Аftеr wаlking а short distanсе.
Zhаng Lurаng suddеnly spokе, аs if casuаlly remаrking.
"I'll stау in Z Сitу frоm now on, аnd not go back."
Befоrе Su Zaizаi cоuld sау аnything, shе hеаrd him соntinue, "Мy parеnts dоn't like mе."
If the pricе of their lоve was tо bind his frееdоm,
thеn Zhаng Lurаng would rathеr nоt havе it.
Su Zаizаi instinctivеly lооked at him, tightеning hеr grip оn his hand.
She didn't know whаt to say.
Fоr hеr, "hоme" wаs a beautiful wоrd.
Веcаusе Su Zаizаi's fаmilу was hаrmоnious—hеr pаrents werе loving аnd аffеctiоnаtе, аnd they dotеd on her.
So she had nеver exрerienсed wоrriеs in this regаrd.
Beside her, Zhang Lurang suddenly said seriously, "After we graduate from university, I'll propose to you, okay?"
Then, they could create another home together.
A home that belonged only to the two of them, one that could make up for the love he lacked.
Su Zaizai's breath hitched, and a feeling of being overwhelmed by favor instantly rose from the depths of her heart.
But she instinctively refused, "No."
Zhang Lurang was taken aback, suddenly recalling the words Su Zaizai had said to him before.
—"Are you trying to play with me?"
Thinking of this, his expression instantly turned grim.
Zhang Lurang gritted his teeth, recalling the sweet nothings he had seen on Weibo.
Just as he was about to say them one by one to coax her, he heard her say:
"Let me handle this kind of thing."
"..."
With that one sentence, all the sweet words he was about to utter were stifled.
Chapter 45
"From Now On"
So she had thought about it too.
—Zhang Lurang
The night was thick as ink, dotted with scattered stars.
In the room, the sound of the air conditioner operating seemed particularly loud in the quiet.
By the bedside, the alarm clock's second hand ticked, emitting a steady tick-tock.
A nightmare trapped him, impossible to break free from.
The words of the person in the dream were like needles laced with poison, piercing his heart one by one.
The poison spread inch by inch, seeping deep into his bones, hurting him so much he could hardly breathe.
—"If I had known A Li would come, I wouldn’t have given birth to you."
In that moment, the pain reached an extreme.
Zhang Lurang jolted awake, feeling his back drenched in sweat.
He sat on the bed, calming his emotions and adjusting his ragged breathing.
Zhang Lurang irritably ran his fingers through his hair, got up, and prepared to go downstairs for a glass of water.
Su Su, beside the bed, was awakened by Zhang Lurang's movements and crawled up, following behind him.
Passing by Lin Mao's room, he noticed the light inside was still brightly lit.
Zhang Lurang hesitated for a moment, then knocked on his door.
Soon, Lin Mao's slightly hoarse voice came from inside.
"Come in."
Zhang Lurang opened the door and walked in.
He sat on the chair in front of Lin Mao, thinking about how to begin.
The next moment, Lin Mao closed the folder in front of him and said softly, "Your mother called me."
Zhang Lurang's face showed no emotion, his eyes lowered.
His back was stiff and straight, appearing somewhat stubborn.
His lips were pressed into a tight, bloodless line.
Lin Mao sighed and said, "Just change your college application back, and it'll be fine."
"Uncle." Zhang Lurang felt as if a lump were stuck in his chest, suffocating and uncomfortable. "I don’t want to go back to B City anymore, not even during holidays."Hearing this, Lin Mao paused as he reached for his water glass.
He turned his head, quietly looking at Zhang Lu Rang.
Noticing Zhang Lu Rang's expression, Lin Mao finally softened his heart.
"If you don't want to go back, then don't," Lin Mao picked up his glass and took a slow sip, "Just like when you attended high school here."
Zhang Lu Rang was silent for a moment before emphasizing, "After I graduate, I'll earn money to pay you back."
Lin Mao was about to refuse, but after glancing at his expression, he instantly changed his tone.
"Ah, I'm counting on that money for my retirement. Remember to pay it back."
Zhang Lu Rang nodded and stood up. "I'm going back to sleep."
Just as he opened the door and was about to step out, Lin Mao's voice came from behind him.
His tone was casual, gentle, and calm.
"Not everyone is born knowing how to be a parent."
Zhang Lu Rang's footsteps halted, and his grip on the doorknob tightened.
Lin Mao tapped his fingers against the side of the glass, thought for a moment, and then said:
"When you and A Li were little, your parents weren't like that either."
He sighed, his tone sounding like someone who had been through it all.
"Vanity—what a terrible thing."
Su Zai Zai had pestered him for a long time before Zhang Lu Rang finally agreed to let her accompany him while he practiced driving.
Before leaving, Su Zai Zai rummaged through the desk, stuffing sunscreen into her backpack and hanging a mini fan from her neck. She walked to the mirror, tied up her hair, and put on long pants and a sun-protective jacket. Then, she placed a panda-striped baseball cap on her head and held another one in her hand.
On a weekday, the house was empty and quiet, with only her inside.
Su Zai Zai walked into the living room and took two bottles of water from the refrigerator. A few minutes later, she returned to the fridge and put one of them back. Picking up a sun umbrella from the shoe cabinet, she finally headed out.
It was midsummer, and the temperature outside was stiflingly hot, as if carrying fire.
Sunlight filtered through the trees, casting mottled and uneven shadows on the ground. The surrounding concrete seemed to emit waves of heat, rising upward in clusters.
Su Zai Zai looked up and saw Zhang Lu Rang standing under the shade of a tree. His cheeks were flushed from the heat, and the tips of his hair were damp with sweat. He looked as though he had been waiting for quite a while, but there was no trace of impatience on his face.
She quickly jogged over, raising her hand to place the cap she was holding onto his head.
Zhang Lu Rang instinctively took it off to look at it, immediately frowned, and said coldly, "I'm not wearing it."
Su Zai Zai turned on the fan and held it in front of his face. Seeing Zhang Lu Rang's reluctant expression, she coaxed him gently, "Be good, wear it. Otherwise, you'll get sunburned."
"..."
Zhang Lu Rang was still about to refuse when he suddenly noticed she was wearing a matching one on her head. He hesitated for a moment before silently putting the cap back on.
Su Zai Zai handed him the umbrella and couldn't help complaining, "It's really so hot. Maybe I should wait until winter to learn how to drive."
Hearing this, Zhang Lu Rang's expression darkened again. "That's why I told you not to come."
"But you learning and me learning are completely different," Su Zai Zai said innocently.
"How are they different?"
Su Zai Zai didn't answer his question.
Watching the fan blow air onto his face, she suddenly said shamelessly, "I'm keeping you company while you learn to drive now. If you don't accompany me when I learn to drive later, you'll be heartless.""……"
"The kind of heartlessness that's downright insane."
Zhang Lurang didn't want to speak, walking silently beside her.
A few minutes later, Su Zaizai suddenly felt a bit gloomy.
"Why didn't you tell me that fairies don't need a conscience?"
Zhang Lurang: "……"
Upon arriving, Zhang Lurang selected the usual car according to the license plate number given by the coach.
The two walked side by side toward it.
Just as Su Zaizai was about to sit in the passenger seat, Zhang Lurang shooed her to the back.
"It's too sunny in the front. Sit in the back."
She didn't resist too much, hesitantly asking, "Lurang, are you driving by yourself? Isn't the coach supposed to sit next to you? Won't something go wrong…"
Zhang Lurang tapped his index finger on the steering wheel, honestly saying, "I drove by myself on the first day."
Hearing this, Su Zaizai widened her eyes in disbelief. "This coach is way too much!"
Her expression looked as if she was about to go argue with that coach right away.
Zhang Lurang opened his mouth, about to stop her, when he heard her angrily say, "No way! I definitely can't learn to drive here!"
"……"
He silently closed his mouth, fastened his seatbelt, pressed the clutch pedal, shifted gears, and pushed it into first.
Zhang Lurang practiced seriously for quite a while.
Half an hour later, he stopped the car and glanced back.
Seeing Su Zaizai idly playing with her phone in the back, occasionally looking at the scenery outside, her usually talkative mouth tightly shut, not making a sound to disturb him.
Zhang Lurang withdrew his gaze and started the car again.
This time, when he reached a turn, he suddenly spoke up, "Help me see if the right wheel is over the line."
Hearing Zhang Lurang's words, Su Zaizai happily curved her eyes, immediately moving to the right window and leaning out to look.
"It is."
Zhang Lurang immediately stopped the car and turned to look at her.
Seeming somewhat dissatisfied with her words, he said in a low voice, "Be serious. Don't talk nonsense."
Su Zaizai looked utterly confused. "But it is over the line…"
Zhang Lurang unbuckled his seatbelt, propped one hand on the passenger seat, and leaned over to look outside.
Seeing that the rear wheel was indeed over the line, his whole body stiffened, and he slowly sat back.
After a long moment, Zhang Lurang quietly, without a word, continued practicing.
This time, it was Su Zaizai who couldn't hold back. "Lurang, is this the result of a week of practice?"
He pretended not to hear.
"How about," Su Zaizai cautiously suggested, "we hire a driver in the future?"
Zhang Lurang turned the steering wheel, pretending not to mind.
"……Just don't talk."
Su Zaizai didn't listen to him, sighing with emotion. "Suddenly reminds me of when I taught you to ride a bike."
"……"
"Back then, didn't I say I didn't want to touch your waist?"
"……"
"How could I not want to? I couldn't hold back long ago." Su Zaizai imitated her thoughts at the time. "Wow! Your slim waist is showing!"
Zhang Lurang really didn't want to hear her talk about this anymore.
He pondered, wanting to say something to change the subject.
Su Zaizai in the back leaned against the seat, grinning as she added.
"What I was thinking back then was, if I didn't touch it, I'd really be doing a disservice to your beauty."
"……"
"This opportunity comes once in a thousand years."
Zhang Lurang's face felt a bit warm. Unable to help himself, he turned back and scolded in a low voice, "Su Zaizai!"
Su Zaizai shamelessly, without any fear.
"Your wife is in your car! Drive properly!"Zhang Lurang's temple twitched, and he fell silent.
After a while, his phone, placed in the passenger seat, rang.
Su Zaizai reminded him, "Lùràng, your phone is ringing."
Zhang Lurang stopped the car and picked it up to glance at the screen.
It was Mother Zhang.
He suddenly remembered what Lin Mao had said a few days earlier.
Zhang Lurang pressed his lips together and, without a moment's hesitation, hung up the call.
Soon, he turned to look at Su Zaizai.
Scattered sunlight fell on him, a soft halo spreading around him.
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