Tongtong was still persistently building her house.

She seemed to have a unique obsession with houses.

In a short while, a large mud house took shape.

Tongtong thoughtfully planted wheat by the door.

This way, she and her dad wouldn’t have to worry about going hungry.

"Daddy, it’s getting dark! Hurry up and come inside."

Tongtong held a hoe, nervously opened the door, and stood at the entrance, bouncing on her feet as she waited for Jiang Liu.

She had to protect her daddy!

Jiang Liu checked the time. "Tongtong, it’s past ten. Shouldn’t we go to sleep?"

His daughter had school tomorrow; she couldn’t stay up too late playing.

’What a buzzkill, Dad!’

Tongtong was a little unhappy. "Okay, I’ll listen to you, Daddy. Can we still play ’build a house’ tomorrow? I want to make the house even bigger."

Jiang Liu picked up Tongtong, who was in her pajamas, and held her in his arms. He looked at her and said, "You like houses that much? Then how about Daddy buys you a big house in the future?"

Tongtong wrapped her arms around Jiang Liu’s neck and leaned against his chest, whispering, "We don’t need one, Daddy. As long as I’m with you, I’m willing to live anywhere. I won’t mind."

"Besides, buying a big house would cost so much money. Daddy works so hard to earn money every day. I don’t want that."

Jiang Liu’s heart was about to melt.

’Having a daughter really is the best. She knows how to dote on me.’

He comfortingly stroked Tongtong’s hair. "If you like it, Daddy will buy it for you. Daddy earns a lot of money every day now. Buying a house is easy."

Jiang Liu was currently earning several hundred thousand a day.

For a two-million-yuan house, he’d have no problem buying it after just a week of work.

"Daddy’s the best!"

Feeling completely secure, Tongtong pressed her cheek against Jiang Liu’s.

"We’re not in a hurry."

Jiang Liu nodded and patted Tongtong’s little bottom, coaxing her, "Sleep now, sleep. There’s ice cream waiting for you in your dreams."

Tongtong rolled her eyes at Jiang Liu.

’Does he think I’m a three-year-old? I’m five, okay!’

Within three minutes, Tongtong powered down.

Jiang Liu tiptoed into the kitchen to prepare the fillings.

He didn’t feel the least bit sleepy.

A WeChat message arrived from Jun Qingmeng: "I was just taking a bath, so I didn’t see your message. Is Tongtong asleep?"

Her mood had been terrible because of Jun Xinghe, but seeing a message from Jiang Liu had immediately cheered her up.

Overflowing with affection, Jun Qingmeng sent another message: "Jiang Liu, it’s been half an hour since I saw you, and I miss you so much."

Jiang Liu heard his phone chime.

He knew it was from Jun Qingmeng. He wiped his hands, opened his phone, and couldn’t help but smile as he read the message.

"Tongtong’s asleep. I miss you too."

"Go to bed early. No staying up late!"

’He misses me too?’

Jun Qingmeng cheered and rolled around on her bed, hugging her blanket.

Suddenly, she stopped her love-struck behavior.

She sat up and frowned in thought.

’Aren’t I supposed to be the one who pampers and teases my boyfriend like a treasure?’

’How can one sentence from him make me this happy?’

’If this keeps up, how am I ever going to tease Jiang Liu in the future?’

’Fairy Jun, you need to be tougher!’

Jun Qingmeng gave herself a pep talk.

She replied: "I miss you too!"

"Jiang Liu, when you come back tomorrow night, in the car... can we kiss?"

"Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle. (shy)"

’She’s getting bolder and bolder...’

Jiang Liu thought for a moment, then replied with a smile: "No problem, but please try not to be as embarrassing as you were today."

"I was feeling second-hand embarrassment for you."

Jun Qingmeng wrinkled her nose. "I won’t! Don’t worry, I’m definitely going to pin you down and kiss you!"

"I have to let you know how formidable Sister Jun is!"

Jiang Liu: "(hugs)"

Jiang Liu: "Sleep, sleep, sleep. If you don’t listen, I’ll spank you."

Jun Qingmeng: "(little kitten nods obediently)"

After sending the message, Jiang Liu continued with his work.

A cool autumn breeze blew in through the small kitchen window.

The scent of autumn was growing stronger.

"The night air is getting colder. It’s true what they say, ’every autumn rain brings a new chill’."

Jiang Liu sighed, went back to the room to check if Tongtong was properly covered by her blanket, and then returned to his work.

Working until past eleven, Jiang Liu stretched his tired back.

Back in the room, Jiang Liu slipped under the covers. Tongtong dependently nestled into his arms, her sleeping face growing even more peaceful.

’Having a dad was truly wonderful.’

Jun Qingmeng lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

She was a little troubled.

She didn’t know how to handle the situation with her dad and Jiang Liu.

"Jiang Liu, you have to be a good boy and sleep, okay? Come, let your big sister give you a kiss."

Jun Qingmeng hugged the pig-headed stuffed doll by her bed.

Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep, still hugging the doll.

「The next morning.」

Jiang Liu headed downstairs with a cart full of ingredients, along with Tongtong and Jun Qingmeng.

Jun Qingmeng was dressed in a very sweet and demure style today, with a white short-sleeved shirt on top and a brown, over-the-knee skirt on the bottom.

She even wore two rainbow clips in her hair.

When they reached the garage,

the two of them clumsily helped Jiang Liu load things into the trunk.

"Jiang Liu, are we giving away corn again today?"

Jun Qingmeng asked excitedly as she watched Jiang Liu lift a box of fresh corn into the trunk.

Jiang Liu nodded. "We should give back to our customers every once in a while. They come to support my little shop, rain or shine. I have to find ways to give them a little surprise."

"Oh, right. This morning, I plan to cook a pot of congee and also make some Di San Xian to sell."

Jiang Liu had already gathered the ingredients for Di San Xian, so he didn’t need to go to the market to buy ordinary ones.

He could use the small eggplants from his bun ingredients, he already had potatoes, and using termitomyces mushrooms instead of green peppers would be even better.

"Di San Xian? Daddy, I want some!"

"Boyfriend, I want to eat your eggplant too."

Jiang Liu patted both of their heads. "You two are such little foodies. Let’s go. We have a busy day ahead, we need to get to the shop."

"Okay, can the two of us help you out more when we get there?"

They got in the car.

Jun Qingmeng carefully fastened Tongtong’s seatbelt, patted her on the head, and then turned to sit in the front passenger seat.

"Tongtong, you can take a nap. I’ll keep your daddy company." 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Tongtong was already slumped over in the back seat, fast asleep.

A few seconds later, Jun Qingmeng’s head tilted to the side, and she also fell asleep on Jiang Liu’s shoulder.

After a quick trip to the wet market, Jiang Liu returned to Yangzhai Street.

He parked the car, pulled his small cart, and walked over, holding the hand of a bouncing Tongtong.

By now, over two hundred customers were already lined up at the entrance, so noisy that the residents upstairs had installed triple-paned glass.

And at the very front of the line, there were still tents.

They were really going all out just to eat Jiang Liu’s food.

When the customers saw Jiang Liu, they immediately greeted him happily.

"You’re finally here! If you were any later, we would’ve called the police to report you missing!"

"Boss Jiang, you’re awake? Any new items today?"

The one who spoke was Wu Lingling.

She had gotten off her night shift early today, sent on a mission by Chu Songrong to buy Jiang Liu’s food.

Jiang Liu replied with a smile, "The weather’s getting a bit chilly, so I plan to make some nutritious congee for everyone. I’ve also made some Di San Xian as a side dish. If you like, you can buy it as a combo."

Wu Lingling was stunned. She had only asked casually, but she didn’t expect him to actually have something new!

The surrounding customers were incredibly excited.

"I was just craving some congee! Rice congee with Di San Xian, that’s gonna be delicious! And it’s made by Boss Jiang, too. I really came on the right day, haha."

"Di San Xian really is amazing. I heard Old Xia had it before, he bragged to me about it so many times."

"How many portions, Brother Jiang? Will I have a chance from my spot in line? What do I do if I want to eat some?"