Conan: Ran turns into an elementary school student and calls me dad.

Chapter 87 Little Angel

"No, no! You can't touch that!"

Xiao Lan reacted unusually strongly, pressing her hands tightly against Lin Xiuyi, as if afraid he would barge in to see what was going on.

"Just wait outside obediently, okay? It'll be quick!"

Lin Xiuyi was puzzled, but seeing that Xiaolan's anxious face was turning red, she didn't make things difficult for her anymore.

"Well, Xiaolan, actually, I wanted to tell you..."

Looking at the small figure in front of her, Lin Xiuyi recalled the photo of her daughter at seventeen years old that she had seen before, and spoke with a firm expression.

"Dad will definitely turn you back to normal."

Xiao Lan never expected that Lin Xiuyi would come over at this time just to say this.

But seeing the determination on Lin Xiuyi's face, the girl suddenly felt a warm feeling in her heart.

She bit her lip and suddenly reached out and tugged at Lin Xiuyi's hand.

"what?"

"Squat down!"

Xiao Lan stomped her foot, but surprisingly let out a spoiled cry.

What's this girl up to?

Lin Xiuyi's doubts deepened. His gaze lingered between his daughter's flushed cheeks and bright eyes. In the end, he suppressed his curiosity, slowly bent his knees, and squatted down little by little to be at eye level with Xiaolan.

He had barely regained his footing and hadn't even had a chance to ask a question when Xiaolan opened her arms, her soft arms encircling his neck, her cheek pressed against his ear, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz yet exceptionally clear: "...Thank you!"

Before she could finish speaking, the girl's soft lips gently touched Lin Xiuyi's cheek.

"Well……"

Lin Xiuyi froze, her mind going completely blank, as if countless fireworks were exploding and buzzing.

He has met many women in his life, some of whom have kissed him and some of whom he has kissed; the number is too many to count on one's fingers, and some have long since faded from memory.

But this was the first time he had ever been kissed on the cheek by his own daughter.

The soft touch seemed to still linger on his cheek, warm and real, leaving him momentarily at a loss for how to react.

After being stunned for several seconds, Lin Xiuyi suddenly came to her senses, and the astonishment in her eyes was instantly replaced by ecstasy.

He laughed heartily, picked Xiaolan up in his arms, and then kissed his daughter's rosy cheeks twice.

"what……"

This time, it was Xiaolan's turn to freeze, her eyes wide open, and her cheeks instantly turning so red they looked like they could bleed.

She kissed Lin Xiuyi just now out of momentary emotion, wanting to get closer to her father whom she had lost and found again. She never expected him to be so excited.

A moment later, seeing the undisguised joy on Lin Xiuyi's face, Xiaolan realized that he was just too happy.

The girl was still a little shy. She gently punched Lin Xiuyi's shoulder with her small hand, but in the end she didn't blame him. Instead, a smile appeared on her lips.

"Xiao Lan, don't worry," Lin Xiuyi said, holding her daughter with a firm gaze and a solemn tone, "Just for that one moment, I will definitely find a way to turn you back!"

As he spoke, for some reason, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

If only seventeen-year-old Xiaolan could kiss herself like this, how wonderful that would be!

The moment the thought crossed Lin Xiuyi's mind, she quickly shook her head, inwardly cursing herself for being absurd. She hurriedly suppressed this inappropriate idea, afraid that her daughter would notice something amiss.

Xiaolan was naturally unaware of her father's fleeting thoughts.

She leaned against Lin Xiuyi's chest, hesitated for a moment, then blushed slightly, lowered her head, and said softly, "Actually... it's not bad like this."

"what?"

Lin Xiuyi looked at her daughter with some confusion.

"Why would you say that? It's so inconvenient to shrink like this; you can't go to school or meet your friends like before..."

Xiao Lan raised her head, a faint sadness in her eyes. This was the first time she had opened her heart to her father, Lin Xiuyi, so honestly.

"When I was little, my mother was always busy with her work as a lawyer, leaving early and returning late every day."

"Every time I come home from school, the house is empty; I'm often the only one there."

"Because I don't want the house to be too cold and lonely."

Xiaolan's gaze drifted into the distance, as if she had returned to the time when she was alone as a child.

"Back then, I always liked to turn on the TV as soon as I got home. Even if I didn't watch it, just listening to the sound of the TV made me feel like I wasn't alone in the house anymore, and it made me feel more at ease."

"Later I met Shinichi. He was even more pitiful than me. He only had Uncle Kudo at home."

"Although I have playmates, and we can go to school and solve cases together, I am still all alone when I get home every day."

"It's much better now than it was back then," Xiaolan's gaze returned to Lin Xiuyi's face. "Although I've shrunk and it's inconvenient for me to do anything, and I have to be careful about many things, my mom and dad are here every day when I come home, and the house finally feels warm again."

"These... are actually the things I longed for most when I was a child."

……

As she listened to her daughter softly recount her past loneliness and grievances, Lin Xiuyi's eyes gradually reddened, and her heart felt as if something was blocking it, both sour and bitter.

He tightened his arms, holding Xiaolan close to his chest.

"...I'm sorry, Xiaolan, it's my fault. I wasn't able to be by your side before."

"It's not your fault," Xiaolan said, gently wiping the moisture from the corner of Lin Xiu's eye with her small hand. Her tone was mature and understanding. "Mom told me that she was too stubborn and went too far before. You couldn't stand it, so you left Japan."

"Xiao Lan..." Lin Xiuyi's voice choked up completely.

He looked down at his well-behaved and sensible daughter in his arms and felt that she was like a little angel, pure and kind. He wished he could immediately present her with the best things in the world.

If he had known that Eri and Ran were so sensible, he would never have left in a huff, nor would he have wandered around for so many years, missing so much of his daughters' growth.

"Alright, I need to make some food, otherwise it'll cause delays later."

Xiao Lan stepped down from Lin Xiuyi's arms, her cheeks still flushed.

"Could you... go out first? The kitchen is too small; two people can't move around in it."

"Okay, okay, I'll go now," Lin Xiuyi said, having no reason to refuse her daughter's request. "Be careful, don't burn yourself."

After saying that, he walked out of the kitchen, turning back every few steps.

Watching Lin Xiuyi walk out and gently close the door, Xiao Lan immediately breathed a sigh of relief, raised her hand to pat her still burning cheeks, and couldn't help but smile slightly.

She had just turned around when she heard a soft footstep behind her.

The next second, Eri Kisaki sneaked out from behind the storage cabinet in the corner of the kitchen.