Chapter 104: Life Must Not Be Too Ordinary

Li Mu arrived punctually at the entrance of Xiao Hao’s residential complex, driving a GL8. Xiao Hao, dressed in children’s dress pants and a shirt, with a backpack slung over his shoulders, had already been waiting there for twenty minutes.

Seeing Li Mu step out of an unusually shaped vehicle, Xiao Hao waved excitedly and ran over, swaying his backpack. “Bro, what kind of car is this? It doesn’t look like a regular sedan.”

Li Mu smiled. “It’s a bit fancier than an ordinary sedan.”

He opened the rear door and said, “You and your classmate will sit in these two seats later.”

“Wow!” Xiao Hao had never seen the kind of middle-row seats in a GL8 before—they looked exceptionally upscale, far more impressive than a typical sedan.

Xiao Hao took off his backpack and climbed in, settling into the soft business-class seat with a thrilled expression. “Bro, this seat is so comfortable!”

Li Mu got into the driver’s seat and asked, “Where does your classmate live?”

“She lives in the Meteorological Bureau complex. Do you know the way?”

“I do.” Li Mu smiled faintly, started the engine, and headed toward the Meteorological Bureau complex.

Li Mu had been close to Xiao Hao since a previous life. Their families were distant relatives, rarely in contact. On his mother’s side, Li Mu was only on good terms with this younger brother, Xiao Hao. However, in that past life, before graduating from university, Li Mu was a poor student, and after graduation, a struggling nobody, so he never truly pampered his brother. Moreover, Xiao Hao enlisted in the military right after high school. By the time he completed his service, he had grown into a man. In Li Mu’s memories, he missed the entire adolescence of his brother, so in this life, he hoped to cherish him more.

Before reaching the Meteorological Bureau complex entrance, Li Mu spotted a little girl across the street with twin ponytails, wearing a Mickey Mouse outfit. Though she looked only eleven or twelve, it was clear she was destined to be a beauty—this must be Nana, the girl Xiao Hao had mentioned.

Sure enough, Xiao Hao saw her too and excitedly pointed. “Bro, that’s her!”

Li Mu drove a bit further, made a U-turn, and stopped near the girl. She spotted Xiao Hao through the rear window and happily waved; Xiao Hao hurriedly climbed over to the seat near the door and tried to open it.

Li Mu got out quickly and opened the door for the girl. “Nana, right? I’m Xiao Hao’s cousin. Come on in.”

Nana felt a little shy, but Xiao Hao kept winking and beckoning to her. Blushing, she climbed into the car.

Xiao Hao patted the seat on his right proudly. “Nana, sit here. This seat’s really soft and comfy!”

Nana nodded shyly and sat down beside him. Surprisingly, Xiao Hao showed none of the typical bashfulness boys his age have around pretty girls. Instead, he playfully draped his arm over the armrest of Nana’s seat, leaning in so close their faces were just a few centimeters apart, grinning as he said, “Nana, my cousin said we’re going to spend the whole day at Jinling. Tell me what you want to play or eat.”

Nana’s cheeks flushed as she whispered, “Anything’s fine. I’m good with whatever.”

Xiao Hao nodded and, like a magician, pulled a colorful lollipop from his pocket and handed it to her. “Here, I got this just for you.”

“I don’t want it… Mom says candy’s bad for my teeth…”

Xiao Hao waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t listen to her. It’s okay to have a lollipop once in a while. Besides, I had to visit several stores to get this one—it’s not an ordinary lollipop. If you don’t eat it, I’ll be mad.”

Nana hesitated, then, seeing Xiao Hao’s determined gaze, finally reached out and accepted the lollipop. “Okay…”

From time to time, Li Mu caught glimpses of Xiao Hao’s confident way with girls through the rearview mirror, and a pang of guilt struck him. Xiao Hao was only in sixth grade, yet his skill with girls was already so polished. What was he doing at that age?

The more Li Mu observed, the more he believed his little brother had a bright future ahead. To him, a bit of puppy love at such a young age was harmless. Xiao Hao’s real rebellious phase was still to come at fifteen. Right now, he was barely past childhood; even if he was starting to date, it was well within safe boundaries. As the older cousin, Li Mu felt his role was to create lasting, happy memories for him.

Six years remained before Xiao Hao graduated high school. As long as Li Mu built enough strength in that time, he would intervene to change the course of Xiao Hao’s life. If Xiao Hao didn’t want to study hard, it was fine—this kid was clever and could be guided and trained for other pursuits.

Though military service wasn’t bad for Xiao Hao, just as going to an ordinary university wasn’t, his future would likely remain ordinary without intervention. Li Mu believed that neither he, his family, nor this young boy should have an ordinary life. It was a responsibility he carried deep within.

Focused on driving, Li Mu took the two children straight to the recently opened Happy Valley amusement park on the outskirts of Jinling. Happy Valley was now the premier amusement brand nationwide. Most kids on the mainland had yet to hear of Disneyland or Ocean Park—Happy Valley was their sole dream.

After more than two hours, Li Mu pulled up at the entrance of Happy Valley just after eleven a.m.

He parked at the front lot, got out, and opened the door. “We’re here. Let’s get out!”

Xiao Hao had been chatting with Nana and hadn’t noticed where they’d arrived. Hearing Li Mu, he looked out the window and saw the grand entrance of Happy Valley. Excitedly, he said, “Nana, let’s get out! We’ve arrived at Happy Valley!”

Nana seemed surprised, unfamiliar with the place. Hearing the name, she was momentarily stunned. Xiao Hao seized the moment, grabbed her hand, and pointed at the entrance. “Look, it’s Happy Valley. Surprised?”

Nana followed his finger and saw the gate, her face lighting up with shock and joy. She didn’t even notice Xiao Hao holding her hand. He didn’t intend to let go, pulling her toward the door, urging her to get out first. Once outside, he immediately took her hand and dashed toward the entrance.

Li Mu hurried to lock the car and called out, “Don’t run off! From now on, you two listen to me. Don’t leave my sight, or we’ll head straight back to Haizhou. Got it?”

Xiao Hao quickly replied, “Yeah, yeah, I know! Hurry up and buy the tickets, Bro!”

Li Mu shook his head with a smile and took the two children to the ticket booth. He bought three tickets and, seeing Kodak cameras sold with film, purchased one set along with extra film and batteries. Since he was bringing the kids to enjoy a full day, he wanted to be fully prepared—besides playing and eating, kids loved taking photos at places like Happy Valley.

After buying the tickets, Li Mu didn’t rush the kids inside. Instead, he took souvenir photos of the three of them at the entrance, thoughtfully taking group shots first, then individual pictures of each child.

The kids’ excitement made their smiles radiant, like blooming flowers—perfect for photos.

Once inside, the children thrilled and screamed with delight on various rides. Li Mu held a map of attractions. Except for the overly intense rides he forbade, he accompanied them on everything else, capturing photos along the way.

The kids showed remarkable stamina. Apart from a lunch break at McDonald’s, they played continuously. By five in the afternoon, Li Mu’s legs were aching, but Xiao Hao and Nana remained full of energy. To avoid getting home too late, Li Mu told them to be ready to leave at six. They had one hour left to enjoy whatever they wished.

So, once again, Li Mu joined the children on the pirate ship ride.

...

Meanwhile, Su Yingxue had finished packing, and her mother, Fang Min, was cooking. Su Weimin sat on the sofa with his daughter, advising her on what to watch out for in Yanjing. However, there was one thing stuck in his throat that he hadn’t said all afternoon.

“Xue…” After hesitating and struggling for hours, Su Weimin finally spoke in an unnatural tone.

“What is it, Dad?” Since returning home last night, Su Yingxue felt uneasy. Having been caught by her father together with Li Mu, she didn’t know how he might misunderstand the situation. Moreover, she had only just learned from Li Mu that her father had already met him twice—once when he intercepted Li Mu to block him for her sake. So her father had been aware of their association two times over.

“Well…” Su Weimin hesitated before asking, “That guy you were with yesterday—is he your classmate?”

Su Yingxue nodded. “Yes.”

“He’s going to Renmin University too?”

“Yes.”

Su Weimin sighed deeply. That was the last thing he wanted to hear. The two of them dared to date secretly under his nose—what would happen once they were out of his sight?

Besides, although the young man seemed presentable and not a bad person, Su Weimin felt an unsettling aura about him.

This aura wasn’t necessarily evil, but as a seasoned police officer, his instincts told him Li Mu’s identity was strange. A recent high school graduate without a driver’s license was driving Song Liang’s car around town. Then, after getting his license, he was driving a brand-new GL8. None of this seemed appropriate for someone his age. Moreover, Su Weimin harbored no affection for Song Liang, a prominent real estate developer in Haizhou.

He conducted a brief investigation. Li Mu’s personal and household records were easily accessible on his computer. His parents were ordinary workers with simple rural-to-urban converted household registration. How could such a boy have any connection to someone like Song Liang, a top figure in Haizhou?

That wasn’t the strangest part. The most baffling was a bizarre case he’d heard about: Song Liang supposedly stood up for a certain middle school student by taking Zhang Wanjun to confront an obscure local thug. And that student was Li Mu.

It was no wonder Su Weimin found Li Mu unsettling. If this story weren’t true, even he wouldn’t believe it...