NOVEL WEB Chapter 205 Returning Home
"Thank you, I've been very happy on this journey, truly very happy, and I'll always remember it."
Zhou Li tightly hugged Li Jing, her gaze full of reluctance as she whispered softly in his ear, "Can I look for you in Tianhai in the future?"
"Of course, you can come find me anytime."
Upon hearing Li Jing's firm response, Zhou Li felt content and slowly released her grip, then gave Li Jing one last gentle look before turning to get off the car.
After Zhou Li took her luggage, Li Jing restarted the car, watching through the rearview mirror as Zhou Li stood by the roadside, watching him leave. He couldn't help but sigh deeply, realizing that the girl had undoubtedly boarded his pirate ship.
"I really am such a jerk."
Li Jing felt a complex mix of emotions; compared to An Tong and Zhang Xinxin, his feelings for Zhou Li were completely different.
Both An Tong and Zhang Xinxin needed his money to some extent, even Wei Jia's ambiguous attitude was somewhat influenced by his financial standing.
Only Zhou Li was different; she was just a pure girl who had a secret crush on him since their youth.
Perhaps in her heart, he might be that unforgettable clean and sunny boy from her youthful days.
But that boy was already no longer the same; having been tested and tempered by society, he certainly wasn't as innocent as before.
Because of this, Li Jing subconsciously didn't want to spoil Zhou Li, who was still as untainted as a blank sheet of paper.
"Oh well, Zhou Li will become someone's wife sooner or later. Who knows, that man might be worse; I might as well help her gain some emotional experience and do her a favor, so she won't be deceived by terrible men later."
Li Jing's ability to rationalize was always good; after thinking it through, his sense of guilt diminished significantly, and he turned on the music in the car, shifting his mood as he headed towards his hometown.
...
Li Jing's hometown was in Lian City, while Zhou Li's home was in the closest county to Lian City's downtown.
To take Zhou Li home, Li Jing first exited the highway, passed through the county town, and after dropping off Zhou Li, took the national road back to the city.
Originally, Li Jing's family also lived in the county, but previously, Li Jing saved up money from work to buy his parents a house in the city, so the whole family moved to the center of Lian City.
Lian City's center is divided by the Lian River running across, splitting the district into two administrative areas: East River and West River.
Li Jing's parents lived further north in the economic development area of West River, which administratively was still part of West River.
However, since the economic development area was relatively remote, new houses were sold cheaply, so Li Jing bought his parents a home there.
Passing by the old town, Li Jing gazed out the car window at the familiar yet slightly unfamiliar scenery, feeling a sense of nostalgia and reminiscence.
The street lamps cast a warm, yellow light, enveloping the somewhat old streets; they looked like what Li Jing remembered, but upon closer look, there were some new shops and decorations that weren't there before.
In the distant residential buildings, scattered lights flickered, each representing a warm home. The roadside trees rustled in the night breeze, whispering to Li Jing about the little changes in the city.
Arriving at his home district, Li Jing took a deep breath and took his luggage from the car, heading towards his building.
Though houses in small cities were inexpensive, the environment of the district was passable. With standardized greenery and paths, and a plaza for the elderly to dance, it showed that the district, although small, had all necessary amenities.
It was already nine at night; the district was devoid of pedestrians, when Li Jing stopped his steps before reaching his building.
He saw two slightly hunched figures standing at the entrance of the unit door, looking towards his direction in the cold wind.
"Is that our son?"
"Looks like him in height and build... but also seems not quite like him..."
"Oh well, let's go closer and see."
"Why are you in such a rush? If we make a mistake, let's see how you'll explain."
"Explain what? Just say we made a mistake, isn't that enough? If you're not going, stay where you are; I'll go meet our son myself!"
With that, one of the figures started walking towards Li Jing, and after a few steps, that figure paused, then suddenly became excited, and shouted while waving his hand back, "Li Weijun, come quickly, it's our son!!"
"Is it really our son?"
Behind, Li Weijun's expression changed, he quickly pulled out his hands from his sleeves and rushed over.
After shouting, Liu Mei had already moved towards Li Jing, her face full of a delighted smile, "Son, driving for so long, it must have been tiring!"
Seeing his parents braving the cold night wind to greet him, Li Jing hurried forward, "Why did you come out? Couldn't you have just waited inside?"
"Wasn't it because we worried you'd have too much luggage?"
Liu Mei promptly took the luggage from Li Jing's hand, then attempted to take his backpack and bags.
"No need, no need, I can carry these myself." Li Jing declined their kindness, "I can manage this much luggage, let's quickly get inside so you won't catch a cold."
"Your mom doesn't really want to carry the luggage; she just wants to see you sooner."
Li Weijun finally caught up and shook his head, "You have no idea, your mom's been repeating your name all day, asking why you haven't come back yet, my ears are getting calluses."
"Who's been repeating all day? Let me see if your ears have calluses."
With that, Liu Mei pretended to twist Li Weijun's ear, then turned back to Li Jing, "It's only natural for a mom to miss her son, not like your dad, who doesn't seem to care..."
"Hey, what are you talking about, who said I don't care?" Li Weijun quickly retorted upon hearing this.
"Oh? You miss your son, then say it in front of him."
Facing Liu Mei's challenge, Li Weijun was at a loss for words; he found expressing such emotional sentiments like "I miss you" overly cheesy, and hesitated to say them for a while.
"See, your dad doesn't miss you."
"You?!"
"Alright, alright."
Seeing his parents bickering like children, Li Jing smiled and shook his head, quickening his pace with the luggage, "Let's hurry inside, don't freeze yourselves outside."
"Right, right, let's get back quickly. Even though the food at home is covered, I'm not sure if it's still warm."
Seeing Liu Mei hasten her steps, Li Jing was puzzled, "What food?"
"The dinner I made for you." Liu Mei said matter-of-factly, pulling Li Jing home.
"Dinner? Didn't I say I'd just grab something on the way?"
Li Jing looked at his parents, surprised, "You didn't... not eat, did you?"
"You've traveled so far over two days, of course, you should eat something good; how can you just eat casually?"
Just as Liu Mei finished speaking, Li Weijun nodded in agreement, "Exactly. It's the New Year, for the first meal at home, the three of us should have it together. Hurry home, and we can have a few drinks, son!"