15. Precious
When Lu Mi went downstairs, Shen Tan was indeed already out; Aunt Wang was preparing breakfast and, upon seeing him, quickly said, "Mr. Shen has already left."
Lu Mi nodded, flipped his phone face down on the dining table with a crisp sound.
“Got a new phone case?” Aunt Wang had always been attentive to Lu Mi’s every move. Since Shen Tan had instructed them to treat Lu Mi as the master, she would do just that. Shen Tan paid well, but he was rarely home, so she hadn’t been able to put in work that matched her salary—now she finally had the chance to perform properly.
Lu Mi tapped his phone, looked at Aunt Wang, pursed his lips slightly, and quietly asked, “Does it look good?”
It was the first time he had actively asked such a question. Aunt Wang was momentarily stunned, then couldn’t help but smile. “It looks great—very cute, and it suits you.”
Although they hadn’t spent much time together, Aunt Wang always thought Lu Mi was quiet and beautiful, like a rare and precious cat.
The corners of Lu Mi’s lips lifted faintly before he quickly put his phone away.
Aunt Wang noticed the phone case was no longer the one Lu Mi used before; it was very similar to Mr. Shen’s.
No wonder the assistant brought something over this morning, and Mr. Shen personally took it upstairs.
Lu Mi seemed a bit like a child unintentionally showing off a beloved gift.
But Aunt Wang felt that what Lu Mi was really proud of wasn’t the phone itself, but the phone case.
It seemed that phone case was an even more precious item than the phone.
—
Although he had no classes, Lu Mi, like Shui Mu, needed to do homework. He had originally planned to go to the school library, but Aunt Wang said there was a private library near the villa district.
It was probably built specifically for the wealthy residents of the villa area and was generally not open to the public.
When Lu Mi arrived, there was no one else in the private library.
The place was decorated like an expensive cafe, with a strong atmosphere; even the tables and chairs looked costly.
Lu Mi hesitated to enter, but the attendant at the door smiled warmly and came out to greet him, “You must be Mr. Lu Mi?”
Aunt Wang had said that if he wanted to come to the library, he just needed to call, and they would arrange everything. It certainly seemed to be the case now.
Since someone came to meet him, Lu Mi suppressed his urge to return to the school library.
He was led to a private room; he didn’t even need to find the books himself. The staff would handle everything; he only needed to hand over the list of books he required.
After the staff delivered the books, Lu Mi stared out the window in a daze.
He took a photo of the view outside with his new phone and, after much hesitation, sent it to Shen Tan.
He had thought Shen Tan would be busy, but Shen Tan replied quickly.
Shen Tan: [Are you at the library?]
Just from a photo of the window view, Shen Tan could recognize the place—he must be quite familiar with libraries.
Lu Mi: [Can you come over?]
Shen Tan: [They probably don’t have a sign at the door saying you’re not allowed in.]
Lu Mi thought carefully and replied: [There’s no such sign.]
The entrance was very clean.
Shen Tan: [Did you check specifically?]
Lu Mi pondered for a moment before realizing Shen Tan was teasing him.
He stayed silent for a while.
Lu Mi: [...]
Lu Mi: [No, I need to do my homework.]
Lu Mi: [Thanks for the phone case.]
After sending the message, he immediately stuffed his phone into his bag, afraid to see any response from Shen Tan.
It was just a simple excuse to say thank you, but his palms were sweating with nerves.
Shen Tan chuckled lightly, [No need to thank me.]
He put down his phone and looked up at a group of middle-aged men in suits with protruding bellies in the conference room.
They didn’t relax or feel pleased by Shen Tan’s smile.
They had heard about the Shen family matter.
Someone from the Shen family had been sent to prison, and the family’s assets were all frozen. Shen Tan told them but forbade them from leaking the news.
—
Some among them were from the Shen family.
Everyone felt uneasy, fearing Shen Tan would investigate them next.
Shen Tan’s smile likely meant he was displeased with something else.
Everyone wished they could lower their heads so Shen Tan wouldn’t see them.
Only Zhou Feng remained expressionless, watching the boss suddenly start playing on his phone halfway through the meeting. No need to guess who he was messaging.
The boss usually disliked sending messages—any work-related info was sent to Zhou Feng, who filtered it before presenting it to the boss. But since Lu Mi appeared, the boss checked his phone far more often.
Perhaps the boss was forcing himself to break his habit of ignoring messages.
Probably something had happened where he was scolded for reading messages without replying.
By the time the meeting ended, Shen Tan hadn’t received any more messages from Lu Mi.
“Schedule a temporary overseas meeting for me tonight,” Shen Tan said coldly from the doorway, watching the others nervously leave the conference room without daring to glance at him.
Zhou Feng: “Understood.”
Shen Tan withdrew his gaze. “Has everything at the library been arranged?”
“Arranged. Once Mr. Lu Mi arrived, staff delivered ingredients, and the chef has been sent over too,” Zhou Feng reported methodically.
Since following the boss, he believed the boss was someone who could accomplish great things.
Only the boss could do something as absurd and audacious as investing in a library near someone he hadn’t even met yet.
But the results proved the investment was useful.
The boss’s investments were always precise.
No wonder people said he could get anything he wanted.
Lu Mi scratched his itchy nose, had to check the time on his phone. Fortunately, Shen Tan hadn’t said anything like “not allowed inside” at the entrance.
It was already noon, but his homework wasn’t finished.
He went out to get a glass of water. On the way back, the attendant kindly asked if he wanted to stay for lunch. Lu Mi quickly shook his head.
Libraries in wealthy neighborhoods offered free reading but expensive food.
“We provide lunch for free. We can deliver it to your private room,” the attendant said.
Lu Mi used to nibble on bread on the steps outside the library when hungry, then return to studying—saving time.
The attendant’s offer made him hesitate. Although the library wasn’t far from the villa, walking took about fifteen minutes.
Lu Mi considered it and sent Aunt Wang a message saying he wouldn’t come back for lunch.
Aunt Wang: [Kitty crying.jpg]
Lu Mi paused, about to change his mind.
Aunt Wang: [Luckily I haven’t started cooking lunch yet. If you eat something delicious, you can teach me how to make it!]
Lu Mi couldn’t help but smile.
By the time he returned to the villa, it was evening. Shen Tan wasn’t back but sent him a message.
Shen Tan: [Several multinational meetings tonight.]
Shen Tan probably meant he didn’t know when he’d be home. Lu Mi replied: [Okay, I’m going live now.]
After sending, Lu Mi read the two messages repeatedly, suddenly feeling like they were reporting to each other.
He hurriedly placed his phone beside the computer.
As soon as he opened the streaming software, a private message from Shui Mu popped up.
Shui Mu clearly remembered they planned to duo together.
Shui Mu: [I finished my thesis! When are you going live? I’ll wait for your stream before I start! Remember to invite me on time!!]
Lu Mi: “…”
He could only open the game first. [I’m going live now.]
After starting the stream, Lu Mi found Shui Mu’s ID on the friend list. Shui Mu was online. He sent an invitation, and within seconds, a notification popped up: “Your followed streamer Shui Mu just went live.”
[Are you really duoing with Shui Mu today?]
[Why does it seem like Lost Baby has become more cheerful these days?]
[Is he dating a new guy every day?]
[A few days ago it was A Mo, yesterday Sweet Donut, who’s the nice guy today?]
Lu Mi glanced at the barrage but ignored the nonsense, simply replying: “Playing a game with Shui Mu.”
“Why only one game?!” Shui Mu immediately opened his mic upon entering the lobby, sounding like a mischievous schoolboy. “After so long, you only want to play one game with me?”
Lu Mi remained calm: “You never said how many games you wanted to play. I want to do ranked.”
He said this while clicking match.
“Okay, I know ranked’s more important, but why bring me to play casual?”
[Isn’t he married? Why is he still ambiguous with others?]
[Cheating on someone’s boyfriend is fun, huh?]
[Why never show your face on stream? Afraid of being recognized?]
[Are you guys just talking nonsense?]
“Why are there so many trolls in your stream today?” Shui Mu puzzled, scrolling through the chat.
Lu Mi was about to turn off the chat but paused at Shui Mu’s words. “Ignore them,” he said.
He always disregarded baseless haters.
“No way. Luckily it’s casual. I’m picking a support and gonna stick to you. Let me see what’s going on.”
Support heroes have ultimates that shield teammates.
Lu Mi didn’t stop Shui Mu; he couldn’t control what others wanted to do, just muttered a low “oh.”
A few seconds later, Lu Mi quietly reminded: “You need to reach level four first.”
[I’m dying laughing at Lost Baby’s serious tone, sounds like he’s playing ranked, but it’s actually casual.]
[Shui Mu, can you share if you find anything?]
Lu Mi’s longtime fans knew he was close with Shui Mu—in fact, out of all streamers, Shui Mu was the only one he was familiar with.
Shui Mu stayed still in-game but unmuted to respond to the chat: “No, I’m afraid it would stir up trouble.”
“You need to reach level four first.” Lu Mi circled around Shui Mu, who was idle at the fountain.
[Shui Mu: Let’s see who’s stirring trouble. Lost Baby: Level up! Level up! Level up!]
[My Shui Lu CP is back!]
Lu Mi turned off the chat and saw nothing else. Shui Mu hurriedly explained: “My heart belongs elsewhere. Lost Baby is married; neither of us are immoral.”
He knew Lu Mi’s claim of being married was false, but Lu Mi must have his reasons.
Hearing this, Lu Mi knew what the chat was saying and replied with a hum, “Shui Mu, level four.”
He had wanted to check who was spreading rumors, but Lu Mi always took games seriously.
Shui Mu was forced to go level up.
If Shui Mu didn’t look for trouble, someone else would.
Soon, someone posted in the chat:
[An entertainer streamer posted a Weibo claiming that some streamers pretend to be married and deny relationships with their boyfriends but secretly contact their boyfriends.]
That streamer was on the same platform as Lu Mi, looked somewhat delicate, but wasn’t famous. No one originally paid much attention to his Weibo post, but somehow, someone dug up that his boyfriend was A Mo, and the streamer he accused of hitting on his boyfriend matched Lu Mi.
This baseless accusation might have gone unnoticed if the accused streamer hadn’t replied in the comments—not naming anyone but sarcastically saying: “He was still hitting on a pro player yesterday, so impressive.”
The tone was dripping with malice.
That reply was practically slapping the label “Lost Baby” on Lu Mi.
It effectively confirmed that the accused was Lu Mi.