Although Liu Chen had slept for nearly three hours in the car, she looked very tired when she got out.
Liu Chen walked ahead, her mind unable to shake off the image of Sister Yu Li's last moments. This time, thanks to her acquaintance with Guo Da, Sister Yu Li not only avoided the pitfall of unfinished housing projects but also, along with Guo Da, successfully ran a real estate agency, rapidly accumulating early capital. With Liu Chen's reminders, Sister Yu Li invested all her money in Beijing's real estate.
Now, even if they did nothing, their monthly rental income alone was enough for a comfortable and leisurely life.
Moreover, Sister Yu Li and Guo Da now had the crystallization of their love, and with Liu Chen as their friend, Sister Xu, likely also made a considerable profit due to Sister Yu Li's connections. Her son would certainly not prevent Sister Xu from associating with Sister Yu Li.
Sister Yu Li's life in this lifetime should be happier.
As Liu Chen contemplated these thoughts, her expression was so serious that everyone traveling with her in the elevator dared not make a sound, fearing they might disturb any potential business plans forming in her mind.
It wasn't until they reached the apartment door and Liu Chen was hit by the cool air from the opening door that she remembered Sang Ling had messaged her on QQ earlier, wanting to chat.
"Ren Mo, you unpack first. Sang Ling and I haven't seen each other all summer. Shall we talk in my room about your house purchase? Sang Ling?"
Sang Ling, who had initially expected to have the conversation tomorrow due to Liu Chen's serious demeanor, was somewhat surprised by her words. However, she quickly composed herself and smiled, nodding.
"I'd be delighted."
---
The two girls went into the bedroom. Although Ren Mo felt Liu Chen was a bit more enthusiastic towards Sang Ling today, he didn't overthink it. After all, as Liu Chen had said, he and Sang Ling hadn't seen each other all summer, so it was normal for them to want to chat.
However, after seeing them go into the bedroom, Ren Yu's eyes held a hint of thought. He then followed Ren Mo to his room's doorway and asked,
"What did you do when you went back?"
Ren Mo, who was opening his suitcase to pack clothes, paused when he heard his older brother's question. He didn't refute it but instead carefully recalled his activities:
"I accompanied Sang Ling to buy a house. I wanted to help her choose furniture, but she refused. So, I spent my time at home writing social media posts. Big brother, you know, I manage so many accounts myself. Sometimes, their posts aren't good enough, so I have to step in myself..."
As Ren Mo was speaking, Ren Yu raised his arm and made a stopping gesture at him.
He asked directly:
"Do you want to break up?"
Hearing this, Ren Mo immediately stood up and subconsciously retorted in a loud voice:
"Of course not! Ling Ling is the woman I love most in this life. She is my future wife, and the only mother of my children! I want to travel the world with her and let everyone know that Ling Ling is my wife!"
Fortunately, the apartment was large, and the doors were made of solid material, preventing Ren Mo's grand declarations from reaching Liu Chen's bedroom.
Ren Yu rubbed his ear and looked at Ren Mo.
"As her boyfriend, accompanying her to buy a house means you should continue to accompany her through all subsequent matters. Don't use your career as an excuse. You can squeeze out time from your sleep. Besides, when you were walking with her, was your mind solely focused on walking?"
Ren Yu's words pierced through Ren Mo's excuse directly.
Ren Mo's lips moved, and then he finally said,
"I've discovered we have some differences in our spending concepts."
---
"I've discovered we have some differences in our spending concepts."
Sang Ling sat on the single sofa in Liu Chen's bedroom, looking somewhat bewildered at Liu Chen, who was seated on the bed.
Liu Chen nodded slightly upon hearing this.
"Give me an example. Let me see if your differences are irreparable."
Sang Ling pursed her lips, her gaze falling on the wool rug beneath the bed in Liu Chen's room. She then looked up at Liu Chen and sighed softly.
"Because I'm a blogger, and for passing the Tsinghua University exam, I received awards from the school and the district. I have about 400,000 yuan. Ren Mo knows about this money."
Liu Chen was not surprised by Sang Ling's substantial sum, as she could somewhat guess it due to Mi Zhuzhu. While being a blogger didn't bring in as much income as it would later, with Sang Ling's follower count, earning ten to twenty thousand a month was easily achievable.
"I used this money to buy a three-bedroom apartment in Phoenix City, 120 square meters, costing just over 700,000 yuan. Since Uncle Mi renovated it, I think I can move in with my furniture from home."
Liu Chen nodded. Uncle Mi had renovated many units in the complex, mostly in their own style, with some modifications based on individual preferences. However, for the renovation market in 2010, Uncle Mi's renovations were indeed aesthetically pleasing.
"Your divergence of opinion is about furniture?"
Seeing Sang Ling's apparent difficulty in speaking, Liu Chen took the initiative to ask.
As expected, Sang Ling nodded.
"I wanted to move my furniture from home, but before I could even mention it, Ren Mo suggested I buy furniture from IKEA, saying it was very affordable there."
Liu Chen looked at the troubled Sang Ling with some confusion. After all, based on their usual interactions, Liu Chen always thought Sang Ling was a rather intelligent girl.
"Why didn't you express your intentions?"
Sang Ling smiled and shook her head.
"Because I suddenly realized that in his world, there's no option of moving old furniture into a newly purchased house."
Although Sang Ling didn't explicitly state that their values differed, this single sentence made Liu Chen instantly understand her meaning.
"He thought the money I had left was for buying furniture and starting a business."
Liu Chen nodded. This was a significant divergence in how they managed money. Although Liu Chen hadn't dated much, and during her relationship with Ren Yu, she had barely paid attention to his views on money.
After some thought, Liu Chen decided to ask a slightly more subtle question:
"Ling Ling, do you think your differing consumption habits will affect you?"
Sang Ling was taken aback by the question and then sat in silence.
After a long pause, Sang Ling finally found her voice again.
"My family has always had my mother manage all our income, so I subconsciously assumed that in the future, I would manage the household income after marriage."
Liu Chen nodded.
"And now?"
Sang Ling, usually clear-headed, now seemed lost in her eyes.
"I still really like Ren Mo, but I feel like there's a significant gap between Ren Mo and me. This kind of family disparity brings not only material differences but also many differences in perspective. I worry that over time, Ren Mo might realize that I'm just an ordinary girl, perhaps even less attractive than other girls."
Liu Chen was stunned by this. She immediately retorted,
"Ling Ling, are you too stressed lately? Can an ordinary girl be a provincial top scorer? Can an ordinary girl be a top student at Tsinghua University while holding down a part-time job earning ten to twenty thousand a month? Can an ordinary girl have hundreds of thousands of fans who agree with her views?
Ling Ling, I think you should focus more on your strengths. The difference between you and ordinary people is huge. Honestly, Ren Mo was initially afraid to pursue you, worried his intelligence was too far below yours and he wouldn't understand what you said."
Liu Chen's barrage of words left Sang Ling somewhat dazed, but her mind began to ponder. She supposed she was quite accomplished.
Seeing Sang Ling deep in thought, Liu Chen knew she had likely taken her words to heart.
A minute later, Sang Ling suddenly looked up, a hint of frustration in her smile.
"Chen Chen, I still..."
Before she could finish, a knock sounded at the bedroom door.
Liu Chen raised an eyebrow. The rhythm of the knock didn't match Ren Yu's usual style.
"Come in."
The bedroom door opened, revealing Ren Mo's anxious eyes.
"Ling Ling, I... I was wrong!"
Speaking loudly, Ren Mo rushed into the bedroom and immediately knelt on one knee before Sang Ling.
Just as both women were stunned, Ren Mo suddenly reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, velvet box.
"I... I want to be Ling Ling's partner for life! I... I love you!"
Ren Mo, with his neck stiff, shouted these words and then opened the lid of the velvet box, revealing a diamond ring.
When Ren Mo had entered and blurted out those words, Ren Yu had a premonition of something amiss. Upon seeing his foolish brother pull out the velvet box from his pocket, his expression darkened.
This damn brother! Proposing before him! And in front of Chen Chen!
While inwardly displeased, Ren Yu did not forget to carefully observe Chen Chen's reaction to the proposal.
Liu Chen stared at the scene before her, her mind filled with utter bewilderment: ?????
If it weren't for her reason telling her that Sang Ling and Ren Mo couldn't possibly have conspired to stage a proposal in front of her, Liu Chen would have truly suspected that Sang Ling, who had almost considered breaking up moments ago, was now trying to appease her.
Sang Ling looked at the diamond ring and Ren Mo kneeling before her. If it had been moments ago, she might have refused, feeling the vast disparity in their family backgrounds would make managing finances difficult in the future.
But after Chen Chen's words, Sang Ling realized she was also exceptional and had no reason to feel inferior because of Ren Mo's family background.
With this thought, Sang Ling looked at the trembling Ren Mo, whose hand holding the diamond ring was visibly shaking from nervousness.
At least, at this moment, he truly loved her.
"Yes."
Having figured everything out, Sang Ling did not hesitate and agreed.
Upon hearing the word "yes," Ren Mo's smile widened so much it almost reached the back of his head. With trembling hands, he took Sang Ling's finger and slipped the ring onto it.
He then held her ring-adorned hand and grinned foolishly.
He grinned for a good two to three minutes before finally remembering to stand up and embrace Sang Ling tightly.
"Thank you, thank you! Sang Ling, I love you!!!"
Liu Chen looked at the scene before her and couldn't help but display a grandmotherly smile.
How to put it? Perhaps because she had watched the life movies of Zhuzhu and Sister Yu Li so much in the past few days, seeing such a proposal scene now instinctively made her believe it would occupy a part of the life movie.
After Ren Mo recovered from the overwhelming joy of a successful proposal, he held Sang Ling's ring-adorned hand and promised,
"Ling Ling, I know I can be a bit childish and immature, but I promise that every day we are together, I will transfer half of my income to your name as your share of our marital assets. At the end of the year, I will visit your parents to seek their approval."
"If Uncle and Aunt agree, I will talk to my mother. She already knows I have a girlfriend from Tsinghua University, hehe. She's always worried you'll think I'm silly and leave me, so I'll have my mother propose to your family. This way, by next summer, we can get our marriage certificate, and after you graduate, we'll have the wedding..."
Ren Mo rattled off a series of arrangements, clearly having thought things through. He had even decided on the hotel for the wedding...
Next summer?
Liu Chen coughed lightly.
"Ahem, well, Ren Mo, why don't you loosen your grip first? You're turning Sang Ling's hand white."
Upon Liu Chen's remark, Ren Mo quickly released Sang Ling's hand, his face still beaming foolishly, but he remained by Sang Ling's side, unwilling to leave.
"I, we should go back to the room to pack our things first."
Seeing Ren Yu's gaze fixed on Liu Chen, Sang Ling instinctively felt they shouldn't linger any longer. She hurriedly uttered a sentence, pulled Ren Mo along, and left the room, thoughtfully closing the door behind them.
This left the bedroom for Ren Yu and Liu Chen's private time.
Inside the room, Liu Chen was still immersed in the thought that she might have somehow altered the future of Ren Mo and Sang Ling?
However, she hoped that Sang Ling would be happier in this life than in the previous one.
As Liu Chen pondered, she didn't notice that Ren Yu, who had been standing nearby at the doorway, had already walked up to her.
When Liu Chen looked up after feeling someone blocking the bedroom light, she met a pair of deep eyes.
The color of these eyes was extremely dark, like a swirling mass of ink.
Liu Chen was instinctively drawn into these ink-like eyes, time seeming to stand still, with only the pounding of hearts filling the air.
They gazed at each other in silence.
It wasn't until Liu Chen's phone rang incessantly that the quiet mutual gaze was broken.
Liu Chen glanced at it; it was Mi Zhuzhu calling.
Perhaps having just watched Mi Zhuzhu's life movie from her past life, Liu Chen felt an undeniable sense of pity when facing Zhuzhu's call.
This pity prompted Liu Chen to quickly answer the phone.
"Hello?"
"Yes, that's right. Ren Mo knelt and proposed to Sang Ling right in front of me."
"It happened too suddenly, I didn't have time to record it, but don't worry, we'll definitely be invited to the engagement banquet."
After some casual conversation, the ambiguous atmosphere dissipated completely. Liu Chen hung up the phone and was about to say something when the delivery from Tianwang Tower arrived.
After Liu Chen finished eating, she glanced at the intertwined young couple on the sofa and quietly returned to her room. After washing up and getting into bed, she saw Ren Yu also heading towards the bathroom with his pajamas.
It was then that Liu Chen remembered why she felt something was slightly off yesterday.
They were already home and safe, so why was Ren Yu still sleeping in the same room as her?