The drizzle that accompanied their arrival had turned into a steady rain.
Lu Mingzhe, considerate of his wife accompanying him to the hospital for half the day, took off his suit jacket and draped it over her.
"The weather in Hangcheng is still a bit cold; be careful not to catch a cold."
Her husband was tall and handsome, gentle and considerate towards her. The couple, a perfect match, drew countless admiring glances as they walked together.
Now, he took off his jacket again to cover her shoulders, and for a moment, doctors and patients sheltering from the rain at the entrance of the outpatient building cast envious looks their way.
"Wait here. I'll go get the car to pick you up."
With that, he dashed out into the rain.
Fang Shuya, wearing the jacket still warm with Lu Mingzhe's body heat, waited there beaming.
A moment later, Xiang Wan appeared beside her with her child and grandmother.
"Why is this rain getting heavier? I didn't bring an umbrella when we came. Grandma, you wait here with Niannian, I'll go get the car."
Grandma started to hand over the blanket covering Niannian to her.
"Put this over your head so your clothes don't get wet."
"No need. It's still a bit damp. You keep it for Niannian; don't let her get chilled again."
Xiang Wan, in high heels, dashed out into the rain.
Niannian, with a fever patch on her forehead, was wrapped in a thin blanket by her great-grandmother. Her large eyes blinked and rolled quietly, observing the world.
Her fair and tender little hands dangled outside, waving as if greeting someone.
Fang Shuya, who was planning to get pregnant recently, became particularly interested in the child and couldn't resist leaning over to touch her little hand.
"So pretty. Is it a girl?"
Grandma glanced at her and smiled kindly, "Yes."
"How old is she? She's so adorable."
"Just turned five months."
Seeing someone doting on her, Niannian, despite not feeling well, smiled.
Her two tiny white front teeth were revealed, making her incredibly cute.
Fang Shuya's heart melted from her cuteness.
"She's teething already? So cute! Her teeth are so small and white."
Lu Mingzhe drove the car over, rolled down the passenger window, and peered out through the rain.
"Ya Ya, let's go."
Fang Shuya released Niannian's hand. "My husband is here to pick me up. I won't chat with you anymore. Goodbye, little one!"
She pinched Niannian's cheek again, hurried down the stairs, got into the car, and left.
The moment Lu Mingzhe drove off, Xiang Wan's car also stopped.
Grandma, holding Niannian in the back seat, looked at Lu Mingzhe's car, only a few meters away, and sighed.
"It would be nice if you had a man. You wouldn't have to be both father and mother all day, so busy with everything."
"Grandma, why are you suddenly saying this?"
"I just thought of it seeing the young couple in the car ahead."
"You're not old, and you're pretty. Even though you have a child, your life is still long. You can't stay single forever, can you?"
Xiang Wan glanced at the back of Lu Mingzhe's car, following her words.
It had a Hangcheng license plate; she didn't recognize it.
"Let's talk about it when Niannian is older. I haven't said I'll never look for someone again. Fate can't be forced."
Grandma sighed. "Actually, Xiao Tang is quite good. Although he's a bit ordinary-looking, he has a good job and is good to you and Niannian..."
"Can we please not talk about him? Don't I know what's best for me regarding Tang Haichao? If we were truly compatible, would we still be in this situation?"
"Then why aren't you compatible? I just don't understand. He's single, you're single. He's divorced, and your circumstances are similar. Neither of you looks down on the other, so why won't it work?"
Xiang Wan retorted, "According to you, then, you can just randomly pair up single men and women on the street, and they'll become a couple? Is that what you mean?"
"That's not what I mean. I mean..."
"I'm not attracted to Tang Haichao. Stop talking about it. Besides, even though he's divorced, he has good character and deserves someone better than me. Who says he has to be involved with someone like me?"
Whenever the topic of finding a partner came up, Xiang Wan became agitated, and Grandma dared not say more.
Lu Mingzhe's car stopped at the toll gate. The parking fee was five yuan. He extended his young, slender arm and paid with his phone.
Xiang Wan followed behind, sitting in her car and looking at those hands. For a moment, she thought of Lu Mingzhe.
He also had such a pair of young, good-looking hands, and he often wore watches of that style on his wrist...
Stop! Stop! Xiang Wan, can you have a little more backbone? Stop thinking about him!
It was all Grandma's fault. With Niannian being sick recently, she'd been listening to Grandma's nonsense more, which had made her heart restless again.
As the car exited the hospital, Xiang Wan told Grandma.
"You cook dinner yourself tonight. I have something to do and won't be eating at home. I'll drop you off at the entrance and leave."
Grandma worried about her. "Busy with work again? How late will you be working today?"
"You know, you finally had two days off because of Niannian's illness, and now you're starting to get busy again. I was thinking..."
"What can I do? I owe someone a favor for helping with Niannian's birth certificate today, so I have to treat them to a meal."
"Alright, alright. Just drink less alcohol and come back early."
After dropping the child off at home, Xiang Wan greeted the person surnamed Qian and sent the restaurant address. She then sat in the private room and called Tang Haichao.
"Please do me a favor and pretend to run into me, otherwise, who knows how he'll pester me today."
Tang Haichao was amused by her.
"I could have found someone to help you with the birth certificate. Why did you have to find him yourself?"
"You know this old man has had his eye on you for a long time. Now that you owe him a favor, he'll be bothering you incessantly."
"At worst, I'll treat him to more food and drinks today. He'll spend my money, and that will shut him up. It's just a little trouble for you to help create a diversion."
Tang Haichao laughed. "You should thank your two apprentices. They'll be helping you share the load tonight."
Since the company's scale expanded, Tang Haichao had hired four young and attractive male and female apprentices for Xiang Wan.
She was now officially the business manager of Haochao Decoration Company.
He claimed to be on a honeymoon and didn't want to be too busy with his own affairs, neglecting his wife.
After leaving the hospital, Lu Mingzhe asked Fang Shuya what she wanted to eat for dinner, planning to treat her to a good meal.
Fang Shuya looked up a restaurant with Hangcheng specialties on her phone.
"Tonight, my time is mine. After dinner, wherever I say we go, we go. Whatever I say we do, we do. You're not allowed to refuse anymore!"
"Lu Mingzhe, as a wife, haven't I been very accommodating to you? This request isn't too much, is it?"
Of course, it wasn't too much.
Since the two were already married, what was bound to happen would happen eventually. Lu Mingzhe was mentally prepared.
"Alright, I'll do whatever you say tonight. I'll do whatever you ask me to do."