"You're making such a fuss, there's more—look."
Qiao Meina swiped again and played another photo: Ayi Re and Miao Youxi were on either side of Lin Can, each tiptoeing up to kiss his cheeks in sync, arms clinging to his.
"Ah Can is the little brother of us four sisters, hehe~ Since none of us had boyfriends during the trip to the Western Region, we just used him as our all-purpose assistant!"
As she spoke, she leaned her head gently onto Lin Can's shoulder.
Shared little brother?
Lin Can chuckled, "Actually... being the go-to guy for four beautiful big sisters and getting kissed like this—kinda feels like heaven."
"You wish~" Wang Min reached out and lightly smacked Lin Can, who was clearly enjoying the attention. Then she added, "Playing is fine, but there should still be boundaries between boys and girls."
Suddenly, Qiao Tiansheng asked, "Ah Can, do you have a girlfriend?"
"Yup!" Lin Can answered without even thinking.
Qiao Tiansheng let out a long "Ohhh~," and the worry he had just moments ago finally faded.
He had been worried after seeing those photos that something wasn't quite right—maybe it was more than just "siblings"—but hearing Lin Can confidently say he had a girlfriend, and seeing his daughter's totally calm reaction, reassured him. Clearly, they all knew about it. Maybe he'd just overthought the whole thing. So it really was just a simple "sibling" relationship.
Beep beep beep—
At that moment, Lin Can's phone screen, mirrored onto the TV, showed an incoming call from an unknown number.
Lin Can hung up and kept scrolling through the photos for everyone.
Beep beep—it rang again.
Lately, Lin Can had been getting a lot of spam calls, so he picked up directly and said, "Not buying insurance, not taking out a loan, thanks."
"Mr. Lin, wait, don't hang up! I'm Wang Yue."
Qiao Meina tucked her hair behind her ear and leaned in to eavesdrop. But the moment she heard a sweet female voice, she stopped pretending and sat cross-legged right on the sofa, staring straight at Lin Can.
Lin Can chuckled and didn't explain, just put the call on speaker.
"Miss Wang, I don't know you."
"Mr. Lin, you must've forgotten—I'm Wang Yue, sales manager at the Bentley showroom in Yunchuan."
"Ohh~ Manager Wang!" Lin Can said with a laugh, giving Qiao Meina a look that seemed to say: See? You're overthinking again.
Qiao Meina made a "pssh~" noise and nudged him with her head.
Meanwhile…
Wang Min was suspicious. "Why's a Bentley sales manager calling him?"
Qiao Tiansheng: "I have no idea…"
"Oh… it's for the first service maintenance? Manager Wang, I'm in Shanghai right now, I—" Lin Can stood up and went to the balcony to continue the call.
Wang Min quickly scooted over and grabbed Qiao Meina's hand. "What's he talking about? First what?"
"It's… the first service on a car."
"No duh, I know that. I mean why is the sales manager calling him personally? And with that polite tone? Doesn't make sense…"
A while ago, Qiao Tiansheng had taken his car for service at the Volkswagen 4S shop and had stopped by the Bentley showroom just for fun. But after two minutes, he walked out—couldn't stand how arrogant the staff were. Made sense, though: they sold cars worth several million; they didn't need to cater to regular people. It was pointless—people couldn't afford them anyway, so why waste the customer service?
So… why was the sales manager being so respectful to Lin Can?
Qiao Meina looked at her parents' confused faces.
"Um… after he graduated high school, he bought himself a Bentley as a graduation gift. It's due for its first service now."
Wang Min: "What~ He bought a Bentley after high school? As a graduation gift to himself?"
Qiao Meina: "Shhh, keep it down."
Wang Min and Qiao Tiansheng were no longer calm.
They'd originally thought Lin Can was just an average boy—had even said they'd help him find a good job after graduation. But now it turned out the kid was a rich second-generation!
Wang Min suddenly thought of something. "So this dress… it's not some knockoff Gucci, is it?"
"No… Ah Can bought it for me this afternoon."
"How much was it?"
"Over 70,000 yuan."
Oh. My. God.
Wang Min was getting more and more excited.
"He specially came to Shanghai to find you and bought you such an expensive dress?"
"Mom, it's not what you think. It's because…" Qiao Meina then explained what had happened earlier that afternoon at the Gucci store.
After hearing how her daughter had been wronged and how Lin Can stood up for her by spending over 70,000 yuan, both parents liked him even more.
A moment later, Lin Can came back in after his call. "Sorry, Uncle, Auntie—that was the service center calling."
Qiao Tiansheng: "It's okay, totally understandable. Come, sit."
Lin Can noticed that the uncle and auntie suddenly seemed much warmer toward him—their smiles softer, their tone more affectionate.
Qiao Tiansheng: "Ah Can, a Bentley must've cost quite a bit?"
Lin Can: "After everything, it came to a bit over six million."
Qiao Tiansheng: !!!
That's not a regular rich kid—that's a super rich kid.
Wang Min put an arm around her daughter and muttered, "Meina, this little brother of yours is more valuable than your entire education. He pampers you, listens to you, and he's loaded. Sigh… if only he didn't have a girlfriend… tsk…"
Wang Min flinched—Qiao Meina had pinched her thigh hard and whispered, "Don't start imagining things. We're just siblings, OK? …Ah Can, want some fruit? I'll go wash it for you."
"No need. Meina-jie took me all around town today—I'm pretty tired. Just wanna sit and rest a bit."
"No worries, Meina's super diligent…" Wang Min held her daughter's hand and turned to Lin Can. "You don't know this, but when Meina's home, she does all the chores—cooking, shopping, mopping, cleaning, laundry—you name it."
Wang Min was laying it on thick with compliments, scoring max points.
Why is my mom suddenly praising me for being hardworking? Doesn't she usually call me a lazy pig?
Lin Can: "Really? Meina-jie is that diligent?"
Wang Min: "Of course!"
False advertising at its finest. If this were a marriage deal, it'd be fraud.
Qiao Meina wanted to disappear into a hole—this is so embarrassing.
Qiao Tiansheng couldn't take it anymore either. "Alright, alright. It's getting late. You two should get ready for bed. Ah Can, we've prepared the guest room for you."
Lin Can: "Uncle, Auntie, I feel bad—coming so late and disturbing you both."
Wang Min: "Don't be silly. We're family, aren't we? Any time you're in Shanghai, this is your home. And next time your other three sisters—Qingning, Ayire, Youxi—are in town, you all come stay here."
Lin Can: "Sure thing."
All in one room would be perfect.
Wang Min had her own little plan: Lin Can was outstanding, had a great relationship with all four girls, and if her own daughter didn't know how to seize happiness, the others surely would. Whoever snagged Lin Can would have happiness for life. Keep the good stuff in the family—that's the idea.
"Go rest, goodnight~" Wang Min hooked her arm around her husband and chatted non-stop about how great Lin Can was as they headed back to the master bedroom.
As the door shut, Lin Can smiled. "Meina-jie, your parents seem to really like me."
"You're rich, handsome, and know how to sweet-talk—what mother-in-law wouldn't like you?"
"Well, that's true. Come on, Meina-jie. Time to shower."
Qiao Meina held out her arms. "Carry me."
Lin Can crouched down in front of her and patted his back.
Qiao Meina smiled sweetly, jumped onto his back, wrapped her arms around his neck, and locked her legs around his waist. Lin Can stood up and carried her toward her room.
Qiao Meina leaned her head against his back, gazing out at the night skyline of Shanghai. She suddenly asked:
"Ah Can, am I heavier than Qingning-jie?"
"You're heavier by… two liang." (About 100 grams.)
"Two liang?"
"One liang per boob."
"You're so indecent."
But calling her heavy in that way made her feel quite pleased.
While chatting, Lin Can pushed open her bedroom door.
The room wasn't big, decorated in soft pink tones. Straight ahead by the window was a desk, to the left a wardrobe, and on the right a princess-style bed.
On the bed was a Genshin Impact "Ningguang" cosplay outfit—something Qiao Meina had bought for fun.
Panicking at the thought of social death, Qiao Meina immediately jumped down, dove onto the bed to cover the outfit, turned around, and tucked her long legs in under Lin Can's gaze. She brushed her hair behind her ear and said—
"Ah Can… you should go shower first…"