Chapter 238 - 235: A "Surprise" for Mom

Chapter 238: Chapter 235: A "Surprise" for Mom

"I... don’t have enough money..."

Wang Zibo said, extremely embarrassed.

Perhaps because he felt so awkward, his already tanned, chubby face was now flushing a dark red.

Hearing this, Gu Yifan was speechless, but in the end, he didn’t say anything.

He shook his head, walked up, and took out his wallet to pay the fare.

"Brother Fan, sorry about that!"

"We already agreed I’d be the one to pay..."

Wang Zibo said, looking very sheepish.

"Alright, cut it out. Are you really going to be like that with me?"

"If you really felt so damn bad, then you can go ahead and pay me back for the plane tickets too!"

Gu Yifan shot him a look and said irritably.

"Uh..."

Wang Zibo was at a loss for words.

He had secretly looked up the price of a first-class ticket from Jinling to Mountain City earlier and was stunned!

’Damn it!’

’It was thousands of yuan!’

’The cash on him plus what was in his bank account didn’t even add up to half a ticket. How the hell was he supposed to pay Gu Yifan back?!’

"Ahem."

"Well... Brother Fan, I think you’re right!"

"Brothers like us shouldn’t be so formal with each other!"

After a couple of fake coughs, Wang Zibo looked at Gu Yifan with a completely serious and earnest expression as he spoke.

"...-_-||"

"Get lost!"

Gu Yifan’s face darkened as he cursed irritably.

"Hehehe..."

Wang Zibo didn’t seem to mind, just giggling foolishly. He had the shameless look of someone completely immune to criticism.

However, he did end up volunteering as the designated coolie, dragging his own suitcase, as well as Gu Yifan’s and Su Qinghe’s, to the elevator of Building 7, Unit 2. Only then did he silently turn and head toward his own unit.

Before leaving, he didn’t forget to remind Gu Yifan to give him a call when it was time to leave at the end of the break!

This earned him another exasperated eye-roll from Gu Yifan.

"KNOCK KNOCK—KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—"

Outside the door of Room 305, Gu Yifan raised his hand and knocked on his front door.

He actually had his keys, but he deliberately knocked, wanting to give his mom a "surprise"!

"Eh, who is it?"

"Coming!"

Chen Dongmei, who was in the kitchen about to make herself a simple bowl of noodles, called out in response. She put down what she was holding and hurried out of the kitchen.

"CLICK."

She wiped her hands on her apron and opened the door.

The moment the door opened, Chen Dongmei saw Gu Yifan grinning at her.

"Mom~"

Gu Yifan chuckled. "Surprised? Wasn’t expecting this, were you? Hehehe..."

Chen Dongmei: "..."

She froze for a moment, then covered her mouth with both hands, her face a mask of disbelief!

That was because Gu Yifan hadn’t told her he was coming home today!

So, Chen Dongmei had no idea when they would be back. In fact, just a moment ago, she was thinking about calling Gu Yifan later to ask when they planned on returning for the break!

’And yet!’

’Who would have thought this little brat would just show up without a word!’

"Hello, Auntie~"

Su Qinghe, standing to the side, also greeted her sweetly.

"Ah~"

"Oh, yes, hello!"

Only then did Chen Dongmei snap back to her senses!

"SMACK~!"

She slapped Gu Yifan on the shoulder and said excitedly, "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?! You little brat, you didn’t even say you were coming home!"

Gu Yifan: "..."

Caught completely off guard, Gu Yifan was stunned by the slap!

’What happened to giving my mom a "surprise"?’

’How did I end up being the one who got hit???’

"Auntie, Yifan said he wanted to surprise you, that’s why he didn’t tell you beforehand."

Seeing Gu Yifan in a tough spot, Su Qinghe quickly stepped in to speak up for him.

"A surprise?"

Chen Dongmei glanced at her son. "Hmph! I think this kid was trying to give me a scare, more like!" she said irritably.

"Er..."

Gu Yifan was taken aback!

’Whoa... no one knows a son better than his mother, huh?’

’She really is my mom, after all. She guessed it in one go!’

He rubbed his nose awkwardly and changed the subject. "Hey, Mom, can we go inside first? I just got out of the car, I’m dying of thirst!"

With that, he grabbed his suitcase and slipped inside!

Watching Gu Yifan’s antics, Chen Dongmei looked completely exasperated.

She shook her head, then turned to Su Qinghe. "Qinghe, come on, hurry inside!"

Then she took Su Qinghe by the hand and led her into the living room.

Chen Dongmei took Su Qinghe by the hand and sat her down on the living room sofa.

"Qinghe, you’ve gotten so much thinner! That military training must have been tough!"

she said, looking at Su Qinghe, her expression full of concern.

"Auntie, it wasn’t tough at all!"

Su Qinghe’s face flushed slightly as she replied in a small voice.

Chen Dongmei suddenly remembered something and asked, "Qinghe, have you had lunch yet?"

"What would you like to eat? Auntie will go buy it right now and make it for you!"

"Auntie, there’s no need. I already ate on the plane."

Su Qinghe said, waving her hands dismissively.

"Pfft~"

"What’s there to eat on a plane? How about this: Auntie was just about to make some noodles for lunch. You can have some too. Later, I’ll go to the market to buy groceries and make you something delicious!"

Chen Dongmei said after a moment’s thought.

"Ah?"

Su Qinghe was a bit embarrassed.

"Auntie, I..."

She was just about to say that it was too much trouble, but Chen Dongmei cut her off. "Alright, it’s settled. Qinghe, you sit here and rest for a bit. Auntie is going to make noodles right now!"

Without giving Su Qinghe a chance to refuse, she got up, went into the kitchen, and started bustling about.

Seeing how enthusiastic and happy Chen Dongmei was, Su Qinghe didn’t have the heart to spoil her mood, even though her stomach was still full!

Gu Yifan, who was watching from the side, saw Su Qinghe’s predicament and said, "It’s fine. Just have a few bites later. Leave the rest to me!"

"Mhm~"

Hearing Gu Yifan’s words, Su Qinghe turned to look at him and nodded gently.

「Twenty minutes later.」

The three of them—Gu Yifan, Su Qinghe, and Chen Dongmei—were sitting across from each other at the dining table in the living room.

"Come on, Qinghe, have a little something to tide you over. Tonight, Auntie will make you a big feast!"

Chen Dongmei urged Su Qinghe to eat the noodles with a loving expression.

"Okay, okay, thank you, Auntie~"

Su Qinghe nodded and said very politely.

Seeing this, Chen Dongmei’s face was all smiles. However, when she turned to look at Gu Yifan, her irritation returned. "It’s all your fault, you little brat," she grumbled. "If you had just told me beforehand, I would have had a proper meal cooked and waiting for you!"

"Honestly!"

"Er...(⊙o⊙)..."

At her words, Gu Yifan didn’t dare say anything more. He could only lower his head and silently slurp his noodles!

’Sigh~’

’Ever since Su Qinghe came into the picture, my standing in this family has completely hit rock bottom!’

’Life is so hard!’

Seeing Gu Yifan pretending not to hear her, with that same shameless look of someone immune to criticism, made Chen Dongmei even more annoyed.

"Hey, you little brat, at least argue back a little!"

she said to Gu Yifan irritably. "Otherwise, I can’t even keep scolding you!"

Gu Yifan: "...-_-||"