Youth Equals Snacks

Under the bright fluorescent lights of the supermarket, Jiang Yunlu and Lin Mo pushed a shopping cart together, its wheels rumbling softly over the smooth floor tiles.

Jiang Yunlu tilted her head slightly to study Lin Mo’s side profile.

"What does your dad dislike?"

The sudden question caught Jiang Yunlu off guard as she was busy studying his profile.

"Huh?" She didn't react immediately, a trace of confusion in her eyes.

Seeing how cute she looked, Lin Mo repeated himself, his voice laced with amusement. "I said, what does Uncle dislike? I want to avoid any landmines so I don't bring the wrong gift on my first visit."

Jiang Yunlu breathed a sigh of relief; she had thought it was something serious.

She thought about it earnestly, then shook her head. "My dad... doesn't seem to hate anything in particular."

"Oh, he does," Lin Mo said, his tone suddenly turning dry and teasing. "For example, me."

"Pfft."

Jiang Yunlu couldn't hold it back and laughed out loud. Her crisp laughter drew the attention of an older woman passing by.

Her cheeks flushed slightly. She gave Lin Mo's arm a gentle punch and scolded him playfully, "Don't talk nonsense."

Despite her words, her heart felt soft.

She knew, of course, that her father's attitude toward Lin Mo wasn't exactly enthusiastic, but it certainly wasn't at the level of "hating" him, as Lin Mo claimed.

After all, given her father's habits and temper, if he really looked down on someone, he never would have agreed to her request to let Lin Mo visit their home.

Actually, for a first visit, buying some seasonal fruit and a carton of milk would have been perfectly adequate etiquette.

But before she could say anything, she watched helplessly as Lin Mo pushed the cart and turned familiarly into the tobacco and liquor section.

The shelves were lined with an array of alcohol, gleaming temptingly under the lights.

"Does your dad prefer foreign liquor or domestic? Remy Martin, Louis XIII... or maybe I should get him a bottle of Jiujiang Double Distilled? That stuff's got a kick!"

Seeing Jiang Yunlu remain silent, he mischievously grabbed a plainly packaged bottle of cheap rice wine from the bottom shelf.

Jiang Yunlu didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his antics. She quickly stepped forward, snatched the bottle from his hand, put it back, kept a straight face, and shook her head vigorously.

"No! I don't allow him to drink at home."

Lin Mo nodded. "Such strict house rules? Not bad. It seems your esteemed father is quite obedient at home."

Teased by his words, Jiang Yunlu felt a bit embarrassed and mumbled softly, "I'm doing it for his health."

"Understood."

Lin Mo nodded, stopped joking, and decisively pushed the cart out of the liquor section.

As he spoke, he picked up a large carton of that famous coconut milk everyone grew up drinking from the beverage aisle.

"This should be fine, right? The whole country knows it's good stuff."

"That's fine." She loved this coconut milk too.

Compared to the other brand Lin Mo used to drink in Hecheng, he preferred this one as well.

Next, Lin Mo turned his attention to the health supplements section.

The decor here was different; the lighting was softer, and the shelves looked more upscale. Exquisitely packaged gift boxes were on display, silently proclaiming their high value.

"This Lingzhi mushroom set looks nice."

"This ginseng and velvet antler one looks good too."

Lin Mo tossed two expensive-looking gift boxes into the cart as casually as if he were strolling through his own backyard.

The price tags printed on the corners of the boxes clearly showed four-digit figures.

Jiang Yunlu’s heart skipped a beat.

She wasn't a girl out of touch with reality. She knew her family was wealthy, and she knew not everyone had that kind of money.

Especially since she had learned about Lin Mo's background later on.

She hurried to catch up, grabbed Lin Mo’s sleeve, and lowered her voice. "Lin Mo, these are too expensive! Don't waste your money."

Lin Mo stopped and looked back at her.

His gaze was calm, without a hint of jest.

He reached back to cover the hand holding his sleeve and patted it gently.

"It's my first time visiting your home; the etiquette must be impeccable."

"Besides, you banned the tobacco and alcohol, so I have to make up for it elsewhere. You can't really expect me to show up with just a carton of coconut milk, can you?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an unquestionable seriousness.

"It's a matter of attitude."

Talking as they walked, the cart gradually passed the snack section.

Originally holding only two or three items, the cart was piled into a small mountain by the time they emerged.

Puffed snacks, chocolate bars, jelly, potato chips... a dazzling array.

"Can I really eat these? My dad never lets me; he says they're junk food."

Her cautious demeanor made her look like a cat trying to steal a fish.

Lin Mo nodded seriously. "They are indeed junk food."

Jiang Yunlu's eyes dimmed for a moment.

"However," Lin Mo changed his tone, weighing a bag of potato chips in his hand, "at our age, if we don't eat this stuff, our youth is incomplete. When you grow up, it just doesn't taste the same even if you want to eat it."

His theory successfully rekindled the light in Jiang Yunlu’s sparkling eyes.

When Lin Mo was a child, he would pester his mother to buy him a tube of potato chips for school field trips.

At the amusement park, little Lin Mo often couldn't bear to finish them.

He would insist on waiting until he got back to school in the afternoon to have a feast with his classmates and finish the remaining snacks.

But at some point, walking into a snack shop and seeing those colorful packages no longer stirred any emotion in him.

Perhaps that was the change that came with growing up.

When Lin Mo and Jiang Yunlu pushed the cart into the snack aisle, Jiang Yunlu’s eyes lit up.

Lin Mo knew this girl had been sheltered well by her family.

This protection wasn't just regarding safety, but lifestyle as well.

But Lin Mo actually had a question: Why did Jiang Yunlu attend a public high school?

Yangcheng had plenty of elite private high schools—some specialized in preparing students for studying abroad, while others offered high-quality education focused on the Gaokao.

Yet, Jiang Yunlu had come to Guangba.

To the Lin Mo of his past life, it was like a fairy descending to the mortal world.

However, in that past life, no boy at Guangba had been able to win the fairy's favor.

Of course, that was the previous life.

Lin Mo and Jiang Yunlu each carried a bag.

Snacks made up ninety percent of the contents, but that didn't matter.

Lin Mo and Jiang Yunlu got off the elevator. Before Jiang Yunlu could even make a call, Uncle Zhao had already spotted them from a corner and drove the car over.

The window rolled down, and Uncle Zhao poked his head out. His gaze lingered on the snack bags in their hands for a second, but he said nothing. He simply spoke gently to them:

"Miss, Mr. Lin, please get in."

They didn't put the two bags of snacks in the trunk; they just took them into the car.

From the rearview mirror, Uncle Zhao watched as Lin Mo fished two squeezable jelly pouches out of the snack bag, giving one to Jiang Yunlu and sipping on the other himself.

If President Jiang found out, he would probably explode.