Better Than Summer: A Marriage Before Love Romance - Chapter 26

The convenience store downstairs was nearly empty. Shen Tingxia and Xi Chengnan sat on chairs at the long table by the window. In front of her sat a full cup of oden.

Shen Tingxia ate the oden off its skewer, watching the fine, dense threads of rain outside the window. Suddenly remembering something, she turned her head and asked, “Are your parents easy to get along with?”

Xi Chengnan paused at the question. “They… are okay. But they won’t be as warm and enthusiastic as your parents.” The family atmosphere at his home was practically the polar opposite of hers.

“That’s fine then.” Shen Tingxia felt reassured.

The phone in Xi Chengnan’s trouser pocket had been buzzing incessantly. It wasn’t until Shen Tingxia asked her question that he finally thought to take it out and look. Unsurprisingly, it was Luo Jichen pestering him for gossip.

[Holy sh1t bro, heard you got married without a word?]
[That woman the nurses were talking about?]
[What does she look like, got a pic?]
[Su Yi’s seen her, the nurses have seen her, so I’m the only one who hasn’t?]

Followed by a bunch of stickers…

And finally: [Where are you? Read but not replying? Guilty conscience?]

The pointless chatter and questions weren’t worth Xi Chengnan’s time, but he still replied: [What do I have to feel guilty about? Go do your shift.]

Exiting Luo Jichen’s chat window, Xi Chengnan tapped on his pinned conversation with Xi Sibe, his sister. He sent: [How are things with your roommate lately?]

Xi Sibe immediately video-called. Hearing the ringtone, Shen Tingxia glanced at Xi Chengnan. He showed her the screen: “My sister.”

Whenever Xi Sibe called and he saw it, he always answered. This time was no different. Xi Chengnan pressed the green answer button.

“Bro.” Xi Sibe saw it wasn’t his home environment. “You’re not at home?”

“No, I’m out.”

Xi Sibe then spotted an arm at the edge of the screen. “Is Sis-in-law with you?”

Xi Chengnan gave an “Mhm,” angling the screen slightly towards Shen Tingxia. Shen Tingxia’s face, free of makeup, appeared on the screen.

The convenience store was quiet. The rain outside was dense but not noisy. Their voices were neither too loud nor too soft, just right for the three of them to hear. Shen Tingxia looked at the screen. Before she could speak, Xi Sibe asked with a slightly troubled tone, “Sis-in-law, how did you manage when you shared an apartment with others before?”

“Hmm? What’s wrong?” Shen Tingxia put down the food she was holding, focusing on the screen.

“Why is it that everything was fine when we were in the dorm, but sharing an apartment outside is a whole different story?”

Shen Tingxia didn’t ask for specifics, concerned about the outcome: “Did she bully you?”

“Bullying isn’t the right word, but it feels like the agreements we made only bind me. She even brought her boyfriend back.” Xi Sibe pouted, clearly distressed by the situation.

“I shared an apartment short-term for less than a year with a friend of a classmate. But I really disliked having a stranger in my living space and sharing so many things. Later, I gave up on the idea of ‘being self-reliant,’ let my parents pay the down payment on a place, and lived alone. I remember we talked it out really well back then, both suggesting many beneficial rules. But later, only I followed them. I definitely wasn’t okay with that. We argued about it, but she wouldn’t change, still doing whatever she wanted. If your core values don’t align, there’s no point forcing it. You can try talking to her, but don’t make things hard for yourself, and definitely don’t put up with being treated unfairly. And about bringing her boyfriend home – is it an absolute rule that it’s not allowed, or is it okay as long as she tells you and you agree? That’s really important; it affects personal safety.”

After speaking, Shen Tingxia leaned against Xi Chengnan’s left shoulder, near his ear, and whispered, “Does your sister have a boyfriend?”

Xi Chengnan had been silently listening to Shen Tingxia speak but stiffened slightly at her sudden proximity, his throat feeling scratchy.

Fortunately, Xi Sibe spared him the awkwardness. Hearing Shen Tingxia’s question, she answered, “Sis-in-law, I don’t have a boyfriend.”

Shen Tingxia laughed awkwardly. “That makes it even simpler. You can just demand it of her directly.”

Xi Chengnan silently handed the phone to Shen Tingxia and went to the fridge to grab a bottle of cold water.

He unscrewed the cap, took two large gulps, and finally felt his throat ease and his mind cool down. Precisely because of this, Xi Chengnan realized he was somewhat powerless against Shen Tingxia’s unconscious closeness. It wasn’t an intentional action, but his body’s natural reaction. And he hadn’t expected Xi Sibe to be so unreserved with Shen Tingxia, genuinely treating her as her sister-in-law.

Xi Chengnan took another swig of water, his gaze shifting to the two women who seemed to be getting along quite well. He smiled faintly to himself and went to pay.

After settling the bill, he leaned against the checkout counter watching them chat on video. Although he couldn’t hear exactly what they were saying, he could clearly sense Shen Tingxia’s relaxed demeanor. There was none of the awkwardness one might expect when talking to his family; it was as if the worried Shen Tingxia from earlier had vanished.

After a short while, Shen Tingxia glanced back, seemingly looking for him. Seeing her, he walked over. Shen Tingxia handed him the phone just as he heard Xi Sibe ask, “Bro, anything else?”

“Going back to Mom and Dad’s Sunday evening. Will you go by yourself, or shall I pick you up?” Sending the WeChat was just to show some concern; telling her to come home for dinner was the real point.

“What for? Is Sis-in-law coming too?”
“Mm-hmm.”

The previously sullen Xi Sibe perked up instantly upon hearing her sister-in-law was coming. “Bro! Are you taking Sis-in-law to meet Mom and Dad? You’re off Sunday afternoon, right? I am too. No need to pick me up; I’ll come find you, and we can go back together.”

“Alright.” Xi Chengnan was about to say more but was cut off by Xi Sibe. “But Bro, I’ve got something to do right now. I’ll talk to you later. Bye!”

Hanging up the video call, Xi Chengnan put his phone away. He felt a beam of intense gaze piercing through him. He turned his head and immediately heard her call his name seriously – no longer ‘Dr. Xi’.

“Hmm?” Xi Chengnan acknowledged.

Shen Tingxia wanted to tell him he protected his sister very well. But looking into his eyes, the words stuck in her throat. She felt she had no standing to say such a thing.

A moment later, she finally uttered, “Your sister is adorable.”

Xi Chengnan gave a faint smile and gestured with his chin towards the oden. “Still eating?”

Shen Tingxia shook her head. “No, let’s go back.”

They stood up to leave. Shen Tingxia casually picked up the leftover oden.

“Oh, right,” she added, “someone sent you a bunch of messages earlier. I didn’t mean to look.”
“Luo Jichen?”
“Sounded like it.”
“Don’t bother with him.”
“Oh.”

But actually, Shen Tingxia had seen all of Luo Jichen’s messages. He was gossiping about them, which meant Xi Chengnan’s colleagues knew he’d gotten married.

Regardless, she had no intention of telling any colleagues she was married.

Outside, the rain had intensified again. By the time they reached Shen Tingxia’s door, the back of Xi Chengnan’s white T-shirt was soaked through. In contrast, Shen Tingxia’s clothes were completely dry.

Shen Tingxia pointed inside. “Come in and change.”
“No need. I’ll wash it when I get back. Go to sleep early, don’t overthink things.”

Shen Tingxia didn’t insist. She leaned loosely against the doorframe, looked up into Xi Chengnan’s eyes, and said, “Goodnight.”

They never said goodnight to each other. Hearing this unfamiliar phrase, Xi Chengnan suddenly chuckled. “I’m off.”

Back home, Shen Tingxia opened her Moments feed and found the picture of the oden she’d taken in the convenience store. She hadn’t noticed it while taking the photo, but now she saw a clearly defined, muscular arm visible on the right side. She didn’t crop it, posting the original picture directly. The caption read: Not bad.

No subject, but it carried a double meaning.

Early Saturday morning, Shen Tingxia was jolted awake in her own bedroom by her phone ringing. It was a call from Ms. Qu.

“Shen Tingxia, are you up yet? It’s already nine! Get to the hospital right now and pick up Naonao. Your sister’s working overtime today; she can’t take care of him. The hospital’s full of germs; he can’t stay there all the time!”

Shen Tingxia had accidentally pulled another all-nighter last night. She finished her work, packed some things, and didn’t get to sleep until 3 AM. If she let her procrastination take over, the apartment probably wouldn’t be rented out for a year.

She struggled to check the time: just past 8 AM. It wasn’t nearly as late as her mom made it sound.

“Ten o’clock. I’ll pick him up at ten, okay? My life’s on the line here. Do me a favor, let me sleep a bit more. Can’t Shen Tingchao or Tangtang watch him? Why does it have to be me? Dad could do it too!”

“Naonao specifically asked for you! He wants you to take him to the amusement park.”

Perhaps hearing the exhaustion in her voice, Qu Xianglan made a deal: “You said it, ten o’clock. Be here at ten to get him.”

Shen Tingxia replied impatiently, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ten o’clock.” She hung up without hesitation, tossed the phone aside, pulled the covers over her head, and went back to sleep.

Half-asleep, she heard the phone ring urgently again. Shen Tingxia irritably groped for it. “I said ten o’clock! Why do you keep nagging?”
“Tingxia-jie, it’s me.” A familiar, deep male voice sounded in her ear. “We agreed on eleven. It’s nine-thirty now. Did you have something else planned for later?”

In an instant, Shen Tingxia was wide awake. Checking the time, it really was nine-thirty. How had an hour and a half passed in the blink of an eye?

She raked a hand through her hair, cleared her throat. “I know we agreed on eleven. Would you mind if I brought a kid along?”

Clearly, Shen Tingxia heard Lin Muning’s shocked tone: “Tingxia-jie, you really have a kid?!”
“Of course not!” She was married but definitely not pregnant!

Shen Tingxia explained quickly: “My sister’s son. I need to look after him for the day.”
“Oh, I see. Then bring him along. I actually like playing with kids.”
“What did you call to say?” Shen Tingxia asked while getting out of bed.
“Well, I was going to ask if Japanese food was okay. But since you’re bringing a kid, maybe not.”
“I’ll handle the arrangements. I’ll send you the address later. I need to wash up; talk later.” Hanging up, Shen Tingxia looked at her dark-circled self in the mirror and sighed deeply. She was definitely going to die young.

After washing up, she applied light makeup, put on her simplest clothes, and drove to the hospital.

Arriving at the Orthopedics ward, greeting her aunt, Shen Tingxia took Naonao away. Descending in the elevator, she asked, “What do you want for lunch?”
Liu Ziyi (Naonao), holding Shen Tingxia’s right index finger, blurted out: “KFC.”
Shen Tingxia laughed. “Does your mom usually not let you eat it?”
“Grandma doesn’t either.”
Shen Tingxia sent Liu Siqi (Naonao’s mom) a WeChat: Can I take Naonao to KFC?
Liu Siqi replied: [Yes, once in a while is fine. Make sure Naonao drinks plenty of water. I’ll pick him up when my shift ends. If he really misbehaves badly, let me know, I’ll get his dad to take him. I’ll treat your family to a meal afterwards to thank you and Auntie. I’m swamped at work and really can’t get away. So sorry to trouble you, Tingxia, and Auntie.]

It was quite troublesome for her. She wasn’t particularly fond of kids to begin with, let alone a naughty little boy. But there was no choice; the situation was what it was. Her mom seemed happy about it anyway, which was good – it kept her occupied and less likely to nitpick about Shen Tingxia.

Actually, Shen Tingxia deeply admired Liu Siqi. A woman divorced with a child, supporting her family entirely on her own.

St: [No problem, Sis. You focus on work. I’ll try not to hit him.]
Liu Siqi: [Hitting’s fine too. He’s thick-skinned.]

Shen Tingxia found a random nearby KFC and sent Lin Muning the location: [Mind eating here?]

As soon as she sent it, another message popped up at the top of the screen. It was from Xi Chengnan.