"Right, how many days do you plan to stay on Lu Island?"
"At that moment, what do you think about heading back with you?"
Hearing this, Su Wanyu couldn't stop her silly grin, suddenly looking up at the moon and speaking in a soft whisper, "The moonlight tonight is so beautiful."
"It's only the twelfth, not quite full yet." Lu Liang followed her gaze, looking towards the cloudless sky where a bright moon hung.
Su Wanyu wrinkled her nose, hugging his arm, saying, "To me, it looks even more beautiful than on the fifteenth or sixteenth."
Lu Liang realized then, laughing softly, "The scenery stays the same, it's the mood of the beholder that changes."
Su Wanyu, feeling delighted, eyes crinkled in a smile, added, "And also who you're appreciating the scenery with."
Just off work, he had flown straight here, only having eaten a small piece of bread from Southern Airlines on the way, which was not very tasty.
"Come on, I'll take you to the flatbread shop I've been eating at since I was a child, along with oyster pancakes, and four-fruit soup..."
Upon hearing that Lu Liang hadn't had dinner, Su Wanyu hurried more than if she herself hadn't eaten, pulling him directly into an alley.
"Commerce on the island is too commercialized, to taste the local specialties, you still have to eat at these old stores in the alleys."
During the three-day holiday, Su Wanyu took Lu Liang around to all the major sights inside and outside of Lu Island, as well as her schools from elementary to high school.
Lu Liang also came to understand Su Wanyu's growth journey: she lived in a family without financial concerns and utmost happiness.
While not extraordinarily rich, her family managed not to scatter all over the place for livelihood; her parents were there throughout her growth, and they even had bought a set of houses for her and her brother early on.
Indeed, only such a family could raise a girl with a personality like hers.
By Tuesday morning, Lu Liang canceled his flight ticket and took the high-speed train back to Modu with Su Wanyu.
Old Meng, who had been let roam free for three days, took a plane and arrived in Modu an hour and a half early; he drove to the airport to pick them up.
"Is this your cousin? Has he been with you on Lu Island these last few days? How come you never mentioned him." Su Wanyu said in surprise, at a loss for words.
"Did you want him to disturb our time alone together?" Lu Liang took Su Wanyu's hand, kissing the back of it.
These past few nights, Su Wanyu always went home on time, but after the shared experiences, their relationship had grown very intimate.
"After all, he made the long trip to join you," she said.
Su Wanyu's face showed a sense of guilt, extending her hand generously, "Hello Shiyu, I'm Su Wanyu, Lu Liang's girlfriend."
"Hello, future cousin-in-law," Fang Shiyu responded with a dull expression, though his dark skin hid his true emotions.
He knew his cousin had many girlfriends, discounting the one from the fast-food restaurant, there were already three up to this point.
Blushing, Su Wanyu said, "Don't call me that, I am only a few months older than you, 'Yu' will do."
"Maybe you should call her Sister Yu," Lu Liang chimed in with a chuckle, smoothing things over.
Su Wanyu, unlike Li Manli, was not ready to accept such a direct appellation.
"Okay, Sister Yu. Bro, where are we heading?"
"To Scholarly Splendor on Academic Road."
"Scholarly Splendor?"
Su Wanyu looked puzzled, being a University City resident, she naturally had heard of Scholarly Splendor.
Many aged professors, deans, and even university presidents lived there.
"We'll handle some things there first."
Lu Liang didn't elaborate, letting his cousin drive them to the destination, where upon arrival he contacted the residential property management to ask for the keys to the house door.
Since purchasing the place, he hadn't come to take another look; it had been left vacant, and he hadn't even collected the keys.
Lu Liang left Old Meng downstairs to watch the car, taking Su Wanyu to apartment 1202 in building 7. Opening the door, he felt cobwebs on his face and a musty smell inside the house.
Opening the balcony's glass door, he said, "It's been a while since anyone's lived here; it's gotten a bit stale."
"Why buy it, then?" Su Wanyu asked with a conflicted expression, noticing that the balcony faced the Tongji University sports field.
After showing Su Wanyu around, Lu Liang asked with a smile, "Are you satisfied? If not, we can go look at another one."
"Ah? There's another set?" Wanyu was stunned, suddenly feeling that Liang might not have bought it especially for her.
"Now, the property prices are rising nationwide, in every city. Isn't it normal to buy a few more to wait for appreciation?"
Liang made up the story effortlessly, although he indeed had that idea. But luxury houses in the urban area were too expensive, ranging from tens to hundreds of millions, so he planned to wait another year or two.
The reason he said there were several more was to make it easier for Wanyu to accept it, and it seemed the effect was not bad.
"They're all empty? You're not renting them out?"
"Renting them out doesn't make much money, and they might mess up the place, not even covering the renovation costs."
"I don't understand the thoughts of the rich," Wanyu said with a mix of laughter and tears.
Liang walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around Wanyu's slim waist, and pressed his cheek against hers: "Can you help me look after this place, so the property management doesn't mess around when I'm not here? You see, I even threw the keys at them."
"I know you have your pride, so if it's embarrassing for you, just help me pay some of the property fees since it's empty anyway."
"Or if you're not satisfied with the location of this one, we can go somewhere else in a bit."
"No... I'm not unsatisfied."
Her face flushed and her mind wandered.
Liang's heated body was like a fireball, making her heartbeat quicken every time they got close.
"Then it's settled. I'll have someone change the locks later, and you'll have to trouble yourself to tidy up over the next few days."
Liang contacted the property manager to have someone change the locks and hire cleaners to tidy up, leaving Old Meng to supervise.
He took Wanyu straight to the nearby IKEA, buying anything that caught their eye and filling up a whole delivery truck.
Finally, Liang left a credit card identical to Zhang Qian's, without disclosing how much was in it or how much could be spent.
He just asked Wanyu to oversee the purchases, to buy whatever was missing, and to help him furnish the new place.
"Yu, I'll leave this to you. The company just called; something came up and I need to go back to handle it."
After saying that, Liang left with Old Meng, leaving Wanyu stamping her feet in frustration.
Just back at the company, Liang saw Wang Xiaocong sitting restlessly and shaking his leg in the break area.
Seeing Liang return, Xiaocong put on a flattering smile: "Liang, where did you go for the Mid-Autumn holiday? I haven't heard from you at all."
"Get to the point, will you? Can't you drop the disgusting act?" Liang said, repulsed; hastened footsteps approached from behind.
Old Meng hurried in, his belly even bigger than before, trembling as he ran just like a woman's cleavage.
"What a coincidence? You're both here?"
Liang led them to his office, thinking of brewing some tea but suddenly realized the cupboard was out of tea leaves.
Old Meng immediately grabbed his phone and dialed: "Little Liu, get back to the office now, and bring over the best tea from my cupboard."
Liang chuckled in amusement, curious: "What's gotten into you two? Possessed by ghosts?"
Little Wang looked deeply affectionate, almost oozing sentiment: "Liang, today is the 25th."
Old Meng added: "The net value was updated."
Liang smiled knowingly: "Right, 1.84, huh?"
Xiaocong felt there was something off with Liang's tone and emphasized for his benefit: "It's 1.84!"
Meng Changkun, cigar in mouth, marveled: "An 84% return in a month, man, you're defying the heavens."
"The new energy index rose by 112%, and the fund went up by 84%. Is that a lot?" Liang asked with a smile.
"This is a billion, a billion US dollars. You made 84 million US dollars in one month. Isn't that a lot?"
Xiaocong sulked, feeling Liang was feigning nonchalance; even Changkun nodded in agreement: "It's explosive."
This afternoon at 12, the net value was updated on schedule, and he must have been the first to call Wen Chao.
Before he could react, including his assistant's, all their phones were bombarded with calls; friends were inquiring about the next funding round.
Especially those who he had once invited but did not agree, now they were green with regret.
Xiaocong nodded frantically like a pecking chicken: "Liang, you have no idea how those jerks looked—tsk, tsk..."
He had the satisfaction of glaring down at them and even posted a meme in his circle of friends:
Here's your chance, and you blew it.jpg.