Chapter 26
Yu Li's home was in a small county in the Southern Province.
The flight took less than two hours, and Yan Shiting had bought first-class tickets, so the journey was not uncomfortable.
Covered by the blanket provided by the flight attendant, Yu Li woke up to the plane preparing for landing.
A few minutes later, the plane landed steadily at the airport of the provincial capital city.
It was raining today, and the temperature was a bit low.
After getting off the plane, Yan Shiting took Yu Li to the airport parking lot.
Yan Group had a large mall in the Southern Province, with about one-third of the stores selling Yan's own products, which were of good quality and reasonably priced, so the mall's foot traffic in the Southern Province had been high for many years.
The general manager of the mall, knowing that Yan Shiting was coming, had sent a driver to be responsible for the two's transportation in the next few days.
It took a little over an hour to drive from the provincial capital to the small county.
After entering the county, Yu Li gave the driver directions and they arrived at the highest-rated hotel in the county.
However, standing in the hotel lobby, Yu Li heard the front desk say, "There are two tour groups staying here these days, all the rooms in our hotel have been booked."
Yu Li was taken aback, "Not even a single room left?"
"Yes, I'm very sorry."
Yu Li slightly furrowed his brows, feeling a bit at a loss.
The hotel facilities in the small county were all quite poor, and this one was barely the best.
Should he ask Yan Shiting to stay in the provincial capital?
At this time, the front desk received a phone call, and after hanging up, he told Yu Li, "Just now a guest with a double room said they want to check out, that room is now available, but it's a small window room by the corridor, would you like to book it?"
The front desk continued, "There aren't many hotels in our county, and recently a tourist attraction has become popular during the National Day period, so a lot of people are coming to check in outside the peak season, so the other hotels may not have good rooms either."
Yu Li couldn't make up his mind, he didn't know if Yan Shiting would be picky about the living environment, he just instinctively worried that Yan Shiting, who had been pampered since he was young, would feel wronged staying in such a place.
However, Yan Shiting beside him had already handed over his ID card: "Okay, please help me book this room."
"Alright, please wait a moment."
Yu Li was stunned, turning to look at Yan Shiting.
Perhaps his gaze was too direct, because Yan Shiting also turned to look at him.
But Yan Shiting didn't explain anything, he just led Yu Li to sit on the sofa in the lobby.
After the previous guest checked out, the front desk notified the cleaning staff to tidy up the room.
Soon, the front desk registered Yan Shiting's check-in information.
Yu Li thought about it and followed Yan Shiting upstairs to take a look at the room.
After opening the door, he was greeted by a cramped room of less than 20 square meters. A large bed took up most of the space, with a TV and a desk facing the bed.
On the wall near the corridor, there was a small window less than a meter long and about half a meter high, near the ceiling.
The soundproofing was very poor, they could hear the sound of people walking in the corridor, and even the conversation in the neighboring room.
If the card wasn't inserted to turn on the lights, the entire room would be pitch black.
It felt oppressive.
It was even worse than the room Yu Li had rented in Y City during the summer vacation.
Yu Li frowned, tugging on Yan Shiting's sleeve.
Yan Shiting's footsteps paused.
He turned around, his gaze lightly glancing at Yu Li's hand grabbing his sleeve.
Yu Li's lips trembled a few times, "Brother Yan, you should stay in the provincial capital, it's just over an hour to come here, it's very convenient."
"Yu Li," Yan Shiting looked at Yu Li.
Yu Li was just too easy to understand.
With just a glance, Yan Shiting could guess his current guilty feelings.
He knew Yu Li was a bit sensitive and self-conscious, and if he stayed in such a room, Yu Li would only feel responsible.
Yan Shiting said calmly, "I'm not the kind of person who is picky about accommodations."
He patiently explained, "Yan Group needs to conduct on-site inspections for the donation to the Hope Elementary School, and when the conditions are really bad, we've even slept in the villagers' storerooms or idle cattle sheds."
Yu Li gradually snapped out of it, his hand gripping the sleeve slowly loosening.
He finally realized that he didn't really know Yan Shiting.
After listening to the outside world's rumors of Yan Shiting, he had unknowingly developed some stereotypes.
Yu Li pressed his lips tightly and didn't speak anymore.
They had left early in the morning, and now it was lunchtime.
Yan Shiting put down the luggage and turned to see Yu Li standing at the door with a dazed look.
He walked over and proactively grabbed Yu Li's wrist, "Let's go have lunch first."
Then he added, "Don't overthink it."
Yu Li nodded.
The room door closed, and it wasn't until they got into the elevator that Yu Li noticed Yan Shiting was holding his wrist.
But the next moment, Yan Shiting let go.
Yu Li's hand paused, then gently lowered.
...
Lunch was at a Cantonese restaurant.
The dishes were light, not as good as the private chef's in Y City, but Yu Li could still eat them.
His morning sickness had only been severe in the beginning, and in this period, aside from the mornings, his other reactions weren't as strong anymore.
After lunch, Yu Li felt a bit sleepy.
Yan Shiting drove him back home.
Yu Li's home was in an old residential area in the county, which many years ago had been the best location in the county center.
Dad had taken out a loan to buy a house here, but just a year later, he passed away while saving someone, leaving the burden of the mortgage on Mom's shoulders.
So over the years, Mom has been working tirelessly to earn money.
The car stopped outside the residential area, and Yu Li looked at the familiar surroundings, feeling a bit pensive.
He looked at Yan Shiting beside him, "Brother Yan, I'll go back first."
Yan Shiting nodded, "Rest well."
"Okay."
Back home, Yu Li tidied up his room a bit and took a long afternoon nap.
When he woke up, he heard the sound of running water from the kitchen.
Yu Li rubbed his eyes and walked over, seeing his mother Lin Jiarong washing vegetables.
Lin Jiarong heard the movement and turned around, "Oh, you're awake! You child, you came back without even telling me in advance."
She had returned home from work in the afternoon and found Yu Li back, but seeing that he was sleeping soundly, she didn't wake him up.
Yu Li smiled, stepping forward to help wash the vegetables, "Mom, you're not working overtime today?"
"This is the off-season, the factory has fewer orders, so no overtime." Lin Jiarong gave Yu Li space at the sink and wiped the water off her hands.
"Isn't it still school time? Why did you come back?"
Yu Li said, "I've fulfilled my credits, no more classes."
He pursed his lips, "I found an internship, so I won't be coming back for the New Year. That's why I wanted to come back and see you and sister now."
By the time of the New Year, he would already be showing, and it wouldn't be good to appear in front of his family then.
Lin Jiarong wore a smile, but her tone was slightly reproachful, "It's good that you found an internship, work hard. Me and Xin Xin are fine, you can see us anytime. At most, I can take Xin Xin to visit you."
"You haven't even started earning yet, the back-and-forth tickets aren't cheap, you know."
Knowing she was just speaking from the heart, Yu Li was used to it, and smiled, "I've been saving the money I earned from part-time work and scholarships over the years, Mom, don't worry."
"How can I not worry? You need to save more money now, for buying a house, a car, and even getting married in the future, it'll cost a lot."
Marriage...
Yu Li's hand paused as he washed the vegetables.
The marriage Mom was talking about was naturally with a woman.
Yu Li lowered his gaze.
But he had already married, and to a man.
This would surely disappoint his mother.
However, he couldn't possibly tell his mother now.
Yu Li finished washing the last small cabbage and said, "Those are all future matters, no need to hurry now."
Seeing Lin Jiarong seemed about to say something else, Yu Li quickly smiled and coquetted, "Mom, I haven't eaten your home-cooked meals in half a year."
Lin Jiarong's attention was indeed diverted.
She sighed and smiled, turning on the gas stove to start stir-frying the dishes.
During dinner, Yu Li received a WeChat message.
He secretly opened it to see Yan Shiting asking:
[Are you feeling unwell?]
Worried that Lin Jiarong would notice, Yu Li didn't reply.
After dinner, as he was clearing the dishes, he finally found time to respond:
[Not unwell, Mom's dishes are delicious.]
Yan Shiting: [Okay.]
Yu Li thought for a bit, then asked: [Have you eaten?]
[Yes, I have.]
[Alright.]
Yu Li then put down his phone.
He quickly finished washing the dishes, and then kept his mother Lin Jiarong company watching TV in the living room. Around 8:20 in the evening, he set out to pick up his sister Yu Xin.
There was only one electric bicycle at home, so Lin Jiarong rode that one, and Yu Li rented a small yellow shared bike outside the residential area.
Arriving at Yu Xin's school, Yu Li had just parked the bike when he saw a man walking up to his mother with a smile.
The man was about the same height as Yu Li, but much more burly, seeming a bit intimidating.
"Little Lin, here to pick up your daughter again?"
Hearing his familiar address, Yu Li's heart sank.
Could this man be the "uncle" his sister had mentioned?
Lin Jiarong's expression seemed a bit uncomfortable, she glanced at Yu Li and just gave a soft "en".
She led Yu Li to the street lamp outside the school gate, to ensure Yu Xin could see them when she came out.
The man followed behind, keeping a two-step distance, continuing to chat with Lin Jiarong:
"This is your son, right? He looks very much like you."
Lin Jiarong nodded, "Yes, both my children take more after me."
The man chuckled, greeting, "Hello, I'm your mother's colleague."
Yu Li couldn't quite judge whether the man was a good person or not, but still politely greeted, "Hello, uncle."
Lin Jiarong grabbed Yu Li's sleeve, telling the man, "Team Leader, my son is accompanying me to pick up my daughter today, you can go back first."
The man stood there, waving his hand, "It's fine, I've come all this way, I'll wait with you."
Lin Jiarong then fell silent, gripping Yu Li's wrist, her gaze struggling, as if confirming something.
Yu Li glanced back at the man.
Standing there with his stature, he had an undeniably imposing presence, causing the other parents there to silently keep a distance.
Yu Li's gaze shifted, and he saw a familiar black Mercedes in the distance.
That was the car the mall general manager used to entertain Yan Shiting.
Knowing Yan Shiting was nearby, Yu Li felt more at ease, silently withdrawing his gaze.
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