On the first day of school, the school beauty in black stockings took me to a hotel.

At the same time, on the Harmony Express train bound for Chang'an, in carriage number 3.

Liu Yu sat by the window, with earphones in his ears, listening to music and lost in thought.

The bullet train had been traveling for more than two hours north of Beijing. Outside the window, it was pitch black, with only a few lights flashing by occasionally.

My mind is filled with images from this afternoon.

Su Wanqing leaned on his shoulder and whispered, "Ten days...that's a long time."

Her eyes were red, but she held back her tears.

She made a pinky promise with him, saying they would video chat every day.

She saw him off at the station and waved vigorously from outside the security checkpoint.

Liu Yu raised his hand and touched his little finger.

"Sigh..." He sighed and took off his headphones.

The man sitting next to me was an older man watching a TV series on his tablet with the sound on. It was a ridiculous anti-Japanese war drama with absurd dialogue.

Liu Yu opened his phone and tapped on Su Wanqing's chat window.

Hover your finger over the screen.

What are you hitting!

"I've arrived in Zhengzhou!"

Too ordinary.

"What are you doing"!

nonsense.

After hesitating for five minutes, Liu Yu finally sent a photo.

Liu Yu's handsome face was reflected in the train's windows!

[Foot massage therapist #36: This photo was taken on the street.]

I waited for three minutes, but there was no reply.

Liu Yu put his headphones back on, listened to music, reclined his seat, and fell asleep!

When I woke up, it was already 11:30 p.m.

The bullet train is almost at Chang'an.

An announcement came over the loudspeaker: "Attention passengers, the train is about to arrive at Chang'an North Station. Passengers who wish to disembark, please prepare accordingly..."

Liu Yu slung his bag over his shoulder and walked to the connecting area between the carriages.

The bullet train slowly pulled into the station, and outside the window was the familiar night view of my hometown.

The lights at Chang'an North Railway Station shone brightly in the night, and the platform was filled with people.

The car came to a stop, and the door opened.

Liu Yu got off the bus with the crowd, stepped onto the soil of his hometown, and took a deep breath.

The air smells of Chang'an.

He took out his phone, ready to send a message to his dad.

After thinking for a moment, I opened Su Wanqing's chat window first.

The last message he sent was still a night view photo, but she didn't reply.

Liu Yu typed:

[Foot massage therapist #36: I've arrived.]

I sent the message, waited a few seconds, but received no reply.

They're probably asleep.

He logged out of WeChat and called Liu Yuanshan.

"Dad, I've arrived. I just got off the bus."

"Alright! I'm right here at the exit! The one in the red T-shirt, see him?"

Liu Yu looked up toward the exit and sure enough, he saw a red figure waving.

"I see you, come out right away."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Yu dragged his suitcase toward the exit.

Liu Yuanshan was wearing a brand new red T-shirt. He wasn't tall, just over 1.7 meters, and had a slightly chubby figure with a round face. When he smiled, his eyes narrowed into slits, and he looked very kind.

She was standing on tiptoe, craning her neck, searching for her son among the crowd.

"Dad!" Liu Yu called out.

Liu Yuanshan's eyes lit up, and he waved vigorously, "Here I am! Son!"

He took the box from Liu Yu and patted him on the shoulder: "Good lad! You've gotten even more handsome! The food at Tsinghua and Peking University really does nourish people!"

"Dad, I've only been gone for a month..."

"You can become handsome in a month!!" Liu Yuanshan pulled his suitcase towards the parking lot, chatting with an old man next to him as he walked, "See that? My son! He's from Tsinghua or Peking University! He came back to see me during the National Day holiday!"

The old man readily gave a thumbs-up: "Impressive! Impressive! You've got potential!"

Liu Yuanshan held his chin even higher, and walked with a swagger.

Liu Yu followed behind, covering his face.

My dad's habit of showing off hasn't changed at all over the years.

I walked to the parking lot and found the black Passat that I had driven for eight years.

The car is well-maintained and shines brightly.

"Fasten your seatbelt! Are you hungry?"

"I'm not hungry, I ate something in the car. Dad, have you eaten?"

"I've eaten, I've eaten," Liu Yuanshan said, turning the steering wheel out of the parking lot. "I ate with Lao Wang. His son also took the college entrance exam this year and got into Northwestern Polytechnical University, which is pretty good, but not as good as my son..."

Liu Yu smiled and shook his head, then took out his phone.

The screen lit up, showing the group photo of him and Su Wanqing at the Forbidden City.

Liu Yuanshan glanced at her and said, "Who's this? The girl is quite pretty."

"My brother in the game is actually a girl named Su Wanqing."

"Oh!! It's that 'hiding in the toilet and shooting you' thing!"

"Dad! Keep your voice down!"

"What's wrong! Didn't you say that yourself?!"

Liu Yu didn't want to get into the topic and looked down at his phone.

Liu Yuanshan, however, got excited: "Hey son, tell me the truth, what's your relationship with this girl? Just friends!"

"……Um."

"You're using someone else's photo as your wallpaper, you're just a friend!"

"This is a group photo! We took it at the Forbidden City!"

"Oh~! A group photo." Liu Yuanshan looked incredulous. "So, do you like her?"

Liu Yu's hand trembled: "Dad, why are you asking this...?"

"I'm your father! I shouldn't have asked!" Liu Yuanshan said matter-of-factly. "I think this girl is quite nice. She's pretty and has a sweet smile. She's a good match for you."

Liu Yu didn't speak; his ears felt a little hot.

Seeing his reaction, Liu Yuanshan understood what was going on.

"Okay, I won't pressure you. Hey, your phone's pretty nice!"

Liu Yu looked down at the Mate XTS in his hand.

"Yes, it's brand new." He said, showing Liu Yuanshan the charm of the three-fold design!

Liu Yuanshan's eyes lit up: "Wow!!! I've seen this phone before, it's called... Extraordinary Master! It must cost over 20,000!"

Liu Yu's heart skipped a beat: "Dad, what... what's wrong...?"

"How would I know!" Liu Yuanshan snorted. "Even though I use a cheap phone, I still follow tech news! This phone was just released, and the internet is flooded with complaints about it failing. How could I not know!"

His expression turned serious: "Son, tell me the truth, where did this phone come from! Did you... do something illegal! Or did you take out a student loan online! Let me tell you, you can't touch that stuff, the interest rates are terrifyingly high, so many people have been driven to ruin and death..."

"I didn't!" Liu Yu quickly interrupted him. "I didn't do anything illegal, and I didn't take out any student loans! This phone... was a gift from a friend."

"A friend gave it to me!" Liu Yuanshan grinned, glancing at Liu Yu. "A phone worth over 20,000 yuan, just given away like that! What kind of friend is so generous! Your game buddy!"

"Yes! It's that Su Wanqing!"

Liu Yuanshan was silent for three seconds, then slowly spoke:

"Son, are you...being kept by a sugar daddy?!"

Liu Yu nearly choked on his own saliva: "Dad! What are you saying! What do you mean by 'sugar baby' or anything like that! I just... she threw my phone away, this is compensation!"

"Why would she throw her phone at you for no reason! You must have done something to her. Did you bully this young girl?! Liu Yu, let me tell you, the men of the Liu family can be poor, but they can't be spineless, and they certainly can't bully girls!!!"

Liu Yu was going crazy: "I didn't bully her! It was her! She was jealous! A girl asked me for her WeChat, she saw it, came over and threw my phone into the lake!"

The car suddenly fell silent.

Liu Yuanshan gripped the steering wheel, staring straight ahead, a smile beginning to spread across his face.

"Oh my god!!!! You're jealous!!"

"No! What I mean is...!" Liu Yu tried to explain, but the more he tried, the worse it got.

"Alright, alright, Dad understands," Liu Yuanshan smiled, his eyes narrowing into slits. "The girl likes you, and when she sees other girls getting close to you, she gets jealous, throws away your phone, and then buys you a better one. Is that how it is?"

Liu Yu opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything. It seemed... that was indeed the case.

"Not bad, kid. You've got charm, just like me."

"But then again, this girl has quite a temper. She just threw her phone away and demanded compensation. Her family must be well-off!"

"……Um."

"That's great!"

"Drive the Cullinan."

"What's Cullinan?!"

"A Rolls-Royce SUV, with a price tag of around ten million."

"squeak!!!!"

Liu Yuanshan slammed on the brakes, and the car came to a stop on the side of the road.

He turned his head and looked at Liu Yu as if he had heard a fairy tale.

"How much...how much!"

"Around ten million."

Liu Yuanshan remained silent for a full minute.

Then he restarted the car and drove very slowly and steadily.

"Son, I've been thinking about it, and I realized I was wrong to say it was a sugar daddy arrangement. How can this be called a sugar daddy arrangement? This is... this is true love."

"...Dad, you change your attitude way too fast."

"What do you mean by changing your tune! This is just assessing the situation! The girl likes you and is willing to spend so much money on you, which means what? It means she's sincere! We men of the Liu family can't be prejudiced against someone just because they're rich. In the face of true love, money is nothing!"

"Dad, what are you talking about...?"

"But then again, we can't just keep spending their money. You're a student now, you don't have an income, but once you start working, you have to treat them well, you understand?"

"Dad, we're not together yet..."

"It's only a matter of time! You're already jealous and threw your phone away, and you're still not together! What are you waiting for? Waiting for that girl to confess to you first! Liu Yu, let me tell you, boys have to take the initiative..."

Liu Yuanshan began to recount his "glorious love history" from back then, but Liu Yu let it go in one ear and out the other, his eyes fixed on the window.

The car entered Beilin District, familiar streets, familiar lights.

Liu Yu's building was built in the 1990s; it's six stories high and has no elevator.

Liu Yu lives on the third floor.

Liu Yuanshan parked the car, and the two got out and took their luggage from the trunk.

It was late at night, and the neighborhood was very quiet.

"Let's go upstairs," Liu Yuanshan said, carrying his suitcase.

Liu Yu followed.

After taking only a few steps, Liu Yuanshan suddenly stopped.

"Son, did you hear me!"

"What did you hear?!"

"It sounds like someone is calling you."

Liu Yu was taken aback and listened intently.

It seems... there really is a sound!

It was very light and thin, drifting uncertainly in the night breeze.

But that tone...

Liu Yu's heart skipped a beat.

impossible.

He must miss Su Wanqing so much that he's hallucinating.

"Liu! Yu!"

The sound came again, this time clearer, coming from the shadows on the side of the building.

Liu Yuanshan heard it too and turned to look: "Someone really is calling you! Is it your classmate? They know you're back and came to visit!"

"In the middle of the night... Dad, did you run into something unclean...?" Liu Yu stopped mid-sentence.

Because a person emerged from the shadows!