Better Than Summer: A Marriage Before Love Romance - Chapter 27

At the shop, Shen Tingxia let Naonao (Liu Ziyi) order his own meal. After he’d picked what he wanted, she took her phone to order for herself and Lin Muning.

She’d asked him earlier, and he’d said it was fine—though it was a bit far, so it’d take him some time to get there.

After placing the order and closing the mini-program, she saw that the top chat in her WeChat messages was Xi Chengnan’s reply:

Xi Chengnan: Right, my mom insisted I take my sister’s son to the amusement park. So I’m taking him to lunch with a male colleague, and we’ll figure out the afternoon later. But I probably won’t take him to the park.

Shen Tingxia’s heart couldn’t handle intense rides—the most she could manage at an amusement park was the carousel.

But even now, Shen Tingxia hadn’t received a reply from Xi Chengnan. He usually responded quickly—was he suddenly busy?

While waiting for their food, Liu Ziyi chatted with her:

Liu Ziyi: “Big Aunt, I want to go to the amusement park!”
Shen Tingxia: “We’re not going. Your aunt’s old, and her heart can’t take it.”

Just then, Lin Muning walked into KFC and sat down across from them.

Lin Muning: “Tingxia-jie.”

Shen Tingxia, propping her chin on her hand, looked up. “You’re here. Sorry for bringing a kid along… and for eating at KFC…”

Lin Muning: “It’s fine. I like kids.” He turned to the boy. “What’s your name?”

Shen Tingxia saw the order notification and got up to pick up their food.

Liu Ziyi glanced at Shen Tingxia walking away, then scrutinized the man opposite him.

Liu Ziyi: “I’m Naonao. Are you my Big Aunt’s husband?”
Lin Muning: Smiling “I’m Lin Muning. You can call me Leo. Right now, I’m not your Big Aunt’s husband.”

Shen Tingxia returned with their food and set it down. Worried Liu Ziyi might spill something, and to clarify for Lin Muning, she added:

Shen Tingxia: “And he never will be.”

She handed the boy a juice with a straw, then added sternly:

Shen Tingxia: “Liu Ziyi, eat your KFC. Kids shouldn’t ask about grown-up stuff.”

Liu Ziyi stuck his tongue out at her and then happily dug into his chicken wings.

Ignoring what he ate, Shen Tingxia passed a Coke to Lin Muning and apologized:

Shen Tingxia: “This kid’s a bit unruly. Don’t mind him.”
Lin Muning: Smiling “He’s cute.”
Shen Tingxia: “Is this okay? Or if you want anything else, order it. This meal’s on me.”
Lin Muning: “It’s fine. What matters isn’t the food, but who you eat it with.” He smiled meaningfully. “Tingxia-jie, if you ever need help offline, just say the word. For online campaigns, I might have a few questions for you Monday.”

Shen Tingxia ignored the first half of his sentence and nodded.

Shen Tingxia: “We don’t talk work on weekends.”

They made idle chit-chat. By the time Liu Ziyi finished eating, his face was smeared with sauce…

Shen Tingxia looked at the messy child, suddenly irritated. Reluctantly, she grabbed a napkin and wiped his face, her movements rough enough to make him squirm.

Liu Ziyi: “Big Aunt! You’re hurting me!”
Shen Tingxia: “Then wipe it yourself!” She threw the napkin at him.

Liu Ziyi smeared the sauce even worse as he clumsily wiped his face…

Lin Muning chuckled beside them and stood up.

Lin Muning: “I’ll take him to wash up.”

He held out his hand and led the boy to the restroom.

Shen Tingxia, left alone at the table, sighed heavily. Babysitting was torture—she had zero patience for kids. She walked outside to cool off.

When they returned, Liu Ziyi was clean again—but then he announced:

Liu Ziyi: “Big Aunt! This uncle said he’d take me to the amusement park!”
Shen Tingxia: “Liu Ziyi! Why don’t you go to Disneyland? Are you just using me to do everything your mom won’t let you do or eat?”

Gritting her teeth, she pinched his cheek—but didn’t dare press too hard.

Liu Ziyi shook her hand off.

Liu Ziyi: “Hmph! I want to go!”
Shen Tingxia: “No! I told you, Liu Ziyi—when you’re with me, you listen to me. Or you can go with this uncle. I’m going home to sleep. Maybe he’ll think you’re so cute he won’t even take you back to your mom.”

Liu Ziyi glanced up at the tall man beside him, then took a step closer to Shen Tingxia and grabbed her hand.

Liu Ziyi: “Can we at least play bumper cars?”

Shen Tingxia shook her head, choosing the safest (and easiest for her) option.

Shen Tingxia: “We’ll play in the ball pit.”

Liu Ziyi pouted but had no choice.

Liu Ziyi: “Uncle, will you come play in the ball pit with me?”

Lin Muning, amused by Shen Tingxia’s babysitting style—and eager to spend time with her—agreed readily.

Lin Muning: “Of course.”

They found a nearby mall. Shen Tingxia didn’t enter the large ball pit—Lin Muning played inside with the boy while she stayed on the sidelines, checking her phone.

At some point, a woman approached her.

Woman: “Your husband is so good with kids. Your family of three looks so happy!”

Shen Tingxia looked up, scanning the pit until she spotted Lin Muning’s tall figure and Liu Ziyi. They were having fun—she hadn’t expected Lin Muning to be good with kids.

She forced an awkward smile, feeling the need to clarify.

Shen Tingxia: “He’s not my husband. And that’s not my kid.”
Woman: “Boyfriend, then? The way he looks at you…”

The woman kept talking, but Shen Tingxia tuned her out. Her phone buzzed. She unlocked it and saw a WeChat from Xi Chengnan:

Free Duck: Just had something come up. Is the kid behaving?
St: Of course not. But I got him under control. He’s playing in the ball pit with Lin Muning now—yep, that male colleague.
St: I’m telling you, I’m NEVER having a son. Boys are way too wild!
Free Duck: Mm. I also like daughters.

Reading that, Shen Tingxia felt her cheeks flush. What kind of reply is that?! She said she’d never have a son, and he just casually drops that he likes daughters?!

She pretended she hadn’t seen it and didn’t reply. The woman beside her, sensing Shen Tingxia wasn’t interested in chatting, wandered off.

Lack of sleep was catching up to her. Shen Tingxia walked to a nearby Starbucks and bought two coffees.

When she got back, Lin Muning had already brought Liu Ziyi out.

Liu Ziyi: “Big Aunt, I’m sleepy. I want to go home and nap.”

Seeing him drowsy, Shen Tingxia handed Lin Muning a coffee.

Shen Tingxia: “Thanks for your help. I’ll take him back. Let’s meet up another time.”

Liu Ziyi fell asleep on the way home. Shen Tingxia had to carry him upstairs, exhausting herself.

After settling the boy, she changed into loungewear, washed off her makeup, texted her mom that they were fine, and lay in bed scrolling through her phone. Unlike a child, she couldn’t fall asleep easily. By the time drowsiness finally hit, Liu Ziyi was about to wake up.

Worn out from a day of babysitting, her body aching, Shen Tingxia called her younger sister, Shen Tingtang, to come play with the kid. She then took a taxi to Xi Chengnan’s apartment for some peace.

Entering the secondary bedroom, she noticed the layout and furnishings looked different—What’s Xi Chengnan up to?—but she was too tired to think. She lay down on the bed, breathing in the faint scent of citrus, and drifted off to sleep almost immediately.

At the hospital, Xi Chengnan pulled out his phone while waiting for the elevator after his shift. He opened his chat with Shen Tingxia. The last message was one he’d sent the night before:

Xi Chengnan: I moved all my stuff to the secondary bedroom. You can sleep in the master bedroom.

Above that was his message about liking daughters.

Still no reply after a whole night… Did I scare her off?

Xi Chengnan chuckled wryly to himself and stepped into the elevator.

Arriving home, he spotted a pair of women’s flats in the entryway. He neatly arranged them, placed his car keys on the console table, and walked to the master bedroom door. Knocking brought no response. He quietly opened the door—only to find the bed perfectly made, untouched.

Puzzled, he wondered: Did she not see the message?

He walked to the secondary bedroom. Pushing the door open, he saw Shen Tingxia sprawled diagonally across the bed, still in her street clothes. A small smile touched his lips. Not wanting to disturb her, he headed to the kitchen to make breakfast.

Just as he turned off the stove, Shen Tingxia shuffled out of the bedroom, rubbing her eyes.

Shen Tingxia: “Morning, Dr. Xi. What’d you make?”
Her voice was hoarse, her eyes bleary—clearly still half-asleep.

Xi Chengnan: “Congee. Want some?”

Shen Tingxia pulled out a chair at the kitchen island, propped her chin on her hands, and nodded with her eyes closed.

Shen Tingxia: “Yes. I only ate two KFC wings yesterday at lunch, and nothing since. I’m starving.”
Xi Chengnan: “No dinner?”
Shen Tingxia: Shaking her head “Too tired. You have no idea how exhausting kids are. I passed out by eight last night.”

Seeing how worn out she looked, Xi Chengnan served her a bowl of congee.

Xi Chengnan: “Eat this, then go back to sleep for a bit.”
Shen Tingxia: “Thanks.” She took the bowl. “Did you not look at your phone at all since last night?”
Shen Tingxia: “No.” She patted her pockets instinctively. “I had Do Not Disturb on. Did you message me? Something important?”

Xi Chengnan kept his tone casual.

Xi Chengnan: “Yeah. Just to tell you I cleared out the master bedroom for you. You can sleep there from now on.”
Shen Tingxia: “Ah, that explains why it looked different last night. But really, it wasn’t necessary. Any room is fine.”
Xi Chengnan: “The master’s more comfortable.”

Shen Tingxia didn’t argue further. Accepting it, she asked:

Shen Tingxia: “Are you free next weekend?”
Xi Chengnan: “Not sure. What’s up?”
Shen Tingxia: “Moving! I said I’d stay here ages ago, but my procrastination is terminal. I haven’t packed a thing yet. If you have time next weekend… could you help me move?”

Xi Chengnan chuckled. He didn’t say yes or no.

Shen Tingxia: “What’s so funny?”
Shen Tingxia: “If you’re busy, it’s fine. I can ask my brother. Shen Tingchao’s pretty useful as manual labor.”
Xi Chengnan: “No, it’s just… I’m glad you actually listened to what I said—that you’re willing to ask me for help. I’ll try to make time next weekend.”

Shen Tingxia met his smiling eyes and called his name seriously.

Shen Tingxia: “Xi Chengnan.”
Xi Chengnan: “Hmm?”
Shen Tingxia: “Why are you so good to me?”