After a satisfying meal and feeling re-energized, Liu Chen glanced at the rare bright sunshine outside her window. Instead of rushing back to her room, she settled onto a chaise lounge in the living room, a goose-down pillow at her back and a white blanket draped over her legs. She basked in the warm winter sun filtering through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, her eyes narrowing contentedly.
The sunlight gradually intensified, becoming slightly warm. Liu Chen then shifted her position and opened her eyes, checking her phone. It was 9:30 AM.
The only sounds in the house were the occasional delicate clinking of porcelain from Sister Qiong washing dishes in the kitchen. Nestled on the soft, warm chaise lounge, Liu Chen felt a wave of laziness wash over her, making her reluctant to get up.
However, being accustomed to diligence, she couldn't quite settle into enjoying the winter sun with a clear conscience. Leaning against the goose-down pillow, Liu Chen opened Weibo on her phone.
As soon as she opened Weibo, before she could even properly view her homepage, the app froze and automatically closed.
"Huh? I cleared my private messages and mentions yesterday. Why did the app freeze and close today? Did something else happen that I don't know about?"
With that thought, Liu Chen couldn't stay put. She flung the blanket off her legs, slipped on her slippers, and hurried upstairs.
Ren Yu, who had just finished making coffee, watched Liu Chen's retreating back as she went upstairs. She placed one of the two cups on the dining table and took her own cup back to the guest room.
Liu Chen was an independent woman with her own career. When she was busy with work, Ren Yu chose to wait patiently.
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Liu Chen opened her laptop and logged into Weibo. She saw that the "mentions" tab displayed 99+.
"What's going on?"
Bemused, Liu Chen casually clicked on a few of the Weibo posts that mentioned her.
Upon opening them, she discovered that many were reposts of Qiu Lin's Weibo. She then clicked on the photo in Qiu Lin's post that mentioned her.
The photo quickly filled a large portion of her computer screen. Looking at the lucky draw card in the picture, Liu Chen understood what Mi Zhuzhu meant by Qiu Lin's impressiveness.
Good heavens, Qiu Lin had managed to make a piece of material that cost pennies look so desirable that even Liu Chen, the lottery planner, wished she owned it.
"Wow, photography, amazing."
Liu Chen quickly scrolled past these reposted Weibo posts and replied to Qiu Lin's Weibo:
"I'll have finance transfer one thousand yuan directly to your account."
Then, like sifting through gold, she meticulously went through the prize redemption Weibo posts buried among the numerous reposts and replied to each one:
"Send me your bank account number via private message, and finance will transfer it to you directly."
After replying, Liu Chen closed Weibo and began reviewing the knowledge outline she had written down that morning.
Once everything was done, Liu Chen started packing her luggage under the watchful eye of her heavily pregnant mother, Liu Fang.
As she packed, Liu Chen took out two bottles of vitamin pills from her wardrobe.
"I asked the doctor before, and they're safe for pregnant women. Remember to take them, it's just a small token of my affection. You're an older mother, so make sure to get regular check-ups, don't throw a tantrum. Regarding the store, it's better to pay your staff more..."
Liu Chen paused as she didn't hear her mother's response. Looking up, she saw that Liu Fang had already sat down by her bed and fallen asleep, leaning against the headboard.
Noticing her mother's swollen legs and fingers, Liu Chen sat on the floor with the underfloor heating and gently massaged her mother's calves.
By the time Liu Fang woke up, the sunlight outside had turned a reddish-orange. The sunset was as brilliant and dazzling as paint splashed across the sky.
Her daughter was sitting at the desk, head bent as she wrote something. The room was quiet, and the air was warm and dry.
Liu Fang suddenly wished she could remember this moment, to engrave it firmly in her mind.
Soon, the tranquility was broken by a knock on the door. Although the knocking was light and rhythmic, it still startled Liu Chen, who was focused on her writing.
She immediately straightened her back, then quickly stood up and turned, only to see Liu Fang, who had woken up, lying on the bed.
"Mom? When did you wake up?"
Liu Chen walked towards the door, a smile appearing on her face as she asked.
"Just woke up."
As Liu Fang finished speaking, Liu Chen had already pressed down on the doorknob and opened the door inward.
Ren Yu, standing outside the door, smiled when she saw Liu Chen and then noticed Liu Fang, who was heavily pregnant, walking towards them from behind Liu Chen.
"Grandpa says it's time to eat."
"Oh." Liu Chen replied first, then checked her phone. It was 5:30 PM.
"Is dinner earlier than usual today?"
"Yes, Grandpa said since it's your last dinner in Beijing, he asked Sister Qiong to make it especially rich."
Hearing this, Liu Chen felt a sense of anticipation. She turned and carefully helped her mother descend the stairs.
Upon reaching the dining room, Liu Chen realized that Ren Yu's description of "richer" was an understatement. The long table, which could accommodate twelve people, was adorned with a deep blue table runner and fresh flowers.
The dishes were arranged in six rows, with two plates per row. In the center sat a large pot of corn and pork rib soup. The ribs had been stewed for so long that with just a nudge of the chopsticks, they seemed ready to fall apart in the pot.
As Liu Chen was about to take her seat, she saw Ren Yu holding her phone and taking a picture of the dishes on the table.
Liu Chen: ???
"Ren Yu, what are you doing?"
"Taking a photo."
"Why are you taking a photo before eating? Are you starting to run a Weibo account?"
This was the only reason Liu Chen could think of. Otherwise, she couldn't understand why Ren Yu would need to take a picture.
Ren Yu had finished taking photos and sent them to Shen Hong to edit. She then put down her phone, sat in the chair next to Liu Chen, and said calmly, "To show off our affection."
"Pfft!"
Elder Chen, who had just taken his first spoonful of the pork rib soup, heard this and burst out laughing. Fortunately, he had taken only a small amount of soup because he was afraid of it being too hot, so the dishes in front of him were spared.
"Show, show what?"
Liu Fang, holding her spoon, looked at Ren Yu with a bewildered expression.
Ren Yu was about to speak when she felt a warning step on her foot. Then, as if nothing had happened, she said, "Aren't Chenchen and I dating? So, having dinner with your parents is also a way to show affection, representing the stability of our relationship."
Upon hearing the first sentence, Liu Fang suddenly remembered. That's right, Chenchen and Ren Yu were pretending to be a couple.
"Oh, yes, yes, you're right. Then post it on Weibo?"
Ren Yu nodded and asked, "Yes, is that okay?"
"What's okay or not okay about it? Go ahead and post it!" Liu Fang nodded emphatically in support.
"Okay, I'll post it then."
Ren Yu smiled and nodded, then opened the edited photos from Shen Hong, saved them, opened Weibo, selected the photos, and sent them.
Ren Yu: Dinner with Chenchen.
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