Chapter 427: 423. Did We Go to the Wrong Place? (Please subscribe, monthly tickets!)

"Xiaoting, come out for a moment." Gong Nan welcomed Zhang Ran and the others in, then called out toward the inside, though his tone was relatively gentle.

Qi Xiaoting walked out looking a bit pouty. Upon seeing the visitors, she first offered a very casual greeting, but her eyes lit up immediately after seeing Huo Zhiyuan.

Seeing her expression, Zhang Ran thought she had recognized Huo Zhiyuan, but following her gaze, he discovered that the girl's eyes were fixed on Huo Zhiyuan's neck and wrists. Zhang Ran took a quick look and noticed that she was wearing jewelry in those places.

"Xiaoting, this is your Uncle Zhang, and this is Aunt Huo. Susu and Taotao are your little niece and nephew," Gong Nan introduced them hurriedly.

It was clear that Qi Xiaoting held no sense of awe toward her father; otherwise, she wouldn't have had that casual attitude just a moment ago.

When introducing them, Gong Nan was also worried that Qi Xiaoting might act spoiled, so he deepened his tone slightly.

However, to Gong Nan's relief, although Qi Xiaoting's attitude was quite casual at first, she quickly asked with a serious face, "Hello, Uncle Zhang, Aunt Huo."

"Hello, Xiaoting," Zhang Ran and Huo Zhiyuan both greeted her as well.

As for the two little ones, Susu and Taotao, they went off to play with Qi Mingming. Qi Mingming's personality was similar to his father Gong Nan's—to put it nicely, he was gentle; to put it bluntly, he was weak.

"Aunt Huo, your perfume smells so good. What brand is it?" After greeting them, Qi Xiaoting moved close to Huo Zhiyuan.

"This is a custom blend of mine and hasn't been released yet. As it happens, I brought a few bottles this time, so I'll give you one later." Huo Zhiyuan understood the young girl's mind and immediately said with a smile.

Qi Xiaoting was instantly delighted. "Thank you, Aunt Huo. You are so kind, Aunt Huo."

Zhang Ran didn't pay them any mind and wandered around the living room on his own, occasionally chatting with Gong Nan, who was busy in the kitchen.

"Why do you have so many trophies in your house?" Zhang Ran saw a cabinet specifically used to display trophies and certificates of merit.

"These are all awards my wife won. Over so many years, the cabinet is almost full. Ever since she was little, her personality has been competitive; she has to fight for first place in everything. You see, she's accumulated so many," Gong Nan said while stir-frying.

Zhang Ran didn't pay much attention to this upon hearing it. Just as he was about to leave the cabinet, he suddenly spotted a familiar name on one of the trophies.

He then carefully looked at the other trophies and certificates. Aside from those awarded during her school years, the rest were all related to Fengchao Supermarket.

Seeing this, Zhang Ran's smile became somewhat strange. "Xiaonan, what does your wife do?" Zhang Ran asked, appearing casual.

Gong Nan said offhandedly, "Her? She's currently the city manager for Fengchao Supermarket in Beijing. Now that Fengchao Supermarket is fighting with that... what's it called, Maikai Supermarket, she's been busy as hell every day lately."

He didn't care about these things. Gong Nan had a job too, but his was a nine-to-five, which was very relaxed; other than that, he just took care of the children.

Gong Nan wasn't very concerned about his wife's work either. She was a career woman, and plus, Qi Lin's uncle was a shareholder of Fengchao Supermarket, so there was no need for him to worry at all.

Zhang Ran leaned against the doorframe, looked at Gong Nan, and asked as if joking, "Xiaonan, I see your status in the house isn't very high."

Gong Nan was slightly stunned, then laughed at himself, "What can I do? Who told me to earn less money than my wife? Besides, I don't want to live too tiredly; this is quite good.

Although there isn't much passion in life, this kind of plain and simple existence is really quite good. At the very least, there is a complete home."

Zhang Ran was silent for a moment and said, "If you have any difficulties in the future, just tell your brother. Whatever I can help with, I definitely will."

"Thank you, Brother. I knew you were the best to me," Gong Nan suddenly said, using a phrase he loved to say when he was little.

Hearing this, Zhang Ran smiled slightly and didn't say anything more on the subject.

Although Gong Nan had never helped Zhang Ran with anything, he was essentially half of Zhang Ran's family from the past, so Zhang Ran wouldn't treat him like others—helping each other out—but rather like his own younger brother.

Gong Nan finished cooking the meal quickly, and then he started drinking with Zhang Ran. Gong Nan really hadn't been bragging; his cooking was quite good, at least very much to Zhang Ran's taste.

The two of them drank like this for nearly two hours and had quite a bit, feeling dizzy. Zhang Ran also let himself go and drank, without any pretense.

Plus, both of them were in high spirits, so they got drunk quickly.

"Let's go, come to your brother's place to recognize the door. When I come to Beijing in the future, you can come over directly to hang out. If you have nothing to do, you can even stay for a few days," Zhang Ran said, his tongue slightly thick.

Gong Nan's head was also spinning at this moment. "Okay, I'll go recognize the door."

Saying this, the two of them walked off with their arms around each other's shoulders, completely forgetting about Huo Zhiyuan and the others.

Huo Zhiyuan watched them with some amusement and said to Qi Xiaoting, "Xiaoting, let's go over and play together. It's a good chance to keep an eye on your dad."

"Mm, okay," Qi Xiaoting agreed hurriedly.

In just two hours, she had already managed to get the bracelet off Huo Zhiyuan's wrist.

Huo Zhiyuan didn't mind this; she could see that Zhang Ran's attitude toward Gong Nan was different from his attitude toward others.

Moreover, the bracelet was just expensive; it didn't have any other special meaning, and Huo Zhiyuan didn't value it much.

Since Qi Lin liked it, she would just give it to her.

Therefore, Qi Lin was now extremely fond of Huo Zhiyuan, and her attitude was unusually enthusiastic.

Although their family was relatively wealthy, her mother was too overbearing and had to control everything; her pocket money and such were also very limited.

Although her father was compliant with her every wish, it wasn't her father who controlled the money in the house.

Zhang Ran and Gong Nan went downstairs together, drunk. Seeing this, He Yong prepared to step forward to support Zhang Ran.

Because Zhang Ran was traveling with Huo Zhiyuan, He Yong had very consciously hidden himself.

"Yong Ge, go find a car. I'll keep an eye on Brother Zhang here," Huo Zhiyuan said.

He Yong nodded slightly, then quickly went out and soon brought two cars over.

"Aunt Huo, who is this uncle?" Qi Xiaoting asked curiously.

Huo Zhiyuan thought for a moment and said, "He is your Uncle Zhang's brother, and also his bodyguard."

Qi Xiaoting was even more curious. "What does Uncle Zhang actually do? He even has a bodyguard?"

"He does some small business. Calling him a bodyguard is just a title; he's actually a friend. Don't worry too much about it," Huo Zhiyuan said with a smile.

"Oh." Qi Xiaoting was just curious, and upon hearing this, she didn't ask any more questions.

However, very soon, Qi Xiaoting said with some confusion, "Did we go the wrong way? Why are we still driving further in?"