Chapter 445: Xu Youyu

On the minibus, probably because they had stayed up late last night, the four little ones were unusually quiet, all resting with their eyes closed in the back seats.

Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng sat directly on either side of Li Luo, leaning against his shoulders, planning to nap until they reached the harbor.

In the front row of the minibus, Butler Liu was driving, while Xu Rongsheng and Cui Suling sat in the first row behind him; Lin Xiuhong and Li Guohong sat on the opposite side of the aisle.

Lin Xiuhong chatted casually with Cui Suling, admiring the scenery outside the window, then turned her head to glance at the back seat and couldn't help whispering to her husband: "Look at the way your son is acting."

Li Guohong subtly turned his head, stealing a glance with the corner of his eye, and couldn't help smiling wryly: "I think you don't need to overthink it—they're still just kids."

"They probably just stayed up too late playing together last night and ended up spending the whole night in Li Luo's room."

"After all, they all live together at Bihai Lanting; it's normal for them to be this close."

"Sleeping in the same bed is normal?" Lin Xiuhong said, dumbfounded. "What is Li Luo even thinking? I really don't understand him anymore."

"Didn't you say you wanted three daughters-in-law?" Li Guohong joked half-seriously. "Now your son's fulfilling your wish—what's wrong with that?"

Lin Xiuhong playfully slapped him, rolled her eyes, and decided not to argue further, turning back to chat with Cui Suling beside the aisle, so her good friend wouldn't notice anything suspicious.

But thinking of Li Guohong's joke, for some reason, though she knew it was inappropriate, Lin Xiuhong secretly felt a faint sense of anticipation.

After all, she liked all three girls very much—if this troublemaker Li Luo really managed to bring them all home…

At that thought, Lin Xiuhong quickly cut off her train of thought, looked at Cui Suling across the aisle, and silently muttered, "Sin, sin."

…

Not long after, the minibus arrived at a small private harbor.

It was a small harbor under a private conglomerate's control, with shallow water that could only accommodate yachts and small boats.

After parking in the lot, Butler Liu called them to get out and led Li Luo and the others to the harbor, finally stopping before a large yacht.

A young woman, seemingly twenty-five or twenty-six, stepped forward, shook hands with Butler Liu, and was then brought over to the group.

"This is Coach Yu Xiaonan," Butler Liu said. "She'll be teaching you diving during this trip to the diving club."

The young woman before them had a neat short haircut, wore sunglasses, a white tank top, a black jacket, and tight blue jeans—she looked extremely capable.

After the introduction, Coach Yu stepped forward, removed her sunglasses, nodded politely to the four parents, then turned her gaze to Li Luo behind her, walked straight to him, and extended her hand: "Hello, Yu Xiaonan."

"Hello, Li Luo," Li Luo replied, lightly shaking her hand.

Yu Xiaonan clearly knew who the real leader among them was.

After a brief greeting, she turned and boarded the yacht, calling out to them: "Come aboard first—I'll explain the basics of snorkeling during the ride to the island."

Li Luo and the others boarded the yacht; as they walked toward the deck, Butler Liu leaned close to Li Luo's ear and whispered: "Coach Yu is the boss's daughter. She manages the club day-to-day and is genuinely an excellent diver."

Hearing this, Li Luo was surprised: "The boss's daughter is our diving coach?"

"Don't worry," Butler Liu whispered. "Miss Yu is the most popular coach at the club—her teaching is top-notch. She volunteered for this trip—probably because of you."

"Huh?" Li Luo was taken aback. "Why would she come because of me?"

"Ahem." Butler Liu coughed twice, lowering her voice. "Miss Yu loves diving, but she also enjoys reading novels online."

With that, Butler Liu said no more on the subject, instead adding: "The trip to the nearby island will take about half an hour—let me know if you need anything."

Li Luo had no reply, only surprised by how coincidental this was.

Yu Xiaonan had a cool demeanor; her short hair gave her an air of boldness.

She led Li Luo and the others onto the deck, pointed to a pile of gear on the table, and said bluntly: "Snorkeling is simple. I'll give you a quick briefing on the boat, then take you to a pool on the island to practice."

She picked up a mask and snorkel and began explaining.

Li Luo, looking at this reader who had likely read his novels, felt a strange little pang inside.

It wasn't any kind of romantic or gendered feeling—just a sense of wonder.

Online, readers were just readers—more like symbols than real people.

But now, meeting one in person—this one a diving coach, and the daughter of a billionaire—made him reflect.

Compared to Lawyer Tian, who had immediately asked for his autograph upon seeing him, Yu Xiaonan seemed far more normal.

She occasionally cast curious glances at Li Luo, but otherwise focused intently on explaining diving knowledge. Li Luo had never ridden a yacht in either life; after Yu Xiaonan finished her briefing, with minutes left before reaching the island, they began wandering around the yacht.

Li Guohong and Xu Rongsheng had already been here once yesterday and tried sea fishing; now they leaned against the deck, chatting with Butler Liu about fishing.

The two mothers took out their phones and snapped photos, having a great time; Li Luo walked with the three girls into the yacht's interior to explore.

"The first floor has a large living room and two bedrooms, plus a kitchen at the back; the second floor is the bridge," Yu Xiaonan said, sipping water in the living room as she noticed them touring. "The third floor is an open-air observation deck where you can barbecue—if you're interested, ask Butler Liu to arrange it."

"The first floor has a large living room and two bedrooms, with a kitchen behind it; the second floor is the cockpit," Yu Xiaonan said while drinking water in the living room, noticing them touring, and added casually, "The third floor is an open-air observation deck where you can also barbecue—if you're interested, you can ask Butler Liu to arrange it."

"There's one in the living room, and two in the bedrooms—you can use any of them," Yu Xiaonan said.

Since Ying Chanxi and the other two all needed to use the restroom, they headed off together, leaving Li Luo alone in the living room.

Seeing the three girls gone and Li Luo the only one left, Yu Xiaonan studied him with curious eyes and asked: "Which one is your girlfriend?"

Li Luo paused slightly, didn't answer directly, and chuckled: "Why ask that all of a sudden?"

"Just a bit disappointed," Yu Xiaonan smiled. "I really liked your book."

"When I read it, I thought it was written by a thirty-something guy—I even thought, I've never dated an author, I should try it."

"But now?" Yu Xiaonan looked him up and down, shrugged helplessly, and laughed. "You're handsome enough, but you're way too young—not my type. And you don't look like you'd lack girlfriends anyway."

"But now," Yu Xiaonan sized him up with a few glances, helplessly shrugged, and smiled, "you're good-looking, sure, but you're too young for me, and you don't look like the type who'd lack girlfriends."

Even Yan Zhusheng, who spoke plainly, or Xu Youyu, who teased him, would never say something like "I wanted to date you" on their first meeting.

Even the blunt Yan Zhusheng, or Xu Youyu, who loved teasing him, could never say something like "I really want to date you" on a first meeting.

But Yu Xiaonan narrowed her eyes and continued: "The one with big breasts is Jiang Ming, the tallest is Mo Qinghan, and the other one must be Shen Dongdong, right?"

"I thought novelists just made things up—but your three heroines all have real-life prototypes? And they're all close? Looks like someone's got big ambitions."

"Do they even know you write novels? Or haven't read them closely?"

Hearing this, Li Luo coughed twice: "They've all read them."

Now it was Yu Xiaonan's turn to be surprised.

This time, it was Yu Xiaonan who was surprised.

But at this moment, the three girls had finished using the restroom and returned; Yu Xiaonan smiled, stood up, and walked toward the deck.

At this time, the yacht had docked, arriving at the small island where the diving club was located.

Li Luo and his group followed Yu Xiaonan onto the island and arrived at the club, where, under the staff's guidance, they put on diving suits.

To be fair, although the diving suits themselves were quite conservative in design, they looked distinctly striking on the three girls.

At first glance, Xu Youyu was naturally the most eye-catching, but beside her, the petite and adorable Ying Chanxi held her own, while Yan Zhusheng's long legs, tightly encased in the form-fitting suit, were especially captivating.

Li Luo occasionally glanced over; beside him, Xu Youyu chuckled and leaned close to his ear: "Have you had enough looking? Want to touch some more?"

By now, they had all entered the club's swimming pool, the water reaching their chests; if Li Luo truly wanted to touch, no one else nearby would notice.

But he certainly wouldn't actually touch.

"Stop fooling around, focus on practicing," Li Luo whispered. "It's rare to join a diving session—I need material for my book."

"Then when we were on the yacht, while the three of us went to the restroom," Xu Youyu narrowed her eyes and glanced at Yu Xiaonan nearby, "what did Coach Yu say to you?"

"Nothing much… just chatted a couple of words."

"Coach Yu seems pretty attractive."

"Not as pretty as you."

"Hmph." Xu Youyu softly laughed, leaned close to Li Luo's ear, and whispered, "Although I think your excellence is enough to match what you currently have, that's all."

After saying this, Xu Youyu stepped back two paces, smiled at him for a moment, then put her mask back on, bit down on the snorkel, and dove into the water.

Li Luo stared at the scene before him—only the snorkel visible above the surface—and rubbed his ear, still tingling from her breath; his expression paused for a moment, then he gave a helpless smile.

Sister Youyu… she doesn't seem truly generous after all; in fact, she's quite possessive?