Shen Zhirou didn’t overthink it and, after changing her clothes, left work.

When she got home, she saw Xu Jia waiting for her.

“You’re back!” Xu Jia stood up from the sofa and quickly walked towards her.

“My brother called and insisted on taking me out to dinner. It seems his girlfriend felt bad about the misunderstanding during their last breakup and wanted to make a good impression on me. So, she suggested to my brother that they invite me to dinner.”

Xu Jia rubbed her hands and followed Shen Zhirou, “Do you want to come along? You know Lu Fanghuai, right? You two are dating, aren’t you? This would be a good opportunity to meet his family in advance.”

Listening to this, Shen Zhirou thought to herself that her guess was correct.

Earlier in the park, she had coincidentally seen “Lu Fanghuai” with that woman, and she wondered if the family they were meeting later was her. It turned out to be true.

“I’m nervous going alone,” Xu Jia admitted. It was, after all, her first time meeting her brother’s girlfriend, and she was unsure how to interact.

She had initially wanted to refuse, but recalling her drunken mistake that had led Shen Zhirou to seduce someone’s uncle, she thought it might be good to get to know each other better to avoid future awkwardness if her foolish actions were exposed.

Seeing Xu Jia so flustered for the first time, Shen Zhirou smiled, “Maybe she’s more nervous than you are. It’s her first time meeting her boyfriend’s family too.”

“Will you come with me? You’re dating her uncle, so you two will meet sooner or later. Please come, I’m really nervous.” Xu Jia pleaded.

Shen Zhirou hadn’t felt much about it at first, but Xu Jia’s words made her a bit nervous.

Meeting Lu Fanghuai’s family for the first time…

In the end, she nodded and agreed to accompany Xu Jia for dinner, mainly because she could see how nervous Xu Jia was.

After changing clothes, she left with Xu Jia.

On the way, Shen Zhirou contemplated whether to tell “Lu Fanghuai” that she was meeting his niece.

But no matter how she thought about it, the topic seemed to come up rather abruptly.

What if he asked how she knew it was his niece? That would reveal her earlier deliberate attempt to get close to him.

Shen Zhirou thought for a moment and said to Xu Jia, “Later, don’t mention that I know Lu Fanghuai. I’m just here as your roommate.”

Xu Jia was puzzled for a moment but then nodded in understanding.

Indeed, it wasn’t a good idea to confess to trying to seduce Lu Fanghuai.

“I wonder what my brother’s girlfriend looks like,” Xu Jia mumbled.

Shen Zhirou recalled that the “niece” seemed mature and stable. She was about to mention her past encounters with the woman when “Lu Fanghuai” sent a message on WeChat.

Zhou Jiayu: [Are you off work? I’ll pick you up.]

Shen Zhirou remained silent, thinking she had forgotten his offer to pick her up after work this morning.

Zhou Jiayu, watching the night fall, grew anxious waiting.

He had agreed with Lu Fanghuai to pick up Shen Zhirou after work to explain the name confusion. For this, he had been dragged around by Lu Fanghuai all day, accompanying Fang Wenting for a photo shoot, being bossed around, and only had peace when Wan Xue needed to find a restroom, and he guided her.

He had already bought flowers and a gift as an apology, now all he needed was to pick her up.

Zhou Jiayu’s hand hovered over the lock button, ready to lock the car doors as soon as he picked her up, to prevent her from leaving in anger.

Growing anxious, he received her reply: [Sorry, I forgot to tell you I’m off work. My roommate asked me to accompany her to meet her brother. We just arrived at the restaurant.]

Zhou Jiayu: “…”

Shen Zhirou: [Can I meet you after dinner?]

Zhou Jiayu: [Let me know when you’re almost done, and I’ll come pick you up.]

Just as Shen Zhirou was about to reply, Xu Jia looped her arm through hers.

Following Xu Jia’s gaze, she saw a young couple approaching.

The young man resembled Xu Jia, fair and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, looking particularly refined. Beside him was a young woman with a round face, dimples appearing when she smiled, making her look playful and cute.

“My brother, Xu Yunzhe,” Xu Jia whispered in her ear.

After they sat down, Xu Jia introduced Shen Zhirou to them, “This is my roommate, an absolute beauty, isn’t she!”

“I’m Shen Zhirou,” Shen Zhirou introduced herself, her gaze settling on the young woman opposite her.

So this is Lu Fanghuai’s niece?

She was different from the woman she had seen at the cinema and Moon Lake Park, who had asked “Lu Fanghuai” to hold her bag.

“Hello, sisters, I’m Zhang Junyao. I’m currently dating Xu Yunzhe,” Zhang Junyao said brightly, her voice full of energy.

Shen Zhirou was now filled with confusion.

“Why are you daydreaming?” Xu Jia nudged her.

“Nothing,” she muttered, listening as the other side brought up the misunderstanding from their last breakup.

“Sisters, my uncle came to pick me up last time, and Xu Yunzhe misunderstood. It seems he told you about it. I’m sorry about that. I didn’t want you to think poorly of me, so I wanted to explain the misunderstanding in person.”

“No, no, there’s no need to apologize,” Xu Jia said hastily, waving her hand.

“When he came to see me, I realized how much he had misunderstood. I wanted to bring my uncle over to explain, but he was busy with his wedding preparations and couldn’t make it.”

Zhang Junyao’s narrative was natural, but Xu Jia and Shen Zhirou felt tense.

Xu Jia glanced at Shen Zhirou before asking, “Getting married? Your uncle is getting married?”