"Then, see you tomorrow." After Tarik escorted Lei Xirui back, he exchanged pleasantries with Lei Sanshao and prepared to leave.
"Okay, see you tomorrow." Lei Xirui's smile was almost frozen.
"Thank you, Tarik, for seeing my sister home." Lei Sanshao, with a rare smile on his face, expressed his gratitude.
Once Tarik was gone, Lei Xirui immediately sank onto the sofa, letting out a long sigh of relief.
She felt her hands and legs trembling uncontrollably. Reaching up to touch her cheeks, she found them slightly flushed.
She had never been good at lying, and today's events had been incredibly thrilling!
Lei Sanshao turned around and saw Lei Xirui sitting on the sofa, cupping her face in her hands with a look of a maiden in love. He let out a light chuckle, feeling even more convinced of his wisdom.
Indeed, his sister and Tarik made a perfect match.
"Xirui, about today and Tarik..." Lei Sanshao cleared his throat, deciding to inquire further.
"Third Brother, I'm going back to my room now. We can talk about anything later." Lei Xirui remembered she needed to report the outcome of the situation to Xia Qingtian, and hurried upstairs.
She didn't want her friend, Qingtian, to worry or overthink things.
Watching Lei Xirui make a hasty retreat, Lei Sanshao chuckled. A rare gentleness in his eyes, he murmured to himself, "She's truly grown up, learned to be shy."
With his sister's matters settled, he needed to attend to that blueprint.
Thinking of this, the warmth in Lei Sanshao's eyes vanished instantly.
The Lei family was facing internal and external troubles, and he didn't have much time to waste here. Only by quickly unraveling that secret could they possibly avert the impending disaster!
Meanwhile, in her room, Lei Xirui reported the complete success of her mission to Xia Qingtian.
"Well done~" Xia Qingtian gave Lei Xirui a thumbs-up through the video call.
"Tomorrow, I'm meeting with Qingyu again. Qingyu invited me for tea and a chat. Do you need me to relay any messages to you, Qingtian?" Lei Xirui's cheeks were burning, but her eyes sparkled.
She was incredibly nervous yet also extremely excited.
It was her first time doing something like this, and she hadn't expected it to be so thrilling!
Heaven knew she had forgotten to breathe when she handed the pearl to Xia Qingyu.
If Xia Qingyu hadn't given her a timely word of encouragement, she might have fainted from holding her breath.
"No need, thank you." Xia Qingtian chuckled and said gently, "You've helped me a lot. I'll thank you properly when I get back to the country."
"Qingyu and I are friends. This is what I should do. No need for thanks." Lei Xirui waved her hands quickly. "I, I really..."
"Eh? Is that Siri's voice?" a male voice called from behind Xia Qingtian. Immediately, a magnified face leaned into the camera. "Hi~ Little Sister Xirui~"
"Hello." Lei Xirui blushed even harder at the sudden appearance of Shi Xingwu.
"Shi Xingwu, you're back?" Xia Qingtian looked at Shi Xingwu and asked, "Did you buy everything I asked for?"
"Got it all." Shi Xingwu gave a thumbs-up and said, "But, is it really necessary? Going out shopping every day, I haven't bought as much in my entire life as I have in these past two days... Even without considering the exchange rate, the thought of that money makes my heart ache."
"Heh, you'll have to work a bit harder tomorrow," Xia Qingtian said with a chuckle. "I suddenly remembered there are still some things I need to buy."
"Ah? Still buying?" Shi Xingwu smacked his forehead. "Goddess Sister, money isn't meant to be spent like this!"
"So, how should money be spent?" Xia Qingtian asked Shi Xingwu with a smile, finding the young man increasingly amusing.
"Money should be spent wisely, on the blade, or the back of the blade? The handle?" Shi Xingwu felt he had stumbled into his knowledge blind spot. He immediately cast a pleading look at Li Xiaozhong behind him.
"Sigh..." Li Xiaozhong sighed softly, unsure if he was lamenting Shi Xingwu's meager knowledge or the fact that such a person was his best friend, which, in a way, made himself seem rather pathetic.
"Let's go, let's head back. You're all sweaty, go take a shower first, don't stink up the place," Li Xiaozhong adjusted the glasses on his nose and then pulled Shi Xingwu away.
"Eh? Do I smell?" Shi Xingwu walked away with Li Xiaozhong, his voice fading into the distance, "Sniff, sniff, I think I actually do..."
"You stink," Li Xiaozhong said disdainfully.
"What's to stink about? This is manliness!" Shi Xingwu's voice carried a hint of pride. "You lack this manliness, you know? Come on! Let me share some with you!"
"Hey! You bastard! Don't touch me, you stink!"
"Haha... Don't be shy! Let me share some!"
"Get away from me!!"
...
"Pfft." Lei Xirui couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle as she faintly heard their receding conversation through her phone.
"Those two guys..." Xia Qingtian could only shake her head helplessly and say to Lei Xirui with a smile, "Sorry to make you witness such a scene."
"No, they seem very energetic," Lei Xirui's eyes were filled with envy. "So much laughter and joy, it's wonderful..."
Whether at school or in the Lei family, she had never experienced such happiness.
The atmosphere in the Lei family was one she couldn't even speak of, and at school, without friends, happiness was something she had never known.
Looking at Lei Xirui's expression, Xia Qingtian didn't know what to say.
Given Lei Sanshao's personality, he would certainly not know how to appease his sister, and perhaps would never know how to appease anyone.
The chances of him having lighthearted conversations with Lei Xirui were likely slim.
And considering Lei Xirui's introverted nature, it was easy to guess that she must be lacking people bursting with the kind of cheerful energy that Shi Xingwu possessed.
"Then... if you have the chance, come to Z City~" Xia Qingtian said with a gentle smile. "I think they would also welcome you to come and hang out with them!"
In Xia Qingtian's eyes, Lei Xirui was a lovely and kind child.
It would be quite nice for such a good child to befriend Qingyu and the others.
If everyone could gather together, it might also be a good thing for Lei Xirui.
"Is that so?" Lei Xirui blinked slightly. Even though she knew that Xia Qingtian's words were just polite formalities, they still made her heart leap with joy. "Thank you for the invitation, Qingtian!"
After a few more pleasantries, Lei Xirui told Xia Qingtian she had to hang up.
She had been alone in her room for too long, and if Lei Sanshao became suspicious, it wouldn't be good.
She still had a mission to complete tomorrow!
Xia Qingtian only asked one last question: "Did everything go smoothly today? Didn't anyone get suspicious?"
"Probably... not." Lei Xirui recalled the smiling face of Tarik and then tilted her head slightly.
Yes, probably not.