After parking the car, a few people got out. Sun Xuehui had already reserved a private room at the restaurant. After the waiter led the three of them to the room, Sun Xuehui immediately asked to order.
"Mom, aren’t we waiting for Dad?" An Ran couldn’t help but ask. On the phone, Sun Xuehui had mentioned several times that An Youcai missed her. Now that she was back, there was no sign of An Youcai.
"Your dad originally wanted to come pick you up together, but he had a social engagement in the evening that he couldn’t get out of." Sun Xuehui explained while ordering the food. She had already ordered a few dishes she thought An Ran liked, and also a bottle of red wine.
While waiting for the food, An Sijia grabbed An Ran’s hand: "Sis, come with me to the bathroom."
An Ran nodded. She happened to want to wash her hands.
When the two of them returned, the food was already on the table. Sun Xuehui had poured the red wine. Seeing the two of them enter, she warmly invited them to sit down. She picked up the wine and spoke to An Ran: "Ran, actually I’m very happy that you got into Nan’an University. It’s just that the situation at home forced me to make some choices, but now I understand. You and Jiajia are my children. I’m proud of your achievements. If you can forgive me, drink this. Study hard, and when you succeed, don’t forget the effort I put into raising you for the past decade, and don’t forget your siblings."
Sun Xuehui’s words were heartfelt and sincere. To be honest, this side of Sun Xuehui moved An Ran somewhat. After all, she wasn’t her biological mother. When she made those choices back then, she must have had her reasons.
"Mom, it’s all in the past. I won’t hold it against you." An Ran said and drank the wine in one go.
"I agree with Mom. Mom, you don’t know, An Ran is very popular at Nan University. Many boys are after her." An Sijia joked with a smile, but there was a burning jealousy in her eyes.
"Really?" Hearing this, Sun Xuehui also smiled: "Nan University is full of top students. Ran, if you meet someone suitable, don’t just think about yourself. Think about introducing someone to Sijia as well."
Upon hearing this, An Ran thought to herself how ironic it was. Did An Sijia need her to introduce boyfriends?
Seeing An Ran eating in silence, not responding to this, Sun Xuehui thought about the matter of Ye Sheng and secretly glared at An Sijia. How could she forget about that?
The meal was quite enjoyable. Sun Xuehui didn’t deliberately pick on anything, and An Ran naturally didn’t go against her.
After dinner, they all got in the car, and Sun Xuehui slowly drove towards home.
An Ran sat in the back seat, feeling stuffy. It was already December, yet she felt waves of heat. Thinking it might be due to the heater, she cracked open the car window a bit.
But even then, she still felt unbearably hot. She casually took off her coat, and her mouth was extremely dry.
"Mom, is there any water in the car?"
"Oh, I forgot to bring some. Just hold on a bit, we’ll be home soon." Sun Xuehui glanced at An Ran through the rearview mirror, a shrewd look in her eyes, and made a U-turn at the next intersection.
An Ran was busy battling the heat and didn’t notice the change in direction.
Her body felt hotter and her head increasingly dizzy. "Mom, why is it so hot in here? My head feels dizzy."
"Did you drink too much?" Sun Xuehui asked with concern while driving. "We’ll be home soon. If you’re really tired, just take a nap in the car. I’ll wake you when we get home."
An Ran murmured in agreement. Feeling weak all over, she quickly fell into a deep sleep.