Chapter 5: My Beautiful Landlord

Leaving the hospital, the two drove toward the first pre-arranged property, passing a mobile service center on the way where Wei Jin stopped to buy a mobile phone—a Nokia 8250.

Looking at the sub-flagship phone before him, Wei Jin really had no energy to complain.

After setting up a M-Zone plan, Wei Jin and Ceng Li arrived at a residential compound near Beijing Film Academy.

The compound was built in the 80s and was less than a kilometer from the school, which was quite suitable in terms of distance.

Standing at the entrance of the compound was a middle-aged man wearing a white shirt, black trousers, and large leather shoes; it went without saying that he was the real estate agent.

After the two parties exchanged pleasantries, they got straight to the point. The property was located on the northeast side of the compound, and the three chatted as they walked.

To be honest, this was Wei Jin's first time witnessing the cityscape of Beijing in 2003. The massive sense of temporal displacement, mixed with the historical weight of this city, made it hard to tell if it was time travel or a cycle of history.

Along the way, the agent did most of the talking, praising the property. Wei Jin didn't say a word, and after a brief tour of the room, he wasn't very satisfied.

The reason was simple: the compound was too old and dilapidated. The original landlord hadn't organized the place well, and it looked messy. Coupled with Wei Jin's modern aesthetic, he simply couldn't accept it and had to head to the next property.

They soon arrived at another compound, and after a brief tour, the same problem faced Wei Jin.

Houses in this era mostly had this kind of layout and decoration style; it was hard to find a property that matched Wei Jin's aesthetics and living habits. There was no help for it, so they continued to the next one.

Just when both Wei Jin and Ceng Li were about to give up, the three arrived at a compound located at Lotus Pond in Fengtai District.

"Hmm, the location is good, it's just a little bit far from the school."

Ceng Li observed the compound and the surrounding environment as she spoke.

"It's fine, it's less than three kilometers. Walking every day will count as exercise. Didn't the doctor also advise me to get appropriate exercise? I've been lying in the hospital for almost a month, I'm about to grow moss."

Wei Jin didn't find it troublesome. He followed the male agent into the compound, turned past a few buildings, and saw someone standing downstairs waiting from afar.

Wei Jin looked over and saw a young woman wearing a sky-blue floral dress; he could tell she had a nice figure.

"Are you the landlord of 501, Miss Gao?" the agent started asking from several meters away.

Hearing someone call her, Miss Gao turned her head to look over, her light ponytail swaying with her head, looking indescribably beautiful and fresh.

"Yes, hello everyone, I am the landlord of 501, Gao Yuanyuan."

Gao Yuanyuan wore a smile, revealing a set of white teeth, and a youthful aura seemed to rush toward them.

Wei Jin shouted in his heart: "Holy crap, isn't this the Hupu Goddess? Is it really such a coincidence?"

Seeing that Wei Jin didn't react and was staring straight at the young girl, Ceng Li's expression changed, and she pinched Wei Jin's waist with her small hand.

Wei Jin let out a cry of pain and, realizing he had lost his composure, hurriedly said: "Hello, Zhou Zhiruo, I've seen the Gao Yuanyuan you played."

"Pfft."

"Pfft."

As soon as these words were out, Miss Gao laughed until she was swaying, thinking this person was truly too interesting.

Ceng Li also smiled, then immediately realized: wasn't the landlord lady before them the female lead Zhou Zhiruo from *Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre* that had just aired at the beginning of the year? She then said: "Hello Miss Gao, I am Ceng Li. Like you, I am also an actor. This is my younger brother Wei Jin, and we are here today to help him look for a place."

Hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan looked at Ceng Li and saw a woman in a white slim-fit shirt, paired with light blue jeans and a pair of white sneakers, looking indescribably youthful and beautiful.

Combined with that big wavy hairstyle and three-dimensional facial features, she also had the air of a cool, mature woman; she looked both beautiful and dashing, and Gao Yuanyuan truly envied her.

Looking closely at Wei Jin again, he was tall and upright with a simple short, choppy haircut, long legs, and well-defined shoulders. He wore a plain black T-shirt that showed off his physique, with sword-like brows and star-like eyes, and sharp features—a quintessential sunny, cheerful big boy.

Looking at the "sister and brother" pair before her, the landlord Miss Gao was very satisfied with these tenants.

Wei Jin was also observing this goddess who was said to have conquered all of Hupu.

After observing her at close range, he found that she was even prettier in person than on television or in photos; the lines on her face were clear and distinct, not fat at all.

"Sure enough, cameras and photos make people look fat."

"Shall we go upstairs and look at the house?"

Without the slightest intention of admiring the handsome man and beautiful woman, the agent spoke up.

After all, for him, everything else was fleeting; performance was number one.

"Mm, okay, Miss Ceng, I'll take you to see it." After saying that, she walked in front and went up the stairs.

"Looks good, doesn't it? You didn't even turn your eyes away. Men, hah."

Ceng Li pinched Wei Jin again.

"North of the Yangtze, Ceng Li is the most beautiful."

Wei Jin shouted the slogan in Ceng Li's ear, then added teasingly, "I was just simply admiring, Li Jie wouldn't be jealous, would she?"

Seeing that they were entering the stairwell, Ceng Li ignored Wei Jin's banter.

The group of four reached the fifth floor. Gao Yuanyuan took a set of keys out of her small white handbag, opened the door, and invited: "Come in and take a look."

This was a three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment. Two bedrooms and the living room faced south, while a small bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen were on the north side.

The house was one Gao Yuanyuan had occasionally lived in before. Now that she had a bit of fame, she was afraid of being recognized, so she decided it was safer to live with her parents, which was why she was renting this place out.

Her idea was to rent the house to a family so they might take better care of it, but looking at this sister and brother today, they seemed suitable enough.

At this moment, Wei Jin was touring the rooms. It was a cozy little place; the placement of the furniture, the color scheme of the decor, and the embellishment of some details all showed that the owner of the house had a girlish heart.

Overall, he was very satisfied. Wei Jin turned to look at Ceng Li.

"Not bad, Li Jie, what do you think?"

"I think it's very good too, but you must take good care of it. You can't be sloppy with hygiene."

Ceng Li said this to put the landlord Gao Yuanyuan's mind at ease; it was clear that this girl cared quite a bit.

"Li Jie, don't you trust me? Besides, isn't there still you?"

Wei Jin decisively handed the heavy responsibility of cleaning the house to the beauty-loving, home-oriented great beauty.

The landlord was willing to rent, the tenant wanted to rent, so it couldn't be better. The three quickly reached an agreement, settled on the rent, to be paid quarterly with a one-month deposit and three months' rent, and Wei Jin and Gao Yuanyuan readily signed the standard agency contract and exchanged phone numbers.

With the business finished, Miss Gao was also a bit curious about the sister and brother, so she asked: "Miss Ceng, you are an actor, is Xiao Wei one too?"

Gao Yuanyuan had already seen Wei Jin's ID card when signing the contract just now, and this "Xiao Wei" sounded incredibly smooth.

"No, Wei Jin is a student in the 02 Director Department at Beijing Film Academy."

"Ah, so Xiao Wei is in the Director Department. How did you think of applying for the Director Department?"

After Gao Yuanyuan finished her business, she felt a desire to explore this handsome young man.

The three of them chatted idly, and upon learning how Wei Jin and Ceng Li met, Gao Yuanyuan exclaimed, "It's like an idol drama."

Before they knew it, it was lunchtime; declining Ceng Li's invitation for lunch, Miss Gao said her goodbyes and left.

Wei Jin and Ceng Li also had a simple lunch and began to throw themselves into the great task of moving.

After Wei Jin had properly organized his belongings in the bedroom, he walked out of the room and saw the great beauty helping to tidy up; looking at the woman before him, it felt as if they were a married couple living at home, and without realizing it, he walked up and hugged Ceng Li from behind.

Burying his head in the great beauty's hair, he took a deep breath; the faint fragrance made Wei Jin incredibly intoxicated:

"Li Jie, you are so good; I already feel like I have a home now."

Upon hearing this, Ceng Li turned around and kissed the young man, as if she could also understand his feelings, and a warm atmosphere rose up in the house.

In the afternoon, after everything was packed, Wei Jin and Ceng Li went together to the mall to purchase daily necessities, and also bought many dishes that Wei Jin liked to eat, saying she wanted to let him taste her cooking.

However, what Ceng Li found strange was why Wei Jin, a person from Shaanbei, had a special fondness for Sichuan cuisine.

In the evening, Wei Jin was alone, looking at the unwashed bowls and chopsticks in the kitchen, with black lines all over his forehead.

It was as if Ceng Li had opened up her Ren Du Meridian and become smarter; she fled immediately after finishing the meal, not even washing the bowls, just for fear that she wouldn't be able to leave tonight.

A newbie author writing a book for the first time, I ask everyone for your attention, follow-up reads, and recommendations, please!

(End of this chapter)