After a quick wash, just as she was about to grab a towel, she suddenly realized the towel rack was empty.

It turns out the old bath towel had been used until it had holes and was thrown away last night.

There were spare new towels in the wardrobe, but she forgot to hang them up.

Her parents were not at home and would return only tonight, so Qin Shiqing opened the door.

The next moment, she saw a familiar figure.

"Bang!"

The door closed again.

"Bang!"

The fried egg hanging from his mouth fell to the floor.

...

Ten minutes later, Su Zelin returned home.

"You’re back?"

Zhao Lixia was a bit surprised.

This time her son had been out for quite a while.

She actually hoped Su Zelin would stay a bit longer at the neighbor girl’s place, but this boy was clueless and ran straight back home after dropping things off.

Moreover, Su Zelin seemed absent-minded, ignoring her words.

"You brat, what are you thinking about?"

The Empress Dowager tapped his head, and finally, the mix-up came to his senses.

However, his mind was still full of that shadow.

In a previous life, he and Qin Shiqing were a couple, yet he was still greatly shocked for some reason.

"Uh, mom, what did you say?"

Su Zelin said, looking a bit lost.

"I asked what you’re thinking about, daydreaming like that."

The Empress Dowager said a bit angrily.

"I was thinking about the company’s plan to expand to Shenghai and Su Province, which is next year’s most important goal for New Era!"

The mix-up coughed dryly, making it up on the spot.

Actually, he had just helped Qin Shiqing find a new towel and waited for his childhood sweetheart to finish showering to explain properly. He couldn’t speak well with a piece of egg in his mouth and intended to tell her he brought the egg after eating, but who knew she would open the door suddenly?

Zhao Lixia, however, believed him, and her eyes sparkled with excitement as she asked, "Son, New Era plans to expand beyond the province as well?"

She originally thought New Era just wanted to establish a provincial chain, but now it seemed she had underestimated it.

"Of course, not only the entire Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai region, but we must also have our eyes on the whole country in the future!"

Su Zelin said with a smile.

"Your boss truly is ambitious, following someone like that can’t go wrong. Son, you’ve seized such a good opportunity, you mustn’t let go!"

The Empress Dowager said with heartfelt advice.

Am I working for myself?

Su Zelin couldn’t help but chuckle to himself.

"I got it, mom!"

Anyway, he still nodded.

"Alright then, son, you should eat too."

Zhao Lixia went back to the kitchen and brought out a plate of fried eggs, some vegetables, and a bowl of rice porridge.

By this time, Su Zelin was also hungry, so he picked up the bowl and began to eat.

After two bites, a mix-up, thinking of something, suddenly paused his spoon.

This morning’s rice porridge was really white!

...

Lijing District.

"Panpan, your mother and I have something to do this afternoon and need to go to the provincial capital; we might only be back tomorrow."

While having breakfast, Huang Hongbo said to his beloved daughter.

"Oh, you won’t be back tonight?"

Thinking of something, Huang Panpan’s eyes lit up.

Li Juan nodded, "It’s unlikely we can make it back today. Panpan, we’re not very comfortable with you being home alone. Maybe Wei Xian should come over to keep you company?"

"No worries, no worries, I can be home by myself. Mom, I’m already a college student, and I’ve been in the student union for quite some time. I can’t always stick to you like a child; I have to learn to live independently!"

Huang Panpan replied with a smile.

"That’s true, our daughter has grown up!"

Li Juan nodded, still a bit uneasy, "Should I at least prepare dinner for you? You just need to heat it up and eat it tonight."

"No need, I’ll cook for myself. I should start learning to cook for myself!"

Huang Panpan said firmly.

Li Juan was about to say something when her husband interrupted, "Alright, it’s a good thing for Panpan to learn independence. We should be concerned about her safety, not these trivial matters. Sweetie, just make sure you’re home early and if you have any problems, call us anytime!"

"Got it, Dad, I will!"

Huang Panpan entered her room excitedly.

Huang Hongbo was slightly puzzled.

Why did our little princess seem quite happy that we’re not coming back tonight?

Maybe young people yearn for freedom. It’s more comfortable without parents around.

That’s the only explanation Huang Hongbo could come up with.

Meanwhile, after breakfast, Su Zelin also took a cold shower.

He rubbed his wet hair back in his room, casually picked up the phone on his desk, unlocked it, and found a new QQ message.

This year, Tencent launched mobile QQ, and Su Zelin’s Nokoa 7650, which he replaced last year, was Nokoa’s first S60 system smartphone, naturally supporting mobile QQ.

Love You So Much: "Senior, are you in Jianglan?"

The message came from a younger schoolmate, and the first question was to ask where Su Zelin was, because the mix’s whereabouts were uncertain. Sometimes he was in Lin’an, sometimes in Jianglan, and sometimes even went to other cities within the province.

So Handsome at One Year Old: "I am, Panpan, what’s up?"

Love You So Much: "Could you do me a favor?"

So Handsome at One Year Old: "What kind of favor?"

Love You So Much: "My computer’s not working; no matter how I press the power button, there’s no response!"

So Handsome at One Year Old: "Check if the outlet switch is powered or maybe it’s loose?"

Sometimes, the reasons behind a girl’s computer malfunctioning are bizarre and comical, causing people to laugh or cry. When called to help, if it’s just a loose outlet, it’s fine. But sometimes, you find out the power isn’t even plugged in, which makes a straight man’s mindset explode.

So Su Zelin asked her first to check if it was some simple reason causing the issue.

Love You So Much: "No, I’ve checked it!"

Su Zelin further inquired about the situation, none of which were the actual problems.

In this case, it was beyond what a novice could handle.

It seemed like the only solution was to go over and fix it for her.

Thinking about it, Su Zelin’s fingers flew, typing rapidly.

Despite using a phone, his typing speed was so impressive it remained fast.

So Handsome at One Year Old: "Alright, I’ll come over later to take a look."

Love You So Much: "Thanks, Senior, but could you come a bit later? I’m at Wei Xian’s place and won’t be back until evening!"

Just like Lu Haoran is to Su Zelin, Wei Xian is the younger schoolmate’s handy helper.

So Handsome at One Year Old: "OK, I can do that."

Love You So Much: "Senior, why don’t you stay for dinner at my place as a thank you for fixing my computer, you can’t refuse!"

"..."

After ending the QQ chat and getting Su Zelin to accept her invitation, Huang Panpan eagerly headed out, going straight to a lingerie store in the trade city.

"Hello, welcome!"

A female sales clerk greeted her.

"Please pick a few of your store’s sexiest pajamas for me, money is not an issue!"

Huang Panpan said assertively.

The female sales clerk: "..."

The young girls these days, looking like they’re still not fully grown, already know how to act sexy?

The female sales clerk had a good eye. With her recommendations, Huang Panpan tried on several sets of pajamas, all of which she was quite satisfied with, and swept them all into one big purchase.

Taking out her wallet to pay, the female sales clerk couldn’t help but feel envious as she saw the thick wad of bills inside.

A little rich girl indeed!

And she’s beautiful too, without being fully grown, she really knows how to flaunt it.

I wonder who her target is; how could any guy resist?

After buying the pajamas, Huang Panpan rushed over to a computer repair shop. Once inside, she slapped two bills onto the counter.

"I need urgent assistance. Could you arrange for a technician to come to my place right away?"

The shop manager was slightly taken aback.

It’s quite rare for someone to pay before even getting their computer serviced.

"Young lady, don’t worry. We can arrange a technician immediately, but we need to have the technician check your computer to see what’s wrong before determining the cost!"

The shop manager explained patiently.

Computers are valuable items, and if they encounter major issues, two hundred might not be enough.

So he didn’t dare accept the payment upfront, wanting to understand the situation first.

Huang Panpan corrected, "There’s nothing wrong with my computer!"

"Uh, nothing wrong?"

The shop manager was puzzled.

Then why are you asking us for repairs?

"I want your technician to create a slight issue. It should be unable to power on, but please don’t make it a big problem, and it shouldn’t look like anyone tampered with it. Make it look like a natural failure!"

Huang Panpan said earnestly.

The shop manager: "..."

In all his years, he’d never seen such a peculiar request.

There are always strange people every year, and this year seems to have more!

...