Lu Huaiyu turned off his phone screen after posting it and helped Ning Li to pull out a chair.
“Sit.”
He then sat opposite Ning Li.
“Didn’t I tell you to eat first? Why did you wait till it was so late?”
“It’s not that late.”
Ning Li was not very punctual with her meals. She cared even less now since she had been rather busy these past two days.
Lu Huaiyu looked at her and laughed. “Kids need to eat more to grow taller.”
Ning Li was speechless.
She was not sure why Lu Huaiyu was so obsessed with her height, or if he had some misunderstanding about her being a “kid”.
Ning Li retorted softly. “Adults who don’t eat on time are also prone to stomach problems.”
Lu Huaiyu paused for a moment and gave her a meaningful look.
He was just as she had described, especially this year when his biological clock had been reversed. He could not readjust his sleeping time, so his three meals a day were a little problematic.
After a while, he let out a low chuckle. “Got it.”
Ning Li froze.
‘Got it? Got what?’
Lu Huaiyu had already started eating, so it seemed like just a casual remark.
Bang!
It was another burst of fireworks.
Lu Huaiyu looked outside.
The light of the fireworks seemed to be reflected in his eyes.
He looked at Ning Li with a gentle smile. “Lili, Happy New Year.”
Ning Li held the small soup bowl that was warm and fragrant.
She had never imagined that she would one day sit face to face with Lu Huaiyu like this.
The bright fireworks outside the window greeted the new year as she held the warm bowl of soup in her hand.
Most importantly, Lu Huaiyu was here too.
It had been many years since she had celebrated New Year’s because the new year and the old year made no difference to her.
There was nothing that she looked forward to, so she felt no anticipation and delight. So when she heard Lu Huaiyu’s words, she was caught in a trance for a moment.
After a while, the corners of her lips curled up slightly.
“Second Brother, Happy New Year.”
…
It was peaceful where they were, but Lu Huaiyu’s WeChat Moments was now abuzz.
Cheng Xiyue sat at the dining table in the Presidential Suite of the Caesar Hotel and stared at the photo as he viciously cut a piece of red wine foie gras with expensive silverware.
‘No wonder Lu Huaiyu rejected my offer to bring Ning Li here to stay! So, this is what’s waiting for him at home! Look at this soup! Ning Li must have made it herself, right? This punk kept such a good thing all to himself?!’
When Cheng Xiyue thought about how busy he had been all day but was now left all alone in this boring suite, he felt extremely frustrated.
‘Are you rubbing it in my face that you have company?!’
Cheng Xiyue defiantly picked up his phone and took a dozen shots of the food in front of him from different angles.
He then retouched the pictures trying to find the most ambient filter.
After editing, he finally nodded in satisfaction.
‘Nice! Light, composition, color, saturation…just perfect!’
He edited the picture and posted it on his WeChat Moments.
Five seconds later, Gu Siyang gave him the first like and left the first comment.
[Brother Xiyue, this looks like so much food! Isn’t it wasteful to eat this by yourself?]
Cheng Xiyue was rendered speechless.
A second later, he blocked Gu Siyang.
…
Gu Tinglan also saw Lu Huaiyu’s post.
He clicked on the picture and contemplated it after seeing the obviously seasoned dining table and the very ordinary-looking porcelain bowl and spoon.
“Hey, Lil Uncle, did you see Lu Huaiyu’s post? His soup looks really good! I wonder which restaurant it’s from. Should I ask him?”
Gu Siyang was lying down casually on the sofa as he asked excitedly.
Gu Tinglan glanced at his nephew.
Anyone with eyes could tell that this had been taken at home.
Everyone in the Gu family was intelligent, but somehow, they had managed to get one bad seed.
Gu Tinglan sent a message to Ning Li.
[Are you back in Yunzhou?]
After a while, Ning Li replied.
[I’m staying here for one more night because I had something to do today. I’m going back tomorrow.]
Gu Tinglan came to his own conclusion and looked at Gu Siyang.
Gu Siyang was touching his chin as he studied Lu Huaiyu’s picture.
“Lil Uncle, do you think the lamb soup we had yesterday is better, or this corn pork rib soup?”
Gu Tinglan opened his laptop.
“You can ask Lu Huaiyu yourself.”
Gu Siyang was puzzled and scratched his head.
“Huh? But I don’t think he tried the lamb soup. How can he compare it then?”
Gu Tinglan pinched the bridge of his nose and suddenly felt a rare trace of sympathy for his elder brother.
‘How did Big Brother put up with this son of his for so many years? Luckily, Big Brother’s still in peak health.’
“Gu Siyang.”
“Hmm?”
“After the car is repaired, you should go back to the Capital.”
“Huh? Why?!”
Gu Siyang sat up looking nervous. “Lil Uncle, are you going to tell me to confess so that I’ll get a more lenient punishment?”
‘Is he asking me to go back and turn myself in? Will I even make it out of the Capital alive?’
Gu Tinglan’s fingers tapped away on the keyboard. When he heard this, he paused slightly, seemingly in contemplation.
“That’s one way.”
Gu Siyang’s expression sank.
“He’ll know about it sooner or later. If you confess to him, you might still get to live. However…it’s better to wait until after Chinese New Year.”
It was rare for them to spend Chinese New Year in the country, so Gu Tinglan did not want to ruin everyone’s mood because of this matter.
It would be bad if word got out that Young Master Gu had been thrown out of the house on Chinese New Year’s Eve.
Gu Siyang was teary-eyed. “I knew you’re the best, Lil Uncle!”
“Also, isn’t LY’s training starting soon? Although you’re not responsible for it, it’ll be good for you to go over there more.”
Gu Siyang thought he had misheard and looked at his uncle incredulously.
“Lil Uncle, you mean…you support me in this?”
His father had always been opposed to him racing. Out of everyone in the family, Gu Tinglan was the only one with a mild attitude, even though he was not very supportive.
‘What’s he saying now? Does he want me to train at LY?’
Gu Tinglan finally raised his head and gave him a pitiful look.
“You should go and check out what the professional racers are like. It’ll be a bonus if you can learn something. If not, at least it’ll be a wake-up call that you’re not cut out for racing.”
Gu Siyang was rendered speechless.
‘How is it that I still remain in this family?!’
…
The Capital.
Tonight was Capital TV’s New Year’s Eve party, which was being held at the Capital Stadium.
Many celebrities were attending the live event.
The audience below the stage was filled to the brim. The signs and glow sticks that the fans held created a sea of colorful lights.
Among them, a group of fans remained the most dominant, Xu Yini’s fanbase, “The Ripples”.
In the backstage dressing room, Xu Yini was having her makeup done as she casually scrolled through WeChat Moments and immediately froze.
She thought she saw Lu Huaiyu’s name appear.
Xu Yini clicked on the profile picture and confirmed that it was the one and only Lu Huaiyu.
