A beautiful summer night

At eight o'clock in the evening, Xia Yongqing asked, "Where is Xia Wanzhi?"

Ms. Ross, engrossed in her TV show, said, "What about the apartment across the hall?"

At 8:30 p.m., Xia Yongqing was restless: "Xia Wanzhi hasn't come back yet?"

Ms. Ross dismissed it: "It hasn't been that long."

At nine o'clock in the evening, Xia Yongqing was extremely uneasy: "What did Xia Wanzhi want to do with Xie Qiyan?"

Ms. Ross, preparing to apply a face mask, said, "How should I know? Mind your own business when it comes to young people."

Xia Yongqing stood up and paced back and forth: "What are you two doing, a man and a woman alone together for an hour late at night?"

The next moment, his entire expression froze.

These words seemed to remind him, and his expression immediately darkened: "That unreserved rebellious daughter, I'll go and call her back."

Ms. Ross couldn't understand why a fifty-year-old man would become so paranoid. She lay on the sofa with a comfortable face mask on, continuing to binge-watch her TV show.

At Xie Qiyan's house, Xia Wanzhi sat on the sofa, petting a purring cat, looking completely blissful.

"Chang Sheng is so good, Chang Sheng is so cute, Chang Sheng..."

Long, long, long...

Xia Wanzhi now only talks about immortality.

Xie Tan crossed her arms and grumbled, complaining to Xie Qiyan, who was sitting next to her working: "Where did you adopt this cat? I'm almost out of favor with Sister Wanzi."

Changsheng has its own cat room. Xie Qiyan's bedroom in the Xie family is connected to the cat room. Xie Tan has never entered Xie Qiyan's room, and Changsheng has never left the cat room, so Xie Tan did not know that he had a cat.

Xie Qiyan had finished his work, closed his laptop, glanced at the harmonious scene of humans and cats, and said lazily, "Have some manners. Changsheng is older than you, you should call it brother."

Xie Tan was completely petrified: "???"

WTF?

Xia Wanzhi laughed so hard her shoulders shook: "Xie Tan's brother, hahaha..."

“Chang Sheng, Xie Chang Sheng.” Xia Wanzhi stroked the elderly, motionless, and exceptionally docile Chang Sheng, her tone light and cheerful, “The name you gave it is really good.”

Xie Qiyan slightly raised his eyes and corrected, "It doesn't have the surname Xie."

Xia Wanzhi subconsciously turned her head: "What's his surname?"

Seemingly hesitant, Xie Qiyan spoke after a long pause: "Xia, Xia Changsheng."

Time seemed to stand still at that moment, and the air suddenly felt thin. Xia Wanzhi's breath hitched, and her mouth darted out faster than her brain: "Take my surname?"

Xie Tan exclaimed in surprise, "You and Sister Wanzi didn't raise it together, did you?!"

"Your idea could be even bolder." Xie Qiyan gave Xie Tan a cold look.

Xie Tan covered her mouth in astonishment: "Could it be the son you and Sister Wanzi had together?!"

Xia Wanzhi: "..."

Just then, Changsheng meowed, as if in response to Xie Tan.

Even Xie Qiyan, who was usually calm, couldn't help but glance at Changsheng, then pressed his temples weakly: "Your sister Wanzi is quite amazing, she can give birth to a fourteen-year-old cat."

Xia Wanzhi's lips twitched, and she stared at Xie Tan with wide eyes: "You little kid, stop thinking like that."

His gaze shifted to Xie Qiyan, and he said fiercely, "You, shut up."

Xie Qiyan seemed to chuckle very softly.

The awkward topic quickly passed, and Xia Wanzhi hugged Changsheng, exclaiming repeatedly, "It's actually fourteen years old!"

The average lifespan of a cat is only a dozen years or so.

Xia Wanzhi felt the furry texture in her palm, and as if remembering something, she looked up at Xie Qiyan.

She couldn't see through Xie Qiyan.

Owning a cat requires patience.

Changsheng was well taken care of by him.

But she really couldn't imagine what Xie Qiyan would be like as a cat owner, petting and playing with cats.

"Why is its surname Xia?" Xia Wanzhi asked without looking at Xie Qiyan.

Xie Tan was also curious: "Yes, yes, does it have anything to do with Sister Wanzi?"

Hearing this, Xia Wanzhi held Changsheng's face and examined him carefully, trying to find any memories related to cats in her mind.

"I feel like I've seen this somewhere before," Xia Wanzhi muttered.

Xie Tan was shocked: "Really?"

Xia Wanzhi frowned: "Orange cats all look pretty much the same, maybe I'm mistaken."

Xie Tan pressed further, "Where have I seen you before? Maybe..."

"Butler Qi's WeChat profile picture looks a bit like the eldest son's," Xia Wanzhi said, even taking out her phone to compare them.

Xie Qiyan glanced at her: "..."

Xie Tan was on high alert: "..."

"It was summer when Changsheng was adopted." Xie Qiyan remained calm and quickly changed the subject. "That's why his surname is Xia."

We bestowed upon it the surname Xia to commemorate our first meeting that summer.

Xia Wanzhi's eyes lit up: "I see."

She smiled, holding Changsheng's hand, her voice slightly soft: "It's a pity I didn't meet you in the summer, Xia Changsheng."

Xie Qiyan glanced at her without saying a word.

The doorbell rang at that moment, but Xia Wanzhi was completely oblivious to her father's sudden attack and was still happily petting the cat.

Xie Qiyan ordered Xie Tan to open the door, and the next second he stood up as well.

Changsheng was very attached to Xie Qiyan. When he saw Xie Qiyan get up, he wanted to get up as well, so he struggled a bit in Xia Wanzhi's arms.

Seeing this, Xie Qi stretched out his hand: "Give it to me. We have guests coming, and it's shy. I'll take it into the room."

Xia Wanzhi nodded as she handed Changsheng to Xie Qiyan.

She held the cat like a child, and when she handed it over, she was very close to Xie Qiyan. In the process, she accidentally touched Xie Qiyan's chest and the back of his hand, with one hand sandwiched between Changsheng and Xie Qiyan's chest.

Xie Qiyan inexplicably felt a tickle.

He was forced to hold Changsheng like that.

He never expected Xia Wanzhi to give him the cat like this.

She carefully, like holding a child, and placed it directly into his arms. He could only subconsciously reach out and catch it.

"What are you doing!" Xia Yongqing was provoked by the scene before him, and roared like a dragon.

Xie Qiyan comforted the frightened cat, then turned around and looked at Xia Yongqing with a calm expression.

Xia Wanzhi was very frank: "Petting cats."

Upon seeing the orange cat in Xie Qiyan's arms, Xia Yongqing stopped in his tracks, seemingly a little embarrassed, and coughed lightly: "Your mommy needs you to come back."

Xia Wanzhi made a few "oh oh oh" sounds, reluctantly patted Changsheng's head, and then patted Xie Tan's head before leaving: "I'll come to play with you tomorrow, or you can come to play with me."

Xie Tan was perhaps frightened by Xia Yongqing's angry roar just now, and nodded blankly. When he thought that Xia Wanzhi might not be able to resist her fierce father and would be going abroad with him in a couple of days, his eyes suddenly stung with tears.

The door closed, and Xia Wanzhi followed Xia Yongqing back.

Ms. Ross looked up and was startled to see the father and daughter's almost identical lifeless expressions: "Are you going to perform a face-changing act together?"

Xia Wanzhi complained in a low voice, "Dad just yelled at me."

Xia Yongqing protested his innocence: "Who yelled at you? I yelled at that brat Xie Qiyan!"

"You don't like him," Xia Wanzhi said calmly.

It's not a question, it's a statement.

Xia Yongqing, hands behind his back, said, "I don't like it."

"When you were little, you even advised me to get along with him." Xia Wanzhi pouted.

Xia Yongqing snorted: "Didn't you hate him when you were a kid? Why are you defending him like this now? Tell me the truth, are you infatuated with him because of his looks?"

Xia Wanzhi stared wide-eyed in disbelief: "..."