Li Yifei moved back to Shoucheng International from his villa at Sijiqing Bridge at the fastest speed possible.
As he piled his belongings haphazardly across the room, unsure where to even begin unpacking, Qian Fei sat on the sofa eating fried rice and watching the chaos unfold.
Li Yifei paced around like a headless fly, unable to decide which mess to tackle first. Finally, he turned to Qian Fei with a scowl and said, "You're just sitting there eating without even asking if I'm hungry!"
Qian Fei, obliging as ever, swallowed a mouthful of rice and asked, "So, are you hungry?"
Li Yifei replied, "Yes."
Qian Fei said, "Oh, well then stay hungry. There's no more food." She finished the last bite and stood up, carrying her bowl to the sink before returning to the sofa to continue staring at Li Yifei and his mountain of disorganized luggage.
Li Yifei tugged at one bag, then dropped it. He nudged a suitcase with his foot before pulling back.
Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore and asked Qian Fei, who was clearly enjoying the spectacle, "So, how should I organize all this?"
Qian Fei blinked. "However you did it when you moved into the villa?"
Li Yifei said, "I hired a housekeeper back then."
Qian Fei said, "Then hire one again."
Li Yifei grinned. "But now that you're here, why bother?"
Qian Fei glared at him and spat out a single word: "Pfft."
A while later, seeing that Qian Fei was still lounging on the sofa without lifting a finger, Li Yifei couldn’t hold back anymore. "Are you seriously just going to sit there like a lord while I do all the work? Is that fair? I'm the landlord now! Shouldn’t you, as the tenant, at least pretend to be hardworking and aware of your place? Aren’t you afraid I’ll kick you out?"
Qian Fei leaned back on the sofa, swinging one leg over the other in a domineering pose, and said, "When I was the landlord, you acted exactly like this. I’m just following your example, oh great predecessor."
Li Yifei was speechless. So she had been waiting to throw his own behavior back at him.
After a moment of thought, he stepped out of the luggage pile and pointed at Qian Fei’s room. "When you were the landlord, you lived in that room, right? Well, now that I'm the landlord, I want that room. Go pack up your stuff and move it all out here!"
With that, he strode into her room on his long legs and sprawled across her bed. "Hurry up and clear out. Once you’re done, I’ll move my things in."
Qian Fei was impressed. His shamelessness knew no bounds.
She got up and walked into the room, standing over the bed to look down at the shameless lump occupying it. "Get up."
Li Yifei propped himself up on his elbows. "What? Don’t want to move? Fine, then help me organize my stuff into this room instead!"
Qian Fei bent down, reaching past him to yank the bedsheet from the corner behind him.
"Move. You’re in the way of me taking the blankets."
Li Yifei froze, then blocked her. "Wait, you’re actually moving out?"
Qian Fei lowered her eyelids. "I have to listen to the landlord, don’t I?"
Li Yifei said, "Then why aren’t you listening when the landlord tells you to help him clean up?"
Qian Fei said, "Because most of the time, the landlord is shameless. I only obey the slightly less shameless requests."
Li Yifei snapped, "What will it take for you to help me organize this mess?!"
Qian Fei looked at him and said, "Promise me you won’t spout nonsense when my dad visits, and I’ll help."Li Yifei asked, "What counts as talking nonsense?"
Qian Fei replied, "Like saying you're my boyfriend or something."
Li Yifei raised an eyebrow, looking displeased. "Then what am I to you?"
Qian Fei answered, "My landlord."
Li Yifei cursed under his breath.
At this point, it was hard to tell which statement was actually the nonsense.
●︶3︶●
Qian Fei's method of helping Li Yifei tidy his room had changed slightly compared to before.
Most of the time, she sat on the sofa with her legs crossed like a bandit, directing Li Yifei verbally: "Take the stuff out of that big box and put it on the bookshelf in the study. Don’t throw the box away—flatten it and stash it under the shelf. We can use it later.
"Take all the clothes out of the suitcase and hang them in the closet. If they’re dirty, don’t bother hanging them—just toss them in the washing machine.
"Seriously, dude, you put your shaving kit in the closet? Is your creativity fueled by sheer ignorance and audacity? There’s a bathroom right there!
"Don’t pile books next to your pillow, boss. Stop pretending to be some studious bookworm who forgets to eat and sleep. Do you think I left the study there just for you to get some fresh air or what?"
...
By the time everything was finally tidied up, Li Yifei realized something felt off.
"Is this still considered you helping me clean my room? This was basically me doing all the work myself!" he exclaimed, glaring at her.
Qian Fei shrugged. "See? Becoming a landlord has helped you grow so much. You’re halfway to being self-sufficient now!"
Li Yifei twitched his lips, rolled his eyes, and headed to the bathroom to shower.
If his dad ever found out he’d become so diligent and brave—even capable of tidying up—he’d probably burst into tears.
●︶3︶●
After his shower, Li Yifei emerged from the bathroom wearing shorts and a white T-shirt. He realized that ever since meeting Qian Fei, his fashion sense had willingly devolved into a more "schlubby" style. In the past, he wouldn’t even glance at anything less than imported silk pajamas. But now, he could happily roll around on the bed in a cheap white tee—bought for 15 yuan apiece or 30 for two, complete with a free pair of ordinary underwear—without any psychological barriers.
As soon as he stepped out of the bathroom, he saw Qian Fei sitting on the sofa, looking slightly gloomy and lost in thought.
He glanced at her while drying his hair, then dramatically sighed, "Ah, I’m finally back!" Tossing the towel aside, he began touching everything in sight.
He patted the bathroom door and exclaimed, "Ah, my beloved shower room!"
Moving forward, he touched the kitchen door and declared, "Ah, my beloved kitchen!"
Continuing his tour, he stroked the dining table and announced, "Ah, my beloved dining table!"
Circling back, he caressed the TV and proclaimed, "Ah, my beloved television!"
Finally, he crouched by the sofa, running his hand over it and sighing, "Ah, my beloved sofa!"
Then, with a smooth motion, his hand slid from the sofa to Qian Fei’s cheek. Gazing into her eyes, he cooed, "Ah, my beloved little beauty! I’ve missed you all so much!"
Qian Fei couldn’t help but burst out laughing. "Get lost! Just focus on being a landlord—stop acting like an idiot and trying to be cute!"
Li Yifei took the opportunity to plop down on the sofa beside her. "Ah, you finally smiled!" He leaned back and gave her back a light (sneaky) pat. "No worries, no fears, no anxieties—your dashing, fist-fighting hero is here. Even if the boat doesn’t reach the bridge, it’ll straighten out for me!"Qian Fei twisted away from the restless hand pawing at her back and sighed, "Who knows when we'll finally get a hospital bed!"
Li Yifei's persistent hand climbed right back onto that wonderfully textured back, patting it stickily. "Fry me a plate of eggplant strips, and I'll give you some good news!"
●︶3︶●
Qian Fei fried Li Yifei a plate of eggplant strips. He ate with such delight and focus that, had she not stopped him in time, he might have forgotten his dignified landlord status and licked the plate clean.
Putting down his bowl and chopsticks, Li Yifei patted his satisfied belly and said to Qian Fei, "Bring your dad over tomorrow. He can check straight into the VIP ward—I've arranged everything. Then we'll get him a thorough check-up and confirm the surgery schedule with the doctor."
Qian Fei stared at him silently for a long time. Gradually, her eyes turned red.
Li Yifei was startled. "What's this? Are you about to cry? Since when did you become so sentimental?" Suddenly, his expression darkened with displeasure. "Why didn't you cry like this when we broke up? Am I really that insignificant to you? Where were these tears back then?"
His questions instantly dried her tears.
●︶3︶●
The next evening, Aunt He arrived in Beijing with Qian Fei's father.
True to his word, Li Yifei arranged for the old man to be taken directly to the VIP ward. "Don't worry," he assured Qian Fei, "you'll only be charged for a standard room."
Though his health was poor, the old man was in high spirits—optimistic, cheerful, and talkative.
At first sight of Li Yifei, he nearly pounced on him, if not for his frailty. Li Yifei finally understood where Qian Fei got her boisterous, rough-around-the-edges personality.
Supported by Aunt He, the old man eyed Li Yifei and asked, "You're Xiao Li? You look nothing like the photo Feifei showed me! You're way more handsome!"
Li Yifei shot Qian Fei a glance and whispered, "You told me not to spout nonsense. Should I play along?"
Qian Fei glared at him fiercely and hissed through gritted teeth, "Stop yapping and just go with it! Keep him happy!"
So Li Yifei stepped forward, supporting the old man with a smile. "Uncle, what did I look like in that photo Qian Fei showed you?"
The old man hemmed and hawed. "Well... a bit dark, a bit old!"
Li Yifei turned to Qian Fei with a mischievous eyebrow raise. "Seems there was someone before me, huh?"
The old man shuddered and quickly corrected himself. "No, no, I remember now! The photo Xiao Fei showed me was definitely you! It was just cloudy that day, so you looked darker! Xiao Li, don’t overthink it—just treat my daughter well. She can do anything: laundry, cooking, childcare, she’s got it all! Life with her will be a breeze!"
Qian Fei's lips twitched, while Li Yifei grinned like a cat that got the cream.
From the moment they met until they settled into the ward, Li Yifei bustled about tirelessly. The old man couldn’t stop praising his "future son-in-law," as if skipping even one compliment might trigger a liver flare-up.
While Li Yifei was off handling paperwork, the old man pulled Qian Fei aside. "Sweetheart, take good care of yourself. Don’t let yourself become a haggard housewife—otherwise, you won’t be worthy of Xiao Li!"Qian Fei felt utterly helpless, on the verge of tears.
Her father was so full of energy—how could he possibly look like a sick man?
The next day, after completing all the necessary examinations, the doctor scheduled the surgery date just before the National Day holiday. Both his liver and kidneys would require operations.
Fortunately, though the old man’s two conditions were serious, they weren’t life-threatening. The real challenge would be the costly recovery period after the surgeries.
At this point, Qian Fei felt that as long as her father could be saved, she’d be willing to sell herself or even her own kidneys. She comforted him, saying, “Money’s just a bastard—we’ll make more once it’s gone. Don’t you dare stress over this! Besides, I’m about to pass the sponsor representative exam! If you don’t help me spend some of it, I won’t even know where to stack all the money I’ll be making later!”
Though she spoke so boldly, her confidence in passing the sponsor representative exam—now just over a month away—was dwindling fast.
Author’s Note:
The next part of the story should be about the sponsor representative exam, right…
I’ve finally come up with a name for Jun Cheng’s rival, “Spending Half the Night Thinking of a Lousy Name”—it’s Dang Yu. Hahahaha, the Party leads the Army, after all! A chuuni girl needs a chuuni boy to shield her from the storm, right?
As for Da Jun, there’ll be a longer extra chapter, but I won’t make it a separate story since it’s not that long…
Also, some lovely readers left comments asking, “Did you not send me points yesterday because you were upset about my feedback?” Come on, I even send negative points—do I really seem that petty?! The only reason I didn’t send points on time is because JJ was glitching like crazy and wouldn’t let me!!! Once it works again, I’ll make sure to send them all!!!
And thank you all so much for voting for me yesterday!!!! You really cast so many votes!!!! I’m overwhelmed with gratitude once again!!!! Thank you, everyone!!! Also, this vote can be cast once per day, so I’ll shamelessly drop the link here again. If you don’t mind, please click and vote—if you’re busy, no worries at all! Mwah, love you all!!!
Voting Link:
(The one silently sitting in the last row, seventh from the left is… bows deeply in thanks !!!)
To all the lovely ladies who’ve been throwing thunder, bombs, and cannons—really, really, you’re spending too much! Especially to the one who votes every day, you’ve made me feel so guilty I’m practically weak in the kidneys now!!!! Please, no more extravagance—
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