AAWOMAHI Chapter65

Lu Shiran went to work, and Lu Xingmian was left at home alone. He noticed that the sun outside was nice.

 

Lu Xingmian hadn’t been out for several days, so he decided to take advantage of the good weather and go for a walk. When he stepped outside, Lu Xingmian was bundled up warmly, a scarf wrapped around his neck. Besides not wanting to catch a cold again, it could also cover the marks on his neck.

 

Lu Xingmian assumed that the skin on his neck was more delicate than elsewhere, causing the marks to fade slowly. He didn’t realize that the true reason they hadn’t disappeared was because Lu Shiran gently rubbed them each night while he slept, which of course making them visible.

 

After spending a whole afternoon at the mall, Lu Xingmian had bought a lot of things, for both himself and Lu Shiran. He didn’t have too many things and wasn’t tired, so he decided to take the bus home from the bus stop near the mall.

 

Then he heard someone calling his name.

 

As the Chinese New Year approached, Lu Yan and Xia Yuefang became more and more anxious. The end of the year was when various wealthy families held banquets and cocktail parties. In the past, they were busy attending all sorts of these events, and their presence was a must. As long as they appeared at these banquets, it would show that their Lu family had not gone bankrupt and that they could one day return to their former status as a wealthy family, meaning their identity would remain unchanged.

 

They had already missed several important banquets, and they had very little money left. They had never been so strapped for cash before.

 

The project Lu Yan was working on with a friend had undergone an on-site survey. The land was so extensive that, once the policies were implemented in a year, it would yield a massive profit.

 

So, even though Xia Yuefang was worrying about daily living expenses, they still saw a glimmer of hope.

 

However, they absolutely had to attend the banquet in a few days because it was hosted by the Lu clan, and the guests were all powerful and influential figures. Since they couldn’t get close to the Lu clan, they could try to get close to other families.

 

But when Xia Yuefang looked at the balance in her and her husband’s bank accounts, she couldn’t be happy. There was so little money left. Even if they had an invitation, what about the formal attire for the banquet? Formal dresses for banquets couldn’t be worn more than once.

 

After Lu Yan and Xia Yuefang had been frowning for a few days, one evening at dinner, Xia Yuefang suddenly remembered something very important: they had once given Lu Xingmian 500,000 yuan. They had completely forgotten about Lu Xingmian during this time, so they hadn’t thought of it.

 

When the 500,000 yuan was mentioned, their eyes both brightened. In the past, they wouldn’t have batted an eye at such a sum, but now it felt like an unexpected windfall—a full 500,000 yuan.

 

Xia Yuefang even felt a little fortunate that she had given Lu Xingmian so much money at that time. There was no way Lu Xingmian could have spent all of it. They didn’t owe Lu Xingmian anything. They didn’t need to give Lu Xingmian this money in the first place; giving it was a favor, and now there was nothing wrong with them taking it back.

 

Lu Sihang had no idea that his parents had given Lu Xingmian 500,000 yuan. If he had known earlier, he would have demanded it back immediately. It was their family’s money, so why should it be given to Lu Xingmian?

 

At every opportunity, Lu Sihang badmouthed Lu Xingmian to his parents. He told them what he had heard: he saw a post on their school’s forum saying that Lu Xingmian was being kept by an old man. The whole thing had caused a huge stir, and pretty much everyone at their school knew about it. He also mentioned that the last time he heard a man talking to Lu Xingmian on the phone, the things the man said were sickeningly mushy.

 

Xia Yuefang frowned. Lu Xingmian had sunk to such a state, proving he was truly from a commoner’s background. Yet if someone was supporting him, they would feel even less hesitation in reclaiming the money. Originally, they only wanted a portion of it, but now they could ask for all of it.

 

Lu Yan and Xia Yuefang decided to call Lu Xingmian, but when they looked for his number, they realized Lu Xingmian’s name wasn’t there. When they had cut ties with Lu Xingmian, they had deleted his number. Lu Sihang had also deleted Lu Xingmian’s WeChat a long time ago. None of the three had Lu Xingmian’s contact information.

 

It was also the school holiday now, so they couldn’t find him there. Unless it was absolutely necessary, they didn’t want to ask Song Mingyi for Lu Xingmian’s contact information.

 

Perhaps fate was still on their side. One day while Xia Yuefang was just strolling around, she happened to see Lu Xingmian.

 

Xia Yuefang had come to the mall to pick out a formal dress for the banquet in a few days. She had already chosen a dress. If they hadn’t gone bankrupt, she would have bought it without blinking, but now she could only leave with regret.

 

To her surprise, she saw Lu Xingmian in the mall.

 

Xia Yuefang looked at the bags in Lu Xingmian’s hands; every single one was a luxury brand. She also noticed a faint love bite on Lu Xingmian’s neck. It seemed Lu Sihang was right; Lu Xingmian was indeed being kept by an old man.

 

A sense of unfairness suddenly welled up in her. Lu Xingmian was actually living a better life than them. Lu Xingmian could shop luxuriously at the mall, while she had to leave her favorite dress behind because she didn’t have the money.

 

Xia Yuefang sized him up. Lu Xingmian seemed to be different from before, but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what had changed.

 

Since they had already severed ties, there was no need for unnecessary pleasantries. Besides, Lu Xingmian didn’t deserve it either.

 

“Lu Xingmian, do you remember the 500,000 yuan our Lu family gave you? We gave it to you because you were a member of the Lu family. But now you have no relation to us, so please return the 500,000 yuan.”

 

When Xia Yuefang approached him, Lu Xingmian had already guessed what this was about. He had been planning to give them the 500,000 yuan back, but the Song family had found him first.

 

Lu Xingmian pursed his lips. “Okay, but can you give me three days?”

 

Three days? The Lu family’s banquet was in just a few days. The formal dress might need alterations, and that would take time. Three days was simply too long.

 

Xia Yuefang couldn’t wait three days. “Give it to me now.”

 

Besides, she was worried that Lu Xingmian would refuse to give the money back. She had finally run into him here and was determined to get the 500,000 back today.

 

Lu Xingmian knew Xia Yuefang didn’t trust him. “Then can we do it tomorrow?”

 

“Why wait for tomorrow? It’s only a dozen hours.” Xia Yuefang’s suspicion grew. “Lu Xingmian, you’re not actually trying to be a deadbeat, are you? We didn’t even bat an eye when we gave you 500,000, and now all we’re doing is asking for what’s ours back.”

 

“Since you’ve already severed ties with our Lu family, this 500,000 isn’t yours. Give it back to me right now, immediately.”

 

“We’ll count 50,000 as the money we spent on you during your third year of high school, so you don’t need to return all of it. But at the very least, you have to return 450,000. Lu Xingmian, that’s not too much to ask, is it? We’ve already done our part.”

 

“Don’t forget who said they had no relation to the Lu family that day. You still owe our Lu family 500,000.”

 

Lu Xingmian clenched his fists. “Fine. I’ll give it to you right now.”

 

A few minutes later, seeing the 500,000 appear on her bank account, Xia Yuefang left feeling satisfied. The full 500,000 was returned without a single yuan missing. Now they wouldn’t have to live so tightly, and they would have money for their banquet dresses.

 

Lu Xingmian pursed his lips. He hadn’t been trying to put off giving them the 500,000 yuan; it was just that this was the card Lu Shiran had given him—it was Lu Shiran’s card, and he wanted to go back and ask for his opinion first, but Xia Yuefang had been too pushy.

 

Lu Xingmian felt a little sad inside. He didn’t know why, but it certainly wasn’t because he had returned the 500,000.

 

With his mind occupied, Lu Xingmian walked home and ran into Lu Shiran, who was just getting off work. Lu Shiran walked over and took the things from Lu Xingmian’s hands.

 

When he saw Lu Shiran, Lu Xingmian suddenly called out to him, “Ge,” with a note of grievance in his voice. Lu Shiran immediately noticed something was wrong.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

Lu Xingmian: “Ge, there’s something I want to tell you. I’ll tell you when we get home.”

 

The elevator climbed slowly. Lu Xingmian secretly wished it would move even more slowly, while the anxious Lu Shiran hoped it would reach home sooner.

 

Back home, Lu Shiran immediately asked what had happened. Lu Xingmian’s lips were tightly pressed together, which made Lu Shiran even more worried. His heart was clenching. “Zai Zai, please, what happened? Don’t make me worry.”

 

Lu Xingmian took a deep breath. “Ge, I’m sorry. I used 500,000 today from your card.”

 

He saw Lu Shiran’s eyebrows furrow, and Lu Xingmian’s heart tensed up. Done for, he thought. Is Lu Shiran unhappy? 500,000 isn’t a small amount.

 

Just as Lu Xingmian was about to speak, Lu Shiran picked him up, placed him on the sofa, and put his hands on either side of him.

 

Lu Shiran looked at him with an expression full of tenderness. “Zai Zai, you finally used that card.”

 

Lu Xingmian was stunned. Lu Shiran’s tone and expression weren’t angry; he even seemed happy and relieved as well.

 

Thinking he hadn’t heard clearly, Lu Xingmian repeated the number—500,000, not 500. This was the first time he had used the card Lu Shiran gave him. Normally, Lu Shiran would just send him red envelopes, coaxing him to accept them.

 

Lu Shiran: “Zai Zai, this card is for you. You can use it however you want and spend it however you want.”

 

Lu Xingmian: “But…”

 

Lu Shiran: “I know what you want to say. I’m your boyfriend. You can rely on me, and I also want you to rely on me. I want to take good care of you.”

 

“Zai Zai, you’re a student right now. All you need to do is focus on your studies. You shouldn’t worry about other things. Just leave them to me.”

 

Lu Shiran looked at him. “Zai Zai, you bought 1,000 hours of my time. Now I’d like to make a request, can you buy the rest of my life?”