Chapter 322: A Quiet Kitchen, A Quiet Change

Ying Chanxi didn't know how long she had been holding him.

Only when the sound of the front door opening came from outside—Lin Xiuhong and Li Guohong returning with groceries—did Ying Chanxi quickly let go of Li Luo, her face blazing red, ears burning, head bowed, unable to look up at him.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Li Luo coughed twice, stepped aside from the bedroom doorway, and walked toward the restroom, adjusting his belt.

Ying Chanxi also nodded and whispered, "I'll go help Lin Yi cook."

Saying that, she quickly opened the bedroom door and dashed out like a puff of smoke.

But on her way to the kitchen, she briefly slipped into the hallway bathroom, washed her face with cold water, checked in the mirror to confirm her blush wasn't too obvious, then pressed her lips together, suppressing the joy at the corners of her mouth.

By the time Ying Chanxi reached the kitchen door, Yan Zhusheng had already obediently followed Lin Xiuhong inside and put on an apron.

During this summer vacation, through the seven-person study group, Yan Zhusheng had picked up plenty of kitchen tips by sneaking time to learn from Lin Xiuhong, who cooked daily.

Now, she could already lend competent help.

Though not as effortless as Ying Chanxi, she was no longer a kitchen novice like Xu Youyu.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi pressed her lips together.

Yan Zhusheng noticed Ying Chanxi and said, "Xixi, rest—you can have the fruit on the table, freshly picked this morning at the farmstay."

"It's fine," Ying Chanxi smiled faintly, then turned and walked back to the bedroom.

Not long after, Yan Zhusheng felt someone else enter the kitchen.

She turned and saw Ying Chanxi had put on a newly bought apron and joined the kitchen team.

"Lin Yi just handle the stir-frying," Ying Chanxi slipped between Lin Xiuhong and Yan Zhusheng, smoothly taking over the knife and cutting board, then asked, "Lin Yi, what are we cooking tonight?"

"All your favorites: cola chicken wings, tomato and egg stir-fry..."

"Mm-hmm, I know," Ying Chanxi, hearing the dish names, immediately knew how to prep them, swiftly chopping vegetables while instructing Yan Zhusheng to wash, marinate, and plate them.

With two sweet, capable girls helping her, Lin Xiuhong actually found cooking unexpectedly enjoyable.

Honestly.

If cooking only required the step of tossing ingredients into the wok, and all other steps could be skipped, far more people would fall in love with it.

Preparing ingredients, processing them, and cleaning up after the meal—those consume over ninety percent of the time.

Simply stir-frying and eating take up almost no time at all.

Now that two girls handled all those tedious steps, Lin Xiuhong suddenly had nothing to do.

She stood by the stove, watching how they did, occasionally giving a few instructions, then taking the prepped dishes and tossing them into the wok.

After using the bathroom, Li Luo stepped out of the bedroom and saw the scene in the kitchen—he raised an eyebrow, then smiled, helping his mother carry the cooked dishes to the dining table.

At this moment, Li Guohong was lounging on the living room sofa, feet propped up, happily watching TV.

Seeing him reach into his pant pocket for a cigarette, Li Luo walked over and said, "Dad, if you don't want Mom to yell at you, better go smoke on the balcony or the hallway."

"I didn't plan to smoke," Li Guohong shot him a look, then stuck a cigarette between his lips, "Just smelling it."

This was where Li Luo and the others studied; Lin Xiuhong had long banned smoking in the living room, so Li Guohong dared not smoke here.

But when the craving hit, he still needed to smell the tobacco to satisfy it.

"At the office, your mom won't let me smoke either," Li Guohong sighed. "I have to go outside under the blazing sun just to smoke—what a torment."

"Dad, if you get the chance, try quitting smoking," Li Luo glanced at him. "We're not short on money now—find some hobbies, don't rely on cigarettes and alcohol to drown your sorrows."

In his past life, although Li Guohong never suffered any major illness, Lin Xiuhong fell gravely ill.

But smoking still posed too great a health risk.

And Lin Xiuhong's illness might well have stemmed from daily exposure to secondhand smoke, accumulating harm over time.

Still, quitting smoking was something you could only suggest—ultimately it depended on the person; Li Luo didn't expect a few words to make his father quit.

Fortunately, their current household conditions were good—his parents no longer had to work from dawn till dusk, and when Mom told Dad to smoke elsewhere, he actually listened.

In his past life's financial and environmental conditions, if Li Guohong was in a bad mood, he'd just silently smoke in the living room.

If Lin Xiuhong complained too much, they'd argue over this tiny thing.

So money isn't everything.

But sometimes, such small differences gradually cause massive changes in a family.

Seeing this, Li Luo smiled inwardly, chatted a little more with his father, then picked up a plate of fruit and knocked on Xu Youyu's door.

"Who is it?"

"Me."

"Just come in."

"Coming."

Li Luo pushed open the door and saw Xu Youyu seated intently at her desk, fingers flying over the keyboard—her writing momentum today was clearly good.

He placed the fruit on the table and said, "My parents are here today—we'll eat dinner together."

"Oh," Xu Youyu nodded, then opened her mouth and said, "Feed me some."

"Which one?"

"Banana."

Li Luo peeled the banana and shoved it into Xu Youyu's mouth; she bit down hard.

"Why so diligent today?"

"Hmph, when am I not diligent?" Xu Youyu bit hard into the banana in Li Luo's hand. "Don't look down on me."

"We started our novels around the same time," Li Luo chuckled. "I'm already at 2.4 million words. What about you?"

"Hmph," hearing Li Luo mention word count, Xu Youyu's bravado instantly deflated. She muttered, "Only eighty thousand more than me."

"I've got 300,000 words in reserve," Li Luo delivered the final blow. "So the real gap is over a million words."

"Damn it! Shut up!" Xu Youyu jumped up from her chair and hit him. "I'm busy too, okay? How the hell do you write so much?"

The two played around in the room.

"By the way," Xu Youyu sat back down in her chair, panting, and asked Li Luo, "You've already written over two million words for this one. At this rate, in another three or four months, won't you hit three million?"

"I'm currently at nearly one million six hundred thousand words. I feel like if I write another million or so, I'll be done—aiming to finish before the college entrance exam."

"How long do you plan to write this one for?"

"Me?" Li Luo leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "I don't know. I'll just keep writing as long as I can."

For Xu Youyu, writing Online Novels was not just fun and profitable—it also carried a faint touch of literary idealism.

A pursuit of certain themes and values.

But for Li Luo, he didn't pursue any of that.

He wrote novels purely to make money, and incidentally enjoyed crafting interesting plots for his own amusement—happy while writing, entertaining for readers—that was enough.

Honestly, in his previous life, he had already mastered the tropes of entertainment dramas—climbing the ladder, humiliating rivals, and seeking revenge—inside and out.

This life, with his Memory Palace, he wielded it with perfect mastery.

But once he had a sufficiently deconstructed perspective on the爽points, writing such plots no longer gave him any actual thrill.

Instead, predicting and estimating readers' reactions to a given boastful scene became a kind of pleasure.

And the longer and more he wrote, the more an author developed a certain intuition.

Once a scene was written, he could precisely forecast readers' responses.

He could even deliberately design plot segments to manipulate reader emotions.

Yet beyond all that, for Li Luo right now, the greatest pleasure in writing I Am Really Not a Star was clearly the emotional entanglements and暧昧 between the male lead and the three female leads.

Every time he wrote those scenes, he felt more passion than when writing boastful plots.

Added to that, a constant stream of real-life material made his writing increasingly effortless.

One could only say that creation cannot be like a tree without roots—it needs accumulation to produce continuously.

"So you're really going to keep writing forever?" Xu Youyu frowned. "There has to be an ending, right?"

"Aren't you reading it?" Li Luo chuckled. "Even though it's over two million words now, the protagonist's actual output isn't that huge."

"In music: Mo Qinghan has two albums out, the second still in promotion, and the protagonist's solo album is still being built up."

"In TV dramas: Jiang Ming's debut was her first, then two dramas with Shen Dongdong—one as a supporting role, one as the female lead."

"Then Jiang Ming entered the film industry—just finished her first movie."

"She's appeared in two variety shows, and there's still the plot of the protagonist creating his own variety show coming."

Li Luo spread his hands: "That's the advantage of an entertainment alternate-reality setting—it's not bound by real-world timelines, and you can directly use all kinds of works."

"Music, TV dramas, movies, variety shows—four legs walking, but the plot progresses slowly."

"You see it's already 2.4 million words, but on average, each segment is only about 600,000 words."

"Add in the daily interactions and romantic subplots with the three female leads, and the main storyline is cut by at least a third."

"If you really wanted to write it out, five or six million words might not even be enough."

After hearing this, Xu Youyu fell silent, then grimaced: "You're just too good at writing."

If it were her own novel, she could never accept such a massive length.

Everything had to be grounded in a complete narrative framework.

Before starting a book, Xu Youyu would already plan the opening and ending, ensuring a proper beginning and conclusion, then build the main plot structure.

Only after deciding exactly what to write would she begin.

She could never do what Li Luo did—ignoring where the ending might be.

"So, after this book ends, what genre should I write next?" Xu Youyu sat cross-legged on her chair, frowning. "I feel I've had enough of entertainment—I'd throw up if I wrote another one right after."

"That's up to you," Li Luo said. "What genre do you want to write?"

"How about apocalyptic?" Xu Youyu grinned. "I like this genre, but lately, apocalyptic stories have all become clichéd—boring to read."

"Do you have any new ideas?" Li Luo asked, recalling Xu Youyu's second book from his previous life.

"I don't want to write that sudden collapse—where society completely falls apart the moment the apocalypse hits," Xu Youyu frowned. "I want to write a slow, creeping change—how the apocalypse subtly begins to affect reality, gradually challenging and reshaping existing order and rules."

"This change doesn't need to be as violent as typical apocalyptic novels."

"It needs a gradual, adaptive process, until finally a new order and structure emerge."

Hearing this, Li Luo gently prodded: "Why must it be apocalyptic? Zombies, viruses—those elements came from Western culture."

"I don't think zombies are necessary to achieve the effect you want."

"Don't we have our own five-thousand-year culture full of gods, ghosts, and demons?"

"That's true," Xu Youyu thought for a moment. "But if we translate this kind of apocalyptic shift to our own context, what would correspond to zombies or viruses?"

"Qi," Li Luo said casually. "Zombie viruses alter the human body; Qi alters the human body too."

"But one's good, one's bad," Xu Youyu laughed. "You can't compare them like that."

"But if you want to depict a gradual challenge and restructuring of order, isn't Qi a perfect choice?" Li Luo smiled. "And ordinary people who suddenly gain Qi cultivation and retain their sanity aren't necessarily any kinder than zombies."

"Zombies eating people seem cruel."

"But humans eating humans are even more brutal."

Hearing this, Xu Youyu suddenly felt a breakthrough—her eyes lit up: "So you mean, let Qi appear suddenly like a zombie virus, and everyone starts from the same point, cultivating with Qi?"

"That's a great idea," Li Luo smiled. "And ancient myths are full of stories—imagine the ancient era was rich in Qi, but in recent centuries, Qi faded, and divine miracles vanished."

"Until one day, people living in modern cities suddenly realize the world has changed a little."

"Wild beasts in the mountains awaken their primal instincts; even domesticated animals in zoos grow restless under the stimulation and nourishment of Qi."

"The long-lost celestial Qi suddenly begins to revive, returning to the world."

"Yes!" Xu Youyu's eyes sparkled. She jumped up from her chair and slapped Li Luo on the shoulder. "That's it! That's exactly what I wanted!"

Similar settings had appeared in some novels before.

But "Qi Revival" truly became a recognized genre, known to readers, wouldn't happen until the end of next year, when a certain red-haired monster's The Holy Land would cement the term "Qi Revival" as a distinct Online Novel subgenre.

Interestingly, in his previous life, Xu Youyu's second novel, Gu Dao Changqing, was published just over a month after Sheng Xu.

It rode the first wave of the Qi Revival trend, laying a solid foundation for her eventual rise to grandmaster status.

Seeing Xu Youyu's look of sudden enlightenment, Li Luo couldn't help laughing—he never imagined he'd one day become, in some sense, Xu Youyu's online novel senior.

But just as Li Luo was quietly reflecting, Xu Youyu suddenly hugged him and kissed him on the cheek, excitedly.

"Mua~"

"Hey, wait—"

Li Luo was caught off guard—her arms wrapped around him, her chest pressed against his, her lips on his—her moves flowed seamlessly, leaving him stunned and unable to react.

Xu Youyu immediately let go, stepped back two paces, and smiled with a blush, hands behind her back: "Sorry, I got a little too excited, hehe—consider it thanks."

At that moment.

Ying Chanxi's voice sounded just outside the door.

"Senior, Li Luo, dinner's ready."

"Coming, coming~" Xu Youyu instantly opened the door, stepped out with light steps, grinning, and as she passed Ying Chanxi, she pinched her cheek playfully.

"What were you two doing?" Ying Chanxi, noticing Li Luo hadn't come out yet, peered curiously into the room and saw him leaning against the wall, as if just snapping back to reality.

"Oh, nothing," Li Luo shook his head. "I brought in a plate of fruit and we chatted a bit."

"Then go wash your hands and get ready to eat."

"Yeah, coming."

A few minutes later.

Six family members sat around the dining table, facing a full spread of dishes; after Li Guohong picked up his chopsticks first, everyone else followed, savoring the food.

At the table, Lin Xiuhong beamed at the three sweet, well-behaved girls before her, constantly picking food for them.

During these past half-month summer studies, Lin Xiuhong had come every day to cook for them and had already learned exactly which dishes each of them loved.

When serving, she deliberately chose only their favorite dishes.

Ying Chanxi and the others kept saying "Thank you, Lin Yi," which made Lin Xiuhong feel utterly delighted, her smile widening.

Just as everyone was enjoying their meal, Li Guohong received a phone call.

After a brief exchange, Li Guohong raised an eyebrow and said: "Alright, no problem, I'm free—how about the day after tomorrow? Fine, then it's settled."

After hanging up, Li Guohong wore a strange expression, then made another call, chatted with the person on the other end for a while, and hung up again.

He glanced at Li Luo and said: "The landlord of that hotpot restaurant seems to want to sell again."

"Really?" Li Luo said in surprise. "Didn't he say he wasn't selling before?"

"He said he wasn't selling because he had news about the subway," Li Guohong continued, "but… I asked the agent again—that Li Angang—he said the recent subway plan only includes a new Line 7, not in our Yinjiang District."

"Oh…" Li Luo nodded in understanding.

As a native of Yinjiang District who had grown up there, Li Luo knew little about subway lines in other parts of Yuhang City, so he didn't know when those other lines had been approved.

But the subway extension in Yinjiang District stuck clearly in his memory.

Because when he later talked with his parents about their locked-in investment of six or seven hundred thousand, he had mentioned regretting not buying his third uncle's house after hearing the subway would be extended.

But by then, his third uncle had already sold the house.

Li Luo remembered clearly: the Yinjiang District subway extension plan would be officially approved around September this year.

Thinking of this, Li Luo's expression turned strange: "So the landlord really wants to sell?"

"This time, it's probably real," Li Guohong nodded, then mused, "Should we buy it? I feel the few shops we have now are enough."

"Especially since Li Angang told me the hotpot shop owner has already decided to vacate."

"He's just still clearing out the store's belongings, so the sign's still up."

"With such a large shop unrented, he's losing a lot in monthly rent."

"Buy it," Li Luo smiled. "My royalty money's just sitting there—better to invest it in something stable."

"Alright, I'll listen to you—I'll talk to him the day after tomorrow," Li Guohong said, nodding naturally.

He didn't even realize it himself.

In matters like this, major family decisions now rested entirely in Li Luo's hands.

And Lin Xiuhong, beside him, saw nothing odd about it—if her son said so, they'd simply follow.

After briefly settling the matter, Lin Xiuhong brought up their trip to Changning City next month.

Meanwhile, Xu Youyu, who had been quietly eating, was still lost in thoughts sparked by Li Luo's earlier revelation about the Qi Revival theme—her mind flooded with fresh inspirations.

Only when Lin Xiuhong suddenly mentioned their trip to Changning City next month did Xu Youyu suddenly realize something, and couldn't help asking: "Auntie, when exactly are you going to Changning next month?"

"August 15th—we'll go for two days."

Hearing this, Xu Youyu's eyes widened in shock, nearly spitting out her rice.