Tang Weiwei replied the slowest.
Xu Xiuwen exchanged several messages with both Cheng Lu and An Shishi. Tang Weiwei finally replied with, "I got it."
He chatted via messages with the three women for a while.
Xu Xiuwen finally received a call from Xiao Youran.
"Xiao Xu, I'm ready, come pick me up."
"Okay, I'll be right over."
Ending the call, Xu Xiuwen went downstairs, got in his car, and drove to pick up Xiao Youran.
When Xu Xiuwen arrived by car, Zhang Ruoshu and Xiao Youran were already waiting downstairs.
He parked the car steadily, then opened the door, held up an umbrella, and hurried over to them.
Seeing Xiao Youran carrying a suitcase, Xu Xiuwen took it from her.
"Mom, you should go back."
Xu Xiuwen also said to Zhang Ruoshu, "Yes, Aunt Zhang, I'll safely escort Youran to school, so please rest assured."
Zhang Ruoshu changed her clothes and crossed her arms.
Xu Xiuwen's gaze kept involuntarily drifting to places it shouldn't.
Zhang Ruoshu reminded him, "The road is slippery in the rain, drive slowly and be safe."
"Aunt Zhang, don't worry."
Xiao Youran added, "Mom, don't worry, I'll remind Xiao Xu."
"Get in the car, after you leave, I'll go back."
Xu Xiuwen held the umbrella, quickly walked to the back of the car and opened the trunk. Then he quickly ran back, holding the umbrella in one hand and the suitcase in the other, quickly running towards the back of the car.
After putting the suitcase in the trunk, Xu Xiuwen returned to the mother and daughter, then held the umbrella and escorted Xiao Youran into the car.
After Xiao Youran got into the front passenger seat, Xu Xiuwen turned to Zhang Ruoshu, "Aunt Zhang, you should go back, we're leaving."
After saying that, he briskly walked to the driver's seat holding the umbrella.
After getting in the car, Xiao Youran lowered the window and waved to her mother. Xu Xiuwen also waved, then started the car and drove away.
Today's rain was quite heavy, and there was a lot of water accumulated on the sides of the road.
Just out of the compound, Xiao Youran looked worried and reminded, "Xiao Xu, drive slowly."
Xu Xiuwen nodded and reassured the girl, "Don't worry, I've got this."
The white BMW drove at a moderate speed on the road, rain tapping lightly on the windows.
Listening to the dull sound of rain, Xiao Youran felt an unusually harmonious and warm moment.
Surrounded by heavy rain, being in the car with Xiao Xu gave her a feeling that only the two of them existed in the world.
She liked this feeling.
Usually, driving from Langya City to Jinling was over 70 kilometers, and under normal conditions, without traffic, it would take about an hour.
But today, due to the rain, Xu Xiuwen dared not drive too fast, taking nearly two hours to reach Jinling.
When Xu Xiuwen drove Xiao Youran to Jiaotong University, it was already past twelve noon.
Xu Xiuwen drove directly into the campus and parked the car at the entrance of Xiao Youran's dormitory building.
Today was the start of school, and the dormitory building was bustling with female students coming and going.
Some girls noticed a BMW parked at the entrance of the dormitory building and looked at it curiously.
If Xu Xiuwen sat in the car, he wouldn't mind being recognized.
But since he had to get out to help Xiao Youran with her suitcase, he wore a mask.
Xu Xiuwen got out of the car with the umbrella, first took out the suitcase and brought it to the staircase of the dormitory building, then returned to escort Xiao Youran.
"I'll wait for you downstairs after you've put away the suitcase."
On the way, Xu Xiuwen had already promised to have lunch with Xiao Youran at noon.
Xiao Youran replied with a sound of acknowledgment, carrying the suitcase into the dormitory building.
Xu Xiuwen noticed many girls staring at him and quickly returned to the car.
He waited in the car for about five minutes.
The passenger door suddenly opened from the outside.
Xiao Youran got in.
Xu Xiuwen also saw a woman, or more precisely, a lady.
An Shishi held an umbrella and sent Xiao Youran into the passenger seat, then walked to the rear door, opened it, and got in.
She closed the umbrella outside the car and shook it off before bringing it inside.
An Shishi sat behind Xiao Youran, a position where Xiao Youran couldn't see her expression.
After An Shishi got in the car, she threw a seductive look at Xu Xiuwen.
She chuckled softly, "Master, long time no see."
Xu Xiuwen hadn't told An Shishi about his current relationship with Xiao Youran, so he worried she might accidentally spill the beans.
Luckily, she was sharp-witted and hid it well whenever someone was around; otherwise, if she called him "husband," Xu Xiuwen would have been tongue-tied.
He remained composed and turned to An Shishi, greeting her, "Long time no see."
At this point, Xiao Youran took the initiative to explain, "Xiao Xu, Shishi hasn't had lunch yet, so I invited her along."
An Shishi smiled and asked jokingly, "Won't I be disturbing your private time?"
Listening to An Shishi's playful remark, Xu Xiuwen felt helpless. He couldn't verbally remind her not to mess around, so he could only glare at her discreetly, hinting at her.
Back when Xiao Youran had no relationship with Xu Xiuwen, she used to refer to him as "Xiao Xu" all the time, wishing everyone knew they were childhood sweethearts.
But now that their relationship was confirmed and they had done many intimate things together, she had become shy about it.
Hearing An Shishi's jest, Xiao Youran playfully scolded, "Stop making things up, Shishi. What private time?"
An Shishi received Xu Xiuwen's hint and giggled, "Alright, I won't."
Despite the rain, there were still many students at the university.
Xu Xiuwen drove to North Street, found a restaurant, and parked the car by the roadside.
After parking, Xu Xiuwen got out of the car holding an umbrella.
Xiao Youran and An Shishi shared an umbrella, while Xu Xiuwen walked alone under his.
The three of them entered the restaurant and shook off the raindrops from their umbrellas at the entrance before walking in.
The restaurant was quite busy, with all eight tables occupied.
They waited for a while until one of the tables became vacant.
Once the waiter cleared the table, the three of them walked over and sat down.
The tables in this restaurant were rectangular, each seating four people with room for two on each side.
An Shishi took the initiative, saying, "Youran, why don't you sit together with Xu Xiuwen."
Xiao Youran hugged An Shishi's arm and chuckled, "Nope, I want to sit with you."
So, Xiao Youran and An Shishi sat together on one side, while Xu Xiuwen sat opposite them at the table.
They ordered four dishes and a soup.
The three of them began discussing their experiences over the winter break.
Xu Xiuwen was well aware of what the two girls had been up to; they often talked on the phone and exchanged messages.
The girls also knew what he had been doing over the winter break.
So, the main topic of conversation between the two girls was asking each other about their experiences during the break.
Xiao Youran was particularly curious about what An Shishi had been up to over the winter break.
When she had just returned to the dormitory and saw An Shishi, she almost thought she had mistaken her for someone else.
An Shishi was dressed today in a starry blue wool coat, with a white shirt and light grey straight trousers underneath, looking both attractive and elegant.
Xiao Youran still remembered that before winter break, she used to dress very plainly.
But in just one winter break, she had undergone a tremendous transformation.
How could Xiao Youran not be curious about it?