178. Daily Sweetness Episode 8

Today is Laba Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month.

Outside the window, tiny snowflakes drifted in through the window, melting mid-air before they could touch the red wooden floor.

"Xiao Ou! Why aren't you closing the window yet? You want the girls to freeze?"

A woman's voice of complaint rang out from the living room.

"Alright, alright, I'm on it."

A few moments later, a young man wearing a purple knitted sweater and with a slim build ran to the balcony. He pressed a button on the wall, then smacked his forehead and said, "Xia Ge’s place has voice-activated controls. You could’ve just told the smart system to close the window. Why did I have to come all the way over here?"

"That’s because you’re always so idle!" Sister Hong said as she walked towards the balcony, throwing a rag at him from a distance.

Xiao Ou caught the rag accurately and glanced towards the kitchen, saying, "Tsk, like you’re not slacking off too? Only Yuanzhou’s actually busy..."

In the kitchen, behind the glass door, Xia Qi and Yuanzhou were busily preparing the ingredients for the evening’s hotpot feast.

"Why are they at it again?" Yuanzhou frowned, crushing the freshly peeled green onion in his hand. "Can’t they just give it a rest?"

Xia Qi looked back at the bickering Sister Hong and Xiao Ou in the living room and said with a suppressed smile, "Isn’t this chaos kind of fun?"

Today was a holiday, so he invited everyone over for a meal, including Xiao Ou, Sister Hong, Xiao Yu, and the two sisters. With the sisters juggling heavy schoolwork and Xiao Ou still adjusting after his first round of training, it took some convincing to get them all together.

"As long as you’re happy." Yuanzhou was helpless with the bunch outside. If it weren't for the fact that they could make Xia Qi happy, he would have thrown them all out.

By dinnertime, Yuanzhou had set the hotpot and dishes on the dining table, filling it to the brim.

Once everyone was seated, he carried a large white bowl.

Xia Qi hadn't noticed that Yuanzhou had also stewed some porridge. He glanced at it and saw red dates, longans, sesame seeds, and other ingredients in the porridge.

"This is..." Xia Qi's eyes widened slightly, having a rough idea of what was in the bowl.

Yuanzhou served him a bowl, placing it in front of him, and ruffled his hair, "I made Laba porridge. Try it."

Looking at the bowl, Xia Qi's lips pressed into a thin line, and his expression darkened slightly.

Only Yuanzhou caught the slight shift in Xia Qi’s expression. The others didn’t seem to pick up on it.

At that moment, Sister Hong and Xiao Ou started arguing again about who should serve the porridge. After a while, Xiao Yu snatched the ladle from Xiao Ou and served everyone a bowl of porridge, saying, "If you guys don’t eat, I’ll finish all the meat myself!"

Sister Hong looked at Xiao Yu's slim figure and laughed, "Go ahead, eat more. We’ll let you have it."

As everyone noisily ate the hotpot, Yuanzhou suddenly turned to Xia Qi, who was zoning out, and said, "It's ready on that side. Should we start the video call?"

"Oh, right, okay." Xia Qi replied hurriedly, having almost forgotten about the old man.

At Yuanzhou's words, he activated the projection screen on the wall.

A few moments later, the screen lit up, and everyone turned to look. On the screen was a simply furnished room with white walls. Sitting behind a long table was an old man wearing prison clothes—

"Holy crap, Old Ou!" Xiao Ou yelled out upon seeing the old man on the video.

The old man didn't bother greeting him and instead scanned the table where everyone was seated. "You’re eating hotpot! I wish I could join you…"

Without exchanging a word, they immediately started quarreling again.

Xiao Ou and the old man exchanged barbs, and by the end, they even began to bring up old grievances. The old man even dredged up the embarrassing fact that Xiao Ou still wet the bed at the age of eight, which made everyone laugh uncontrollably. Even Xia Qi found himself smiling, and before he knew it, he had finished the Laba porridge.

After everyone had their fill, they went their separate ways, and the house became quiet again.

Xia Qi drew the curtains and sat down on the dark red leather sofa, ready to watch the news. Suddenly, the sofa sank as Yuanzhou pulled him into his arms.

His embrace was very warm.

"We still have some time. Want to check out the game with me?" Yuanzhou rubbed against his ear, his hair brushing Xia Qi's ear.

"Is the game fixed?" Xia Qi turned his head to look at him.

"Of course, I fixed it much faster than he ever could have," Yuanzhou said with a smile, his eyes sparkling with a mischievous glint.

As the creator of the game community, Yuanzhou certainly fixed things faster than Xia Qi could have back in the day.

With nothing else to do and the cold outside, he might as well explore the game community space.

After Xia Qi agreed, the scene around him gradually distorted, and in the blink of an eye, his entire environment changed.

They were now sitting on a small bed, still wrapped in each other's arms.

Xia Qi blinked and looked at the slightly mottled white wall in front of him and the old brick-red carved wardrobe nearby, completely stunned.

"Is this...?"

At that moment, a gentle breeze drifted in from the balcony, carrying with it a faint, fresh jasmine scent.

The fragrance seemed to come from the depths of his memory, traveling through countless spaces to reach him.

"Your old home," Yuanzhou said, rubbing his soft hair and pulling him to his feet gently. "Come, let's take a look around."

The familiar floral scent enveloped Xia Qi, and he let Yuanzhou guide him from the bedroom to the narrow living room...

Inside the living room was a familiar plaid sofa, and in the corners were some slightly old-fashioned furniture. On the cabinet opposite was a slightly yellowed photo, a family portrait.

"What do you think? Do you like it?" Seeing Xia Qi lost in thought, Yuanzhou bent down and kissed his temple.

"...I like it," Xia Qi almost forgot to nod, feeling a slight dampness at the corners of his eyes.

Today was Laba Festival, the anniversary of his grandmother's death.

Ever since his grandmother passed away, he hadn't had Laba porridge on Laba Festival. Not once.

As they were talking, slow footsteps approached from outside the door.

The person walked very slowly, and after arriving at the door, they fumbled with the key, struggling to unlock it.

Hearing the unsteady movements outside, Xia Qi's heart skipped a beat, and he held his breath, eyes wide with anticipation.

He already knew who it was.

"Click."

The door was gently pushed open, and countless streams of white light shone in from outside. Xia Qi squinted slightly, his eyes sensitive to the bright light.

However, he did not dare to close his eyes; he tried hard to make out the other person's appearance.

Against the backlight, the elderly woman's hunched figure appeared somewhat blurry in the shadows, giving the feeling of being in a dream.

She was carrying a vegetable basket, which contained beans of various colors, as well as longans, red dates, sesame seeds, and other items.

The moment she appeared, Xia Qi couldn't hold back his tears, and they streamed down his face uncontrollably.

The elderly woman at the door immediately smiled when she saw them.

In Xia Qi's heart, her smile was the brightest sunlight in the world.

“Qi-qi, you're home.”

-End of Extra-

Author's Note: To explain why Grandma is here, in the previous world, Yuanzhou had kept Grandma safe, healed her in the next world, and brought her here～

Finally, the book is complete! Thanks to everyone for reading, especially those who followed along—thank you for your hard work! This sweet extra is here, and I wish everyone success in their studies and happiness in life!

For those who like my works, come visit my profile for more of my stories～ I'm an author with a wide range, and I guarantee you won't get bored!

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