Xu Xiuwen understood what Zhang Ruoshu ant.
He said, “Aunt Zhang, I understand what you an. Don’t worry, Youran and I are fine.”
Zhang Ruoshu nodded, “I trust you with this. Since you two are studying away from ho, I can’t take care of Youran myself. I’m entrusting her to you.”
“Alright, you can rest assured. I’ll take good care of Youran.”
Hearing Xu Xiuwen’s assurance, Zhang Ruoshu breathed a sigh of relief.
Xiao Xu’s attitude was pretty good.
It seed that there shouldn’t be any big issues between them, probably just a minor disagreent.
It’s normal for couples to have so conflicts, especially since she knew her daughter’s temperant well.
Youran often acted spoiled, so it’s normal for her to have so disagreents with Xu Xiuwen.
Seeing that Zhang Ruoshu wasn’t saying anything further, Xu Xiuwen took the initiative and said, “Aunt Zhang, I’ll be leaving now. Aunt Gu is waiting for downstairs.”
Zhang Ruoshu nodded, “Alright.”
They both stood up together.
Zhang Ruoshu accompanied Xu Xiuwen to the entrance.
Xu Xiuwen changed back into his own shoes and neatly placed Uncle Xiao’s shoes back.
Even if Uncle Xiao ca back and no one told him, he would never guess soone had worn his shoes.
Just as Xu Xiuwen was about to leave, Zhang Ruoshu suddenly called out to him, “Xiao Xu!”
“What’s the matter, Aunt Zhang?”
“Take the umbrella, it’s still raining outside.”
“No need, if I run fast enough, I won’t get too wet.”
“What if you catch a cold from the rain? Listen to .”
“Alright.”
Xu Xiuwen took the umbrella that Zhang Ruoshu handed him.
After leaving Xiao Youran’s house, Xu Xiuwen quickly went downstairs.
Once in the car, Xu Xiuwen turned to Gu Pandi and said, “Sorry for the wait, Aunt Gu. Aunt Zhang just had a few words with .”
Gu Pandi shook her head, “It’s alright, a few minutes don’t matter.”
Xu Xiuwen nodded, then started the car and slowly drove towards Xiaoyu’s house.
Upon arriving, Xu Xiuwen parked the car, opened the door, and got out with the umbrella.
Gu Pandi, without an umbrella, had to share Xu Xiuwen’s.
Standing next to the tall Xu Xiuwen under the umbrella, Aunt Gu’s petite figure created a delicate contrast.
They walked to the back of the car.
Xu Xiuwen handed the umbrella to Aunt Gu and opened the trunk to take out a case of new wine from the Guangming Distillery, then accompanied Gu Pandi upstairs.
At Aunt Gu’s house, Gu Pandi invited Xu Xiuwen to sit for a while.
Xu Xiuwen thought it had been a long ti since he last visited Aunt Gu’s house, so he went in.
Gu Pandi handed him a pair of slippers, which were Uncle Jiang’s.
Xu Xiuwen put them on without hesitation.
When he was young, Xu Xiuwen often ca to Xiao Yu’s house, but as he grew older, his visits beca less frequent.
Everything in Xiao Yu’s house was the sa as he rembered.
A photo of Xiao Yu’s family of three hung on the living room wall.
Jiang Ruoyu was smiling slightly at the cara.
In the photo, Jiang Ruoyu looked about ten years old but already showed signs of beauty.
Xu Xiuwen glanced at the photo and quickly looked away.
He instinctively glanced at Jiang Ruoyu’s room and asked, “Aunt Gu, is Xiao Yu still at school?”
Gu Pandi nodded, “Yes, she lives at school and usually cos ho once every two weeks.”
Xu Xiuwen said, “I see. Where’s Uncle Jiang? Hasn’t he co back either?”
Gu Pandi sighed and said, “Your Uncle Jiang has been so busy lately, he hasn’t been able to co ho.”
Xu Xiuwen said, “Uncle Jiang is probably caught up with a case, right?”
Gu Pandi replied, “Who knows? I don’t ask him. Even if I did, he wouldn’t tell .”
Gu Pandi continued, “Xiao Xu, sit for a mont. I’ll get you a cup of tea.”
Xu Xiuwen quickly said, “Aunt Gu, no need for tea, please don’t trouble yourself.”
Gu Pandi said, “Then at least have a glass of water.”
Xu Xiuwen thought for a mont and then nodded in agreent.
Seeing this, Gu Pandi walked towards the kitchen.
Xu Xiuwen looked around the living room and finally walked to Jiang Ruoyu’s room.
He turned and asked, “Aunt Gu, can I take a look inside Xiao Yu’s room?”
Gu Pandi said, “It’s fine, go ahead.”
Hearing this, Xu Xiuwen felt relieved.
He had been in Jiang Ruoyu’s room many tis before, but he didn’t know if it was the sa as he rembered.
He pressed the door handle and gently turned it.
The door opened.
Xu Xiuwen stood at the doorway and glanced inside, finding that the arrangent was just as he rembered.
He quickly noticed a pair of black over-the-knee socks on Jiang Ruoyu’s bed.
It seed she had forgotten to put them away.
Xu Xiuwen walked to Jiang Ruoyu’s desk.
On her desk was a photo fra.
In the fra was a photo of him, Jiang Ruoyu, and Xiao Youran taken during middle school.
In the photo, Xu Xiuwen was leaning against a large rock on Langya Mountain.
Jiang Ruoyu and Xiao Youran were on either side, holding his arms and smiling sweetly at the cara.
Seeing this photo, Xu Xiuwen was surprised.
There were three copies of this group photo, one for each of them.
Xu Xiuwen had long forgotten whether he still had his copy.
He didn’t expect that Jiang Ruoyu had kept hers all this ti.
Looking at the photo, Xu Xiuwen recalled their middle school spring outing.
This photo was taken during that outing.
Those days were truly carefree and joyful.
Who would have thought, many years later…
Xu Xiuwen had gone through two marriages and countless hardships.
Xiao Youran had left for England in silent sorrow.
Jiang Ruoyu, to escape her parents’ pressure to marry, had moved to a big city to live alone.
Xu Xiuwen felt a wave of emotion.
Luckily, he had been reborn.
Through his efforts, Xu Xiuwen had changed the course of his current life and indirectly altered Xiao Youran’s life as well.
Thinking of the previous life’s Jiang Ruoyu, who might have been hurt by a scumbag and resisted marriage, and their past friendship, Xu Xiuwen decided he must warn her.
He couldn’t let her fall for a scumbag again in this life.
Xu Xiuwen snapped back to reality and saw Aunt Gu standing behind him.
Xu Xiuwen turned and saw Aunt Gu, giving an embarrassed smile.
Gu Pandi looked at the photo on the desk and said, “This is Xiao Yu’s favorite photo. Every ti she cos ho, she carefully cleans the fra. She often talks about you and Youran, saying you both isolated her and didn’t take her to play, which made her very sad.”
Xu Xiuwen said, “Don’t worry, Aunt Gu, after her college entrance exam, I’ll treat her to a big al.”
Hearing this, Gu Pandi smiled faintly, “Xiao Yu would be thrilled to know you’re planning to treat her to a big al.”
After drinking so water and chatting with Aunt Gu for a while, Xu Xiuwen left.
When he got ho, Ning Wanqiu was still awake.
She was sitting on the living room sofa, not watching TV, seemingly waiting for soone.
Xu Xiuwen walked over to Ning Wanqiu.
“Did you drop off Aunt Gu and Aunt Zhang?”
Xu Xiuwen nodded, “Yes, I did.”
“Hmm.”
“Why are you sitting here and not going to your room?”
“I have sothing to ask you.”
“Go ahead.”
“What you said tonight, is it all true? You weren’t lying to , right?”
Seeing the doubt in Ning Wanqiu’s eyes, Xu Xiuwen smiled.
So Ning Wanqiu hadn’t fully believed him.
“Of course it’s true. I would never lie to you.”
“You lied to plenty when you were little.”
“Why do you keep bringing up the past? People grow up. I’m grown now and won’t lie to you anymore.”
“You have grown up. Now you don’t tell anything.”
Ning Wanqiu spoke with a frown, looking quite unhappy.
A beautiful person, even frowning, could tug at others’ hearts.
Xu Xiuwen explained, “I have confidence in this matter, but you might not feel the sa. I didn’t want you to worry, so I didn’t tell you.”
“You always have an excuse.”
“Alright, next ti I’ll definitely tell you, okay?”
“I never said you had to tell everything,” Ning Wanqiu replied flatly.
Xu Xiuwen felt both amused and helpless. “Then what do you want to do?”
“I don’t want anything from you. Alright, I’m going to bed.” With that, Ning Wanqiu got up and went back to her room.
Xu Xiuwen watched his mother’s retreating figure, feeling quite helpless.
Ning Wanqiu’s temperant didn’t really match that of a typical mother.
Since it was late, Xu Xiuwen decided not to return to Guangming City and planned to stay ho for the night.
Just as he lay down in his room, his phone rang.
It was Zhao Yatong calling.
He answered the call.
“Mr. Xu, are you still at the distillery?”
“No, I’m not.”
“Then why aren’t you in your room?”
“I went ho.”
“I see.”
“Do you need sothing?”
“I bought so food and was planning to bring you so.”
Xu Xiuwen laughed. “Zhao Yatong, are you really that kind-hearted? Or did you just buy too much and thought of ?”
“Of course not.”
“I don’t believe you.”
Zhao Yatong said, “I had dinner with Qianqian tonight. The tofu pudding at the place we went to was especially delicious. I thought you probably haven’t tried it, so I brought you a bowl. If you don’t appreciate it, fine, but why think of like that?”
“Really?”
“If you don’t believe , ask Qianqian.”
“Alright, I believe you.”
“Good intentions taken as ill will,” Zhao Yatong sounded a bit frustrated.
“Okay, don’t be upset. I misunderstood, alright? I can’t eat the food now, but I appreciate the gesture. I’ll treat you to a al when I get back.”
“When?”
“Why? Afraid I’ll renege?”
“Who knows? You’re the boss. If you decide to renege, there’s nothing I can do.”
Xu Xiuwen chuckled.
These days, he had been staying in a hotel, with Zhao Yatong as his neighbor.
They had naturally interacted more and grown closer.
If it were back when she first joined the company, Zhao Yatong would never have dared to speak like this, but now it didn’t matter.
Xu Xiuwen thought for a mont and said, “How about I treat you to lunch tomorrow?”
“That sounds better. It’s a deal then.”
“Alright, don’t worry.”
After hanging up, Xu Xiuwen sent ssages to his girlfriends.
He had been so busy lately that he hadn’t been in touch with them much.
He wasn’t sure if they were angry.
The ssages were sent, and An Shishi and Tang Weiwei replied quickly.
From their texts, neither seed upset.
An Shishi even flirted in her ssage, asking when he would return, saying she missed him…
Cheng Lu, on the other hand, didn’t reply to the text but called directly.
He answered the call.
Cheng Lu asked coolly, “I thought you had disappeared.”
Xu Xiuwen chuckled, “I’ve been very busy lately, don’t be mad.”
“How are things at the distillery? Is the new liquor selling well?” Cheng Lu knew Xu Xiuwen had been busy with the distillery; otherwise, she would have called the police after he disappeared for half a month.
“The new liquor is generating a lot of buzz and interest. The market response is pretty good. The distillery has so many orders they can’t keep up. Things are looking good so far.”
Xu Xiuwen could hear Cheng Lu breathe a sigh of relief on the other end.
It seed she had been very worried.
Xu Xiuwen smiled and said, “Who am I? I’m Xu Xiuwen. There’s nothing I can’t accomplish. You don’t need to worry.”
“Stop bragging.”
Cheng Lu rolled her eyes, even though Xu Xiuwen couldn’t see it.
“Actually, I should thank you,” Xu Xiuwen suddenly said seriously.
“Thank for what?”
“Thank you for silently supporting from behind. It’s because I have you as a supportive partner that everything here has gone so smoothly,” Xu Xiuwen said with a smile.
“Smooth talker.”
“It’s not smooth talk, I really an it. People always say there’s a great woman behind every successful man, and you are that great woman behind .”
“Do you really think so?” Cheng Lu asked, pursing her lips.
From her tone, Xu Xiuwen could tell she was in a good mood.
He continued, “Of course. If it were any other woman, she’d be arguing with her boyfriend for being away so long, and nothing would get done. Only a considerate girl like you, Lulu, would let do what I need to do.”
“I don’t bother arguing with you. Your thick skin would make winning an argunt aningless,” Cheng Lu teased.
Xu Xiuwen was used to hearing her say this, so he wasn’t fazed.
After thinking for a mont, he said, “I’ll be back soon. What gift do you want?”
“I don’t want a gift,” Cheng Lu replied flatly.
“I get it, you want , my body. No problem, I’ll clean myself up and wait for you on the bed when I get back.”
“Shaless!” Cheng Lu scolded, her face turning red.
“Who wants your body?”
“You really don’t?”
“I don’t.”
Xu Xiuwen’s eyes twinkled as he asked, “Have you missed lately?”
“Can you talk normally?”
“Isn’t this normal? It’s normal for couples to ask if they miss each other after being apart for so long.”
Cheng Lu didn’t respond.
“Have you missed ?” Xu Xiuwen pressed.
“Annoying.”
“Have you missed ?”
“I miss you, okay?”
Xu Xiuwen smiled contentedly but didn’t stop there. He continued, “When do you miss ? Do you think of when you sleep? When you shower? When you eat? When you’re in class?”
His questions ca rapid-fire, leaving Cheng Lu stunned.
“Yes…”
Xu Xiuwen chuckled, “How often do you think of ?”
“You’re so annoying, always asking.”
“If you don’t say, it ans you think of every day, right?”
“Rogue!” Cheng Lu was at a loss, struggling to cope with his questions.
Even though they were boyfriend and girlfriend, she still wasn’t used to Xu Xiuwen’s persistent inquiries.
Xu Xiuwen’s voice grew a bit more magnetic. “I miss you. I miss your voice, your eyes, your lips, your soft tongue, your legs, and your…”
Cheng Lu blushed, squeezing her legs together unintentionally.
She wanted to hang up but couldn’t bear to.
As Xu Xiuwen’s words grew more suggestive, she quickly interrupted, her voice trembling, “Pervert! I just rembered I have sothing to do. I’ll hang up now…”
With that, Cheng Lu ended the call.
Xu Xiuwen shook his head.
Cheng Lu still had a thin skin.
If it were An Shishi, she definitely wouldn’t be embarrassed.
She might even make seductive sounds to tease him.
Xu Xiuwen couldn’t help but recall those phone calls with An Shishi during the winter break when she was at ho and he was in the hotel.
Having been pent up for so long, he felt frustrated now that the fire had been ignited.
But he couldn’t bla anyone since he had started it.
Xu Xiuwen also sent a ssage to Xiao Youran, but she didn’t reply.
He waited for a while longer but still didn’t get a response, so he gave up.
The night passed without further incident.
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