Chapter 469: We Have to Go This Way Tonight

Logically, as a guest, Cui Suling should have been seated comfortably in the parlor—Lin Xiuhong would never ask her to cook.

But after playing mahjong, since Li Luo's aunt Li Xuexian's family had gone to Chen Hailin's hometown to pay New Year's visits, neither lunch nor dinner would be at home.

So Lin Xiuhong had originally planned to invite Li Luo's second aunt, Li Xuefeng, to help cook.

But Yuan Wanqing wanted to try cooking one more dish herself, and Cui Suling didn't treat herself as a mere guest at all, naturally following Lin Xiuhong into the kitchen.

Li Xuefeng was happy to stay out of it; after all, even a large kitchen was too cramped with four people, so she stepped back.

Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling were seasoned partners, and soon the kitchen filled with fragrant aromas.

Yuan Wanqing, too, had no star attitude, watching them curiously as she learned to cook.

Though she rarely had chances to cook, the thought of preparing meals for Ying Zhi Cheng and her two daughters made Yuan Wanqing learn with exceptional focus.

With Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling helping beside her, Yuan Wanqing's dish turned out quite delicious.

Li Luo sat on the sofa in the parlor, gazing at the three busy figures in the kitchen, then turned to look at Ying Chanxi and the others beside him, and at Li Guohong and the group chatting on the balcony—his expression grew distant.

It felt as though such a scene should only appear many years later, yet he'd seen it years ahead of time, right here today.

Too bad…

"Is Yan Zhusheng leaving this afternoon?" Xu Youyu asked regretfully. "I thought we'd at least get one more dinner together."

"Flight's at four," Yan Zhusheng said. "We'll probably leave around two."

"So when will you come back?" Xu Youyu hugged Yan Zhusheng tightly, asking again.

Yan Zhusheng, squeezed by Xu Youyu's chest, puffed out her cheeks but still answered honestly: "End of the month, before school starts."

"What a shame—I was hoping we could hang out somewhere after Li Luo and the others return," Xu Youyu sighed. "Guess we'll have to wait until school starts again."

"There'll be plenty of time later. In this freezing winter, just stay home," Li Luo stretched. "Once you finish your college entrance exam this year, we'll plan a summer trip."

"Ah… the college entrance exam…" Xu Youyu sighed the moment she heard the word.

"Why are you sighing?" Li Luo chuckled. "It's not hard for you, right? If you just want to get into Qianjiang University, don't miss any subject."

"Do you think that's why I'm sighing?" Xu Youyu rolled her eyes. "After the exam, I'll go to university next door—I won't see you during school days."

"I'll climb over the wall to visit you," Li Luo said offhandedly.

"Haha~" Xu Youyu laughed. "I'll hold you to that—you're a puppy if you don't climb the wall."

The four of them chatted on the sofa.

Chen Lu and Li Xiang sat beside them.

They sat upright on the opposite side of the sofa, watching the harmonious atmosphere, exchanged glances, and began whispering.

"Why can't I sense any competition between Xi Xi and the others?" Chen Lu whispered. "It's too harmonious!"

"Last year it wasn't like this…" Li Xiang tugged at his mouth, equally baffled.

In his memory, during last year's New Year, when Yan Zhusheng and Xu Youyu visited, he could faintly sense Ying Chanxi's resistance.

This year…

Seeing Ying Chanxi, obediently sitting beside Li Luo and peeling oranges for him, Li Xiang covered his forehead, utterly confused—what kind of spell had his uncle cast on her?

And Xu Youyu and Yan Zhusheng were even more so—watching Ying Chanxi sit beside Li Luo and feed him oranges, they showed zero reaction, as if this were perfectly natural?

It was insane!

"You told me to read his book—I've been reading it every day," Chen Lu whispered. "I've already read nearly two million characters."

"So fast?" Li Xiang was startled.

"Don't underestimate me—I used to read romance novels every day in school," Chen Lu chuckled, then his expression darkened. "But you said if I read his novel, I'd understand everything—so explain it to me now?"

Li Xiang: "Uh…"

To be fair, if this were last year's situation, some plotlines in I Am Really Not a Star would have perfectly matched the dynamics among Li Luo and the four of them.

All three heroines were infatuated with the male lead, occasionally flirting, yet none ever confirmed their relationship.

If two heroines appeared together privately, a small harem clash would erupt—minor competition, never harming the male lead.

But now, Li Xiang realized, Li Luo's situation had evolved beyond even the novel's pacing.

If I Am Really Not a Star were to depict the current interactions between Li Luo and these three girls, Li Xiang guessed the author would be flooded with criticism for dumbing down the story.

This was genuinely sci-fi!

If, in its early days, I Am Really Not a Star had been ahead of reality…

Then over time, the novel's romantic progression had now fallen far behind reality.

Li Xiang even suspected whether his uncle was now using real-life events as material for his novel's plotlines.

Especially recently, when Li Luo wrote about the male lead returning home for New Year, Li Xiang even spotted a male supporting character who looked unmistakably like himself.

Coincidentally, the heroine Mo Qinghan was invited to perform at the Spring Festival Gala, singing "Ru Yuan" and "Shi Mama Shi Nü'er"—mirroring real-life events exactly.

The past few days had sparked another wave of discussion in the comment section.

But Chongran's integration of reality into fiction had become so ingrained that readers no longer found it strange, even joking that Chongran was recycling old material by bringing back these two songs again.

Then came New Year's Eve, fireworks, temple blessings, mahjong at home, Mo Qinghan and Jiang Ming visiting—three women gathered together, mirroring the current scene perfectly.

Chen Lu hadn't reached the later chapters yet, but Li Xiang read every update daily.

His uncle was truly sneaky—the three heroines in the novel still schemed and competed behind each other's backs.

But here? No such thing at all—this serene, peaceful atmosphere was infuriating!

Li Xiang mentally grumbled about it.

Li Luo, of course, had no idea what his cheap nephew was thinking.

When Lin Xiuhong and the others finished lunch, they called everyone to the table.

Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling cooked excellently, and Yuan Wanqing's dish was also superb.

After the meal, full and satisfied, Yuan Wanqing called Yan Zhusheng back to the neighboring house to pack.

But before leaving, Yan Zhusheng turned back to glance at Li Luo.

Li Luo saw this and got up to use the restroom, then ran straight down the stairwell to the rooftop, where he saw Yan Zhusheng climbing onto the rooftop from Ying Chanxi's home.

"Just glance at me once—what if I don't understand?"

Li Luo walked toward Yan Zhusheng and laughed.

But the next second, Yan Zhusheng flung herself into Li Luo's arms and hugged him tightly.

"I missed you," Yan Zhusheng murmured, nestled against Li Luo's chest.

"You haven't even left yet."

"I've already started missing you," Yan Zhusheng lifted her head in his arms, bit her lip, and was about to say something when Li Luo sealed her lips with his own.

When their lips finally parted, Yan Zhusheng added, "I haven't even said I wanted to practice singing."

Li Luo smiled, realizing she was still stubborn, then lowered his head again.

Hmm, she softened after he kissed her.

Long silence.

Yan Zhusheng leaned against Li Luo's chest, breathing lightly, and whispered, "Are you free tonight?"

"What's wrong? Didn't you say you were leaving in the afternoon?"

"I want to call you," Yan Zhusheng looked up at him. "Is that okay?"

"Of course."

"Don't let Xi Xi or Xuejie answer."

"... Why do you assume they'll be at my place at night?"

Yan Zhusheng gently bumped her forehead against his chest, then rose on her toes and kissed Li Luo's lips once, said nothing more, and turned to go downstairs.

Li Luo watched her retreating back, still reluctant to let go, but they'd stayed on the rooftop too long already—if they didn't come down, everyone would think he'd fallen into the toilet.

He hurried back to the second-floor living room, where Ying Chanxi and Xu Youyu were still on the sofa.

In the courtyard next door, the family car come to pick up Yuan Wanqing and Yan Zhusheng for the airport had already parked there.

This time, no need for Ying Zhicheng to drive them.

Li Luo reasonably suspected it was because Yan Zhusheng was coming along too—Uncle Ying couldn't do anything embarrassing, so he agreed to let the driver come pick up Yuan Wanqing.

But he only muttered this silently in his mind—he wasn't much better himself.

When the time neared two in the afternoon, Yuan Wanqing and Yan Zhusheng packed their luggage and came downstairs, ready to depart.

Li Luo and the others went to the neighboring courtyard to see them off.

Yan Zhusheng looked at Li Luo, then walked to the three of them, first hugged Ying Chanxi, then hugged Xu Youyu, as her farewell.

Finally, Yan Zhusheng stepped before Li Luo, and in front of all the elders nearby, she gave him a small, restrained, dignified hug, then blushed and hurried into the car.

Xu Rongsheng and Cui Suling saw this and exchanged glances; seeing their own daughter acting as if nothing had happened, they felt helpless.

"We'll be off then," Yuan Wanqing rolled down her window and waved goodbye with a smile. "See you next time."

Yan Zhusheng also stuck her head out, waving to everyone, but her eyes never left Li Luo—she saw no one else.

Finally, the driver started the car and slowly drove out of the courtyard.

Li Luo walked to the gate, watching the family car and Yan Zhusheng's head sticking out until they vanished completely around the corner, then finally looked away.

He savored the embrace Yan Zhusheng had given him just before leaving.

That embrace was far lighter than the one on the rooftop—barely a touch of her arms and shoulders against him—yet it stirred something deep inside.

Li Luo turned his head to look at Ying Chanxi again, recalling his past life—the girl who'd come to take a photo with him only after the whole class had taken their group picture.

Heaven had let him return to this life not only to make up for the regrets of his past parents, but perhaps also to redeem himself.

Ying Chanxi was the youthful joy he'd lost and could never regain.

Xu Youyu was the dream he'd fallen into after entering society.

Yan Zhusheng was the faint light in his life when he'd plunged into utter despair.

But he'd missed them all.

"What are you thinking about?" Ying Chanxi stood before Li Luo, waving her small hand in front of his face, pouting slightly. "She just left, and you're already thinking of her, right?"

"I was thinking of you."

"Y-You said what...?" Ying Chanxi's defenses shattered at his simple words; her cheeks flushed as she glanced left and right. Seeing Lin Xiuhong and the others weren't paying attention, she exhaled in relief and glared at him. "Don't talk nonsense."

After seeing off Yuan Wanqing and Yan Zhusheng, Li Luo took Xu Youyu and Ying Chanxi to buy fireworks and firecrackers.

Walking through the village with the firecrackers, he blew up a water vat, then a water bucket, or sneaked out to ambush Li Guohong and the others at the village pond.

When night came, after dinner, Li Luo set off fireworks for Xu Youyu in the courtyard, making up for her missed New Year's Eve display.

Afterwards, they returned to the second floor to play mahjong with Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling.

Ying Chanxi and Xu Youyu joined the table; Li Luo stood beside them, handing out fruit and refilling tea.

Even Cui Suling was being fed by Li Luo.

Xu Youyu saw this and chuckled. "Mom, you're such a grown woman—do you really need Li Luo to feed you fruit?"

"You talk too much," Cui Suling shot her a look. "I raised you for over ten years and got nothing from you—not even as thoughtful as that Li Luo, who knows to hand people fruit and things like that."

"Aren't I just feeding you good tiles as the player before you?"

"Is that feeding you tiles? What kind of trash hands are you playing?"

"If you don't want me, there's nothing I can do."

The mother and daughter bickered, while Li Luo moved among the four, attending to them all.

Around ten at night, the mahjong game ended, and Li Luo returned to his room to write.

On the other side, Xu Youyu's room was assigned to the smallest bedroom on the third floor.

After bathing, Xu Youyu waited quietly in her room for a long time; feeling the time was right, she quietly slipped out.

Just as she reached the stairwell, Ying Chanxi's door also quietly opened.

The two exchanged a glance at the door; Xu Youyu cleared his throat and walked toward the bathroom opposite Ying Chanxi: "I'm going to the toilet."

"Oh oh, then, uh, senior, you go first."

"You're going to the toilet too?"

"Yeah… uh huh…"

"Then I'll call you when I'm done."

"... Alright."

Not long after, Xu Youyu stepped out of the bathroom and knocked on Ying Chanxi's door.

After watching Ying Chanxi walk into the bathroom with her own eyes, Xu Youyu didn't return to her bedroom at all—she walked straight out of the stairwell.

But last year she had lived directly in Li Luo's third-floor bedroom and had no idea the rooftops of the two buildings were connected.

So she went straight downstairs, intending to climb up from the second floor of the adjacent building, only to find the front door of the second-floor living room locked—she couldn't get in!

Xu Youyu realized the door wouldn't open, scratched her head in frustration, and slinked back.

Just as she reached the third-floor corner, she bumped into Ying Chanxi sneaking out from inside.

"Senior…"

"Xixi…"

The two exchanged an awkward glance.

Finally, Ying Chanxi sighed, took Xu Youyu's hand, and led her toward the rooftop: "You have to use this way at night—the downstairs route won't work."