Rebirth Begins with Rejecting My Childhood Friend

"I just don't want you sleeping with her."

Hearing Xiao Youran's words, Xu Xiuwen's expression froze.

Xiao Youran knew her request was a bit unreasonable, but she lowered her head stubbornly, refusing to relent. It was as if backing down would mean Xu Xiuwen would immediately climb into Cheng Lu's bed and do unspeakable things with her.

Looking at the defiant Xiao Youran, a trace of helplessness flashed in Xu Xiuwen's eyes. He pulled the girl into his arms, resting his chin gently on her forehead. "Youran, I..."

Before he could finish, Xiao Youran pushed him away abruptly. Turning her head aside, she said, "Fine, I won't stop you from sleeping with her, but you have to promise me—no doing that kind of thing."

Seeing Xiao Youran compromise, Xu Xiuwen barely had time to feel relieved before hearing her emphasize that kind of thing again. He couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh.

"Alright, alright, I promise."

"Then go back."

Although Xiao Youran was clearly reluctant to send him to Cheng Lu's bed, she still forced herself to say it.

"You should rest early," Xu Xiuwen said, turning to leave.

Back in the master bedroom, Cheng Lu immediately asked, "What did she want to talk about?"

Xu Xiuwen obviously couldn't tell Cheng Lu that Xiao Youran had forbidden him from doing anything intimate with her. So, he came up with an excuse to brush it off.

Whether Cheng Lu believed him or not, she didn't press further.

Once Xu Xiuwen got into bed and held Cheng Lu in his arms, he found himself hesitating. After all, he'd just promised Xiao Youran.

But the warmth of Cheng Lu's body, like a blazing fire radiating infinite allure, made it almost impossible to resist. With such a perfect figure in his arms, staying indifferent was a challenge.

Noticing Xu Xiuwen's inaction, Cheng Lu was a bit surprised. She waited for a while before finally asking, "Why aren't you continuing?"

Xu Xiuwen looked down into Cheng Lu's eyes. Her expression remained calm, but there was a faint flicker in her gaze, and her cheeks were slightly flushed. Clearly, asking this question had embarrassed her.

Feeling mischievous, Xu Xiuwen deliberately played dumb. "Continue with what?"

Cheng Lu wasn't going to fall for that. She immediately rolled her eyes at him and turned over, presenting her back to him.

It didn't take much for Xu Xiuwen to realize that Cheng Lu was a little annoyed. With a sly grin, he leaned in and hugged her tightly from behind. Teasing her, he said, "I get it. You mean that kind of thing, right? Come on, admit it—were you thinking about it too?"

"Get lost!"

Cheng Lu turned her head, spat out the words, and shot him a glare.

That glare was breathtakingly seductive, making Xu Xiuwen's heart race uncontrollably.

Unable to help himself, Xu Xiuwen swallowed hard and began running his hands over her body.

He had completely forgotten the promise he made to Xiao Youran earlier.

Cheng Lu was also starting to get caught up in the moment.

Just as Xu Xiuwen was about to lower his head and kiss Cheng Lu's lips—

Knock, knock, knock!

The door sounded again.

Who was interrupting him this time?

Frustrated, Xu Xiuwen got out of bed and went to answer the door.

When he opened it, there stood Xiao Youran once again.

Seeing her, Xu Xiuwen suddenly remembered the promise he'd made to her earlier. If it weren't for her knocking, he might have completely forgotten about it by now.

This realization made him feel a bit guilty. He gave a dry laugh and asked, "Youran, why are you here?"

Xiao Youran gave him a once-over and said, "Xiao Xu, do you have a clean pillow in your room?"

"A pillow? Sure, let me grab one for you."

Xu Xiuwen turned around and went to the wardrobe to get a new pillow.

As soon as he walked away, Xiao Youran immediately glanced at the bed.

Cheng Lu had her back to the door at that moment, and seeing this, Xiao Youran visibly relaxed.

Xu Xiuwen soon returned with a fresh pillow. Xiao Youran took it, thanked him, and went back to her room.

After closing the door, Xu Xiuwen's gaze fell back on Cheng Lu's alluring figure.

The fire in his heart, which had just been extinguished, reignited.

Cheng Lu put up a half-hearted resistance but was slightly more hesitant than before.

"What if Xiao Youran comes back again?" Cheng Lu asked.

"She won't. There's no way she'll come back."

Just as he finished speaking—

Knock, knock, knock!

The door sounded again.

Xu Xiuwen froze in embarrassment.

Cheng Lu rolled her eyes at him when she heard the knocking.

Sighing, Xu Xiuwen got out of bed and went to the door.

Opening it, he found Xiao Youran standing there again.

This time, Xu Xiuwen couldn't help but feel exasperated, and his tone was a bit sharper. "Youran, what do you need this time?"

Xiao Youran didn't seem to notice his irritation. She smiled and said, "Xiao Xu, do you have a new bedsheet? The one on my bed hasn't been used in ages, and I'd like to replace it."

"A bedsheet, huh? Alright, let me grab one for you."

He fetched a new bedsheet for her, which Xiao Youran took back to her room with satisfaction.

Xu Xiuwen closed the door and turned back to Cheng Lu, eager to continue.

Cheng Lu, however, was starting to lose patience and pushed him away.

Still, Xu Xiuwen was persistent, and Cheng Lu gradually stopped resisting.

Just as they were about to take things to the next level—

Knock, knock, knock!

The door sounded again.

Opening it, he saw Xiao Youran standing there, once again asking for something.

Over the next half hour, Xiao Youran returned to knock on the door every few minutes, disrupting them repeatedly.

By the end of it, Xu Xiuwen and Cheng Lu had completely lost interest.

If they still couldn't figure out that Xiao Youran was doing this on purpose, they'd truly be fools.

And that last time was the final straw.

After Xu Xiuwen got back into bed and was about to hold Cheng Lu, she raised her hand and brushed his arm away.

She shot him a glare and said, "Go look at your precious little sister."

Xu Xiuwen feigned ignorance. "What little sister?"

Cheng Lu rolled her eyes at him and said irritably, "Go to sleep. Don't even think about anything else."

"She shouldn't come back again this time," Xu Xiuwen muttered.

"Doesn't matter. I'm tired. I'm going to sleep," Cheng Lu said firmly.

Sighing heavily, Xu Xiuwen couldn't help but feel disappointed.

Just then—

Knock, knock, knock!

The door sounded again.

Xiao Youran's relentless interruptions were starting to wear on Xu Xiuwen. While he understood why she was doing this, his patience had reached its limit.

Getting out of bed, he went to open the door.

As soon as the door opened, he said, "What else do you need now? Can't you just say everything at once?"

"Uh?"

The person at the door froze. It wasn't Xiao Youran—it was An Shishi.

"Shishi?"

Xu Xiuwen was surprised to see her there.

His voice wasn't exactly quiet, so Cheng Lu, who was still in bed, also heard it. She turned to look toward the door.

"Shishi, is there something you need?"

An Shishi glanced at Cheng Lu, then at Xu Xiuwen, and gave a mischievous smile. "Did I interrupt something?"

Cheng Lu's face turned red as she instinctively glared at Xu Xiuwen.

Inwardly, Xu Xiuwen shouted, What did I do?!

Cheng Lu, keeping her composure, replied, "Shishi, don't be ridiculous. We weren't doing anything."

"Hehe," An Shishi giggled but quickly stopped herself.

"I'm just a little hungry and wanted to find something to eat, but I don't know where the food is. I came to ask Xu Xiuwen. Hope I didn't interrupt you two."

Only then did they realize the reason for her knocking.

Cheng Lu said calmly, "Xu Xiuwen, go help Shishi find something. I'm going to sleep now."

"Alright," Xu Xiuwen agreed, getting up and walking out of the bedroom.

As he closed the door behind him, he headed toward the kitchen.

Xu Xiuwen, however, knew full well that An Shishi hadn't come knocking just because she was hungry. She must have something to say.

The moment they reached the kitchen, Xu Xiuwen turned to her and asked, "Alright, what is it? You can speak now."

An Shishi smirked. "How did you know I had something to say?"

"Do you think I can't see through your little games?" Xu Xiuwen replied calmly.

An Shishi chuckled, glanced behind her to ensure no one was around, and then stepped closer.

She tiptoed, wrapped her arms around Xu Xiuwen's neck, and said in a playful, intimate tone, "Hubby, I'm hungry. I want to eat some instant noodles you made."

One of her feet was on tiptoe while the other was raised slightly behind her. With her hands tightly clasped around Xu Xiuwen's neck, her upper body was almost pressed against his chest.

Their position was exceedingly close, her voice as sweet and sticky as honey.

But Xu Xiuwen had no mood to indulge in her flirtations.

He constantly reminded himself that both Cheng Lu and Xiao Youran were in this house.

If either of them suddenly came into the living room and saw him and An Shishi in such an intimate position, there'd be no way to explain it!

Feeling a bit nervous, Xu Xiuwen said, "Shishi, stop fooling around. Let go of me."

An Shishi pouted and said coquettishly, "I don't want to."

Xu Xiuwen couldn't really bring himself to be stern with An Shishi.

In a gentle tone, he said, "Be good, okay?"

An Shishi stared at him for a second, then pouted and said, "Fine, I'll listen to you, hubby."

Reluctantly, she let go of him. But just before doing so, she suddenly leaned in and gave Xu Xiuwen a quick peck on the lips, like a little bird pecking at grain.

Xu Xiuwen froze in surprise.

After regaining his composure, he looked at An Shishi's sweet but slightly mischievous smile and couldn't help but smile helplessly himself.

He turned away and said, "Craving instant noodles, huh? I'll make you a bowl."

"Thank you, hubby," An Shishi replied with a bright smile.

Xu Xiuwen found a pack of instant noodles in the cabinet and started cooking.

He added water to the pot, waited for it to bubble, then placed the noodle block in. Once the water boiled, he added the seasoning packet, covered it, and let it cook. When the water boiled again, he cracked in an egg.

Before long, Xu Xiuwen had finished making a bowl of noodles.

He poured the noodles into a bowl, brought it to the dining table, and said, "The noodles are ready. Eat up."

After setting the bowl down, he turned and was about to head back to the bedroom.

But as he took a step, he felt his pinky caught by something.

Xu Xiuwen turned back to look.

An Shishi was hooking her pinky around his, biting her lip as she pouted, "Hubby, can you stay with me while I eat? Just wait until I'm done before you go back, okay?"

Xu Xiuwen hesitated.

He wanted to return to sleep with Cheng Lu but figured she was probably already asleep.

After a moment of thought, he agreed.

Pulling out a chair, Xu Xiuwen sat down to keep An Shishi company as she ate her noodles.

He remembered she hadn't bought a return ticket and asked while she ate, "Why didn't you buy a ticket to go back?"

Hearing him suddenly bring it up, the smile on An Shishi's face instantly froze.

She quickly lowered her head, picked up her chopsticks, and started eating.

Her unusual behavior didn't escape Xu Xiuwen's notice.

He immediately asked, "What's going on?"

An Shishi shook her head and said, "Nothing."

Then she continued eating.

"It's not nothing. If everything were fine, you wouldn't react like this."

An Shishi hesitated for a moment after hearing him. Finally, she looked up at him.

Xu Xiuwen, noticing her hesitation, patiently said, "Tell me. No matter what happens, I'll have your back. You should let me know."

An Shishi was touched by his words.

She opened her mouth to speak when—

Creak

A faint door-opening sound broke the silence.

Both Xu Xiuwen and An Shishi immediately turned toward the source of the sound.

An Shishi sat up straight, pretending to focus on her noodles.

Xu Xiuwen took a step back, putting some distance between them.

In the next moment...

Song Siyu stepped out of her room.

Her room's door happened to face the sofa at an angle.

When she walked out, she immediately saw Xu Xiuwen and An Shishi sitting by the dining table.

Song Siyu froze for a moment.

"Shishi? Xu Xiuwen? What are you two doing here?" she asked suspiciously.

"Shishi was hungry, so I made her some noodles," Xu Xiuwen explained calmly.

Hearing this, the suspicion in Song Siyu's eyes lessened slightly.

An Shishi chimed in, "Siyu, are you hungry? Want to share some of the noodles?"

Song Siyu finally dismissed her doubts.

She shook her head and said, "No, thanks. I don't like eating before bed."

"Okay." An Shishi nodded and continued eating.

"Why aren't you sleeping?" Xu Xiuwen asked.

Song Siyu glanced at him and retorted, "Why do you care?"

Wow. Song Siyu sure knew how to give a sharp reply.

Xu Xiuwen was left speechless.

He thought back to when he first met Song Siyu.

Back then, she wasn't this sharp-tongued.

But Xu Xiuwen understood why Song Siyu had such a poor opinion of him—it was because he had cheated.

Knowing this, he didn't get upset.

Otherwise, given his personality, if he were truly angry, he wouldn't have let Song Siyu stay over in the first place.

After snapping at Xu Xiuwen, Song Siyu walked straight to the bathroom.

Once she was gone, both An Shishi and Xu Xiuwen let out a sigh of relief.

They glanced at each other and shared a knowing smile.

"You should finish your noodles," Xu Xiuwen said.

A short while later, Song Siyu came out of the bathroom and headed back to her room.

Passing through the living room, she noticed Xu Xiuwen was still there.

She didn't say anything and simply returned to her room.

Once she was gone, Xu Xiuwen brought up the earlier question again.

"So, what were you about to say earlier?"

An Shishi paused, then spoke softly, "Hubby, can you come home with me during this holiday?"

Afraid he might misunderstand, she quickly added,

"Don't get the wrong idea. It's not to meet my parents. It's my sister—she's in school thanks to your financial support. She's really grateful and wants to thank you in person."

After finishing, An Shishi looked extremely nervous, like a convict awaiting a death sentence.

Xu Xiuwen had been expecting something completely different.

He hadn't anticipated her request for him to visit her home.

Although An Shishi insisted it wasn't to meet her parents and was only about her sister expressing gratitude, Xu Xiuwen wasn't naive.

He could sense the subtle intentions of a future mother-in-law behind this.