Chapter 72: Returning Home

“Then… how long are you going to court me for?”

Lu Jia knew that when Sheng Shubai had this expression, she was serious and wouldn’t change her mind about what she had proposed.

Although she wanted to confirm their relationship sooner, now that she had received a definite answer, she no longer obsessed over whether they could have a title right away.

They had already done everything they needed to do between them countless times. As for a title, they could take it slow.

Seeing the woman earnestly check her phone calendar, Lu Jia said, “If you’re not in a hurry, should we count it from the day you realized you had feelings for me?”

Lu Jia coughed lightly. “That’s still a bit rushed.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she saw Sheng Shubai’s eyes and brows light up with an obvious smile.

She stopped teasing Lu Jia and discussed, “How about after the New Year?”

The pursuit she had just proposed was merely a pretty excuse for Sheng Shubai to treat Lu Jia even better, to let the girl understand that their relationship was one of equals.

After they became lovers, Sheng Shubai didn’t want Lu Jia to consider those past events and humble herself, carefully lowering her stance out of grievance.

She didn’t want to be pampered and coaxed; she wanted a real, vibrant lover.

Lu Jia had been overwhelmed by the series of events that night and naturally didn’t think of this layer for the moment.

Sheng Shubai had no intention of explaining. She simply curved her soft brows and eyes, quietly waiting for her answer.

“Okay, then… after the New Year.”

Lu Jia gripped back the palm that Sheng Shubai had placed over hers. The fingers were slender and refined, ones she had held many times.

Now, their body heat finally melded together perfectly.

They hadn’t eaten much at the dinner that night, only padding their stomachs a little before drinking.

After all this fussing, they were hungry now. Sheng Shubai hadn’t eaten anything since the evening. Once the main courses arrived, feeling the woman’s attentive care, Lu Jia couldn’t help but purse her lips in a smile.

Her clear pupils couldn’t hide the amusement as she frequently looked up at Sheng Shubai.

The woman, always surrounded by stars like the moon and elegantly poised, was now diligently pouring wine for her and being considerate in every way.

Lu Jia wanted to help too, but Sheng Shubai stopped her. “Lu Jia, I’m the one courting you right now. Give me a chance to show off?”

If they hadn’t just agreed to confirm their relationship after the New Year, Lu Jia thought she might not have been able to hold back.

After the meal ended, they took some more photos.

The photographers were very professional and didn’t come over to direct their poses. They simply stood at a distance with their equipment, capturing the most natural intimate interactions between the two.

Lu Jia wasn’t very comfortable at first. “Did you hire this many photographers?”

Sheng Shubai raised her brow but didn’t speak.

Only the chefs, waitstaff, and a few photographers appeared before them; the rest of the several dozen people were still waiting upstairs for them to finish.

She wrapped an arm around Lu Jia’s waist and stood side by side with the girl in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, overlooking the city nightscape.

C City grew livelier the closer it got to midnight.

Nearby shopping malls had large screens lit up, and the neon signs of various styles on the streets mingled with the scattered lights near and far, reflecting in their eyes.

Sheng Shubai thought that the scene before her was no less stunning than the video she had scrolled past last night.

After ten o’clock, the driver pulled up to the residential complex.

Sheng Shubai didn’t live here anymore but still got out of the car with Lu Jia and escorted her all the way to the door before preparing to leave.

It was the first day of courtship—well, she could hold back for now… it wasn’t impossible.

Sheng Shubai turned to press the elevator button, but Lu Jia tugged at her sleeve. She asked softly, “Miss Sheng, after the New Year, will you move back across the hall?”

The woman seemed to have already considered this question. Her alluring eyes slid over, glancing lightly at her. “Too much trouble. I probably won’t move back.”

Lu Jia furrowed her brows slightly but didn’t show any disappointment, merely murmuring a soft “oh.”

Yet her cheek was caressed by warm, soft fingertips, which tugged her lip corner upward just a bit. “Don’t misunderstand—I just mean—”

Lu Jia followed the force and lifted her gaze, meeting the woman’s eyes.

“Since we’ll be lovers by then, can’t we just live together directly?”

–

It was the first day—or rather, the second day—of seriously courting Lu Jia.

Sheng Shubai deliberately got up earlier than usual for a rest day.

She opened the chat window, about to send Lu Jia a “good morning,” when she saw several unread messages, the earliest just past six in the morning.

“Miss Sheng, something urgent came up at home. I have to go back first.”

“Sorry, I’ll try to come back as early as possible after the New Year, okay?”

“Just passed security. I’m boarding the plane now. Landing in three hours.”

“Forgot to say good morning. Good morning, Miss Sheng.”

Sheng Shubai checked the time—it wasn’t even eight yet, half an hour since Lu Jia’s last message.

“Good morning, Lu Jia.”

She asked after the situation at the girl’s home a few times, telling her to let her know if there were any problems. Sheng Shubai then opened her calendar again.

Less than a week until the New Year. This year, due to the Printmaking Major’s exhibition, Lu Jia and the main responsible students had stayed until now; otherwise, they would have gone home earlier.

Since Lu Jia wasn’t around, and it was agreed she’d return to the Sheng Residence for the New Year this year.

Sheng Shubai simply started packing her luggage and booked a flight back to Z City.

On the way to the airport, she received a message from Lu Jia that she had just landed. She called her.

“Is the situation at home serious? Do you need my help?”

Sheng Shubai asked her.

The airport was noisy, mixed with broadcast announcements, but Lu Jia’s voice came through. “An elder slipped on ice this morning and fell. Fortunately, the family found her in time. I just got word that the condition is stable for now.”

Her tone carried apology. “Sorry, I originally planned to wait for the check-up results before going back. But tickets for the next few days were sold out, and the only reschedule was this morning’s flight…”

Lu Jia’s original flight home was in three days, and she had wanted to spend a few more days with Sheng Shubai before leaving.

They hadn’t spent much time together in nearly half a month, and she actually couldn’t bear to part from her.

“Lu Jia, no need to apologize.”

Sheng Shubai comforted her. “If needed, I know a few orthopedic experts in the capital. You can send me a copy of the check-up report then, and I’ll forward it to them.”

She knew what mattered more.

Moreover, she hadn’t seen the messages in time that morning, leaving Lu Jia to hurriedly pack alone, worry for the family elder, and still take time to explain to her.

How was she so sensible?

Learning that Lu Jia still had some distance to the hospital.

Sheng Shubai didn’t hang up, soothing the girl’s emotions warmly. Only when she heard an elderly woman’s voice calling Lu Jia’s name from the other end did she quickly end the call.

“Mom, how’s Grandma?”

The suitcase wasn’t too conspicuous in the inpatient area. Lu Jia pushed it along as she jogged, spotting her mother coming out to meet her from afar.

Seeing her daughter hurrying like she had wind-fire wheels under her feet, Lu Manwan reassured her.

“The doctor said your grandma’s bones are sturdy. The thick padded jacket she wore in winter protected her well—she didn’t really hurt herself. After observation tonight, she can go home tomorrow and rest a few more days.”

The two chatted as they walked toward the ward.

It was a double room, but currently only Grandmother Lu occupied it.

With two meters still to go, Lu Jia could already faintly hear opera singing from the room. Pushing open the door, she saw the old lady propped up against the headboard. Her hair was streaked with white, but her spirits were high as she watched TV energetically.

The worry from the journey finally dissipated, turning into settled relief.

Little Jia is back?

Lu Qiaoyuan was first stunned, then patted the bed edge. “Weren’t you supposed to come in two days?”

Lu Jia sat down beside her, and the old lady gripped her hand tightly. She explained, “I rushed back as soon as I got the news. From now on, please take care of your health—walk slowly and carefully.”

“This old bag of bones is tough. A fall like that is nothing. It’s your mom who insisted on bringing me to the hospital.”

Lu Qiaoyuan waved it off. “Grandma specially caught a few of the fattest free-range chickens for you. Have your mom stew them tonight to nourish you. Look how thin you are—you’ve lost even more weight than when you were home at mid-year.”

Lu Jia tried to explain, “This is from working out. I have plenty of strength now.”

“Since when did you get into fitness?”

Lu Manwan joined the conversation from the side.

Who knew her daughter better than her? She knew her personality well:

She’d sit if she could avoid standing, hug woodblocks indoors rather than stroll outside. As a child, she’d run around the lumberyard a bit, but grown up, she’d just plop on a tree stump all day.

Lu Jia paused for two seconds. “A friend likes it, so I went along.”

This wasn’t half false.

Sheng Shubai liked her own worked-out vest line, so didn’t that count as a friend liking it?

They… weren’t together yet, anyway.

Lu Manwan said nothing more, withdrawing her glance, treating it as a casual unrelated question.

But the old lady, humming along to the Peking opera on TV, perked up at the romantic climax and eagerly grabbed her granddaughter’s hand to gossip. “Little Jia, in the half-year you’ve been studying there, have you made any friends?”

“Making friends” was the older generation’s term for dating.

As long as they weren’t married, they were just friends.

Lu Jia thought that her long friends-with-benefits phase with Sheng Shubai might have inherited the old lady’s… well, open-mindedness.

She hesitated and shook her head. “No.”

But she should have one soon.

She had never thought about dating in her life before and hadn’t come out to her family about her orientation. Glancing at Lu Qiaoyuan humming opera on the bed, she wasn’t sure how open-minded the old lady truly was.

After hesitating two seconds, she swallowed her words, planning to wait until after the lively New Year.

But suddenly, a phone screen was thrust before her, dense with a full page of text.

Whose resume was this?

Lu Jia was stunned at first, then heard her mom speak. “After the New Year, you’ll be almost twenty-five in nominal age. Your aunt found a few good ones for you. Want to take a look? They’re all local— if one catches your eye, you can meet anytime.”

Lu Jia frowned. “You had Aunt find them?”

She knew her aunt’s personality; she had always treated her well and wouldn’t use her for favors. It was purely occupational habit from being a matchmaker for over a decade.

Lu Manwan coughed lightly. “Well, you’ve had no movement at all.”

Her daughter had the looks, the character, the education. Yet in romance, she was a blockhead. How could she not worry?

Lu Jia rubbed her brow, pausing.

This was a habit she had picked up from Sheng Shubai.

“No need to look. None of them catch my eye, and I’m not interested.”

No longer hiding it from the two, Lu Jia came out directly. “Mom, I like women. Don’t worry about this.”

“How can that be?!”

Lu Manwan frowned. “Your aunt knows everyone. Isn’t it just women? She can definitely find a suitable one for you.”

Lu Jia: “……?”

Three minutes later.

“Hey, you should’ve said so earlier!”

Lu Family Aunt’s hearty voice came from the speakerphone. “Girls who like girls… I actually know a few. I’ll ask around more and carefully screen some for our little Jia.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to find a good one.”