After his blunder in the handsome guy's comment section was exposed.

Xi Chenzhou drove his car into Yaoguang's underground parking lot.

As soon as he parked the car and got out, he casually slammed the door shut. The window of the Ghibli in the next parking space rolled down, and Jiang Lan waved to him: "What a coincidence, son."

Xi Chenzhou genuinely didn't expect to run into him here, raising an eyebrow: "What a coincidence."

Jiang Lan winked at Zhou Meiling in the passenger seat and gestured towards the window with her chin: "See? He's pretending to be busy; he's really spending time with his girlfriend. Daughters are so good; they're so considerate."

"Sigh, the kids have grown up and have their own lives. They don't play with us anymore. It's the same with my daughter. Look at mine, I haven't called her for days, and she doesn't call me either," Zhou Meiling smiled and comforted her old friend.

After they finished speaking, the two looked at each other and nodded in empathy.

Jiang Lan introduced Xi Chenzhou: "This is your Aunt Zhou, my mother's best friend from high school. She's coming from the South Province to visit for a few days and to see her daughter. Her daughter goes to the same university as you; I mentioned her to you last time."

Zhou Meiling took the initiative to speak: "Xiaozhou definitely doesn't remember me. He was so small back then, and he would cry as soon as I held him."

She smiled and gestured, indicating that she had visited Jiang Lan in Beijing once when Jiang Lan was in postpartum confinement.

Back then, transportation was far less convenient than it is now. It was more than a thousand kilometers from the southern province to Beijing. Airplanes were expensive, and trains were a hassle, so we didn't see each other much after that, only occasionally contacting each other by phone.

Later, Jiang Lan became increasingly busy with work, and the two of them contacted each other less and less, only chatting during the Chinese New Year.

Although we haven't been in contact much, we've never lost touch over the years.

"I can't believe how grown up he is! And so handsome, tall and dashing!"

Zhou Meiling looked at Xi Chenzhou and nodded appreciatively.

Xi Chenzhou knew that his mother didn't have many true friends, but those she did have were for life. This Aunt Zhou had clear eyes and a kind face, without any of the hypocrisy one might expect from some wealthy women; she seemed like an honest person.

He nodded politely to Zhou Meiling: "Aunt Zhou."

Zhou Meiling beamed again, turning to Jiang Lan and saying, "You taught him so well! He's handsome and polite!"

Jiang Lan shook her head and complained, "You didn't see how grumpy he looked. He was so rude and indifferent, it was really annoying."

Zhou Meiling: "Sigh, everyone has bad days. Right now, I think Xiaozhou is doing pretty well."

Jiang Lan: "Just keep praising him. I think your daughter is quite nice too, she's so beautiful. When you showed me the picture, I thought she was some kind of celebrity."

"Sigh, being too pretty isn't good either. You have no idea how much I've worried about her since she was little, afraid that she'd be targeted by that blond guy. I still have a lingering fear about what happened to Yali back then."

Du Yali was their classmate and the school beauty in high school.

Because she was so beautiful, she caught the eye of a blond guy who insisted on dating her.

She refused, so Huang Mao led a group of people to block the school gate every day.

To pester relentlessly.

In order to get rid of Huang Mao, Du Yali deliberately started dating a top student, thinking that Huang Mao would stop bothering her once he saw that she had a boyfriend.

Unexpectedly, the blond guy turned out to be an extremist.

After one evening self-study session, while Du Yali's boyfriend was taking her home, they ambushed the two of them in a secluded corner with more than a dozen of their buddies and stabbed them to death.

One person was stabbed more than eighty times.

The body was slashed and mangled.

When they were discovered the next day, their faces were no longer recognizable.

Miserable.

This case caused a sensation throughout the city back then, and many people in the southern part of the city still remember it.

Zhou Meiling lived near the scene of the crime and witnessed the horrific state of the corpse the next day on her way to school, which still causes her to have nightmares from time to time.

Because of this, she kept a very close eye on her daughter after she was born.

We must be extremely vigilant to prevent her from dating while she's in school.

I have to pick them up from school every day.

Whether it's a blond kid or a classmate of the same age, if they encounter a madman, the child's life will be ruined.

Jiang Lan's deskmate back then was Du Yali, and she has a deep impression of this incident.

Thinking of this, he sighed with regret: "What a pity for Yali, such a beautiful girl, the most beautiful flower in our Nanzhong back then, she could sing and dance, if she were still alive... Sigh, it's also her parents' fault for not taking care of her, all they did was play mahjong all day long. The night she had the accident, her parents were still playing mahjong all night at someone else's house..."

"Yes, parents also have a lot of responsibility."

The two men chatted about old times. Xi Chenzhou had no intention of participating. He greeted them, put his hands in his hoodie pockets, and prepared to leave.

Jiang Lan then remembered her son and called out to him, "Hey, what are you doing here? Where's your girlfriend?"

"Upstairs." Xi Chenzhou said these two words and turned to leave.

Jiang Lan turned to Zhou Meiling and sighed, "It's a pity our two children aren't meant to be. If only we had introduced them earlier. I called you when we were abroad, but you've changed your number."

"It's my fault, it's my fault," Zhou Meiling shook her head, her face also showing regret. "Back then, I believed someone's sales pitch about phone packages, saying they were cheaper for local users, so I changed my old number. I also felt that the two kids were a good match, but unfortunately, they were destined to be apart."

Jiang Lan: "If I had known, I should have arranged a marriage between our children back then."

Zhou Meiling couldn't stop laughing: "Do you think what we say counts? The kids are so opinionated now, it'll be a waste of time if they disagree."

Jiang Lan nodded in agreement: "That's true. Oh well, worrying is pointless. Look at my son just now, he doesn't seem like someone who can listen to me."

"Come on, let's go out for dinner and shopping. It's been so many years since we last met. I've canceled everything today just to spend time with you." Jiang Lan grabbed her bag and opened the car door.

Zhou Meiling got off the bus.

The two were still arm in arm, just like back then.

"Meiling, you have a great figure, just as good as ever. You look so elegant in a cheongsam." Jiang Lan glanced at her best friend's slender waist and teased her with a smile.

Zhou Meiling, embarrassed, patted her lower abdomen. "No way, look at the fat on my stomach. I was just holding my breath. You take such good care of yourself. You still look like a young girl after all these years. Your skin is so smooth and delicate, as tender as tofu. Your husband must be completely captivated by you."

"Oh, hahaha, still calling me a 'little girl'? I'm almost fifty! You're just spoiling me, praising me like that." Jiang Lan laughed until she was breathless. "Your old Lin is the real deal! Back in the day, he was definitely the most handsome guy in the sports academy. What's that word now? 'Boy over there!' Yes, 'Boy over there!'"

Zhou Meiling said disdainfully, "What 'Big Man'? He's all brawn and no brains, the only thing he's really handsome about is his face, haha. Sometimes I can't even get angry when I see his face. Your husband, Lao Xi, is much more charming. He's the kind of domineering CEO that's all the rage right now."

Jiang Lan also scoffed: "Pshaw, what domineering CEO? I'd rather he be like your old Lin, simply a university teacher with winter and summer vacations, traveling and having fun with you during holidays, and spending every day at home with you."

Jiang Lan was truly envious. She and her husband had long been financially independent, and they had earned so much money that they could spend it all in several lifetimes. But life can never be perfect; you are destined to lose something in order to gain something else.

Zhou Meiling didn't feel like she was in Versailles.

When Jiang Lan was in school, her family was the best. Both her parents were university professors. However, they went to the Northwest to do research and were unable to take care of her, so they sent her to live with relatives in the South Province. This is how the two of them met and became best friends.

Jiang Lan's biggest wish used to be that her parents could be with her every day.

This is my birthday wish every year.

She lacked love growing up.

Zhou Meiling said, "Although your husband Xi doesn't spend much time with you, he spends all his free time with you, which shows that he cares about you and loves you very much. Look at you, you're successful in your career, and your son is handsome and outstanding. So many people want to be like you."

Jiang Lan linked arms with her, beaming, "I think you're sincere in praising me. Come on, I'll take you out for something delicious. Back then, you used to bring me lunch every day and share half with me. Your mom's cooking is really good; I gained several pounds that semester..."

"My mom has passed on her cooking skills to me now. If you want to eat it, I'll make it for you."

"Really?"

"real."

"Then come to our house tomorrow..."

"Okay, I'll go to my daughter's school tomorrow and give her a surprise visit to see what that girl is up to."

……

The two hadn't seen each other for many years, but as soon as they met, they had endless things to talk about.

They chatted as they walked upstairs.

Lin Xuechun had arrived at the mall long ago, but Xi Chenzhou hadn't come yet, so she found a milk tea shop, bought a drink, and sat down to wait.