Lu Rong went up and opened the door. He held a bag of vegetables he had just bought in his hand. He was calculating what to make for dinner, how much rice and other necessities were left at home, what flour to use to make fish cake, where to buy cheaper toilet paper. Lu Rong was the boss of The Evil Team at school, and after coming home, he was the head of household.

Just after Lu Rong was born, his father was imprisoned. He was a well-off businessman, but was sentenced for smuggling sandalwood. He hadn’t come out until now.

His mother, Fang Qing, was a standard mystical lady. [1]

Fang Qing was born in a common family, after graduating from junior high, she went to work in a textile factory. She was extremely beautiful. When Lu Rong’s father was pursuing her, he took her to the cinema everyday, then Fang Qing married him. The wedding ceremony was magnificent, Fang Qing was a rich lady for about a year.

When Lu Rong was born, his father was sentenced, the luxurious home was sealed, and Fang Qing took the child while crying. Later on, the elders of the Lu family decided to dissolve the marriage. In the Lu family, only Lu Rong’s father was well-off. Now that he was bankrupt, no one was willing to help him raise his wife and kid.

Fang Qing raised Lu Rong alone.

Normally, a boy from a single parent family could easily turn into a mama’s boy. Whenever they spoke, they would say, “My mother has it rough”. But for Lu Rong, it was different. Lu Rong would always say, “I have it rough”. Fang Qing was always one sandwich short of a picnic, for Lu Rong to grow up safe and sound was all because of his own good luck.

When he was young, his mother took him to stay in a room she rented, and when she was at work, she would leave Lu Rong alone in the room. His thermos was put under the table, then she arranged a socket in front of it. She simply told Lu Rong: “Rong Rong, scalded or electrocuted, choose one for yourself, you’re welcome!”

Lu Rong relied on his own sharp wit. When he touched the scalding hot thermos, he cleverly withdrew his hand; he relied on his logical thinking to understand that when his mother pulled out the plug, the socket will have sparks, so the socket was a dangerous thing.

When he grew up and became a bit more sensible, his first memory was of him falling down from the bed and bumping into the wall, stupefied by pain. When his mother heard the noise, she ran in. Seeing him fall head first on the floor, she laughed.

Right, she laughed.

She hit the door and ferociously laughed out loud.[2]

She also took a picture of that.

Lu Rong didn’t remember what happened afterwards, but most likely, he cried.

So, Lu Rong was smart, ambitious, cautious, reserved and good at looking for ways to survive since he was young, working hard as if the sky would collapse tomorrow. After all, his mother was unreliable.

There was a time during Chinese new year when they went to burn incense. The temple was crowded and everyone was squeezed together, making Lu Rong carelessly shed the incense ash onto his hand.

“Mom!” he screamed subconsciously.

Fang Qing came hurriedly. “Dear! Let me see where it burns!”

Fang Qing was also holding incense.

Lu Rong subconsciously realised that there would be something bad happening, but it was too late, Fang Qing had already poked his face using the incense in her hand.

Lu Rong, “ah ah ah!!!” the side of his face got a slight scar.

From then on, Lu Rong wouldn’t count on Fang Qing anymore.

Fang Qing didn’t disappoint his expectations of her. After all these years, she didn’t realize the money at home was more than what she earned.

Lu Rong got in. He was still calculating about the fish cake in his mind, but his house was lit, there were two pairs of shoes in front. One pair of high heels, the other was a pair of size 43 handmade leather shoes from Italy.

Lu Rong lifted his head abruptly. There was a man with sleek hair, white suit and blue shirt wearing his size 39 slippers, elegantly sitting on the sofa with his feet hanging upright.

Four eyes met each other.

The man looked like an intellectual, with a square face, slender eyes, a little bit like the TV host, Bai Yansong. Even though he was restrained right now, he still exuded an impressive sense of righteousness. His well-tailored suit, paired with a striking shirt and tie, were in line with his image, but for some reason, the open shirt collar faintly revealed a thumb-thick golden necklace, which made Lu Rong unable to move his eyes.

“Are you involved in gangs?” This was Lu Rong’s first reaction.

Lu Rong stepped back to see the number plate. That’s right, it was his home.

Then…

“Who are you?” he stood straight, like a lion cub guarding his territory.

Fang Qing listened to the sound outside and opened the kitchen’s sliding door. She was wearing an apron, her face reddened as she walked forward. She spoke soft and embarrassedly. “Rong Rong is home~”

Lu Rong, “En.”

Fang Qing blushingly introduced, “This, this is my boyfriend.”

The man stood up, cautiously greeting Lu Rong with his eyes.

Lu Rong, “…”

This situation didn’t seem like a mother introducing a stepfather to her son, but rather like a daughter bringing her boyfriend home for the first time to meet her father.

Lu Rong followed Fang Qing to the kitchen. Right after he opened the door, he smelled a nauseatingly sweet smell. Lu Rong resisted his urge to vomit and opened the lid. Inside was a big chunk of pork belly, its colour had turned white and some fur remained on the skin. Lu Rong put the lid back on with a complicated mood, then he stood beside Fang Qing.

Lu Rong, “What happened between you and him?” He spoke while calmly trying to take over the knife.

Fang Qing, “We just met each other half a year ago.” She didn’t let Lu Rong take the knife. She cut the beef into a brisket and then put it all into the pot, but the beef was cut into minced meat.

Lu Rong broken-heartedly saw that. “How did you get to know each other?”

Fang Qing, “He came to discuss business in our restaurant, then someone spilt the curry sirloin onto his shirt…” She took the fish then immediately killed it with the knife, opened the belly and took the inside out.

Lu Rong was frightened. “Are you the one who spilled it?”

Fang Qing glared at him angrily. “How come~ am I that kind of person?”

Lu Rong was filial, he didn’t answer.

Lu Rong, “Then you are the one who offered to wash his shirt?”

Fang Qing just realised there was this possibility. “Emmm…”

Lu Rong, “Then what was your role in that scene?”

Fang Qing shyly lowered her head. “I laughed the loudest.”

Lu Rong, “…”

Fang Qing, “But he thinks I’m full of vitality when I laugh!”

Lu Rong thought, how could it not be, most people would make a hihi sound when laughing, while you laugh hahahahahaha, with your hand smashing the door.

Lu Rong didn’t question how their middle-aged love happened. The sky wanted to rain, mother wanted to marry, these were unavoidable matters. He wanted Fang Qing to remarry too. If Fang Qing was married, his burden would lighten a little, he was like a father wishing his old and unmarried daughter would marry, but whether this person was suitable or not, Lu Rong would help Fang Qing check.

Lu Rong, “What kind of person is he?”

Fang Qing blushed again. “His name is Ji Tong, you can call him Uncle Ji for now. It is not too late to change after we are married.”

Lu Rong, “I asked you what kind of person is he, where is his hometown, and is he working in S City? What does he do?”

Fang Qing gave out an oh. “Seems like he has a company.” She said while putting the not cleanly washed fish into the pot.

Lu Rong recalled the thumb-thick golden necklace on Uncle Ji’s neck, he felt this thing was not good. “What company? Have you investigated it?”

Fang Qing revealed a righteously indignant expression. “I am not a woman who will marry for wealth!”

Lu Rong answered, “Opening a company seems glorious on the surface, but behind that are liabilities. The bigger the company, the bigger the liabilities. What would happen if he was in debt?

Fang Qing, “…Ah?”

Lu Rong, “Sign a prenuptial agreement, whatever happens later is not easy to be said. Our home is old and small, you have to leave it for me.”

This building was the one he chose to buy after saving money. Five minutes away from the subway, in the center of S city. Hard currency could change at any moment, it may depreciate. This building was the only fixed asset that Lu Rong could count on at the moment, and it could withstand inflation.

Fang Qing hesitated. “Let’s talk about it later. Signing this hurts feelings.”

Lu Rong asked, “Do you know which sector his company is in?”

Fang Qing, “How can I ask this.”

Lu Rong, “…What if he was in underground business?”

Fang Qing, “…”

Lu Rong, “I saw that the gold necklace on him is very thick, if not working underground, normally people won’t wear a golden necklace that thick.”

Fang Qing, “It can’t be, right? That golden necklace might be a fake, the type that can float on water.”

Lu Rong, “How can you discuss marriage before you understand the other party?”

Fang Qing, “I think he is pretty good! He is elegant and understanding. He picked me up to and from work, and in order to take care of your feelings, he didn’t even come up for the past half year. He also takes me to the cinema every week.”

Lu Rong suspected his mother’s condition on choosing a husband was to take her to the cinema.

After Fang Qing talked about going to the cinema, she got angry at Lu Rong. “This kid, how can you talk about money all day long, the day will still pass no matter whether you have money or not, living together depends on whether the feeling between two people is good or not. He takes me to the cinema every Sunday, I’m blissful, why do you keep picking on his faults?”

Lu Rong decided, his mother’s condition on choosing a husband was to take her to the cinema.

Fang Qing’s elbow had moved outward[3] and grew on Ji Tong’s body. Lu Rong didn’t persuade her anymore. Mothers that had been married were like water that had been spilt[4], he had to investigate on his own, starting from Ji Tong.

Lu Rong couldn’t do anything in the kitchen, he left Fang Qing on her own, opening the sliding door and walking to the living room. Ji Tong hurriedly stood up and took out a big red packet from his pocket. “Rong Rong, this time uncle didn’t bring anything…”

“No rush.” Lu Rong flapped his hand. He sat down beside him smilingly.

Ji Tong was stupefied.

He felt like he wasn’t giving a kid his first-time-meeting red packet, but he was sending Maotai [5] to father-in-law and was politely declined by father in law.

“It is not too late to give me a red packet after you get your certificate.” Lu Rong suggested, or else it would seem like accepting bribery, entrapping him to do the crime of selling one’s mother.

Ji Tong, “It is me who was in a rush, hehe.”

Lu Rong, “I heard from my mom, you own a business?”

Ji Tong, “Yes, small business.”

Lu Rong, “In which sector?”

Ji Tong, “At first it was in loaning.”

He was one of the first engineers to use the internet to look for information, but the products he made all seemed to provide services for loaning companies. He laughed after saying this. He himself felt that he was humorous, pulling the distance between him and Lu Rong nearer.

Lu Rong vigilantly gazed at him. “Afterwards?”

Ji Tong tried to use easier to understand terms to explain what he did to the high schooler in front of him. “Now, we have finished the accumulation of capital, we are investing in a project that has prospects. If the project goes well, we get the benefit.”

Lu Rong, “If it doesn’t go well?”

Ji Tong, “If it doesn’t go well, we get the capital back.”

Lu Rong was terrified, he was a loan shark!

[1] I think what it meant is Fang Qing has a standard Cinderella life.

[2] the literal translation is laughing out to the extent of shocking the ghost into weeping.

[3] siding with outsiders.

[4] usually it was for daughter. Lu Rong really did his responsibilities as the head of the family.

[5] a type of alcohol

[6] Lu Rong really treats his mother like a child.