Chapter 865

The day after returning from the provincial office, Li Luo was chased down by Yan Zhusheng.

Because he had previously promised to go to TuDou's house for dinner, he agreed to Yan Zhusheng's request to spend the whole day with her.

Later, he simply stayed overnight at TuDou's house, leaving Yan Zhusheng and Ying Chanxi alone in bed that night.

So Li Luo naturally needed to make some compensation.

Thus, after finishing his morning run on January 31st, Ying Chanxi went straight to the company, Xu Youyu returned to sleep, and Yan Zhusheng dragged Li Luo up to the fourth-floor piano room to have him accompany her in vocal warm-ups and piano practice.

Li Luo had no objection—he'd been unusually idle lately.

"The Great Gan Night Patrol" was already finished, but he was still releasing it at the steady pace of two chapters per day, slowly consuming his final backlog; he estimated it would officially conclude by late March or early April.

He had already written quite a bit of the new book's opening, and after the first few chapters were approved by the chief editor and executive editor, he began stockpiling drafts.

Over these past few days, he'd accumulated roughly twenty chapters—tens of thousands of words in total.

At this rate, by mid-February when the new book officially launches, he'll have at least one or two hundred thousand words in reserve—he couldn't feel more relaxed.

Occasionally spending time with his lovely wives was no problem at all.

Just don't keep draining him dry every other minute.

If he didn't stick to daily workouts, he'd already be worn out just keeping up with Xu Youyu and Yan Zhusheng.

So, monogamy really does have its merits…

"Sit here."

Yan Zhusheng sat at the piano, shifted her small butt slightly to the side, leaving half the bench for Li Luo, then looked up at him.

Li Luo nodded and stepped forward, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Yan Zhusheng, his hands resting on the piano's black and white keys: "What to play?"

Yan Zhusheng didn't answer—she simply extended her hands and began playing the opening of a song.

Li Luo heard it once and instantly recognized it, matching her rhythm with his own hands as they played "The Sun" together.

"I just want to be your sun~ your sun~"

Yan Zhusheng hummed along to the melody, then forgot the lyrics and simply hummed nonsense syllables, warming up her voice until it grew clear and bright.

Though Yan Zhusheng always found excuses to cling to Li Luo, she never cut corners when it came to serious matters.

The entire piano and vocal warm-up session lasted over an hour, ending only near nine o'clock.

By then, Butler Liu had instructed the kitchen to bring up fresh fruit cuts and warm water.

Yan Zhusheng eagerly shoved Li Luo onto the sofa, bit into a grape, and kissed him.

The two lounged together on the sofa for a long while before Yan Zhusheng returned to normal, sitting again at the piano.

This time, she wasn't just playing piano—she followed her feelings and inspiration, letting her fingers move freely in spontaneous creation.

In short, it was improvisation.

Every shift in melody reflected the ebb and flow of her emotions.

When she hit a passage she particularly liked, she'd suddenly pause, sit motionless at the piano, occasionally plucking a few notes, then sink into thought.

Only after jotting it down on blank sheet music would she continue playing.

For Yan Zhusheng, this was an extra pleasure of playing piano.

Around ten in the morning, Yan Zhusheng stopped again, curled into Li Luo's arms, and begged for fruit and kisses.

After resting enough, her gaze fell on the other instruments hanging on the wall.

Yan Zhusheng walked to the wall, took down a flute, and played a short passage with ease.

Then she picked up a pipa and sat beside Li Luo to play a few pieces.

She switched between seven or eight different instruments, thoroughly enjoying herself, occasionally pulling Li Luo in to try them too.

For Li Luo, who possessed the Memory Palace, if someone played an instrument in front of him, he could activate the Soul-Embodiment function and perfectly replicate it.

So for him, trying them out occasionally wasn't hard—it was actually fun.

To Yan Zhusheng, this made it even more interesting.

She genuinely loved music—not because Yuan Wanqing forced her to learn and play.

Li Luo could feel her passion and joy in her demeanor, just as he had when Yan Zhusheng was already over thirty in his past life.

"Don't you find it boring?" Yan Zhusheng asked suddenly after finishing with the accordion.

"Not boring at all," Li Luo replied, taking the accordion from her hands, remembering a famous figure, and beginning to play, "It's quite interesting."

"But you—spending every morning in the piano room—don't you get bored?"

"Most people would find it dull, wouldn't they?"

"No," Yan Zhusheng blinked. "If it's dull, why bother learning music at all?"

"Heh… say that to me, but don't say it during your livestreams," Li Luo laughed. "Otherwise, how many fans would break?"

"Why would they break?" Yan Zhusheng tilted her head.

"Probably because they envy you," Li Luo patted her head. "Time's up—let's go downstairs for lunch."

"Okay."

"What are you planning to do this afternoon?" Li Luo asked as they descended the stairs. "I promised to spend the whole day with you."

"If I'm free in the afternoon, I usually listen to music or watch movies," Yan Zhusheng said. "You're going to work out, right?"

"Listening to music while working out won't interfere," Li Luo said, holding her hand. "After I'm done, shall we watch a movie up on the fourth floor?"

"Okay."

Yan Zhusheng wasn't satisfied with just holding hands—she wrapped her arms around Li Luo's, pressing her whole body against him.

When they reached the first-floor dining room, they found the other two weren't there.

"Aren't Chanxi and Youyu here?" Li Luo asked Butler Liu.

"Miss Ying said she's busy at the company and won't be coming home for lunch," Butler Liu bowed slightly. "Miss Xu hasn't left the third floor since this morning—she's probably still asleep."

"Let her sleep then," Li Luo chuckled. "When she wakes up, find out what she wants to eat and prepare it for her."

"Alright." Butler Liu nodded lightly and instructed the kitchen to serve the dishes.

After eating lunch with Yan Zhusheng, Li Luo took her hand and walked through the back gate into the neighborhood's greenery, strolling for over half an hour.

After a light digest, they arrived at the gym on the basement level of the villa.

Li Luo worked out inside, while Yan Zhusheng brought a portable speaker and played some recently released songs.

Many of these singers Li Luo had never heard of; most were independent musicians and small-label artists with no promotional channels or connections, yet their work was of high quality.

Over these two lifetimes, Li Luo had been subtly shaped by Yan Zhusheng's influence, and his musical taste had gradually developed—he could now appreciate the thought behind these new compositions.

In contrast, Yan Zhusheng rarely listened to pop music; the pop songs she heard most often were those composed by Li Luo. "How much does this weigh?" Yan Zhusheng crouched beside Li Luo as he did bench presses, listening to music and asking curiously.

"This is fine—fifty kilograms." Li Luo performed the standard bench press motion with ease, barely warming up; he was about to add more weight.

Yan Zhusheng blinked at this: "That's about the same as me?"

"True," Li Luo smiled. "I can lift you up effortlessly right now."

"True," Yan Zhusheng nodded, recalling how she had clung to Li Luo while he relentlessly dominated her—he had held out for ages, while she nearly collapsed.

◆￠〇

Although Yan Zhusheng had long practiced morning runs and possessed far better stamina than Xu Youyu, she had never trained consistently like Li Luo; in a direct fight, she was certainly no match for him.

"Then try lifting me up?" Yan Zhusheng suddenly felt intrigued and suggested it.

"Huh?" Li Luo paused, set down the barbell, and grinned at her. "If you want to try, come on up."

"I'm coming!" Yan Zhusheng scrambled onto Li Luo without hesitation.

The next instant, she felt his hands firmly lifting her—her entire body instantly rose into the air.

To Li Luo, Yan Zhusheng was light; at his current fitness level, fifty kilograms was still too easy.

But after playing around on the gym equipment for a while, some intimate contact was inevitable.

As they kept working out, the atmosphere suddenly shifted.

By the time Li Luo came to his senses, both of them were completely naked.

Yan Zhusheng sat sprawled in his lap, breathing softly, her cheeks flushed as she leaned against his chest, savoring the lingering warmth.

"We agreed to work out, and you're acting up again."

Li Luo sighed.

"You were the one who started it."

"Was I?" Li Luo replied with a deadpan expression. "Didn't you be the one who couldn't resist kissing me first?"

"But you were the one who lifted me into the air first."

"Is that even a thing? I was just working out, okay?"

"There are gym machines for working out—why did you lift me?"

Li Luo: "…You little demon, I think you're asking for trouble."

Saying this, Li Luo raised one hand.

The next instant, Yan Zhusheng felt a sharp smack—crack, crack—and her blush deepened further.

After lingering together for a while, Li Luo finally picked her up and carried her into the gym's private bathroom.

After a quick rinse, they changed clothes and went up to the fourth-floor entertainment room, picked a movie on the big screen, and enjoyed it while snacking on fruit and treats.

Midway through the film, the entertainment room door opened.

Xu Youyu peeked in and saw the two of them cuddled together watching the movie; she sighed in exasperation: "You didn't even invite me? That's unfair. Xi Xi isn't here, but I'm still at home."

Saying this, Xu Youyu stepped inside, intending to join their private moment.

But Yan Zhusheng turned to Xu Youyu, raised both hands in front of her chest to form an X, and declared firmly: "Sis, you're not allowed."

"What's not allowed?" Xu Youyu blinked.

"Today is my exclusive day with Li Luo—you can't interrupt us."

"Zhusheng, that's going too far—you're claiming ownership now?"

"Sis? The night before last, you spent the whole night alone with Li Luo outside. When he called me, his voice was panting." Yan Zhusheng narrowed her eyes. "Sister's too clueless to notice, but I'm not stupid."

Hearing this, Xu Youyu chuckled awkwardly, scratching her head in embarrassment: "Ahahaha… um… well… I still have to write—I'm going downstairs now! You two enjoy the movie—I'm not even interested anyway! Bye!"

Xu Youyu slipped away immediately. Yan Zhusheng watched her retreating back, then happily narrowed her eyes, snuggled closer to Li Luo, and pulled his hand around her waist.

"That night… you noticed?" Li Luo coughed and asked.

"Of course," Yan Zhusheng glanced at him. "What else?"

"…I held it in, I swear."

"That's exactly the kind of stifled breathing," Yan Zhusheng explained seriously. "Before, when you called Sister while we were alone together, it was the same sound."

Li Luo: "…"

Damn, Yan Zhusheng's surveillance instincts were off the charts—she could even detect that?

…

In the evening, Ying Chanxi finally returned home, preparing to have dinner with Li Luo and the others.

But when she reached the dining room, she found only Xu Youyu at the table.

"Huh? Where's Li Luo?" Ying Chanxi asked, puzzled. "And Zhusheng?"

"They went out shopping and had dinner," Xu Youyu replied calmly.

"What?" Ying Chanxi's lips pouted in annoyance. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"If we'd told you ahead of time, Sister would've shamelessly tagged along," Xu Youyu winked. "That's Zhusheng's exact words."

Ying Chanxi: "…How am I shameless? She's the shameless one!"

"You'll have to argue that with her," Xu Youyu chuckled. "Come, let's eat first."

Ying Chanxi finished dinner in a huff and waited all evening on the basement-level entrance until 9:30, when Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng finally came home.

As soon as he stepped inside, Li Luo saw Ying Chanxi standing with her arms crossed and a serious expression; his heart sank, thinking he'd have to coax her again.

But Yan Zhusheng had already stepped forward, wrapping her arm around Ying Chanxi's and saying, "Sister, I have good news for you."

"What?" Ying Chanxi glanced at her. "Don't think you can distract me with some story and get away with what happened today."

"Relax," Yan Zhusheng said. "Senior sister said that since she kept Li Luo company for two days straight, today Li Luo is mine, and tomorrow he's yours."

"Of course."

"If you think it's not good enough, forget it—then…"

"Stop!" Ying Chanxi immediately cut off Yan Zhusheng's next words, slapping her palm. "Deal!"

Li Luo: "... Wait, what am I to you two?"

"Don't speak," Yan Zhusheng turned and winked at him.

"Shut up!" Ying Chanxi turned and glared at him.

Li Luo, helpless, had no choice but to accept the arrangement.