"Get in."

The car window rolled down, and Ji Wanqiu peeked out at the two of them, the smile on her face never faltering.

Seeing Lin Yanwan open the car door and get into the back seat, Jiang Xia instinctively started walking toward the front passenger seat.

But the little loli suddenly popped her head up, grinning and revealing two cute dimples.

"Brother Jiang Xia, Xiao Man already claimed this spot. You’ll just have to sit in the back with my sister~"

"Good girl, Xiao Man. Make sure to buckle your seatbelt in the front, okay?" Jiang Xia patted her head, then opened the back door and got in.

Lin Xiaoman watched the two in the rearview mirror, forced to sit together, and couldn’t help but feel a secret delight. She made a silent vow: ’Brother Jiang Xia, Sister Yanwan, I will definitely get you two back together!’

The car started and slowly pulled out of the residential complex. The couple from a past life now both turned their heads away, silently staring out the dark windows, the glass reflecting their two youthful faces.

Sensing the strange atmosphere in the car, Ji Wanqiu took a very subtle glance at the rearview mirror.

They were sitting far apart, with enough space to probably fit two more adults between them. It was as if they were deliberately maintaining this distance to avoid any interaction.

Their relationship didn’t seem like classmates or friends. It was more like a couple who had just fought and were now in the middle of a cold war.

She was startled by this sudden thought. It reminded her of how Jiang Xia had initially called her "Mom"... ’Could it be? Are they dating?’

’Thinking about it carefully, it wasn’t impossible.’

That young man had been incredibly nervous when he first saw her. Although he did his best to stay calm, she was an experienced woman. He couldn’t fool her wise eyes.

But Ji Wanqiu still felt something was off.

She knew her daughter. Her grades were stable, and aside from a few female friends, she didn’t have any friends of the opposite sex.

Her daily routine was a straight line between school and home. She studied on schedule, came home on time, and her phone had even been temporarily confiscated because the college entrance exams were approaching.

Logically speaking, she simply didn’t have any extra time to be dating.

But looking at the two of them now, anyone who wasn’t blind could tell at a glance that they definitely had a history.

’Oh well, no use overthinking it. I’ll just ask them about it indirectly later.’

’Although the young man made an excellent first impression, this is a critical time for cramming for the college entrance exams. Dating and all that should at least wait until college, right?’

’Otherwise, they could be head over heels in love now, only to end up in different cities for college. How tragic would that be?’

The four of them, each lost in their own thoughts, traveled the rest of the way in silence.

After turning at the next intersection, the gate to Hongyun Garden was already visible through the windshield.

"This is it, Auntie," Jiang Xia said at the right moment.

The car pulled over to the side of the road. Ji Wanqiu turned her head to look at her sleeping daughter and said softly, "Xiao Man, Xiao Man? Brother Jiang Xia is leaving. Quickly say goodbye to him."

Lin Xiaoman’s head was tilted to the side, fast asleep. Who knows what she was dreaming about, but a sweet smile remained on her face.

"Auntie, it’s very late. Just let Xiao Man keep sleeping. Thank you for going out of your way to drive me. Visibility isn’t great at night, so please be careful on your way back."

After speaking, Jiang Xia opened the car door to get out. Lin Yanwan suddenly called out to him, simultaneously holding out a flashlight.

"Hey, take the flashlight. It’s pitch-black inside, you won’t be able to see a thing. Don’t go accidentally walking into a tree."

"No need. I know this path well," Jiang Xia replied, shaking his head.

Lin Yanwan couldn’t help but pout. ’We’ve been reborn and he’s still so stubborn. Would it kill him to listen to me for once?!’

"Xiao Jiang, just listen to Yanwan and take the flashlight. It can’t hurt to have a light, right?" Ji Wanqiu said.

Seeing that his mother-in-law was still as good to him as ever, a warm feeling flowed through Jiang Xia’s heart.

"Er, alright then."

He reached out, took the flashlight, and looked into her eyes. "Thanks. I’ll give it back to you tomorrow."

"Mhm."

Jiang Xia then turned his gaze back to his mother-in-law and waved. "Goodbye, Auntie."

"Goodbye."

Jiang Xia turned and left, entering the complex with the flashlight on, and gradually disappeared from view.

Watching his retreating figure, Lin Yanwan let out a soft sigh.

After they were reborn, even though they had mysteriously reconnected, they no longer bickered like they did in their past life. It was as if they had returned to the time when they first met.

’Unfortunately, once some things happen, there’s no going back.’

Seeing her daughter’s somewhat distracted expression, Ji Wanqiu put the car in first gear and drove slowly. Now that there were no outsiders, there were some things she had to discuss with her. While her daughter’s feelings weren’t too deep, she could still be steered back on the right path.

"Yanwan, tell me, are you two dating?"

Lin Yanwan froze for a moment. ’No matter how you look at it, we don’t look like we’re dating.’

"Mom, why would you think that?"

"He already called me ’Mom,’ what do you think? You don’t actually believe I couldn’t see through that lame excuse, do you?" Ji Wanqiu pouted, her expression a mirror image of her daughter’s.

"..."

Lin Yanwan gritted her teeth, speechless. She knew that was where the problem started. ’Can’t that guy do anything reliably?!’

"We’re not," she said, taking a deep breath and denying it outright.

’Explaining anything else would be pointless. It’s better to be decisive.’

Ji Wanqiu was already mentally prepared for her daughter’s reaction and immediately threw out her second question.

"Then is he pursuing you? Are you two at the stage where you have mutual feelings but haven’t confessed yet? Although the young man is quite handsome and seems to have a good character, at this stage, dating will only slow down your test-taking speed."

"Mom, how did you figure that out?" Lin Yanwan asked, looking completely helpless.

"He lives in Hongyun Garden, and we live in Brocade Splendor City. They’re in completely different directions, yet he offered to walk you home after the power outage. That’s not something a normal friend would do, is it? And the key thing is, you agreed."

Lin Yanwan was stunned. ’Is this what they mean by ’the older the ginger, the spicier it is’? So asking for Jiang Xia’s address wasn’t just about offering him a ride home, but a way to further analyze our relationship?’

’How awful! To think she’d even scheme against her own daughter!’

Seeing her daughter remain silent, Ji Wanqiu continued in a slow, unhurried tone, "Besides, I’ve never heard you mention any other male friends. He’s the only one, isn’t he?"

Lin Yanwan’s chest heaved as she took several deep breaths. ’If I let Mom keep analyzing like this, she won’t just conclude that we’re dating—she’ll probably fast-forward to our wedding and us having two kids in one year.’

Her relationship with Jiang Xia was complicated; it couldn’t be explained in just a few words.

In essence, they were a couple who had failed to divorce, both wanting to start a brand new life after being reborn. So, while they might seem intimate to outsiders, the reality was completely different.

But there was no way to explain this to anyone.

"But still, Mom, none of what you’re saying is true. Isn’t it possible that I was simply afraid of walking home in the dark, and my classmate Jiang Xia is just a helpful person, and that’s all there is to what happened tonight?"