Volume 14
Chapter 24: A Secret Recipe for Health
After arriving in Pingxiang County, Lu Li didn’t encounter the so-called sharp-tongued and shrewish seven aunts and eight grandmas. The Chen family’s relatives, upon seeing the little girl bring a boyfriend home, were all as warm as fire, asking Lu Li about his well-being, afraid that this handsome young man would come to his senses and dump their little girl. Perhaps because he was used to dealing with aristocratic families for a long time, Lu Li was a little dazed when he was suddenly handed ordinary soybean ginger tea and sugared tangerines. But soon, a strange warmth welled up in his heart. There was no priceless tea, no fresh fruit imported from abroad. The simple feelings were contained in the most ordinary of things. This was the reason he had struggled so far.
When Lu Li took out his phone, two half-grown children were staring at him eagerly. Lu Li heard one of the little girls say, “He has a phone…” The other little boy said, “He must have games on his phone… I’ll buy a phone too when I’ve saved up enough New Year’s money. What about you, Lingling?” “My New Year’s money is being kept by my mom… I don’t have any New Year’s money.” The little boy patted his chest. “It’s fine. I’ll save up more money and buy you one too when the time comes.”
Lu Li couldn’t help but reveal a smile. This boy had his style from back then.
The pace of life in the small county was much slower than in Mulan, Chuanhai, or the Capital City. Most of the local factories and companies had not yet started work. It was past ten in the morning, and many locals were still leisurely strolling on the streets. They stepped on the debris of firecrackers left from last night, talking about which relative had bought a new car, and which young man had gone to the big city to make a living.
Lu Li listened to the seven aunts and eight grandmas chatting about some trivial matters and felt a little bored. He looked back at the Little Tiger. This girl was in the kitchen, helping her aunt make canned tea. She said she had to have Lu Li try the canned tea with roses and longans once. She had promised him back during the epidemic.
As he was watching the Little Tiger’s busy little figure, Lu Li suddenly felt someone tugging at the corner of his clothes. He turned his head, then looked down, and finally saw a few small children.
“Big brother, let’s go set off firecrackers together.”
Why me?
Lu Li thought.
Perhaps it was because he looked young and this group of children naturally felt close to him. Perhaps it was because he was the best-looking among all the people present. Or perhaps it was because their parents saw that Lu Li was bored and had their children come to keep him company.
The oldest of this group of children was probably only in the first year of junior high. The boys were all a head shorter than the girls, looking pitifully like a group of little tag-alongs in front of them. Lu Li thought for a moment and decided to go and set off firecrackers with them. There was no reason; he just simply wanted to spend time with the children.
At this age, girls and boys were not as clearly distinguished as they would be when they grew up. Although everyone had a vague concept of gender, they could still play together. The girls didn’t dare to throw the firecrackers themselves, so they had the dazed little boys throw them, while they clapped and cheered on the side. Lu Li had never thrown this kind of local firecracker before, because in the Chuanhai Low-Rent District, setting off fireworks was the limit. Throwing firecrackers would get you chased away by the community staff.
Lu Li’s clumsy appearance even earned him some ridicule from the children.
After playing with this group of thoughtless children for a while, the few little girls suddenly began to whisper among themselves. Lu Li turned his head and happened to see one of the bolder little girls ask, “Big Brother Lu, are you Auntie Jianing’s boyfriend?” Auntie? Did that Annoying Ghost look like someone’s aunt? He knew that in a small county, the seniority among relatives was very messy. It was common for a nephew to be older than his aunt.
Children these days were exposed to the internet early and had all sorts of miscellaneous knowledge in their heads. When Lu Li was in the sixth grade of elementary school, he still thought “boyfriend” and “girlfriend” were literal, meaning male and female friends. At that time, he had even proudly declared that he had many girlfriends… Lu Li had a sudden realization. No wonder those girls in elementary school had teased him so strangely, but it seemed none of them had refuted it.
“Yes.”
“Then will you get married in the future?” Their eyes were sparkling, as if they had some beautiful longing for marriage. In truth, Lu Li wanted to say that marriage wasn’t necessarily a beautiful thing. So many people toiled for a lifetime and still couldn’t find a good match, spending the rest of their lives in the midst of daily necessities, arguments, and poverty. He didn’t say it out loud. Destroying children’s longings was a heinous crime.
“Of course we will.”
This group of little girls began to whisper among themselves again. They laughed softly, looking at Lu Li from time to time, it was unclear what they were saying. And on the other side, the boys were still tirelessly throwing firecrackers. Lu Li rested his chin on his hand. If I have a son in the future, I must teach him to get a big head start on others when he’s little. Otherwise, it will be much harder to chase after girls when he’s grown up… No, sons are too naughty. Daughters are better.
As he was lost in his thoughts, a medicinal scent suddenly wafted over. It was a medicinal scent, the pure smell of Chinese medicine. Lu Li turned his head and saw Chen Jianing’s father walking toward him, hammering his waist. “Little Lu, you get along quite well with these little kids.”
Lu Li replied, “I also like to be with children.” Actually, that wasn’t right. He preferred to be with well-behaved children, not noisy and naughty brats.
“Liking to be with children, having a kind heart, and a stronger yin energy. In your daily diet, you should eat more foods with strong yang energy, interact more with friends of the same sex, exercise more, and work out more.” Father Chen’s professional habits kicked in. He suddenly stopped. “I forgot I’m not at the clinic, haha.”
He supported his waist and, imitating Lu Li, sat down on the steps. “Little Lu, how long have you and Jianing known each other?”
“About two years now.” Lu Li couldn’t remember very clearly either. He had never been very sensitive to time; he preferred to focus his attention on life.
“This girl has hidden it for quite a long time,” Father Chen smiled. “I’m a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. Sometimes I like to preach. Please don’t mind.”
“To have an old doctor guide me, I couldn’t ask for more.” Lu Li smiled. He seemed to have always neglected his health. He didn’t care in his first life, was too busy trying to make a living in his second, and in this life, he had also relied on his youthful strength and hadn’t paid attention to maintenance. Now, with seven girls at home clamoring for his care, he had no choice but to take his health seriously.
“In my opinion, you have some essence deficiency. It’s either from excessive indulgence or from a congenital deficiency,” Father Chen said bluntly. “Last time on the video, I could already see it. Seeing you in person today, it is indeed so.”
How could Lu Li say that he had been fighting fierce battles all night every day? He could only say with a thick face, “I’ve been staying up late and working overtime recently. I indeed don’t feel well.”
“I have some family-passed-down recipes for health preservation. You should write them down and get the medicine yourself according to the recipe.” Father Chen took Lu Li’s pulse. “You are young now, your body is strong, and your recovery is fast. After you pass forty, you might not be so carefree. Treatment is not as good as maintenance, and the earlier the maintenance, the better. If you have a good foundation, your body will become stronger and stronger in the future.”
Lu Li was overjoyed. “Thank you, Uncle.” This was truly a pillow for his drowsiness.
Volume 14
Chapter 24:
A ghost.
Zhu Xi had always considered herself a very self-reliant person, who didn’t believe in ghosts, spirits, or fate. Before meeting Lu Li, she was even unwilling to let her fate be manipulated by others. Her obedience to Yan Rujun was more out of the inertia of kinship. Later, everything she experienced with Lu Li told her that there were indeed some things in the world that science couldn’t explain. Even rebirth and time travel existed, so why not ghosts?
After this thought appeared, Zhu Xi’s mood could no longer be calmed. She walked to the second floor, and the faint wail of the female ghost became much clearer. Lu Li’s sister had just gone to the bathroom, and then the power had suddenly gone out, and then the bathroom was empty… This series of events made it hard for her not to let her imagination run wild.
She remembered Lu Li saying his room was on the second floor. Was Lu Li here now? Zhu Xi found herself becoming weak. When faced with difficulties, she would subconsciously think of Lu Li. In her eyes, Lu Li might not be the smartest, most powerful, or strongest man, but he was the person who made her feel most at ease—at ease in all senses. She knew that no matter how great the setback, Lu Li would not leave her, but would stand by her side. Knowing this, even death would be without regret.
“Scumbag man… Lu Li… Lu Li! Are you there?” Zhu Xi shouted. “Is Zou Yameng with you? Did you hear any sounds?”
The female ghost’s wail suddenly stopped. Zhu Xi held her breath and raised her phone, letting the flashlight shine further ahead. She suddenly heard a faint click behind her. She turned around in horror. “Who’s there?! Come out!” This woman suddenly made a preemptive strike, kicking out with her foot.
But something in the darkness suddenly grabbed her foot, then lunged forward, covering her mouth and dragging her into the door.
This woman is really fierce, Lu Li thought. When faced with a ghost, her first reaction isn’t to run, but to send a flying kick. It was a good thing the light was dim at this time, and Zhu Xi’s kick had missed. Otherwise, he would have been kicked in his little Lu Li while walking out naked.
Just in time… I’ll drag her in and compare her size with Yameng’s…
…
In the living room on the first floor.
The TV started to show a skit. It was just at the part where they said, “Coming home for the New Year, let’s all eat~ dumplings” Zhu Qiao couldn’t help but yawn. She poked the Silly Goose’s little belly. “Sister Jingyi, why aren’t Sister Xi and Sister Yameng back yet? Didn’t the power come back on a long time ago?”
Chu Jingyi playfully pushed her finger away and covered her own little belly. “Don’t poke my belly. I have to eat less in the future. My little belly is bulging again.”
Wen Hupo smiled at her words. “That means you’re happy. A good relationship is nourishing. If both people are well-fed and carefree, then it means you’ve chosen the right man.” She thought of her first life with Lu Li. Their little life had been fulfilling and happy. The Lu Li of that time was a little fatter than the current one, and she had also gained a little fat around her waist.
Chu Jingyi smiled dopily. “Is that so?”
An Baili’s train of thought was the strangest. “They didn’t really run into a ghost, did they? Should we go and find them? Otherwise, Lu Li will be worried sick when he comes down later…”
Wen Hupo slightly closed her eyes, stroking the Miss Lu in her arms—this little female cat was indeed quite chubby now, and her little cat face had even filled out, looking heart-wrenchingly cute. When Lu Li saw Miss Lu today, he had picked up this cat and kneaded it, scaring Miss Lu into running away from him in the afternoon.
“If you all want to be sent to his mouth, then go ahead.” Wen Hupo was the most sober among the few present. Zou Yameng and An Baili wanted to deliver themselves to his door, Zhu Xi had had her intelligence lowered, and the remaining two girls were truly naive.
Zhu Qiao looked up at her. “What do you mean, Sister Hupo? Sent to whose mouth?”
Chu Jingyi, having been through it, actually immediately understood the meaning behind Wen Hupo’s words. She herself blushed at her current self.
An Baili tugged at Chu Jingyi’s sleeve. “Jingyi, let’s go too.”
The Silly Goose blushed and said, “What are we going for? There are so many of them. What are we going for?”
An Baili was full of enthusiasm. “It’s precisely because there are many of them now that we should gang up on him. Otherwise, do you still want to be bullied by him?”
It seemed to make some sense. The Silly Goose herself felt she was about to be persuaded, but she also felt… if they were all doing that kind of thing, wasn’t it a little too debaucherous? Had Lu Li always lived like this before? Thinking of this, she felt a little sour in her heart, so she simply nodded. “Then let’s go. Let’s go find them too.”
She didn’t want to be an outsider anymore. Sometimes, you can’t just wait for Lu Li to coax you; you have to take the initiative to fight for it. Lu Li had already worked hard enough this past year.
The two girls stood up as they spoke, and the silly Zhu Qiao also stood up with them. Fortunately, Wen Hupo pulled this girl back. “Little Qiao, you’d better not go.”
“Why?” Little Qiao had no concept of matters between men and women. She still thought they were just going to find Sister Xi.
Wen Hupo had her sit beside her. “You stay and talk with me. Otherwise, it’s too lonely for one person. Can you tell me about the process of how you and the Outstanding Representative… and Lu Li met?”
…
Lu Li weighed them for a long time but still couldn’t tell who was bigger. He estimated he wouldn’t have another chance to compare. After Zou Yameng and Zhu Xi both entered the game, he was already having trouble holding on. Before, he had heard of a “wine pool and meat forest,” but he hadn’t had a concept of it. At this moment, being entangled by Yameng and Zhu Xi, the snowy white fat and flesh rubbing against his body, all he could see was a sea of white flesh. Little Lu Li was caught between four giant peaks, as if he were about to be crushed flat. A meat forest was nothing more than this.
Zhu Xi was indeed very fierce. At first, she was a little annoyed at being forcibly dragged in by Lu Li, but when she knew Zou Yameng and Chen Jianing were also present, her sense of superiority rose again, and she, on the contrary, took the initiative, wanting to prove in bed that she was a cut above the others. Her assertiveness aroused Zou Yameng’s competitive spirit as well, and the two women used all their skills, using Lu Li as a tool to determine who was superior. The scrub with five combat power, the Little Tiger, was knocked down again by Lu Li with one finger, so strictly speaking, it was just a decisive battle between Zhu Xi and Zou Yameng.
He couldn’t even count how many waves he had been squeezed dry. Several times he had gone limp and thought he was at his end, but then these two, with a suck here and a lick there, had managed to make little Lu Li stand up again. Usually, Zhu Xi would rarely lower herself to fellate him like this. Lu Li had really gotten a good deal.
“Alright, alright, there’s still an hour until the new year. Why don’t we take a break?” Lu Li panted. He felt he really couldn’t do it anymore. Although his stamina had improved compared to a year ago, at most he could handle a Little Tiger and Yameng, and at most, add a Chu Jingyi. To have him directly battle Zhu Xi and Yameng was a bit too much to ask. If he didn’t raise the white flag now, he felt he would start shooting blood.
“No!” Zhu Xi and Yameng said in unison. The two of them were still tightly holding the once again limp little Lu Li, like two drivers fighting over a joystick.
Just as Lu Li’s vision went dark, a sneaky knock came from outside the door. “Lu Li, are you there? Jingyi and I are here to find you…”
Spare me. I’ll never dare to do it again… Lu Li closed his eyes, deciding to play unconscious to get through the night.
T/N: These two chapters had the same number in the raws, so I just combined them.
