Su Qing and Shen Yu showed a lot of interest in Zhou Yuwen’s new house purchase. Shen Yu, considering Zhou Yuwen was only a freshman, felt buying a house was a bit premature. She’d read in the news that national housing prices were unstable and might even drop.
Su Qing, however, held a different opinion. She smiled at Shen Yu, saying, “Don’t believe what those so-called experts predict on the news. Zhou Yuwen is making the right choice; house prices will only keep going up.”
“But Zhou Yuwen,” she added, “you shouldn’t settle for a small apartnt. Since you’re dating Yanyan, why not let her family pitch in as well? You could buy sothing bigger, and it’d save you so hassle in the future.”
Su Qing was clearly saying this to provoke Zheng Yanyan. In her previous life, Su Qing hadn’t contributed financially to their ho when she married Zhou Yuwen. But it was understandable—Zhou Yuwen’s family hadn’t expected her mother, a widow, to part with her savings just for her daughter’s wedding. After all, the family could afford it without her help.
Zheng Yanyan sat quietly, uninterested in arguing with Su Qing’s provocation. Being a Beijing girl, she didn’t think like Shen Yu and the others. For her, staying in Jinling was never an option, so Zhou Yuwen buying a house there didn’t hold much appeal. Besides, she wasn’t even keen on a small apartnt.
Housing in Beijing was extrely expensive. Generally, locals didn’t buy new houses; they lived in apartnts built years ago, renovated through redevelopnt projects. Her family’s apartnt, a 120-square-ter walk-up, was compensation from an old property’s demolition in the early 2000s, and it was considered quite a good place back then. But with Beijing’s rapid developnt, Yanyan had already grown tired of it.
In Beijing, it was almost impossible to buy a new apartnt, even with modest family savings. Her parents had set aside a dowry for her future marriage, hoping to partner with her future in-laws to buy a smaller three-bedroom apartnt in Beijing, which she could then decorate as she wished.
Zhou Yuwen’s family background wasn’t bad. After seeing his car, Yanyan had thought seriously about a future with him, even ntioning it during a recent trip ho.
“Mom, Dad, how about a son-in-law from out of town?” she’d asked.
Her father’s reaction was imdiate, “Why would you find soone from another city? People from other places bring all sorts of complications. Didn’t I tell you not to study in Jinling?”
Her mother was more understanding. “It doesn’t matter if he’s local or not, as long as his family is financially stable. We’ve worked hard to raise you, and we can’t bear the thought of you struggling.”
Their words hit ho. Yanyan understood that if she married a poor guy from another city, she wouldn’t live well, and her parents would lose face among relatives.
At the ti, she’d thought Zhou Yuwen’s family was well-off and that he might even be able to live in Beijing with her in the future.
But now that he had bought a house in Jinling, Yanyan felt conflicted. Would he really move back to Beijing with her?
The al went by with Yanyan feeling absent-minded. While she and Lu Lin were in the bathroom, Su Qing whispered to Zhou Yuwen, “Looks like your girlfriend’s not too thrilled about your house purchase.”
“She’s from Beijing; it’s only natural,” Zhou Yuwen replied.
Su Qing scoffed, “That’s why I keep telling you, you two aren’t right for each other. She’d never settle for a small apartnt.”
Zhou Yuwen asked, “Then would you?”
“Of course not.”
Zhou Yuwen thought to himself, Then why are you talking? But Su Qing wasn’t finished. “But with , you wouldn’t have to settle for a small apartnt. I can make sure you live in a big one.”
Hearing this, Zhou Yuwen exchanged a smile with Shen Yu, who was nearby. He replied, “Wouldn’t that make
a freeloader?”
“Just answer honestly—do you want that or not?”
“Freeloading isn’t exactly appealing.”
They had only just started chatting when Yanyan and Lu Lin returned. Seeing Su Qing leaning in to talk to Zhou Yuwen, Yanyan sneered, “Talking behind my back again?”
“Who, ? I wouldn’t dare. You already made Zhou Yuwen delete my contact, so what’s left to say?” Su Qing replied.
Yanyan huffed and said, “Are you all done eating? If so, let’s go. I’ve already paid.”
“?” Su Qing froze, not expecting this.
“What’s with that look? Surprised?”
“Weren’t you going to make Zhou Yuwen pay?”
“Why would I do that? So you can call
a gold-digger again?”
Yanyan was usually happy to let Zhou Yuwen buy her gifts or treat her to als, but in her mind, they were officially dating. Even though they hadn’t gone all the way, they’d hugged, held hands, and even kissed—what was wrong with asking for gifts?
But Su Qing’s constant ddling annoyed her.
She had her pride too. Besides, this al had cost 400 yuan—basically the price of a new outfit. Pulling Zhou Yuwen to his feet, Yanyan threw Su Qing a pointed look, “Just letting you know, Zhou Yuwen and I are doing fine. No point in trying to split us up.”
With that, she left, pulling Zhou Yuwen along.
Su Qing watched in stunned silence; this was the first ti Yanyan had ever spent her own money on a guy since they’d known each other.
Zhou Yuwen was surprised too. As they left the hotpot place, he asked, “Didn’t we agree I’d pay?”
“It’s fine. I didn’t want Su Qing calling
a gold-digger again. Ugh, 400 yuan down the drain,” Yanyan grumbled, clearly still feeling the sting of the expense.
Zhou Yuwen chuckled but said nothing.
Next, Zhou Yuwen drove them to his new ho.
They chatted about the apartnt along the way—things like the interior design, what floor it was on, and whether there was a floor plan.
Su Qing offered, “If it’s not renovated, I can help design it for free.”
Yanyan scoffed, “You’ve only studied architecture for a few days and you’re already planning designs?”
Su Qing retorted, “You don’t understand my talent, but Zhou Yuwen does. Right, Zhou Yuwen?”
Driving, Zhou Yuwen replied, “I’m not entirely sure, but I think you do have potential.”
Su Qing bead a little at the complint.
Unfortunately, Zhou Yuwen’s apartnt was already fully furnished. The previous owner had needed to sell quickly for an overseas move, so he’d sold it at a discount. Zhou Yuwen had even bought furniture at the start of the month and moved it in.
“Did you pick it all yourself?” Yanyan asked from the front seat.
“Yeah.” Zhou Yuwen nodded, expressionless.
Yanyan joked, “If I’d known, I would’ve stayed here to help you shop.”
Zhou Yuwen just smiled.
As they continued talking, Zhou Yuwen’s car pulled into the entrance of Lanyuan, a luxury residential area in Jinling.
Lanyuan, developed by a local real estate firm, had quickly beco one of the city’s most prestigious properties. The developers had marketed it heavily, promoting features like vehicle-pedestrian separation, a garden-style landscape, and concierge services. These high-end services were groundbreaking at the ti, unheard of from other real estate developers. During the first and second phase sales, the marketing center was packed with potential buyers. Although the market had since cooled, Lanyuan’s managent and property services remained the best in Jinling.
Seeing where they were, Su Qing blinked in surprise. “You bought a place in Lanyuan?”
“Why, is there a problem?” Zhou Yuwen asked with a slight smile.
Others might not know the appeal of Lanyuan, but Su Qing did—she’d worked in design in Jinling. Back when she and Zhou Yuwen were considering buying a house for marriage, Lanyuan had been a serious contender.
But by then, it was already 2016, and prices for similar units had shot up to six million yuan.
Su Qing had loved Lanyuan’s garden-style design but had to settle for a cheaper apartnt due to budget constraints.
She was well aware that there were no “small apartnts” in Lanyuan. Even in 2013, Lanyuan’s units would cost between two and three million yuan.
So Zhou Yuwen had bought a Lanyuan unit?
The car descended into the underground parking lot, and the environnt there was noticeably better than in most complexes. The elevator was a private one that opened directly into the unit.
After parking, Zhou Yuwen invited them to step out of the car.
As Su Qing walked through Lanyuan, her expression grew complicated, her gaze fixed on Zhou Yuwen. A place here cost at least two million. Where had Zhou Yuwen gotten the money for this?
Even if he took out a loan, why did he buy a place here?
Wasn’t Lanyuan her dream ho?
In her past life, she’d once excitedly told him, “Honey, I wish we could live here!”
Had he bought it for her?
Zhou Yuwen has to be reborn!
Su Qing stared at Zhou Yuwen, her eyes starting to mist.
Lu Lin had visited before, so she wasn’t as amazed, but Yanyan and Shen Yu were completely awestruck, exploring the apartnt like tourists. Yanyan was used to her family’s modest walk-up in Beijing, and this luxury apartnt was a whole new experience.
“How big is your place here?” Su Qing finally asked as they got into the elevator, unable to contain her curiosity.
Seeing that they were here, Zhou Yuwen decided not to hide anything and answered, “There aren’t many options here, you know?”
“How big is it, exactly?” Su Qing pressed.
With a sigh, Zhou Yuwen said, “About 180 square ters.”
The elevator doors opened into his unit, revealing a spacious living area with a massive floor-to-ceiling window flooding the room with natural light.
When he’d first bought the place, he hadn’t furnished much of it. After a busy night setting things up with Lu Lin, he’d left the rest to the property manager, who had arranged for cleaning and added a few essential touches, including an island-style dining table.
After half a month, it finally felt like a ho—a large living room, a sunny balcony, a comfortable sofa, and a ho theater, all the hallmarks of a dream ho. It was the kind of place usually seen in TV dramas.
“Is this really your place, Zhou Yuwen?” Yanyan gasped, racing inside. She had assud it was a small apartnt, but as soon as she walked in and saw the big balcony and floor-to-ceiling windows, she was blown away. This looked like sothing out of My Love from the Star!
“Wow, Zhou Yuwen, isn’t that our school?” she exclaid, spotting the campus from the balcony.
“Nice, isn’t it? I chose this place for the view,” Zhou Yuwen replied, chuckling as he pulled a few bottles of water and drinks from his new double-door fridge and set them on the island table. “Water okay for everyone?”
The others were all taken aback by the house—except for Lu Lin, who didn’t see the big deal. Yes, it was nice, but it wasn’t her place. So, while everyone else admired the view, Lu Lin had already grabbed a bottle of water, sat on the sofa, and crossed her legs, her skinny jeans hugging her legs perfectly as she relaxed with her phone.
“Lu Lin, what are you doing? Co look at this!” Yanyan’s excitent was infectious, and she pulled Lu Lin up from the sofa.
“Check this out—Zhou Yuwen even has a gym! Can you believe it?” Yanyan dragged Lu Lin from room to room. With four rooms and two balconies, they could practically play hide-and-seek in the apartnt. For the first ti, Yanyan thought, Maybe it’s not so bad to stay outside Beijing.
In addition to a master bedroom and a secondary bedroom, one room had been converted into a gym and the other into a study. Each bedroom had a large balcony.
“Lu Lin, look at this!” Yanyan shouted excitedly, running around.
Wow, my boyfriend’s ho could be my ho soday!
anwhile, Shen Yu, a bit more composed, lingered at the island table with Zhou Yuwen, where she had taken a quick look at the living room balcony. This kind of place was exactly what she had in mind as an ideal ho. She asked Zhou Yuwen, “How much did this place cost?”
Zhou Yuwen replied, “Counting the tax, it ca to about 2.8 million, then with furniture and all, over three million.”
“Where did you get that kind of money?” Su Qing asked him, looking serious.
Zhou Yuwen just smiled, “Obviously, it’s from my family. What else?”
“You—” Su Qing wanted to press further.
But Zhou Yuwen smiled, saying, “You have no idea how much my family has.”
“?” Su Qing froze, sensing a double aning in his words.
In this life, she didn’t know how much his family was worth. And co to think of it, had she ever known in the previous life?
During their marriage, they’d bought a house and car with a two-million-yuan contribution from his family. But that might not have been all they had—what if it was just what they chose to give at the ti?
In that instant, sothing dawned on Su Qing.
“Zhou Yuwen, you—” Su Qing looked at him, ready to get to the bottom of things.
“Shen Yu, co look—the bedroom has a balcony, too!” Yanyan’s excited voice called from the bedroom.
Shen Yu, intrigued, went to check it out.
Leaving Zhou Yuwen and Su Qing alone at the island table, Zhou Yuwen busied himself with pouring water as Su Qing stared at him in astonishnt.
“Are you finally going to admit it?”
“Admit what?”
“Did you buy this place because of ?” Su Qing asked directly.
Zhou Yuwen chuckled, “What are you talking about?”
“Zhou Yuwen, I’ll ask one more ti!” Su Qing seed unwilling to keep the act going.
Zhou Yuwen sipped his water, “What do you want to ask?”
“What is it—”
Just then, Yanyan, realizing that only Su Qing and Zhou Yuwen were left in the room, rushed back out. Thank goodness—Su Qing looked like she was about to confess her feelings!
“Hubby, co on, give us a full tour of your place!” Yanyan took his arm, keeping Su Qing from being alone with him.
But the seed of doubt had already been planted in Su Qing’s mind, and she wouldn’t let it go easily.
The apartnt was in Lanyuan.
The fridge and appliances were Siens.
On the balcony was an integrated dryer, and the sofa was a Chivas.
Every item here was from brands she’d chosen in her past life.
Su Qing’s delicate fingers traced the stove.
Zhou Yuwen, don’t tell
this is all a coincidence.
Turning into the picture-perfect doting girlfriend, Yanyan clung to Zhou Yuwen’s arm, complaining, “Why didn’t you tell
you were buying a place? How could you keep sothing so big from ?”
“And why are you using such plain bedding? I don’t like it.”
Zhou Yuwen shrugged, “Why do you need to like it? You’re not staying here.”
“Hmph, am I your girlfriend or not, Zhou Yuwen? How could you say that? Isn’t this our ho?” Yanyan blinked her eyes at him, acting cute.
Zhou Yuwen grabbed her by the neck, guiding her toward a mirror, “Yanyan, look at the face you’re making.”
“Go away!”
With a ho this nice, it would’ve been impossible for Yanyan not to want to live here. Even the bathroom’s integrated shower system had her fantasizing—after all, the bathrooms in the school dorms were old and shared among four people, and who knew how many classes had used the sa heater before them. How could they compare to a private bathroom like this?
Yanyan could only imagine how blissful it would be to live in a place like this for four years.
“Zhou Yuwen, show
my room!” she pleaded eagerly.
“What do you an your room?”
“Hehe.”
Yanyan, of course, imagined herself moving into the secondary bedroom to live with Zhou Yuwen.
“You’re dreaming,” Zhou Yuwen replied. “I’m renting out the second bedroom. Any takers?”
“!” Yanyan raised her hand instantly.
“I’d never rent it to you. I’ll rent it to Shen Yu—two hundred a month. How about it, Shen Yu?”
Shen Yu smiled, “Two hundred? I might just consider it.”
“No way! You have to rent it to !” Yanyan pouted, clinging to Zhou Yuwen.
He replied, “Your only option is the main bed. Take it or leave it.”
“Ugh, you’re so annoying!” Yanyan playfully stomped her feet.
Zhou Yuwen just laughed.
The apartnt was stunning, with a sunny balcony perfect for enjoying tea. Once they’d toured the place, everyone gathered in the living room and settled onto the sofa.
Just then, Zhou Yuwen seed to rember sothing. He went to his bedroom and returned with a large bag.
“Oh, right. I bought so small souvenirs for you all in Macau. Originally, I was going to have Yanyan bring them back for you, but since you’re all here, I’ll give them to you now.”
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