"Why isn’t Xiaorui out yet?" Ren Qunfang asked.

She had watched the two kids go in together. She and Lin Ruoxi had already been waiting for a while. ’Could Xue Rui have failed?’ she wondered. ’Is he waiting for his second try?’

In fact, Xue Rui had already finished his test and was watching a commotion with Qiu Mengze.

Someone had been caught cheating on the written driving test and was now being held by the staff while they took pictures...

"Bro, please, can you just let me go this one time? I’ve already failed four times," the man said, his face a mask of misery.

"Seriously, bro? Cheating on the written test?" Xue Rui chuckled.

"I didn’t get much schooling. I can’t even recognize all the words," the man sighed deeply.

"..."

Qiu Mengze had the same miserable look on his face. "You jinxed me! I got an 89. I have to go back in for my second try..."

"Good luck. I’m gonna watch the show a little longer," Xue Rui said.

He saw that Lin Ruoxi had already gone over. From his current position, he could just make out his mom’s face through the glass, though he had no idea what the two were talking about.

He decided not to butt in. For all he knew, they were already talking about having kids.

「Inside the convenience store.」

Ren Qunfang had ordered a coffee for Lin Ruoxi, along with a few desserts.

The young woman took a sip of the coffee. It was a little bitter.

She tilted her head, peering at the brown liquid in the cup. It was her first time drinking this.

"Xixi, what do you say I give you the apartment you’re living in?" Ren Qunfang said with a smile.

"I’m starting university soon, and my grandmother said she’s moving to a nursing home. We won’t need the apartment anymore," Lin Ruoxi said, hastily waving her hands in refusal.

"But it’s in a good school district. If we put it in your name, it’ll be easier for your future children to get into a good school," Ren Qunfang said, taking Lin Ruoxi’s hand.

Both Lin Ruoxi and Gu Muxue were wonderful girls.

But she felt that Lin Ruoxi was the one who needed to be taken care of the most. In her heart, she was a little more partial to Lin Ruoxi.

"Children?" Lin Ruoxi’s eyes widened. ’If it’s for a child’s schooling, why give it to me?’

"You’re not going to have children in the future?" Ren Qunfang asked with a smile.

Lin Ruoxi’s face flushed. She was suddenly reminded of the steps involved in making a baby...

Having a baby was something for two people, and there were many other things that had to happen first.

"I... I will," Lin Ruoxi said in a small voice.

"Well, there you go. I’ll take you out for lunch and some shopping, and this afternoon, you can come with me to handle the transfer paperwork," Ren Qunfang said, nodding in satisfaction.

"But, Auntie, it would be the same if you gave it to Xue Rui," Lin Ruoxi said.

’If it’s for a child’s schooling, giving it to me or giving it to Xue Rui is the same thing, right?’

Ren Qunfang felt a gentle squeeze on her heart, a mix of joy and a touch of sorrow.

’This girl is so direct and innocent.’ For her to say that... didn’t it mean she planned on having children with Xue Rui?

She wanted to give Lin Ruoxi the apartment to provide the girl with a sense of security.

That way, she would always have a home to fall back on. Regardless of whether that boy Xue Rui chose Lin Ruoxi in the end, at least the girl would have an apartment as a safety net.

Girls at this age are often so naively wrapped up in love that they don’t care about material things.

But whether Lin Ruoxi accepted it was one thing; whether she offered it was another. Back then, Xie Jianfeng had put their house in her name, and now she wanted to do the same for Lin Ruoxi.

"Listen to Auntie. I won’t do anything to harm you," Ren Qunfang said, trying to persuade her earnestly.

Lin Ruoxi thought for a moment. "I... I’ll listen to Xue Rui."

Ren Qunfang’s eyes reddened. Where could she ever find a second girl as sweet and obedient as this?

She was so angry now her hands were itching to give Xue Rui a couple of slaps.

Xue Rui saw Ren Qunfang’s expression. How could he not know what was happening? That look was the precursor to a beating.

Ren Qunfang took a few deep breaths, calmed herself, and then asked gently, "Xixi, how far have you and Xue Rui gotten?"

Lin Ruoxi paused to think for a moment. She had been reading a lot of books on social interaction recently. The phrase "how far" could mean different things in different contexts. Since Ren Qunfang was asking about her and Xue Rui, and recalling that her classmates had asked similar questions before, she figured it must be referring to their romantic relationship.

Lin Ruoxi said seriously, "Auntie, are you asking if we’re dating?"

"Yes." Ren Qunfang was taken aback for a second. ’This girl is so earnest,’ she thought.

"I’m pursuing Xue Rui, and he’s already agreed to let me pursue him." As Lin Ruoxi said this, the corners of her eyes lifted slightly in a smile.

Hearing this, Ren Qunfang’s brow couldn’t stop twitching.

She had assumed the two were already together. After all, Xue Rui went over to her place every day to freeload off her food and drinks. She figured he was probably freeloading a place to sleep, too.

Lin Ruoxi was so beautiful; just sitting by the window now, she was attracting countless gazes...

Based on her looks alone, she couldn’t believe Xue Rui would be able to refuse her.

And now this girl was saying *she* was pursuing *her* son?

So, Xue Rui hadn’t even agreed yet?

This was backward! Completely backward!

’Is he playing hard to get?’

"When he gets here, I’m going to teach him a lesson," Ren Qunfang said through clenched teeth.

The female employee at the convenience store had just brought the two their ice cream. She’d overheard their conversation and thought, ’A boy who has a girl this beautiful chasing after him must be incredibly handsome, right?’

From their conversation, it sounded like the boy named Xue Rui was taking his written driving test and would be coming over soon.

She got her phone ready, planning to snap a picture when the handsome boy arrived to show off to her best friend.

Lin Ruoxi’s expression turned panicked. She knew what "teach him a lesson" meant.

The young woman’s hand, held by Ren Qunfang, began to tremble. "Auntie, please don’t hit Xue Rui, okay?"

"Okay, okay, I won’t hit him," Ren Qunfang said helplessly.

There were so many pretty girls around Xue Rui, and there was even that one, Chen Tingting, who had made dumplings for him...

She just couldn’t see what was so great about her own son.

Xue Rui squatted outside for a while. ’Waiting out here won’t solve anything,’ he thought. ’I have to go in eventually.’

The main thing was that the show was over, and his legs were getting numb from squatting. He decided to go into the convenience store to rest for a bit.

As soon as he walked into the convenience store, he was met with Ren Qunfang’s hostile gaze. "Xiaorui, get over here."

When the girl at the convenience store heard the name "Xiaorui," her head shot up, and her eyes burned brightly as she watched the boy walk through the door. "Hello, welcome."

The young woman scanned him up and down. ’This boy looks pretty average.’

’Hmm... he’s pretty tall, though, and has a decent air about him.’

But her expectations had been too high. ’At the very least, he should be on the level of a male celebrity, right?’ she thought.

After all, that girl was prettier than most female celebrities. The two of them should at least be a match in terms of looks. Now that she saw him in person, her expression was one of disappointment.

The young woman couldn’t help but ask, "Are you Xue Rui?"

’Did I get the wrong person?’ she wondered.

"Yeah. Do you know me?" Xue Rui asked curiously.

This woman’s expression was so strange. At first, it was delight, with a hint of surprise.

But after he answered, it turned to disappointment, and was there also a faint, almost imperceptible trace of disdain?

"Nope." The young woman shook her head and went back to staring blankly out the door.

Xue Rui’s eye twitched. ’What a weirdo,’ he thought.

"Here’s your phone. Muxue called just now," Ren Qunfang said irritably.

Xue Rui’s hand froze as he took the phone, and he instinctively glanced at the young woman’s reaction.

’Hmm, no reaction from her. Good.’

"What did she say?" Xue Rui asked casually.

Ren Qunfang paused to think. Gu Muxue had seemed to want something from Xue Rui, but it ended up turning into a chat with her. After a moment, she said, "I think she was asking about some jar."

Xue Rui smiled. ’That Gu Muxue is really something else,’ he thought.

For his birthday, Gu Muxue had given him a jar full of little paper stars, which almost certainly had some embarrassing words written inside.

Being the tsundere she was, Gu Muxue wanted to give it to him but didn’t want him to see what was inside. So, she sealed the jar with a little mechanism that would cause it to break if he tried to open it.

Every two or three weeks, she would call and ask him to send a picture to confirm he hadn’t snuck a peek.

That kind of little mechanism was easy enough to bypass. At worst, he could just read the messages and then buy an identical jar to put them back in.

However, Xue Rui was good at keeping his promises. He would only look when Gu Muxue told him he could.

Seeing Xue Rui’s smile, Ren Qunfang found it more and more grating. She really wanted to smack him a few times, but unfortunately, Lin Ruoxi was staring at her with wide, pleading eyes.

’My mom must want to say something to me,’ Xue Rui thought, ’but she can’t say it in front of Lin Ruoxi.’

"Mom, do you need to use the restroom? I can show you the way," Xue Rui said.

"Yes. Xixi, you take your time and eat. Auntie’s already paid," Ren Qunfang said with a nod, signaling for Lin Ruoxi to stay put and wait.

After they stepped out of the convenience store, Ren Qunfang smacked Xue Rui on the back.

The crisp SMACK drew the gazes of many passersby.

Qiu Mengze, who was just walking out of the testing center, saw Xue Rui getting hit from a distance and immediately broke into a wide grin.

"Mom, we’re in public," Xue Rui said with a frown.

Ren Qunfang glanced around and reined in her temper. She snorted coldly and said in a low voice, "So you *do* know how to feel embarrassed? I was starting to think your skin was thicker than a fortress wall."

"Spit it out. What are you planning to do about those girls?" Ren Qunfang demanded.

Xue Rui rubbed his chin. "Mom, have you ever noticed that when you’re driving, if you hit one red light, you hit all red lights, but if you hit one green light, it’s green lights all the way?"

Ren Qunfang paused. It was true. One red light was always followed by more red lights, and one green light was followed by more green lights.

"But what does that have to do with dating?" Ren Qunfang asked with a frown.

"Everything. It has everything to do with it," Xue Rui said seriously.

"Oh? Do tell." Ren Qunfang’s curiosity was piqued.

"It’s like how you used to always nag me..."

"Nag you about what?" Ren Qunfang asked.

Xue Rui slapped his forehead. ’Right, Mom hasn’t started nagging me about marriage yet at this point in time.’

He corrected himself, "Finding a girlfriend is a lot like driving. When you can’t find one, you just can’t find any at all."

"But once you find the first one, the rest just swarm you all at once."

As he said this, Xue Rui let out a deep sigh, as if he were reluctant about the whole thing.

Ren Qunfang’s brow twitched as she listened. She glanced around, pulled Xue Rui into a deserted corner, and smacked him on the back a few more times.

"Nothing but nonsense comes out of your mouth! And here I thought you were about to say something profound, but you give me *this*?" A vein throbbed on Ren Qunfang’s forehead from anger.

"Mom, don’t sprain your hand," Xue Rui said with a grin. He was tough; a few smacks were nothing to him. He was more worried she would hurt herself.

Ren Qunfang didn’t listen and smacked him on the back again.

"You’ll regret it if you hit me again," Xue Rui warned.

"Regret it?" Ren Qunfang gave him a light pat. ’I would regret it if I actually hurt him. He’s my own flesh and blood, after all.’

But Xue Rui was a big guy. A few pats wouldn’t do any harm.

"Mom, getting angry will deepen your crow’s feet," Xue Rui chuckled.

Reminded by Xue Rui, Ren Qunfang suddenly reached up with two fingers to rub the corners of her eyes, as if trying to smooth out the wrinkles. "If you keep this up, you’re going to take years off my life."

"Why did Xixi say she’s the one pursuing you?" Ren Qunfang asked after calming down.

"She... maybe she wants to start the relationship from the very beginning?" Xue Rui said, sounding a little unsure.

Ren Qunfang sighed helplessly. "Fine. Starting from the beginning is fine. She’s never really experienced what it’s like to be young and in love."

Perhaps that was what these girls saw in her son—that mix of decisiveness and subtle tenderness.

"Muxue’s family is very well-off, so you don’t need to pretend to be rich for her. Spend more time with Xixi. Take her out."

"Xixi... I don’t think she’s even had coffee before."

As Ren Qunfang said this, a flash of heartache crossed her eyes.