Chapter 345

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Brother Tang Song." Xiao Jing put her hands behind her back, stood on tiptoe to kiss the corner of Tang Song's mouth, and walked into the residential unit door with light steps.

After standing downstairs for a while, Tang Song turned and walked out of the residential area.

Returning to the Mercedes, the fragrance on Xiao Jing's body still lingered in his nose.

The scenes from just a moment ago floated before his eyes again.

The sweet and pretty face, the full and high chest, the interesting little expressions.

Xiao Jing had a very two-dimensional beautiful girl feeling.

Her skin felt like soft jelly, without any rough graininess.

Especially her legs, slender, soft, silky, and with some clear bony structure.

It made people linger and forget to return.

Thinking of her trembling body, watery eyes, and apologetic expression after being punished.

It seemed that something strange was budding in Tang Song's heart.

"Rumble—" Bright headlights projected out.

The Mercedes S-Class started slowly, made a turn, drove a few hundred meters forward, and slowly drove into the Yanjing Yanjing Tiancheng underground garage.

Back home.

After washing up and tidying up, he checked the things he would bring back tomorrow.

Tang Song lay on the bed and glanced at his phone.

There were already quite a few unread messages on it.

In addition to the "Goodnight" and "Sweet dreams" from a few wings, his mother also sent a voice message.

Click to play.

"Son, can you be back before noon tomorrow? It just rained here today, be very careful driving on the road."

Tang Song replied with a smile: "I'll definitely be there before noon, don't worry Mom, I'll be careful."

"Buzz buzz buzz—"

【Mom: "That's good, tell me when you're almost here. By the way, is there anything you want to eat?"】

After chatting with his mother about family life for a while, a deep longing gradually welled up in Tang Song's heart.

The last time he went home was in March.

At that time, he had already become a full-time employee of Jinxiu Trading, and the new version of the SCM (Supply Chain Procurement) system he was responsible for had just completed development, and the leader promised to promote and give him a raise.

Life in Yancheng was gradually stabilizing.

He went back to see his parents and chatted with them about his recent situation.

He still remembered that his mother pulled him into the room at that time.

She took out a real estate flyer full of numbers and nagged him for more than half an hour.

A new real estate project had opened in the county, right on the edge of the south ring road of the county seat, with a unit price of 5,000 yuan, a down payment of 150,000, school district housing, good environment, and close to their old home.

Because of the high cost-performance ratio, sales were very hot, and it was said that there weren't many units left.

But at that time, their family had just paid off their debts not long ago, and they really couldn't come up with this money.

The guilt, longing, and disappointment in his mother's eyes were still fresh in his memory.

Looking at the luxurious large flat he was in now, and thinking of his current net worth and assets, Tang Song let out a long breath, feeling a lot of emotions in his heart.

Just then, a crisp system prompt sounded.

"Ding! You have triggered the challenge task 【Parents' Recognition】, please go to the Task Center to view it."

Tang Song froze, opened the system interface, and checked the task details.

【Task Content: You, who have a stable career, also long for your family's recognition of your own abilities, career, and future, to harvest inner satisfaction, consolidate family relationships, and build inner self-confidence. Please show yourself better during this homecoming trip and harvest your parents' recognition.】

【Task Reward: Random Gift Pack*1】

【Note: The higher the parents' recognition, the richer the gift pack reward】

After reading the task introduction, Tang Song's mouth curled into a smile.

For everyone, parents are the closest people and can give a strong sense of belonging.

With the help of the system, he walked step by step to where he was now; how could he not long for his parents' recognition in his heart?

This was probably a necessary path for self-growth and perfection.

"Ding dong—"

【Mom: "It's almost 10 o'clock, son, get some rest early, see you tomorrow."】

Tang Song replied with a light laugh: "Okay, love you Mom, see you tomorrow!"

Exiting the chat interface, Tang Song was in a daze for a while, and suddenly thought of something.

He downloaded the novel APP, opened the book Hu Hu Jingjing recommended to him, and started reading from the first chapter.

He liked reading web novels when he was in junior high and high school; at that time, the school didn't allow mobile phones, and classmates bought physical books and passed them around.

But ever since he started working hard in his senior year of high school, he had abandoned this hobby.

……

Beicheng Garden Residential Area.

"Da da da—" The sound of keyboard typing kept ringing.

——————

Xu Xu Yanqing's fair face raised slightly, glowing with a soft halo, like a lily blooming under the moon.

Her beautiful long hair was draped over her shoulders casually, and her eyes, bright as stars, looked calmly at her cousin in front of her.

"Xu Yanqing, don't worry, I won't meet Tang Song again in the future." Xu Xu Jiali lowered her head slightly, a faint mist rising in her eyes, "I didn't know about your relationship, I'm sorry."

She never expected that his girlfriend would be Xu Xu Yanqing.

She had a deep impression of this distant cousin who graduated from a prestigious school.

Since she was a child, Xu Xu Yanqing had been the "other person's child," and whether it was appearance or ability, she was excellent beyond compare.

Compared to her, she was really too far behind.

She wasn't young anymore, she had passed the age of dreaming, and it was time to give up.

——————

"Achoo—" "Achoo—" "Achoo—"

Several crisp sneezes rang out in the room, breaking the quiet atmosphere.

Xu Qing rubbed her small nose and muttered to herself: "Which guy is secretly thinking about this lady again! Hmph hmph!"

Rubbing her somewhat sore wrists, Xu Qing leaned back and stretched a big lazy stretch.

She had had a lot of inspiration in the past few days and already had quite a few drafts.

She planned to save up some more, then free up a week to seriously write a complete short drama script and hand it to the company's short drama production department to see if there was a possibility of filming it.

"Ding dong—" WeChat notification sounded.

Xu Qing opened her phone and looked; it was a notification from her WeChat clone.

【Xiao Jing: "Big Boss Sister Qingqing, my wish finally, finally came true today!"】

Xu Qing's eyes widened instantly, and she replied quickly: "What's the situation?"

【Xiao Jing: "Today I used some little tricks to successfully provoke my boyfriend, then I was pressed onto the car seat by him and punished severely; my butt is still a bit sore now."】

【Xiao Jing: "I secretly took a look, it's all red!"】

"Hiss~" Xu Qing took a deep breath, her rosy lips opening slightly, "Pervert Xiao Jing! You… you…"

She had also been spanked by Tang Song, twice!

If Xiao Jing really developed Tang Song into a pervert, then she might suffer too.

Thinking of the scene where she was pressed onto the car seat by Tang Song and spanked.

Xu Qing shivered violently.

Damn Xiao Jing!

She had to be careful in the future and not let Tang Song find an excuse to hit her!

Clicking the input box, she replied: "Xiao Jing, you're wrong to do this; you should respect your boyfriend's own preferences."

"Buzz buzz buzz—"

【Xiao Jing: "My boyfriend is especially strong, it hit very hard. I lifted his shirt today and touched it, his abs are super great."】

【Xiao Jing: *Video screenshot. jpg*】

Seeing the screenshot, Xu Qing's face turned red instantly.

This was a screenshot of Xiao Jing and Tang Song's video chat last time!

Looking at the scene full of sexual tension, Xu Qing swallowed and was about to click to enlarge.

A notification popped up.

【"Xiao Jing" recalled a message】

Where's the picture!? Where's my big picture!?

Damn Xiao Jing! You're playing with me!

Xu Qing felt that she would definitely suffer from insomnia tonight! She was very angry now!

……

August 5, 2023, Saturday, overcast, 25~33c.

Accompanied by the bank's arrival SMS notification, Tang Song sat up from the bed.

The whole person was energetic and his blood was surging.

Running, jumping rope, fat-burning exercises…

After a set of aerobic exercises, the 【Infinite Vitality】 suit on his body was already soaked.

Fortunately, there was a special effect bonus, the breathability was excellent, and he could keep his body fresh at all times.

"Swish—" Standing under the shower, he took a serious bath.

Tang Song stood naked in front of the mirror and admired his now strong and beautiful physique for a while.

A huge sense of achievement welled up in his heart.

Although there was the help of system props, it also had a lot to do with his persistence in self-discipline.

Watching himself get better and better, this wonderful feeling was really too cool!

Now he was even better than his peak physical state in high school, and he had grown a little taller.

He believed that when his parents saw him now, they would also be startled.

Although they had seen him in videos, they mostly just looked at his face.

The improvement in physique and temperament must be seen in person to be felt more intuitively.

Drying his body, he walked into the cloakroom.

Tang Song picked and chose for a while, and finally chose a set of casual clothes.

A loose and simple white T-shirt, slim but not tight light blue jeans, white sneakers.

The style was very similar to his former self, just paying more attention to the fit and color matching, which wouldn't make his parents feel too much strangeness.

At 8 o'clock in the morning, Tang Song, who had packed his things, drove the Mercedes S450L out of the Yanjing Yanjing Tiancheng residential area.

The reason for choosing this car.

One reason was that it was spacious and comfortable, and could hold more things.

Another reason was that the Bentley Continental GT was too eye-catching; anything in excess is as bad as deficiency.

Even if he wanted to show off his wealth, there was no need to be too urgent.

Tang Song's hometown was not far from Yancheng, in a county under Quancheng in the south, just over a hundred kilometers away.

Driving, he could definitely get there in two hours.

This was also why he chose to return to Yancheng from the Imperial Capital.

……

The sky was gray.

After 8 o'clock in the morning, the streets of the small town gradually became busy.

Most of the shops along the street had already started business.

The sound of hawking, honking, and chatting connected into one.

Crowds, tricycles, electric scooters, and cars walked and stopped as they passed through.

"Tang Jianying Hardware Store" was located in an inconspicuous corner north of the road, with a frontage width of only about three meters.

A blue-bottomed white-letter signboard, a rolled-up shutter door, and glass with red characters pasted on it.

Some cutting boards, washbasins, and mops were also placed at the door…

"Oh my! Son will be here before noon, why are you going to collect debts now?" Mother Xu Feng grabbed Tang Tang Jianying's arm, "Go after lunch!"

Tang Tang Jianying shook his head, "I called Hu Zi yesterday and told him I'd go over this morning; I've known him for so many years, and we're from the same village, what he did is too unprincipled."

"You're afraid that your son will know when he comes back, and you'll lose face, right?" Xu Feng said angrily: "I don't know your little thoughts yet."

"Uh…" An awkward expression appeared on Tang Tang Jianying's dark face.

"It's like you can get it back; I told you before not to agree to advance money on credit, now it's good, you've advanced 20,000 to their decoration team inside and out…"

Xu Feng complained while continuing to tidy up the storefront.

But she also knew that this was unavoidable.

For a hardware store, relying only on scattered orders from nearby residents, it was actually hard to make much money.

After all, online shopping was so developed and cheap now.

And on this street, there were 7 or 8 hardware stores scattered around, and the competition was very fierce.

So any store that could develop for a long time possessed some stable big customers.

Such as factories, decoration companies, construction teams, etc.

Their small store was like this; she watched the store, and Tang Tang Jianying went out to solicit work.

Tang Tang Jianying was almost 50 years old and had done many jobs over the years.

Relying on the connections he had accumulated in the decoration company before, he could receive some orders every month.

Currently, 70% of "Tang Jianying Hardware Store's" sales came from decoration teams.

The fact that Tang Song didn't go to graduate school because of family problems was the biggest pain in the old couple's hearts.

Now that his son had started his own business and made money.

Tang Tang Jianying felt both relieved and guilty, feeling that he was a very incompetent father who hadn't held up a piece of sky for the family.

When the hardware store started to make a stable profit, he wanted to prove himself and save more money for his son by the way.

In order to get more orders from the decoration team, he agreed to the request of advance payment, with an agreement of one month.

Among them was Hu Zi's decoration team, which had taken nearly 20,000 worth of goods from here in two months.

He was at ease because they were from the same village and had worked together, so he didn't urge them at first.

As a result, it dragged on until now, and they just wouldn't give a definite answer.

For a store like theirs, the biggest cost was inventory pressure; if they all did this, they would be finished sooner or later.

Hu Zi happened to be at his store today, so he had to go over and ask for an explanation, at least settle half of it first.

"I'm leaving first, I'll definitely be back by 11 o'clock at the latest."

Tang Tang Jianying said, got on a tricycle parked outside the door, and drove toward the county seat.

"Xu Feng, I just heard you two arguing, what's it about?" Guo Jie, who sold tiles next door, leaned over curiously.

Xu Feng, standing at the door, sighed and started nagging to her.

The customer flow for a store like theirs was very small, but as long as someone came, basically 7 or 8 out of 10 could buy directly.

So it was quite leisurely on a daily basis.

The two chatted for a long time.

Guo Jie chewed on peanuts and smiled: "By the way, I also heard you two talking about Tang Song, is he coming back?"

She was also an old neighbor and knew Tang Song quite well, knowing that he was developing in Yancheng.

Mentioning her son, the sorrow on Xu Feng's face instantly dissipated.

She said with a smile: "Yeah, he'll be here before noon!"

"Hey, it's been almost half a year since he came back, right?"

"Yeah, his work is quite busy, and now he's tinkering with entrepreneurship, he doesn't have time to come home and see."

"It's good to be busy!" Guo Jie shook her head and said distressingly: "Look at my girl, ever since the company went bankrupt, she came back from the Imperial Capital and sleeps in every day. I told her to go out and find a job, and she said she wanted to do live streaming and help us sell tiles and inherit our small store."

The tile store in her family had a large area, was their own property, and was on the main road of the town, so it was indeed an asset.

"Live streaming?" Xu Feng smiled and said: "My Xiao Song is also doing live streaming, we can let the two children communicate later."

"That would be great!" Guo Jie patted her thigh and stated her purpose, "Tang Song is already a boss now, if he could lead our Li Ranran, that would be great."

She had heard from Xu Feng and her husband before that their son was partnering with others to start a business in Yancheng, and it was doing quite well.

Her daughter staying at home every day wasn't a solution; since she was interested in live streaming, it wouldn't be bad if she could go to Tang Song's company and try it out.

After all, they were neighbors, so he wouldn't harm her daughter.

Just then, a female voice sounded: "Mom! You're talking about me again!"

Immediately after, a girl dressed fashionably and wearing heavy makeup walked over.

She was in her early 20s, had yellow hair, and her figure and looks were quite good.

Guo Jie frowned, "Shouldn't I talk about you? Staying at home every day, didn't you want to do live streaming? Your Brother Tang Song is doing this now, go and ask him for advice."

"Pfft—" Li Li Ranran covered her mouth and chuckled, "Mom, don't tell me you and Aunt Xu want to set me up with Tang Song? Don't play matchmaker randomly, we're not suitable."

"Uh…" Xu Feng froze, her expression a bit uncomfortable.

But she also knew that Li Li Ranran's personality was like this, careless and didn't care much about other people's feelings.

In other words, she had a bit of a "spoiled brat temper."

With such a girl, even if she married into the family, her son would definitely be wronged, so she definitely wouldn't want it.

And there was Liu Qingning in front of her, so anyone else looked a bit lacking.

Guo Jie's brow twitched, and she was a bit anxious about her outspoken daughter, "What nonsense are you talking about? Who would want you, lazy and unemployed!"

"Cut~" Li Li Ranran rolled her eyes and brushed her hair, "There are quite a few people chasing me, I just didn't tell you."

She was two years younger than Tang Song, and when she was in high school, she actually had a good impression of this neighbor brother.

After all, Tang Song at that time was tall and thin, a handsome guy full of youthful feeling.

It's a pity that he grew up to be ugly later.

Especially during the Chinese New Year, she followed her mom to his house for a meal.

At that time, Tang Song was fat, unkempt, listless, a standard technical otaku.

"If you have the ability, get married quickly, and stop adding trouble here."

"I'm not arguing with you." Li Li Ranran shrugged, took out her phone from her bag and shook it, "I've been doing local videos these days, and I've accumulated some local fans, I plan to try live streaming today and help you promote the tiles."

As she spoke, Li Li Ranran opened the Douyin APP.

She aimed the camera at her family's store and started live streaming.

But because the fan base was small, there weren't many people.

Li Li Ranran held up her phone and started introducing it using the scripts she learned online.

Watching her daughter's disobedient appearance, Guo Jie sighed helplessly.

……

The wheels rolled on the somewhat dilapidated streets of the small town, making a faint sound.

Familiar street scenes and storefronts entered his sight bit by bit.

Tang Song's heart also lifted bit by bit, and complex light jumped in his eyes.

Of course, there was more high-spiritedness.

The elegant and atmospheric silver Mercedes S-Class sedan appeared on the streets of this ordinary small town, looking particularly eye-catching.

Pedestrians on the street cast curious and envious gazes one after another.

Some even stopped to watch and whispered.

There were also some half-grown children excitedly pointing at the car, their eyes full of curiosity and longing.

Tang Song, who was in the driver's seat, even saw many familiar faces, and he couldn't help but feel some unusual excitement in his heart.

The strong emotional attachment and persistent identification of Chinese people to "home" and "hometown" are deep in their souls.

Returning home in glory is ultimately a mentality that most people find difficult to reverse.

For thousands of years, it has never changed.

For example, Xiang Yu, who said, "Not returning to hometown after wealth is like wearing embroidered clothes at night, who knows?"

For example, Liu Bang, who said, "The great wind rises, the clouds fly, the power covers the world, returning to hometown."

Soon, some familiar storefronts entered his sight.

"Tang Jianying Hardware Store."

Actually, the store was only opened last year, and he hadn't been there many times.

But because he knew his parents were there, he had an inexplicable sense of belonging and familiarity.

The car's left turn signal lit up.

Taking a deep breath, Tang Song turned the steering wheel gently and drove toward the store gate.

……

"The tiles in our house are all from Guangdong, there are polished tiles, glazed tiles, antique tiles, excellent quality, novel patterns…"

"Okay, I'll show everyone the panoramic view later."

"Our store is 100 meters west of Fuxiang Supermarket, Shanyun Ceramics, welcome everyone to come to the store to take a look when you have time."

Li Li Ranran aimed her phone at the store gate and walked backward slowly.

"Beep beep—" A heavy honking sound came from behind.

Guo Jie at the store entrance shouted hurriedly: "Li Ranran, watch out for the car!"

Li Li Ranran said "Oh," turned around, and moved aside.

A silver light flashed in her sight, instantly attracting her attention.

Immediately after, she saw an atmospheric and luxurious Mercedes driving toward this side.

The elegant and smooth silver car body, and the exquisite three-pointed star emblem on the front, were very eye-catching.

Li Li Ranran was also knowledgeable and immediately recognized that this was a million-level Mercedes S-Class.

The low and rhythmic engine sound got closer, the car turned flexibly and stopped on the open space in front of the store.

Through the bright front windshield, she could vaguely see a young man inside, who seemed quite handsome.

Li Li Ranran's heart jumped, and she couldn't even care about the live stream, after all, there were only a few people in the live broadcast room.

The combination of a handsome guy + a luxury car was really too pleasing to the eye!

Soon, the Mercedes driver's door was pushed open gently.

A tall and straight figure walked out.

The facial features were handsome and three-dimensional, the lips were rosy and shiny, and the jawline was clear and smooth.

The well-fitting white T-shirt outlined the bulging muscle contours on his body.

The whole person looked clean, refreshing, high-spirited, and full of charming appeal.

A flush of excitement appeared on Li Li Ranran's face.

Wow! Too handsome!

Xu Feng, who was originally sitting on a small stool at the door, stood up with a "thump" and walked over quickly, "Xiao Song!"

As a mother, she naturally wouldn't fail to recognize the son she raised.

It's just that compared to the video, the real person was much more spirited!

Hearing Aunt Xu's shout, Li Li Ranran's eyelids trembled, and she blurted out: "Tang Song!"

"Mom, I'm back." Tang Song hugged his mom and said with a smile: "How is it? My fitness effect is good, right?"

"Really good, this build is so healthy!" Xu Feng patted her son's strong chest, her eyes full of emotion and joy.

After chatting briefly with his mother.

Tang Song turned to look aside and said with a smile: "Guo Jie, Li Ranran, good morning."

Guo Jie let out a "hiss," widened her eyes and said: "Tang Song, your change is too big, right? And this car, did you really become a big boss?"

"Hehe." Tang Song said with a light laugh: "I'm quite lucky, the company's live streaming caught the traffic outlet, so I made some money, just showing off to my parents when I got home."

"Go… good morning, Brother Tang Song." Li Li Ranran, who had come back to her senses, felt her heartbeat accelerate to 150 instantly; looking at Tang Song's handsome smile, her speech was trembling.

This wasn't weight loss at all! This was simply changing a person!

Especially his figure, the physique was well-proportioned and full of power.

A real-life male god! He was much more handsome than when he was in high school!