That night, Xu Xiuwen spent most of the time listening, occasionally chiming in with a few words.
An Shishi had a lot to say. Some things she hadn't been able to tell anyone all these years, but now, she felt she could confide in Xu Xiuwen without worry.
She wasn't sure if Xu Xiuwen would get impatient, but she couldn't hold it in any longer. Some words had been bottled up inside her for too long.
However, she wasn't disappointed.
Xu Xiuwen listened attentively from start to finish, without a hint of impatience.
An Shishi realized she had found the right person.
The next morning, Xu Xiuwen drove to the train station to buy tickets.
He thought he might need to find a ticket scalper to get tickets.
But when he asked at the ticket counter, he found out that tickets for today's train to Guangxi were still available.
More precisely, tickets to Changsha weren't sold out.
There was no direct train from Jinling to Guangxi, so they had to transfer at Changsha.
An Shishi didn't come with him.
When Xu Xiuwen woke up in the morning, An Shishi wanted to come along, but because they had been up late 'fighting' again, An Shishi was exhausted. So Xu Xiuwen let her rest.
Since An Shishi didn't come, Xu Xiuwen took it upon himself to buy two sleeper tickets.
After buying the tickets, Xu Xiuwen went to a nearby mall and bought a large suitcase.
Passing by a counter in the mall, Xu Xiuwen noticed a display selling pens.
One pen caught his eye—a women's pen from the brand Pilot, a well-known brand.
The pen was delicately crafted, in a light pink color, with sakura and maple leaf patterns on the surface, intricate and beautiful.
Although An Shishi had told him not to buy a gift for her sister, as her future brother-in-law, he couldn't really not buy anything, so Xu Xiuwen bought the pen.
It wasn't cheap, costing a full thousand yuan.
When buying it, Xu Xiuwen couldn't help but gasp.
It wasn't that he minded the money; it was just that the price was indeed high.
After having the pen gift-wrapped by the clerk, Xu Xiuwen left the mall, bought some breakfast near the North Gate, and then returned to room 301.
Xu Xiuwen woke An Shishi, they spent some affectionate time together, and then had breakfast.
After breakfast, An Shishi began packing the pre-prepared items into the suitcase.
When Xu Xiuwen took out the pen gift, An Shishi fell silent.
Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude.
As she thanked him on behalf of her sister, Xu Xiuwen simply said, "You know how to thank me properly, right?"
He added with a mischievous grin.
So, taking advantage of the morning energy, they had another 'fight'.
Afterwards, An Shishi quickly ran to the bathroom.
She needed to rinse her mouth.
An Shishi's train was at 2 PM.
At noon, Xu Xiuwen took An Shishi to East Street for lunch.
After lunch, he drove her to the train station.
Xu Xiuwen was a bit uneasy about An Shishi traveling alone, especially since she had to transfer midway.
He reminded her, "Remember to call me as soon as you arrive in Changsha, and don't forget to call me when you get on the train and when you arrive in Guangxi."
By this time, An Shishi was already tearful.
Thinking about parting with Xu Xiuwen made her suddenly feel very sad.
She threw herself into Xu Xiuwen's arms, hugging him tightly, stood on tiptoe, and asked for a kiss.
Xu Xiuwen, of course, wouldn't disappoint her.
They embraced and kissed deeply on the platform.
It was the train attendant who interrupted them, reminding, "The train is about to depart, passengers who haven't boarded yet, please do so quickly."
Upon hearing this, Xu Xiuwen released An Shishi and told her, "Be good, get on the train now."
An Shishi boarded the train, looking back every few steps.
After boarding, she didn't rush to her seat but stood behind the door, gazing deeply at Xu Xiuwen. Before the door closed, she shouted, "Honey, I love you, don't forget me."
Xu Xiuwen nodded at her, "Mm, I won't forget you, don't worry."
In the midst of a thousand reluctances, the train finally departed.
After An Shishi left, Xu Xiuwen's mood also inevitably turned gloomy.
Having spent these days and nights with An Shishi, he had already developed feelings for this daring and passionate girl.
Moreover, he thought of her gentle sweetness under the bed and her alluring charm on it.
How could Xu Xiuwen not like such a girl?
After seeing An Shishi off, Xu Xiuwen didn't linger.
Leaving the train station, he couldn't help but laugh.
Counting this time, it was already the fourth time he had come to the train station to send someone off.
He was practically becoming a professional at farewells.
But thinking carefully, each of the girls he sent off had an extraordinary relationship with him.
Ah, they were all debts of love!
Xu Xiuwen sighed.
He originally just wanted to have a proper relationship with Cheng Lu, then get married and have children.
But sometimes, plans can't keep up with changes.
Unintentionally, he had already entangled himself with so many people.
Now he couldn't deny being a scumbag even if he wanted to!
A scumbag, indeed. After leaving the train station, Xu Xiuwen drove straight to the BMW dealership, handing over his car to the salesman who had sold it to him, asking him to handle the registration.
He didn't have the time to do it himself; he needed to go home.
Although Xu Xiuwen had bought a car, he didn't plan to drive it home yet.
Despite the saying that wealth unshown is like wearing fine clothes at night, Xu Xiuwen hadn't told Ning Wanqiu how much he earned from writing novels.
He was afraid that suddenly driving home in a 650,000-yuan BMW 5 Series would make Ning Wanqiu think he had done something illegal.
You see, Langya is a small city.
The average salary is just over 1,000 yuan.
650,000 yuan would take an ordinary person over 30 years to earn.
If it weren't for this consideration, Xu Xiuwen would have gotten the car registered and driven it home.
After all, driving from Jinling to Langya would take at most an hour, even less time than it takes to travel from a county to the city in many places.
Xu Xiuwen made a quick trip to his school, packed a few clothes, then took a taxi to the bus station and caught a bus home.
On the bus home, Xu Xiuwen leaned his head against the window, gazing outside, feeling a bit dazed.
It wasn't homesickness, not to that extent.
He was just thinking about how much had happened in his first semester at university, how many people he had met.
His world had undergone tremendous changes compared to six months ago, making him somewhat sentimental.
…
Xu Xiuwen arrived home at five in the afternoon.
The house was empty.
Not surprising.
Since it was Tuesday, Ning Wanqiu was still at school tutoring students.
After several months, returning home again, Xu Xiuwen felt a sense of emptiness.
Especially having been entangled with An Shishi in the morning, and now being alone at home.
Xu Xiuwen decided to call Cheng Lu.
When the call connected, Cheng Lu sounded delighted, chuckling as she said, "Calling so early today?"
Xu Xiuwen chuckled, "Isn't it because I miss you?"
Cheng Lu wasn't swayed by his sweet talk and asked directly, "Did you go home?"
Xu Xiuwen was a bit surprised, "How did you know?"
Cheng Lu calmly replied, "I just guessed. You must have gone home, with nothing to do, so you called me so early."