Chapter 770: He Insists, So You Give?

Sunday morning.

Li Luo woke from sleep, looked left and right, and kissed each of Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng on the cheek as they slept.

Both girls woke from the kisses; Ying Chanxi nudged Li Luo with her head, while Yan Zhusheng climbed straight onto his lap and kissed him back.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi pouted and shoved Yan Zhusheng off Li Luo: "Aren't you embarrassed?"

"Not at all." Yan Zhusheng shook her head. "Do you want a kiss too?"

"I'm not kissing him."

"Then I'll kiss him for you." Yan Zhusheng leaned down and pecked Li Luo again, making Ying Chanxi grind her teeth in frustration.

"I never said I wanted you to kiss him for me," Ying Chanxi snapped. "Don't decide things on your own."

"I just wanted to kiss him myself—I'm just using you as an excuse," Yan Zhusheng blinked. "You're too serious."

"Hmph." Ying Chanxi ignored her, got out of bed, slipped on slippers, and walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth.

Li Luo picked up Yan Zhusheng and followed her into the bathroom.

After all three finished their morning routines, they went downstairs for a run, ate breakfast, then Ying Chanxi drove off to pick up Qiao Xinyan at the dorm and head into the city together.

Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng returned home, delivered breakfast to Xu Youyu, then went their separate ways.

One started typing, the other went to the piano room to practice.

Xu Youyu, after eating breakfast, went back to sleep.

After finishing his writing in the morning, Li Luo checked the time—it was still early—so he went out to buy some vegetables, then cooked Xu Youyu two dishes: Maple Tofu and Green Pepper Shredded Pork, her favorites.

"Wake up, it's time to eat," Li Luo returned to the bedroom and patted Xu Youyu's face.

Xu Youyu had already slept enough, but was too lazy to get up; the smell of the food Li Luo brought in lured her awake. She sniffed the air, then asked curiously: "Aren't you and Zhusheng going out to eat today?"

"That's why I only made these two dishes for you," Li Luo patted her butt. "Get up quickly—your favorite Maple Tofu and Green Pepper Shredded Pork. Don't forget to wash the dishes after eating."

"Oh… I have to wash dishes too…" Xu Youyu stretched lazily in bed, her reluctance rising at the mention of chores. "When can we move into the villa? Then I won't have to wash dishes myself."

"Not for a while," Li Luo chuckled. "Didn't we agree on December?"

"Ugh… I can't wait~" Xu Youyu rolled around in bed a few times, then finally struggled out of bed, brushed her teeth in the bathroom, and headed to the living room for lunch.

Li Luo took Yan Zhusheng, said goodbye to Xu Youyu, then went downstairs to Times Tianjie to meet Xu Yinghuan and Zhao Rongjun.

Originally, Xu Yinghuan had planned to invite more friends out for a big meal to celebrate Zhao Rongjun's admission to Zhuyuan.

But Zhao Rongjun thought it unnecessary to make a big fuss—he only invited Li Luo and the others.

Although their Douyin account was now thriving, and this month they'd landed an ad order earning a few thousand yuan.

A fancy dinner would likely eat up half of that.

Zhao Rongjun was frugal in such matters, and Xu Yinghuan willingly followed his mindset, remembering Li Luo's earlier advice and not putting Zhao Rongjun in an awkward position.

This was also why Li Luo thought Zhao Rongjun and Xu Yinghuan suited each other well.

Though from a social standing perspective, Qiao Xinyan might be a better match, Xu Yinghuan lacked the spoiled arrogance of a rich girl—she was still sensible and understanding.

And if her family background could provide Zhao Rongjun with some pressure to push him harder and strive further, Li Luo thought that was fine too.

"Hi hi~" Xu Yinghuan, having received Yan Zhusheng's message, waited by the restaurant entrance, waved enthusiastically when she saw them, and led them to Zhao Rongjun's table.

As soon as Li Luo sat down, he grinned and congratulated Zhao Rongjun: "You're officially a Zhuyuan big shot now."

"Don't call me a big shot," Zhao Rongjun quickly waved his hand, modestly. "If you wanted, you could get in anytime—what's there to brag about?"

"Still pretty impressive," Li Luo smiled. "Today's your celebration—no need to be modest."

"Exactly!" Xu Yinghuan jumped in immediately, grinning. "Look at me—I couldn't get in even if I tried. Our Jun is just amazing."

Zhao Rongjun blushed under Xu Yinghuan's praise.

Though he was used to her constant compliments when they were alone, being praised in front of others still made him slightly embarrassed.

At that moment, Yan Zhusheng had already scanned the QR code to order, selecting a pile of dishes Li Luo liked, then turned to Xu Yinghuan across the table: "Anything else you want to add?"

"Let me see," Xu Yinghuan glanced over, felt it was enough, and tapped to confirm the order.

The four sat together, waited for the food, and chatted while eating.

Xu Yinghuan chattered nonstop; Zhao Rongjun kept feeding her, and only when he held out a chopstick with food to her mouth could he briefly silence her.

Especially when talking about Douyin, Xu Yinghuan eagerly shared their recent short videos with Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng.

I have to say, Xu Yinghuan has a real talent for this.

Li Luo had only given her a few template patterns at first, but she'd innovated beyond them, creating fresh effects.

Over a month later, their Douyin account had grown to over thirty thousand followers.

Though still small, at this stage it was already attracting solid commercial offers.

More importantly, over the past month, Xu Yinghuan had transformed the account into a professional couple influencer channel, no longer posting random daily clips as before.

"It's a bit sad, though," Xu Yinghuan said, sounding regretful. "I originally used it to record everyday life."

"That's easy," Li Luo laughed. "Have Jun open his own account—post your daily life there."

"Really? That works?"

"It could even be complementary," Li Luo reminded her. "Fans who love your couple interactions will grow curious about your everyday dynamic."

"But casual viewers only want your couple videos—they don't care about daily life."

"So this small account can perfectly carry your loyal fans. Do it well, and it might even drive traffic back to your main account."

For self-media accounts, video tone is crucial.

Especially on Douyin, where content is pushed based on big data.

If your videos are all over the place in theme and topic, the algorithm's targeting accuracy drops.

So Li Luo's tactic was already a common one later on.

He'd spent years immersed in Douyin in his past life—many of his ideas, even now, were still sharp strategies.

Thinking of this, Li Luo's earlier plans in his mind began to grow clearer.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but recall the recent discussions with Xu Rongsheng about the financial aid for impoverished students.

A flash of inspiration crossed his mind; Li Luo turned to Zhao Rongjun and asked, "How's your computer science coming along? Can you make software?"

"Huh?" Zhao Rongjun paused, then said hesitantly, "I've just started taking major courses—I definitely can't make anything yet… At least not until sophomore or junior year might I try something simple."

"I see…" Li Luo rubbed his chin, disappointed. "I was actually thinking there might be a chance for you to earn a little extra cash."

"What kind of chance?" Zhao Rongjun couldn't help pressing, "Is it related to computer science?"

"Yeah." Li Luo nodded casually. "I've been discussing with Uncle Xu about partnering with the College of Literature to set up a scholarship fund for impoverished students. But then I wondered—if the College of Literature handles the disbursement, how can we be sure the money actually reaches those who need it?"

"So I thought—what if we built a software to detect and analyze data from cafeteria meal cards, directly identifying impoverished students and depositing funds straight onto their cards, usable only for meals and daily necessities?"

"That…" Zhao Rongjun frowned, thinking for a while. "Theoretically, it's feasible—but practically, it'd be difficult."

"Because to achieve that effect, you'd need the school to grant you access to the meal card system's data."

"If you can't interface with the data, even if you build the software, it's useless."

"True." Li Luo suddenly realized this point; he'd only mentioned it offhand, but Zhao Rongjun's reminder made him snap to attention. "Can you do it? Or can you help me find a few senior students in the Computer Science department?"

Zhao Rongjun scratched his head at this: "That shouldn't be hard—the software itself isn't technically complex. The key is whether the algorithm for identifying impoverished students is accurate."

"As long as you nail that part, everything else is minor."

"If you can solve the school's data interface problem, I'll help you find suitable people."

"Sure, no problem." Li Luo smiled. "Then you'll lead the team."

"Me?"

"Who else?" Li Luo gave him a look. "What kind of relationship do we have? I'd feel better knowing you're watching over it—and you'd get real practice too, learn a thing or two."

"Exactly," Xu Yinghuan chimed in from the side. "Li Luo's right—how many people get a chance to do hands-on work in their first year?"

"I—I'll give it a try," Zhao Rongjun said, embarrassed. "I'm just worried I won't be able to handle it when I'm working with upperclassmen."

"Then have Huanhuan help you," Li Luo said casually. "Just manage the team—it's social training."

This software idea was just something Li Luo had thought up on a whim, meant to keep Zhao Rongjun occupied.

After lunch, Xu Yinghuan called them to follow along; the four of them spent the whole afternoon wandering Tianjie, parting ways only at dusk.

…

On Monday, after finishing Xu Rongsheng's Contemporary Literature class, Li Luo sought him out again.

"The aid fund won't be settled quickly," Xu Rongsheng assumed he was asking about that, so he spoke first. "I've already submitted the application, but it still needs detailed discussion at this week's university Party committee meeting."

"Oh, that's not urgent," Li Luo shook his head. "I came to ask you about something else."

"What else?"

"About what happens after the scholarship fund gets approved—I want to build a related software…" Li Luo outlined his idea briefly. "Everything else is manageable, but I need the school to open access to the cafeteria meal card interface. Uncle Xu, can you make that happen?"

"This…" Xu Rongsheng frowned, thinking. "This falls under information technology—I'm not very familiar with it. I'd need to check with the university's Office of Information Technology."

"Then…"

"I'll ask for you when I get a chance," Xu Rongsheng said. "The school always encourages student innovation—your idea's good, though it's more suited for Computer Science students. Why did you suddenly think of this?"

"You remember Zhao Rongjun, right?" Li Luo smiled. "He's in Computer Science. I'm just giving him something to do—and if this software works, I think it'll be genuinely useful."

"Alright," Xu Rongsheng nodded. "I've noted it down. I'll let you know when I have news."

"Thanks a lot, Uncle Xu. Next time, I'll treat you to dinner."

"No need to be so formal," Xu Rongsheng glanced at him, recalling the night he'd passed by Li Luo's car, his gaze turning deep. "Just treat Youyu well."

"Cough… I've always treated Sister Youyu well."

"Good." Xu Rongsheng patted Li Luo's shoulder—he had good self-control, not squeezing hard enough to hurt him—and then left.

If it had been Ying Zhicheng, upon learning Li Luo had bullied his daughter in the car, he'd have dragged him straight to a boxing gym for three hundred rounds.

…

Xu Rongsheng was efficient—he sent Li Luo a message the next day, along with two documents.

Their titles read: "Education Informatization 2.0 Action Plan" and "Smart Campus Support Project Standards."

【Xu Rongsheng】: Fill out the support project application form. Better to have someone who understands software write it—make the proposal professional.

【Xu Rongsheng】: If approved, you'll become a project recipient—it's quite beneficial.

【Li Luo】: Received, thank you, Uncle Xu.

After replying, Li Luo carefully read the two documents—and his expression turned strange.

He'd originally thought that if he could get permission to use the cafeteria meal card data, he might later sell the software to Qianjiang University for some profit.

For Zhao Rongjun, that would've been a decent income.

But he hadn't expected that the document Xu Rongsheng sent included an official university support project slot.

As long as you applied successfully, you'd receive direct project funding based on the project's scope and team size.

And all subsequent results would belong to the team.

There were actually benefits like this?

No wonder Qianjiang University was so rich and reckless.

After reading the documents, Li Luo forwarded them to Zhao Rongjun and left him to handle it.

"Let's go," Ying Chanxi poked her head in from outside the room. "Xinyan's still waiting. Hurry up—don't be late for the afternoon audition."

"Coming," Li Luo explained the situation to Zhao Rongjun, then stood and stepped out, wrapping his arm around Ying Chanxi and kissing her cheek. "Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Out of nowhere—you're so embarrassing," Ying Chanxi muttered, blushing.

"Should I formally apply for permission?" Li Luo chuckled. "Dear Miss Ying, may I please kiss your delicate, fair skin?"

"Ew, that's disgusting," Ying Chanxi blushed and pushed him, but he pinned her against the wall. "W-what are you doing?"

"If the cheek's off-limits, how about here?" Li Luo leaned in, smiling. "Want me to submit another application?"

"No… mmm! Hmm…"

The two of them lingered in the hallway for a long time, until Yan Zhusheng, who had just been sent by Ying Chanxi to press the elevator button, sensed something was off and turned back, forcing them to stop.

"Sister stole another snack," Yan Zhusheng remarked without expression, "Really bad."

"I didn't," Ying Chanxi retorted irritably, "It's all because Li Luo insisted on kissing."

"He insisted on kissing, so you let him?" Yan Zhusheng asked. "You must've been the one who seduced Li Luo first."

"That's the kind of thing only you would do," Ying Chanxi couldn't help rolling her eyes. "People always judge others by their own habits—you're exactly like that."

"I never seduce Li Luo," Yan Zhusheng shook his head. "I just kiss him directly."

Ying Chanxi: "..."

"Alright, alright, stop arguing," Li Luo said, wrapping an arm around each of them as he led them out the door, then gave Yan Zhusheng an extra kiss as compensation. "Let's go."