Around 1 PM, Shen Lang drove Li Liusi back to the entrance of her neighborhood.
He said quickly, "Head on in. I'll come by tomorrow to hang out."
It was already the time he had agreed with Su Lexuan, and if Shen Lang didn't head to the school to pick her up for the Valentine's Day celebration soon, today's Valentine's Day might turn into a disaster.
"Uh, if you're done with your errands in the afternoon, will you come back?"
Li Liusi unbuckled her seatbelt slowly, and her impressive curves were immediately visible.
Li Liusi had traditional views and felt that having such an intimate moment at the beach meant Shen Lang was already her man. She had a pleasing personality and felt guilty about doubting Shen Lang's feelings earlier. She worried he might be annoyed with her, so she wanted to make it up to him.
Because she didn't have anything too important to do today and it was a special day, Li Liusi made this embarrassing decision.
Seeing her bashful demeanor, Shen Lang for a moment had the urge to cancel on Su Lexuan.
"Uh, if I come back, I'll let you know in advance."
Li Liusi knew how embarrassing her words were, and after giving her instructions, she quickly got out of the car and ran towards her neighborhood, leaving Shen Lang with only her flowing hair and graceful figure in view.
"No, I can't. Not today at least."
Shen Lang reminded himself that the "elf" was still waiting for him at the dorm. After a brief moment of decision, he took off his scarf and drove away from the neighborhood straight to Zhuhai University.
When he turned his phone back on and opened WeChat, there were over twenty unread messages from Su Lexuan, along with several missed voice and video calls.
Elf: Shen Pig, where are you? I found a great steakhouse at Aoyuan Square from a Douyin guide. I made a reservation. Let's go eat there.
Elf: Shen Pig, why aren't you replying? Are you writing? If you see this, remember to get back to me.
Elf: Shen Pig, it's 1 o'clock. You're on your way, right? The roads are really congested here today, so drive slowly.
Elf: Shen Pig, why aren't you answering my calls or video calls? What are you doing? Nothing bad happened, right?
Elf: It's 1:30, Shen Lang. Nothing serious happened, right? If you don't reply in 10 minutes, I'm going to find you at your parents' place!
Despite Su Lexuan's usual arrogance, this was her first relationship, and she trusted Shen Lang to not mess things up on such a key day.
When Shen Lang didn't respond, Su Lexuan thought something might have happened to him, like in a dramatic romantic movie.
Seeing Su Lexuan's last message about looking for his parents, Shen Lang quickly started a video call, and Su Lexuan answered almost immediately.
Initially nervous and worried about seeing a stranger, Su Lexuan visibly relaxed when she saw Shen Lang's face on the screen, and then her stubborn little temper showed up.
"Shen Pig, it's almost 2 o'clock! What were you doing? I thought something happened to you!"
"Sorry, babe. I've been struggling to find my flow with writing lately. I woke up at 4 AM this morning to write and only finished half of it by 1:30."
"That's okay, as long as you're here."
Su Lexuan was quite understanding: "Alright, I won't keep you from driving. I'll wait for you at the school gate."
"Okay, bye, babe. I'll be there soon."
"Ugh, being a jerk is hard."
Shen Lang sighed with relief. As Su Lexuan said, she wasn't unreasonable. As long as you had a good reason and were sincere, a little delay could be forgiven.
Plus, Shen Lang had a good excuse to leave Su Lexuan early in the evening—he still needed to complete his last appointment with the landlord's wife.
.....
When Shen Lang arrived at Zhuhai University's entrance, he saw Su Lexuan standing under a banyan tree, holding a long gift box, glancing down the road, searching for his familiar silver Mercedes.
Shen Lang honked the horn to get her attention and slowly pulled over.
Hearing the horn, Su Lexuan turned her head immediately, and when she saw Shen Lang in the driver's seat, she huffed in a playful manner before running over with a smile.
"Wow, such a big box. I wonder what gift you've prepared for me."
Shen Lang was curious about what was in the box but then suddenly realized his expression was collapsing.
He had forgotten to buy a gift for Su Lexuan!
Unlike Li Liusi, who didn't care much about gifts, Su Lexuan was celebrating their first Valentine's Day together. If Su Lexuan had picked out a gift for him and he showed up empty-handed and said he forgot, she would probably not be happy no matter what excuses he gave.
She might even hold it against him.
"What to do, what to do?"
Seeing Su Lexuan getting closer made Shen Lang nervous. With her right at the door, he had no rare treasures to magically turn into a gift.
"Wait!"
Shen Lang suddenly had an idea as he noticed the purple scarf Li Liusi had knitted for him on the passenger seat.
He had taken it off earlier because it was uncomfortable and had left it in the car. Su Lexuan hadn't seen it during their video call, so she didn't know about the scarf.
"Shen Lang, you're really something!"
After a moment of hesitation, Shen Lang decided to use the purple scarf he had to make up for forgetting the gift.
When Su Lexuan opened the passenger door and handed him the gift box, she playfully scolded, "Hmph, you're an hour late for our first date!"
After scolding, she noticed the purple scarf in Shen Lang's hand and asked curiously, "What's this? Is it for me?"
"Yes, yes, babe, happy Valentine's Day. It's getting chilly with the fall coming."
Shen Lang smiled as he handed her the scarf.
"This is something I knitted myself. Try it on and see if it fits. It's my first time knitting something for a girl. If it doesn't fit, I can adjust it later."