The Man in the Black Sweater - 2.1: Seeing My Hometown Again

Because Tang Huan’s uncle gave Luo Xu such an oppressive feeling, even during the long-haul flight, Luo Xu didn’t step out of her room once. She behaved obediently, staying inside and surfing the internet. It wasn’t until the captain’s voice came over the intercom that she returned to the crowd, quietly sitting down, fastening her seatbelt.

When the plane landed in S City, it happened to be the city’s most dazzling hour. Luo Xu leaned against the window and looked down—the brilliant lights spilled across the earth like galaxies, dazzling and resplendent. At once, her long-suppressed homesickness was stirred.

It’s been so long… her motherland.

Pei Yan’s hand, resting on the armrest, gave a faint tremor. Without showing any expression, he retracted the assessing glance he had cast on her profile.

Once in S City, Luo Xu had no autonomy whatsoever. Wherever Pei Yan walked, she walked. Whichever car he told her to get into, she got into. She did her best to appear well-behaved, hoping to fool everyone smoothly and complete her task.

Pei Yan’s residence was in a quiet spot tucked away within the bustling city. Just a moment ago, they had been so close to the noisy streets, but with a single turn, the car slipped soundlessly into an alley, shutting out everything outside.

Pei Yan opened the door and got out. Luo Xu followed closely behind.

As a large gate opened, an elderly man with graying hair stepped out. Smiling warmly, he greeted Pei Yan, who returned his kindness with equal familiarity.

“This must be the young master’s girlfriend, right?” The butler tilted his head toward Luo Xu, his smile still broad and kind.

“Hello, my name is Luo Xu.” Luo Xu stepped forward and gave a slight bow. The old man looked so kind—he reminded her of the grandfather who had passed away long ago—that she couldn’t help but feel a natural closeness to him.

“No need to be so polite. The young master specifically instructed us to take good care of you. Whatever you need, just tell me. Please, treat this as your own home.” The butler was far more affable than Pei Yan, his smiling eyes putting people at ease.

Before Luo Xu could answer, Pei Yan cut in: “We’ll talk about this later. First, have the luggage brought inside.”

The butler nodded, and the servants behind him stepped forward, carrying the luggage in an orderly fashion.

Seeing that Pei Yan had no intention of paying her any mind, striding quickly ahead, Luo Xu couldn’t help but follow.

“Miss Luo, your room has already been cleaned and prepared. Please come with me.” The butler called after her, still smiling.

“Oh—alright, thank you…” Luo Xu glanced at Pei Yan’s disappearing back with a twinge of disappointment.

Handsome men not liking her… that conclusion was just too heartbreaking.

“You planning to seduce my uncle or something?” Once settled in her room, Luo Xu complained to Tang Huan over the phone, only to be mocked like this.

“Of course not! But he’s showing his dislike way too obviously, don’t you think?” Luo Xu fidgeted with the bedsheet. Carelessly, she tugged a thread loose from the silk. “Oh my god!”

“What are you screaming for!” Tang Huan nearly jumped out of his skin.

“This… this is real silk, right? Is it expensive?” Luo Xu held up the sheet gingerly.

“Hmph. Not that expensive. Maybe just about enough to feed you for half a year.”

Luo Xu froze in place. “Why didn’t you say that earlier…”

She could totally just buy a set of cotton sheets to swap out, then sell this one!

“Don’t embarrass me. If you get exposed over there, I’m not paying you the rest of the fee,” Tang Huan said, his mental abacus clacking loudly.

Luo Xu gave a cold snort and said, “Didn’t you claim to be working class? How come your family has private jets and private butlers…?”

“That’s all my uncle’s stuff, nothing to do with me! My dad’s surname is Tang, and he’s just a dirt-digger.”

Archaeologist = dirt-digger.

“Your father Tang!” Luo Xu couldn’t help blurting out in English—it was easier for her to vent emotions that way.

“Hey, why drag it that far? Anyway, just act well. Once I’m back from digging dirt in Egypt, you’ll be free.”

There was a knock at the door outside. Luo Xu quickly hung up the call and rushed to open it.

A woman in her forties stood at the doorway, neatly dressed, her hair pulled back—clean and capable.

“Miss Luo, sir would like some supper. Would you like something to eat as well?”

Supper… Luo Xu had once struggled to even eat her fill of regular meals, let alone a late-night snack.

“What kinds of food are there?” she asked curiously.

“The kitchen can make whatever you’d like,” the woman answered with a smile.

“Could I have seafood porridge?”

“Of course. Please come down in half an hour.”

“Thank you.”

Closing the door, Luo Xu swallowed hard, a wave of guilt rising from deep inside.

If Tang Huan wouldn’t raise her pay, at least she could eat her way back into profit, right?

Half an hour later, Luo Xu went downstairs right on time.

Pei Yan sat at the long dining table, with a bowl of porridge in front of him—plain and unremarkable. Luo Xu greeted him before taking the seat opposite him.

The woman brought out her seafood porridge, followed by seven or eight small side dishes, each looking fresh and appetizing.

Luo Xu glanced at her bowl, scooped a spoonful—genuine seafood, no mistake…

Pei Yan lifted his spoon, his long fingers elegant as if holding a piece of jade. Luo Xu cast a glance, then quickly looked away.

The fragrance of the seafood porridge was too enticing; at the moment, it drew her attention far more than Pei Yan did. She finished two bowls in quick succession, not slowing down at all.

“Eat slowly.” He pulled out his chair and stood, politely reminding her before walking past her and heading upstairs.

Listening to his footsteps fade, Luo Xu’s ears twitched. She nudged her bowl aside and revealed a sheepish grin. “Could I have another bowl, please?”

……

Living with Pei Yan wasn’t nearly as difficult as Luo Xu had feared. She had thought he would constantly test her, vetting her for his nephew’s sake. But he seemed completely uninterested in that sort of thing—leaving early, returning late, and rarely crossing paths with her at all.

That let Luo Xu breathe a huge sigh of relief; the pressure from their first meeting slowly faded.

One evening, Luo Xu was lounging on the couch, peeling longans and sipping corn juice while watching TV. As she flipped channels, a familiar figure caught her eye.

“Auntie Chen, is… is that Mr. Pei?” Luo Xu dropped her longans and juice, jumping up in shock to point at the screen.

Auntie Chen glanced up and said matter-of-factly, “Yes, that’s sir. I heard there’s some contract signing ceremony today.”

Luo Xu swallowed hard. “A contract signing can make it onto the national news broadcast?”

Auntie Chen replied, “He’s been on a few times before. Nothing unusual about it.”

Her casual tone stabbed straight into Luo Xu’s poor-girl heart. She stared wide-eyed at the bottom of the TV screen, where the row of numbers shone like golden light, blinding her.

“Three hundred million… And here I am, a penniless dropout. Why didn’t he donate it to me instead…” Luo Xu mumbled, clutching the remote.

Auntie Chen walked off with a smile, treating it as a joke.