After his future father-in-law and Zhao Mingyuan had dinner, Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan rested for a night in Jiangcheng, and drove back to Yucheng the next morning.
After dropping Xia Nuannuan home first, Qin Tian originally wanted to go back, but was enthusiastically invited by the family to stay for lunch. Xia Xue, Xia Nuannuan's cousin who came to visit, even pulled him to stay.
Qin Tian had no choice but to agree.
Xia Xue's junior high school entrance examination results had just come out not long ago. She had studied hard for the past six months, and with Xia Nuannuan's frequent phone calls and tutoring, her grades were decent, and she should have no problem getting into a key high school.
While his grandmother and future mother-in-law were busy in the kitchen, Qin Tian and the other two sat in the living room chatting with the old man.
Xia Xue was huddled with Xia Nuannuan, browsing through various photos taken during their half-month road trip with envy.
"Sister, this one is so beautiful!"
"Right? This was at a scenic spot on a mountain in Guizhou province. The scenery was great."
"What about this one? Where is this? *Slurp*... This looks delicious."
"This was in Rongcheng. Our classmates took us to eat Maocai. It was delicious, just a bit spicy!"
"Wuwu... I'm so envious. I should have gone with you!"
Xia Xue pouted pitifully, regretting it in her heart.
She had known they were going on a road trip at the time and had thought about shamelessly joining them.
However, she had just finished her junior high entrance exams, and her parents had told her to rest at home and wait for the results, so she gave up the idea.
As a result, she had been idle at home for more than half a month and was almost bored to death.
"Next time. If there's a chance next time, I'll take you with us."
Xia Nuannuan said with a smile.
"Sister, we have a deal then!"
Xia Xue looked at her seriously.
"It's a deal."
Xia Nuannuan nodded with a smile.
"Xiaoxue, which high school are you planning to attend? Have you decided?"
Qin Tian cracked a sunflower seed and asked casually.
Xia Xue looked at him and said sweetly, "Brother Tian, I plan to go to Fourth High School, just like you and my sister!"
"That's great. Your score is definitely enough."
Qin Tian nodded with a smile.
"Hehe... I've already talked to Uncle and Auntie, and I'll live in the house where Nuannuan and Auntie used to live then."
Xia Xue said gleefully.
"You're living alone? Won't your mom be with you?"
Xia Nuannuan asked in surprise.
"Yeah, I don't want her with me. I can live by myself. Anyway, I'll eat in the school cafeteria or outside."
"Didn't your mom say she'd take care of you for the college entrance exams?"
"She did, but I didn't let her. We can talk about it when I'm in my third year of high school. Let me be independent and free for two years first."
Xia Xue's face lit up as she thought about her upcoming high school life.
"Don't get too excited just yet. After you've lived alone for a few days, you might beg your mom to come take care of you."
Qin Tian said with a smile, trying to dampen her spirits.
"No way, I can manage by myself."
Xia Xue retorted confidently.
Grandpa Xia said with a kindly smile, "It's okay for you to live alone, but you have to be disciplined. Go home right after school, and don't let your studies slip."
"Grandpa, don't worry, I'll definitely learn from Brother Tian and Sister Nuannuan, study hard, and get into a good university."
Xia Xue patted her chest and promised.
"Hahaha... Good, Grandpa believes you."
The old man nodded with a beaming smile.
"Sister, I still have a month of vacation. Can I stay here and play with you guys?"
Xia Xue asked Xia Nuannuan with a smile.
"Sure!"
Xia Nuannuan readily agreed.
"Oh oh... That's great, thank you, sister."
Xia Xue cheered and hugged her arm intimately, saying, "Let's keep looking at the photos. I'll help you choose and print out all the good ones."
"Mhm mhm!"
After having lunch at the Xia family's house, Qin Tian drove home.
His mother was watching TV at home. When she heard the car, she hurriedly got up and went to the door.
"Mom, have you eaten?"
Qin Tian got out of the car and asked with a smile.
When he agreed to stay for lunch at the Xia family's house, his future mother-in-law had called his mother to join them, but his mother had politely declined.
"I've eaten. I made some noodles."
Tang Xiuxia replied casually, with a hint of grievance in her voice, "You two are having a great time. It's almost a month."
Her son finally got a holiday, but he didn't stay home for a few days before going on vacation, and he was gone for so long. She still missed him quite a bit.
It was only because Qin Hongwen called her every day to chat and occasionally went shopping with Su Xia that she didn't feel too lonely at home.
"I invited you to go with us then, but you didn't want to!"
Qin Tian heard the complaint in his mother's words and said with a helpless wry smile.
"You two went on vacation, and I was supposed to be a third wheel?"
Tang Xiuxia rolled her eyes dismissively.
"Okay, let's not talk about this. Come, come, look at the specialties and gifts we brought you."
Qin Tian changed the subject and walked towards the back of the car.
"What specialties? I told you not to buy random things. Those so-called specialties are usually scams to fool tourists, and they don't taste good."
Tang Xiuxia complained, but her feet honestly moved quickly towards the car.
"You haven't even eaten them yet, how do you know they don't taste good? Besides, not all of them are food. There are many good things."
Qin Tian said as he opened the trunk.
Xia Nuannuan's luggage and the items they brought for their future mother-in-law and grandparents had already been handed over.
The trunk was still more than half full, all for his mother.
"So much? Is it all for me?"
Tang Xiuxia looked at her son in surprise.
"Yes, it's all yours. We've already given out everything for Nuannuan's side."
Qin Tian smiled and nodded.
Tang Xiuxia was overjoyed, and the slight resentment she had felt earlier vanished. However, she maintained a nonchalant expression and asked, "What are all these things?"
"These are local specialties from various places. These are souvenirs from scenic spots, like small accessories that suit you, cups, and so on. Nuannuan basically helped pick them out."
Qin Tian introduced them briefly.
"Nuannuan is so thoughtful."
Tang Xiuxia nodded with a beaming smile.
"I'll help you take them inside and put them in the room. You can look at them slowly then."
"Okay, take them in!"
So, Qin Tian carried a pile of things into the house.
After discussing with his mother, he took two bags of honey, which is good for the elderly, and some specialty snacks to deliver to Grandpa Sun and Grandma Liu next door.
Grandpa Sun was not at home; he had probably gone fishing.
Grandma Liu, after repeatedly declining, accepted the gifts and chatted with him for a while.
When Qin Tian returned home, he went to his mother's room door and peeked inside. He saw his mother holding her phone and taking photos of the various specialties and gifts arranged on the sofa.
"Mom, are you posting on Moments?"
He asked with a chuckle.
"Ah?"
Tang Xiuxia was startled and glared at him unhappily, "What Moments? I'm just taking photos!"
"Then you take your time. I'm going to take a nap in the back room."
Qin Tian didn't expose his proud mother, grinned, and headed towards his room in the back.