Female lead’s Delusion of Starting Over

Chapter 122: Black History? The Best of Times!

“Don’t talk nonsense.” Su Linya scolded gently, holding Lu Li’s hand tenderly: “Don’t think of your aunt as a fool. Back then, I could only manage odd jobs, earning just enough for tuition and rent. If it weren’t for you insisting on taking Zichuan out to eat every day and making sure he brought food back home, we might have starved to death.”

Su Linya looked at Lu Li, her eyes filled with tenderness: “And you always ordered so much, worried that your aunt wouldn’t have enough to eat, right?”

At that time, Li Zichuan was on a poverty scholarship. What could be considered a ‘black history’ was spoken by Su Linya with the gentlest tone. She didn’t care at all; in her eyes, Lu Li was her child. Feeling guilty for needing her child to take care of her, Su Linya felt only remorse.

Lu Li scratched his head, smiling sheepishly. Life had been tough for Auntie and Zichuan in Hangzhou. He hadn’t thought much of it, but hearing Auntie blurt it out now made him a bit shy!

“Ha ha ha, this guy Lu Li, right after school, he’d drag me off to eat, claiming he didn’t want to eat at home. I actually believed him at the time,” Li Zichuan laughed as well.

He wasn’t embarrassed; he and his mother had indeed struggled. Without Lu Li’s support… well, they probably would have died before his father came looking for them.

“That’s because you’re slow!” Su Linya glared at Li Zichuan, clearly contemptuous.

“Ha ha, indeed. But I didn’t stay slow for long. Every New Year’s, this guy would stuff money into red envelopes for me, always bulging, and he’d avoid us until after the holiday was over. Even if I was slow, it was obvious,” Li Zichuan reminisced about the past, his gaze on Lu Li softening with an affection that couldn’t be contained, his usually seductive eyes glistening with unshed tears.

This wasn’t black history. If they considered these moments as such, it would be a betrayal of Lu Li.

Wrapping an arm around Lu Li’s shoulders, he laughed heartily: “But you don’t need to anymore. Next time, just give me a check.”

“Ha ha ha, alright, I’ll write you a check this New Year,” Lu Li joined in the laughter.

The group chatted away, their joyful reunion making it seem as if they were cut off from the rest of the world.

Lu Li and Li Zichuan shared a deep friendship, perhaps merely a brief mention in the story, but having lived through it, their relationship from childhood to adulthood, the depth of their bond couldn’t be summarized in a mere sentence.

Li Ruolan sat quietly, everyone knowing of her brother’s solid friendship with Lu Li, the infamous playboy from Hangzhou, but no one knew why their relationship was so strong.

Now, she seemed to understand a bit.

How ridiculous she had been in her past life, always feeling aggrieved by her ‘mother’ and brother, hating them, thinking she’d be better off without them, not realizing they too had endured such a terrifying existence.

Compared to them, she was nothing but a pampered Persian cat.

Spoiled and ungrateful, not hating the instigator but resenting fellow victims.

Truly… hateful, and pitiful.

Head bowed, she fought back regretful tears. Today was a happy day for everyone, and she couldn’t be the one to disrupt their peace.

She seemed to understand why, after Lu Li’s death, they acted as they did.

Did her brother not know he was no match for Ye Chen? Everyone knew how strong Ye Chen was, yet he still went.

‘Mother’ didn’t stop him, choosing instead to accompany them in leaving. For her, Lu Li and her brother were her whole world. Without them, she naturally had no reason to continue living.

You Meng looked at Lu Li with pride. Yes, her Big Brother was indeed a gentle man.

His gentleness had captivated her.

Holding her heart, her cheeks flushed with an unusual redness.

“Damn it! Calm down, don’t ruin the mood now!” she thought fiercely, but her racing heart refused to listen.

Such a gentle Big Brother should have been surrounded by all the gentleness in the world, but he met the wrong people: unkind parents, a wicked sister, and even the previously beloved Zhang Ziqin turned out to be a damned green tea.

The barbecue arrived, not self-serve but skewers prepared by the staff after ordering.

“Auntie, I remember you don’t like greasy foods,” Lu Li said, noticing Su Linya picking up a skewer of pork belly, frowning slightly.

“There’s no such thing as likes or dislikes. What kind of days haven’t I lived through? Back then, there was no room for choice,” Su Linya pursed her lips, smiling gracefully. Mentioning it casually, she didn’t expect Lu Li to remember.

Li Zichuan handed Lu Li a beef skewer, explaining: “My mom’s not picky. It was just poverty back then; she wanted to leave the greasier meats for me. Who knew you’d get wind of it and order vegetables every meal.”

The best mother, the best Lu Li, Li Zichuan’s heart had room only for these two people. Everyone else meant nothing to him.

Even now, with a better life, his world still revolved around just these two.

“Ah…” Lu Li was taken aback. Was it because of that?

“Heh heh.” Li Zichuan hugged Lu Li’s shoulder, winking: “Three of us, I was the only one who didn’t understand. Now I do.”

“Good boy!”

“Good my ass! Don’t talk to me like I’m a kid!” Li Zichuan cursed.

“Ha ha ha ha ha!”

Su Linya gently laughed at their banter. Lu Li was gentle, and Zichuan was cheerful. Even under such harsh conditions back then, he hadn’t changed. On the contrary, it was after coming to Magic City that he became a bit more somber.

Honestly, she really regretted taking Li Zichuan away from Hangzhou. For a moment of pride, she made both her children suffer.

“Xiao Li, how long will you stay in Magic City this time?” Su Linya asked with concern.

“I’ll probably stay quite a while. I plan to shift the company’s focus here. I’ll be house hunting in the next couple of days,” Lu Li said. Visit the orphanage tomorrow, house hunting the day after, and then wait for Chen Xiaoyi and Cao Yingying to arrive.

“That’s great!” Su Linya’s eyes lit up.

She wished Lu Li could always be within her sight.

“When you go, let auntie accompany you to check out the places.”

Li Zichuan also raised his hand: “I’ll go too, I’ll go too!”

“You’re staying put. Lu Li just got here, and you’re already slacking off. Go work tomorrow,” Su Linya scolded Li Zichuan sternly.

“Uh…”

Li Ruolan watched the domineering ‘mother’ Su Linya and the wronged brother Li Zichuan, surprised to see them acting this way in front of Lu Li.

Indeed, they were a real family.

Perhaps not by blood, but in their hearts, they were truly a family.