Rebirth to Save Myself

Chapter 141 Graduate Studies

The airport waiting hall was bustling with people, and flight information announcements came over the loudspeakers from time to time. Lu Lu stood in front of the security checkpoint, dragging her suitcase, with Ye Zhenzhen and Su Xia beside her. The three of them had mixed feelings, a mixture of anticipation for the future and reluctance to part ways.

Ye Zhenzhen's eyes were red, and her voice was choked with emotion: "Lu Lu, take good care of yourself abroad. If anything happens, be sure to tell us, don't bear it all alone."

Lu Lu smiled, reached out and took Ye Zhenzhen's hand, her tone gentle yet firm: "Yes, don't worry, I will. When I return after completing my studies, we'll get together again, just like before."

Su Xia stood to the side, her expression somewhat wistful, and gently patted Lu Lu's shoulder: "Lulu, have a safe trip. We're here for you if you need any help. Remember to add the person I gave you, and contact him when you need him. He's lived there for many years and knows the area very well; he should be able to help you."

Lu Lu nodded, her eyes filled with gratitude: "I understand. It's been so hard on you, going to ask your boyfriend for someone. You've really gone to a lot of trouble."

Su Xia waved her hand, her tone relaxed: "What trouble is there? He's Chinese too, and we all help each other when we're abroad. Besides, we're worried about you going there alone; it's always good to have someone looking after you."

Lu Lu took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down: "Thank you, really. I feel so lucky to have friends like you."

Ye Zhenzhen couldn't help but step forward and hug Lu Lu, her voice trembling slightly: "Lulu, you must take good care of yourself. We will miss you."

Lu Lu hugged her back and gently patted her back: "I'll miss you all too. When I come back, we'll eat and go shopping together, just like before."

Su Xia stepped forward, and the three of them embraced tightly. Although parting was bittersweet, they all knew that this marked the beginning of Lu Lu's new life and a continuation of their friendship.

The announcement came over the loudspeaker again, urging passengers to board. Lu Lu let go of her hand, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and said with a smile, "Alright, I should go in now. You guys go back too, be careful on the road."

Ye Zhenzhen and Su Xia nodded, watching Lu Lu drag her suitcase towards the security checkpoint. Lu Lu turned back and waved to them, a bright smile on her face: "Wait for me to come back!"

"Have a safe journey!" Ye Zhenzhen and Su Xia shouted in unison.

Only after Lu Lu's figure disappeared at the security checkpoint did the two slowly turn and leave. Su Xia sighed, her tone tinged with emotion: "Lulu's journey has really been difficult. I hope everything goes well for her abroad."

Ye Zhenzhen nodded, her eyes still a little moist: "Yes, she has always been very strong. I believe she will definitely make a name for herself over there."

The two walked out of the airport side by side. The cool night breeze dispelled some of the melancholy in their hearts. Su Xia patted Ye Zhenzhen on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Let's go. We also need to work hard so that when Lulu comes back, she can see a better version of us."

Ye Zhenzhen smiled, her eyes regaining their sparkle: "Yes, let's cheer each other on!"

As the night fell, the two figures walked further and further away, carrying with them expectations for the future and cherishing their friendship, heading towards their own tomorrow.

Ye Zhenzhen went back and accepted her family's arrangement, going to work for a government unit. Su Xia packed her bags to go to Xiamen for graduate studies. Chen Jianguo and Chen Chunqi were a little reluctant to see her pack. Chen Jianguo said, "How about I buy you a ready-made apartment near your school? You'll be more comfortable living there."

"Dad, I'm just going to graduate school, I'm not going to live there permanently, why do I need to buy a house?" Su Xia said helplessly. When she and Chen Yuan were admitted to university, Chen Jianguo wanted to buy each of them an apartment near the school. At that time, they had already looked at several properties and were just waiting for their consent to make the payment immediately.

The two of them promptly refused, citing their desire to integrate into school life and experience the dormitory. Unexpectedly, even now that she's going to pursue a master's degree, Chen Jianguo hasn't given up on the idea.

“Well, if you buy a house, you can rent it out later. Didn’t you say before that the more houses the better?” Chen Jianguo muttered under his breath.

“That would have been better to buy a few years ago. Look at how much housing prices have risen now. You’d be losing money if you bought now.” Su Xia decisively rejected Chen Jianguo’s suggestion.

“Buying is a good idea. Then we won’t need to stay in hotels when we go sightseeing,” Chen Chunqi nodded, agreeing with Chen Jianguo’s suggestion. She used to be very unhappy with Chen Jianguo’s habit of buying properties everywhere, but seeing the soaring property prices, she’d made a considerable amount from rent alone over the years. She even had money to help Chen Jianguo expand his business. Whatever houses or shops Chen Jianguo bought, he entrusted to Chen Chunqi for management. For properties in other cities, she left them to property management companies; like the villa in Sanya, she planned to arrange for someone to come and clean it when they visited.

"Alright, alright, that's settled then. If you're going to buy a house, wait another two or three years." Su Xia was afraid that the two of them would buy it secretly, so she quickly made the final decision.

"Why wait two or three years? Do you think the house prices will drop in two or three years?" Chen Yuan suddenly asked from the side.

"This, this..." Su Xia regretted blurting it out too quickly, as she already knew these things beforehand.

“You don’t understand, Xiaxia can predict the future. Just trust her, right, wife?” Chen Jianguo broke the awkward silence for Su Xia and pulled Chen Chunqi aside.

"Yes, Xiaxia is amazing."

"That's right, our Xiaxia is the best."

"Alright, shut up, all of you." Su Xia was embarrassed by their praise.

“Then Dad will take you to the high-speed rail station tomorrow,” Chen Jianguo said without hesitation.

"Okay!" Su Xia agreed on the surface, but in her heart she was thinking that Lu Jingnian had said yesterday that he would drive her directly to school, so it seemed she had to refuse him.

"Why bother taking me to the high-speed rail station? Xiamen isn't far from here, it only takes about two hours by car. We'll just take you directly to the school, and you can get familiar with the area while you're there," Chen Chunqi said. She had been to Xiamen before, and this trip would be a good opportunity to explore.

“Great! I’ll take the day off too and go with you.” Chen Yuan looked at Su Xia with a teasing expression. She knew that Lu Jingnian was going to give her a ride, and she was now watching to see how Su Xia would explain herself.

"Sure, you can have some fun in Xiamen then," Su Xia agreed calmly.

After packing their things, the family watched TV in the living room for a while before going to their respective rooms. Su Xia had just entered her room when Lu Jingnian called. She answered casually, saying, "What a coincidence, I just got into my room."

"That's right, I knew you went back to your room just by doing a quick calculation."

"Okay, I'm not going to argue with you anymore. My parents said they'll take me to school tomorrow, so you won't be able to take me tomorrow."

"Oh, why is that! You're already in graduate school, and your aunt and uncle still don't feel comfortable letting you go out by yourself?"

"Xiamen is so close, they just wanted to go and have some fun while they were there."

"then what do I do?"

"My house is about to be renovated, and I'll be coming back often then."

"We finally ended our long-distance relationship in different countries, and now we're going to start another one in different places?"

"Pfft, we weren't together when we were in a foreign country."

"So I assumed you were my girlfriend before I went abroad, otherwise why would I bother you every day overseas? Even your roommates know I like you, only you don't."

"I know, I just haven't thought it through yet."

"Well, our little Xiaxia has been thinking about this for quite a while now, it's been four years."

"Okay, okay, I promise you, I'll definitely come back to celebrate your birthday with you, okay?"

"Okay, I'll wait for you at home tomorrow. Remember to video call me when you get to your dorm, so I can see what your dorm looks like."

"it is good."

The next day, after breakfast, the family tidied up quickly and headed out together. Laughter and cheerful conversation filled the air, and with Chen Yuan keeping the atmosphere lively, the two-hour journey didn't seem so long.

The four arrived at Xiamen University, checked in, and after quickly settling into their dorm rooms, went out to find something to eat. Chen Yuan had only taken two days off and was going back the next day. Chen Jianguo also had official business to attend to, so Chen Chunqi didn't plan to stay either. The three of them booked a hotel near the university, intending to stay one night before heading back.

"Xiaxia, if you're not comfortable living here, go find a place to stay outside. Don't make yourself suffer." Chen Chunqi held Su Xia's hand and kept nagging, afraid that Su Xia wouldn't speak up.

“Yes, at worst we can buy an apartment. Dad has that kind of money,” Chen Jianguo added from the side.

"Okay, I understand. Don't worry, Mom and Dad. I'll take good care of myself. Besides, I'm a grown-up, aren't I?" Su Xia knew they were concerned about her, so she offered words of comfort.

"Okay, your house is about to be renovated. Have you found a renovation company yet?" Chen Jianguo suddenly remembered this and asked.

"I've found one, Dad, the one you recommended before." Su Xia nodded. Chen Jianguo had recommended the renovation company he had worked with before when he knew she wanted to renovate her house. His house and shop were both renovated by this company, so they were considered reliable.

"Okay, that's good. I'll make arrangements and find you a reliable project manager." Chen Jianguo nodded.

"No rush, I'm still in the design phase." Su Xia had just arranged for someone to measure the house two days ago and then started exchanging ideas; the other party is still drawing up design plans.

“Yuanyuan, your apartment is almost finished with renovations. It’ll take another year or two to ventilate it, so we can’t delay,” Chen Chunqi suddenly said to Chen Yuan.

"Okay, Mom. I'll do the renovation if I have the money." Chen Yuan said helplessly. Su Xia had earned a lot of money on her own, so renovations were certainly an option. However, besides the red envelopes and pocket money she had received over the years, she had basically no income. Plus, now that she had bought a car, the gas costs were considerable every month, so where would she get the money to save? She was also embarrassed to ask her parents to help with the renovations; she had already bought the house, and it wouldn't be right to let her parents handle the renovations.

“Mom, Yuanyuan isn’t in a hurry. She can stay at home and keep you company, wouldn’t that be better? If she moves out, then…” Su Xia paused appropriately, giving the two room to imagine.

Chen Jianguo also thought of Chen Wenwei. It was fine now that Chen Yuan was living at home and came home every day, but if she were living elsewhere and he brought her home directly, he would be a hundred times unwilling. So he said, "No rush, take your time with the renovations."

"Yes, yes, yes, yes." Chen Yuan nodded in agreement no matter what she said.

The group chatted and laughed, and Su Xia stayed overnight with Chen Yuan. The two sisters, who hadn't talked together in a long time, lay in bed together. Chen Yuan asked Su Xia, "When do you think Mom and Dad will agree to Chen Wenwei and me?"

"Then let's see when Chen Wenwei can achieve something and let Dad know that he is someone he can rely on. At that time, he should be able to accept the two of you being together."

"Aunt Chen was puzzled when Mom was cold to her before, but she only realized what was going on after Chen Wenwei told her about us. Now that I've just graduated, they keep urging us to get married, which I don't really like."

"It's normal. The man's family all hope their son will get married and have children as soon as possible, feeling that their mission is accomplished that way. It's not surprising that his mother thinks this way. What about Chen Wenwei's attitude?"

"Him? Right now, he just wants to get his studio up and running; he doesn't have any plans to get married at the moment."

"Then you don't need to worry about his mother. If it's really bothering you, just tell Chen Wenwei and let him deal with her."

"Wouldn't this be inappropriate? After all, Aunt Chen watched me grow up. She was very happy to send me a 60-second voice message when she found out I was Chen Wenwei's girlfriend."

"If you start thinking about them now, you'll be completely at their mercy after you get married. Just imagine, what if people say, 'My mom watched you grow up,' would you have the heart to say that to her?"

"Oh, that's scary. I don't want it to be like this. If you say that, I won't dare to get married."

"You can't think like that. There's nothing wrong with getting married in itself. Everyone has the right to choose whether or not to get married. Although marriage can be good or bad, the most important thing is yourself. Only when you are happy will you not be bothered or angry because of other people's affairs or words."

"And what about you? Do you plan to marry Lu Jingnian?"

"We were talking about your own business, why are you suddenly dragging me into this?"

"Lu Jingnian didn't come to take you to school today, are you unhappy?"

"A little, but I promised to go and spend my birthday with him."

"Oh ho ho, so what are you planning to give her as a birthday present? Perfume, razor, sneakers?"

"I'm not sending any gifts. I'll see when the time comes. I don't have any ideas yet."

"Okay, but these are all gifts that are hard to go wrong with and have a wide price range."

"Yes, but I think it's too common. Besides, perfume is something that person likes but person doesn't, so it's easy for it to sit unused."

"Yeah, I haven't seen Chen Wenwei use the perfume I gave him more than a few times."

"And razors, which are everyday items, are things they already bring. Giving them away would just leave them unused."

"Then there are sneakers. Boys all like basketball, so they can just buy NBA-style sneakers."

"If they wanted to buy it, they would have already done it themselves. Besides, if you buy something they don't like, it's a waste of time."

"Okay, then what should I give?"

"Hahaha, I don't know either."

"You can refute me with great logic, but you don't know the answer when I ask you."

"Oh, time to sleep."

"Humph."