Chapter 50: An Ran'er's Parents
Today was an ordinary Sunday, but for Li Nuo, it was anything but ordinary.
Because today was the day An Ran'er's parents were coming to visit.
He was worried that he might accidentally say something wrong or make a mistake when they arrived.
An Ran'er, on the other hand, was not nearly as worried. She only reminded him not to let her parents realize that he was actually a boy.
Since An Ran'er said her parents would not arrive until the afternoon, Li Nuo spent the entire morning feeling restless and anxious.
At one point, he even thought about staying somewhere else for a night to avoid meeting them.
However, An Ran'er immediately rejected the idea because her older sister already knew she was living with someone.
And her sister had already told their parents about it, so they all knew she had a roommate.
Besides visiting An Ran'er, this trip was also meant to let them see what kind of person her roommate was.
As for how An Ran'er's sister found out she was living with someone, that story involved a certain man who wore gold-rimmed glasses.
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At that moment, in the Yu family home, Yu Haoshen was sitting in front of a computer organizing some documents when he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
A moment later, he sneezed.
After blowing his nose with a tissue, he wrapped the blanket around himself a little tighter.
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Since An Ran'er's sister knew what Li Nuo looked like in men's clothing, and nobody knew exactly when An Ran'er's parents would arrive, Li Nuo had no choice but to stay dressed as a girl for the entire day.
Staying in the apartment made him feel uneasy.
Originally, he had planned to take Roubao out for a walk, but the cat could not even be bothered to move.
Ever since the neutering surgery, Roubao had become much lazier. It was almost as if he had lost the meaning of life.
He had also gained even more weight, which made Li Nuo worry about his health.
At one o'clock in the afternoon, An Ran'er received a phone call and left the apartment.
According to her, her parents had already arrived nearby but did not know the way, so she had gone to pick them up.
An Ran'er's parents did not live in S City. They lived in the neighboring G City.
In fact, if not for school, An Ran'er probably would not have come to S City at all.
As for her older sister, she happened to run a pet hospital in the city.
However, her sister usually lived at the hospital because there were hospitalized pets that needed constant care.
Left alone in the quiet apartment, Li Nuo could only pass the time by playing on his phone.
While browsing forums, he came across discussions about [The Girls].
Suddenly remembering something, he quickly opened the website for the Annual Popular Songs Ranking.
After scrolling all the way down, he finally found The Girls' new song, Carousel.
Its ranking had risen five places compared to before and was now ranked 90th.
However, it was still far from their goal of reaching the Top 10.
Putting on his headphones, he started listening to the song. Before he realized it, he slowly drifted off to sleep.
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Knock knock knock...
Nobody knew how much time had passed before a series of urgent knocks woke Li Nuo from his sleep.
Rubbing his sleepy eyes, he reached for his phone to check the time.
Only then did he discover that the battery had died and the phone had shut itself off.
He took off his headphones and looked outside.
The sky was still bright, so he guessed it had not been very long.
The knocking continued, forcing him to get up and answer the door.
When he opened it, he saw that the person knocking was An Ran'er.
He was about to ask whether she had forgotten her keys when he noticed two people standing behind her.
One was a tall middle-aged man with a serious expression.
The other was a graceful woman smiling warmly.
The man had several obvious wrinkles on his face, but his straight posture still gave him a dignified and impressive appearance.
The woman looked very well cared for. Even when she smiled broadly, only a few faint lines appeared at the corners of her eyes. Her figure was still elegant and attractive.
The two stood close together and looked very affectionate.
And if there was one thing they had in common, it was that both of them looked very much like An Ran'er.
These must be An Ran'er's parents, Li Nuo thought.
"What were you doing? I've been knocking forever," An Ran'er complained when she saw his sleepy expression.
"Uh... I fell asleep. Also, didn't you bring your keys?" Li Nuo asked awkwardly.
"I left in too much of a hurry and forgot them. Besides, you were at home, so I didn't come back for them."
"Sorry, sorry..."
Li Nuo had not expected himself to fall asleep while listening to music.
Then he looked at the two people behind her and asked:
"They are...?"
"They're my parents," An Ran'er replied.
Although he had already guessed, Li Nuo waited for her confirmation before greeting them.
"Hello, Uncle and Auntie..."
"Ahem. Mm."
Even after hearing the greeting, An Ran'er's father kept a straight face. He simply gave a light cough and responded briefly.
Looks like An Ran'er's father is a very serious person, Li Nuo thought.
Meanwhile, An Ran'er's mother stepped forward.
She leaned her face close to Li Nuo's and asked with a bright smile.
"So, you're the roommate currently living with our Ran'er, right?"
The sudden closeness made Li Nuo panic a little.
"Y-Yes. I'm currently living with Classmate An... An Ran'er for the time being..."
"Classmate An? So you two go to the same school?"
"Ah? Yes... We're both in Class 3 of the first year at Nanqin High School."
"Oh~? You're even classmates?"
"Y-Yes."
An Ran'er's mother turned to look at her daughter with a smiling yet slightly dangerous expression.
"Ran'er, you never told your mother that your roommate was actually your classmate."
"Tch... That's... not really something worth mentioning..." An Ran'er replied while turning her head away.
"Well, now that I know your roommate is such a cute girl, I can finally relax."
Then, with tears in her eyes, she added dramatically,
"Mom was so worried that you'd end up living with some strange boy and become a bad girl. If that happened, then I would... sob sob sob..."
"Mom, what kind of nonsense are you thinking about? There's no way I'd live with some strange boy. Just thinking about it makes it obvious that's impossible..."
An Ran'er replied, though her confidence sounded a little weak.
Hearing their conversation, Li Nuo looked confused.
A strange boy? Are they talking about me?
An Ran'er's mother then turned back to him.
"I heard your name is Li Nuo, right? Can I call you Xiao Nuo from now on?"
"Uh... sure," Li Nuo replied timidly.
"Then, Xiao Nuo, may we come in now?" she asked with a warm smile.
"Ah? Oh—sorry, sorry!"
Only then did Li Nuo realize he had been standing in the doorway the entire time and blocking their way.
He quickly stepped aside to let them enter.