txolops Chapter 139 The Special Door Reserved for Dad
Chapter 139 The Special Door Reserved for Dad
It's 6:30 p.m.
The weekend evening breeze was warm, and diners lined up in droves at the food stalls.
Although the queue wasn't as long as it was on weekdays, there were still about ten people in line.
"Two servings of fried rice are ready, hold on tight!"
Wang Hai tied the takeout bag, handed it to the customer in front of him, and turned to the queue, saying, "Next!"
What would you like to eat?
Customers at the back of the line stepped forward to order, and the queue moved forward methodically.
Just then, a figure walked to the very end of the line and joined the queue with the guests in front of him.
It is Su Qingxue.
She wasn't wearing her usual work suit today, and Secretary Chen wasn't with her either.
On the weekend, she changed into casual clothes.
She wore a soft, light beige knitted cardigan over a simple white cotton top, paired with loose-fitting light blue straight-leg jeans and flat shoes.
Her long hair, which she usually kept meticulously tied up, was simply pinned up at the back of her head with a hair clip today, with a few stray strands falling around her fair neck.
She stood at the back of the line, moving forward step by step with the crowd.
However, she didn't stay in the line for long.
Tangtang, who had been sitting obediently on a small stool on the side of the stall, just grabbed two spoons from her small basket and handed them to the customer in front of her.
The little girl looked up, and her big eyes lit up instantly.
"Pretty auntie!"
Tangtang's clear and childlike voice rang out in front of the stall.
She immediately dropped the spoon she was holding that hadn't been handed out yet, stood up from her small stool, and with her short legs, ran "pat-pat" towards the back of the line.
Hearing that familiar call, Su Qingxue looked up.
When she saw the little figure with two small pigtails running towards her, a gentle smile instantly melted into her eyes.
She bent down slightly and reached out to catch Tangtang as she pounced on her.
"Pretty auntie, you're here for dinner!"
Tangtang looked up with her rosy cheeks and happily hugged Su Qingxue's legs with her two little hands.
"Yes, Auntie's here to buy fried rice."
Su Qingxue reached out and tidied the little girl's messy bangs. "Was Tangtang good today?"
"Tangtang is such a good girl! She's been helping Daddy with chores all day!"
Tangtang proudly puffed out her little chest.
The commotion naturally caught the attention of Lin Chen and Wang Hai, who were standing in front of the stall.
Wang Hai had just finished serving the food to the guests when he turned around and saw Su Qingxue standing at the end of the line. He was stunned for a moment before he realized who she was.
"Oh, Mr. Su!"
Wang Hai greeted him with a smile, "I didn't recognize you at first glance in your outfit today."
"You come to buy food yourself even on weekends?"
"Yeah, I was resting at home on the weekend and got hungry, so I came to buy some fried rice."
Su Qingxue responded, took out her phone, and scanned the payment code posted on the side of the counter. "One order of fried rice, payment has been made."
"Alright! Mr. Su, you still have three orders ahead of you, please wait a moment."
Wang Hai glanced at the payment notification and noted down the order as required.
Lin Chen also stopped using the iron spoon in his hand and looked up.
Seeing Su Qingxue, who was wearing a beige knit sweater and had a much gentler demeanor, Lin Chen's expression didn't change much; he simply nodded slightly.
"President Su."
Lin Chen greeted him.
"Boss Lin."
Su Qingxue nodded slightly in acknowledgment.
Just then, Tangtang grabbed Su Qingxue's finger and gently pulled it to the side of the stall.
"Pretty auntie, come with me!"
Don't stand there in line, your legs will get sore.
Come sit on my little chair and wait!
Tangtang said in a childish voice as she pulled.
Seeing the little girl's serious expression, Su Qingxue did not refuse.
Since I've already paid and got a number, it doesn't matter where I wait.
Following Tangtang's lead, she stepped out of the line and into a corner next to the stall.
Tangtang moved the little stool she always sat on over and placed it on the ground, then patted it with her little hand.
"Pretty auntie, please have a seat!"
Su Qingxue adjusted her hem and sat down on the small stool.
"Thank you, Tangtang."
Su Qingxue said softly.
Lin Chen glanced at Su Qingxue sitting in the corner, said nothing, and simply looked away, poured another spoonful of oil into the pan, and continued tossing the fried rice.
Seeing that Su Qingxue was seated, Tangtang didn't sit idle either.
She turned and ran to the handlebars of the tricycle, stood on tiptoe, took down her little schoolbag with a windmill pattern, hugged it to her chest, and ran back to Su Qingxue's side.
"Pretty auntie, I have something to show you!"
Tangtang's big eyes sparkled, and her tone was full of eagerness to share.
"What good stuff is it?"
Su Qingxue leaned forward slightly to look at her.
Tangtang unzipped her little backpack and reached inside to rummage around.
"Clang clang clang—"
Tangtang made a sound while taking a large, rolled-up sheet of drawing paper out of her schoolbag.
She carefully unfolded the drawing paper and laid it flat in mid-air above Su Qingxue's knees.
"Look, beautiful auntie! This is the big castle I drew at home this morning!"
Tangtang pointed at the drawing paper and began to speak.
Su Qingxue lowered her head and examined the painting in front of her.
Although the lines on the drawing paper are full of the naivety unique to children, the colors are applied very saturatedly.
Pink rooftops, blue city walls, and a few fluffy white clouds floating in the sky—it's all so childlike and imaginative.
"It's beautifully painted. The colors are applied very evenly."
Su Qingxue genuinely found it adorable.
She reached out and gently pointed to the red rectangle in the very center of the drawing paper that almost occupied half of the castle wall. "Is this red thing the castle gate?"
Why is it drawn so big?
Upon hearing this question, Tangtang's eyes immediately curved into two small crescent moons.
"Yes! This is the main door left for Daddy!"
Tangtang raised her little face and explained in a clear voice, "Because Daddy is very, very tall!"
If the door is drawn too small, Dad won't be able to get in when he comes home from get off work.
I'm going to draw a super big door so Daddy can just walk right in and play with Tangtang!
After hearing this, Su Qingxue was slightly taken aback, and then the smile in her eyes deepened.
She turned her head and glanced at Lin Chen not far away.
"Tangtang is so sensible and thoughtful."
Su Qingxue turned around and praised softly, "Your father will definitely be very happy to see this gate."
"Yes! Daddy said he'll be walking in from here from now on!"
Tangtang nodded vigorously.
Then, her little finger moved along the drawing paper to a small corner at the very edge of the castle.
There was an inconspicuous little square drawn there with a yellow crayon.
"Pretty auntie, look at this again!"
Tangtang pointed to the small yellow square.
"And what is this yellow one?"
Su Qingxue followed her little finger and looked over, asking with some curiosity.
"This is Uncle Fatty's little window!"
Tangtang answered in a very serious manner.
"Small window?"
"Yes!"
Tangtang explained to Su Qingxue, "Because Uncle Pang needs to cook, this little window is connected to the kitchen."
Once Uncle Fatty has finished making the delicious minced meat rice, he can hand it to me and Dad through this little window!
Wang Hai, who was packing fried rice for a customer nearby, kept his ears perked up.
Hearing Tangtang introducing his "food delivery window" to the boss again, I couldn't help but turn around and laugh helplessly.
"Mr. Su, listen to this. This girl left such a big door for her father in this castle."
For me, they only left a service window for delivering meals!
As Wang Hai handed over the takeout bag, he chuckled and complained, "In her mind, I'm just someone who's only responsible for serving dishes."
Hearing Wang Hai's complaints, Su Qingxue finally couldn't help but chuckle.
"That's good. The position of logistics manager is very important, which means Tangtang can't live without your cooking."
Su Qingxue looked at Wang Hai and, unusually, made a joke.
"Absolutely!"
Wang Hai raised an eyebrow smugly.
When Tangtang saw the pretty auntie smile, she giggled along with her.
She rolled up the drawing paper again and put it back in her little schoolbag.
"Pretty auntie, when I go to kindergarten tomorrow, I'm going to show this big castle to Teacher Liu!"
Tangtang patted her little backpack and said with a look of anticipation.
"Yes, the teacher will definitely praise you."
……