"This house's renovation must have cost quite a bit too, right?" Lin Zeqiu asked.
"Yes," Lin Zhixia pulled out a stack of documents from her backpack. "The living room and bedrooms have solid teak flooring with a coat of wood wax oil, while the bathroom and balcony use anti-slip glazed tiles..."
Lin Zeqiu sat down on the sofa. "Did the landlord charge you for the renovation costs?"
Lin Zhixia handed the documents to him. "The landlord's asking price per square meter was over a thousand yuan higher than for an unfinished unit."
Dad had been wandering around the living room for a while when he asked absently, "Why would the landlord want to sell such a nice house?"
Lin Zhixia explained, "Since last November, the A-share market has been soaring, with premiums over Hong Kong stocks exceeding thirty percent. The landlord wants to sell this property to invest in the stock market. They also mentioned their family owns several properties in the provincial capital..."
Dad still seemed uneasy. "Xia Xia, have you really saved enough for the down payment? However much you're short, Mom and Dad will make it up for you."
"It's enough," Lin Zhixia said cheerfully. "The Young Thousand Talents Program directly awarded five hundred thousand, the university provided over a million in relocation fees, the provincial education bureau allocated additional 'high-level talent' housing subsidies, plus all the money I've saved over the years. After paying the forty percent down payment, I still have one hundred ten thousand yuan left in my bank account."
Lin Zhixia's parents were both infected by her joyful mood. Lin Zeqiu added, "The renovation materials are quite high-end, but the furniture could use some improvement. I have over a hundred thousand on hand - let's use it to buy more furniture for our home."
Lin Zhixia took his hand. "Come see your new bedroom."
Lin Zeqiu tensed all his muscles, his movements becoming stiff and clumsy like a marionette. He even ignored Jiang Yubai standing nearby, barely registering what Jiang Yubai had said. He only saw how Jiang Yubai had made their parents beam with laughter, how Dad had patted Jiang Yubai's shoulder, treating him with the warmth of a March sunrise.
However, Lin Zeqiu no longer cared about Jiang Yubai. He only wanted to see his new bedroom - a spacious, bright room with a side door connecting to a private bathroom, a separate study, and a balcony with an open view.
Having lived alone in a ten-square-meter bedroom for over twenty years, Lin Zeqiu had never slept in a double bed in his life. He couldn't help but bend down to touch the bed frame, spreading his fingers before withdrawing his hand. Catching Jiang Yubai in his peripheral vision made him uncomfortable. No matter how much he liked this bedroom, he couldn't appear too impoverished, couldn't embarrass his sister in front of Jiang Yubai.
Just then, Lin Zhixia happened to ask, "Brother, do you like this house?"
Lin Zeqiu raised his chin proudly. "It's quite good, passable."
Lin Zhixia's voice softened. "This is the best house I can afford. Anything more expensive would be beyond my means."
Jiang Yubai suddenly spoke up. "You've been house hunting alone for over three months. I've been too busy with work to accompany you..."
"It's fine," Lin Zhixia said sincerely. "You taught me house hunting techniques that helped me avoid detours. You've been very helpful."After speaking, she leaned sideways against Jiang Yubai and, shielded by their sleeves, intertwined her fingers with his. Jiang Yubai then said that as Lin Zhixia's good friend and boyfriend, he wanted to give her some gifts, including a set of customized daily necessities to celebrate her moving into this large house.
Lin Zhixia asked curiously, "What kind of daily necessities?"
Jiang Yubai briefly listed: "A desk lamp, curtains, a rug, pots, pans, and dishes."
"Don't buy anything too expensive," Lin Zhixia reminded him.
Jiang Yubai imitated her usual tone: "Okay, okay."
Jiang Yubai's voice was relatively low and carried a hint of laughter. Lin Zhixia imagined his expression must be quite charming. Before she even turned her gaze to him, a sweet sensation welled up in her heart. She tightly grasped Jiang Yubai's right hand and whispered privately to him, "This new house is also your home..."
Jiang Yubai remained silent. He stood near the balcony, with faint sunlight filtering into his eyes, making them appear warm and clear.
The previous owner of the house was a very easygoing middle-aged man. He didn't take advantage of Lin Zhixia at all, and the process of transferring the property went very smoothly.
Lin Zhixia successfully passed the bank's loan application. Her base annual salary was about 400,000 yuan, and with various allowances, bonuses, and patent licensing fees, her after-tax annual income was approximately 500,000 yuan. After deducting nearly 30,000 yuan per month for the mortgage, she had over 100,000 yuan left, which was sufficient to cover her expenses—she had little interest in jewelry, branded clothing, and lived quite frugally, hardly spending any money. However, Jiang Yubai was somewhat concerned about Lin Zhixia's cash flow.
Jiang Yubai told Lin Zhixia that he would establish the "Quantum Technology Laboratory" as soon as possible, and as the Laboratory's director and founder, Lin Zhixia would surely receive a stable income.
When it came to the "Quantum Technology Laboratory," Lin Zhixia wasn't in a hurry at all. Her focus remained on teaching and research.
Apart from her official duties at the university, how to properly furnish the new house was also a question worth exploring.
From May to June 2016, Lin Zhixia and Lin Zeqiu often visited minimalist-style home furnishing stores like IKEA and Muji, buying many miscellaneous daily items.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yubai generously gifted appliances, rugs, wooden cabinets, pots, pans, and dishes—the brands of these items were ones Lin Zhixia's family had never seen or heard of before. When Lin Zhixia asked about their prices, Jiang Yubai said he had obtained internal group purchase prices directly from the manufacturers, which weren't very expensive, and he hoped Lin Zhixia would accept his gesture.
Lin Zhixia pressed for details: "Exactly how much did you spend?"
Jiang Yubai changed the subject: "I didn't consider it thoroughly enough... I can't help you academically, so I can only provide some convenience in daily life."
Jiang Yubai spoke very sincerely and took all the responsibility upon himself. When he mentioned "I can't help you academically," he slightly turned his face away, as if recalling his middle school days when he was completely overshadowed by Lin Zhixia—back then, no matter how hard he tried, Jiang Yubai couldn't achieve the top rank in his grade and sometimes even lost to Jin Baihui. Even Shen Fuxuan's exam rankings were once ahead of his.
In Lin Zhixia's "Human Observation Diary," her frequent description of Jiang Yubai was—"Today, Jiang Yubai is again struggling with a simple physics problem..."Jiang Yubai's sigh was almost inaudible, making Lin Zhixia's heart ache for him. Not only did she accept all his gifts, but she also sat on his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him several times. She had just uttered a few sweet words when he immediately tightened his grip around her waist, kissing her with fervent passion as if he had finally emerged from the shadows of the past.
At the end of June 2016, Lin Zhixia moved into her new home with her Mom, Dad, and Brother.
That night at nine o'clock, Lin Zeqiu took a shower in his bedroom and ceremoniously lay down on his large bed. He tightly wrapped himself in the blanket and buried his face in the pillow. The pillow was extraordinary—firm yet soft, exuding a faint herbal fragrance. After over twenty years of living, he had never known such a comfortable pillow existed.
Lin Zeqiu was unusually excited, unable to sleep yet unwilling to get up.
His bedroom was the closest to the living room.
Around ten o'clock at night, he faintly heard soft murmurs near the entrance.
He rolled out of bed and cracked the door open, only to see Lin Zhixia leading Jiang Yubai through the living room—yes, on the very first night of their move, Jiang Yubai had stealthily slipped into their home. Lin Zeqiu's internal alarms blared red. He tiptoed out barefoot and discovered that Lin Zhixia had taken Jiang Yubai into the guest room.
Lin Zeqiu breathed a sigh of relief.
He returned to his bedroom.
However, the moment Lin Zeqiu closed his door, Jiang Yubai leaned close to Lin Zhixia's ear and whispered, "Your brother's gone back."
His voice sent a shiver down Lin Zhixia's spine. "So?" she asked.
"Pardon the intrusion, but may I visit your room?" he inquired politely and properly.
Lin Zhixia sternly reminded him, "We can only sleep—nothing else."
He replied, "I understand."
Lin Zhixia scrutinized him from head to toe. He had just returned from work and hadn't changed out of his clothes yet. His shirt was impeccably pressed, his trousers sharply creased, giving off the vibe of a diligent corporate elite.
Her heart warmed, and she led Jiang Yubai to her spacious bedroom, where they engaged in a role-playing game of "President Lin and Secretary Jiang" in the bathroom. Secretary Jiang's attentive services left President Lin utterly overwhelmed. The sounds of running water, laughter, and heavy breathing mingled in the bathroom, lasting late into the night before finally subsiding.
This summer was exceptionally sweltering.
Jiang Yubai occasionally visited Lin Zhixia's home. He would sleep in her room until 5:30 a.m., then sneak into the adjacent guest room under the cover of darkness. By 7:30 the next morning, when he emerged from the guest room, Lin Zeqiu assumed Jiang Yubai was still relatively innocent—merely cunning, shrewd, competitive, and adept at reading people, but ultimately a conservative and well-behaved young man.
Lin Zhixia's Mom and Dad never noticed Jiang Yubai staying in the guest room.
They left home every morning by seven o'clock. They were still running their supermarket business in the Ancheng residential area. Lin Zeqiu had bought Dad a Wuling Hongguang minivan. At dawn, Dad would drive Mom back to Ancheng, and by six in the evening, they would return to the university district. Unlike before, they no longer kept the store open day and night. With both Lin Zhixia and Lin Zeqiu earning stable incomes, life had become much easier. The family could enjoy dinner together every evening and even watch television as a group.
Lin Zhixia felt deeply content.
She devoted even more effort to the tasks assigned by her school.In the hottest days of August this year, another major incident occurred at the institute—a highly respected professor suddenly decided to resign. Despite the institute's exhaustive efforts to retain him, they ultimately failed. Compounding the issue, he still had several master's and doctoral students who had not yet graduated. The institute convened an emergency meeting and resolved that to ensure these students could complete their studies smoothly, they must be reassigned to new advisors.
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