Luo Yanran lowered her head to look at the phone in her hand and hummed softly in acknowledgment.
In fact, she wasn't interested in the night market that day, but Liu Ou kept persuading her.
She even said, "This is considered a trendy night market, you know? It just started not long ago. Xie Xiao's place is nearby, so you might bump into him, right? Which high school boy goes home early on a holiday? They're definitely out at the night market!"
Deep down, Luo Yanran knew Liu Ou just wanted to coax her into going for the snacks, but she still felt a twinge of excitement.
Even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance of running into Xie Xiao, she would still have come.
That was her habitual behavior in the past.
So when she saw the moments Xie Xiao had posted earlier, she knew, the chances of a casual encounter had probably vanished.
But recently, Xie Xiao had been so gentle with her, and coupled with the rumors Liu Ou had mentioned earlier...
Suddenly, she found the courage to ask Xie Xiao if he wanted help with packing up...
Looking back now, it still seems unbelievable, such impulsiveness was not like her at all.
Yet, feeling the presence of the person sitting next to her, not too close but with a strong sense of presence, made it seem like the occasional act of bravery wasn't as hard as she thought.
Maybe there were unexpected rewards too.
After hearing her response, Xie Xiao didn't think much of it, "But next time, don't have two girls wandering the night market. Liu Ou is fine, her home is close by, but yours is far, and it's not safe for you to go back alone."
Luo Yanran glanced at him, "It's okay, and we're used to it. We've even been back and forth to the neighboring city by ourselves; nothing happened."
"That was then, this is now," Xie Xiao said with a radiant smile. "Isn't it different now that you have me? You can call me to join you."
Climbing up the pole when given the opportunity, quite adept.
Luo Yanran didn't expect him to say that and momentarily couldn't continue the conversation.
The atmosphere in the car grew a little awkward.
Perhaps the driver couldn't bear it any longer, and just at the right moment, he turned on the radio, and a soft piece of music began to flow inside the car.
Neither of them spoke.
Xie Xiao glanced at Luo Yanran, who was gazing out the car window with slightly red ears.
His gaze softened; Luo Yanran always seemed to have a high tolerance for him.
This made him feel somewhat proud and reassured.
It takes twelve minutes to drive from the snack street to Jinhu Garden.
Xie Xiao got out of the car with Luo Yanran; they were in a villa district.
Xie Xiao had always known her family was rich, seemingly both her parents were in business.
But now, he felt unusually worried, how could the gap between rich and poor come up again?
This time the girl was the richer one, and he was the poorer one, which stung a bit.
Luo Yanran glanced at him, "I'm here; I'll call you a car to go back."
As she was about to take out her phone, Xie Xiao held her hand down.
It was almost the same as when she had held down his hand earlier. Xie Xiao, smiling, said, "Don't rush, I'll call my own car later. May I walk you to your building?"
Luo Yanran felt his fingertips accidentally brush against hers as he withdrew his hand.
It made her hand start to heat up.
She held her phone tightly, letting her hand fall to her side.
Turning to walk inside, she said, "Let's go."
The gatekeeper at the entrance logged Xie Xiao's information before letting them in.
The villa district was very quiet at night, and it was almost eleven o'clock, which wasn't early indeed.
Luo Yanran regretted agreeing to let him walk her home; by the time he returned, it would be very late.
"Why don't you head back first? Otherwise, it will be too late," Luo Yanran suggested, looking at Xie Xiao, walking beside her.
"A few minutes won't make a difference. I think this is my first time sending you home," Xie Xiao said. In his previous life, he had been useless and never had the chance to take her home.
His words stopped Luo Yanran from saying what was on her mind. It was indeed the first time.
The road that always seemed a bit long suddenly felt shorter.
Luo Yanran stood at the door and said to Xie Xiao, "I'm home."
Xie Xiao nodded, "Then you should go in, I'll wait until you're inside before I leave."
Luo Yanran looked at him, finally nodded, turned around, and entered the house swiftly and decisively.
Xie Xiao watched the door close and the familiar figure completely disappear before he turned to walk away.
It seemed like winning over his treasure of a girl would take a lot of effort in the future.
Xie Xiao called a car and had just stepped out when he saw a message from Luo Yanran that read, "Let me know when you get home."
Not even an extra emoji included.
So cool.
Xie Xiao couldn't help but laugh.
He replied with a simple, "Okay."
Then he opened his social profile and posted, "The night is tender, and so are you."
In her room, Luo Yanran had just received Xie Xiao's reply and then saw his new social update.
Opening it, her heart fluttered immediately.
Was he talking about tonight...about her?
Her cheeks reddened as she read and reread the update.
She even couldn't resist taking a screenshot.
Then she saw that Lin Yu had liked the post and even commented, "Did your sentimental side kick in just by eating some glutinous rice?"
Luo Yanran couldn't help but laugh out loud.
There was a little deer crashing around in her heart, all because of a boy named Xie Xiao.
While in the car, Xie Xiao saw Lin Yu's comment and felt somewhat speechless. He immediately opened Lin Yu's chat, "Are you allergic to romance? Have you finished up over there? I'll come help pack up."
Lin Yu sent a voice message in reply, "I can't comprehend your young male heartthrobs. We're almost done, but aren't you going home to sleep?"
Xie Xiao thought that he was too excited to sleep that night.
When Xie Xiao arrived at the night market, Lin Yu and the others were indeed starting to pack up.
Their business was good, and they had sold out quite early.
Walking over, Xie Xiao took a stool from the old lady's hand, "Grandma, you sit and rest a bit, I'll take over."
"Exactly, why won't you listen and sit for a while!" Lin Yu, hearing the conversation, turned his head and shouted along.
The old lady grunted, "None of you are as nimble as me! Why isn't Xiao not going home? Did you escort that girl back?"
Xie Xiao pushed the old lady aside and had her sit down, "We'll be plenty nimble once we get going, I've sent her home."
"Ah, that young lady is so spirited and lively," the old lady commented, watching the two young men bustling about and settled down herself.
A neighboring stall owner laughed, "The old lady is blessed to have two such filial grandsons."
The old lady beamed happily.
After everything was packed up, Lin Yu ensured the old lady was comfortably seated before he and Xie Xiao pushed the cart home.
It wasn't too far from there to Lin Yu's house.
At first, the old lady was reluctant, but Xie Xiao coaxed her into agreement.
Meanwhile, Lin Yu, while pushing the cart, complained, "Who among you and Xie Xiao is her grandson? Why only listen to him and not me?"
The old lady snorted, "If only Xiao were my grandson, that would be nice!"
Xie Xiao, pushing the cart from behind, laughed and responded, "Grandma, I am indeed your eldest grandson."
Lin Yu said dissatisfiedly, "What are you talking about! You're the younger grandson; I'm the elder one!"
Xie Xiao answered, "Okay, elder grandson."
Lin Yu: Damn!