Chapter 34: I’ve Become Lustful—Come!

"Mom, this bean dregs dish is incredible!"

"Oh, look at these spare ribs. This pig definitely lived a life worth living."

Yu Xiaoli offered polite pleasantries, but the smile on her face never faded. "If it’s good, eat more."

Recalling something, she added, "By the way, I brought you a pair of pants. Lu Wei made them."

Working at a garment factory meant that end-of-run leftovers, prototypes, and slightly defective items were plentiful. Bringing a couple home was considered a hidden perk, so it wasn't particularly strange. But the fact that Lu Wei had made them—that was a bit odd.

Zhai Da was baffled. "You asked her to make them for me?"

Yu Xiaoli laughed. "I told her to practice. I joked, 'Go ahead and practice, at most I’ll just take them home for Xiao Da to wear.' Turns out, she actually took it seriously."

"I’d forgotten all about it myself, but today Lu Wei ran over and said she’d finished a pair and wanted me to bring them to you."

Zhai Da nodded. It sounded like something Lu Wei would do; it was impossible to tell when she was joking or being earnest. "Does she even have the skill for that?"

"I made a few adjustments myself, otherwise you might have found them a bit tight in the crotch."

Zhai Da: ...

Yu Xiaoli sighed. "I originally wanted to invite her over for dinner. After getting to know her, she really is a solid, good kid. She helped me with quite a few chores, but she refused."

Zhai Da thought about the arrangement to have Lu Wei act as his math tutor and said, "If you want to invite her, ask again. She’ll definitely come."

"Why?"

Why? Because I can remote-control her. "Because you’re her mentor, and she wants to improve."

Yu Xiaoli ignored her son’s lackluster humor. "Fine, I’ll ask her again. Are you done eating?"

Zhai Da let out a satisfied belch. "All done."

"You can really eat. You just sit there and pack on the pounds without moving a muscle."

Zhai Da: ???

He could only conclude that this was a mother’s love: urging you to eat while you're at the table, then calling you fat once you're full.

Zhai Da took the initiative to do the dishes, which deeply gratified Yu Xiaoli. She then reminded him to clean the oil box on the range hood and wipe out the refrigerator, as there was a strange smell inside.

Zhai Da grumbled about his mother seizing every opportunity to work him to death, but he moved with efficiency, bustling about for nearly an hour.

Once everything was cleaned up, he greeted his mother, who was watching *Rural Love 2* on the sofa, and retreated to his room.

Yu Xiaoli called out without looking back, "Don't hold your phone too close to your eyes, it's bad for your vision."

Zhai Da was incredulous. "I'm going to study."

"Don't hold your study materials too close to your eyes, it's bad for your vision."

Zhai Da had no choice but to give up on arguing.

Back in his room, he tossed the bag of clothes onto the floor by his bed, pulled out his phone, and sent a message to Lu Wei.

Handsome Zhai: "My mom might invite you over for dinner again in the next few days. Don't refuse."

Malnourished took five minutes to reply: "I don't want to bother Teacher Yu."

It was unclear if she had typed and deleted the message multiple times before sending it.

"Just pretend you're coming to see me. I haven't paid you yet, have I?"

"I don't want money."

Zhai Da decided not to leave any room for negotiation and replied directly, "I'm feeling lecherous today. Come over! I didn't get to hold your little hand last time."

This time, the silence on the other end lasted even longer.

Finally, she sent a single word: "Okay."

Zhai Da nodded with satisfaction.

Just as he was about to start studying, his phone buzzed again. It was a text, but the sender was "Literary Girl."

Zhai Da had to pick up his knock-off phone again.

Literary Girl: "Classmate Zhai, the submission deadline for the micro-fiction contest is almost here. Don't forget, okay~"

Zhai Da thought to himself that he hadn't forgotten; he just had no idea what kind of "what-the-heck" contest this was. But he couldn't very well ask.

He replied, "I might not have the time. Could you submit it for me?"

Lu Siwen replied, "Of course! Classmate Zhai's *Streetlights and Wine* will definitely win first place. I won't embarrass myself this year. By the way, what’s your pen name? Or are you submitting under your real name?"

Zhai Da pondered this. His real name was definitely out; it was too stupid. If someone like Wu Yue found out, he’d probably laugh his head off.

He replied, "Quilt Explorer."

That had been his WeChat name in his past life. Well, after he won the lottery.

Several kilometers away, Lu Siwen, clutching her phone, had a momentary mental glitch. *Does that mean a child exploring their own world under the covers? What a childlike, innocent pen name.*

After that, Lu Siwen’s texts didn't stop—trivial things like how her teacher had discussed Zhai Da’s essay in class that day, and how pleasantly surprised she was.

Zhai Da had little interest, but since he had just borrowed her pen today, he patiently replied. Until Lu Siwen asked the crucial question.

"Classmate Zhai, have you had any ideas for the new work you mentioned earlier today?"

Zhai Da froze. The "tax" was unavoidable after all.

After experiencing the power of that pen today, returning it was out of the question; he had to find a way to make it his own permanently. At the very least, he needed to keep it in his hands for a while longer.

That meant he had to keep up the charade—or rather, provide Lu Siwen with some "literary" substance.

Zhai Da replied, "I'm already writing it. I'll let you see it in a couple of days. I'm going to take a shower now."

If he kept chatting, he’d slip up. He had to use the "Shower Strategy."

The phone finally went quiet.

Zhai Da rubbed his chin. It seemed he really had to write something. It needed to be long enough to stall for time, but not so long that it was a burden... Like web novels—even though he’d been addicted to them in his past life and could poach plenty of hits, writing millions of words was a chore even a dog wouldn't take on.

It had to be something light, not time-consuming, but the quality couldn't be too poor...

Zhai Da had a rough idea. He still needed to find something familiar from his past life, preferably something with a strong sense of imagery so he could write it smoothly and logically.

A while later, Zhai Da pulled out a blank notebook and wrote down a title:

*The Long Road to Lu.*

He hadn't watched many movies, but this one was special—it had been released during the Spring Festival. In his past life, Zhai Da had nowhere to go during the Spring Festival. His drinking buddies had mostly returned to their families, and his blind dates had gone back to their hometowns. So, every year, he would repeatedly head to the cinema and basically watch everything in the Spring Festival lineup.

Actually, the movie was quite good, just a bit heavy for the holiday season. Caught between "celebrity weight loss," "middle-aged men driving," and the "two bears that inexplicably go viral every year," its box office was terrible, and it was quickly pulled from theaters.

Much later, it seemed the actress in it had won an award, sparking a new round of controversy. But that had nothing to do with him; he wasn't a fan.

He didn't even recognize the woman when he watched it, nor did he care. As a film itself, it was a good story.

Recalling the plot, it was based on reality. The core story could be clearly extracted, and as long as he didn't fuss over the nuances of prose, he could even use some of the existing sequences.

Writing it this way would be the most effortless, brain-free approach. Moreover, this type of romantic-leaning subject matter should align with Lu Siwen’s tastes.

Zhai Da nodded with satisfaction and tossed the "masterpiece"—which consisted only of a title—to the side.

Four characters were enough for today.

The remaining time should be left for studying.

He opened the [Old Man's TV] and fed ink into the [Literary Girl's Pen]. He wanted to test what would happen if he activated both cheats at once.

Disciples of the Feng Ling Yue Ying Sect, assemble!

——————

Meanwhile, at a restaurant in Dongyang County.

Three or four people were sitting in a private room. At the head of the table was an elderly man in his sixties, complaining.

"Damn it! Everyone says foreigners are honest—what a load of crap!"

"Those Japanese are truly something else. We had all the raw materials ready at the factory, and then they told me they were canceling the order. The contract penalties mean a lawsuit, and it won't be settled for at least half a year..."

Shen Rui sat to the elderly man's left. His temperament was somewhat out of place here; he had no cigarette in his hand and no alcohol in front of him. He touched neither.

"Xiao Rui, your Third Uncle is really at his wit's end this time. You know I rarely ask you for favors."

Shen Rui smiled gently. "It's fine, Third Uncle. You helped me out a lot when you arranged that job for my student earlier."

"You mean that girl, Lu Wei? I found her a good mentor—someone with good character and good skills. She’ll learn some real substance... and helping Yu Lihua’s daughter is just a small matter."

"What I’m asking you for now is the real big deal. The Wool Textile Factory is having a hard time this year; it’s not easy to survive... Does that friend of yours really run a large supermarket chain? How many clothes can they order?"

Shen Rui cleaned his glasses. "The person running the supermarket isn't a friend of mine. It's a friend of a friend who works in market supervision in Xudu, Henan Province. He mentioned it in passing when we met last year... Old state-owned factories struggle to open up markets because they lack integration with modern commercial mechanisms..."

Realizing it was unnecessary to throw around professional jargon, he went straight to the conclusion: "As for the person running the supermarket, they are just a friend of a friend. Whether they’ll come and how many orders they might place remains to be seen. I only heard that their annual turnover is in the hundreds of millions."

Shen Rui's Third Uncle, Factory Director Liu Xinrong, nodded. "Xiao Rui is still the best—studied at R University and knows people who are big shots."

Shen Rui didn't commit to a response. He wasn't doing this for his Third Uncle, nor for himself. He was a child of the textile mill, and the factory was a key subject of his social science research; it held many shadows of the era and had thousands of retired workers trailing behind it.

At the beginning of the socialized pension reform, there had been problems here. If it collapsed, the impact would be significant.

The factory director felt slightly more reassured. Remembering something, he pulled an even more worn-out notebook from his battered leather bag.

"Last time you said Yu Lihua’s grandson was also your student. I found this at home. It’s useless to keep it at the factory; consider it a relic of his."

"Yu Lihua’s daughter, Xiao Yu, left early today so you didn't run into her. You can give it to your student later."

Shen Rui took the old notebook. The cover was made of that red plastic typical of the era, marked only with the portrait of that great leader. Many of these notebooks had been produced back then, scattered all over the country.

The surface had already begun to degrade and soften, feeling slightly tacky to the touch.

"It seems to be the training materials Old Yu left for the youngsters at the factory back then. It’s all handwritten, but nobody ever looked at it. The data room was cleaned out two years ago, and they were going to throw it away, but I held onto it, and then I forgot about it myself..."

"It’s all notes on manual labor; it’s long outdated. The textile factory doesn't have relevant business now, only the garment factory remains."

Shen Rui nodded, flipping through it to see diagrams of parts, technical requirements, and operating manuals that he couldn't understand.

"I’ll give it to him when I see him."

After a brief pause, Shen Rui said, "Tell me more stories about Yu Lihua."