Seeing Jiang Wenshu’s smug smile, Lu Huan paused for a moment before continuing forward.
Dong Sisi beamed and asked, “Wenshu, why are you all here so early?”
Only then did Jiang Wenshu notice Dong Sisi, whom she had overlooked. Her smile stiffened slightly, and she glanced at Lu Huan, about to say something, when someone approached from behind.
“Jiang Wenshu, is this your girlfriend?” A friend slung an arm over her shoulder but kept their eyes fixed on Lu Huan.
“Yes.” Jiang Wenshu noticed her friend staring intently at Lu Huan and couldn’t help but smirk proudly. “Well? She’s pretty, isn’t she? I told you all she was gorgeous, but you didn’t believe me.”
Her friend laughed heartily. “Yes, yes, she’s truly beautiful. How many lifetimes of good karma did you accumulate to find a girlfriend like this?”
Dong Sisi heard every word of their conversation. To maintain her composure, she suppressed her anger, glaring at Lu Huan’s back as if her eyes could kill.
Then, an idea struck her. Feigning confusion, she asked, “Lu Huan, didn’t you say you were going to Huangshan with your friend? Where is your friend?”
Hearing that Lu Huan was planning to go to Huangshan, Jiang Wenshu became even more convinced that Lu Huan had changed her mind perhaps even regretted their conversation yesterday.
She stepped forward with a smile. “Huanhuan, have you decided to go with me after all?”
Just as Lu Huan lifted her head to respond, Jiang Wenshu’s friend approached, eyeing Lu Huan brazenly. “So this little beauty is Wenshu’s girlfriend?”
The gaze made Lu Huan uncomfortable. She turned to Jiang Wenshu and said firmly, “We’ve already broken up.”
Jiang Wenshu’s face darkened.
Her friend, however, raised an eyebrow with interest, a smirk playing on their lips as they looked at Lu Huan. So the little beauty is single now.
Jiang Wenshu was about to retort with a sarcastic remark when a voice called from behind.
“Lu Huan.”
“Sister!” The girl, who had been stern-faced just moments before, lit up with a radiant smile at the sight of the newcomer. Jiang Wenshu’s friend stared, utterly captivated.
Jiang Wenshu turned to see who it was and let out a cold laugh. “It’s you.”
“What a coincidence.” Lou Qing greeted her casually, then effortlessly took the backpack from Lu Huan’s shoulders and slung it over her own.
Her series of actions left not only Jiang Wenshu stunned but also Lu Huan.
Why does Sister’s gesture feel so much like a mom picking up her child from school?
Their expressions made Lou Qing realize belatedly what she had done. She chuckled, unbothered by the awkwardness. “Habit. I’ve taken care of my little niece before.”
Lu Huan nodded and murmured, “Oh.”
Jiang Wenshu sneered. “I never would’ve guessed you two are this close, going on trips together during the holidays.”
Lou Qing looked her up and down, causing Jiang Wenshu to straighten her posture and snap, “What are you looking at?”
Lou Qing smiled. “Nothing. Just wondering what variety of scallion you are.” She then turned to Lu Huan. “Let’s go. We’re heading out.”
Lu Huan understood the hidden meaning in her words and struggled to hold back her laughter as she walked over, her shoulders trembling with the effort.
Lou Qing laughed too, nudging her lightly with her shoulder. “Keep it down. Someone hasn’t caught on yet.”
Lu Huan’s eyes crinkled with mirth as she nodded in agreement.
Jiang Wenshu, still standing in place, took a moment to process what had been said before it finally dawned on her: that old woman was implying she was nothing but a scallion!
Her friend and Dong Sisi finally caught on, and they couldn’t help but burst into laughter together.
Once they got into the car, Lu Huan fastened her seatbelt and asked, “Sister, where are your friends?”
“They’re waiting at the highway entrance,” she replied, buckling her own seatbelt before glancing over. “You must be hungry. I bought you breakfast, it’s in the storage compartment up front.”
“Thank you, sister.” Lu Huan didn’t put on any airs, especially since it was something specially bought for her. Refusing would only hurt the other’s feelings.
After taking a sip of soy milk, Lu Huan recalled how Lou Qing had confronted Jiang Wenshu and Jiang Wenshu’s reaction. She swallowed the soy milk and chuckled.
Seeing her laugh, Lou Qing’s lips curved into a smile as well. Just as the light turned red, she turned and asked, “What’s so funny?”
“Which scallion?” Lu Huan uttered three words.
They exchanged a glance and laughed in unison.
When the light turned green, Lou Qing started driving again, smiling as she said, “I’ve long disliked her. She acts so straightforward.” She caught herself mid-sentence, rephrasing, “so blunt, yet her words are so sharp.”
Lu Huan pretended not to notice her awkward shift and nodded seriously. “My classmates and friends all say she speaks without thinking.”
“Are they going out today too?” Lou Qing had noticed Dong Sisi carrying a large backpack earlier.
“Yes, and they’re also going to Huangshan.”
Lou Qing raised an eyebrow and smiled. “What a coincidence?”
Lu Huan explained, “Jiang Wenshu and her friends planned this during our military training.”
Thinking of the woman standing beside Jiang Wenshu earlier, Lou Qing clicked her tongue. “Why do all her friends seem so unreliable?”
“Huh?” Lu Huan looked at her with a feigned expression of confusion.
Not wanting to corrupt the young girl with such a cynical topic, Lou Qing decided against elaborating. Instead, she reached out and ruffled Lu Huan’s hair, smiling. “Never mind.”
Of course, Lu Huan could see through the woman’s thoughts. A faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips, hidden from view, clearly in a good mood.
While Lou Qing was driving, Lu Huan used her system to check on Yu Lan’s situation. Finding everything in order, she felt reassured.
Lou Qing had brought three friends along, making a total of five people in their group, including herself and Lu Huan.
Once they entered the Huangshan area, they drove straight to the hotel they had booked in advance.
This was a peak travel season, and the front desk was crowded with people checking in. Lou Qing asked Lu Huan to wait in the lounge while she and one of her friends went to handle the check-in procedures.
Lou Qing’s friends were easygoing. To avoid making Lu Huan feel awkward or uncomfortable, they maintained a balance neither overly enthusiastic nor distant giving her a comfortable space.
Gradually, Lu Huan, who had initially been guarded, began to smile.
“All set, let’s head upstairs,” Lou Qing said, returning with the room key and naturally picking up Lu Huan’s backpack.
“Sister, I can carry it,” Lu Huan said, feeling a bit embarrassed. Although the backpack wasn’t heavy, everyone else was carrying their own things, and she was empty-handed.
Lou Qing smiled and said, “Then you can give the room keys to them.”
Lu Huan hesitated for a moment before taking them and nodding. “Okay.”
Lou Qing’s friends watched from the side, quietly marveling at the scene.
When they first heard Lou Qing was bringing a young girl along, they had been filled with curiosity and speculation.
After all, Lou Qing’s ex-girlfriend had also met Lou Qing during her freshman year, with an experience identical to Lu Huan’s brought into a bar by a friend, nearly falling into a trap, only to be rescued by Lou Qing, who saved the girl, Gu Li.
Afterward, Gu Li began approaching Lou Qing under the pretext of thanking her. It was Lou Qing’s first relationship, innocent and pure; she agreed to be with the girl after being pursued repeatedly.
During those four years together, aside from holding hands, they never progressed further physically. Lou Qing respected Gu Li, while Gu Li used being a student as an excuse, saying she wanted to wait until after graduation to introduce Lou Qing to her parents before considering anything more.
The girl came from a poor family. Seeing that Gu Li ate little and ordered sparingly, Lou Qing, not wanting to hurt her pride, started cooking for her daily, claiming she made too much food and couldn’t finish it herself.
At that time, Starry Sky Studio was just starting out, short on staff, so Lou Qing, as the owner, often worked late into the night for customers.
Yet, despite this, she unfailingly delivered meals to Gu Li every single day.
This went on for four years. Later, it wasn’t just meals; outings, clothes, and cosmetics were all bought by Lou Qing for the girl.
At first, Gu Li refused, but over time, she accepted these gifts more and more naturally.
Honestly, Lou Qing’s friends didn’t think much of it after all, they were a couple, and Lou Qing was the one earning money, so giving things to her student girlfriend wasn’t a big deal.
The problem arose when Gu Li disappeared right after graduating from university.
She had promised to take Lou Qing home to meet her parents and introduce her to her friends, but Gu Li vanished without a trace, leaving no clues behind.
Lou Qing was heartbroken at first but eventually accepted that she had been played by a girl three years her junior.
Unexpectedly, half a year later, a girl showed up at Lou Qing’s shop. She claimed to be Gu Li’s college roommate and said that during their studies, she often heard Gu Li talk about Lou Qing. However, in Gu Li’s version, Lou Qing was an unsavory tattoo artist who bragged about wanting to support her, forcing clothes and skincare products on her under the threat of throwing them away if she didn’t take them.
When Lou Qing’s friends heard this, they were both furious and amused.
The key point was, the girl also revealed that Gu Li wasn’t actually into women, she had a crush on a senior at their school. All the meals Lou Qing had painstakingly prepared were given by Gu Li to that guy as a way to curry favor.
This disgusted Lou Qing’s friends for a long time, but Lou Qing herself showed little reaction, continuing to run her studio as usual, eating and drinking without a care.
If it weren’t for the fact that she hadn’t gotten close to anyone all these years and hadn’t even looked for another girlfriend, her friends might have thought Lou Qing wasn’t hurt or bothered by it at all.
Now, hearing that she was taking a “little friend” on this trip to Huangshan, everyone started speculating about Lou Qing’s relationship with this young person.
Had Lou Qing moved on from that shadow, or was she delusionally using this “little friend” as a substitute?
After all, this girl named Lu Huan had an experience exactly like that of Gu Li from back then.
But when they saw her in person, they momentarily forgot all those messy assumptions. The idea that Lu Huan could be a stand-in for Gu Li was laughable, the two had nothing in common at all.
Probably coming from a modest family, Gu Li, though delicate and pretty, had a timid and evasive look when meeting people. She always hid behind Lou Qing when going out, appearing somewhat unsophisticated, which made the others unwilling to befriend her. They only exchanged a few words with her back then out of respect for Lou Qing.
But when they met Lu Huan, the girl’s poised and graceful demeanor won everyone’s affection. Not to mention the focused and obedient way she spoke to Lou Qing even the onlookers felt their hearts melt.
How could there be such an adorable and well-behaved girl in the world!
Especially since this girl’s gaze always followed Lou Qing, and when she spoke to her, her eyes sparkled with a smile, as if Lou Qing was all she could see.
“I’m starting to feel jealous of Lou Qing,” said one of the friends, Cui Lin.
“Your jealousy is pointless.”
“Sister Lin, Sister Meixi, here are your room keys.” Lu Huan handed a key card to them, then passed another to the person beside them. “This one is for Sister Hai.”
Tao Hai had a girlfriend and doted on her immensely. To avoid making her girlfriend jealous, she always reported who she was with when going out and stayed in a single room by herself.
The last key was for Lu Huan and Lou Qing, a room with a double bed.
Lu Huan maintained a calm expression on the surface, but inside she was thrilled. She used the card to open the door and walked into the room with Lou Qing, where they would spend the night.