Attention passengers, this train has arrived at its final destination, J City. Please gather your personal belongings and prepare to disembark, and we wish you a pleasant journey.
Liu Yu tightly clutched his luggage and, squeezed within the bustling crowd, was pushed off the train.
He took a deep breath of air. He couldn’t even push through the throng of people, and trapped in the middle, he almost turned into a meat patty.
It was right after the Qingming Festival, and people returning to pay respects to their ancestors had all flooded back at once. Liu Yu, lacking experience, had happened to catch the peak travel season.
The train station in J City was massive, and the passenger traffic was staggering. Looking out, all he could see was a dense, bobbing sea of heads.
Because he was short, his line of sight was blocked, and he couldn’t even clearly see the directional signs, let alone hope to find the person Zhou Yu had arranged to pick him up.
Liu Yu lugged his luggage around until he finally managed to find a station staff member. Seeing how small he was, the staff member assumed he had gotten separated from his family at the station and, without a second word, led him straight to the broadcasting room.
Five minutes later:
Now broadcasting a lost person notice. Name: Liu Heqing, gender: male, age: 15. Parents or guardians who hear this broadcast are requested to come to the broadcasting station immediately to pick him up.
Liu Yu sat inside the broadcasting room, listening as the announcer cheerfully repeated the message in standard pronunciation over and over again. The head he had kept bowed ever since entering finally dropped entirely.
In such a massive train station, was there really not a single telephone? So what on earth was the point of the phone number Brother Zhou had written for him? The broadcast began yet another round of announcements, and Liu Yu nervously tugged at the corner of his clothes. He was probably the biggest lost child the train station had ever seen.
Roughly ten minutes later, a young man ran breathlessly into the broadcasting room.
Sorry to keep you waiting. You must be Liu Heqing, right? I’m the driver your brother arranged to pick you up. My name is Li Wen; you can just call me Xiao Li! the young man introduced himself.
Brother Li, hello. He smiled shyly. What a joke, letting someone shorter than another’s chest call a burly, strapping adult Xiao Li was something he just couldn’t bring himself to say.
The other man had an upright appearance and a resolute gaze, looking less like an ordinary laborer and more like a retired soldier.
Yet, traveling far from home, he had to heighten his vigilance. Just as he was about to speak and ask questions, the announcer beside him beat him to it.
Is this your first time meeting? Aren’t you his family member? The announcer looked him over with a critical gaze, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of them.
Ah, right! The man awkwardly explained, I’m his boss’s younger brother. My boss had a temporary emergency today and couldn’t come.
He then asked, Well then, you have a telephone here, right? Let him call our boss to verify.
Hearing this, Liu Yu nodded in agreement, which suited his intentions perfectly.
After a roundabout process, Liu Yu finally got his hands on a telephone.
The staff member took him to the general management office and helped him dial Zhou Yu’s phone number.
After a pleasant piano tune played, the call was finally answered.
Hello, Zhou Yu of the Zhou Group, a deep voice came through the phone.
Liu Yu excitedly said, Brother, it’s Xiao Yu. I’ve arrived at the station!
The other end of the line paused for a moment, as if the speaker was conversing with someone else. A few seconds later, Zhou Yu let out a pleasant laugh. I sent Xiao Li to the station to pick you up. Did you see him?
Liu Yu glanced sideways at the man standing stiffly in the doorway and confirmed in a low voice, Is it the tall, strong older brother whose demeanor is very much like a soldier?
Yes, he is indeed a military veteran, Zhou Yu showed amusement in his tone. Put him on the phone.
Only then did Liu Yu relax his guard. He hurriedly waved to beckon the man into the room and handed the phone over to him.
After a moment, the man hung up the phone directly, handed two coins to the staff member, and walked straight over to him, picking up all the luggage. Let’s go!
What? Making a phone call is actually this expensive?! Liu Yu widened his eyes slightly. No wonder the staff hadn’t told him right away that he could make a call.
Looking back and catching his shock, Li Wen smiled and explained, J City is like this. Everything is expensive.
When he first arrived here, he had also been shocked by such astronomical prices, but high prices also meant abundant opportunities and high wages. As Zhou Yu’s exclusive driver now, he earned two hundred and eighty yuan a month, something he never could have imagined back in his hometown.
Moreover, the advanced state of things here constantly opened people’s eyes. For example, communication between two people no longer required meeting face-to-face or writing letters; as long as you had the money to install a telephone, you could achieve remote communication. He had previously only seen this kind of technology during his time in the army.
The two of them squeezed out of the station through the surging crowd, and a luxury-looking sedan was parked not far outside.
Liu Yu was guided into the car, his buttocks shifting awkwardly against the seat as he silently marveled in his heart. Sure enough, no matter the era, the lifestyle of the rich was something he could never catch up to.
For nothing else, just this car alone was something he could never afford even if he worked hard for a lifetime in his past life.
Liu Yu asked, Brother Li, are we heading to Brother Zhou’s house now?
Li Wen turned his head to reply, I’m dropping you off at your boss’s company. I’ll take your luggage back to the residence.
Okay!
Liu Yu looked aimlessly out the car window at the scenery along the way. Downtown wasn’t actually all that different from the urban areas where he lived in his past life, consisting essentially of towering skyscrapers, endless crowds of people, and flowing traffic.
Perhaps because land in developed areas was worth its weight in gold, he didn’t see many green plants along the way, making his eyes strain and ache.
The car stopped in front of a grand, aesthetically pleasing building. Li Wen immediately stepped out, opened the back door, and invited Liu Yu to step down.
Upon entering the lobby, a massive crystal chandelier came into view, reflecting dazzling colors in the sunlight that could almost blind a person at first glance. The floor and walls were mostly made of marble slabs, remaining low-key yet lacking no luxury.
Hello, do you have an appointment? the receptionist raised her head and asked instinctively.
This is President Zhou’s younger brother, Li Wen said in a low voice.
Right this way, please! The receptionists scrambled to their feet, and the one who looked more senior took the lead in guiding the two into the elevator.
Once they were sent up, she let out a quiet sigh of relief and then rebuked, You’re too careless! Did you forget the notice that came down from upstairs yesterday?
Haven’t I never seen him before? How was I supposed to know this kid is President Zhou’s brother? Their vibes are way too different! the receptionist who had spoken first complained with a grievance.
Feeling quite resentful, she thought: We both saw him for the first time, so why are they acting like hindsight experts and pushing all the blame onto me? I wonder if President Zhou’s brother will blame me for poor hospitality.
If Liu Yu could hear her inner thoughts right at that moment, he would probably only feel that her worries were completely unfounded.
To be terrified of demotion or punishment just because the receptionist asked an extra question meant the life of a working stiff was truly wretched. It was hard to imagine how constantly on edge they had to be in their daily routines.
At this very moment, he was slumped lazily on the reception sofa in Zhou Yu’s office, enjoying the glass of milk the assistant had brought him.
After handing him over to the assistant, Li Wen had taken his luggage and driven back.
The assistant was an uncle in his thirties who was very considerate of others’ feelings, coming over multiple times during the wait to ask if he was bored.
Liu Yu was certainly not bored. Having traveled exhaustively by train all day, his entire body was aching with fatigue. The moment he lay down on this large sofa, he felt wonderfully comfortable, wanting nothing more than to curl up and sleep for three solid days and nights.
His body was equally honest, and soon after finishing the milk, he fell into a deep sleep.
He had no idea how long he had slept, but when Liu Yu woke up, he had been laid out straight on the sofa, with a thin fleece blanket draped over his body.
Awake? A teasing voice sounded by his ear.
Liu Yu turned his head to look. Zhou Yu was sitting at his desk reviewing documents. Brother Zhou! Are your meetings over? he asked with pleasant surprise.
Dressed in a sharp suit, Zhou Yu walked over at an unhurried pace. Mhm, they’re over. I even watched you take a three-hour nap.
As he spoke, he reached out to pat Liu Yu’s head. Only a few months, and you’ve lost even more weight.
No I haven’t! It’s because I grew taller, Liu Yu flushed as he defended himself. He didn’t eat little by little, but he was right in the middle of a growth spurt, and his nutritional intake simply couldn’t keep up with how fast he was shooting up.
I measured you while you were sleeping; you didn’t grow taller, Zhou Yu teased in a low voice.
Liu Yu widened his eyes, taking a moment to realize he had been teased again.
Growing mischievous himself, Liu Yu grabbed the thin quilt and tossed it right over Zhou Yu’s head, springing up to laugh heartily.
When Zhou Yu pulled the quilt off, his hairstyle was slightly ruffled. Yet he didn’t get angry; sitting on the armrest of the sofa, his pair of gentle black eyes watched the boy unblinkingly, the corners of his mouth curving upward slightly.
Having finished playing around, Liu Yu walked up to Zhou Yu and gently hugged him. Long time no see.
Long time no see, Zhou Yu replied.
Because Liu Yu’s departure day was a day later than what he had stated in his letter, Zhou Yu’s work schedule had been completely disrupted.
Yesterday, he had taken Li Wen to wait at the station, originally intending to free up the whole day to take him around sightseeing and familiarize him with the environment. But when the last train of the day pulled in and Liu Yu’s figure was nowhere to be seen, he understood that Liu Yu most likely hadn’t managed to secure a ticket for that day.
Because telephones could currently only be used within a limited local range, it genuinely caused a lot of inconvenience, and Zhou Yu couldn’t help it when he failed to connect with Liu Yu. But work could be postponed for a day, not two; he had to finish handling his backlog of paperwork, leaving Li Wen to pick people up alone at the station today.
After all, the faction belonging to Zhou Zhaohang was watching his every move like hawks inside the company, leaving no room for a single misstep lest they try to drag him down from his position.
By the time he finished reviewing the documents, the sky outside was enveloped in twilight, and Zhou Yu took Liu Yu’s hand as they walked out of the company gates.
Zhou Yu brought him to a hotel whose exterior resembled a palace, and the interior was equally magnificent and resplendent.
This is the most famous Yufang Grand Hotel in J City, and the dishes inside are very popular, he paused for a moment and smiled. I told Zhuang Zhengjun and the others that your cooking skills are definitely as good as, if not better than, the chefs at Yufang Grand Hotel. They wouldn’t believe me, so I decided to bring you here today to let them taste it.
In this world, Liu Yu had absolute confidence in his own culinary skills, but seeing the grand luxury of this hotel now, he felt rather guilty. Surely the chefs at the most famous hotel must possess some genuine skills!
Sensing his minor insecurities, Zhou Yu spoke up, They’re just flashy, empty things. In the face of absolute strength, those are just ephemeral, illusory clouds. If you want these things, I can provide them for you as well.
Liu Yu didn’t speak; he just looked up at Zhou Yu and flashed a bright, radiant smile.
This was also Zhou Yu’s first time dining here since returning to J City, so he wasn’t very familiar with the specialty dishes.
Ultimately, under the restaurant manager’s recommendations, the two of them ordered eight dishes, including Azure Cloud Veils, Crystal Goose Liver, and Mung Bean Soup.
The back kitchen served dishes quite quickly, but as the dishes were successively laid out on the table, the two of them instantly stared in dumbfounded silence.