Chapter 87 The Landlady
Sikong Zhaixing was still pondering when he suddenly heard a sound coming from a more distant, dark hall behind him, before the two people in front of him could even begin to reminisce.
At first, there was the clattering of slippers on the stairs, and after more than ten steps, a voice came from behind—it was Lu Yusheng.
She struggled to open her eyes, barely slits like an ant's, and asked as she walked, "Is anyone coming?"
"Are you the owner of this place?"
The unfamiliar woman's voice gradually cleared Lu Yusheng's dazed mind. When she was finally able to open her eyes completely, she subconsciously checked the time; it was not yet five o'clock.
Then, he nodded blankly and replied, "Yes, it is. What's wrong?"
At that moment, all I wanted was to get back to my warm bed.
Since it was winter and there had been no customers for days, her wake-up time had been pushed back from six o'clock to seven-thirty.
A few times I overslept and came downstairs to find a hot breakfast already on the table, and since then I've felt even less pressured to stay in bed.
Finally, Sikong Zhaixing, who had just remembered the person's identity, immediately cleared up her confusion. Pointing to the proprietress, she turned to Lu Yusheng and said, "She is the proprietress, which is Zhu Ting's wife."
Hua Manlou was a step behind in speaking, his mouth slightly open, but he ultimately didn't say anything more, and nodded in affirmation.
When Lu Yusheng realized the meaning behind the words, he couldn't help but be shocked... Zhu Ting's wife?
Now she was completely awake. She looked closely at the beautiful woman's radiant face in front of her, and the image of Boss Zhu, whom she hadn't seen for a long time, involuntarily came to mind.
Her memory was good; although some time had passed since they parted, the image in her mind remained vivid. However, when she put it next to the beautiful and charming proprietress in front of her, the contrast was even more disheartening.
Lu Yusheng remained silent for two seconds, momentarily forgetting how to speak after the shock.
It wasn't until a gentle breeze blew in through the open door that she suddenly realized it wasn't her heart that felt cold, but her face.
He quickly took two steps forward and reached out to the other person, saying, "I am the owner here. My surname is Lu, Lu Yusheng. Just call me Xiao Lu. It's cold outside, Madam, please come inside with us."
Whether he was taken aback by her enthusiasm or simply didn't know how to react, he hesitated for several seconds before belatedly extending his hand: "...Okay, thank you, Boss Xiaolu."
Holding the other person's cold hand, Lu Yusheng felt a chill run down his spine, and at the same time, he felt a little annoyed at his own slowness.
After helping the person into the house, she let go of their hand and stayed behind, letting Hua Manlou and the other person lead the proprietress into the hall first. She then closed the door with one hand, her finger hovering over the wall by the door for a moment. After a crisp "click" sound, a bright white light immediately illuminated the entire space.
Seeing the other two, besides Hua Manlou, covering their eyes, Lu Yusheng also rubbed his eyes, which had been stimulated to the point of producing tears, and pressed another button next to the switch.
The indoor lighting quickly changed from bright white to warm yellow.
The proprietress's eyes lit up and then dimmed. Having been influenced by her husband, she could naturally see what kind of ingenious mechanism was hidden in this small lamp.
She was led to a table and sat down. Her eyes were fixed on Lu Yusheng, ignoring even Hua Manlou, whom she had known before. She only stared intently at the owner of the shop with her beautiful eyes.
No wonder that deadbeat couldn't bear to go home.
Her voice matched her beautiful face perfectly and was naturally pleasant to listen to. Her innocent remark made Lu Yusheng feel a little embarrassed.
But after listening, I couldn't help but start to think deeply again—
Nearly three months have passed since Zhu Ting left to seek an opportunity to advance his career in the manufacturing field.
Recalling a certain possibility that had surfaced in his mind, he couldn't help but ask again to confirm, "Has Boss Zhu not gone back?"
The proprietress answered her, her voice this time tinged with loneliness and bitterness: "I haven't seen him in a long time."
Lu Yusheng was somewhat incredulous. Had he really not gone home even once in such a long time?!
She slammed her hand on the table. She was already standing, and this slam made her stand up a little shorter, bringing her closer to the proprietress's beautiful face.
When he spoke again, his tone was somewhat indignant: "I didn't know he would do this. How could he leave his wife like you alone at home!"
Then he slowly stood up straight and sincerely apologized to the woman: "I'm so sorry, I never thought that in the end I would cause you to separate from your husband."
"You seem to have misunderstood something."
The proprietress looked up and met her gaze, her voice softening: "I'm not here to interrogate you."
“It is his good fortune that you are willing to fulfill his wish… but at this time of year, if we cannot reunite with our families, I will never be able to stay at home alone.”
Lu Yusheng finally understood. The landlady must have come to find someone, but since she didn't search the house after entering, she must know that the person wasn't with her.
With such a considerate and beautiful wife, even though Lu Yusheng somewhat admired Master Zhu's craftsmanship, he couldn't help but feel a dark emotion, like "smoking all night but not understanding where he went wrong."
After being jealous, he couldn't help but complain that the other person had a wife, children, and a warm bed, but instead went to the mountains to mine.
Unfortunately, she couldn't give the woman an answer, and could only say dryly, "I'm sorry, I don't know where he went after he left."
"Boss Lu, there's no need to worry about this. If you know anything about Lu Xiaofeng, you can let us know. If Young Master Lu is willing to help, this trip will surely not have been in vain."
At this point, the proprietress subconsciously glanced at the silent Hua Manlou.
If on the way here she only held a faint hope of finding out where Zhu Ting and Lu Xiaofeng were, when she met Hua Manlou, that hope turned from one point to ten.
Just as she believed that Lu Xiaofeng could find Zhu Ting, she believed that Hua Manlou should also be able to find Lu Xiaofeng at any time.
Whether or not Hua Manlou sensed her gaze, he generously revealed all the information he knew.
"So... he's already on his way back to Wanmei Manor with Ximen Chuixue?"
A look of sorrow crossed the woman's face. Anyone who had traveled for several days and then discovered that they had just missed the person they were looking for would probably find it hard to be happy.
At this moment, Lu Yusheng said, "I can send him a message and ask him if he can come back to find you."
Just as Sikong Zhaixing was about to ask her how to send a message, she saw Lu Yusheng turn his back and take out a communicator.
—I forgot about that.
Looking back at Hua Manlou, it was clear that he had already thought of this, and there was no worry on his expression at this moment.
The communicator naturally has a 26-key input mode. Without using traditional Chinese characters for handwriting, Lu Yusheng's typing speed is much faster than others. He quickly typed out the whole story in the input box.
However, it's still too early. If they're not in a hurry on the road, the other party probably hasn't gotten up yet. If they're in a rush to get back, they probably won't be in the mood to check messages on the way.
Fortunately, her worries did not come to pass, and she received a reply just a few minutes later.
Hua Manlou had just finished making tea and poured a cup for Lu Yusheng. As she took the cup, she immediately saw a reply on Changliang's screen.
Seeing that the proprietress, who had also received a cup of hot tea, hadn't noticed what was going on, Sikong Zhaixing quietly went over to watch the two's conversation.
Lu Yusheng seemed to sense something, pushed away his approaching head, and asked in return, "Can't you see your own too?"
The latter felt a dry, itchy throat and wanted to cough twice to avoid the question, but remembering what Lu Yusheng had said earlier, he stopped himself and had to pretend he hadn't heard it.
Seemingly noticing the interaction between the two, Hua Manlou tightened his grip on the teapot, filled the cup belonging to Sikong Zhaixing, and pushed it towards the other.
As she put down the cup, her hand passed by Lu Yusheng, who was caught in the middle, and her slender fingers paused in the air for a second before landing on the table, just inches away from her palm.
His other hand was still holding the teapot, and the way his hand landed next to Lu Yusheng was not strange; it seemed he was just using it to sit down.
Noticing that Hua Manlou had finally finished his work and sat down, Lu Yusheng glanced at Hua Manlou's hand, which was very close to his own. Without thinking much, he moved his left hand, which was close to Hua Manlou's, away.
With his hands clasped together, Hua Manlou's previously uneasy mood finally calmed down.
Being so close, Sikong Zhaixing naturally saw their movements.
"Whoosh—"
He suddenly stood up, deciding to ignore it to calm his mind, and said as he walked towards the stairwell, "I'm going back to sleep now."
Having seen everything on the screen, Lu Xiaofeng and Lu Yusheng had reached a consensus on the matter and probably wouldn't say anything more.
Moreover, as Lu Yusheng said, he also has a communicator, so he can see any changes in the subsequent actions.
Lu Xiaofeng had been gone for two days, but according to him, he would only need a day and a half to return, so the landlady decided to stay here for the time being.
Fortunately, there is a constant flow of people here, so there are always empty rooms available. To take care of her feelings, Lu Yusheng would occasionally talk to her when he had free time.
Her feelings for her husband were unquestionable, and even after seeing his many shortcomings, they remained unwavering.
Lu Yusheng thought about it herself. If her husband didn't come home after they got married, she would be so exhausted that she would have to go out to look for him even during the Chinese New Year...
Although she knew that Hua Manlou was definitely not that kind of person, she couldn't help but feel some concern about the possibility that hadn't even happened.
...Wait a minute? That doesn't make sense either. Why is she thinking about marriage so early?
The proprietress seemed to realize that Lu Yusheng's thoughts had gone astray, and she also realized which of the two men who stayed here was her lover. She said a lot of good things about the latter to Lu Yusheng.
"Young Master Hua is an outstanding man, born into a prestigious family. Not only is he highly skilled in martial arts, but he is also approachable. If my husband had half of his good temper, I don't know how much less I would have to worry about him."
Lu Yusheng didn't respond to her words, but instead asked, "How did you figure out that I'm with him?"
Can't I be single?
"Little sister, I'm a woman now." The proprietress smiled and touched her cheek, offering no further explanation.
She felt a strong liking for the girl in front of her, partly because her husband had been advised by her, but more so because she was touched by the girl's enthusiasm.
Therefore, she was even more reluctant to see her suffer the same hardships she had endured, and she didn't want to see her miss out on a good man.
Lu Yusheng wasn't one to argue, so he listened to what she said and nodded as if he understood.
However, they are ultimately going to postpone considerations such as marriage for a while longer.
——————————
"Long time no see."
When Lu Yusheng saw Lu Xiaofeng again, looking travel-worn, he was much calmer. After a quick calculation, he realized that he had already entered and exited this place three times this month.
After thinking about it, I couldn't help but ask, "Are you this busy every year during the Chinese New Year?"
"Of course not." The latter slumped onto the sofa, sighed slowly, and said, whether to lie to her or to himself, "But it's good to be busy, it'll be lively."
He was never one to enjoy trouble, but trouble always seemed to find him at the most inopportune times.
Originally, I was invited by Ximen Chuixue this year, and I was mostly going to spend the New Year drinking and enjoying the snow with him at Wanmei Villa.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Ting appeared out of nowhere, and this was someone whom he could never abandon no matter how ruthless he was.
His friend was nowhere to be found, and his friend's wife was left alone in her empty room. Both were serious matters, and he pointed to his temples in distress.
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