Volume 10: Pro and Con
Chapter 11: The New Home (Part 1)
The next morning, Lu Li and the other two received a text message from the Mulan University admissions office. All three had successfully passed the interview. The online payment system would open in early August, and new student registration would begin on August 29th. It was understood that new students who scored in the top 10% on the Mulan University written exam also had the opportunity to apply for a student loan from the Shenzhou Energy Group. Lu Li felt, what was the difference between getting a loan from Shenzhou Energy and borrowing money from Zhu Xi?
The three of them didn’t stay in Mulan City for too long. Lu Li bought a detached house in the suburbs of Mulan and spent a sum of money to have it renovated, estimating that they could move in by August. Before flying back to Chuanhai, he also took the girls on a detour to Cuibi to attend a promotional event for a business partner as a representative of the Changle Production Team, which caused a small commotion at the scene. These were all minor, trivial matters. At least in the autobiography Lu Li envisioned, these things would be mentioned in passing.
…
Returning to Chuanhai, stepping into the small, hot room in the Low-Rent District, Lu Li’s eyes suddenly became moist. He felt that life was so precious. His sister was pursuing her dreams and wasn’t decadent like in her past life; Baili had also emerged from the shadow of her past; his relationship with Hupo was gradually being confirmed; and he had also established a home in Mulan. This shabby little room, this room that held so many of his memories, had now finally reached the end of its life.
Lu Li told his sister about buying the house. As expected, Yameng scolded him with heartache for spending too much money. She was probably scared of being poor. Although she was scolding him, Lu Li could also hear a little bit of joy in her heart, especially after Lu Li said he had reserved the biggest room for her.
In the last month they stayed in Chuanhai, life was like finely chopped scallions; nothing too conspicuous could be picked out. For example:
Lu Li’s courage grew bolder. He would coax Hupo by saying that that thing, because it was rich in protein, had beauty-enhancing effects. Hupo, half-believing, searched online and actually found something about it.
The little female cat, Miss Lu, was also sent to be spayed and could no longer howl at night. Miss Lu was probably angry; whenever Lu Li tried to pet her now, she would dash away in a flash.
Someone in the high school class group chat said they were organizing a class reunion before university started. A few girls from his class specifically invited Lu Li. Afraid that Jingyi would find out, Lu Li silently left the group chat.
Yameng posted more than a dozen updates on her Moments, the gist of which was: My younger brother is a university student, my younger brother is a university student, my younger brother is a university student. Lu Li seriously liked every single one of them.
Chen Jianing also became more lively, asking him every few days when he would come to school, when she could move into his house, and when the company would start its first round of recruitment. She also asked which school Lu Li had finally confirmed when he paid the fees. A complete curious baby.
The school Lu Li finally confirmed was the School of Law. After he told Chen Jianing this result, the Little Tiger was a little listless. Lu Li had his reasons for choosing the School of Law. A law degree and certificate were hard currency in Shenzhou, and legal knowledge could conveniently make up for his deficiencies from his past life, reducing the risks in company operations.
This led to An Baili and Wen Hupo also choosing the School of Law in a rush.
Lu Li would occasionally send a secret signal to Jingyi at night. The big silly goose couldn’t always call back, and even when she could, she could only say a few sentences before hanging up.
This delicate and trivial daily life continued until August 26th. At the tail end of the summer vacation, Lu Li bid farewell to Chuanhai, bidding farewell to this place that held so many years of memories for him and his sister. Lu Li specially had the old boxy TV from Yameng’s room shipped to Mulan. He planned to pass down that old TV as a family heirloom. Lu Li also went to the prison with An Baili to visit that nominal father-in-law.
An Gulai cried through the glass, unable to say a word. Baili looked at him coldly, without a trace of emotion. Lu Li asked him if he had anything to say. The old man said that this was good, and he hoped Lu Li would take good care of An Baili in the future. This was good.
Parting with An Gulai meant making a clean break with his past life.
This morning, Lu Li also heard Hupo accusing Baili of using her towel without permission. Baili anxiously argued that it was Lu Li who did it. Amidst the girls’ noisy chatter, they boarded the passenger plane leaving Chuanhai.
Hupo coolly said a sentence in a foreign language. Lu Li didn’t understand.
“What did you say?”
“Spanish. I was saying for you, ‘Farewell, hometown.’” Hupo smiled and looked at Lu Li.
“You know Spanish too?”
“My adoptive parents are Spanish.”
Lu Li was silent for a moment. “Hupo, do you want to go home?” He felt that Hupo might be homesick.
“This is my home now.” Hupo smiled brightly. “Where else do I need to go back to?”
Lu Li wiped his eyes. “I was just about to cry, and you had to say that.”
“Te escogería mil veces.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means you’re an idiot.” Hupo turned around lightly, like a nimble butterfly.
Finally, the plane took off and disappeared into the sky.
…
“Welcome to our new home!” Lu Li pushed open the double doors, and a magnificent detached villa was presented before An Baili and Wen Hupo. The marble floor shone like a mirror, the furniture was classical and stately, a faint fragrance lingered in the air, and from the entrance to the stairs, the way was illuminated by warm orange lights.
The villa also had a backyard with a small sports court and a swimming pool. Lu Li hadn’t even been willing to buy such a luxurious villa in his past life.
Lu Li had already put stickers outside each room to distinguish the girls’ rooms. Outside Baili’s room was a sticker of a foolishly smiling Shiba Inu; outside Yameng’s room was a white eagle sticker; outside Hupo’s door was a cat with its eyes narrowed coolly, with the same pattern as Miss Lu; outside the room reserved for Chu Jingyi was a sticker of a silly-looking big goose. Afraid she wouldn’t be happy, Lu Li added another sticker of her favorite little bear. And for Chen Jianing’s room, Lu Li put up a sticker of a little tiger walking crookedly. With a wicked sense of humor, Lu Li put a “Zookeeper” sticker outside his own room.
Baili and Hupo, however, weren’t too excited about moving into a new home. They weren’t girls who valued material things too much. Living in that small box in the Low-Rent District was living, and living in this big house was also living. As long as they were by Lu Li’s side, where wasn’t home?
Lu Li went to his room, opened his suitcase, and unpacked his luggage one by one. He had a sudden idea, took out his phone, took a picture of the new house, and sent it to Jingyi via MMS. The MMS was sent very slowly, and it was a long time before Jingyi received the message. She also replied with a picture: she had sent a selfie. The little girl was wearing pajamas and demurely making a V-sign, two distinct red clouds on her pretty face. What was most heart-stirring was that this girl must have just woken up from bed to take the picture; one of the straps of her pajamas had slipped to the side, revealing half of her firm breast.
The next second, Jingyi sent another message:
“Why can’t I recall it…” followed by a crying face emoji.
This silly girl…
