That evening, after having dinner at a Cantonese restaurant with Xia Shuyi and her daughter, Shen Lang headed back home.
He was still figuring out how to handle the upcoming Saturday's Qixi Festival when Su Lexuan called him via video chat.
As soon as Shen Lang answered, Su Lexuan appeared on the screen, her bright and expectant eyes staring directly at him. She jumped straight to the point.
"Shen Pig, are you free this Saturday? Let's go to Guian Happy Valley!"
Su Lexuan didn't mention the significance of Saturday, keeping her little pride. She wanted Shen Lang to bring it up, making it seem like he was the one who invited her out for the holiday.
"Guian Happy Valley?"
As a local of Jianghai City, Shen Lang knew all about it.
It was the biggest amusement park in Jianghai City, one of the many parks under the Su Group, the former leading enterprise.
When the park first opened, the Su Group had invited many famous stars to endorse it, and now it's a must-visit tourist spot in Jianghai.
But Guian Happy Valley was quite far from Shen Lang's place—about a two-hour drive each way. It would take at least four hours for the round trip.
That meant Shen Lang wouldn't have time to hang out with the other two people.
"You know about it? Hehe, I guess you've seen the ads for Happy Valley on Douyin."
Su Lexuan was thrilled and started explaining the itinerary for the day in detail.
"Well... Lexuan,"
Shen Lang played it up, pretending to struggle with something.
"Do you have something on?"
Su Lexuan, who was initially cheerful, looked a bit disappointed when she saw Shen Lang's troubled expression.
"I saw on Douyin that many couples are going there this Saturday. Do you have something else going on?"
Su Lexuan was basically giving up her little pride and was no longer showing it off.
"It's not that. I've been so focused on chatting with you these days that I haven't had the time to write. I'm behind on several chapters."
Shen Lang explained helplessly, "Both my readers and editor are pushing me. They said if I keep slacking off, they won't recommend my book next month."
Fortunately, Su Lexuan didn't know much about web novel authors and wasn't aware that Shen Lang was a writing machine. He had enough written to last several months, so he didn't really need to worry about his novel.
"Is that so? Then focus on your work. We can always go to Happy Valley next Sunday."
Su Lexuan smiled and reassured Shen Lang.
"Don't look so worried. I'm not an unreasonable girlfriend. If you have work to do, I wouldn't force you to go."
"My work isn't that urgent."
Shen Lang quickly explained, "I'll be busy in the morning and evening, but I'm free in the afternoon. As long as it's not too far, it's fine."
"Really? That's great. Then we won't go to Happy Valley."
Hearing that Shen Lang could still hang out on Saturday, Su Lexuan was instantly happier.
"I'll look up places closer to us on Douyin now. Come find me on Saturday!"
"Sure thing!"
After ending the call with Su Lexuan, Shen Lang sighed in relief and felt grateful for having such an understanding girlfriend.
With Su Lexuan sorted out, it was time to deal with the next person.
Around 5 p.m., Li Liusi sent a message asking Shen Lang what he wanted to eat and said she'd cook for him after school.
At that time, Shen Lang had just picked up Mengmeng with Xia Shuyi and was ordering at a Cantonese restaurant, planning to wait for Li Liusi to join them.
Li Liusi quickly declined when she heard Shen Lang's plan, saying she didn't want to be a bother and that they should eat first.
She didn't like causing trouble for others, let alone making Shen Lang wait for an hour.
Shen Lang thought Li Liusi would be easier to handle.
He arrived at Li Liusi's place and knocked on the door.
Li Liusi quickly came to open it, and her face lit up with a joyful smile when she saw Shen Lang. "You... you're here?"
"Why? Not welcome?"
Shen Lang tilted his head, looking at Li Liusi's pretty face with a teasing expression.
Li Liusi shook her head. How could she not welcome the guy she had been thinking about?
While Shen Lang and Xia Shuyi were eating, this sweet girl had considered messaging him several times to ask when he'd be back.
"Just wanted to chat."
Shen Lang naturally wrapped his arm around Li Liusi's waist and stepped inside, reflexively closing the door behind him.
"Oh, you're studying?"
Shen Lang noticed the math textbook on her small desk, with a slightly worn cup of hot water beside it.
Li Liusi answered honestly, "Yes, I'm working on some math problems."
"Quite diligent. What score did you get on the college entrance exam?"
Shen Lang asked casually, taking a sip of Li Liusi's water without caring much.
"610 points."
"Pfft!"
"Cough cough cough."
Shen Lang was so surprised that he spat out the hot water, staring at the dazed Li Liusi in disbelief. "You said how many points?!"
He couldn't believe that such a sweet and timid girl could be a top student!
If Li Liusi liked bragging, Shen Lang definitely wouldn't believe she could get such an impressive score.
Li Liusi handed him a tissue. "Just 610."
"Wow, how come you're at Zhuhai University..."
Shen Lang trailed off, swallowing his words. "You're quite impressive. I barely made it to a second-tier university despite working hard for half a year."
A score of 610 on the college entrance exam could get you into any 211 university in China.
With a bit more effort, Li Liusi could easily have made it to Tsinghua or Peking University.
Shen Lang guessed Li Liusi came to Zhuhai University, a second-tier school, to be closer to her grandmother, so he didn't press further, fearing he might uncover something she didn't want to talk about.
"It's not that impressive..."
Li Liusi's mood did show some fluctuation, and her brows furrowed slightly.
It was a waste for her to be at Zhuhai University with such a high score.
Making a choice between a good school and caring for her grandmother must have been a tough decision.
Every student studies hard for years to get into a good school and find a good job with their diploma, after all.