Chapter 224: Xixi, I

The instant Xu Rongsheng saw his daughter entering and exiting a hotel with another man, countless thoughts flashed through his mind.

The worst possibility, of course, was that his little cabbage had been stolen by a pig.

The moment he thought of this, his chest swelled with rage; he took several deep breaths before barely controlling his emotions and following Sun Jingchun to the hotel front desk to begin speaking.

During the conversation, Xu Rongsheng gradually calmed down as he explained his relationship with Xu Youyu.

He felt he should have faith in his own daughter.

His upbringing of Xu Youyu since childhood had convinced him she was not the kind of girl who would give herself away so carelessly.

Especially after hearing the front desk Young Lady say Xu Youyu was staying alone in her room, Xu Rongsheng instantly exhaled a long breath of relief.

Think about it.

If Xu Youyu truly intended to have something with Li Luo, there was absolutely no need for them to travel all the way to the city center.

The apartments at Bihai Lanting were where Xu Rongsheng and Cui Suling never went unless necessary—wouldn't that be far safer than a hotel?

Why go out of their way to travel from Yinjiang District all the way into the city?

After eliminating his most feared suspicion, Xu Rongsheng immediately became much more composed.

Meanwhile, Sun Jingchun's expression turned strange upon learning Xu Rongsheng's daughter was staying in room 9106 on the 9th floor.

"What's wrong?" Xu Rongsheng, seeing his odd expression, felt a pang of anxiety and asked quickly.

"Uh…" Sun Jingchun scratched his head, puzzled. "You see, our Writers' Association came here for a meeting—over a hundred people are staying at this hotel."

"Since this is the provincial Online Novel Writers' Association's first major conference, and all those online novelists have money to burn, they've booked the entire 8th to 10th floors—single rooms for everyone."

"Your daughter is staying on the 9th floor… could she also be invited to attend this symposium?"

With Sun Jingchun's reminder, Xu Rongsheng suddenly realized.

He had arrived early and was assigned to the 8th floor—so if Xu Youyu was on the 9th, she was here for the symposium too?

Could it be she found out her father was coming to the symposium and managed to sneak in just to watch him speak on stage?

Xu Rongsheng imagined this, then quickly dismissed it as unrealistic.

Xu Youyu's personality was nothing like the sweet, affectionate daughter other families had.

Through years of rational and logical upbringing, Xu Rongsheng knew well that he and his daughter rarely engaged in clingy or playful interactions.

Their exchanges were mostly intellectual discussions about ideas and phenomena.

So then, was Xu Youyu invited here on her own merit?

"Does your Writers' Association invite high school students this time?" Xu Rongsheng asked, unable to suppress his curiosity.

"Uh… our association certainly doesn't. We only invited professors, scholars, and famous writers." Sun Jingchun stroked his chin, thinking. "But the Online Novel Writers' Association… I think I recall something."

"Didn't they mention to you, besides your speech, that they asked you to issue a certificate for the Qidian website's writing contest?"

"I remember the first-prize winner was a minor—a high school student, only sixteen years old."

"Because that age is such a good hook, I heard some colleagues at the association talking about it."

"Oh?" Xu Rongsheng raised an eyebrow, wondering if his daughter had secretly been writing online novels—and won first prize?

"So is the first-prize winner my daughter?"

"Probably not," Sun Jingchun shook his head. "I heard the first prize went to a boy. But since a sixteen-year-old high school student got invited, if your daughter really writes novels in secret, maybe she could've been invited too, right?"

Hearing this, Xu Rongsheng nodded, then immediately thought of Li Luo.

Sixteen years old. Male. First prize in the writing contest…

These keywords surfaced in Xu Rongsheng's mind, and suddenly everything clicked.

"Interesting."

He chuckled and shook his head, his expression suddenly complex.

He recalled the last dinner party at home, when Li Luo calmly answered his questions with unique insights into online novels.

Back then, Xu Rongsheng had been surprised that such a young boy possessed such insight and thinking.

Now it made sense.

He'd simply stumbled into the boy's area of expertise.

Even so, it was still astonishing.

"Are online novel writers getting this young now? Can high school students produce works better than other authors?" Xu Rongsheng asked curiously.

"Well," Sun Jingchun chuckled. "Online novels have no barriers—anyone can write them. A sixteen-year-old kid won first prize, proving they really lack depth and substance. It's just a bunch of online novelists fooling around."

"Hmph." Xu Rongsheng smiled and tapped his finger at him. "You didn't say that during today's meeting."

"I had to maintain a rational and friendly attitude—publicly, I couldn't say that," Sun Jingchun sighed. "Besides, the market potential for online novels is clearly better. Our country prioritizes economic development, so naturally it favors online novels—I can understand that."

In the end, Sun Jingchun's words still betrayed his innate disdain for online novels.

But in front of Xu Rongsheng—whose daughter might also be writing them—he held back, speaking more cautiously than he normally would.

"So, are you going up to find your daughter now?" Sun Jingchun changed the subject.

"No need." Xu Rongsheng shook his head.

Having ruled out the most infuriating possibility, he no longer felt urgent to meet Xu Youyu.

Knowing the fact was enough—the rest could unfold naturally.

Besides, even if the worst-case scenario he imagined had truly happened, it was already a done deal.

Xu Rongsheng felt he needed time to think calmly.

So he told Sun Jingchun: "But could you do me a favor? See if you can find out whether my daughter is writing novels—and what she's writing?"

"Oh, that's easy," Sun Jingchun nodded. "The Online Novel Writers' Association should have a participant list with real names and pen names matched—I'll just ask and find out."

"Thank you."

"No problem," Sun Jingchun waved his hand cheerfully. "We're all parents—I understand. But if your daughter really got invited by writing online novels, that's impressive indeed."

"Heh, you flatter me."

……

Li Luo and Xu Youyu, having returned to their room upstairs, still did not know what had happened downstairs.

After finishing their meal, they came back together, each returned to their own room, and then went to bed for a nap.

After a light afternoon nap, Xu Youyu picked up her notebook and went to the adjacent room, knocking loudly on the door to wake Li Luo.

She then pushed the door open, placed the notebook in its usual spot, and began typing.

"You haven't washed your hair either—why are you coming to my room to type?"

"I feel more motivated when I hear you typing beside me," Xu Youyu said. "Come on, come on, you type too—give me some pressure, so I can write faster."

Li Luo rolled his eyes in exasperation but still sat beside Xu Youyu, opened his typing software, and got to work.

By around three in the afternoon, Xu Youyu finished writing over two thousand words for a chapter, uploaded and published it, then leaned back in her chair and stretched comfortably.

She then walked to the window, pulled back the curtain, gazed at the nearby beauty of Xihu, and said, "Why don't we go for a stroll around Xihu?"

"We're locals—we've been to Xihu countless times since we were kids," Li Luo chuckled. "We're sick of it already."

Because their family ran a breakfast shop, Li Guohong and Lin Xiuhong rarely had enough time to accompany Li Luo, let alone go on trips.

So since childhood, the only place Li Luo had ever been taken on trips was basically Xihu—he rarely left the boundaries of Yuhang City.

The farthest he'd ever been was Qiandao Lake nearby.

If it weren't for Xu Youyu inviting him on a nationwide trip in his past life, he would have likely spent his entire life dying in Qianjiang Province.

"It's for research! Research!" Xu Youyu extended a finger, her face alight with excitement. "Going alone is boring, but if we go together, it becomes interesting."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean research," Xu Youyu explained enthusiastically. "Although I rely mostly on research materials for my writing, some details of daily life and interpersonal interactions can only be captured through firsthand experience."

"But what does that have to do with strolling around Xihu?"

"Strolling around Xihu itself doesn't matter," Xu Youyu waved her finger. "The point is who you stroll with, and how you stroll."

Saying this, Xu Youyu walked up to Li Luo, gently tapped his forehead, and leaned down to smile. "Junior, didn't you write about me in your book? We can research each other."

"Hmm… let me think."

"How about we play a one-hour couple game?"