Damn it, I'm surrounded by childhood sweethearts

"That's all for today's lessons, kids. See you next week."

"Goodbye, teacher!"

Having idled away the afternoon, I finally endured through the last two classes.

Even kindergartens had homework, though the teachers didn't care whether you did it or not.

To appease his parents, Xu Qingfan casually stuffed a few workbooks into his Superman backpack.

"Did you take your drawing home?" Xia Xiaoxiao asked Xu Qingfan, who was waiting beside her, as she nonchalantly packed up her backpack.

"Yep, the first gift from a girl. I'll frame it when I get home."

"Show-off!" Xia Xiaoxiao stared at his backpack as if lost in thought.

When they walked out the door, Lin Wanning was already waiting outside.

"Lin Wanning, Xia Xiaoxiao, my neighbor," Xu Qingfan introduced them to each other.

[Neighbor???]

Xia Xiaoxiao glanced at Xu Qingfan; even though there was nothing wrong with the introduction, she felt inexplicably annoyed.

"Hello, my name is Lin Wanning," Lin Wanning took the initiative to greet her.

"Mm," Xia Xiaoxiao replied indifferently.

"Come on, let's go, we can chat on the way," Xu Qingfan said, pushing both of their backpacks forward as he ushered them along.

"Right, Xiaoxiao, I'm going to visit Wanning's house later. You'll go home with my dad by yourself," Qingfan remembered to tell Xia Xiaoxiao about his visit just as they were about to reach the kindergarten gate.

"What!" Xia Xiaoxiao was startled but quickly regained her composure, "Why are you going to someone else's house!"

Though it should have been a question, Xia Xiaoxiao spoke as if it were a statement.

Lin Qiaoshan was standing at the kindergarten gate. Just as Qingfan was about to speak up, Lin Wanning dashed out.

"Daddy!"

"Hey!" Lin Qiaoshan lifted his daughter with one hand and perched her on his arm.

Qingfan took Xiaoxiao's hand and ran after them.

"Hello, Uncle."

"Hello, Uncle."

"Little classmate, we meet again. And this is..."

"I'm his sister!" Xia Xiaoxiao interrupted Lin Qiaoshan before he could finish, gripping Qingfan's arm.

Qingfan looked at Xiaoxiao with surprise and nodded, "Right, she's my sister, Xia Xiaoxiao."

"Then both of you should come over for a visit. And, little classmate, I still don't know your name. Uncle's name is Lin Qiaoshan."

"Uncle, my name is Xu Qingfan, my dad is still over there waiting; I need to let him know first,"

"Of course, let's go together."

After the two adults met, Lin Qiaoshan lavished Qingfan with praise, describing him as rarer than rare and animatedly retold the scene where Qingfan bravely confronted the old lady.

Qingfan's father then patted his son's shoulder and, with a laugh, said, "Exactly, exactly, that's how it should be. If I found out he saw trouble and just watched, I would whip him with a belt!"

Standing aside, Qingfan's toes curled in embarrassment as if he wanted to dig a three-bedroom apartment into the ground.

Lin Qiaoshan had combed his hair back sleekly that day and was dressed in a tailored shirt, trousers, and expensive leather shoes, looking every inch the successful businessman.

Knowing he was not in the same league, Qingfan's father wound up the conversation after urging his son to be safe, then left on his motorcycle.

The group watched the motorcycle drive off before Lin Qiaoshan pressed a key, and a black sedan parked across the street beeped into life.

Qingfan didn't know much about cars, but he recognized the circular emblem.

They settled into the back seat one after another. Accustomed to ride-sharing in his past life, Qingfan didn't find the car extraordinary; the beige interior actually reminded him of something cheap from a street stall.

Xiaoxiao, who was riding in a sedan for the first time, was quite curious, but seeing the other two sitting quietly, she managed to keep her excitement under control.

Lin Qiaoshan, who was driving, glanced at the composed pair in the back and was slightly surprised.

Back in the early 2000s, sedans were still a rarity; the price of one could buy three or four apartments in the county.

Relying on his business instincts, Lin Qiaoshan discreetly asked, "Xiao Fan, what do your family do?"

"My mom and dad run a stall selling sweet soups," Qingfan answered honestly.

Lin Qiaoshan felt a twinge of disappointment but soon let it go. Considering Qingfan's composed performance back at the office, his equanimity made sense.

[The Xu family has a good upbringing] thought Qiaoshan silently.

After about ten minutes, the car finally pulled into Bijui Garden.

This was the district's first commercial residential project, marketed as a "city garden" when it was launched, attracting a large crowd of wealthy buyers.

The compact car wound its way through the streets, finally stopping in a villa district.

Xu Qingfan had taken up a tutoring part-time job during college, and coincidentally, the place he tutored was this very villa.

Back then, the Osmanthus tree that would grow over three meters tall was not even as high as his shoulders, and the succulents commonly seen in the yard had been replaced by a blanket of Mugwort.

Xu Qingfan suddenly felt the sentiment from the ancient text "Xijixuan Zhi," which described a tree that had grown "tall and broad like a canopy," only in reverse.

The future owners of this place were a middle-aged couple who ran a furniture business, along with their son whose middle school grades were less than stellar.

Lin Wanning enthusiastically fetched a pair of new slippers for each of them, then scampered into the kitchen to bring out snacks and drinks.

Digital Monster on the Jade Channel had already been airing for a while, and Xu Qingfan knew that Xia Xiaoxiao watched it daily, so he considerately turned on the TV for her.

Fortunately, this era had yet to be plagued with the curse of set-top boxes, otherwise even figuring out how to turn on a TV twenty years later would've taken him ages to figure out.

The hallway on the first floor was piled with many pairs of jeans, leading Xu Qingfan to guess what Lin Wanning's father did for a living and why they later had to sell the house.

Xu Qingfan lived in a suburb under Hong Kong, in a town that specialized in producing jeans. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that seven out of every ten pairs of jeans in all of Huaxia came from there.

Domestic demand was only a small part, as most of the jeans produced there were for export.

In 2001, Huaxia joined the WTO, and those who caught the wave of these economic benefits found doing foreign trade was as easy as picking up money off the street.

The ease with which one could pick up money then was paralleled by how severely they would spill blood during the 2008 financial crisis.

[Making money was good, but managing hundreds of people and scrambling to expand one's client base was not as substantial as running a print shop.]

He decisively passed on the thought of tempting his parents to start a clothing factory.

Before long, another compact car pulled up to the gate.

A young woman dressed in casual clothes opened the door and walked in.

The woman was momentarily taken aback at the sight of the two unfamiliar children sitting in the living room, but she quickly remembered what her husband had mentioned the night before, and she eased up.

Xu Qingfan could guess her identity, but that didn't stop him from sweet-talking, "Wanning, is that your sister? Uncle, sister's back!"

The word "Mom" that Lin Wanning was about to say got stuck in her throat.

Lin Qiaoshan, holding a spatula and with a look of confusion, came out of the kitchen, thinking to himself: Where did this sister come from?

"You rascal, this is my wife, call her auntie!"

Wen Wanqing chuckled at the joke, sending a playful glare at her husband: "Go cook your meal."

"Right away."

[Could it be that all the men in Hong Kong are henpecked? My dad is, Uncle Xia is, and now even Uncle Lin seems to be.]

Xu Qingfan wondered to himself.

"What's your name, young student?" Wen Wanqing, having lifted her daughter onto her lap, took the seat Lin Wanning had previously occupied.

"Sister, my name is Xu Qingfan, and this is my younger sister, Xia Xiaoxiao."

"Hello aunty," Xia Xiaoxiao simply couldn't muster Xu Qingfan's shamelessness. After hesitating a couple of times, she eventually resorted to calling her aunty.

Wen Wanqing was amused by his calling her sister and couldn't help smiling as she asked, "So how old do you think your sister is this year?"

Self-identifying as the sister in front of her daughter's classmates made Wen Wanqing's cheeks burn with embarrassment.

"I don't know for sure, but you don't look much older than the high school girls in our compound!" Xu Qingfan certainly wasn't going to try and guess.

Wen Wanqing naturally had a baby face, which indeed made her look youthful. It was thanks to her mother that Lin Wanning closely resembled the anime character Takanashi Rikka.

Xia Xiaoxiao turned a blind eye, looking disdainful at her 'brother' who was spouting sweet nothings and focused intently on watching Digital Monster.

"Dinner's ready!"

Lin Qiaoshan opened the kitchen door, and the rich scent of curry wafted out.

The three little ones washed their hands and sat in a row.

"You're about to start primary school, have you two thought about which school you want to go to?" Lin Qiaoshan thought Xu Qingfan was reliable, and ensuring his daughter was in the same class as him meant he wouldn't have to worry about her being bullied.

"We should be going to Experimental Primary School." Xia Xiaoxiao and he could get in through the exams with no difficulty, he answered after thinking.

"What a coincidence! Wanning is also planning to apply there, so when you three have some free time, you could study together," Wen Wanqing said excitedly.

Lin Wanning secretly rejoiced, her last concerns about advancing her education vanished, and she wished she could start the first grade of primary school right then and there.

"Uncle will look into it, see if I can get you three in the same class."

Upon hearing this, the eyes of both little girls sparkled as they looked towards Lin Qiaoshan.

"Well then, thank you, Uncle, in advance. Here's a toast to being in the same class in primary school!" Xu Qingfan lifted his glass full of cola above his head.

Xia Xiaoxiao and Lin Wanning reached out with their own cups to join in.

"Cheers!"

"Cheers!"