CHAPTER 785: CHAPTER 681: I’VE LIKED YOU SINCE THE FIRST GLANCE 22

"Is that not okay?" Mu Qing looked at Jian Dan with a smile, her eyes expressing grievance as she asked.

Zhao Linlin felt her skin crawl and tugged at Jian Dan, "Don’t be fooled by her act of grievance; she’s good at deceiving people. Before, she told my brother Mu Yuan that she’d only go out for a bit, but after he covered for her, she never returned."

Jian Dan: "..."

Mu Qing almost threw a bowl at her, "Can’t you keep your mouth shut for two seconds? No one thinks you’re mute. Acting like this, you’re easily going to offend people, okay? I’ve taught you for so long, and it’s like nothing has stuck. Are you a pig or what?"

Zhao Linlin’s face turned red with anger, "Cousin, believe it or not, I’m going to call our family right now and tell them the location of your apartment in the capital."

Mu Qing stopped talking immediately, her face also sour, "You’re ruthless."

Zhao Linlin couldn’t be more smug; this was the effect she wanted. It should be just like this.

Jian Dan looked at the two bickering and couldn’t help feeling both amused and exasperated. She told Aunt Lin that next time Aunt Li came to switch shifts with her, to take good care of Mu Qing as well. Since Mu Qing was a celebrity, it wasn’t convenient for her to go out, and making some food for her at home wasn’t out of the question.

Aunt Lin quite liked the H2O team, and Mu Qing didn’t seem that old either. Having cared for Jian Dan for years like her own child, Jian Dan’s friends could practically be treated as her own kids too. Besides, Mr. Jian also hoped Jian Dan would have her own social life, so not all her attention would be on him, which would be a big pressure. It wasn’t that he was tired of Jian Dan, but he was concerned that her life was too focused on a single point.

In that case, it was better for her to make more friends, giving her more options.

Mu Qing and Zhao Linlin didn’t go back next door but stayed put at Jian Dan’s place. Zhao Linlin said to Mu Qing, "Look at the decoration style of your place compared to Jian Dan’s, isn’t it incredibly LOW? The kind that’s hopelessly inferior?"

"Zhao Linlin, don’t you go too far." Mu Qing frowned, "Have I given you the courage to criticize me like this? You really have no respect for your elders."

Zhao Linlin looked at her incredulously, not saying a word in the end. Alright, she admitted she was a bit too excited today and said some unkind things, but it wasn’t her fault entirely; her cousin was asking for it.

Jian Dan’s home theater housed many old original film reels that Jian Dan cherished. These were all sought out by Secretary Zhou for her, along with plenty of vintage records. One whole wall of the home theater was practically covered with film reels.

Roll after roll, marked with their names.

Mu Qing walked around in surprise, then started to laugh, "You like these?"

She was asking Jian Dan, who stood behind Zhao Linlin, because Zhao Linlin wanted to watch a very old movie whose lead actor had passed away but was a classic among classics, no longer available online. To her surprise, Jian Dan had it.

Zhao Linlin was excited, and when Mu Qing asked her question, Jian Dan’s attention was diverted. She nodded, "I do quite like these old things, they have a certain feel to them, but I’m more into collecting them. With so many, I haven’t even finished watching a third of them."

Mu Qing smiled, "That’s still pretty good. Did you collect all these yourself?"

Jian Dan shook her head, "How could I possibly have access to collect these? My Uncle Jian’s secretary gathered these for me. He said it’s not easy at all, many were acquired from other collectors, and the items he traded were equally prestigious."

Mu Qing appeared contemplative, "Your uncle is good to you."

Jian Dan felt that this was true and nodded, "Yes, Uncle Jian has been very good to me, satisfying almost all my requests. He raised me."

"Your parents..." Zhao Linlin blurted out three words, but Mu Qing cut her off.

"Linlin, mind your manners."

Zhao Linlin immediately shut her mouth, looking at Jian Dan apologetically, "I’m sorry, Jian Dan, I didn’t mean to. Don’t be upset."

Zhao Linlin was frank to the point of carelessness, and sometimes, she wasn’t very tactful with her words, often unaware even when she misspoke. Now, she was genuinely worried that Jian Dan might be upset. Jian Dan shook her head and smiled.

"My mother passed away when I was born, and my father, who was a soldier, also passed away early. Uncle Jian was my father’s friend and he adopted me."

Mu Qing gave a comforting smile, "Your uncle sounds like a good person."

Jian Dan smiled, "Yes, he is."

...

In the afternoon, Mu Qing left Jian Dan’s place with some sweet and sour ribs, praising Aunt Lin and giving her a couple of autographs before leaving. Zhao Linlin, on the other hand, lingered at Jian Dan’s, not wanting to leave. Jian Dan didn’t really mind, but felt that Zhao Linlin talked too much.