Chapter 646: Can You Take Me Along When You Sneak Snacks, Senior Sister?

At eight o'clock in the morning, they departed from the hotel parking lot in Changning City, and after more than two hours of travel, Li Luo's group arrived smoothly at Campsite No. 1 on the northeast shore of Taihu.

This place is said to be a designated campsite for tourists who need motorhomes.

Xu Youyu had called ahead to reserve, and upon arrival, they simply registered—the motorhome paid a two-hundred-yuan deposit and a fifty-yuan service fee to park and camp.

If any trash was left behind or damage caused upon departure, a portion of the deposit would be deducted accordingly.

Besides that, all other services within the campsite were charged separately, such as open-air barbecues.

At first, Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling muttered that the fees weren't cheap, but once their motorhome was guided to the parking spot, both mothers fell silent.

Because Xu Youyu had reserved early, she had secured the best viewing spot in advance.

So when their motorhome stopped, it faced directly toward Taihu.

The entire southwest side of the campsite bordered the Taihu lakeshore; after walking twenty to thirty meters across the lawn, one faced the boundless expanse of Taihu.

The sun hung high, the lake shimmered, and the tranquil waters rushed into view, making one forget to breathe.

"This place is really nice," Cui Suling couldn't help saying.

Two hours ago, they had been staying in a hotel amid skyscrapers in Changning City, and now they were right beside the natural beauty of Taihu.

The transition was truly dreamlike.

"Finally here~" Xu Youyu gazed at the beautiful lakeside view, then turned the steering wheel, glanced at Lin Xiuhong's motorhome beside them, and rotated her own motorhome so its rear faced the lake.

As a result, the doors of the two motorhomes now faced each other, creating a two-meter-wide gap between them.

For this, Xu Youyu had rented three parking spots—the middle one intentionally left empty.

After getting out, they spread the pre-prepared canopy over the gap, then hung door curtains at the front and rear ends, completely enclosing the space in between.

Once done, Xu Youyu clapped her hands, nodded in satisfaction, and grinned: "How's that? Isn't my idea great?"

"When we cook or eat inside the motorhome, we can just take out the folding table and place it outside."

"Once both motorhomes' air conditioners are on, open the windows and doors facing the canopy, and the whole space becomes an air-conditioned room."

Li Luo looked at the canopy between the two motorhomes and couldn't help smiling: "You're a professional at this—I have to admit it."

After all, Xu Youyu truly loved traveling.

In his past life, when he traveled with her, she always found ways to make herself comfortable.

So it's no surprise she came up with this DIY air-conditioned space.

"But this is a bit of a shame," Cui Suling walked inside, took a look around, then said to Xu Youyu, "Originally, your motorhome faced forward, so you could see the lakeside from the front—now that the rear is closed, you can't see anything."

"Hmph~ I knew you'd pick on me." Xu Youyu strode confidently into the motorhome, lay down on the cross bed, then reached out and pressed the switch for the rear door.

The next second, the rear door slowly lifted upward from below, revealing the full lakeside view to those inside.

"How's that? Beautiful, right?" Xu Youyu grinned triumphantly, then pulled down the mosquito net. "I prepared this too, to stop my mom from complaining about mosquitoes or AC leakage."

Cui Suling: "... I haven't even said anything yet."

"Alright, alright, stop showing off," Li Luo laughed. "It's already past eleven—what are we having for lunch?"

"The AC isn't cold enough yet, so let's go eat at the lakeside restaurant first," Xu Youyu closed the rear door, jumped off the bed, "Did XiXi reserve our table already?"

"Mm." Ying Chanxi nodded. "As you said, I booked it before we left."

"OK~ Let's go eat then~" Xu Youyu stepped out through the canopy curtain and headed toward the nearby lakeside restaurant.

The others followed.

Lin Xiuhong, walking last, asked worriedly: "Won't it be unsafe to leave the motorhome unlocked?"

"There are surveillance cameras here," Xu Youyu pointed to the nearby security camera. "And since it's a paid attraction, no one would dare mess with it."

"Still, better be careful," Li Luo looked at his mother and said, "I'll lock all the doors and windows, and turn off the AC blowing into the canopy."

"Oh, okay," Xu Youyu, hearing Li Luo, obediently followed him to lock the motorhome.

Watching this, Cui Suling couldn't help muttering to Lin Xiuhong: "If I told her to lock the motorhome, she'd argue back."

"Her mouth is always sharp—it's exhausting."

"But the moment Li Luo says it, she listens right away. Truly, one person tames another."

Lin Xiuhong, hearing this, covered her mouth and smiled lightly: "You're exaggerating—it's just that Youyu is sensible."

Cui Suling nodded along, but inside she chuckled—did she not know her own daughter?

Only when Li Luo spoke did she listen—she had no idea how he made her so obedient.

It was truly strange.

After locking the motorhome, Li Luo led the group to the lakeside restaurant.

The restaurant had a distinctive design—half of it was built over the lake, with transparent glass floor tiles.

Ying Chanxi had reserved a window-side table by the lake; stepping onto the glass tiles, watching the rippling water beneath their feet, one felt as if they might fall through.

Li Luo and Xu Youyu weren't afraid; Yan Zhusheng felt nothing either, and walked straight across.

Ying Chanxi hesitated slightly, secretly tugging Li Luo's sleeve, stepped firmly onto the tiles, exhaled softly, then followed them to the table and sat down.

Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling, however, hesitated for a long time at the edge before cautiously stepping onto the glass, and only when seated did they finally breathe out in relief.

"This is terrifying," Lin Xiuhong whispered.

"You'll get used to it," Li Luo smiled reassuringly. "Look out the window—don't keep staring at your feet. The view outside is beautiful."

The waiter had chosen a window seat with excellent scenery.

From here, one could see the entire Taihu landscape, distant islands and mountains to the south, and passing tourist boats.

Seeing the dishes wouldn't arrive for a while, Xu Youyu pulled Li Luo out to the lakeside corridor to enjoy the view.

Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng immediately followed, and the four walked together, taking photos on the corridor.

Lin Xiuhong and Cui Suling still couldn't bear the transparent floor, choosing to stay seated, watching the four children play outside.

"Youth is wonderful," Lin Xiuhong couldn't help sighing.

Beside her, Cui Suling chuckled: "Aren't you doing fine too? Your son is so accomplished—just enjoy the rest of your life."

"Aren't you the same?" Lin Xiuhong laughed. "Youyu is also very accomplished—a top student from Qian Da, earning over ten thousand a month back in high school."

"I heard from Li Luo that her current novel's performance is incredible too—her monthly royalty is already seventy or eighty thousand. Amazing."

"Normal girls her age don't have this kind of ability at all."

To be honest, if not for this life's Li Luo as a comparison, Xu Youyu would absolutely be among the absolute top of her generation.

But this lifetime, because of Li Luo's presence, she became a catalyst for Xu Youyu, allowing her to complete her evolution ahead of schedule in the online novel field.

Otherwise, her previous novel, Literary Era, wouldn't have reached ten thousand subscriptions so easily, and this one, Gu Dao Changqing, wouldn't have had the chance to aim for twenty thousand average subscriptions.

If you fall behind even one step, you fall behind all the way—by the time she wants to compete for the title of Grandmaster, she'd have to rely on her next novel.

But with Li Luo's help, Xu Youyu, still only a second-year university student this year, has already firmly secured the Grandmaster title.

Excluding Li Luo, the heavyweight competitor, Xu Youyu is among the youngest of all Qidian Grandmasters.

"This line of work isn't stable," Cui Suling instinctively downplayed her own daughter, then immediately corrected herself: "Unless you reach the level of your Li Luo—that's what's truly impressive."

The two mothers exchanged humble compliments back and forth, chatting happily.

When the first dish was brought out by the server, Lin Xiuhong called out the window: "Dishes are here! Come eat!"

…

To Li Luo's taste, the dishes at this lakeside restaurant were merely average, but their advantage was the exceptional freshness of ingredients.

Especially the several local river delicacies—all sourced from fish, turtles, shrimp, and crabs native to Taihu—each carried an outstanding natural flavor.

After tasting them, Li Luo casually asked at checkout whether they sold ingredients directly.

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, Li Luo nodded in satisfaction, pre-ordering several ingredients for dinner, planning to cook them directly at the motorhome.

After lunch.

The group first returned to the motorhome, opened the doors and windows, and let the interior cool down again.

They also took a quick nap.

After avoiding the hottest part of the day, they opened a watermelon inside the canopy, ate it while strolling to the lakeside to enjoy the scenery.

After finishing the fruit, they rented several two-person bicycles and rode slowly along the lake, taking plenty of photos along the way.

At around five-thirty in the evening, they returned to the motorhome and began preparing dinner.

Li Luo brought down two folding tables, set them up under the canopy, instructed Ying Chanxi to collect the pre-ordered ingredients from the lakeside hotel, and took some items from the fridge to thaw.

Xu Youyu grunted as she pulled a large black pot from the storage cabinet and placed it atop the electric hotplate on the table.

She poured in a bucket of mineral water, added hotpot base, and brought it to a boil.

Once all ingredients arrived, Li Luo quickly prepared them, mixed the dipping sauce, and the lakeside hotpot was ready to serve.

"Ahhh~" Xu Youyu bit into tender fish meat and sighed contentedly. "This is what life is all about~"

"You're so dramatic," Cui Suling rolled her eyes. "Do you think you can do this every day?"

"Why not?" Xu Youyu huffed, waving her hand. "Traveling the whole country in a motorhome—drive in the morning, play in the afternoon, write at night. Isn't that perfect?"

"Sounds nice," Cui Suling chuckled. "What about university?"

"Then I'll wait until after graduation…"

"What if you get married and have kids? Still going to roam around like this?" Cui Suling added.

"Then don't have kids—why rush?" Xu Youyu retorted. "I want to enjoy a few more years first."

"But you'd have to ask…" Cui Suling blurted out, then realized it was inappropriate and cut herself off.

Lin Xiuhong glanced at Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng and quickly changed the subject: "So, are you two going to write more later? Any plans for tonight? Just stay in the motorhome?"

"I still have some saved drafts," Li Luo said. "But I'll stay with Youyu and write on the vehicle. You can go see the lakeside night view—if you get hungry later, we can grab some outdoor barbecue."

…

After dinner, the six of them leaned back in their chairs, chatting while digesting.

By seven or eight, Xu Youyu returned to the vehicle to start writing.

Li Luo watched the other four leave, then joined her inside, sat down, and pulled out her laptop to get to work.

But just minutes later, as Xu Youyu hit a writing block and was about to tease Li Luo, the motorhome door opened again.

Yan Zhusheng returned.

"Zhusheng, why are you back?" Xu Youyu quietly pulled her feet back and asked, puzzled.

"Chanxi said you and Li Luo have been spending too much time alone lately, and suspects you're sneaking snacks," Yan Zhusheng said seriously. "So she sent me to supervise you."

Xu Youyu: "..."

Li Luo: "... That's definitely not what Chanxi actually said."

"But it's more or less the same meaning," Yan Zhusheng puffed out her small chest, clearly confident in her interpretation.

"But…" Yan Zhusheng added, then turned her eyes, blinked at Xu Youyu, "If you're sneaking snacks, can I join? I won't tell Chanxi—how about it?"

Li Luo: "... Come here."

"Okay…" Yan Zhusheng obediently walked to Li Luo's side.

"Sit down."

"Mm." Yan Zhusheng sat quietly beside Li Luo.

"Take out your phone."

"Like this?" Yan Zhusheng pulled out her phone, looking at Li Luo questioningly.

Li Luo reached out, skillfully unlocked her phone with her own birthday, opened Tencent Video, found "Little Joy," and tapped play.

"Just sit quietly and watch TV, good girl."

Li Luo patted her head, then turned back and resumed writing.

Yan Zhusheng looked down at her phone, blinked, then suddenly looked unhappy: "I'm not a child."

"Among all of us, you're the only one still a minor."

I'll be of age in just over a month.

But you're still a minor.

So once I'm of age, I can sneak eats?

Adult matters—don't ask so many questions, child.

Li Luo is bad.

You can lift your legs, take off your pants—it's hot.

But the air conditioning is a bit cold.

Then I'll warm you up.

Oh…

(End of chapter)