Chapter 199: pre-booked Air Tickets

Shuishui left the call. Qian Anzhi was behind her, so she heard his voice behind her and through her earphones. Her ears felt numb and she felt a little uncomfortable.

Qian Anzhi stopped after saying a few words. "Hmp. Whenever I don't understand something, I just go to my sister and let her solve it for me. It's so convenient."

Shuishui felt that Anzhi's mentality of wanting to rely on others was bad and immature. "It would be better if you knew how to solve the equations yourself."

"Sister, the middle school exams aren't until next semester. There's no rush." Qian Anzhi's mentality wasn't bad. In fact, he knew what he was capable of. He was just passive and not the type who liked to study. He had never been studious and had never been strongly motivated to study.

Most of the time, he felt that he had to be serious. However, he would go back to being lax after a few days. He believed that he wouldn't be able to catch up to the others even if he studied seriously. He would quickly lose the motivation to do better. He felt that it might be because he thought too much. It might also be because the temptation outside was too great

Shuishui stopped playing the game. She picked up her phone and went to the balcony to call her father.

"Hello, Dad. Is it convenient for you to talk now?" Shuishui asked.

"Yes. I'm not very busy right now. I was going to call you. I want to talk to you about something." Qian An took a sip of hot tea and continued, "You go first. What's the matter?"

"I want to talk about Anzhi. He told me before that he wants to stay here until the end of the high school entrance exam. Dad, what do you think?" She felt that Qian Anzhi was being too lazy in her apartment. She was busy every day, especially during the winter vacation. She felt that it wasn't good for him to stay in the apartment because he was always playing around. She was actually worried about him. She was anxious that he would soon perform poorly in school.

Of course, she had already thought about it before. She was often busy and didn't have time to care about him. He could control his urges and refrain from playing, but most of the time, he would give in and would play for long periods of time.

"En, it's fine. Didn't you notice that Anzhi's grades have improved a lot this semester? It's all thanks to you. It's fine. If he likes your place, just let him stay there. If you think it's affecting you, I can let him go back home." Shuishui felt that Qian Anzhi had become too dependent on her.

Shushui quickly retorted, "It's not a problem. It's good that he's improving. I think it's good that he's here. At least I don't have to worry about people breaking in at night. It's fine, Dad. What's the matter?"

Her father had told her earlier that he had something to tell her as well.

A few days earlier, Qian An had bought Shuishui's plane ticket. He remembered that he had to inform her about it. "Yes. I bought a plane ticket for you. It's for the morning of the day after tomorrow. I will send you to the airport. You can go there yourself. My friend there will pick you up. Tomorrow, you should pack your luggage and properly inform your teachers ahead of time so they will not be left wondering where you went."

"So soon? What do I need to bring?" Shuishui asked. She was quite nervous.

"It's okay. I already took care of it. You can just go there and have fun." Qian An smiled. He found his daughter very adorable.

"Okay. I'll make preparations tomorrow." Shuishui felt quite excited to meet her father's good friend, whom she had never met. From what her father told her, she could tell that he was a friend her father trusted wholeheartedly.

When Shuishui returned to the room, Qian Anzhi asked, "Sis, whom did you call?"

"I called Dad and told him about you. I'm leaving the city the day after tomorrow. I don't know how you'll manage being alone here." Shuishui sat down and looked at the character on the computer screen. She grabbed the mouse and sent a message via the group chat: "What are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to the dungeon to kill an enemy, but I can't be reckless in a new quest. You have to pay attention to the quest. How about it? Start a new one." Mu Zilin tempted Shuishui.

Shuishui shook her head. "Forget it. Let's just go to the dungeon."

They continued to run through the dungeon. It was already late. Shuishui finally made some progress. It was almost time to go to bed. Shuishui stopped playing and went back to her room to sleep. Qian Anzhi played using Shuishui's account. He had wanted to play using his sister's account for quite a while. He felt that her character was lucky and on such a good level that it was such a waste to not maximize its luck.

Mu Zilin yawned. "Let's go explore. It's almost time for us to go offline and rest. We still have to get up early."

"En, my sister is leaving the day after tomorrow. I'll be living alone in the apartment for several days. Just thinking about it makes me feel bored. " This winter vacation, he didn't want to go with his mother to visit relatives. He might as well stay in the apartment and occasionally meet a friend. That would be more comfortable. He had already settled on the idea when his mother frantically called him the next morning. She kept asking him to go home.

Qian Anzhi felt very annoyed. "Shuishui is also your child. Why don't you ask her to go home as well?"

"What do you mean? Do you think your mother is favoring you?" Li Xue was so angry that her teeth were itchy. Her son was becoming more and more rebellious. He often said things that made her angry. "It's not that your mother doesn't love your sister, but she is too disappointing. Okay? Don't ask about it anymore. You have to come back home today, or you can stop acknowledging me as your mother."

She couldn't help but threaten Qian Anzhi. Anzhi was even more annoyed. However, he was not experienced enough in handling such conversations, so he impatiently answered, "Okay. I will go back. Stop calling me."

"When will you be back?" Li Xue asked in a softer tone. After all, Anzhi was her own child, and she was generally not a bad mother.

She also missed Anzhi. She also cared about Qian Shuishui, but she would be furious whenever she thought of Shuishui's attitude. She couldn't treat Shuishui the same way she treated Qian Momo. She always wondered why. Qian Momo also didn't develop in the direction she had expected. Her grades were getting worse and worse, and she already hung out with bad students. Li Xue worried that her friends would think ill of her if they found out. She didn't want to lose face.

She thought about it and felt that she should ask Shuishui to go home too. "Wait. Let Shuishui come home too. Let's have dinner together as a family," she said to Anzhi. She had heard that Shuishui's grades were excellent and that she had improved in all aspects. Those should have made her proud. Should she change her attitude towards Shuishui?

Li Xue had never thought that it was her own bias and prejudice that prompted Qian Shuishui to be disrespectful towards her. Li Xue only thought about her own reputation. She didn't think that Shuishui's ill treatment of her was caused by something else.

Qian Anzhi yawned. "Mom, she has already gone out. Brother Zilin and the others are taking her out for dinner. She invited me to go with them but I was too lazy. She might be back later this evening."

Li Xue thought of Momo, who had recently lost a lot of weight. Momo's heart ached terribly, because she had lost her love before they even started dating. She said to Anzhi, "Ask her to bring Zilin here too."

"I'll ask her. I'll call you back later." Qian Anzhi hung up and dialed Qian Shuishui's number.

"Hello, Sister. Do you want to bring Zilin home for dinner tonight?" Qian Anzhi felt that Shuishui wouldn't agree. After all, he had already observed that whenever they were at home, his mother would only mock Shuishui. Their mother favored him and Momo.

Shuishui listened. "En, do you want to go home for dinner? I'll have dinner at Zilin's house tonight. They have been preparing for dinner since this morning."

Anzhi still hoped that his family could live harmoniously. "Sister, actually, Mom called me just now. She doesn't seem to be as fierce as before. We will probably get along better."

Shuishui laughed and said, "I know you're concerned about me, but I can't forget what she did. I think you're very smart. You can see that she treats me so differently. Since that's the case, there's no need for us to see each other often. You should go home for dinner. Don't sleep now. It's past one o'clock. Get up and eat something." Shuishui could distinguish between kindness and hatred. Li Xue wasn't her biological mother. She had decided that she would treat Li Xue like a stranger. She didn't want to care about how Li Xue had treated the previous Shuishui. She decided based on the things she herself had experienced with Li Xue.

"Okay," Qian Anzhi responded. As soon as the call ended, he got up to brush his teeth and wash his face. Then, he called his mother. "Shuishui isn't coming. I'll go home by myself."

"En, come back soon." Li Xue was a little unhappy that Shuishui would always refuse to go home for dinner. Many people had already heard about her relationship with Shuishui. They also knew that Shuishui lived somewhere else, and it made Li Xue feel embarrassed. She still couldn't do anything about Shuishui. Whenever she would tell her husband about it, he would always take Shushui's side. Qian An no longer slept in their bed. All he did was sleep in the study or at the office. Sometimes, he would even sleep in the guest room. She felt angry when she recalled how their helpers looked at her.

She then called her brothers and asked them to visit their house for dinner.

Finally, she dialed Qian An's cell phone number. "Husband, are you coming back for dinner tonight? The children are coming back for dinner. My elder brother and second brother are coming too."

"No. I'm having dinner with Shuishui tonight. She's going to the capital tomorrow. I need to talk to her about something," Qian An said bluntly. He had already made plans to have dinner with Shuishui and the Mu family that night. He heard that the Mu family was also going back to the capital. He knew that Shuishui would see them at the capital, since she and Mu Zilin were good friends.

"Can't we just ask Shuishui to come home for dinner? What's there to be polite about? Besides, why is she going to the capital?" Li Xue finally heard the main point. She was very curious why Shuishui had to go to the capital.

"She's going to the capital to meet a good friend of mine who has been there for many years. She can also pay him a visit in my behalf," Qian An said impatiently.

"Let Momo go too." Li Xue knew that Qian An had a good friend who had been at the capital for many years. She had heard that his business had grown and developed very well. Qian An had never brought her along to meet this friend. She had never met him before.

"No. I've already told them that Shuishui is going. Who will take care of Momo when they go there? They will only arrange an empty room for her." Qian An rejected her directly. His good friend knew about his background with Li Xue. His friend did not have a good impression of Li Xue and disliked her presence.

Li Xue suddenly shouted. "Why not? Can you not be biased towards her? Momo is also your child!"

"I don't want to argue with you." Qian An hung up the phone. Li Xue had been getting more and more suspicious in the past few days. She was always causing trouble. Qian An disliked that his two brothers-in-law often went to his home for dinner. It disgusted him that even in his own home, they would talk to him about company matters. They both pestered him about a certain businessman who could partner with them on some project.

Li Xue threw her phone on the ground and then went back to her room in a huff.

Shuishui and Auntie Mu were out shopping that afternoon. Mu Zilin followed behind them. Mu Ziyu couldn't go with them because of several concerns he had to attend to.

Mu Zilin was very sullen because he walked behind them and was busy carrying lots of things. Some were his mother's, and some were bought for Shuishui by his mother.

"Aiya, I've always wanted a daughter. This way, I can buy clothes for her. My wish has finally come true." Auntie Mu happily picked out clothes for her newfound daughter. Whenever she saw something she liked, she would let Shuishui try it out. If it looked good, she would buy it and give it to Shuishui. The money she would spend was just a drop in the bucket for their family. She felt indebted to Shuishui because she had helped her husband a lot.

Shuishui wanted to refuse, but she had no choice because Auntie Mu did not listen to her. Auntie Mu insisted on buying things for her.

Mu Zilin walked up to Shuishui and whispered, "Don't try to change her mind. She won't listen. Besides, she really likes helping others pick out clothes. Besides, the clothes look good on you. Don't refuse."

Shuishui was a little embarrassed. "Okay. But she already bought five sets. That's a bit too many. Look. She still wants to buy more."

"Uh, don't worry. When it's time for dinner, my dad will call her, and she will quickly stop shopping." Mu Zilin thought about how amazing his dad was, both in work and in life.

They shopped until five o'clock before Auntie Mu's phone rang.

Mu Zilin didn't look too good. He was carrying too many things. He was asked to pick up the bags and carry them. It was as if he was a servant. However, he did not complain. Shuishui noticed it and naturally took the initiative to help. However, Aunt Mu quickly pulled Shuishui to try on clothes. She wanted to buy mother-daughter clothes with Shuishui.

"Zilin, as a man, it's natural for you to help a girl carry things. In the future, when you have a girlfriend, you can't ask your girlfriend to help you carry stuff. You have to be a little more manly." Aunt Mu was lecturing Mu Zilin on his manliness. In fact, she simply wanted to let Mu Zilin carry the bags because it would be troublesome for her to do everything.

Shuishui could not help but laugh. "Auntie, Zilin is merely a boy now."

"Right. My son is not an ***** yet." Aunt Mu nodded and agreed with what Shuishui had just said.

Mu Zilin looked at Shuishui fiercely. "You should be on the same side as me."

Shuishui laughed. Auntie Mu said, "All right. Let's go back. Put the things in the car and you'll be at ease." Shuishui shrugged, indicating that there was nothing she could do. Zilin could only blame his mother for thinking he was too strong.

They drove to the parking lot and placed the items they had bought in the trunk. They then got into the car and walked into the restaurant.

"Shuishui, stay in Beijing for a few days. Don't immediately come back to the city when we arrive at Beijing. It'll be awkward," Mu Zilin said to Shuishui as he sat down.

"I'm expected to stay there during the winter vacation. Don't worry. I'll definitely be there." Shuishui was unsure how long she would be staying in Beijing, but she was sure she would stay there for a short period of time.

Mu Zilin was a little happy. "Okay. I'll call you when you arrive."

Auntie Mu, who was driving, also nodded. "I'll take you shopping when the time comes."

Shuishui was surprised.

"Okay, Auntie." Shuishui wouldn't reject someone who was really good to her. She also felt how lonely Auntie Mu was. She didn't seem to like shopping with her friends. She would rather ask Shuishui and her children to accompany her. She would prefer to be with them to chat and drink some afternoon tea.

"Why don't you be my goddaughter? That way, I will have a daughter." Auntie Mu wondered why she had not thought of it before.

"No!" Mu Zilin firmly disagreed.

Auntie Mu was furious. "It's not up to you. It's up to me."

"If you take Shuishui as your goddaughter, wouldn't I have to go shopping with you every day? I don't want to talk about it anymore. Also, you have to ask Shuishui's opinion. Don't decide on it on your own." Zilin felt that Shuishui was very good to his mother. He felt that he would suffer if he would have to go shopping with them all the time. That afternoon, his hands, feet, and neck were sore. Of course, he didn't really object to his mother's idea. He just felt that Shuishui had to agree to it as well.

Shuishui smiled. "Thank you, Auntie. I don't know how such things work, but I think that no matter what, people should just sincerely get along with each other. There's no need for labels and such."

"Yeah, and in the future, if we both remain unmarried, then maybe Shuishui and I will just get along. When that time comes, she will be your goddaughter. Won't that be a joke?" Mu Zilin said. He felt that it was possible. In the future, if he and Shuishui were still not in relationships, they could decide to grow old together since they were very good friends.

Shuishui smiled and did not say anything. Because Mu Zilin was young, his thoughts were quite immature. Shuishui believed that it was basically impossible for them to end up together.

Auntie Mu nodded and smiled. She would definitely be happy with such a daughter-in-law.

Uncle Mu and Qian An had arrived earlier. They were already in the private room, chatting and laughing. Uncle Mu was talking about Shuishui the entire time. Qian An was embarrassed, but he was also very proud.

On the other hand, Qian An praised Ziyu. "Not at all. You have outstanding sons, especially Ziyu. He had even started his own business. If any of my children grow up and ends up like him, I'll be very happy." At the same time, he didn't forget Zilin. "Zilin is still young, but he is very smart. Shuishui told me that Zilin learned things very quickly. They are very good friends. It is really amazing how much they help each other."

"That's right. Zilin has a wild personality, but when he's with Shuishui, he becomes calm. I used to think that they were in a relationship. When I asked them, they immediately denied it. It doesn't look like they are in a relationship. Even if they were, I would not object to it. I like Shuishui very much." Uncle Mu expressed how pleased he was with Shuishui's attitude.

Qian An smiled happily.