When Gu Junxing came over, Nian Suian was still crouching there. She looked so small crouching on the ground that it gave Gu Junxing the feeling of being late to pick up a child from school.
"Finished talking so quickly?" Nian Suian looked up, extending her hand to signal Gu Junxing to help pull her up.
"Yes, he left first."
Having crouched for too long, Nian Suian felt a bit dizzy when standing up, so she naturally held onto Gu Junxing's arm, leaning her whole body against him.
"Did you ask him? What does he think?"
Gu Junxing repeated Chen Shu's exact words to Nian Suian, then added, "Chen Shu knows his own mind; we can't really interfere in this matter."
Nian Suian shared the same thought—when it comes to matters of the heart, outsiders can never truly understand.
It was getting late, so without further delay, they went directly to the apartment Gu Junxing had mentioned.
The apartment wasn't far, about a ten-minute drive away, but the neighborhood was noticeably more upscale.
Gu Junxing hadn't been here for a long time, so entering the complex took some effort. They had to verify his ownership and re-register the vehicle information before being allowed in.
The apartment was a top-floor duplex, very spacious, and notably empty.
She couldn't help but ask Gu Junxing, "This decoration style... did you choose it?"
"Yes, I've never lived here, so I just randomly picked a style when decorating."
"This style... one look at it could make anyone swear off love." The apartment was already very empty and lacking signs of life, and with the all black, white, and grey decor, it felt several degrees colder inside than outside.
"After we finish decorating the other place, we can renovate this one according to your taste."
Nian Suian thought about their current apartment, which had looked similar at first—a black and white grey model home, though it didn't seem as extreme as this one since people actually lived there.
Later, she had gradually changed some of the soft furnishings and added decorations, making it much more comfortable.
Thinking of this, Nian Suian asked Gu Junxing, "Where did you live when you were married before?"
"I sold that house long ago." At that time, his business wasn't as successful, and the marriage house had been prepared by his parents. Though it was called their marriage home, neither of them had really lived there much.
After the divorce, neither wanted to keep it, so they simply sold it and returned the money to his parents.
Nian Suian wasn't very interested in this apartment. After walking around, she told Gu Junxing, "I still prefer the one we bought today; it feels more like a home."
Gu Junxing naturally had no objection, "Then we'll leave this one alone for now."
Coincidentally, just as they arrived home, they met Gu Zhijing returning from school.
Upon seeing them, he ran over to tease them:
"Oh! Been on a date? Getting all lovey-dovey again?"
"We went house hunting."
Though Nian Suian was telling the truth, Gu Zhijing didn't believe it. "Are you kidding? Who goes house hunting this late?"
"Why would I kid about that? It's in the same complex as Qu Zizhou's family. When it's renovated, would you like to stay there? You two could go to school together."
"What? Are you serious?" Gu Zhijing only realized it was true when he saw how serious Nian Suian looked.
He immediately felt uneasy, rubbing his head as he asked them, "You're not trying to kick me out, are you?"
Gu Zhijing didn't know Nian Suian's thoughts, but he wondered why they would suddenly buy a house in Qu Zizhou's neighborhood. Could they be trying to make it easier to kick him out so they could have their private life?
Just as Nian Suian was about to say "you're overthinking it," Gu Junxing spoke up: "If we wanted to kick you out, why go through the trouble of buying a new house? We could just throw you into any empty house and be done with it."
Gu Zhijing wasn't bothered by Gu Junxing's words; if anything, he felt relieved. "As long as you're not trying to make me live by myself."
Nian Suian had thought that a teenager his age would be eager to leave his parents and live independently, yet he seemed surprisingly reluctant to leave home.
"Do you like living at home that much? What about when you go to college?"
This question didn't stump Gu Zhijing at all; he immediately answered, "I've already figured that out—I'll just find a university nearby and come home every day after classes, just like now."
Nian Suian laughed at this, patting his arm and praising him: "Good boy, such a homebody."
Today, the family of three had another rare chance to enjoy a late-night snack together.
Tonight's snack was fermented rice balls, made with Nanny Zhang's homemade rice wine, which was very fragrant—even Gu Junxing had a large bowl.
However, worried about digestion issues at night, Nanny Zhang made it quite thin and used fewer rice balls.
"Suian, are you drunk?" After finishing, Gu Junxing noticed Nian Suian's face was very red, as if she'd had too much to drink, though looking at her small bowl made him doubt this.
Hearing this, Nanny Zhang came over to look, remarking with surprise: "That shouldn't be possible. I just made this rice wine a few days ago, and it's not very strong. Madam, are you feeling dizzy?"
Nian Suian nodded, "A little bit." She had thought she was just tired, not realizing she was drunk. She had never drunk alcohol before, not even beer, so she had no idea about her alcohol tolerance.
"Are you alright?" Gu Junxing sat beside her, reaching out to feel her forehead and face.
Even Gu Zhijing put down his spoon and came over to check on her.
Nian Suian dismissed their concerns: "I'm fine, really, it's just a tiny bit. It'll actually help me sleep better."
"Let me accompany you upstairs to rest."
This time Nian Suian didn't refuse, getting up with Gu Junxing's help.
Gu Zhijing watched them leave and sat back down to continue eating.
After a while, Gu Junxing came back downstairs.
"Is Little Mom Sister asleep?"
"Not calling her mom anymore?"
"I'm shy, okay!"
"Fine." Regarding the matter of titles, Gu Junxing decided to let him call her whatever he wanted. He had something else to discuss.
"Final exams are coming up, right?"
At the mention of studying and exams, Gu Zhijing became restless in his chair, as if he was sitting on pins and needles.
After hesitating for a while, he finally mumbled an "mm-hmm."
"Didn't you say you wanted to travel by yourself? If you rank in the top five of your class, I'll let you go."
"Dad~ Last time I barely made it into the top ten because the math test was easy. Top five is impossible, how about top ten again?"
"No negotiation."
"Dad~ Think about it—if I go traveling, you and Little Mom Sister can have your private time. Without me bothering you, wouldn't that be nice?" Gu Zhijing sat next to Gu Junxing, trying to persuade him.
"Don't worry about that. Just think about yourself—if you want to travel, you need to rank in the top five." After saying this, Gu Junxing went upstairs without waiting for Gu Zhijing's response.
Gu Junxing knew that Gu Zhijing clearly had more potential but just wasn't willing to work hard. This boy needed some pushing.
As for their private time, even with him at home, it wouldn't affect their couple time...