” she sheepishly said.

“It’s not like you’ve never seen me change before,” Qi Chenglin said snarkily, all while staring at her lustfully.

Embarrassed by his flirty gaze, Ruan Danchen nervously replied, “I’ll check on Youxuan.”

After saying that, she nervously flailed her hand out as she walked toward Qi Youxuan’s room.

This made Qi Chenglin pout a little as he reluctantly walked into his room alone.

Still assuming Qi Youxuan was still fast asleep, she did not even knock on his door, afraid of waking him up. Simply turning the doorknob slowly to open the door, she was surprised to see young Youxuan playing with his train set.

He had laid out a long and tall track in front of him as the little train chugged along the tracks, climbing a small hill.

Qi Youxuan was immersed in enjoyment but when Ruan Danchen entered his room suddenly, he was stunned as his tiny child-like brain could not process the sudden intrusion. He could only blink with a dumbfounded look.

He was frozen for about 3 seconds then proceeded to fall backward while loudly exclaiming, “I’m bored, I don’t wanna play anymore.”

Before Ruan Danchen could respond, she could only watch as his tiny head hit the floor loudly. It seemed like it really hurt, however, Youxuan only closed his eyes, he did not even flinch, he almost seemed like he had completely passed out upon impact.

Stunned by his sudden outburst, Ruan Danchen stopped the toy train and went over to him with a bewildered look—she was unsure of how she should act in this situation. She picked him up, still puzzled, and calmly said, “Hey buddy, your dad and I will be going to the Red Roof Club to meet with Yan Beicheng and the others. Do you want to join us?”

Hearing this, Qi Youxuan could no longer keep up his act. He immediately sprung to life and asked, “Is Mumu coming too?”

“Maybe, since Wei Ran is coming along,” speculated Ruan Danchen assumed as she did not ask about the details earlier.

“Then I’m going too!” Youxuan excitedly exclaimed as he ran for the washroom, stood on the tiny stool and violently washed his face in front of the basin.

He had just woken up from a nap thus his hair still a mess. He then asked Ruan Danchen to help him fix his hair.

Qi Chenglin had already done the packing as he waited for Ruan Danchen to bring his son downstairs.

“Hold on please,” Qi Youxuan said as he rushed toward the kitchen.

After a brief moment, he came back with a beautiful tin can.

Ruan Danchen felt strange as she listened to Qi Youxuan’s explanation. “Aunt Song Yu is still pregnant and Uncle Chengzhi wouldn’t allow anyone to smoke. I’m bringing lollipops for everyone so no one would feel awful anymore.”

Ruan Danchen could only stare at his adorable face. ‘How thoughtful of him to share his lollipops with everyone,’ she thought to herself.

...

...

Qi Chenglin drove them all to the Red Roof Club, and it was already five-thirty in the evening when they arrived. The server knew Qi Chenglin personally but was surprised to see Ruan Dachen holding Qi Youxuan’s tiny hand. They truly looked like a mother-and-son pairing.

The server proceeded to escort the three of them to Yan Beicheng’s private room. Upon entering, they noticed that Wei Ziqi’s family had not arrived yet. Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu were already there waiting for them. This made Ruan Danchen slightly more comfortable since knowing that Song Yu was present with them, it would not stress her out as much.

The first thing Qi Youxuan did was to open up the tin can filled with different flavors of lollipops.

“Do you want a lollipop, Uncle Yan?” Youxuan asked excitedly as he ran toward Yan Beicheng.

Yan Beicheng let out an awkward cough as he took out his own lollipop from his pocket. “It’s fine, I have brought my own,” said Yan Beicheng.

Qi Youxuan pouted a little as he looked for Han Zhuoli. At the same time, he took out a lollipop from his pocket, unwrapped it and shoved it in his mouth. “Your uncle Yan gave everyone a lollipop when he arrived,” said Han Zhuoli.

“I called all the big shots here today, I don’t feel like smoking at all,” Gui Zhiqian said as he chewed on some melon seeds.

“...” Qi Youxuan was speechless and he simply bolted back to Qi Chengli’s side. He angrily exclaimed while looking at everyone else, “You guys won’t make any friends like this...”

“Hehe,” Chu Zhaoyang chortled as he slowly unwrapped his lollipop.

Ruan Danchen was confused by the whole exchange as she sat next to Song Yu. Seemingly able to read her mind, Song Yu explained, “Since they’re not allowed to smoke, Youxuan charged them 50 bucks per lollipop the last time he was here.”

“...” Ruan Danchen fell silent.

Qi Chenglin brought his son over and had him seated next to him. This kid was upset since he could not make a quick buck today, and he felt bad for his son. Even though he was genuinely interested in money at such a young age, his interest in business could be encouraged. His son, at the very least, was never interested in losing. ‘If he is to pick up the torch, teaching him from now on won’t seem like a bad idea,’ Chenglin mused to himself.

And so, Qi Chenglin said, “Why don’t you go get yourself some snacks, buddy. Don’t eat too much though, alright? It’s almost time for dinner.”

Hearing this brightened Youxuan’s mood a little bit as he rushed off to get his favorite pistachios.

Ruan Danchen was observing from the sidelines—Qi Chenglin did not seem too strict on his own son. In fact, he was quite flexible in parenting the young boy. This made Youxuan quite independent, and she assumed that it was due to Qi Chenglin’s principles in raising his own kid. Every man should learn to be independent from a young age.

Qi Youxuan’s strong and independent personality was in line with the Qi family principles.

“Xiao Ruan, can we start over with our introductions? From now on, please call me by my name,” said Yan Beicheng.

Han Zhuoli, Gui Zhiqian and everyone else followed suit. It was more or less the same—they did away with formalities and went with their own names. If she needed anything at all in the future, she could contact any of them if she pleased.

Finally, it was Chu Zhaoyang’s turn. He walked toward her while covering his face, offering a brief and simple introduction that went, “Nice to meet you, I’m Chu Zhaoyang.”

“...” Ruan Danchen was speechless.

Finally, Qi Chengzhi said, “Just address me as how Qi Chenglin addresses me. Big brother.”

Ruan Danchen blushed as she did not expect everyone to be that easy-going.

“Next time whenever any of you run into Ruan Danchen, please call her Aunty Qi as well,” said Qi Chenglin as he deshelled pistachios for his son.

“Why?!” Han Zhuoli protested.

“First come first serve, buddy. Whoever finds a wife first gets to call the shots. Who told you guys to be slow in the first place,” sassed Qi Chenglin with a plain expression, eyebrows slightly raised.

Ruan Danchen felt embarrassed as she heard what Chenglin said. How did he spin her into becoming his wife?

Qi Chenglin handed over a plateful of pistachios to his son and said. “Just eat these first. If you have too many, you won’t be able to finish your dinner later.” He then took out a piece of tissue to wipe his hands.

Qi Youxuan had no objections as he happily took the plate of pistachios and started munching on them.

After a short while, Wei Ziqi and his family finally arrived. Seeing that Wei Muran too had come with them, Youxuan excitedly grabbed her and shared his plate of pistachios with his friend.

The main purpose of today’s hangout was to formally introduce Ruan Danchen to the entire group.

Since she was no stranger to alcohol, she drank alongside everyone else as a sign of respect. She never shied away from keeping up with their drinking pace.

There were no ill intentions in feeding her alcohol continuously as it was completely a show of respect. Ruan Danchen thus could finally let loose and drink to her heart’s content.

Her binge drinking habits certainly gained Yan Beicheng and everyone’s respect.

Gui Zhiqian got increasingly excited as he drank—he felt amazing. “Us boys are all really good to each other, and we don’t just invite anyone into our circle. Consider yourself lucky to be invited into this super exclusive circle of friends. You know, Qi Chenglin was single for quite some time, though he was in on-and-off relationships with a few girls. Still, they never seem to last long or go anywhere. He never introduced any of them to us,” said Gui Zhiqian.

“He’s right though.” Han Zhuoli nodded before he continued, “You seem to be a truly special person to him. Even though he said that you two were only dating for a few days, he’s very serious about this relationship then, as he had never made a decision so quickly before.”

With raised eyebrows, Ruan Danchen glanced at Qi Chenglin.

It did not matter if two people are officially dating, hearing about any previous relationships would leave a bitter aftertaste to anyone.

“Are you guys trying to ruin me?” said Qi Chenglin in exasperation.

“No no, nothing like that, we’re just telling her how serious you are to her,” Yan Beicheng chirped in reply.

Not long after, Ruan Danchen received a text message from Qi Chenglin.

It simply read, [When I was young, my family was pushing me to get Youxuan a mother. I met a girl whom I had good first impressions, but after we met, it slowly faded. We had only met that one time, never since then.]

Ruan Danchen felt weird upon receiving the text but it did cheer her up a little. She typed on her screen and replied with, [I didn’t say anything. What are you explaining for?]

Reading her reply, he had a slight grin as he thought about teasing her. So he replied with, [I’m just afraid you wouldn’t let me sleep with you.]

...

Mini Scene

historical

As Yan Beicheng was driving to the Red Roof Club, he noticed a grocery shop along the way. He parked his car and went into the store.

After a quick stroll down a few aisles, he went out with a huge bag of lollipops as he hummed all the way to his car.

Upon arrival, he gave everyone each a lollipop

Han Zhuoli smiled as he held the lollipop and said, “Well prepared this time.”

“Youxuan has to learn not to be too greedy with money. He needs to be educated at his age,” Yan Beicheng added.