Driving the brand-new Mercedes-Benz, the two returned to the Fulung Garden parking lot, and Shen Lang parked the car in Xia Shuyi's reserved space.
After getting out, Shen Lang politely declined Xia Shuyi's persistent invitation to eat at her place.
Shen Lang knew that if he couldn't resist the loneliness and went over now, what he might be having wouldn't be a meal, but a fresh seafood feast!
After saying goodbye to Xia Shuyi, Shen Lang returned home alone. The takeout delivered at noon was still hanging from the doorknob—a thirty-yuan grilled meat rice bowl.
Shen Lang didn't want to waste it, so he took it down, returned inside, opened it, and started eating.
After wolfing down dinner, Shen Lang was just about to shower when he felt a pile of hard objects in his coat pocket.
When Shen Lang took them out, he found that aside from the keys to the rental and the Mercedes-Benz, there were actually two bank cards of different colors.
One held the five hundred thousand Xia Shuyi had forcibly stuffed into Shen Lang's hands in the car, while the other held the three hundred and forty thousand Shen Lang had saved to pay for the car.
Shen Lang smiled helplessly and opened WeChat to tease her. "Sister Xia, this isn't very fun of you. I really don't want to live off a woman."
Four Seasons Peace: "I don't care. If I tell you to live off me, then live off me! {angry}"
Shen Lang laughed at that. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Then what exactly is our relationship now? Does this mean I'm being kept by you?"
After hesitating for several minutes, she typed back, "It doesn't matter. If it makes you feel uncomfortable, you can think of it as you keeping me instead. Anyway, I've already set my heart on you~ {shy}"
Sleep Till Dawn: "But I don't want to keep you. Besides, what kind of kept relationship has the mistress giving money to her sponsor?"
Four Seasons Peace: "I don't care. If I say you're keeping me, then you're keeping me. Keep talking nonsense and I'll come downstairs with a steel wool scrubber right now!"
Sleep Till Dawn: "Sis, this is you forcibly abducting an innocent man. I'm reporting this to the authorities! {tearful}"
Four Seasons Peace: "It's too late to say anything now. Just obediently submit to me. I'll treat you well from now on. {flowers}"
Sleep Till Dawn: "You rascal~ {flowers}"
As they chatted, Shen Lang couldn't help but laugh.
The Landlady was becoming more and more witty.
After chatting casually for over ten minutes, Shen Lang put down his overheated phone and lay on his small bed, staring blankly into space.
Shen Lang had never been in a real relationship.
But he could clearly tell that what he had with Xia Shuyi definitely wasn't a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, much less a kept arrangement.
After all, what kind of kept arrangement had the mistress giving money to her sponsor? That was completely backwards.
No matter how messy wealthy circles were, they couldn't possibly be this messy, right?
"Forget it. Time for a shower!"
After thinking about it for ages, Shen Lang couldn't be bothered to analyze it anymore.
Whether life was good or bad, he still had to live it. Thinking too much was useless; living in the moment was the right thing to do.
Early the next morning, just as Shen Lang woke up and was about to wash up, Su Lexuan sent him a video call invitation.
Su Lexuan didn't want Shen Lang appearing in front of her other roommates. She always felt that Shen Lang would be targeted by those single roommates of hers.
So despite knowing each other for so long, Shen Lang had never appeared before Su Lexuan's other roommates. Most of the time, they just chatted through voice calls.
Only when her roommates were asleep or out of the dorm would Su Lexuan secretly video call Shen Lang.
It was Saturday today, and all her roommates had gone home to spend time with their families.
Her best friend Ye Xinxin had also gone out to buy breakfast.
With no one else in the dorm, Su Lexuan, who had just finished washing up, immediately couldn't wait to chat with Shen Lang.
Su Lexuan was lively by nature. Once the video connected, her adorable, expectant face appeared on camera, followed by her energetic voice.
"Shen Lang, you're awake? Are you free today?"
"Just woke up. Brushing my teeth."
With a toothbrush in his mouth, Shen Lang raised his brows and replied unclearly, "I'll drive over to see you later."
During the first few days, whenever Su Lexuan called him by voice or video, Shen Lang, who was still rather socially anxious, might cough a few times to clear his throat before answering.
Or he would set his phone straight and adjust it to a better angle so he looked more presentable on camera.
Now that they had grown closer, and Shen Lang's personality had gradually settled after being tempered by the system, he was no longer as nervous as he had been at first.
He simply propped his phone by the window, with the camera aimed at his upper body.
Most couples in the throes of love were like that.
Though the attitude might have seemed a little perfunctory, it wouldn't weaken their feelings. Instead, it would make them even closer.
"Okay, okay."
Su Lexuan sat cross-legged on her small bed, her fair legs tucked beneath her. She happily swayed back and forth before belatedly asking, "Huh? Shen Lang, you have a car?"
"Yeah, I picked up a Mercedes-Benz yesterday."
Shen Lang gave a smug snort. "I'll drive you out for some fun later!"
"Mhm, mhm!"
Su Lexuan didn't care what kind of car Shen Lang drove, nor did she want to know about such things.
She only looked forward to where Shen Lang would take her later. That was normal relationship logic for a girl.
Besides, Su Lexuan came from a fairly well-off family. If her parents weren't worried about her poor driving skills, they could have gotten her a car too.
"Xuan~, open the door. I forgot my keys."
"Let's talk later. My roommate is back. Just pick me up at the school gate when you get here."
After blurting that out in a panic, Su Lexuan quickly ended the video call.
"Why does this feel like we're having an affair?"
Shen Lang shook his head irritably and slipped his phone into his pocket.
After washing up, Shen Lang headed to the underground parking garage.
The Mercedes-Benz he had picked up yesterday was parked in Xia Shuyi's reserved space, looking handsome and sleek.
Shen Lang took out the silver-white car key and pressed the unlock button.
The silver-white sedan chirped twice, its lights flashing twice as well. Shen Lang felt inexplicably pleased.
Many new car owners were like this during the first stretch after buying a car.
The better the car they bought, the more accomplished they felt when pressing the unlock button before getting in.
Once they grew tired of driving later on, that feeling would gradually fade, and they might even find it annoying.
Pulling open the door, Shen Lang sat in the driver's seat.
After admiring the refined interior for a moment, Shen Lang gave two slightly excited coughs and activated the Mercedes-Benz voice assistant in clumsy English. "Hey, Mercedes~"
The Mercedes-Benz voice system popped up, and an electronically filtered female voice said, "How may I assist you?"
Shen Lang had originally wanted to navigate directly to Zhuhai University to find Su Lexuan.
But after remembering the joke videos other Mercedes-Benz owners had posted on Douyin some time ago, Shen Lang took out his phone, turned on the recording function, and gave the command in English.
"Navigate me to Red Romance. I'm going there to relax!"
"Ding-dong! As a distinguished Mercedes-Benz owner, you should prioritize your career and family. Please do not bring Cadillac owners' habits into the Mercedes-Benz owner community."
"Hahaha, that's really funny."
Amused despite himself, Shen Lang saved the video before finally navigating to Zhuhai University.
Before you continue