Chapter 168: Crying Out

Since Bai Fanhao had driven to the campus himself, it was only natural that he would drive her back home.

At the time, Lu had wailed in mock indignation, "Oh, you traitor, favoring romance over friendship! I came all this way specifically to pick you up, only for a bolt from the blue to sweep my little Xi away. Where is the justice in this world? Heavens!"

Hand in hand, Mu Qingxi and Bai Fanhao stood watching the dramatic girl with gentle smiles, neither of them making a move to stop her.

At last, Bai Fanhao calmly offered, "Alright, I'll treat you to a grand feast another day."

Hearing the promise of a lavish meal, Mu Qingxi's good friend Lu instantly abandoned her complaints, her expression shifting in a flash as she declared, "Deal, it's settled!"

Mu Qingxi rolled her eyes and remarked, "My dear, your mood swings are astonishingly fast!"

"Of course! Hugging you doesn't fill my stomach, and a feast is far more practical. Off you go now," Lu said, resting a hand against the car door and casting a playful, disdainful look at Mu Qingxi.

"Heh, alright. See you later," Bai Fanhao chuckled softly before turning to Mu Qingxi. "Let's go."

Mu Qingxi nodded. With one hand, Bai Fanhao pulled the luggage, and with the other, he held Mu Qingxi's hand. Together, they walked out through the school gates.

She had never felt so happy. For the past four years, she felt as though her sky had remained perpetually overcast, devoid of light, let alone sunshine.

Mu Qingxi gazed down at the large hand holding hers—pale, slender, with neatly trimmed nails—and a sweet smile bloomed on her face.

Noticing Mu Qingxi staring blankly at his hand and giggling to herself, Bai Fanhao asked, "Is my hand really that fascinating? Why are you staring at my hand instead of me? Could it be that my hand is more handsome than I am?"

She nodded with mock solemnity, then suddenly burst into laughter. "Of course not. It's just because these are your hands, and they're holding mine, which is why I love looking at them."

Hearing this, a complex, inexpressible emotion stirred in Bai Fanhao's heart. He knew that her life over the past few years had been decent—neither exceptionally good nor terribly bad. While outwardly peaceful, her inner world had been filled with turmoil and sorrow.

He gripped Mu Qingxi's hand even tighter, holding it firmly within his own, and said, "I'm never letting go again."

"No—" Mu Qingxi managed only a single syllable before Bai Fanhao cut her off.

"You are not allowed to say no. Objection overruled," Bai Fanhao hastily interrupted the moment he heard her utter the negative.

Mu Qingxi froze for a moment, then began struggling to suppress her laughter, her shoulders shaking violently. Bai Fanhao frowned at her, wondering what she found so amusing.

Collecting herself, Mu Qingxi spoke quietly, "Fanhao, I only wanted to say... well, it should be *we*, not just a one-sided decision."

"Ah, we've arrived. Let's go home."

Mu Qingxi looked up to see they had reached the car. After stowing the luggage, as they prepared to set off, a sudden thought struck her. "We're going to *my* house. We don't have a home of our own yet."

The two looked at each other. Bai Fanhao shook his head in gentle disagreement and said, "Wherever you are, that is home."

*Wherever you are, that is home!* Yes, indeed, wherever he was, that was home!

Mu Qingxi cheered, "We're going home! We finally have a home! We're going home! Mr. Bai, please unlock the car door, I want to go home."

"I am right here. What home do you need to go to? Just stay right by my side," he said with a confident grin, patting his own shoulder.

Unbothered by anything else, the two of them stood right beside the car, calling out loudly. Even as passersby turned to stare, they paid no heed, desperate only to shout out the thoughts that had accumulated in their hearts for four full years.

Of course, now that they were reunited, it was time to slowly answer all the questions left unsaid from the past.