Chapter 27

Wen Ningshu followed the sound toward Shen Huaixi, only to realize that he had come back without her noticing.

Ever since Su Xingyao had intentionally hurt Shen Huaixi a few times when he first returned, Shen Huaixi, for some reason, developed a misconception that with a biological son, he might be cast aside. As a result, he became very cautious and sensitive whenever Su Xingyao was mentioned.

Given this situation, both Wen Ningshu and Shen Liangyu had tacitly agreed that, unless necessary, they would try not to bring up anything related to Su Xingyao in front of Shen Huaixi.

Now that their adopted son had suddenly appeared, both of them instinctively kept quiet and refrained from talking about Su Xingyao’s past.

Feeling down, Wen Ningshu quickly composed herself, smiled, and stood up to greet Shen Huaixi.

“Xixi, why didn’t you call me earlier? Have you eaten? I’ll ask Aunt Liu to make something for you.”

Shen Huaixi casually nodded at Wen Ningshu. “I’ve eaten, I’ve eaten.”

After that, his gaze immediately turned toward Shen Liangyu with excitement.

“Mom, Dad, did you know Xingyao’s been on TV? He’s really amazing! I just heard the news on the way back, and I couldn’t wait to come and tell you!”

With a sincere smile on his face, Shen Huaixi took out his phone and handed the interview video to Shen Liangyu.

“Dad, did you watch it? Xingyao is so popular now, his topic’s trending everywhere, and his Weibo was all over the place for days. Now everyone online is talking about him!”

Su Xingyao entering the entertainment industry had always been a sensitive topic for Shen Liangyu.

Now, Shen Huaixi intentionally brought up how many people were talking about him and even showed him the video—it was as if he was dancing on a landmine.

Hearing this, Shen Liangyu, who was already irritated, didn’t even want to glance at the video. With a cold snort, he turned and walked away.

After a few steps, he stopped, put on a stern face, and scolded, “Don’t be happy for him. He’s just embarrassing himself.”

Seeing his father’s angry departure, Shen Huaixi’s smile immediately froze on his face. He looked at his mother with some grievance.

Then, he realized that Wen Ningshu was zoning out.

In the past, she would have immediately comforted him and softly scolded his father, telling him not to take it to heart.

But this time, nothing came.

This subtle difference made Shen Huaixi uncomfortable.

He quickly turned around and walked to his mother’s side.

But he found that she had already turned her attention back to him.

However, the expression in her eyes was completely different from before. There was no longer the blind affection, but instead, an indescribable emotion.

For a moment, Shen Huaixi thought his mother had seen through his intentions earlier…

“Mom, what’s wrong?”

With a look of panic, Shen Huaixi approached Wen Ningshu and cautiously asked, “Did I say something wrong just now?”

Upon hearing his words, Wen Ningshu seemed to snap back to reality a little.

“No, it’s just your father. Don’t mind him.” Wen Ningshu forced a smile, but she didn’t want to discuss anything else with Shen Huaixi.

She rubbed her temples and sighed wearily. “I stayed up late last night and I’m a little tired. I’m going to rest. If you’re hungry, Aunt Liu will make something for you.”

As soon as Wen Ningshu mentioned Aunt Liu, the woman hurried out from the room.

“Young Master, you’re back! Why didn’t you let us know beforehand? It’s raining outside, right? Look, your coat is all wet! Let me go get you another one.”

In stark contrast to the couple, Shen Liangyu and Wen Ningshu, Aunt Liu’s face showed an undeniable joy upon seeing Shen Huaixi return home.

Her concern didn’t end with the usual greetings. She immediately started bustling around, attending to Shen Huaixi, her every action clearly focused solely on him.

Wen Ningshu glanced at Aunt Liu, but given that Aunt Liu had always treated Shen Huaixi this way since he was young, she didn’t think much of it.

After giving a few brief instructions, Wen Ningshu began to head upstairs.

However, halfway up, she couldn’t help but turn around, her gaze falling on Shen Huaixi.

From where Wen Ningshu was standing, she could only see Shen Huaixi’s back.

Yet, in her mind, the image of him mentioning Su Xingyao in front of Shen Liangyu earlier kept flashing.

Rationally, she knew that Shen Huaixi had always been like this—he was open and candid with them, and when it came to Su Xingyao, he would just say whatever came to mind.

But for some reason, this time, Wen Ningshu couldn’t shake the feeling that something about the scene seemed off…

It felt as if every word had been deliberately spoken.

—

The recording for We’re Going Traveling had finished a couple of days ago.

However, due to interviews with many local media outlets and government departments in Qingshan City, Su Xingyao had to delay his return by two days.

After finishing all the interviews, once it was confirmed that Su Xingyao was alone, the local government sent a car to take him to the airport.

Early in the morning, Su Xingyao, dragging his luggage, arrived at the hotel’s underground parking lot, where he quickly found the driver who had come to pick him up.

The car started, and they smoothly drove out of the parking lot.

It was still early, and feeling a bit tired, Su Xingyao pulled out his headphones, intending to listen to some music.

However, when he casually looked up, he was surprised to see a large crowd of people standing not far from the hotel’s entrance.

At first, Su Xingyao thought there had been a traffic accident.

But the next second, as he focused, he saw a long banner from across the crowd—

“Thank you, Su Xingyao! We hope to see you again in Qingshan!”

The driver, who had also noticed the scene, immediately smiled and explained, “Everyone heard that you, Mr. Su, were leaving, so they rushed over this early to say goodbye.”

The driver honked the horn, and as though cued by the sound, the people outside began enthusiastically waving at Su Xingyao from afar.

Although not as packed as the scenes on television, a significant number of people had gathered to see Su Xingyao off. Many had arrived so early, before dawn, to ensure they didn’t miss the chance to send him off.

Before all this, perhaps to avoid disturbing Su Xingyao, the crowd had kept quiet, waiting patiently and orderly outside, eager to offer their sincere goodbyes as soon as he emerged.

Now that the car had finally emerged, the crowd began to stir with excitement, and people started shouting Su Xingyao’s name.

The sound filtered through the car window and reached Su Xingyao’s ears.

Realizing that everyone had gathered to bid him farewell, Su Xingyao quickly sat up straight, pressing himself against the glass to look at the people outside.

In his 23 years, he had never experienced such treatment.

To be exact, he had never faced such overwhelming gratitude from so many people so directly before.

This left him at a loss for how to respond.

Through the rearview mirror, the driver saw Su Xingyao’s surprise and, slowing down, began to explain.

“Qingshan is actually a place with a rich history and culture. It’s an ancient city with many scenic spots.”

The driver sighed. “But despite the local tourism bureau’s efforts, we were never able to gain much recognition. Many people across the country hadn’t even heard of Qingshan before.”

“But now, thanks to you, everyone knows about Qingshan. It’s become a sensation nationwide. For the common people like us, we’re the ones who feel the change the most, so everyone is really grateful to you.”

The driver smiled. “They probably heard that you’re leaving today and rushed over to thank you in person.”

The driver’s words left Su Xingyao stunned.

“I really didn’t do much, it was just a spontaneous gesture,” Su Xingyao said, not trying to downplay his actions but simply stating what he believed to be the truth.

Although the local government had been emphasizing and thanking him for making Qingshan famous online, Su Xingyao was well aware that the true reason for Qingshan’s rise in popularity was the hard work of the local government and the people themselves.

The government was approachable, willing to listen to the public’s opinions, and highly efficient at correcting problems once identified.

The local people were passionate and proactive, not hiding the problems but rather working to fix them and protect the local image.

And he, in truth, was the smallest part of the equation.

The driver disagreed, laughing.

“But that seemingly small act was the most important thing. Qingshan has waited for so many years, and it never got its chance before.”

The driver’s gaze shifted toward the common folk outside. “In the past few days, our small businesses have had unprecedented success. Everyone is sincerely thanking you.”

Su Xingyao followed the driver’s gaze and looked outside.

At that moment, the car drove into the area with the largest crowd, and Su Xingyao noticed that not only were there banners, but some people were also holding flags and hand signs, all covered in his name.

In addition to those, there were various strange and unusual items being offered.

Aside from the usual milk, vegetables, and fruits, there was even someone holding a large rooster.

Before long, the car had driven up to the crowd, and everyone excitedly waved at him.

Seeing that everyone was speaking to him, Su Xingyao quickly rolled down the car window and waved back at the people of Qingshan.

Passersby standing by the side of the road immediately became excited when they saw Su Xingyao in person.

“Ahhhhhh, Mr. Su!!!”

“Thank you, Mr. Xiao Su!”

“Safe travels, Su Xingyao!”

“Goodbye, Su Xingyao! Be sure to come visit us in Qingshan City again!”

Hearing this, Su Xingyao nodded and replied, “Thank you, everyone. I’ll come back when I have time.”

In the time it took for Su Xingyao to say just these two sentences, several enthusiastic citizens had already started shoving flags through the car window.

Chasing after the car like this was quite dangerous, and Su Xingyao worried it might lead to a traffic accident. He quickly urged everyone to stop.

Although the crowd was excited, they thankfully listened to his advice. With the help of a few young people who automatically stepped in to maintain order, they reluctantly returned to the safety line.

While they couldn’t deliver the gifts, Su Xingyao still received many verbal promises.

A man raised a loudspeaker and shouted to Su Xingyao, “Su Xingyao, next time you come, come to my house for a barbecue! It’s always free!!”

Another young girl jumped up and waved to him, “Su Xingyao, our fruit salad is free too! Wait for you to come back next time!”

“My grilled fish is free too!”

“Free ice jelly!!”

“Fruit is free too… next time you come back…”

Saying goodbye was always hard.

As the car moved further away, Su Xingyao could no longer clearly hear what they were saying.

He turned his head and looked at the blurred figures of the people in the distance, but his emotions remained unsettled.

For stars who normally enjoy a massive following and adoration, such scenes were nothing out of the ordinary. Being stuck at an airport or blocked by fans wasn’t unusual for them.

But for Su Xingyao, who had always been plagued by scandals and had no fans at all, this was the first time he had experienced such overwhelming affection and kindness from so many strangers in such a direct and tangible way.

After realizing this world was a fictional one, he had grown indifferent to many things.

He didn’t care about life or death, or about what others thought of him.

The only thing he cared about was the dream he had made with his childhood friend.

So even though the entertainment industry, filled with both fans and haters, criticized him, he still went on variety shows and filmed TV shows.

Because he didn’t know if he could ever find that person again, he could only try to stand higher, get more exposure, and make sure they could see him, no matter where they were in the country.

He worked hard to do what he wanted, but it was also to ensure that his friend could see him, no matter where they were.

But this trip to Qingshan had made Su Xingyao feel some of the different meanings and values of being a public figure.

His parents had constantly pua-ed (manipulated emotionally) and suppressed him, believing that as a star, he was like an ancient performer — not only worthless but also a source of embarrassment.

Although he had disagreed with them, he had compromised and given in many times to accommodate their feelings.

But in reality, there was no need to do that, was there?

Su Xingyao lowered his gaze to the flag in his hand and gripped it tightly.

After bidding farewell to the people of Qingshan, Su Xingyao boarded the plane back home.

After more than two hours of flying, they finally arrived at the airport.

This time, Su Xingyao didn’t bother asking the Lu family’s driver to come all the way to pick him up. Instead, he took a taxi directly back to the Lu family’s villa.

As soon as he entered the house after unlocking the door, he saw the familiar footsteps of Sunset and the sound of the tail wagging—his dog was waiting at the door, looking at him.

The usually aloof Coral also surprised him by making an exception, gently swishing her tail and acting cute in front of him.

Su Xingyao squatted down and quickly gave both the cat and dog a good cuddle.

“Long time no see, little Sunset, little Coral.”

Coral raised her paw and lightly tapped Su Xingyao’s sleeve in protest, then meowed.

Su Xingyao immediately corrected himself, “I saw your video while recording the show.”

He smiled and, with utmost precision, switched their names around. “Little Coral, little Sunset, you two are so cute.”

Finally, with Sunset’s name mentioned first, Coral happily flicked her tail and led Su Xingyao toward the house.

Sunset, who hadn’t noticed anything, was entirely focused on Su Xingyao.

When Coral walked off, Sunset quickly followed and ran back to Su Xingyao’s side. It opened its mouth to bite the suitcase handle, trying to help lighten his “burden.”

“It’s fine, I can carry it myself. It’s not heavy.”

Su Xingyao explained to his dog as he followed both the cat and dog into the living room.

A few minutes later, when he stepped into the living room on the first floor, he was unexpectedly surprised to find Lu Jiuxu at home.

Not only was he home, but Lu Jiuxu was sitting properly on the couch, watching TV.

Whether he heard the noise or had exceptionally sharp senses, as soon as Su Xingyao stepped in, Lu Jiuxu turned his head toward him.

Before Su Xingyao could say anything, Lu Jiuxu was the first to greet him. “Su Xingyao, you’re back.”

His clean, magnetic voice was especially pleasant to hear.

Lu Jiuxu stood up and walked toward Su Xingyao.

For a moment, hearing such a new form of address from Lu Jiuxu, Su Xingyao took a couple of seconds to process it.

In his memory, Lu Jiuxu had never formally called him like this before.

When they first met, they politely called each other Mr. Su and Mr. Lu.

But after spending so much time together, Su Xingyao felt that their relationship could now be considered as friends.

And as he had this realization, he noticed that Lu Jiuxu hadn’t called him Mr. Su for a long time.

However, Lu Jiuxu hadn’t called him by his full name either, as it would feel too distant.

Unlike how Lu Zhiyun would call him “Xingyao” or “Susu” in such an affectionate manner, Su Xingyao was certain that someone with Lu Jiuxu’s personality would never easily use those names.

So, when he returned from filming the variety show and heard the words “Mr. Xiao Su” come out of Lu Jiuxu’s mouth…

Although Su Xingyao was slightly surprised to hear it, it somehow felt just right.

In fact…

Even better.

Over the past few days, many people have called him “Mr. Xiao Su.”

But for some reason, Su Xingyao felt that when Lu Jiuxu said it, it was different from when everyone else said it.

During the few seconds Su Xingyao was lost in thought, Lu Jiuxu had already walked up to him.

Today, Lu Jiuxu was wearing a pair of silver-rimmed, thin-framed glasses.

He still looked as handsome as he had a few days ago, but now he appeared a bit more refined than usual.

Noticing Su Xingyao’s gaze, Lu Jiuxu raised his hand to take off his glasses.

“I forgot to take them off while looking at some documents on the computer earlier.”

Realizing that Lu Jiuxu was explaining the reason behind his glasses, Su Xingyao’s first thought was actually a bit of regret that he hadn’t had more time to admire this new, handsome look.

But he couldn’t help but compliment him, “You still look quite handsome like this.”

—“Boss, is this scale accurate?”

Right after Su Xingyao finished complimenting him, an extremely familiar voice reached his ears.

Following the sound, he looked at the large TV screen.

To his surprise, the program playing was the edited version of We’re Going Traveling, the one he had filmed just a few days ago.

At this moment, the person standing right in the center of the screen, coincidentally, was himself…

Walking into the house and being greeted by his own variety show playing on a huge TV screen…

Su Xingyao forgot all his other thoughts and couldn’t help but look at Lu Jiuxu.

At this moment, a big question mark appeared in his mind.

He was curious if someone like Lu Jiuxu, from a business elite background, would really watch this kind of variety show to pass the time during his leisure.

In Su Xingyao’s memory, it seemed like Lu Jiuxu had never really watched these kinds of shows before.

As he was pondering this, Lu Jiuxu’s attention was also drawn to Su Xingyao, who was on the screen in the segment where he was mocking the inaccurate scale.

Once that segment ended, Lu Jiuxu turned back to Su Xingyao, his eyes filled with a smile as deep as a pond. “Mr. Xiao Su is really impressive.”

Flattered, Su Xingyao lowered his gaze slightly and asked, “So you were watching this variety show just now?”

“Yeah, I watched for a while,” Lu Jiuxu replied.

His nonchalant attitude made Su Xingyao feel a bit embarrassed for overreacting, so he joked, “I thought you usually spend your free time watching business news and reading all sorts of documents.”

Lu Jiuxu smiled faintly. “Well, that’s actually pretty accurate too.”

After a brief pause, his expression turned slightly more serious as he added, “But missing Mr. Xiao Su’s variety show debut would be a real waste.”

A real waste?

Su Xingyao looked up and met Lu Jiuxu’s gaze, which was both amused and sincere.

He didn’t understand why it would be a waste.

After all, if he missed it, he could always watch it online or even watch the replay on TV…

As he thought of the TV replay, Su Xingyao glanced at the time on his phone again and then looked back at the TV.

“Is this a live broadcast?”

It’s only four o’clock in the afternoon, and the program should typically be airing at the prime time of 8 o’clock

Lu Jiuxu’s response was exactly what Su Xingyao had expected.

“I’m watching the replay.”

Su Xingyao’s eyes widened slightly.

So Lu Jiuxu specifically made time to watch the replay?

Just as Su Xingyao thought this, Lu Jiuxu spoke in a soft voice.

“I watched the live broadcast yesterday too.”

It sounded like he was talking about something very casual, but there was a slight sense of pride in his tone.

Su Xingyao, confused: “?”

“You watched the live broadcast and then specifically watched the replay?”

Lu Jiuxu saw the confused expression on Su Xingyao’s face and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I also wanted to learn some shopping techniques.”

Su Xingyao suddenly understood…

Lu Jiuxu, looking at him with a half-doubtful gaze, casually offered a reason that was so convincing.

“Aunt Zhang went home, so I have to learn.”

“But since Mr. Xiao Su is back, could I have the honor of having you teach me in person how to shop for dinner tonight?”

Realizing that Lu Jiuxu, who was more domineering than any CEO, was eager to try his hand at shopping, Su Xingyao’s eyes immediately turned into crescent moons.

His interest piqued, he readily agreed.

“Of course, no problem!”

After making the agreement, they decided to leave in ten minutes.

The reason they didn’t leave immediately was because Su Xingyao wanted to deal with the banners he had received over the past few days first.

Su Xingyao actually felt a little conflicted about the banners.

Although the cost of the banners wasn’t high, the sentiment behind them was incredibly valuable.

He had considered whether he should hang them up like everyone else.

But he also felt that it might be a bit too flashy and ostentatious.

Besides, placing them in someone’s home didn’t seem quite right…

Just as he was hesitating, Lu Jiuxu solved the problem for him.

He directly hung all the banners Su Xingyao had received in the central position of the third-floor collection room.

Looking at his banners now placed in the same room as Lu Jiuxu’s expensive collectibles, Su Xingyao couldn’t help but feel that something was a little off.

“Do you think it looks a bit out of place?”

“No, it looks pretty good,” Lu Jiuxu replied.

As he was heading downstairs, he pointed to the most prominent spot in the living room and added, “Actually, it would look good displayed out here as well.”

Those words made Su Xingyao immediately think of the inscription on the banner he had given to the Qingshan City Bureau of Culture and Tourism.

Then he quickly waved his hand to decline.

The four large characters “妙手回春” (Miraculous Recovery) were something he absolutely didn’t dare to display in a place where guests could easily see it…

—

After dealing with the banners, Su Xingyao and Lu Jiuxu went shopping for groceries.

However, there wasn’t a traditional market nearby, only a large supermarket.

Neither of them were the kind of people who cared much for formalities. If they had to go to a market, it would require a long detour, but Su Xingyao wouldn’t go to such lengths, and Lu Jiuxu was the same.

After parking the car, they walked toward the supermarket.

“Although the supermarket is more organized than the street vendors, there’s still a bit of art to shopping for groceries,” Su Xingyao said, waving a bag toward Lu Jiuxu. “Some bags can actually be quite heavy.”

Although Su Xingyao knew that Lu Jiuxu was probably just joking with him about buying groceries, he still took the time to seriously share his experience with him during the process.

After mentioning the issue with the bags, Su Xingyao pointed out the fish in the fresh section to Lu Jiuxu.

“Fish tends to come with a lot of water, but many supermarkets weigh both the fish and the water together, without draining it first.”

After saying this, Lu Jiuxu took the vegetables he had picked out to the scale.

The sales assistant was very enthusiastic. When weighing the produce, she even took the vegetables out of the bag first to eliminate the weight of the bag before starting to weigh.

Meanwhile, another customer who was buying fish had the sales assistant use a needle to pierce the bag before draining the water.

Seeing the supermarket staff handle things so skillfully, Lu Jiuxu slightly turned toward Su Xingyao and softly said, “Looks like this place is more honest.”

Su Xingyao smiled and nodded, “No wonder the business is so good.”

For just one meal, they didn’t need to buy many ingredients.

After Su Xingyao selected three dishes based on their tastes, he quickly returned to the parking lot with Lu Jiuxu.

On the way back, they passed by a plaza.

The plaza was bustling with activity, filled with many people.

However, one area was slightly more empty.

Su Xingyao lifted his eyes and looked over, noticing a group of about ten young people learning to skateboard in that area.

For many people, skateboarding was once something cool and desirable during childhood.

Su Xingyao, back when life and his adoptive parents hadn’t yet crushed him under their weight, had once naïvely dreamed of the cool image of himself gliding effortlessly on a skateboard.

Although those memories had faded with time, the childhood dreams that were never realized still sparked a fleeting sense of longing whenever he saw them again as an adult.

When the red light stopped and Lu Jiuxu naturally glanced over at Su Xingyao, he noticed the faint emotion in his eyes as he watched the youthful skateboarders.

Twenty minutes later, the two of them returned to the villa.

Su Xingyao went into the kitchen and began to teach Lu Jiuxu how to cook, step by step.

What surprised him, though, was that Lu Jiuxu actually had some basic cooking skills.

“Mr. Lu, you have some natural talent for cooking,” Su Xingyao remarked.

Lu Jiuxu smiled faintly. “I used to cook when I was a kid.”

Having someone help out made things much more efficient.

Soon, the stir-fried shredded pork with green peppers, the sweet and sour cabbage, and the corn and rib stew were ready.

After returning home, instead of watching the replay of We’re Going Traveling, Lu Jiuxu casually switched to a news channel.

Later, during the evening news with the news host’s serious tone, Su Xingyao experienced his first solo dinner with Lu Jiuxu.

Although Lu Jiuxu was wealthy, he didn’t have the typical flaws that came with being rich.

After finishing the meal, he quickly tidied up the dishes and put them in the dishwasher to clean.

Just as he placed the last plate, his phone suddenly rang.

Lu Jiuxu glanced at it but didn’t pick up right away.

“Wait for me for a few minutes.”

After telling Su Xingyao, he turned on the dishwasher and headed toward the villa door.

Three minutes later, when Su Xingyao saw Lu Jiuxu again, he was surprised to see that he had two brand-new skateboards and two sets of protective gear in his hands.

Lu Jiuxu looked at Su Xingyao, raising one eyebrow.

“Mr. Xiao Su, let’s go out and play.”