readease Chapter 1523 The Most Comfortable Time [Thanks to generous reader Rayzz666 for the patronage donatio
Chapter 1523 The Most Comfortable Time [Thanks to generous reader Rayzz666 for the patronage donatio
Chapter 1523 The Most Comfortable Time [Thanks to generous reader Rayzz666 for the patronage donation]
The winter sun shines brightly over Beijing, and the year-end is fast approaching.
In just over ten days, it will be the Lunar New Year. All the running around and busyness of the past year is finally coming to an end.
Many people have already started their holiday mode, finishing up the last bit of work, preparing to pack their bags, board the train home, and reunite with their waiting families.
Major shopping districts and malls have also launched their promotions, with red lanterns and discount posters everywhere. People are flocking out to buy New Year's goods, and the festive atmosphere is spreading from the bustling crowds and overflowing shopping carts.
The time before the Lunar New Year is actually the most comfortable. The hard work is about to end, and the annual holiday is just around the corner, just like Friday evening before the end of the workday.
It fills people with anticipation for the wonderful things to come and makes them look forward to the arrival of New Year's Eve with peace of mind.
Influenced by the upcoming Lunar New Year atmosphere, the small house also had a festive scene.
Clear blue sky, sunshine filling the room.
Although no one will be here when the New Year actually arrives, everyone still begins making various preparations for the holiday.
On such a beautiful day, their first decision was to do a thorough cleaning, a standard practice before the Lunar New Year, and everyone in the small house got busy and lively.
Needless to say, the girls downstairs will clean their own rooms. As for the upstairs rooms, Meng Lang suggested that everyone should just tidy up their own rooms as well.
Upon hearing this, Fang Ran immediately started fighting with him.
In the end, Xia Yao and Ming Ling helped tidy up the living room, Tang Bing and Fang Xiaoran were in charge of the kitchen, and Fang Ran and Meng Lang were responsible for everything else.
Since Xiao Huo's mother arrived in the capital yesterday, and Gou Yu is not here today to accompany her shopping for New Year's goods, his room will be shared by the two of them.
Mingling actually volunteered to take charge of Gouyu's room, but Fang Ran suspected her of trespassing and sternly rejected her offer.
Golden sunlight streamed into the small house, and various items were neatly arranged to one side. The air was filled with the distinctive scent of moisture from a thorough cleaning, and the sounds of sweeping instantly brightened my mood.
Inside the bathroom, Fang Ran and Meng Lang were crouching in front of the bathtub, secretly examining it.
"Dude, are you sure it will really work?"
"Of course, bro, you've forgotten who cleaned you up when you were covered in poop in the scene."
"Hey! You bastard, how dare you even mention it! Who do you think caused this? And you're covered in shit! You're such a jerk!"
"Wait! Bro, don't start! If we do it this way, the two of us can clean the bathroom in no time!"
Faced with the task of cleaning an entire bathroom, the two cleverly decided to use their abilities to take a shortcut and slack off, without being seen by Xia Yao and the others. After a friendly bickering and discussion,
Fang Ran finally took out the [Bubble Card], which had not yet been officially awakened, and solemnly muttered incantations:
"It harbors dark power."
"Stop talking nonsense, you imposter, stop pretending to have a spellcasting animation and hurry up!"
Seeing his antics brought back some unpleasant memories, and Meng Lang got goosebumps all over. He immediately reached out to urge him on, and Fang Ran, who had been pretending to be clueless, was suddenly interrupted by his shove.
"Hey! Bro, don't touch me! Holy crap!"
Then, without realizing it, he accidentally typed 500 instead of the 50 he intended to invest.
The next second, a wave of foam burst forth and flooded most of the bathroom!
In an instant, they felt white foam rush towards them, and Fang Ran and Meng Lang were instantly engulfed. After a moment of panic, they scrambled out to the bedroom.
Then, the two 'snow monkeys' silently watched as the foam flooded the bathroom door frame.
"Um, bro, on the bright side, at least we don't have to worry about unsanitary corners anymore."
"You damn blind spot!!"
Leaving aside the various tricks the magical boys used during the cleaning, the small tables and carpets were lifted, the cushions and coffee tables were moved away, and sunlight streamed across the large floorboards, making the room instantly more spacious and bright.
In the living room, Xia Yao and Ming Ling were cleaning the room where everyone usually stayed.
Although they are all pampered young ladies who don't have to do housework, they still know how to do simple cleaning and tidying. And with Gou Yu's usual tidying up, there's not much they need to do themselves.
I let the robot vacuum cleaner clean the floor. In front of the TV, where the coffee table, cushions, and beanbag chair were originally, I placed a vase to the left of the game console, then thought for a moment and put it back to the right. Next, I examined it very carefully.
Mingling then revealed a proud expression, and then she looked at the progress at the other end of the living room.
After tidying up and cleaning the cabinets on the wall, Xia Yao was making Fang Ran's bed. She took the quilt to the balcony to air it out, and then carefully spread out the sheets and placed the pillows neatly.
Watching this scene silently, Mingling moved closer to her and couldn't help but mutter softly:
"Xiao Yao, if you keep dressing like this, you'll look like his mother, let alone a girlfriend."
Upon hearing this, Xia Yao paused in her actions, then glanced at the kitchen and bathroom to make sure no one had overheard before turning back to Ming Ling with a reproachful look:
"Lingzi, what nonsense are you spouting? Come and help!"
In response to her defiant answer, Mingling snorted twice, then casually took a large trash bag that Xia Yao had dragged over.
Normally, these kinds of chores are left to the nanny. Mingling listlessly stretched the bag opening, watching Xia Yao pick up the trash can next to Fang Ran's bed and empty the trash into the bag.
But then, as if she had just thought of something, she suddenly focused intently on something through the transparent plastic bag.
"What are you looking at?"
Seeing her suddenly become serious, Xia Yao was a little surprised. In response, Ming Ling simply leaned closer to her with a mysterious look, then chuckled mischievously in a low voice:
"I'm checking if there's any suspicious toilet paper."
After immediately understanding what she was saying, Xia Yao blushed and lightly spat out a punch.
Besides the upstairs area, there were also various unexpected incidents during the cleaning downstairs. Although the girls cleaned their own rooms, they still needed the boys' help to move heavy objects.
The sky was clear and the bright sunlight shone on the shadows of the houses. Fang Ran followed Tang Bing downstairs.
"Speaking of which, Hulu, it's no problem for me to help you move some things, but is it okay for me to just walk into your room like this?"
"What are you thinking, you old pervert, senior? Since I dared to let you in, of course I've already tidied everything up!"
"Oh, I was just worried that with your luck, Hulu, I might see something embarrassing if I go in." At Tang Bing's request to help carry her things down, Fang Ran arrived at her room door and went in together after Tang Bing opened the door.
The magical boys almost never came to the girls' rooms downstairs. Fang Ran only came to Tang Bing and Xia Yao's rooms twice, when he was helping out, but he had been to Fang Xiaoran's room many times.
Because my younger sister would occasionally drag me to tutoring before the holidays.
"Hey, Hulu, you packed really fast! By the way, where are the things we need to move?"
Entering Tang Bing's room, Fang Ran looked at the moved tables and chairs and the still-wet floor and asked,
Compared to Fang Xiaoran's simple and tidy room, Tang Bing's room has a more feminine feel. The desk, cabinets, and single sofa are decorated with various small items she bought online, such as dolls and storage boxes. The bright colors exude a youthful vitality that loves life.
"Over here, over here, I'd like to move the dryer."
Hearing Fang Ran's words, Tang Bing walked briskly towards the bathroom, but just as she pushed open the door, because the broom was in an unusual location, a broom slipped and got stuck right between her legs.
"Eh eh eh ah!"
Startled by her exclamation, Fang Ran quickly followed to check, and then saw Tang Bing kneeling on the ground, bowing deeply to her washing machine.
"Hulu, are you alright?"
"Hmm... thank goodness, thank goodness, I'm lucky to be alive."
Hearing Tang Bing mutter that she seemed alright, Fang Ran sighed, thinking that no wonder she was called "Gourd"—she could even fall down in her own room. Just as he was about to help her up,
Suddenly, I saw something on the ground; it must have fallen out when Tang Bing tripped and hit the storage cabinet next to her.
A strange little pink switch.
Fang Ran: "."
The moment he realized what this might be, Fang Ran stared in disbelief, as if struck by lightning.
Σ(Д!!! Wait, what happened to Hulu? We agreed to pack everything up!?
At that moment, he subconsciously picked it up, staring blankly at the "on" and "off" buttons. As if possessed, Fang Ran pressed the button to turn it on.
The next second, he saw the nightlight by the bathroom door suddenly turn on.
"Hulu, what kind of stuff do you usually buy online?!"
Amidst laughter and lively activity, and with various little mishaps, everyone in the small house busily got to work, tidying up and organizing various things.
On sunny days, they clean the little house that holds their daily lives together.
And during this period leading up to the Lunar New Year, there's more to it than just spring cleaning. After tidying upstairs and downstairs,
Around noon, with Xia Yao's help, Tang Bing had already started making braised pig's trotters and braised beef in the kitchen, while Ming Ling directed Meng Lang to hang lanterns.
Outside the cottage, Fang Ran and Fang Xiaoran were putting up Spring Festival couplets.
"Is this okay?" "A little more to the left." "Like this?"
"A little higher." "Like this?"
"Ah."
Outside the door to the room on the first floor, Fang Ran held a horizontal scroll with both hands. Fang Xiaoran was behind him, helping him confirm the location while handing him a brush.
Each person had chosen their own Spring Festival couplets for their room, along with homemade batter that they had specially prepared.
After pasting up a pair of Spring Festival couplets, I stepped back to examine the finished product. The red paper and black characters, with their auspicious words, shone brightly under the clear winter sky.
"Half is left."
Just then, I heard Fang Xiaoran's voice, turned my head, and saw her profile against the blue sky, her breath steaming in the air. She was pasting up Spring Festival couplets in this traditional way, just like when I was a child.
A festive atmosphere quietly permeated the air, making Fang Ran feel momentarily disoriented.
The sights of Chinese New Year, spring cleaning, and pasting Spring Festival couplets instantly evoked deep memories: snowy landscapes and steaming warmth. A child's recollections of celebrating the New Year in a small town suddenly surged forth.
"Speaking of which, when we were kids, the two of us were also responsible for putting up the Spring Festival couplets every year."
At this moment, Fang Ran stared blankly at the newly pasted Spring Festival couplets, as if they were a door from a certain apartment building in his memory, and upon hearing what he said...
Perhaps recalling some past memories, Fang Xiaoran softly spoke beside him:
“Back then, you were always very excited during the Chinese New Year, and you would rush to do many things.”
In her words, she recalled the past, many things from her childhood, the happiness of that time, and also the sadness that followed.
But seeing Fang Xiaoran standing beside him again, the past was behind him, and the desire to rekindle it burned brightly.
In the joy of the approaching New Year, Fang Ran's face lit up with a bright and excited expression:
"Let's go and finish pasting the rest."
Seeing his face now evoked a strange sense of nostalgia, and Fang Xiaoran nodded obediently as she used to.
"Ah."
Then, just as the two turned to put up the remaining Spring Festival couplets, they saw a black cat ball that had already eaten all the batter and was lying perfectly still in the mixing bowl.
On this most comfortable day, the young man chased after the enemy, shouting one last time:
"Hey you, stop right there!"
Phew, finally finished writing this. My left hand was injured a few days ago, triggering tenosynovitis, and my right hand had to be covered in ointment. These past few days have been incredibly troublesome. [A few days ago, after a year and a half, I finally remembered to check my donation history. To the generous donors, I am extremely sorry for only remembering to thank you so late. Thank you for your continued support.]