Xia Nuannuan, held by her mother, smiled like a flower, her bright, shining eyes looking at Qin Tian beside her.
"Nuannuan, congratulations!"
Qin Tian sent his congratulations with a smile.
"Hee hee..."
Xia Nuannuan's smile became even happier, her eyes curving as she urged, "Quickly check yours."
Upon hearing this, Su Xia quickly let go of her daughter, sat back down, and nodded excitedly, "Yes, Little Qin, continue, continue."
Her daughter's results were undeniably excellent, and she was quite satisfied. Now, what was even more anticipated was Qin Tian's score. Based on the results of the previous two mock exams, he was on par with the provincial top scholar. To witness the birth of a provincial college entrance examination top scholar firsthand would be like a miracle happening before their eyes.
Qin Tian smiled gently and nodded. He first let Xia Nuannuan take out her phone, took a screenshot of her score, and then logged out. However, after logging out, the webpage could no longer be opened. It was obvious that countless students and parents across the country were already guarding their computers to check their scores, and the website had crashed. The advantage of the internet and quick fingers was gone. Qin Tian tried several times, but couldn't even access the page.
"This is troublesome," Qin Tian said, scratching his head helplessly.
"Call to check?" Xia Nuannuan suggested.
"It's no use. There will only be more people calling to check their scores," Qin Tian said with certainty. At this stage, families with computers were still a minority. Most students and parents likely chose to check their scores by phone.
"It's okay, Mom, I'll call with you. We have nothing else to do anyway. Maybe we'll get through!" Xia Nuannuan said to her mother with a smile.
"That's right, let's do that. Little Qin, you keep checking on the computer, and we'll make calls," Su Xia said with a smile.
As soon as she finished speaking, Qin Tian's phone, placed beside him, suddenly rang. He glanced at the caller ID, quickly answered the call, and turned on the speakerphone.
"Mom."
"How is it, how is it? Have you checked it yet?" Tang Xiuxia's anxious voice came from the other end of the phone. Qin Tian couldn't help but feel a little guilty; he should have gone back to be with his mother earlier. Su Xia and Xia Nuannuan also felt a bit embarrassed upon hearing this.
"Mom, don't worry. I'm still checking mine. There are a lot of people, but Nuannuan's has been found, 668 points!" Qin Tian said hurriedly.
"Ah? 668? That's great, that's great! Nuannuan, quickly let her talk to me, I want to congratulate her," Tang Xiuxia said excitedly.
"Auntie, Auntie, I heard!" Xia Nuannuan quickly said thankfully.
"Really? Nuannuan, congratulations, you're amazing!"
"Hee hee... Thank you, Auntie. Auntie, I'm really sorry, I should have let Qin Tian go back with you."
"It's okay, as long as it's checked, a phone call is just as good," Tang Xiuxia said with a smile.
"Auntie, why don't we keep the phone connected? That way, it's like we're together, and you'll know as soon as Qin Tian's score is out." Xia Nuannuan suggested.
"Sure, Nuannuan, you're so smart."
"Hello, Qin Tian's mother, good evening!" Su Xia suddenly greeted.
"Ah, Nuannuan's mother?" Tang Xiuxia's surprised voice came through.
"It's me, it's me, Qin Tian's mother. I'm really sorry, it was my oversight. I should have let Little Qin go back to check the scores with you."
"Oh, what is there to apologize for? It's fine, it's all the same."
"Now, Nuannuan and I are going to call by phone, and Little Qin is using the computer."
"That's good, more people means more strength. Should I hang up and call the score checking number too?"
"No, no, Qin Tian's mother, let's just chat!" Su Xia said with a gentle smile while dialing the score checking number on her phone.
"Alright!" Tang Xiuxia agreed with a smile. Thus, the two mothers began to chat and laugh. This was their first formal conversation, but there was no sense of unfamiliarity. They talked very congenially, even feeling like they had met before. Having the character "Xia" (霞) in their names also became a topic of common interest for them. To Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan's surprise, after a few words, they began to call each other sisters. Su Xia, being two years younger, called Tang Xiuxia "Sister Xiu," and Tang Xiuxia called her "Little Sister."
"Sister Xiu, speaking of which, our two families are truly fated. Look at your name and mine, and the names of the two children."
"The names of the two children?"
"Yes, your Qin Tian, doesn't it sound like 'clear sky' (晴天), and my Nuannuan's surname is Xia (夏). See, don't they match perfectly!"
"Oh!" Tang Xiuxia realized with surprise and delight, "Little Sister, I didn't even notice until you said it! It really is, this is too fate!"
"Right!"
"Yes, yes, it's really like fate's arrangement!"
"I think so too!" Su Xia nodded with a smile. Qin Tian looked at Xia Nuannuan playfully.
"Mom is really something." Xia Nuannuan's pretty face turned red, and she grumbled shyly in a low voice.
"So, Auntie also noticed the connection between our names? Was it you who said it?" Qin Tian asked with a smile.
"I didn't say anything!" Xia Nuannuan retorted in a low voice. She had thought about showing off to her mother after realizing this situation before, but she had been too shy. To her surprise, her mother had already figured it out and told Qin Tian's mother about it. It was so embarrassing!
"As expected of... your mother!" Qin Tian said with a smile of emotion, almost blurting out "my future mother-in-law," but he managed to correct himself in time. Xia Nuannuan rolled her eyes shyly and stopped talking, continuing to dial the score checking number with her phone. However, her slightly perked-up ears were carefully listening to the conversation between her mother and Aunt Tang.
"Little Sister, how about we pick a time to have a meal together and meet formally?" Tang Xiuxia suddenly suggested after chatting for a while longer. Su Xia was stunned for a moment. Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan were also bewildered. The two exchanged a surprised glance, seeing the meaning in each other's eyes. Were their parents going to meet so soon?
"I don't mean anything else. We can just meet alone, it's just that I feel we hit it off well, so we can get to know each other first and be friends!" Tang Xiuxia added before Su Xia could speak.
"Of course!" Su Xia hastily agreed with a smile after recovering from her surprise. She greatly admired the woman who had raised Qin Tian alone and educated him so excellently and outstandingly, and she also very much wanted to get to know her. However, Tang Xiuxia's direct invitation to meet was a bit sudden. Moreover, she had to consider what Old Xia would think, whether he would feel it was too soon, and so on, which was why she hadn't responded immediately. Tang Xiuxia's added remark afterwards meant it wouldn't be a formal meeting of both parents, so she didn't have to worry as much.