Chapter 23: Playing Along

At nine o'clock in the evening, Lin Yun dragged his exhausted body through the front door.

Upon returning to the company that afternoon, he had been reminded by his superiors about his recent increase in absences. Then, back in his office, he opened his work phone to find more than one missed call from subordinates and clients.

It was fortunate he had turned off his phone and left it in the office; otherwise, he might have been harassed by calls even while encountering a remnant beast.

After a busy day, he finally got off work as night fell and rushed home by train.

Walking into the living room, he saw Xia Liang sitting on the sofa playing with her phone.

Because she hadn't brought a change of clothes, she seemed to be wearing Lin Xiaolu's; the pajamas that were originally a bit loose on Lin Xiaolu now looked slim-fitting on her.

Because of the movement at the entrance, Xia Liang looked toward Lin Yun. When she saw that the person entering was a strange middle-aged man, she was stunned for a moment, then quickly understood the situation, stood up, and said with a rather well-behaved and proper posture:

"Hello, Uncle!"

Xia Liang's appearance naturally made people think of words like "quiet" and "well-behaved," and by playing up these elements now, she indeed made a very good impression. She perfectly fit the stereotype of "someone else's good child" in the minds of most parents.

She’s acting quite well.

Lin Yun loosened his tie, making an assessment in his heart.

However, he wasn't in a position to judge Xia Liang on this matter; right now, he was Lin Xiaolu's father, not Cui Que, so he also had to react as if he didn't know Xia Liang at all.

"Oh, are you Luolu's classmate?"

He wasn't used to smiling, but he could still manage to lift the corners of his mouth to make his expression appear more amiable: "Are you here to play with Luolu?"

"Yes, we were just doing homework together!"

Saying what was likely a lie without changing her expression, Xia Liang said happily: "We finally finished!"

"It's so late, aren't you going back?" Lin Yun also kept his expression normal, not intending to expose her.

"Xiaolu asked me to stay and keep her company, so I took the liberty!" Xia Liang was both polite and reasonable.

"So that's how it is. Have you told your family?" Lin Yun’s tone was gentle.

"I told them the situation, but it's not confirmed yet; I'm waiting for your approval, Uncle."

"Haha, why wouldn't I agree? You young people should spend more time together..."

The two chatted harmoniously in the living room just like that.

Borrowing his identity as a parent, Lin Yun asked several questions about their studies at home, attempting to learn about her family situation. But Xia Liang's answers were equally watertight; while she put on a full act, she didn't reveal a single piece of her own information.

Before long, a head with a single ponytail poked out from a room not far away.

Lin Xiaolu leaned against the doorway, secretly observing the situation out of curiosity about what the two in the living room were talking about.

But this kind of hiding was somewhat amateurish, and she was quickly spotted by the sharp-eyed Lin Yun. He didn't accommodate Lin Xiaolu and called out to her directly:

"Luolu, did you treat your classmate well tonight?"

"Um..."

Caught in the act, Lin Xiaolu had to step out from behind the door. She looked at Lin Yun, then at Xia Liang, who was snickering nearby, and responded reluctantly: "We ordered takeout."

"You asked your classmate to stay the night; have you prepared a place for her to sleep?"

"Uh..."

Lin Xiaolu stalled again, stammering for a long time without being able to speak, and finally could only say sullenly:

"Not yet."

In fact, what Lin Yun didn't know was that until half an hour ago, Xia Liang had still been lingering in Lin Xiaolu's room.

But because she had been idling by Lin Xiaolu's side while she did her homework, bothering her from time to time, she was eventually kicked out of the room.

Let alone preparing a place for Xia Liang to sleep, Lin Xiaolu had wanted to kick this person out of the house entirely, but she couldn't bring herself to be that heartless, so it ended with her chasing Xia Liang to the living room while she stayed in her room alone.

"Wait a moment, there are spare quilts in the master bedroom; I'll go find them."

Fortunately, Lin Yun hadn't expected his daughter to be very thoughtful; the fact that she had even let someone else wear her clothes was already beyond his expectations. Following the most basic rules of hospitality, it was necessary for him to prepare a place for Xia Liang to stay.

Returning to the master bedroom, he dug out a few sets of bedding from the top of the closet that weren't usually used, picked out one with a suitable size and pattern, unfolded it to shake it out, and after confirming it was clean and usable, he folded it back up and carried it to the door of Lin Xiaolu's room.

"Keep these here for now; I'll go find a floor mat."

He handed the quilt in his hands to Lin Xiaolu and gave these instructions.

"...Thank you, but this is enough."

Lin Xiaolu held the quilt, her head slightly lowered: "This is my business; I will handle it."

"Do you know how to make a floor bed?"

Long used to this, Lin Yun didn't feel he had been given the cold shoulder, just raised an eyebrow and asked: "Or do you intend to sleep on the bed with your classmate?"

"I know how, it's fine, you go do your own thing." Lin Xiaolu's attitude was firm.

Clearly, she didn't want Lin Yun to continue hosting Xia Liang.

Having spent so many days with his daughter in the identity of Cui Que, Lin Yun had become slightly better at guessing her thoughts.

Perhaps, no matter how much she disliked Xia Liang, Xia Liang was ultimately someone related to her identity as a magical girl. Lin Xiaolu had her own ideals and aspirations regarding being a magical girl, so she didn't want this aspect of her life to intersect with her annoying old man.

What a difficult child; I wonder who she takes after.

If he were Cui Que right now, she would probably be very happy to accept his help, right?

He sighed in his heart, but there was nothing he could do, so Lin Yun could only back away, raising both hands to show he didn't intend to interfere further: "Alright, then do it your way."

The strange and stiff atmosphere at the bedroom door also attracted Xia Liang's attention.

She had been secretly paying attention to the situation nearby, and after seeing the exchange between Lin Yun and Lin Xiaolu, she finally realized that the relationship between this father and daughter seemed a bit too cold and rigid.

She had to go help smooth things over.

So she put away her phone, put on an ignorant and oblivious look, and stepped forward:

"Ah, are Luolu and Uncle planning to prepare a bed for me? I'm so sorry, thank you both!"

A somewhat forced expression of gratitude broke the frozen atmosphere, allowing the somewhat deadlocked conversation between father and daughter to ease.

Lin Xiaolu didn't like Xia Liang, nor did she like her old man, but with both of them in front of her, she couldn't be too repulsed toward either, so she could only respond sullenly: "Mm."

"Great! I'm actually a bit tired."

With a slightly exaggerated clap of her hands, Xia Liang smiled and pushed Lin Xiaolu's back, heading into the room with her: "Then let me help you, let's make the bed together."

Lin Yun stood where he was, watching the two walk into the room step by step. During this, Lin Xiaolu turned her head to look at him, and he only waved one hand, silently saying "Goodnight."

Oh well, hopefully the young people will spend more time together.