SWG Chapter 40
by VolareSaying “going home,” Xiao Wenyu felt a mix of confusion and anticipation.
Her confusion stemmed from the fact that Ruan Shengyi usually lived in the attic above Tonight Intoxicated, and she hadn’t heard anything about Ruan having another place. But since Ruan Shengyi said “going home,” she couldn’t help but feel some expectation about this “home,” though she also found it strange.
Xiao Wenyu asked, “Are you going back to get something?”
Ruan Shengyi, looking straight ahead, said calmly, “Xiao, I said I’m taking you home, not that you’re accompanying me home.”
Xiao Wenyu: “Ah? But I…”
Ruan Shengyi frowned, displeased. “Your place is full of newly installed boards, the soundproofing facing the street isn’t good, and across the street is a bar that’s noisy until one or two in the morning even in winter. How are you supposed to get any rest?”
Xiao Wenyu was silenced by her words, and after a moment, she said, “But…”
“If you don’t rest well, how will Little Loquat develop? She can’t stay a Little Loquat forever, can she? Let me tell you, I’m more excited than you are. I’m going to be the first one to hold her when she comes out!”
Xiao Wenyu: “…”
Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute.
What did she miss? Why did Ruan Shengyi skip over her and form an alliance directly with this little one? And what’s with the “Little Loquat” nickname? Why is Ruan going to be the first one to hold her?
Xiao Wenyu rubbed her temples, preparing to tackle one question at a time. She said, “She has a name. Her name is Xiao Anqi.”
“An…” Ruan Shengyi seemed a bit dazed.
Of course, she knew that Anqi came from the English name “angle,” meaning angel. But hearing this familiar word, she couldn’t help but feel a little emotional.
If this “angle” were translated into other Chinese characters, even if they contained just as much angelic meaning, probably far fewer people would choose it as their child’s name.
Ruan Shengyi lightly touched her palate with her tongue, and after a sigh of relief, she said, “Anhao, as in ‘safe and sound,’ as in ‘peaceful and tranquil.'”
This time, the “An” character can bring the protection and warmth it should bring. That’s great.
She asked, “But does the little one know? Does she agree?”
Xiao Wenyu had been watching her, still puzzled by her strange behavior. Hearing this, she looked down and patted her lower abdomen. “I told her she could raise her hand if she disagreed. She didn’t object.”
Ruan Shengyi chuckled. “Xiao, I looked it up. You usually don’t feel fetal movement until fifteen or sixteen weeks. You’re bullying a child.”
“Yes, mine. I’m just bullying her.”
Ruan Shengyi laughed again, this time the laughter reaching the bottom of her heart, gradually dispelling the haze within her.
Maybe, once upon a time, someone had looked forward to her arrival in just this way, and loved her wholeheartedly. That’s pretty good.
Xiao Wenyu added, “Also, what’s your relationship with me, Ruan? When the baby’s born, it’ll definitely be Grandma and Grandma who hold her first. Why would you go first? Are you going to be with me for all of it?”
Ruan Shengyi didn’t rush to answer. Instead, she slowly brought the car to a stop.
Xiao Wenyu was alarmed. “You’re not going to drop me off here, are you? Where is this?”
Ruan Shengyi gave her a speechless look, sighed, and said, “We’re here. My home.”
She leaned over the center console, suddenly getting close to Xiao Wenyu, close enough to see the eyelashes on her eyes, to hear her breathing and heartbeat. She heard her say in a low voice, “I won’t charge you rent, but in exchange, I get the first chance to hold Anqi. Is that okay?”
She accepted the name of her child, and stubbornly and awkwardly showed her love and acceptance for the little one.
Xiao Wenyu rubbed her chest, trying to calm her wildly beating heart, but to no avail.
Too close.
Too close.
A little closer and they could recreate the magnificent scene from the day they first met.
Xiao Wenyu didn’t dare to look, her mind gradually going blank, and she forgot what to say.
Click.
The sound of a seatbelt being unbuckled.
It was also like a bucket of cold water being poured over her, a chilling sound.
Ruan Shengyi retreated, unbuckled her own seatbelt, and after making sure everything was in order, opened the car door. “Let’s get out. We’re here.”
“It’s not far from the street. It’s a ten-minute walk, but driving around takes a detour. It only takes five or six minutes by car.”
“Oh, right. You can go back and pack up your things in the attic. We’ll bring them over together another day. Until then, just use the things I’ve already prepared for you. I’ve checked everything. They meet the standards for pregnant women.”
Ruan Shengyi pressed the elevator button and said casually, “But now the standards are getting stricter and stricter. Basically everything meets them. Just use whatever.”
Only then did Xiao Wenyu slowly say, “If you’re there when the time comes and you want to hold her, of course you can hold her.”
Ruan Shengyi laughed. “Xiao, are you still thinking about that?”
Xiao Wenyu turned her head to look at her, silently wondering, *Aren’t you thinking about it anymore?*
But the expression on Ruan’s face was ordinary, and she couldn’t see any change, so she could only silently add it to the list in her heart, and sigh again.
She really couldn’t figure out what Ruan Shengyi was thinking now, and that thing about going out to play…
“About going out to play that you mentioned earlier, is…”
Just then, the elevator arrived at the floor. Ruan Shengyi walked ahead, leading the way, and said with a slight raise in her voice, “It’s just going out to play. Xiao needs to quickly take care of her body. When you’re feeling better, we’ll drive out for fun.”
“Are we going far?”
Ruan Shengyi slowed her steps and said, “Not far. We’ll go west, to see the stars in the desert.”
*”My hometown is pretty far away. You have to cross a desert to get there. But it’s also very beautiful. If you want to go, I can go with you.”*
Xiao Wenyu was silent.
This sudden invitation felt heavy. She wasn’t sure she could handle it.
Ruan Shengyi’s attitude seemed distant yet close, but her actions were like extending a steady and strong rope, tying it around Xiao Wenyu. Pulling her, dragging her upwards, to climb to the peak of emotion, and then conquer it.
So difficult.
But after thinking it over, she gave a soft “Mm,” in agreement, “Okay, let’s go together.”
Ruan Shengyi opened the door, led Xiao Wenyu inside, closed the door behind them, and said softly, “Turn on the lights.”
Warm, gentle light illuminated the way from the entrance to the living room, showing the layout of the room to the newcomer.
Xiao Wenyu looked around. “Did you make the whole house smart?”
She knew about it and had advised Zhao Wen and Xiao Yanyue to install a system at home, but both elders refused, saying they didn’t want to bother.
After all, it was a small city, and there weren’t many young people. Even fewer had the money and the desire to fuss with such things, so there weren’t many people doing it.
Ruan Shengyi smiled, acknowledging the question, and pulled over a stool that had been deliberately made a bit higher for her. “You can put your shoes in the upper cabinets later. It’ll be easier to get them that way.”
“I didn’t plan to rent out this house, so everything was done according to my own habits. I was also too lazy to divide the cabinets. Just make do here.”
“The slippers are non-slip. This apartment is a three-bedroom, two-bathroom, two-living room, five-carrying-six, so it comes with a small attic and a terrace. The attic isn’t furnished. I turned one of the guest rooms into a study. There’s a bed, but there’s no need to live there. So, one bedroom and one bathroom shouldn’t be a problem. The washing machine and water heater are in the master bathroom. Feel free to use them.”
She talked on and on, introducing the general situation of the apartment. Xiao Wenyu admired the decoration of the entire apartment as she listened to her introduction.
The overall style was a simple style with light colors. Everywhere showed neatness and fashion. There was a spiral staircase in one corner of the living room, which should lead to the attic.
But it didn’t blindly pursue trends. For example, the kitchen hadn’t been made into an open or semi-open style “after listening to rumors.” It was still well-zoned, making the whole apartment easier to maintain.
Soon, they reached what could be considered the destination.
Ruan Shengyi suddenly remembered something. She scratched her head before opening the door and said, “This is the master bedroom. You’re not allowed to laugh later.”
Xiao Wenyu refocused her gaze from looking around and nodded. “Laugh at what?”
Ruan Shengyi sighed. “Never mind. You’re definitely going to laugh.”
She opened the door. The first thing that caught her eye in the milky white room was a large bed and…
A large pink rabbit on the bed.
Xiao Wenyu thought that maybe a few days ago, if Ruan Shengyi had invited her to her home and she had seen this rabbit, she might have really smiled and said it was cute. But now, seeing it again, her heart was filled with waves of indescribable ripples, gently scraping against her heart, a little painful, but also a little warm.
What kind of role had this rabbit played in Ruan Shengyi’s life over the past years that made Ruan Shengyi care about it so much?
She walked over, grabbed the rabbit ear hanging by her side, and looked down at it for a long time, asking softly, “Have you hugged it before?”
“After the renovation, this is also the first time I’ve been here.” Ruan Shengyi sat down on the edge of the bed with her. “But don’t worry. It’s been almost half a year since the renovation was completed. The formaldehyde and other things have long been cleaned out.”
Xiao Wenyu gave her a deep look, raised her lips in a smile, and then buried herself completely in the rabbit, taking a deep breath.
Ruan Shengyi, her good boss, her unknown but wonderful boss who arranged everything so well and appropriately.
If this rabbit was so important to her, then adding another layer of her scent, another layer of warmth, could it make her happier?
This could be considered one of the few things she could do to repay Ruan Shengyi.
After inhaling the rabbit, Xiao Wenyu straightened up and said, “You invited me to stay here? Where do I live?”
Ruan Shengyi looked at her, her voice softening. “Here.”
Xiao Wenyu was stunned. “The master bedroom? Then where do you live?”
Ruan Shengyi gently grasped the corner of her skirt and said softly, “I’m not deliberately letting you have it, but the master bedroom is too big and too bright. I can’t sleep.”
“If it weren’t for this, my favorite is still my little attic.”
The cramped little attic, the dark room with only one window, the bed that was small and narrow, at most only enough for one person to live in, could actually be called her favorite?
Xiao Wenyu’s breath trembled. After slowly calming her breathing, she tried her best to restrain her impulse to hug Ruan Shengyi, gently grasped her hand, and said, “Ruan is really excellent.”
The topic jumped too quickly. Ruan Shengyi looked up in surprise and happened to meet her eyes full of admiration.
Her heartbeat froze for a moment.
Xiao Wenyu turned her hand over and clasped her palm in hers, letting the warmth flow in her palms, and said softly, “Seven years is not even enough for some people to grow up, but Ruan has built such a large family business on her own. So amazing, so excellent.”
“Xiao Wenyu…” Ruan Shengyi looked at her, then looked away, and said softly, “I’m not a good person. Don’t be so good to me.”
Xiao Wenyu: “I can judge what is good and bad. You’re not allowed to say that.”
She smiled slightly and said, “Since that’s the case, let me see what a bad person has decorated her room like. Okay?”