Chapter 63 - 62: A Couple’s Tacit Understanding

Chapter 63: Chapter 62: A Couple’s Tacit Understanding

Xiao Ran had just gotten off work.

He had just come downstairs and hadn’t even gotten on his little electric scooter yet.

Hearing his phone ring, he calmly took it out. But when he unlocked it and saw the message, his entire expression changed.

’Didn’t she say tomorrow?’

’Why is she here today?’

’Is she raiding my base?’

’So unsportsmanlike!’

With that thought, he didn’t even bother to reply. He jumped on his electric scooter, cranked up the power, and sped toward home.

The trip from the school to his home took only eight minutes.

It wasn’t that Xiao Ran was afraid of his mom’s spot check; he was mainly worried that the less-than-resilient Yan Xici would be embarrassed.

After all, back in school, anyone would get nervous meeting a classmate’s parents. And the person she was meeting now was her sister’s former mother-in-law!

...

Meanwhile, the two women were still chatting when the door beeped. A moment later, Xiao Ran walked in from outside.

Without even stopping to change his shoes, he called out, "Mom!"

Qiu Yuru smiled sweetly at her son. "You’re back. Xici made fish tonight. Can you smell it?"

Her original worries hadn’t come to pass.

Her son hadn’t traded his place for some old, crappy, small apartment.

And the environment in this new residential complex was actually quite nice.

This completely put Qiu Yuru’s mind at ease, and her tone naturally became much friendlier.

However, she still had one question in her mind.

An apartment of 120 square meters in a complex like this would cost at least seven or eight million.

She really had no idea where Xiao Ran had gotten that much money.

But with Yan Xici present, the question she wanted to ask—whether he’d used Yan Li’s money to buy the apartment—morphed into, "This place looks nice. It must not have been cheap, right?"

Hearing this, Xiao Ran chuckled as he changed his shoes.

"The apartment’s not bad. You could say I got lucky; I sold the rights to one of my books."

If he hadn’t sold the rights, to be honest, he really wouldn’t have had this much money for a new place.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yuru froze!

’What?’

’He sold the rights?’

After the initial shock wore off, the surprise on her face instantly turned into delight.

Her eyes shone with excitement!

’Well, I’ll be. So he’s finally made something of himself!’

She had always thought his writing was just a hobby.

Although she never opposed it, she hadn’t really supported it either.

She just let him develop naturally.

She never imagined that as he kept at it, one of his books would actually be adapted into a TV series!

For Qiu Yuru, this was truly fantastic news!

After all, what mother doesn’t want to see her son succeed?

Her voice, fueled by excitement, unconsciously rose an octave.

"For real? You’re actually pretty amazing, then!"

Xiao Ran said casually, "It’s alright. I got around three million, which I used for the down payment. Later, when the old house sells, I’ll pay off the remaining balance and still have over four million left over."

To be honest, while Shanghai is a beautiful city, it’s also a very pragmatic one.

This pragmatism is especially reflected in its rent and housing prices.

Without money, finding a place to settle down here is truly difficult.

Although his mom hadn’t asked directly, Xiao Ran understood her concerns.

So he laid out the whole situation clearly in one go to keep her from worrying.

Sure enough, his explanation completely put Qiu Yuru’s mind at ease.

As a businesswoman, after all, she had a natural sensitivity to numbers.

Even though the new place was a bit smaller in square meters, the old one had been converted into cash. That thought made her feel much more comfortable!

"Attaboy, you really did it!"

’Look at that. He’s only been writing for a few years and he’s already sold the rights. That’s a dream many people can’t achieve in a lifetime.’

’But her own son actually went and did it!’

’Back then, he bought a home with his manuscript fees; now he’s buying one with his copyright fees!’

’You had to admit, he had never given his family any reason to worry!’

But even though she was happy, she held back verbally and didn’t praise him too much.

It was a common ailment among most parents: they weren’t good at expressing their feelings!

No matter how great they thought their son was, they would only offer a light, understated comment.

"Mm, not bad."

"Mm, pretty good."

But Xiao Ran didn’t mind. As long as he wasn’t being scolded, he was happy.

By now, the stewed fish was almost ready.

The girl hurried into the kitchen and first washed a small bunch of cilantro.

After a moment’s thought, she turned and walked back toward the living room. She looked at Qiu Yuru with a serious expression, her tone impossibly well-behaved.

"Auntie, do you eat cilantro?"

’Brother Xiao Ran likes cilantro, but that doesn’t mean his mother does too.’

’The stuff is like durian.’

’People who like it love it to death, and people who don’t can’t even stand the smell.’

’And it’s not necessarily genetic!’

The girl understood this point very well.

So, to be on the safe side, she came out to ask.

’Better safe than sorry!’

How could Qiu Yuru feel right about letting the young woman do all the cooking?

’I’m an elder, after all!’

"Let Auntie help. I feel bad watching you bustle around all by yourself."

She stood up as she spoke.

Seeing his mom about to help, Xiao Ran quickly stopped her.

"You’ve been driving all afternoon. Let me do it. You just sit down, rest, and wait for the food!"

With that, he turned and walked into the kitchen.

His mom’s sudden appearance today must have given the girl a huge shock. As her "big brother," he had to go comfort her a little.

’It’s perfectly normal for a big brother to care for his little sister, right?’

Seeing Xiao Ran walk toward her, the nervousness in the girl’s heart magically vanished.

In its place was a feeling of profound reassurance.

After all, she hadn’t had time to prepare for anything before Auntie walked in. It had been quite sudden.

But it was okay now~

Her Brother Xiao Ran was finally back!

As long as he was by her side, she wasn’t afraid of anything!

Once in the kitchen, Xiao Ran picked up the baby bok choy from the marble countertop and started washing it in the sink.

The girl, meanwhile, stood before the cutting board, carefully chopping the handful of verdant cilantro.

Yan Xici had a beautiful back—the lovely back of a young woman, slender and graceful.

Her neck was even more long and elegant.

A long ponytail cascaded down her back, exuding youth and vitality.

Dusk. A gentle, orange glow spilled through the window.

It coated the entire kitchen in a warm, amber light, creating a scene of inexplicable warmth.

The two of them worked together with a tacit understanding, as if they had already spent a lifetime together.

Sitting in the living room, Qiu Yuru tilted her head, watching them.

For a fleeting moment, she had the feeling that they were the real couple.

But she quickly snapped out of it.

’I’m really getting old. My thoughts are getting stranger and stranger.’

’The two of them? How could that be possible?’

’I’m overthinking things!’

She couldn’t help but find her own strange notion from a moment ago amusing.

Meanwhile, Xiao Ran placed the washed baby bok choy on the cutting board. He then chopped some scallion and ginger, flash-fried them in the wok to release their aroma, and started stir-frying.

Green vegetables cook quickly, so it only took a few minutes.

The girl dished out the fish and placed it on the dining table.

As she was about to serve the rice, something awkward happened. There were only two small bowls in the house, which meant one of them would have to use a large bowl.

She thought for a moment and decided to give the large bowl to Xiao Ran.

’This isn’t favoritism, oh no.’

’After all, Auntie is also a woman, so she probably doesn’t eat that much.’

’Brother Xiao Ran is a man, so it’s most appropriate for him to use the large bowl.’