Chapter 127: Seeing Them Off at the Airport

Li Mu was certainly a dedicated escort. He accompanied Su Yingxue all the way to the entrance of her dormitory building before bidding her farewell. Su Yingxue turned back, thanked him softly, and asked him to send her a text message once he reached his own dorm.

Watching her walk inside, Li Mu turned around to head back. He was met with countless envious glares from the surrounding onlookers, but Li Mu had long since ceased to care and felt no fear. Like a young hoodlum, he ruffled his hair, kept his hands in his pockets, and whistled a tune—the iconic intro to the anti-war classic "One" by Guns N' Roses.

A male student bitterly crumpled a love letter he had folded into the shape of a heart. Glancing at Li Mu’s profile, he cursed inwardly, "This brat is so arrogant!"

As if hearing his thoughts, Li Mu switched his whistle to the intro of that timeless masterpiece, "Wind of Change" by the Scorpions.

As he whistled, he got into the groove and sang a few lines aloud:

"Take me to the magic of the moment,
On a glory night,
Where the children of tomorrow dream away..."

That evening, on the "Yi Shao Chi" campus forum, many people posted rants about Li Mu, claiming that a punk-looking jerk was trying to get close to Su Yingxue and even whistling "hooligan tunes" right under the women's dormitory.

Li Mu read the posts and curled his lip. They didn't even recognize classic music and called it "hooligan whistling." Damn it, go to hell...

He stopped paying attention to the losers on "Yi Shao Chi" because *The Legend of Mir 2* had entered open beta. He needed to find time to study the game and develop a cheat program to capture the market first.

Only Hu Zhengdao and Liu Nian were staying in the dorm during the National Day holiday. Hu Zhengdao said he had business to attend to, and Liu Nian’s home was in Guangxi—far too remote to travel back for such a short break.

Su Yingxue wasn't going home for the holiday either; it was said her parents were coming to visit, so she went to stay with her aunt the next day.

Their fellow townsman, Dou Xueli, was quite sharp; he had played it smart and booked his train ticket home for the 30th well in advance.

Zhao Ziqiu sent Li Mu a message. She said her flight was on the afternoon of the 30th, mentioned that she felt lonely traveling by herself, and asked if he would be willing to see her off.

Li Mu asked how she planned to get to the airport. She replied that she would take a bus to Xizhimen and catch the airport shuttle from there.

Li Mu frowned at the thought. He hated transferring buses; the subway would be better, but at that time, Beijing only had two lines. The airport express line wouldn't be operational for another six or seven years.

However, Li Mu recalled that the airport expressway was already open. Driving was the most convenient option. In this era, Beijing’s traffic was so good it almost made him want to cry—he rarely ever saw a traffic jam.

So, Li Mu asked, "What time is the flight?"

"Four-thirty."

"Alright, wait for me at your school gate at two-thirty."

Zhao Ziqiu was thrilled. She hugged her phone and jumped around her dorm room. When her roommates asked what was wrong, she wouldn't say, instead acting nonchalant as she replied with one word: "Okay."

Li Mu spent the night at Yucheng Garden, writing code and searching for a car rental company. Rental agencies were scarce in those days.

Fortunately, he found one and rented a brand-new Volkswagen Bora for 230 yuan a day. Given the current purchasing power, this price was sky-high, but the car price was astronomical, too—these things started at 150,000 yuan back then. Who would have thought?

Li Mu’s train ticket home was for the evening of the 2nd, so he paid for three days of rental. He picked up the car, met Zhao Kang for lunch, and by early afternoon, around two o'clock, he drove to the entrance of Yan University. After a short wait, he saw the stunning Zhao Ziqiu walk out, a leather handbag slung over her left shoulder and a 24-inch suitcase in her right hand.

Seeing her from the car, Li Mu felt an urge to whistle again. The girl’s figure was incredible. She was wearing tight black jeans and a white undershirt that perfectly accentuated her curves, and because the weather was turning cooler, she had added a slim-fitting black leather jacket.

My, my, she really knew how to dress...

Li Mu watched from the car for five minutes before pulling up to her and opening the door. "Beautiful, need a ride?"

Zhao Ziqiu hadn't expected the driver to be Li Mu. She widened her eyes in surprise: "Wow, Li Mu, you can drive?"

Li Mu nodded, walked over, took her suitcase, and tossed it into the trunk. "Let's go, I'll take you to the airport."

Zhao Ziqiu was over the moon. Even though this car was leagues behind the one her father drove, she still felt dizzy with happiness.

Once inside, Li Mu reminded her to buckle her seatbelt and skillfully merged onto the Third Ring Road.

Manual transmission cars could be annoying at times, but they were also a lot of fun. In light traffic, a manual gave the driver a greater sense of control. If you wanted speed, you could delay the shift—start in first gear, shift to second at 4,000 RPM, shift to third at 4,000 RPM. The combination of low gear and high RPM made the car accelerate rapidly.

Beside him, Zhao Ziqiu hadn't even considered whether it was safe to ride with Li Mu, but watching him drive with such ease—one hand on the steering wheel, the other shifting gears—she found him utterly mesmerizing.

"Where did you get this car?" Zhao Ziqiu asked curiously.

"Rented it."

"How much a day?"

"Two-thirty."

"That's so expensive."

"It's alright."

"Two hundred and thirty a day and you call it 'alright'? You're really rich!"

Li Mu chuckled. "Then I'll return the car, and we can take the bus."

"Don't," Zhao Ziqiu said quickly. "I just feel bad about you spending so much money. It’s already rented, so returning it now would still cost a day’s fee."

Li Mu smiled slightly. "Do you know the Passenger Seat Rules?"

"What are those?"

Li Mu explained, "The Passenger Seat Rules state that when a man is driving and a woman is in the passenger seat, the man is the boss. The woman can chat, serve tea, or hand over water, but she cannot bicker, nag, or throw a tantrum."

"Why?"

"For safety."

Zhao Ziqiu immediately adopted an obedient expression. In a sweet, delicate voice, she asked, "Then what do you want to talk about?"

Without thinking, Li Mu blurted out, "Let’s talk about your figure. I’ve always been curious how you grew up to be like this..."

Zhao Ziqiu’s face turned bright red, and she stammered, unsure how to respond.

Li Mu quickly clarified, "Oh, don't misunderstand. I meant I wanted to ask how you grew so tall."

A textbook case of covering one's tracks.

Zhao Ziqiu’s face turned even redder.

By then, Li Mu had skillfully exited the Third Ring Road and merged onto the airport expressway. He hurriedly changed the subject: "Is your flight Terminal 1 or 2?"

Zhao Ziqiu exhaled in relief. "Terminal 1."

Li Mu nodded and said cheerfully, "Look at this weather, it's a perfect autumn day."

The clumsy, abrupt transition eased Zhao Ziqiu’s embarrassment slightly. She said, "Hangzhou is quite beautiful this time of year, too. Have you ever been to West Lake?"

Li Mu nodded. "I have."

Zhao Ziqiu suddenly looked at him earnestly. "Why don't you come to Hangzhou with me for a couple of days? I'll show you around."

Li Mu glanced at her and laughed. "Where did that come from? I’m heading home on the 2nd; my ticket is already bought."

"Fine," Zhao Ziqiu pouted. "Anyway, whenever you visit, I'll be sure to play the perfect host."

...

The journey was smooth. Li Mu pulled up to the departure level of Terminal 1. Zhao Ziqiu checked the time and felt a bit disappointed; the trip had only taken half an hour, and her flight wasn't for another hour and a half. Even with plenty of time to spare, she still had an extra thirty minutes.

She really wanted to sit in the car and chat with Li Mu for a while, but signs everywhere read: "Drop off only, no parking."

Zhao Ziqiu asked, "Are you heading back now?"

Li Mu replied, "Yeah, I'll leave once you go inside."

Zhao Ziqiu hummed, pushed the door open, and stepped out. Li Mu got out to help her with her suitcase. Feeling a deep sense of reluctance, Zhao Ziqiu said in a low voice, "I’m going in then?"

"Go ahead. Send me a message when you board."

"Okay. You send me a message when you get back, too."

"Will do."

Li Mu watched her enter the terminal and was just about to return to the car when Zhao Ziqiu suddenly turned back. "Li Mu, my flight back is on the afternoon of the 7th. Will you come pick me up?"

"If I have time, I will."

"No, you have to come, or I'll get lost. I don't know how to take a bus back to school."

Li Mu laughed. "Really?"

Zhao Ziqiu nodded emphatically. "Really!"

Li Mu smiled. "Alright, I'll come to get you then."

Hearing this, Zhao Ziqiu beamed. "It's a promise! If you don't show up on the afternoon of the 7th, I'm sleeping at the airport!" With that, she turned and ran off happily.

Li Mu shook his head. When a beauty acts cute like that, it's impossible not to be charmed!

Driving back to Yucheng Garden, Zhao Kang was there when Li Mu arrived. He learned that Zhao Kang had come over right after lunch.

Li Mu asked, "How's Douban doing lately?"

"It's going well," Zhao Kang smiled. "Mainly two things: continuing to promote the 'Simple Plan' and managing the Tieba forum affairs."

Li Mu nodded. "I'm planning to introduce capital investment for Tieba. Later, I'll transfer the Douban forum ownership to you. Once Tieba raises funds, we'll merge Douban into it. This way, Douban will have a large amount of operating capital, and I'll also swap five percent of Yiting.com and Tieba shares for you."

Zhao Kang asked curiously, "How much is this 'large amount' you're talking about?"

Li Mu thought for a moment. "Between 300,000 and 500,000."

Zhao Kang had been self-studying a lot lately and had personally cultivated thousands of "water army" accounts on Douban. His perspective and insight had improved significantly. He asked a question that delighted Li Mu: "With the current traffic on Tieba, raising funds is definitely not a problem. But if you merge Douban, will the investors agree? After all, our Douban only consists of a bunch of water army accounts; other than our own people, there’s no extra traffic at all."

The fact that Zhao Kang could ask this showed he had developed a solid internet mindset. While feeling pleased, Li Mu explained, "Don't worry about that. Right now, we are being chased by capital, so I will set some additional conditions that they will have no choice but to accept."

Li Mu had considered that Tieba’s momentum was far beyond his expectations. If he proceeded with Series A financing, he would have a list of demands waiting for the investors. These demands might be harsh for them, but since they were eager to nurture a major project, they certainly wouldn't refuse.

A truly top-tier company isn't just about being chased by capital; it’s about attracting capital to throw money at it recklessly. Take the rising stage of Facebook, for example: tycoons from all over the world flew to the U.S. and threw hundreds of millions of dollars at Mark Zuckerberg, fearing he wouldn't accept it, and groveling, "I won't interfere in any company operations, I just want shares, even a small amount is fine."