Li Weili only knew her grandmother was coming, but she didn't know her grandmother had brought her a truckload of surprises.
So, when Han Lushou called to say he had time that evening and would come home to accompany her, she told him her grandmother was coming.
Han Lushou nervously asked if his grandmother was coming to criticize him and Lili.
Li Weili reassured him that her family doted on her.
Regardless of whether she was coming to criticize him and Lili, Han Lushou had to face it.
He bought essential daily necessities, along with some inner and outer clothing and shoes, and hurried back to the home he owned for the first time in his life.
Li Weili greeted him with a smile at the elevator entrance, warming his heart. He said in an extremely gentle tone:
"Lili, I'm back."
"Mmhmm, welcome home." Li Weili reached to help him with his bags.
He dodged: "I'll carry them myself. You walk ahead."
Entering the living room, Li Weili got him slippers: "I don't know your shoe size, so I bought the largest ones."
Han Lushou said as he changed his shoes, "46. A size up or down doesn't matter. When will Grandma arrive?"
Li Weili closed the living room door: "Probably around eight or nine. Let's make dinner first, and when Grandma and the others arrive, we'll have dumplings."
Han Lushou nodded: "Then I'll go sort out my things first."
Li Weili beckoned him: "Come, I'll accompany you to the bedroom. You haven't seen what I've done with it yet."
The secondary bedroom, over forty square meters, had a two-by-two-point-two-meter bed and a floor-to-ceiling custom wardrobe behind the door.
To the left of the floor-to-ceiling window was a vanity, and to the right were a writing desk and bookshelves.
A carpet was laid at the foot of the bed, and along the wall was a narrow, long TV cabinet with an LCD television on top.
The light-colored curtains and soft lighting made the bedroom feel warm and comfortable.
Han Lushou put down the bags in his hands and embraced the person smiling at him: "Lili, my heart is so warm, thank you."
After speaking, he lowered his head and kissed the woman he cherished deep in his heart.
Li Weili stood on her tiptoes, her arms around his neck. She knew he was very cautious.
From mutual attraction, the two had jumped directly to becoming intimate and getting married, and the process of adjustment required individual effort and commitment.
Han Lushou's orphan status made him even more cautious in handling their relationship.
So she would cooperate with him and work together to manage their life.
After the kiss, Han Lushou held her tightly: "Lili, I'm so lucky to have married you."
Li Weili leaned against his chest, listening to the muffled sounds near her ear, and replied softly:
"So, we must cherish this luck. Just like Mom said, if you have questions, ask them. We don't have much time together, so don't waste it on misunderstandings."
"Mmhmm." Han Lushou released her: "I'll unpack. My things and I will gradually blend into this home."
Li Weili stood beside him, watching him put his clothes into the wardrobe.
His movements were skillful, and the folded clothes were very neat, indicating the owner was very meticulous:
"Han Lushou, my eldest uncle said you were an iceberg, but I've never felt it. I understand you didn't have a family before and used coldness to protect yourself."
"But I want to know, why weren't you cold to me from the beginning?"
Han Lushou turned to look at her seriously: "I suppose it was love at first sight."
"Initially, I didn't understand my feelings, I just had an urge to be close to you. Because I felt a comfort from you, like seeing the sunlight."
"After leaving school, I understood my feelings for you, and then I investigated you."
"Knowing your background, I thought it was even more impossible between us. I wanted to bury my feelings, but I didn't expect to meet you again during my mission."
"Actually, I should thank the Gao family, otherwise, I would never have dared to take this step."
Li Weili smiled with satisfaction: "This is our destiny."
Han Lushou sped up his movements, closed the cabinet door, and took her hand:
"Come, let's go to the kitchen to cook. I don't know how to cook, but I can wash and you can teach me to chop."
The two were happily finishing dinner when the phone rang.
Li Weili then realized it was eight o'clock. It must be her grandmother and the others arriving.
Indeed, as soon as she answered, her aunt's voice came from the phone: "Lili, come downstairs to pick us up, and call your Uncle Ouyang and Renzhi to help carry things."
"You want me to call Uncle Ouyang and Renzhi too? How much stuff is there?"
Ouyang Meihua's loud voice didn't need a speakerphone: "A whole truckload. Your grandmother is practically moving the whole house for you."
After Li Weili found out their exact location, Han Lushou told her to go next door to get Ouyang and his son to wait in the lobby on the first floor while he went to meet them and guide them.
A tall man who introduced himself as Lili's husband came to meet them, and Ouyang Meihua immediately kicked him.
Were the scammers already targeting her?
Han Lushou sidestepped the kick and quickly explained, "Auntie, if you don't believe me, call Lili. She and Uncle Ouyang are waiting for us."
Li Mu sized up Han Lushou. Was this the granddaughter's suitor that her second daughter-in-law mentioned was a bit older?
How much older was "a bit older"?
Li Mu said to her elder daughter-in-law, who was about to make a call, "Meihua, go with him."
Ouyang Meihua was shocked: "Mom, Lili is still a student who hasn't graduated..."
"We'll talk about it later." Li Mu waved her hand: "You, Han Lushou, walk ahead and lead the way. There's no more room in the car."
Seeing the truck, Han Lushou understood what his aunt meant by "moving the house" on the phone to Lili.
As soon as the truck stopped in the parking spot in front of the lobby on the first floor, Li Weili ran out and hugged Li Mu: "Grandma, Grandma, I missed you so much."
"You mischievous girl." Li Mu felt dizzy as her granddaughter hugged her: "Your grandma has been traveling all day and feels dizzy."
Li Weili stuck out her tongue, released her grandmother, and then hooked her arm: "Go slower, I'll support you."
Li Mu moved aside with her granddaughter: "Grandma isn't so old that she needs support. Move aside quickly and tell your uncles to move the things."
Li Weili looked back at the extremely high rear of the pickup truck: "Then we'll go upstairs and wait for you."
Li Mu nodded: "That's fine too. Grandma needs to go up and sit for a while to recover."
The grandmother and granddaughter entered the elevator. The security guard on duty on the first floor was also called by Ouyang Lei to help move things.
Manager Ouyang asked them to do tasks, so the security guards were naturally enthusiastic, but they didn't know why Director Li was living on the top floor.
And she brought her family from the countryside.
Boxes of fresh vegetables, baskets of preserved meats, and plates of wild eggs. Where in the countryside was Director Li from?
When live chickens and rabbits were brought out, the security guards didn't know what expression to put on their faces.
Ouyang Lei, however, happily asked his elder sister: "Is there any for me here?"
Ouyang Meihua pointed to the back seat: "This is all your dung."
Ouyang Lei sniffed his nose: "You came all this way, why didn't you bring me any?"
Ouyang Meihua pointed to the truck: "To fit all the things Grandma brought, I bought a new car, and now it's a dung truck? And you want me to bring you some?"
"If I had driven a big truck, Grandma might have brought even more wild chickens."
Ouyang Lei slapped his thigh: "Then why didn't you drive a big truck?"
"Don't you know how much wild chickens and rabbits sell for here?"
"Get away!" Ouyang Meihua pushed her younger brother aside: "Brother Tian said he doesn't do this kind of casual business. She has already set aside the goods she could preserve for her in-laws."
"Besides, do you lack this little money? You're a general manager, are you going to sell wild chickens on the street?"
"Do you think that's possible?" Ouyang Lei glanced at his elder sister sideways: "We're not on the same wavelength when you talk to me."
"No matter how expensive it is, I still can't buy it."
"Stay here for a few more days with your brother-in-law. I'll take you around and show you things. Don't look at the world with your narrow perspective."
"If you don't see a brand new world, when your daughter-in-law comes, you won't be able to communicate."
"Okay!" Ouyang Meihua didn't hesitate. Seeing such a tall building, she was already awestruck by her sister-in-law, Sister Tian.
She used to go to that small courtyard in the broken alley whenever she visited, and she never imagined that the gap between her and the people around her had widened so much without her realizing it.