Volume 14
Chapter 27: The Troubles of Happiness
“Lizi? Didn’t Jianing come back with you?” Yameng, seeing Lu Li come in, handed the small booklet in her hand to Wen Hupo. Lu Li glanced at it. It was a real estate brochure. Without even thinking, it must have been a gift from some local aristocratic family in Mulan. The price marked in the brochure was probably less than half the market price. Although Lu Li had resigned from his position as Chairperson of the Shenzhou Energy Inspection Committee, he was still the chairman of the Changle Group, and the Changle Group was the controller of Shenzhou Energy, directly under the jurisdiction of the Chu and Yan families. So in the eyes of these aristocratic families, a certain Mr. Lu’s status and position had not only not decreased due to his resignation, but had faintly increased.
“She has to spend some time with her parents. She’ll be back when school starts.” Lu Li took off his jacket. An Baili, understanding, took the jacket and hung it for him on the coat rack. Chu Jingyi watched An Baili’s movements thoughtfully, it was unclear what she was thinking. “Are you all discussing buying a house? We’ve had this villa for less than a year.”
“But there’s no more room,” Wen Hupo said, counting on her fingers. “Including the Zhu sisters, this family will have eight people living here. We don’t have enough rooms here.”
Zou Yameng made a space. “Jingyi, Baili, you two sit down too. Let’s discuss where to buy the house.”
The two little girls looked at each other and obediently sat down to Zou Yameng’s left and right. They had thought they wouldn’t have a say. Zou Yameng had the status of a guardian, and Wen Hupo had the air of a proper wife. In front of them, the two little girls indeed didn’t have much of a chance to make decisions. The Silly Goose found it a little novel. She felt that the current family relationship was a little magical, with a hint of strange harmony in its unorthodoxy.
Yameng said, “My idea is to just buy in Mulan. They called before and said that if we were to purchase a new property in Mulan, they would give us a half-price discount.” Yameng was also used to being poor. When she saw something cheap, she would begin to waver. Lu Li remembered that before she had quit drinking, she would specially go to the wholesale market on important holidays to buy cases of beer, and would walk back holding the beer cases by herself, because the wholesale price during the holidays would be 10% cheaper than usual. After Lu Li found out, he had gone to help her move the beer without a word, sweating profusely from the effort. From then on, Yameng rarely drank.
Wen Hupo, on the other hand, had a different opinion. “I don’t think we have to limit ourselves to Mulan. We may not stay here locally after we graduate from university. Lu Li’s company headquarters has also moved to the Capital City. We can either buy a house in the Capital City or choose to go back to Chuanhai.” Hearing this, Lu Li nodded slightly. Going back to Chuanhai sounded good. Far from the Capital City, in a quiet corner, it was just right for retirement and nostalgia.
“What about you two?” Lu Li looked at the two little girls.
“I’m fine with anything. Wherever you go, Li, I’ll go,” An Baili was the most indifferent. Anyway, she was following Lu Li, and her demands on the quality of life were not high. In her past life, during university, she was even willing to eat steamed buns with Lu Li for every meal.
The Silly Goose thought for a moment and said, “Lu Li, why don’t we ask Grandpa or Dad first? I remember they said they would give us a few properties.” Lu Li also knew about this. Old Master Chu had even specifically mentioned it to him, but what they were going to give were not residential properties, but land and commercial buildings. Lu Li felt that buying a commercial building as a residence was a bit too exaggerated.
The four girls all looked at him, as if waiting for the head of the family to make the final decision. Lu Li scratched his head. He now knew what “choose your words and actions carefully” meant. At a time like this, he couldn’t be biased toward any one person, or there would always be a girl who would be disappointed. The details of life lie in this. The harvest of love is certainly precious, but maintaining a relationship also requires careful consideration.
“Our family has enough funds to buy many houses now. Hmm, I think where we buy a house depends on your future plans.” Lu Li said, choosing his words carefully. “I don’t want you to give up your own lives because you chose to be with me. Yameng, you’ve already retired, right? Do you have any plans for the future?”
Yameng thought for a moment. She did indeed have an idea. She wanted to open a sports goods store and be a leisurely little shop owner. This was a vision she had had since high school. Lu Li’s question awakened her gradually fading memory. She had once had two dreams: one was to win a world championship, and after retiring, open a small shop. The other was to be a qualified wife, Lu Li’s wife.
“I plan to open a small shop in the future…”
“Hupo, what about you?”
The golden-haired girl winked at him. “You know.” In their first life, after marrying Lu Li, she had not given up her painting career. For a period of time, Hupo had supported Lu Li’s company through a most difficult period.
“Baili?”
“I don’t have any skills, and I don’t have any hobbies. Can I just be a housewife?” An Baili grabbed his arm and acted cute. Lu Li ruffled her little head. Baili was not useless at all. Her learning ability was very strong. Whether it was music composition, writing, or painting, she could quickly transform her learning experience into work results. It was just that this girl didn’t like to step out of her comfort zone. Perhaps this was related to her childhood experiences. She liked to stay in a safe place, liked to be with Lu Li, not thinking about anything, not having to learn anything. As long as she could accompany Lu Li, it was enough.
“Yibao, what about you?”
“I-I want to… you’re not allowed to laugh at me. I want to make a movie.”
Lu Li’s eyes widened. “You want to be an actress?”
“Not an actress. I want to be a director. I want to make a horror movie… Baili, don’t you dare laugh at me!”
Lu Li rubbed his eyes. He had really underestimated Yibao. This girl was truly a horror culture enthusiast. The two of them had become connected because of a horror game back then. In fact, Yibao had shown Lu Li a script she had written herself before. Lu Li had never had the heart to say that this girl was not suited to make horror films; she was suited to make absurd dramas.
…
Lu Li took a box from the table, wanting to make a final decision like an ancient county magistrate. “Okay, opening a shop, holding an art exhibition, making a movie… then we must settle in a first-tier city in Shenzhou. Then we can only choose between the Capital City and Chuanhai… Is that okay?”
The girls didn’t speak, just stared at him with wide eyes. Lu Li felt it was strange. What was with their gazes? He looked down and saw that the box in his hand had already been flattened by him. He opened the box and saw that the perfume bottle inside already had a few more cracks. “Whose… whose perfume is this?”
“…Zhu Xi left it behind. She said she was going to stay for a long time, so she left all her makeup behind…”
Lu Li’s heart trembled, but his face remained impassive. “It was Miss Lu’s doing. Sis, Hupo, Baili, Yibao, you all have to be my witness.”
Miss Lu happened to be passing by. She meowed, as if asking a question.
Chu Jingyi covered her mouth and chuckled. Even Hupo couldn’t hold it in anymore.
Lu Li let out a sound of surprise. He suddenly felt that having a lot of girls in the house wasn’t so wonderful after all. There were a hundred—no, at least a thousand times more things to pay attention to in life than before
