Rebirth Begins with Rejecting my Childhood Friend - Chapter 528

It seemed that An Shishi noticed Xu Xiuwen’s nervousness.

An Shishi smiled gently and reassured him, “Hubby, don’t be nervous, I’m not mad.”

Hearing this, Xu Xiuwen felt relieved.

“Hubby, is she planning to stay hidden in the room the whole time? Do you want me to step out for a bit?”

Xu Xiuwen nodded. “Yeah, that would be best.”

“Alright then, I won’t stay here tonight. I’ll head back to school now. Such a pity, though.”

Xu Xiuwen instinctively asked, “What’s a pity?”

An Shishi chuckled ambiguously, then leaned in close to whisper something in his ear.

She told him that she was wearing a brand-new, very sexy lingerie set underneath, which she had planned to show him tonight.

But now, he wouldn’t get to see it.

Xu Xiuwen smiled wryly at her words.

Then, An Shishi put on her coat and got up to leave.

Xu Xiuwen walked her to the door.

Once the door closed, he returned to the living room and stood in front of a bedroom door.

He spoke toward the room, “Auntie, Shishi has left. You can come out now.”

Hearing his words, Liu Ruo slowly opened the door and stepped out.

“Has Shishi really left?”

“Yeah.”

“Sorry for the trouble again, Xiaoxu.”

Xu Xiuwen waved it off. “It’s no problem. You must be hungry. The food is still warm, so go ahead and eat.”

“Alright.”

While Liu Ruo was eating, Xu Xiuwen took out his phone, found the contact number of a real estate agent he had met when buying a house last time, and called them.

He asked if they were available and arranged to meet them in front of a certain residential complex later.

After making the call, he put down his phone, turned to Liu Ruo, and said, “Auntie, I have something to take care of outside. You stay here at home.”

Liu Ruo put down her chopsticks and said nervously, “Xiaoxu, you’re leaving? What if Shishi comes while you’re gone?”

Xu Xiuwen replied, “Don’t worry, she went back to school and probably won’t come back today. Here’s what you do—after I leave, lock the door from the inside. Don’t open it for anyone except me.”

“Okay.”

“Alright, keep eating. I’m heading out.”

Xu Xiuwen went to his room to grab his things and then left the house.

An Shishi had almost discovered Liu Ruo earlier, which served as a wake-up call for Xu Xiuwen.

Letting Liu Ruo stay here was not a viable long-term solution.

He planned to rent an apartment for her so she could live on her own.

Besides that, Xu Xiuwen was also thinking about buying or renting a place for Lu Xinyao.

This idea had already been on his mind for a while.

He had noticed that Lu Xinyao was currently living in the company dormitory.

That arrangement wasn’t ideal for either of them.

The best solution was for her to move out and live independently.

And once the baby was born, she would need a stable place to live.

She couldn’t possibly stay in the company dormitory after giving birth.

After all, Xu Xiuwen was the baby’s father.

There was no way he would act irresponsibly.

He had even planned that before the baby arrived, he would hire a professional caretaker for Lu Xinyao. Then, once the baby was born, he would hire a specialized postpartum nanny.

When the child grew older and was ready for school, he would buy a top-tier school district apartment in Gulou District.

The only reason he wasn’t buying a place in Gulou District right away was that there was still a long time before Lu Xinyao gave birth.

Since Lu Xinyao would still be working at the company, buying a house too far away would be inconvenient for her commute.

All these plans were in Xu Xiuwen’s mind.

He intended to implement them step by step.

For now, he hadn’t told Lu Xinyao about his plans.

He wanted to buy the house first and surprise her later.

—

Half an hour later, Xu Xiuwen drove to the entrance of the residential complex where he had agreed to meet the male real estate agent.

By the time he arrived, the agent was already there.

The agent still remembered Xu Xiuwen’s license plate number and recognized his car immediately.

As soon as Xu Xiuwen parked, the agent approached with a smile.

Once Xu Xiuwen got out of the car, the agent greeted him warmly.

“Mr. Xu, hello, nice to see you again.”

Xu Xiuwen nodded and said, “Let’s skip the small talk. Just take me to see the house.”

“Of course, Mr. Xu. This way, please.”

The residential complex the agent was showing him was called Yihe Nanyuan, located just a ten-minute walk from Xu Xiuwen’s company—very close.

The complex had excellent greenery, with a variety of plants arranged in layers for a well-structured look.

There were also man-made plazas, rock gardens, and flowing water features for residents to take walks and exercise.

As they walked, the agent introduced the complex’s features to Xu Xiuwen.

The apartment he was viewing was on the 8th floor.

It had 140 square meters, with three bedrooms, two living rooms, and two bathrooms. The unit faced north to south, ensuring excellent natural lighting in both the bedrooms and the living room.

Most importantly, the apartment was already renovated.

Xu Xiuwen wasn’t considering a brand-new apartment because Lu Xinyao was due to give birth in a few months.

Buying a new place would require renovations, which would take too much time and effort.

A pre-renovated second-hand apartment was his top priority.

This unit was already furnished. Though the decor wasn’t as upscale as his Jiangning Huayuan apartment, it was still quite decent.

After checking it out, Xu Xiuwen found the apartment satisfactory.

The agent, seeing that Xu Xiuwen hadn’t spoken, assumed he wasn’t satisfied and quickly offered, “Mr. Xu, I have two other similar listings. If this one doesn’t meet your expectations, we can check out the others.”

Hearing this, Xu Xiuwen turned to the agent and said, “No need. I’m satisfied with this one. What’s the price?”

The agent replied, “Mr. Xu, the owner is asking 650,000 yuan. I can try negotiating for you, but they’ve been quite firm on their price.”

Xu Xiuwen was slightly surprised.

Last time he bought a house through this agent, the agent never offered to help negotiate.

And judging by the agent’s expression, he wasn’t lying.

650,000 yuan for 140 square meters—which meant 4,600 yuan per square meter.

It was actually more expensive per square meter than his Jiangning Huayuan apartment, but considering it was 2006, the price wasn’t outrageous.

After all, the average housing price in Jinling was already around 4,200 yuan per square meter.

This complex was newly built last year and located in Jiangning District, which explained the pricing.

After a brief moment of thought, Xu Xiuwen decided not to bargain.

He told the agent, “I’ll take it. The price is fine.”

“Great, Mr. Xu!”

The agent was overjoyed.

After his initial excitement, the agent remembered something and asked, “Mr. Xu, about the rental property you mentioned on the phone—I happen to have some good listings. Do you want to check them out now?”

“Yes.”

“Alright, please follow me.”

Xu Xiuwen was then taken by the real estate agent to a neighboring residential complex.

The rental complex was just across the street from the one where he bought the apartment for Lu Xinyao.

This complex was built in 2002 and was already fully occupied, with a strong sense of community and daily life.

But since he was only renting, Xu Xiuwen didn’t have too many requirements.

He followed the agent to take a look.

It was a two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment, with decent space and good natural lighting.

Xu Xiuwen quickly decided to rent it.

Back at the real estate office, the landlord soon arrived.

Then, Xu Xiuwen and the landlord signed the purchase contract for the other apartment right there in the agency.

This wasn’t his first time buying a house, but to be safe, he still called in a lawyer.

It was the same glasses-wearing Lawyer Luo from last time.

As always, Lawyer Luo was highly professional.

He meticulously checked every detail in the contract and verified the landlord’s ID, household registration book, and property ownership certificate.

Only after confirming everything was in order did he give Xu Xiuwen a nod.

With that assurance, Xu Xiuwen signed the contract without hesitation.

After signing, he and the landlord went to the bank to complete the transfer.

Since it was getting late, they agreed to finalize the ownership transfer the next morning.

The rental contract was also signed at the agency.

The landlord’s condition was a three-month deposit and one-month advance payment, with a minimum lease term of six months.

Xu Xiuwen paid a full year’s rent upfront.

Once everything was settled, Xu Xiuwen parted ways with the agent and drove back to Jiangning Huayuan alone.

When he reached home, he inserted his key into the lock and turned it, only to find that the door wouldn’t open.

Then he remembered—before leaving, he had told Liu Ruo to lock the door from inside.

So, he pulled out his phone and called her.

Just as he hung up, Liu Ruo came over to open the door.

As the door opened—

“Xiaoxu, you’re back.”

Walking inside, Xu Xiuwen said, “Auntie, I rented an apartment for you. I’ve already paid for a full year, so from now on, you’ll be living there.”

Liu Ruo was momentarily stunned, then her face showed deep gratitude.

“Xiaoxu, I really don’t know how to thank you.”

Xu Xiuwen waved his hand. “I didn’t do this for thanks. I did it because you’re my mother-in-law, and I also respect your sacrifices and courage.”

After a brief pause—

“Do you want to move tomorrow or tonight?”

Liu Ruo was still overwhelmed with gratitude.

After thinking for a moment, she said, “I’ll move tonight. Staying here isn’t convenient.”

“Alright, no need to waste time. Let’s go now.”

“Mm.”

Then, the two of them packed up the clothes and shoes they had bought that afternoon and loaded everything into the car.

Xu Xiuwen then drove Liu Ruo to her new rental apartment.

When they arrived, he took out the keys and unlocked the door, saying—

“Auntie, I’m usually quite busy, so I might not have time to visit often. If you ever need anything, just call me.”

“Thank you, Xiaoxu, but I want to survive here on my own efforts.”

Xu Xiuwen smirked slightly.

He didn’t want to discourage her.

Once inside, he switched on the lights and said—

“Take a look and see if you’re happy with the place.”

Liu Ruo looked around and nodded repeatedly.

“I like it! It’s a great place! But… Xiaoxu, this must’ve been expensive, right?”

Always worrying about money…

Xu Xiuwen felt speechless.

But Xu Xiuwen still responded patiently, “Auntie, don’t worry about the money.”

Seeing that Xu Xiuwen seemed a little impatient, Liu Ruo hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“Alright.”

After showing Liu Ruo around the apartment, Xu Xiuwen turned to her and said, “Okay, you can take your time exploring later. For now, let’s go to the supermarket and get some supplies.”

Then, he took Liu Ruo to a nearby supermarket and bought a bunch of household essentials and daily necessities.

By arranging her accommodation and getting her everything she needed, Xu Xiuwen felt he had done more than enough as a son-in-law.

So, after returning to the rental apartment from the supermarket, Xu Xiuwen said goodbye to Liu Ruo and drove off.

Back at Jiaotong University, he didn’t head straight to his dorm, nor did he go looking for An Shishi.

Instead, he drove into Jiaotong University Jiangling College’s parking lot.

After turning off the engine, he sat patiently in the car, waiting.

About ten minutes later—

Through the rearview mirror, Xu Xiuwen saw a girl walking in from the parking lot entrance.

It was Tang Weiwei.

She was wearing a plain white T-shirt with a light blue short jacket over it and a pair of light blue jeans.

Her simple outfit made her look fresh, clean, and full of youthful energy.

Seeing Tang Weiwei arrive, Xu Xiuwen rolled down the window, stretched his hand out, and waved in her direction.

Tang Weiwei had been scanning the parking lot, searching for him.

When she spotted his waving hand and parked car, a gentle smile immediately appeared on her face.

Then, she quickly ran over on her small feet.

As soon as Tang Weiwei got close, Xu Xiuwen opened the backseat door for her.

She hopped into the car, her eyes wide and sparkling as she looked at him excitedly.

“Xu Xiuwen!”

Her voice was sweet and crisp, almost like Bai Yue’er’s tone.

Xu Xiuwen looked at her, reached out to ruffle her hair, and asked, “Have you eaten dinner yet?”

“Mhm. Xu Xiuwen, why are you here?”

“Can’t I come? Or… do you not want to see me?”

“No, no! I want to see—”

Halfway through her words, she suddenly realized what she was saying.

Her face turned red, and she immediately lowered her head.

Xu Xiuwen chuckled, then pulled her into his arms and whispered in her ear—

“Because I missed my little Weiwei baby.”

Tang Weiwei’s heart pounded wildly, like a little deer frantically jumping around.

Afraid she might overheat and melt, Xu Xiuwen let her go.

“Have all your dorm mates returned to school?”

Tang Weiwei shook her head. “No.”

“So, you’re the only one in the dorm?”

“Mhm.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? Don’t you feel lonely staying there all by yourself?”

Tang Weiwei shook her head again. “Not at all. When I’m alone, I can read.”

“Oh? What book are you reading lately?”

“I’m reading The Painted Veil.”

Xu Xiuwen was stunned for a moment.

That was a novel by Somerset Maugham.

He had read it back in college.

When it came to Maugham’s works, the more widely known book was The Moon and Sixpence, which many people praised.

But The Painted Veil? Not only was it less popular, but many also considered it Maugham’s weakest work.

Xu Xiuwen never expected Tang Weiwei to read it—

Just like Tang Weiwei never expected Xu Xiuwen to know about it.

Snapping back to reality, Xu Xiuwen gently asked, “How’s the book? What do you think of it?”

Tang Weiwei’s voice was soft. “I’ve finished it.”

“Can you tell me about it?”

Tang Weiwei looked up at him, surprised. “You actually want to hear about it?”

“Why not?”

Looking at the gentle smile on Xu Xiuwen’s face, she knew—

He wasn’t just humoring her.

He genuinely wanted to hear her thoughts on the novel.