Chapter 17

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Hé Xìnjiā's mouth twitched, and he lowered his head without looking up. He moved his teeth, then, in the next moment, grabbed a tissue and spat out his gum. It was unusual for him to be treated this way in front of Chen Baifan, and Hé Xìnjiā's initial sense of disgust quickly vanished. He suddenly felt pleased and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Tell me about your situation, and I can come up with plans A, B, C, D, E, and F."

He sounded unusually proud.

Chen Baifan raised an eyebrow and was about to say something, but his phone rang.

He quickly glanced at it. His initially stiff expression immediately relaxed. He didn't look at Hé Xìnjiā anymore, just dropped a casual "No need" and went back to his room.

Hé Xìnjiā: "…"

After finishing the assessment process, An Nuo finally got her phone back. She looked at the messages from Chen Baifan and her expression softened. She replied: Just checking my injury.

The assessment report was picked up by the case handler, so An Nuo didn't linger any longer. She left with Yìng Shūhé.

It was still early, and it happened to be lunchtime. An Nuo and Yìng Shūhé found a nearby Japanese restaurant.

The restaurant had dim lighting, with small lights hanging down from the ceiling. The bar had black curtains hanging above, and with the wooden walls and floors, it gave off a foreign atmosphere.

Yìng Shūhé sat across from An Nuo, watching her while she was still looking at her phone. He couldn't help but say, "Let's eat first."

Hearing this, An Nuo raised her eyes.

Afraid that Yìng Shūhé might be upset, she quickly sent Chen Baifan a message saying, "I'll eat first" and put her phone down.

An Nuo picked up her chopsticks, held a spoon, and had a sip of soup.

Yìng Shūhé took a bite of sushi and said ambiguously, "It seems like you're going to get married here."

An Nuo nearly choked on her soup, "What are you talking about?"

Yìng Shūhé continued, "It's just that it feels bad."

The next second, Yìng Shūhé's phone rang.

He shifted away from his playful mood and looked at his phone. His expression changed, "My teacher is looking for me again."

An Nuo raised her head, looking puzzled, "Why are you like a laborer?"

"I have no choice; I can't afford to offend him," Yìng Shūhé poked at the seaweed in front of him with his chopsticks. "I'll tell him first. After I drop you off at the airport, I'll go see him."

An Nuo said, "No need." She grabbed a tissue and wiped her mouth, "Eat your meal and then go. I'll go back home to get something before going to the airport."

An Nuo drove Yìng Shūhé to Pòchéng University, and then she drove back to Waterfront Blossom City.

As she passed by Wēnshēng Dental Clinic, she glanced in that direction subconsciously.

She was thinking about whether she should go and say goodbye to him.

An Nuo parked her car in the residential complex and got out of the car.

She was about to head to Building 12 while turning on her phone to check WeChat, looking at the messages Chen Baifan had sent.

11:40 AM.

An Nuo: "I've just finished eating."

Chen Baifan: "Okay."

11:49 AM.

Chen Baifan: "I'm also about to have lunch."

11:54 AM.

Chen Baifan: "I've ordered takeout."

12:38 PM.

Chen Baifan: "The takeout is here, I'm going to eat now."

An Nuo took a quick look at the time in the notification bar of her phone: 1:02 PM.

He seemed to be really free today...

Maybe it was because the Chinese New Year was approaching, and no one wanted to have dental appointments?

An Nuo stepped into the elevator, and she naturally responded: "I just finished lunch."

Then she thought for a moment and added: "Just entered the elevator."

As soon as she finished, she decided to continue: "After I got in the elevator."

Hé Xìnjiā had just finished lunch and was about to lie down on the sofa to play games when Chen Baifan suddenly stood up, walked to the entrance, and looked outside through the peephole.

Hé Xìnjiā was so startled by this that he forgot to sit down: "…What are you doing?"

Chen Baifan lowered his voice, feeling pleased: "An Nuo is back."

"…" Was this really his brother?

Suddenly, Chen Baifan lowered his head, looked at his home attire, and pondered the words An Nuo had said.

Did going back home to get something mean she would be going out again?

In that case, he could take the opportunity to go out and see who this friend of hers was.

Chen Baifan walked back to the living room and ordered Hé Xìnjiā, "Keep an eye on her. When An Nuo leaves her home, let me know. I'll go change my clothes."

Hé Xìnjiā muttered an "okay" and promptly turned on the TV, accessing the surveillance footage from the camera at the building's entrance.

Chen Baifan: "… Are you installing a camera to spy on my Nuo Nuo?"

Hé Xìnjiā: "…"

"Take it down," Chen Baifan said, then left the room abruptly.

Hé Xìnjiā frowned and turned off the TV. He watched Chen Baifan's back and then pulled out his phone to post on Weibo.

Shortly after, Chen Baifan came out of his room, quickly put on his shoes, and observed his empty hands. After a moment of thought, he returned to the dining table, put the recently consumed takeout into a bag, picked it up, and went back to the door. He glanced outside.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, An Nuo still hadn't come out.

Chen Baifan returned to the sofa and turned on the TV.

Hé Xìnjiā: "…"

After about another half an hour, An Nuo opened her front door and came out with a suitcase.

A slight smile crossed Chen Baifan's face as he saw her approaching the elevator, and he immediately got up and walked to the door. When he heard the door opening sound, An Nuo instinctively turned her head.

Upon seeing him, An Nuo's expression froze. "You…"

Chen Baifan adjusted his facial expression and looked genuinely surprised. "You're back so soon?"

An Nuo nodded, involuntarily sizing him up with her eyes. He was wearing a dark green hoodie and

 black sporty pants, looking very casual. He looked like a university student. She couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you supposed to be at work today?"

The elevator conveniently stopped on the fifth floor.

An Nuo entered first and pressed the "1" button.

Chen Baifan followed her and immediately started a conversation without hesitation.

Seemingly relaxed, he responded honestly, "I don't have to work today. I requested two days off to accompany you for the injury assessment and to take you to the airport."

An Nuo was taken aback, unsure of how to react. She looked at him.

"But it's good to have someone with you," Chen Baifan continued, smiling warmly. "I happen to have a day off."

An Nuo caught the word "off" and instinctively pressed the door open button. With one hand extended, her pale and tender palm was placed in front of him. "Are you going to take out the trash? I can do it for you. It's cold outside, and you don't have to go."

Chen Baifan paused and replied, "No, the bag isn't clean."

After saying that, he hesitated for a moment and asked, "Where are you going now?"

An Nuo had no choice but to let go of the door's open button and looked at him. She answered honestly, "I'm going to the airport."

This response made Chen Baifan turn his head and look at her. He met her gaze, appearing somewhat downcast.

"Is it not tomorrow that you're leaving?" he asked.

An Nuo replied, "My parents wouldn't let me."

"Then your friend?" Chen Baifan asked.

An Nuo said, "She suddenly had something come up."

At this point, everyone in the elevator fell silent.

An Nuo glanced around, puzzled.

Walking beside her, Chen Baifan leaned against the elevator door, lowered his head slightly, and allowed his eyelashes to obscure his emotions. His entire profile still appeared gentle, but it gave her an inexplicable sense of grievance.

An Nuo's heart trembled, and she nervously wiped the sweat from her palms as she released the open door button.

What happened? What did she say?

It couldn't be possible. She was very cautious with her words now, right?

Chen Baifan's expression had almost frozen, and he didn't even wait for An Nuo to ask if he was feeling down.

He lifted his head, rubbed his chin, which looked a bit weary, and pondered other tactics in his mind.

How could he get her to agree to let him take her to the airport?

It seemed like playing the sympathy card wouldn't work, and he doubted she'd even notice these subtle expressions.

Even if she did notice, she probably wouldn't understand why he was trying to gain sympathy.

Speaking directly might just scare her away...

Chen Baifan was still contemplating.

An Nuo changed the topic and asked him, "So what are you doing while you're on leave at home?"

Hearing her question, Chen Baifan suddenly thought of An Nuo's dislike for Hé Xìnjiā, and he came up with an idea.

He raised his hand to throw the trash into the bin in front of Building 12, looking somewhat helpless, and said, "Go back to my brother's place and tidy up his room for me."

"..." An Nuo furrowed her brow and couldn't help but ask, "Why do you need to tidy up your brother's room?"

"He's pretty busy, and I have nothing to do anyway," Chen Baifan replied casually.

An Nuo fell silent for a few seconds, then raised her eyes to look at him. "Can you take me to the airport?"

Now that Chen Baifan had his chance, he began to act: "What?"

An Nuo, who had planned to take a taxi to the airport, started to lie, "I don't want to leave my car near the airport for so long. Can you drive it back for me? My friend will come to pick me up, and I can transfer the money to you."

Chen Baifan tilted his head, locking eyes with hers, and his mouth curved into a smile.

"All right," he said warmly.

An Nuo had woken up early that day, and as soon as she got in the car, she fastened her seatbelt and began to feel drowsy.

She turned to take a look at Chen Baifan, who was driving attentively. She suddenly felt guilty about letting him drive while she slept.

Moreover, the journey from Waterfront Blossom City to the airport was not short; it would take about an hour.

She began to regret her impulsive decision. She had a rare day off, and now she was making him her chauffeur. Maybe she should have asked her friend to pick her up instead.

Maybe he felt too embarrassed to refuse her.

The space in the car was small, and the atmosphere was quiet.

An Nuo couldn't help but steal glances at him, noticing his clearly defined knuckles, slender and fair fingers, and the paleness of his skin.

She swallowed, touched her flushed face, and reached for her phone as if to divert her attention.

During a red light, Chen Baifan turned his head, looked at her, and softly asked, "Do you want to sleep for a while?"

"No need," An Nuo replied. She pretended to be engrossed in her phone and said, "I'm not sleepy."

Chen Baifan didn't say anything more.

Occasionally, when he looked at her from the corner of his eye, it seemed like she was constantly looking at her phone.

But the next time he turned his head, he found that she had already fallen asleep.

Her hands had involuntarily fallen into her lap, and she still held her phone with a loose grip.

And she claimed she wasn't sleepy.

Chen Baifan licked his lips and, for some reason, began to think about something else.

When would he be able to kiss her?

Could he do it before turning twenty-eight?

Chen Baifan was about to pull over to the airport parking lot. He'd forgotten to ask her about her flight time because he was worried she might miss it. After a few seconds of hesitation, he decided to wake her up immediately.

Chen Baifan called her name as they arrived at the airport.

An Nuo turned her head.

Their eyes met.

"You're home now?" he asked.

An Nuo hesitated, planning to say "April," but then she suddenly remembered what Yìng Shūhé had said: "Two months, will your dentist brother be snatched away?"

She shivered and quickly changed her response.

"In March."

An Nuo arrived at Chuanfu Airport at around 8 p.m.

Both of her parents were there to pick her up, and they noticed the injury on her face.

On the way back home, An Nuo explained the cause of her injury to her parents. She didn't want them to worry, so she told them she'd been at a friend's place and was scratched while playing with her friend's cat.

Her mother didn't say much, but she furrowed her brow and murmured that she should be more careful.

Mother and daughter chatted as they sat together in the back seat, and they could hear her father chuckling occasionally.

It was a warm journey.

When An Nuo got home, she was too lazy to even unpack. Instead, she headed to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Afterward, she went downstairs to have dinner, which her mother had prepared, and then returned to her room.

At this point, she remembered her phone, which she had left in her bag. She picked it up, turned it on, and glanced at the screen. The only message was from Yìng Shūhé, asking if she had arrived home.

An Nuo quickly replied with a simple "I'm home."

She then started to text Yìng Shūhé but hesitated about whether to inform Chen Baifan that she was back home. She didn't want to seem too distant.

As she was typing the message to Chen Baifan, she received a message from him:

"I accidentally fell asleep, and it's already this late."

"Have you reached home?" he asked.

Upon reading these two messages, An Nuo was taken aback. She immediately wrapped herself in her blanket, wondering why she felt like they were really in a romantic relationship.

Afraid of making him wait too long, An Nuo restrained herself from rolling around under the blanket and replied: "I've reached home."

It seemed a little cold...

She quickly added: "I hadn't checked my phone because I was talking to my mom."

Chen Baifan replied with a simple "Okay."

"Chen Baifan: Rest early tonight."

"Chen Baifan: Good night."

This time, she felt like they were indeed in a romantic relationship.

Chen Baifan's message had the tone of a caring lover.

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