I really like your sand sculpture group friends

Mo Xiangwen immediately stopped working, took the book and looked at it, then picked up a pen and draft paper.

"Don't rush, look, the key here is to understand how this composite function transforms step by step..." He tried to keep his voice down so as not to put pressure on Bai Shishi, and patiently explained it to her.

Bai Shishi leaned very close, a few strands of her long white hair slipping onto the draft paper, swaying gently as she nodded in sudden realization.

Su Mengli also brought over her textbook, which was filled with dense notes.

"Shishi, these textbooks and notes are for your reference. I've marked the key points and common mistakes on them."

Mo Xiangwen took the textbook from Su Mengli and casually flipped through a few pages. When he saw the familiar handwriting and markings on the pages, he couldn't help but pause slightly.

Isn't this the set of books that Su Mengli lent him back then, the ones that "her sister used"?

His gaze shifted between the pages of the book and Su Mengli.

Su Mengli looked up and met his slightly smiling eyes, and immediately felt a little confused.

Seeing that she hadn't reacted yet, Mo Xiangwen said softly, "Your sister's book?"

Su Mengli immediately remembered the time she lent him the book, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she looked away somewhat awkwardly, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I just said it offhand back then." Su Mengli pursed her lips. "With your grades at the time, who would have thought you'd end up getting into the same school?"

“Yes, I know.” Mo Xiangwen nodded: “It’s the kind of thing you see online, I have a friend, I just didn’t expect you to actually have a younger sister.”

You already know, why did you deliberately say it out loud?

Su Mengli rolled her eyes at him, then quickly turned to Bai Shishi and began explaining an English grammar point in a slightly hurried tone, trying to divert attention.

Seeing her rare, slightly embarrassed reaction, Mo Xiangwen couldn't help but smile.

At this moment, Bai Shishi's next question perfectly broke the delicate atmosphere.

Although Yan Nuoya doesn't talk much, she doesn't completely ignore the study plan after giving it to her.

She would occasionally look up from the code and listen to Mo Xiangwen's explanation of the thought process.

If she finds that Bai Shishi's problem-solving method takes a roundabout approach, she will briefly interject with, "Try to work backwards," or "This point is related to the third chapter."

Her suggestions were always to the point, greatly improving the efficiency of teaching.

Su Mengyao is working diligently.

She excels in similar subjects to her older sister, but she was able to get into university only with her sister's tutoring, and she is not as good as Xiang Wenqiang in math and Chinese.

Even if she wanted to help, she simply couldn't get a word in edgewise.

However, she wasn't content to just sit idly by, and would occasionally come over to pour a drink for the others.

Chapter 207 Let's spend the night here

Days passed peacefully, and soon it was the afternoon of the last day of February.

After finishing his work, Mo Xiangwen glanced at the time. It was almost six o'clock, the teacher was about to leave work, and Shishi should be going home soon too.

"That's about enough for today, get some rest."

"Okay!" Su Mengyao stretched.

Bai Shishi was already slumped over the table, and mumbled a sleepy "hmm".

Yan Nuoya calmly began tidying up the table, and still took the remaining water in the cup to the bathroom to pour it out.

Su Mengli felt the timing was perfect, so she casually said, "By the way, does everyone have any plans for tomorrow night? Mengyao said she found a nice dessert shop and would like to invite everyone to try it out as a treat."

"Dessert!" Bai Shishi seemed to regain her senses a little, her scarlet eyes brightening slightly. "Want to go get some dessert?"

Girls really do love sweets. If he had known they liked them so much, he should have ordered takeout more often to have them delivered as afternoon tea and desserts to help them relax.

Mo Xiangwen smiled and readily agreed: "Of course, no problem."

Yan Nuoya nodded gently: "Okay."

"Then it's settled!" Su Mengyao clapped her hands, as if making a final decision, and said with a smile, "Meet at the store entrance tomorrow night at seven o'clock!"

The two sisters exchanged a glance and saw the smile in each other's eyes; the first step was successfully achieved.

While Bai Shishi went to the restroom and Mo Xiangwen and Yan Nuoya were focused on their own tasks, Su Mengli quickly sent a message to her sister: "I have an idea. Nuoya's birthday is on the 1st, and Xiangwen's is on the 2nd, only one day apart. Why don't we wait until we get back from the dessert shop on the evening of the 1st, and around midnight, which is the beginning of the 2nd, and have a small celebration for them both at the apartment, so that it's two days in a row?"

Su Mengyao's eyes lit up: "That's a great idea! Crossing midnight, we can naturally transition from celebrating Nuoya's birthday to celebrating Xiangwen's birthday! But... what about Shishi? She's usually home by this time."

Su Mengli had already thought about this question, so she replied very quickly.

"We need to find a way to get Shishi to stay overnight tonight and tomorrow night, otherwise it will be too obvious if it's just tomorrow night. Let's say... we don't have classes with Xiang Wen and the others tomorrow, so we don't plan to come to the studio, but we still plan to discuss the new character settings for the game together, and we're worried that it will be too tiring for her to travel back and forth. She should agree."

"Understood! I'll talk to Shishi; she's the easiest to talk to."

After a while, Su Mengyao approached Bai Shishi, who had just returned from the restroom, put her arm around her shoulder, and whispered, "Shishi, can I talk to you about something? We want to start discussing the new character's look as early as possible tomorrow. Why don't you stay here tonight and squeeze in with me and my sister? Otherwise, you'll have to come over tomorrow morning, which is too tiring."

Bai Shishi blinked her big eyes and nodded almost without hesitation: "Okay! Then I'll tell my mom that I won't be going back these two nights. But then I'll have to prepare other gifts for Xiang Wen and Nuoya, and I don't have that many clothes to change into."

Upon hearing the last sentence, Su Mengyao froze on the spot.

What's going on? Does Shishi already know?

Seeing her stunned expression, Bai Shishi assumed she was surprised by Xiang Wen's birthday, so a smug little expression appeared on her face: "Every year around this time, I would give Xiao Yi..."

Seemingly due to habit causing her to subconsciously say the wrong thing, Bai Shishi paused for a moment, then reorganized her thoughts before continuing, "I always give Xiang Wen a game, but if I can be with Xiang Wen this year, I'd like to try giving him something else."

Oh, I see, Su Mengyao suddenly realized.

When someone in the group has a birthday, everyone usually says "Happy Birthday".

As for gifts, she and her sister have also bought games for them.

But at the time, I figured that even if it wasn't a birthday, we'd still give each other games we liked to play together, so I didn't think too much about it.

Whether it's a real birthday or not, it's just a game as a gift, no big deal.

It seems that Shi Shi probably never considered whether the birthdays listed on their profiles were fake.

“…Since you remember it’s Xiang Wen Nuoya’s birthday,” Su Mengyao whispered in her ear, “then just come with us to buy a gift for Xiang Wen Nuoya. Don’t worry about clothes, we can buy them on the way back. Consider it a gift from me.”

Bai Shishi nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice. She was also troubled about what to buy, and it would be best if she could discuss it with two people.

So, before leaving the studio and returning to her apartment, Bai Shishi quietly tugged at Mo Xiangwen's sleeve and whispered, "Xiangwen, I'm sleeping here with Mengli and Mengyao tonight. Let's discuss work early tomorrow."

Mo Xiangwen was a little surprised, but she didn't think much of it. She just felt that the sisters might have some plans, so she nodded and said, "Okay, I'll make you something delicious tonight, but you should get some rest early."

"Yes, yes, I will listen to Xiang Wen," Bai Shishi said earnestly.

"It's not about listening to me." Mo Xiangwen looked at her serious little face and was both amused and exasperated. "It's about Shishi taking care of herself."

"Hehehe..." Bai Shishi gave a silly smile: "It's okay. When I don't notice, Xiang Wen will remind me. If Xiang Wen isn't here, others will remind me too."

"Alright, alright." Mo Xiangwen half-squatted down and pinched her little cheek: "Shishi is right."

"No, no, no, Xiao Yi is right."

After school, the five of them left the studio together. First, they accompanied Bai Shishi to the office to tell the teacher about the overnight stay. After receiving permission, they left the school together and drove straight to a large supermarket nearby.

Tomorrow is the weekend, and since Bai Shishi will be staying overnight, we need to buy some groceries, daily necessities, and clothes.

"Shishi, stay close to me." As soon as they entered the supermarket, Su Mengyao affectionately took Bai Shishi's arm and led her to the other side, while secretly winking at her sister. Su Mengli nodded almost imperceptibly.

Mo Xiangwen pushed the shopping cart and walked towards the fresh produce section with Su Mengli and Yan Nuoya.

He casually picked up a carton of eggs and put it in the car. He glanced back at the direction where Su Mengyao and Bai Shishi had disappeared and said to Su Mengli, "Where did Mengyao and Shishi go? There are a lot of people in the supermarket, tell them not to get too separated."

Su Mengli was picking up a bunch of greens and examining them carefully when she heard this. She looked up and said calmly, "It's okay. Mengyao knows what she's doing. She's probably taking Shishi to look at snacks or other girly items. I'll message them later to ask what they want to buy."

As she spoke, she took out her phone and tapped the screen a few times, clearly sending a message.

"Okay, just remember to tell Mengyao to keep an eye on Shishi." Mo Xiangwen gave a brief instruction and didn't ask any more questions, continuing to select the ingredients for dinner.

Upon hearing this, Yan Nuoya, who was standing beside him, put down the fruit in her hand, looked up in the direction they had left, and a thoughtful look flashed in her eyes.

"She probably went to buy clothes. Shishi is staying here tonight, and it's always inconvenient if she doesn't have any clothes."

"Yeah, they said they need to buy some clothes, and that we can just wait for them in the car later," Su Mengli said casually, putting away her phone.

On the other side, Su Mengyao, pulling Bai Shishi along, bypassed the snack and fresh food sections and headed straight for the supermarket exit.

After the three of them finished buying groceries and fruit and paid the bill, they sat in the car for a while before seeing Su Mengyao and Bai Shishi walking back, chatting and laughing.

Mo Xiangwen noticed the shopping bags they were carrying and casually asked, "Have you finished shopping?"

"Yes, yes, I've bought them!" Su Mengyao answered first, her expression slightly unnatural. "I just bought two things that I can exchange. Let's go, let's go, it's time to go back."

Bai Shishi pursed her lips nervously, hugged her bag, got into the car, nodded slightly, and remained silent, but her eyes were furtive.

However, Mo Xiangwen didn't pay much attention to them, since he was sitting in the passenger seat and couldn't keep looking back.

Chapter 208 I don't have time to play Sokoban with you

Back at the apartment, Mo Xiangwen had just put the groceries he bought from the supermarket on the kitchen counter and was about to roll up his sleeves when he suddenly felt a pair of warm hands gently pressing against his back.

Having lived here for several months, it's obvious who it is that would so naturally walk into the kitchen and approach him.

Like him, Noah had little interest in cooking and preferred to take the initiative to wash dishes and clean.

Knowing that she wasn't as skilled as him and Su Mengli, and unable to argue with her sister, Su Mengyao simply went to keep Nuoya company.

Of course, even the idea of ​​helping to sweep the floor eventually became a luxury.

Mengli always kept the house spotless. Even if they wanted to sweep the floor while Mengli was cooking, they would find that it was spotless and they had nowhere to start.

"Wait, Mengli," Mo Xiangwen quickly said, "I promised Shishi I would cook her a meal."

“It’s the same if I do it.” Su Mengli began to exert force in her palm, pushing him away: “You don’t like cooking anyway, there’s no need to force yourself.”

Over this period of time, Mengli and Mengyao have indeed come to understand him more and more deeply.

I gradually learned about his preferences and habits.

Of course, so was he.

His understanding of Su Mengli and Su Mengyao also deepened considerably.

“I don’t like it,” Mo Xiangwen said helplessly, stopping and turning to face her, “but I can’t let you cook for yourself every time. Today it’s still five people’s meals, it’s tiring.”

"You don't like it, and you can't cook as well as I can," Su Mengli said bluntly. "Then why is it necessary for you to cook?"

Mo Xiangwen was taken aback by her words and tried to find a way out: "No... there are a few pieces of cured meat in this refrigerator that I brought back from my hometown. The way I prepared it might be a bit special, and you might not know how to handle it."

"Yes, I will," Su Mengli replied immediately, her tone even carrying a hint of confidence. "It's just cured meat, isn't it? I've already learned how to caramelize sugar, let alone handle this. You go out and leave it to me." She reached out and pushed Mo Xiangwen again.

Mo Xiangwen was speechless. His gaze swept around the kitchen and finally landed on the bag of unwashed vegetables.

"Well... at least let me help wash the vegetables? That should be alright, right?"

"Get out." Su Mengli's tone became more forceful, her eyebrows furrowing slightly, clearly indicating that she did not intend to give him any further chance to bargain.

"Fine... I'm leaving." Mo Xiangwen raised his hands somewhat reluctantly and withdrew from this important kitchen area.

He walked into the living room and saw that Su Mengyao, Bai Shishi, and Yan Nuoya had already cleaned the coffee table and were sitting around it, playing cards on the sofa.

Seeing him being kicked out, Su Mengyao shook her head and sighed, "Xiang Wen, you should have gotten used to having your sister do it by now. If you do it like this every time, you'll get scolded by your sister again."

Mo Xiangwen quickly understood what Su Mengyao was talking about, so he sat down next to her and asked, "Did Mengli tell you about this too?"

"I already told her." Su Mengyao shrugged. "What secrets could we sisters possibly have? She asked me to check if you were really bothered by getting scolded."

"I haven't paid any attention to it."

“I know, that’s what I told her too.” Su Mengyao then threw down four 5s: “Bomb, if no one wants it, I’ll play a pair of threes.”

"No," Yan Nuoya replied calmly.

Bai Shishi shook her head: "Pass."

“Besides, I wasn’t just being polite,” Mo Xiangwen explained. “I just felt that she was getting too tired doing it all the time, so I would occasionally let her do it a few times.”

“Yeah, I understand, my sister does too.” Seeing that no one wanted it, Su Mengyao threw out a pair of 3s before continuing, “Otherwise she would have been angry long ago, and she wouldn’t have had time to play the Sokoban game with you every time.”

Having said all that, Mo Xiangwen knew he couldn't change the situation.

Most importantly, his cooking skills are indeed inferior to Su Mengli's, which puts him at a natural disadvantage in any negotiations regarding control of the kitchen.

It can only be said that the need for survival cannot compete with interest.

Did he deliberately go out to catch a cold and get a fever before going to help?

That one time, Su Mengli felt sorry for him because he looked sickly and didn't force him to leave. The next time, she learned how to caramelize sugar.