In Xia Nuannuan’s living room.
Xia Zhengping was absentmindedly eating grapes, accompanying his wife who was watching television.
His mind was preoccupied with certain thoughts.
For instance, the incident yesterday at noon when his wife helped their daughter pack food in a thermos for school.
And how, when he returned in the evening and tried to inquire about it, his wife skillfully feigned ignorance and brushed him off.
Now, he was beginning to suspect that everyone around him was a spy.
After all, his intelligent wife’s intuition was undoubtedly sharper than his.
How could she possibly not have noticed the recent changes in their daughter?
This left only one possibility: his wife was actually colluding with their daughter, concealing information about that pig-headed boy from him.
Xia Zhengping popped a grape into his mouth, his eyes narrowing slightly, a sharp glint flashing within them.
For no apparent reason, he had developed a strong animosity towards the pig-headed boy who had set his sights on their precious, innocent daughter.
He had only been away for about half a month, and this unknown brat had already invaded their home, even managing to "turn" his wife, who had always been on his side.
This young fellow was terrifyingly formidable; he absolutely could not be allowed to continue!
“Ahem, dear.”
“Hmm?”
“Come, have a grape.”
Xia Zhengping peeled a grape and offered it to his wife’s mouth.
Su Xia regarded him with a hint of suspicion for a couple of seconds, then opened her mouth to eat the grape, her expression calm as she said, “No need for such excessive courtesy unless you want something. Tell me, what is it?”
“Look what you’re saying. We haven’t seen each other in half a month, is it wrong for me to dote on my dear wife?”
Xia Zhengping retorted with a playful grin.
“Alright, then go get a bowl and peel all these grapes.”
Su Xia’s expression was placid as she gestured towards the two large bunches of grapes on the table.
Xia Zhengping’s smile froze on his face, and he chuckled awkwardly, “So many, you won’t be able to eat them all, it’ll be a waste.”
“No, we won’t. Take the juicer and make some grape juice. Oh, and add some ice, please.”
Su Xia gave him a smile, then turned her head back to the television.
Xia Zhengping’s mouth twitched a few times, but he still got up to fetch a bowl and the juicer, and began peeling the grapes one by one.
“Dear.”
“Hmm?”
“Stop beating around the bush with me. Be honest, has our precious daughter been up to anything at school these past few days?”
Xia Zhengping knew he couldn’t outsmart his wife, so he decided to lay his cards on the table.
Su Xia’s eyes twitched slightly. Without looking at him, she casually asked, “What do you mean?”
“I ran into two of her classmates this morning.”
Xia Zhengping only spoke half the truth, casting a meaningful glance at his wife.
“Mm, and then?”
Su Xia remained composed and collected.
At least, on the surface.
“I asked them directly if Nuannuan had any boys she was close to at school, and they told me.”
Xia Zhengping lied.
“What? Nuannuan has a boyfriend?”
Su Xia exclaimed, looking at him with an expression of disbelief.
Xia Zhengping’s forehead was streaked with dark lines as he gravely corrected her, “Just a boy she’s close to, not a boyfriend.”
“If they’re close, then isn’t that basically a boyfriend!”
Su Xia rolled her eyes.
Xia Zhengping didn’t want to dwell on this topic, so he got straight to the point, “Dear, do you know something?”
“Know what?”
“About the boyf—bah! About that boy.”
“I don’t know. How would I know?”
Su Xia flatly denied it, her masterful acting outshining a host of young male stars in the entertainment industry.
“Really?”
Xia Zhengping frowned, his gaze fixed on her eyes.
Su Xia’s delicate brows furrowed, and her expression turned displeased, “Lao Xia, what are you implying? Are you doubting me?”
Xia Zhengping’s mouth twitched, and he wisely conceded immediately, “No, dear, don’t be angry. I didn’t mean it like that, I’m just worried about our precious daughter.”
“What’s there to worry about?”
Su Xia picked a peeled grape from the bowl and casually popped it into her mouth, appearing unconcerned.
“What are you saying? Didn’t we agree before that Nuannuan shouldn’t be dating before going to college?”
“Did we say that? When? I don’t remember anything like that.”
“Dear.”
Xia Zhengping looked at his wife with a mournful gaze.
“Cough, cough…”
Su Xia cleared her throat, nodded, and said, “Alright, even if we did say that, you’re not even sure if this is true. What did Nuannuan’s classmates say? What’s the boy’s name?”
“This…”
Xia Zhengping was momentarily speechless.
He just wanted to probe for information; he had no idea what that pig-headed boy’s name was.
Su Xia inwardly sneered, her expression one of feigned surprise, “Didn’t you say they told you everything?”
With that, her eyes took on a dangerous glint:
“So you were trying to trick me! Alright, Lao Xia, you’ve only been apart for ten days or half a month, and you’ve already learned to play mind games with me, huh?”
“No, no, it’s not like that, dear, please let me explain!”
Cold sweat broke out on Xia Zhengping’s forehead as he stammered a frantic explanation, “They just told me there really is such a boy, but they didn’t have time to tell me his name because they were about to be late for class.”
“Is that so!”
Su Xia nodded with feigned understanding.
Xia Zhengping let out a sigh of relief, then said with a serious expression, “Dear, what should we do?”
“What should we do? We don’t even know if this is true. What are you worrying about for nothing?”
Su Xia maintained her nonchalant demeanor.
“No, Nuannuan really is up to something!”
“Didn’t you notice she’s been acting strange lately? She’s dieting, and she’s started paying attention to what she wears and how she styles her hair when she goes out.”
“And she said she wanted to lose weight, but she took such a large box of food to school in a thermos at noon?”
“The same for dinner, she just nibbles at it and rushes back to school.”
“All of this is too abnormal, we need to take it seriously!”
Xia Zhengping’s face was grave, and his words came out much faster.
“Now that you mention it, Nuannuan’s recent behavior is indeed a bit strange!”
Su Xia put on an act of sudden realization.
“Right!”
Xia Zhengping was filled with speechless exasperation.
He had said so much, yet she was still pretending!
The crucial point was that he couldn't expose her, or she would get angry with him.
“Lao Xia, what do you plan to do?”
Su Xia asked with a smile.
“My plan is to first investigate this pig—this boy’s situation, find out which class he’s in, and then report it to his homeroom teacher, and also to Nuannuan’s homeroom teacher, so the teachers can pay attention.”
“This is… too much! It’s unnecessary, isn’t it?”
“It is, it’s very necessary!”
Xia Zhengping nodded heavily, his tone laced with a hint of gritted teeth, “Our precious daughter is too naive, we absolutely cannot let that brat deceive her. If the teachers don’t intervene, I’ll go directly to him and find out who that audacious fellow is.”
Su Xia’s expression was somewhat dazed, and she mused inwardly:
“Nuannuan, your mother can’t hold them back anymore. You two, do your best to fend for yourselves!”