Chapter 247: Xu Youyu

February 18th, New Year's Eve, 6:00 a. m.

In the winter morning, the sky was still dimly black, with a faint glimmer of light barely piercing the horizon, casting a soft sheen over the courtyard.

Li Luo got up early, yawning as he walked into the bathroom to wash up, then put on his coat and headed downstairs.

At this time, Lin Xiuhong, his grandmother, and his aunt and sister-in-law who had returned the previous evening were already awake; the kitchen was boiling white porridge, and the four of them sat on the living room sofa, chatting warmly.

Li Guoru and Li Guohong were twenty years apart in age, so to Li Luo, his uncle and aunt had always felt a bit like grandparents.

In contrast, his cousin Li Dao, who was twenty years older than him, made him and his sister-in-law feel more like uncle and aunt than older brother and sister-in-law.

Even Li Dao's son, Li Xiang, was three or four years older than him.

Instead, after being reborn, a 35-year-old soul inhabits the body of a young boy, perfectly matching this age difference.

"Huh? Why is Li Luo up so early?" His aunt exclaimed in surprise, then smiled, "That's why your grades are good—sleeping early and rising early matters too."

"Don't praise him anymore; he was praised all day yesterday," Lin Xiuhong laughed. "If you keep going, you'll praise him right up to the heavens."

Li Luo walked into the living room and greeted each elder in turn.

His sister-in-law gently reminded him, "The porridge is boiling in the kitchen; sit down for a bit, have some cookies or pastries on the coffee table, and we'll have breakfast together soon."

"Thank you, sister-in-law, but I still need to go for my morning run," Li Luo said after greeting them, then headed straight for the door. "I'll come back and eat after I finish."

"Hey!" Lin Xiuhong called out as he moved to leave. "When you come back, pick up a pack of salt and monosodium glutamate—and two bags of yellow wine!"

"Salt, monosodium glutamate, yellow wine," Li Luo repeated, nodding. "Got it."

After accepting his mother's daily errand, Li Luo descended the stairs beside the second-floor balcony and headed toward the second floor of House 7 in Row 8.

Halfway there, Li Luo spotted Grandpa Ying sitting in a rocking chair in the courtyard.

"Good morning, Grandpa Ying!"

"Oh! Li Luo," Grandpa Ying looked up and chuckled. "Looking for Xixi?"

"Yes."

"She's on the third floor. Go ahead."

"Have you had breakfast, Grandpa Ying?" Li Luo asked as he climbed the stairs. "If not, come over later and have porridge with Xixi."

"I know," Grandpa Ying smiled. "Your mom came by to call me just now."

"Good," Li Luo said, climbing up to the opposite second floor, entering the living room, then ascending to the third floor via the indoor staircase, his steps growing quieter.

Hmm… this master bedroom is where Uncle Ying sleeps—can't disturb him.

Li Luo slipped quietly past the master bedroom door, then reached the secondary bedroom's entrance, raised his right hand, and gently tapped the door with two knuckles.

He knocked a few times—no response.

Li Luo had no choice but to grasp the doorknob, pushing the door open as he called out, "I'm coming in."

Then he peered through the crack, confirmed Ying Chanxi was sound asleep wrapped in the quilt, before fully opening the door and stepping inside.

At Ying Chanxi's bedside, Li Luo watched her clutch the quilt tightly to her chest and smiled, thinking how she still had this habit of stealing blankets at night—when would she ever grow out of it?

Thinking this, Li Luo crouched down and cautiously reached out to pull a bit of the quilt from her arms.

Instantly, Ying Chanxi, still asleep, furrowed her brow slightly, tightened her grip, and yanked the quilt back.

"Even asleep, you're so stingy," Li Luo muttered under his breath, finally giving up teasing her. He poked her bouncy cheek with a finger and whispered, "Wake up, little lazy pig."

"Mmm…" Ying Chanxi stirred slightly, half-awake, still caught between dream and reality.

Seeing this, Li Luo pulled out his ultimate tactic, leaning close to her ear and saying, "There's an exam—get up or you'll be late."

Instantly, Ying Chanxi jolted awake, her head snapping upward, then instinctively turned toward the sound.

As she turned, Li Luo, who had been right beside her ear, collided nose-to-nose with her. She gasped in pain and immediately clapped her hand over her nose.

"Ow…" Li Luo pulled back, rubbing his nose and inhaling sharply. "Why'd you react so hard?"

"Ow…," Ying Chanxi's eyes welled with tears. She glared at him irritably. "Why are you whispering nonsense beside me? It's vacation—there's no exam!"

"Right, so why'd you jump like that?"

"Get lost," Ying Chanxi yanked her bare, warm feet out from under the covers and kicked him squarely.

"Fine. You told me to wake you for morning runs last night, and now you're telling me to get lost," Li Luo stood up, brushed off his backside, and headed for the door. "I'll go run alone—you keep sleeping."

"Hey, wait!" Ying Chanxi threw off the covers, leapt out of bed, and grabbed Li Luo's arm. "I didn't say I wasn't coming! Wait for me!"

"Hurry up then."

"I know, I'm just changing clothes."

A dozen minutes later, dressed and washed, Ying Chanxi stood before Li Luo, fresh and bright.

They descended from the third floor, warmed up briefly in the courtyard, greeted Grandpa Ying, then began jogging along the street.

Ying Chanxi, unlike Yan Zhusheng, didn't have a daily habit of morning and evening runs; after just a few minutes, she was already struggling to keep pace with Li Luo.

So Li Luo slowed down, until after more than ten minutes, they were both walking briskly.

"Why… do you… feel… not tired… at all?" Ying Chanxi jogged beside him, her forehead glistening with sweat despite the freezing winter.

Li Luo, whose daily morning runs were far more intense, remained only slightly breathless—no sign of exhaustion.

"That's the result of not exercising regularly," Li Luo chuckled. "Just like studying—if you don't advance, you fall behind. I train hard every single day."

"Like with Zhusheng?" Ying Chanxi narrowed her eyes. "Do you two run together every morning? You did the day before yesterday."

Not just morning runs—he'd run with her every night during school too… Li Luo thought silently.

Seeing Li Luo's silence, Ying Chanxi knew he'd admitted it. She huffed. "No wonder novels always write about the protagonist jogging with Mo Qinghan every morning."

"Novels are fiction—don't confuse them with reality," Li Luo said seriously. "I even wrote in the book that I kissed all three of you—does that mean I actually did? Want me to kiss you now to make up for it?"

"You!" Ying Chanxi blushed, her heart pounding—whether from running or something else, she couldn't tell.

She glanced instinctively at Li Luo's lips, then quickly looked away, spitting out, "Pervert! Shameless!"

After circling the village, they returned to the gate of House 8 in Row 8.

But Li Luo remembered his mother's request—he first ran over to the small shop run by Third Grandpa across the way, bought a pack of salt, monosodium glutamate, and two bags of yellow wine, then grabbed a few snacks on the side.

When he went to the cash register to pay, the third grandpa, lounging in a rocking chair and reading the newspaper, laughed and scolded him out.

In reality, members of the Li family who bought things at the convenience store rarely paid; the third grandpa only charged regular customers.

Mainly because the third grandpa had nothing to do in his daily life, and years ago he had even slipped into depression, feeling life held little meaning.

Only then did the family give him something to do—the store's profitability was secondary.

Every day, guests and relatives came by to take a few items, and the third grandpa felt he was still needed by many, gradually regaining his spirit, no longer always wearing a gloomy expression.

It was much the same as Li Luo's second grandmother, except she disliked sitting still in the convenience store; instead, she loved tidying up and cleaning.

Now she even went to the department responsible for street sanitation, voluntarily joining the sanitation workers and taking full charge of the longest street beside the village.

Every morning, she rode the tricycle provided by the sanitation department, slowly cruising down the street to sweep.

When tired, she'd sit on the curb at the crossroads with her sister from the next street, drinking water and chatting—far happier than being cooped up at home.

Li Luo thought of these elderly people, which was why he hadn't firmly insisted his parents give up the breakfast shop.

He planned to proceed gradually, first having his father look into connections to see if he could buy a few shops on Xijie at Qianjiang University.

If it ultimately worked out, he'd slowly transition his parents from hands-on operators to behind-the-scenes owners.

Then they could collect rent, or open a shop according to their preferences, hire employees to work, and he'd focus mainly on mental tasks and light physical labor.

Something to do, but not as exhausting as the breakfast shop.

This was Li Luo's plan and arrangement for the future.

After leaving the convenience store, Li Luo stuffed salt, monosodium glutamate, and other items into Ying Chanxi's hands, telling her to deliver them to his mother, while he himself held the snacks in his arms.

The two went upstairs to the living room, where some early risers were already gathered around the dining table eating breakfast.

Ying Chanxi walked over and obediently asked Lin Xiuhong: "Lin Yi, should I put these in the kitchen?"

"Oh, yes," Lin Xiuhong nodded. "There's porridge in the kitchen—go get a bowl and eat it to fill your stomach."

"Okay."

Watching Ying Chanxi walk obediently into the kitchen to put things away, Lin Xiuhong glanced at Li Luo, who was placing snacks on the coffee table, and immediately frowned: "Look at you—how can you let Xixi carry things for you?"

"All you care about is snacks, right?"

"Go get a bowl of porridge from the kitchen and eat breakfast."

"It's fine, Lin Yi," came Ying Chanxi's voice from the kitchen.

Soon after, she emerged carrying two bowls of porridge: "I've poured yours—come drink your porridge."

"Oh, coming," Li Luo said, having just finished placing the snacks, then walked over to the dining table and sat down with Ying Chanxi.

He was then subjected to another round of scolding from Lin Xiuhong.

After breakfast, Lin Xiuhong took out from the New Year goods she'd brought back yesterday: couplets, the character "Fu," and many window decorations.

"Li Luo, come help paste the Spring Festival couplets."

"Coming," Li Luo said, slurping the last bite of porridge, then stood up and joined Lin Xiuhong in the task.

His aunt, sister-in-law, and Li Xuexian, who had arrived early, all came over to help.

Ying Chanxi hurried over too, standing beside Li Luo as he pasted the couplets, occasionally handing him glue or holding the stool for him.

Besides Li Luo's grandfather's house, the homes of Ying Chanxi next door, his uncle's house, and his aunt's husband's house all needed couplets and "Fu" characters pasted.

With all this activity, the morning passed quickly.

As it neared ten o'clock, a familiar voice came from downstairs—a tall figure walked in and said to Li Luo: "Li Luo, your package arrived—I brought it up for you."

Li Luo looked toward the door and saw his cousin Chen Lu and his second aunt, Li Xuefeng.

They looked like they had just arrived.

Li Luo stared in confusion at the package Chen Lu handed him, muttering: "Weird—I don't think I bought anything online."

"What is it?" Ying Chanxi leaned over curiously. "You didn't buy anything? Just open it and see."

"True," Li Luo thought, as he began unwrapping the package, then suddenly remembered: "I get it—probably…"

Mid-sentence, he pulled out two boxes of men's underwear from the package.

In that instant,

Both Li Luo and Ying Chanxi beside him fell silent.