Extra 2

After the Spring Festival passed, Xu Youyou and the others quickly returned to their normal lives. They attended their classes as required, worked hard to earn money, and lived a simple yet happy life.

For Xu Youyou, as long as her mother, Lu Chenjun and the others were by her side, she felt happy every day. Even the three words ‘Lu Haoyu’ seemed like a distant memory to her, and she felt a hint of confusion when she heard him suddenly mentioned.

In June, after going through various stages of review and appeal, the final verdict for the three members of the Lu family was announced one after another.

Old Master Lu received a fifteen-year prison sentence.

Considering his age, it was highly likely that he would spend the rest of his life inside.

Lu Weiyao, due to committing crimes in a foreign country, extraditing him and gathering evidence took the longest time. However, his crimes were also the most serious, as they involved taking a life. Even if he did it in a state of mental instability, it could not be easily overlooked.

Moreover, Lu Weiyao was no ordinary person. His affairs attracted the attention of many citizens of Hua Country. If anyone dared to show favoritism, they would be condemned by public opinion.

In the end, even with the best lawyers hired, Lu Weiyao still received a life sentence.

And he had to undergo drug rehabilitation first, a process that was the most painful for Lu Weiyao.

As for Lu Haoyu, he was the youngest among the three, but he was involved in no small number of offenses.

The incredibly resourceful netizens quickly uncovered that not only did Lu Haoyu have a father who was a murderer, but he also had a biological mother who had spent over a decade in prison and was about to be released soon. This was truly a ‘family tradition’! It seemed that criminal tendencies ran in their blood.

If it hadn’t been for Xu Wenyin and the government manipulating behind the scenes, Lu Weizheng might have been implicated by public opinion, even though he had been away from the Lu family for more than ten years. Sometimes, blood ties are undeniable.

Fortunately, things didn’t come to that point. Lu Weizheng’s years of hard work and dedication were also recognized by the higher-ups. These incidents didn’t affect his career prospects, and he’s expected to be transferred back to the capital next month.

By then, it will truly be a family reunion with Aunt Qin, Lu Chenjun, and the rest of them.

Eventually, Lu Haoyu was found guilty of multiple crimes. After deducting fines, he was sentenced to seventeen years. If one didn’t count any reduction for good behavior later on, he would be around forty years old when he gets out of prison. It could be said that the best years of his life would have been spent behind bars.

Does this former ‘chosen one’ ever think that he would end up like this one day?

The case of the three Lu family members was probably the most talked-about criminal case in the first half of the year. Netizens who learned of the outcome all praised the official account of the Capital Public Security Bureau. They believed that people like this, who are knowledgeable on skirting the law, should be locked up in prison, where they belong, to atone for the harm they caused to others.

The key was that midway through, Lu Haoyu actually sent a message, expressing a desire to see Xu Youyou, which she bluntly refused. What relationship did she have with Lu Haoyu? Why would she waste her precious time meeting with scum like him?

With that time, wouldn’t it be better to spend it bonding with her mother?

But Xu Youyou didn’t expect that, after refusing Lu Haoyu, she would receive a message from Hua Duo’er.

Moreover, the message was sent through WeChat, and Xu Youyou completely couldn’t recall when she had added Hua Duo’er as a friend, let alone why Hua Duo’er would send her a message.

However, after she finished reading the long message, Xu Youyou inevitably fell silent for a moment.

In fact, she had long forgotten about her life in the orphanage, and her impression of Huahua was just a vague outline. In her memory, the other party seemed to dislike her. It didn’t seem like the other party’s real name was Hua Duo’er either.

Qin Xiao and the others didn’t tell Xu Youyou about Hua Duo’ers past, so Xu Youyou had always thought that the other party was just someone who bore a slight resemblance to her and held a grudge against the Lu family and Yao Yunyou, and wanted to take revenge.

All along, most of the information from Hua Duo’ers side was also conveyed to her by Qin Yiren, through Qin Xiao’s subordinates. She hadn’t even met the other party in person, but Xu Youyou hadn’t expected that Hua Duo’er was indeed someone she knew.

Even more surprising was that this person had been silently paying attention to her for so long.

After the fall of the Lu family, Hua Duo’er acted decisively. She packed up all the jewelry, clothes, calligraphy, and paintings that Lu Haoyu had given her and left swiftly, as she had already made preparations beforehand. Before others could react, Hua Duo’er had already left the country.

The other relatives of the Lu family couldn’t find her, and the Qin family was even less likely to search for her. She had indeed successfully acquired a huge amount of assets. If she didn’t stir up trouble, she wouldn’t have to worry about her livelihood for the rest of her life.

But Hua Duo’ers only obsession was to become more beautiful. She had already planned that once she upgraded her looks, she would try her hand at acting in movies or something similar. She wanted more people to see her beauty and to receive even more admiration.

Hua Duo’ers message to Xu Youyou was more like bidding farewell to her past self.

She had always thought that Xu Youyou was the happiest and most beautiful girl, and had always dreamed of becoming someone like Xu Youyou. However, as she gradually became more beautiful and wealthy, Hua Duo’er suddenly realized something.

She no longer needed to compete with Xu Youyou. She had plenty of time to enjoy her beautiful life. Xu Youyou was just a passerby in her life.

As long as she became more and more beautiful, more and more people would like her.

Feeling cheerful, Hua Duo’er wanted to find someone to share her happiness with. But she had no friends or family. In the end, she chose Xu Youyou and ‘kindly’ sent her a message.

Xu Youyou was Lu Haoyu’s true white moonlight. When Ruan Rourou was first arrested, Lu Weiyao was heartbroken for only a few days before he began fooling around with Zhao Xuanyi again. As for Old Master Lu, he only cared about whether Ruan Rourou’s matter would affect the Lu family, paying no attention to Lu Haoyu’s sudden loss of his mother and his feelings of sadness and helplessness.

Until he followed Lu Weiyao to Jiang City, Lu Haoyu was even more unwilling to meet his uncle who had caused his mother’s imprisonment. But what could he do? He could only hide behind the bushes and cry silently.

At that moment, Xu Youyou appeared like a ray of light, illuminating the gloomy depths of Lu Haoyu’s heart.

Her smile was truly beautiful, her voice was truly pleasant, and what she said was true, ‘when you’re unhappy, think of something happy’.

As long as he worked hard to grow up, he would be able to rescue his mother.

Unfortunately, when Lu Haoyu finally had the ability to find Xu Youyou ten years later, he had already lost track of the girl.

Then he chanced upon Yao Yunyou, with her familiar name and eyes, Lu Haoyu immediately dispatched someone to investigate Yao Yunyou’s whereabouts back then. Because the information was too old and not detailed enough, he only managed to find reports of Yao Yunyou visiting Yao Fanyu on some set.

It must be the reason why the girl appeared at the hotel.

Father and son stayed at the best hotel in Jiang City at that time, which was very fitting for Yao Fanyu’s previous status as a movie queen.

Later, Lu Haoyu went to probe Yao Yunyou again, but she seemed to not remember the incident at that time, only using a few ambiguous sentences to brush it off.

But it didn’t matter, Lu Haoyu had already determined that Yao Yunyou was the girl from back then, the light in his heart.

After Hua Duo’er appeared, she had been continuously searching for evidence against Yao Yunyou. Later, luck was on her side, somehow she found out that Yao Yunyou wasn’t even in Jiang City on that day. Instead, it was the hotel owners, the Qian family, who were hosting a birthday banquet.

And the fact that Xu Youyou and Qian Xin were good friends was something that could be easily discovered with just a little investigation.

Lu Haoyu either had a preconceived notion or was perhaps blinded by the rules of this world, which led him to overlook this fact.

As a formidable opponent of Yao Yunyou, Hua Duo’er naturally wouldn’t let go of such a good leverage. She directly handed over the information to Lu Haoyu.

Xu Youyou also knew what happened later. The argument between Lu Haoyu and Yao Yunyou indirectly hastened the downfall of the Lu family and Lu Haoyu’s imprisonment.

Indeed, it seemed like everything fell into place perfectly, as if aided by heaven.

Xu Youyou who had read the entire message: “……”

She simply couldn’t recall whether she had met Lu Haoyu before. However, the Qian family’s banquet left a faint impression on her. It seemed to be to celebrate the successful weight loss of the Qian family.

Who would have thought that an incident from over a decade ago could almost ‘backstab’ her years later?

And Hua Duo’ers behavior also made Xu Youyou speechless. What did the other party want to convey by telling her all these things?

Xu Youyou didn’t believe that Hua Duo’er was unaware of the risks of cosmetic surgery. Even if she hadn’t seen Hua Duo’ers current appearance, she knew that being noticed by Lu Haoyu meant she was already pretty enough. So why would she persist in pursuing further changes?

‘Too much is as bad as too little’ is never just a casual remark.

But upon noticing a red exclamation mark added before a question mark she had sent, and realizing she had been deleted as an online friend, Xu Youyou refrained from looking into it further.

Everyone is an adult now. Hua Duo’er must surely understand what she wanted. Why bother worrying about it?

Xu Youyou wasn’t exactly angry at Hua Duo’ers behavior. After all, she was just an irrelevant stranger. It was Lu Haoyu’s actions that always made Xu Youyou feel an inexplicable anger on the verge of erupting.

Furrowing her brows, Xu Youyou turned to look at Lu Chenjun, who was reading beside her, and asked, “Juanjuan, what exactly is love?”

It was just a childhood impression, yet Lu Haoyu could ‘fall in love’ with Yao Yunyou. And in this situation, he could even shamelessly seek a substitute. Upon realizing Yao Yunyou wasn’t the one, he immediately turned cold-hearted, as if the few years spent together were insignificant.

Then, was it Xu Youyou whom he ‘loved’?

Xu Youyou didn’t think so. Could this kind of feeling also be called love?

Lu Chenjun hadn’t expected that his girlfriend would come up with such a difficult question right off the bat. He looked at Xu Youyou’s troubled expression as if she was genuinely pondering over the question. He immediately set aside the book in his hand and earnestly contemplated for a while.

“It’s something that can bring you joy and happiness, making you become a better person.”

Lu Chenjun gave his own answer, “If it weren’t for you, I would definitely feel bored and lonely right now.”

Eh? How did it suddenly turn into sweet talk?

Xu Youyou felt a bit embarrassed and turned her head away. Even though she and Lu Chenjun had been dating for almost half a year, in reality, their way of getting along hadn’t changed much. At most, they would occasionally stick closer to each other.

Lu Chenjun wasn’t the type to constantly shower someone with sweet words. So, hearing him suddenly say something so sincere caught Xu Youyou off guard.

Her affection for Juanjuan seemed too shallow, far from matching his dedication towards her.

“No.” Lu Chenjun seemed to sense Xu Youyou’s thoughts. His gaze softened as he looked at the girl who had grown up with him. “For me, you liking me is the best reward.”

“I don’t know how love is for other people, but Youyou, I never feel like I’m giving more, nor do I believe that love can be equated with giving.”

To him, giving more doesn’t necessarily mean loving deeper. It’s just a form of self-satisfaction.  Perhaps such people love themselves the most because they find fulfillment in their own emotions. Whether it’s the satisfaction or joy they derive from giving, it’s not something bestowed by the other person.

Does the person who’s giving really know what the other person wants?

“What if someone hurts you deeply but then does a lot for you afterward, and everyone thinks you should forgive him/her? What will you do?”

Xu Youyou didn’t know why she asked this question as if there was an obsession guiding her, seeking an answer.

Lu Chenjun shook his head. “Hurt is forever. The best I can do is not to disturb each other.”

Whether Lu Chenjun was labeled as cold or heartless, he never believed that hurt and compensation could cancel each other out. Not seeking revenge was already Lu Chenjun’s limit.

The damage was done. No matter how much one does afterward, what’s the use? It might just be another form of moral coercion and self-satisfaction.

——Look, I have compensated you so much, why can’t you forgive me?

Xu Youyou was stunned for a moment.

Indeed, familial love, romantic love, and friendship—— all of these are things humanity pursues. But if pain outweighed happiness, if coercion surpassed willingness, why persist?

Holding onto that meager bit of sweetness, can one forget the pain that goes deep into the marrow?

Xu Youyou shifted her body and opened her arms to embrace Lu Chenjun. She buried her face in his chest, feeling the warmth enveloping her whole body.

It felt comforting, as if all the past hurts and discomforts were resolved in this moment.

It wasn’t forgiveness. It was just a desire to no longer be entangled with the past.

It’s strange, why do I have these thoughts? I haven’t been hurt before.

Does Hua Duo’ers words have such a big impact on her?

Xu Youyou would never get the answer to this question, just as Xu Wenyin would never know what the selection criteria for the task world were.

There were millions of small worlds derived from such novels, but only tens of thousands were truly capable of having systems perform tasks and change certain things.

The system organization isn’t a charity and it doesn’t randomly pick worlds to help people without reason. Perhaps either oneself or someone else had already paid for what they needed long before.

Regardless, at least from the current perspective, the outcome seemed quite positive, doesn’t it?

With a lazy air about her, Xu Youyou rubbed against Lu Chenjun’s chest like a small animal and said, “Juanjuan, I really like you~”

This was Xu Youyou’s most sincere thought at the moment. She liked this feeling that was warm and comfortable, a genuine sense of peace and joy that welled up from the depths of her heart.

Suddenly, a delighted Xu Youyou lifted her head, revealing a mischievous smile.

“Chu——”

Lu Chenjun felt a momentary warmth on the corner of his mouth and suddenly froze as he realized what had happened. His ears turned bright red, as if they could drip blood.

Seeing Lu Chenjun react this way, the instigator couldn’t help but laugh at the stiffness of his arms.

“Juanjuan~ Juanjuan~ You’re shy, huh?”

Lu Chenjun: “……” No, he absolutely couldn’t let his face turn red, or this mischievous little deer would laugh even louder!

Actually, at this moment, he also wanted to say a few sweet words, but he found himself tongue-tied for a moment. Instead, he simply squeezed Xu Youyou’s hand a little tighter, as if he couldn’t bear to let go of this precious treasure in his arms.

The laughter drew Xu Wenyin, who was grooming Niannian, into the living room. As soon as she entered, she saw this striking scene and felt a surge of impulse.

Hey! How dare you! Let go of my family’s Youyou!

Behaving like this in public, how disgraceful!

It’s definitely this Xiao Juanmao’s fault!