"Just the two of us."

Ruan Tang ignored her sister, looking straight into Xu Lai's eyes as she enunciated each word.

The living room fell silent.

Ruan Lan was dumbfounded. What is happening? Big Sis actually suggested going shopping with Xu Lai, just the two of them. Isn't this basically a date?!

"Daddy," Xu Yiyi, who was eating fruit, looked over with an expectant gaze. "Hurry up and say yes."

Xu Lai sized up Ruan Tang and said seriously, "If this is your way of apologizing, there's no need. I wasn't angry about what happened earlier."

"There is a need," Ruan Tang shook her head. "I realize I still know too little about you. I want to... understand you more."

"Do you want to know more about Yiyi's father, or more about your husband?" Xu Lai asked teasingly.

Ruan Tang blinked. "You guess."

"..."

"Whoa," Ruan Lan exclaimed. Has Big Sis had an epiphany? She actually knows how to take the initiative now! And that blink just now was so playful, so girlish! This is incredible. I'd better give them an assist.

"Sis, Brother-in-law, a classmate told me about a couples' hotel. She said it's elegant and perfect for young lovers to get cozy."

Ruan Lan found the hotel on a mobile app, but after glancing at the reviews, her face instantly turned beet red.

My goodness, what are all these props in the pictures? How could... No way, no way, I can't let Xu Lai bully my sister like that.

Ruan Lan threw her phone down and glared fiercely at Xu Lai. "You two can only go to a normal hotel, you hear me?!"

Ruan Tang was speechless.

Xu Lai said with a straight face, "I think our little sister has a point. There's plenty of time for things like couples' hotels, so honey, don't be in such a hurry."

Ruan Tang felt like hitting someone. Forget those shamelessly over-the-top couples' hotels; she hadn't even intended to go to a normal one. It was just a simple shopping trip. That's all! What on earth were these cringey fantasies Ruan Lan was having? And Xu Lai, instead of helping, was just fanning the flames.

"Yiyi, it's time for bed," Ruan Tang said, changing the subject. She then looked at Xu Lai, who hadn't moved. "What are you still standing there for?" she asked in surprise.

"It's time to go tell a story," Xu Lai replied, getting up.

Ruan Lan wanted to listen in, but Xu Yiyi stopped her.

The little girl said in a soft, sweet voice, "Auntie, can you go to bed early and take me to kindergarten tomorrow?"

"I can, but isn't tomorrow Sunday? What are you going to kindergarten for?" Ruan Lan asked, stunned.

"I arranged to go to the science museum with Qian Xiao."

"Huh?"

Xu Lai and Ruan Tang stopped in their tracks at the same time, their gazes turning serious. "Just you and Qian Xiao, together?"

"Yep, and Mao Dou, Lili, and Shan Shan, too."

Xu Yiyi counted on her fingers, listing over twenty names. Aside from a few others, almost her entire class was going.

Xu Lai and Ruan Tang exchanged a glance, finally feeling relieved.

"...Yiyi, next time you can just say your whole class is going. You don't have to say every single name," Ruan Lan advised earnestly.

"Okay, Auntie."

Xu Yiyi stuck out her tongue playfully, then added, "Oh, right, Mommy, I want to buy some snacks to bring to the science museum."

With a sharp eye, Xu Lai grabbed the wallet from the nearby coffee table, opened it, and pulled out five hundred-yuan bills. He declared generously, "Spend as much as you like. Our family has money."

"But, Brother-in-law, that's my wallet," Ruan Lan said, flabbergasted.

"I know. Otherwise, I would've only given her one hundred."

"..."

Interrupted by Xu Yiyi, Ruan Tang was no longer in the mood to listen to stories. She spent over an hour bathing her daughter and getting her clothes ready for the next day before she finally got to rest.

...

「The next day.」

East Sea City was shrouded in endless dark clouds. A heavy, oppressive atmosphere permeated the air, carrying the palpable tension of an impending storm.

Ruan Lan hailed a cab, taking Xu Yiyi to the kindergarten first before accompanying the class to the science museum as a temporary guardian.

Xu Lai and Ruan Tang didn't drive; instead, they walked out of Haitang Court.

Gazing at the Haitang flowers blooming all over the hills and inhaling their fragrance, Ruan Tang felt her heart fill with delight. Although East Sea City was overcast, her mood was bright and sunny.

Xu Lai watched Ruan Tang.

She wore a simple, long white dress with sandals, and on her right wrist was the Star Bracelet he had given her. The corners of her mouth were curved into a smile, making her as beautiful as a Fairy from the heavens.

This wasn't just a case of beauty being in the eye of the beholder. Xu Lai truly believed that Ruan Tang's beauty surpassed that of any so-called Saintess or Goddess by a hundred, even a thousand times.

Ruan Tang noticed Xu Lai's deep gaze, which was filled only with appreciation, and couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Can you use your eyes to watch the road, please?"

Xu Lai declared emphatically, "You are my road."

Why does that sound so strange?

Ruan Tang didn't dwell on it. She and Xu Lai chatted as they walked down the mountain, their conversation mostly revolving around Xu Yiyi.

By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, a muffled roll of thunder echoed through the sky, and raindrops began to patter down.

"Oh no," Ruan Tang said, a headache forming. "The weather forecast said no rain, didn't it? Xu Lai, let's go home and get an umbrella."

As she finished speaking, an expression of utter disbelief crossed her face.

Somehow, an aged, yellowed oil-paper umbrella had appeared in Xu Lai's hand. On its surface was an ink wash painting: a small boat adrift on the sea, with a woman on board gazing toward a distant stone bridge.

On the bridge, an old woman was looking back.

"You—"

Ruan Tang's breathing grew ragged. Wasn't this the dream she had the night before her birthday? The scene was nearly identical!

"This umbrella is for you," Xu Lai said softly. "It can shield you from the wind and rain, and you can think of those you miss beneath it."

Ruan Tang took the oil-paper umbrella, her expression complex. "Xu Lai, how did you know about my dream? And this umbrella..."

"This umbrella belonged to your grandmother."

"What?"

Ruan Tang's expression shifted, and her hand tightened slightly on the umbrella's handle.

"Open the umbrella. It's time to go," Xu Lai reminded her. He wasn't lying. The umbrella was indeed a trace Ruan Tang's grandmother had left in the Samsara Sea, which Xu Lai had simply materialized.

Ruan Tang was silent for a moment before she opened it. She didn't question Xu Lai further, because sometimes, the more you know about things, the more distressing they become.

Raindrops tapped against the umbrella's surface and splashed onto the ground. The sound was somewhat muted, yet it also seemed to carry a crisp clarity.

Ruan Tang whispered softly, "Thank you."

"A verbal thank-you is too shallow. You should treat me to some candied hawthorns," Xu Lai said expectantly. Back in the Heavenly Court, The Seventh Divine General often talked about how delicious candied hawthorns were, but he never had the chance to try them.

"There are no candied hawthorns now; they're only sold on the street in the winter. But East Sea has its own specialty snacks, and they sell them on the street we're going to today."

Sharing the single umbrella, Ruan Tang and Xu Lai stood by the roadside and hailed a taxi.

"Driver, to Yuhua Alley," Ruan Tang said.

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