Chapter 153: Spring Festival

Words : 1908 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

They set off at nine in the morning. Covering just under six hundred kilometers with occasional stops, it took them over eight hours. It went relatively smoothly, after all it's always busier headed north or west from Modu. Lu Liang was browsing Douyin and saw that traffic jams were happening everywhere, with serious accidents in some places. Yang Zhenyuan had his own vision, seemingly unwilling to let Douyin become merely a music and social networking platform. He invited numerous online media personalities to join in and constantly chased after current political news and hot social topics. Some of the content was so shocking that even Lu Liang felt alarmed, although how many warnings it received was unknown, the download figures were pretty impressive. As of last week, fifty days since the launch, it had surpassed 400,000 registered users, with daily active users stable at around 50,000, and approximately 1200 short video creators. There was still about 1.2 million funds in the account; it was anticipated that once it ran out, they could prepare for Series A funding. Despite Douyin's decent performance, it seemed to have provoked Zhang Yiming, as Watermelon Video was set to launch early in April. Lu Liang had also heard from Zhu Hu that Zhang Yiming was persuading investors to prepare a billion yuan to support short video creators. Time was running out for Yang Zhenyuan and Douyin. Perhaps he was aware of that, which was why he frantically chased after political issues and social hotspots to build up the user base first and plan for improvements later. Just like Little Wang's Panda and the two leading platforms—dou and hu—at night, they could be likened to a parade of ghosts, straddling the line of propriety with all sorts of nefarious elements emerging. After all, if he didn't do it, others would; now that everyone was growing wildly, once the state turned its attention to this area, it would be seen who could better withstand a heavy blow. "Brother, we're almost at Ya's shop." They exited the highway and arrived in the town where their family was from, when Fang Shiyu suddenly spoke up to give a reminder. The old convenience store had been converted into a larger storefront and they rented a five-hundred square meter warehouse across the street. As evening approached, the place bustled with activity, adults and children purchasing supplies for the New Year. Winters weren't cold at home, the chilliest it ever got was 2-6 degrees Celsius, so it wasn't necessary to stock up on goods, just buy whatever came to mind. From a distance, Lu Liang spotted his two nephews, donned in new clothes and playing with new toys by the roadside. "Let's all go down and say hello." He smiled, approaching his nephews, "Dabao, Erbao, do you remember me?" "Uncle... Uncle." In early November, Lu Liang had come back to celebrate his mother's birthday, so his nephews didn't find it strange to see him. With a beaming smile, Lu Liang picked up Erbao—a girl named Luo Ziqing, about to turn five after the new year: "Erbao, uncle knows magic tricks~ Want to see?" "Uncle, I want to see." She had large double-lidded eyes like her sister, and greatly resembled her when she was younger. "Mummy mummy hong~" Lu Liang smiled mysteriously, reached back with his hand, and Fang Shiyu gave a goofy smile, quietly handing over a gift box. It was a Disney Frozen set, containing a model of the character Elsa, her castle, and over a dozen different outfits. "Do you like it?" Lu Liang asked with a smile. "Thank you, Uncle, mua~~" Erbao's eyes crinkled with joy, and she suddenly planted a big kiss on Lu Liang's cheek, leaving a slobber mark. "Uncle~" Dabao watched, wide-eyed. Now eight years old, he felt a bit embarrassed, but his eyes overflowed with yearning. "If Erbao has a gift, of course Dabao does too." Lu Liang kept up his cheerful demeanor, taking out from the trunk a large and cool Lego Star Wars battleship. Dabao's eyes sparkled with delight and, hugging the toy, he shouted, "Thank you, Uncle." When dinner time rolled around, Lu Ya came out to look for people and saw Lu Liang playing with the two nephews. A smile spread across her face as she approached slowly: "You like kids so much, why don't you have one of your own?" "Kids are always more fun when they belong to someone else." Lu Liang replied breezily, giving his brother-in-law a nod. His brother-in-law laughed and asked, "Liang, have you eaten yet? If not, why don't you stay and join us for the New Year's Eve dinner?" "No thanks, mom and dad are probably waiting for me at home." Lu Liang politely declined with a shake of his head, bade farewell to his sister's family, drove their cousin home first, and then finally drove back to the residential complex. The new apartment had been aired out for two months, and they had recently started with the soft furnishings, but his parents were still living in the previously purchased complex. "It's the first time we're celebrating New Year in a commercial apartment, it feels a bit odd," Dad said with a smile, opening the bottle of Moutai that Lu Liang had brought. Ever since he quit his job at the grinding tool factory and didn't have to work day and night, he spent his days fishing and gardening, stepping into retirement early, and he really seemed much more spirited. "I just came from Sister's place, and she said we could move in another three months," Lu Liang helped Dad pour the drink. "I'm happy today, I'll have a little too." Mom, with a radiant smile, came out of the kitchen holding a dish of braised shrimp, and she seemed to have come to terms with things too. Lu Ya had done a great job on the ideological work with her, making her understand that her son had apparently become an important person. She had also used some very vivid examples, like if Lu Liang were to invest in his hometown, the city leadership would have to come and pay a visit. And if he were to marry carelessly and meet a bad woman, his fortune worth hundreds of millions could end up being split in half. If they really cared about Lu Liang's best interest, they shouldn't rush him to get married. He's already 30, and he'll figure it out himself. Who knows, maybe one day he'll suddenly bring home a chubby grandson out of the blue, after all, that's how it's played out in TV dramas. Actually, Lu Ya wasn't that clear about all these unwritten rules either, but she used whatever was scary to intimidate them, and as she said, it's hard to change the mindset of the older generation without a mix of intimidation and temptation. Clearly, she had succeeded. "Mom, the alcohol content is quite high, don't drink too fast." Lu Liang was all smiles, grateful to have such a sister and secretly gave her 120 likes. A New Year's Eve dinner with no pressure to marry was even more harmonious, as the family chatted and watched TV together. On the first day of the new year, Lu Liang followed his dad to the village brigade and donated two million yuan to build an activity center. He wasn't always at home, nor would he always be, but since his parents probably wouldn't go out in their lifetimes, helping them gain some local prestige would allow them to walk proudly through the village. On the second day, Lu Liang visited his uncle's place in the neighboring town, which was also Fang Shiyu's home. His parents didn't come because his grandparents had passed away early, and they now had their own daughter and son-in-law, so they stayed home awaiting their visit for the New Year's greetings. Lu Liang brought along two packs of cigarettes and two bottles of liquor, "Uncle, Aunt, Shiyu might come back to Modu with me the day after tomorrow." Uncle laughed and said, "No problem, he could leave with you right after this, no worries. The kid has always been honest, and we feel reassured with him following you." Lu Liang, grinning, protested playfully, "Uncle, your words make it sound like I've never been well-behaved." He got on well with his uncle. Whenever he got into trouble, he would pedal his bike for several kilometers to the neighboring town to seek refuge with his uncle until his parents cooled down. "And who was it that always came begging me for money to play online games?" Uncle scowled disapprovingly. "Let's smoke and leave those past matters behind." Feeling embarrassed, Lu Liang hurriedly handed out cigarettes to prevent his uncle from bringing up old stories again. After having lunch at his uncle's, he didn't actually take Shiyu away, he merely informed them about his departure the next morning. Returning home, he saw his sister's family and his parents each holding a baby, immensely amused by the two grandchildren. Lu Ya came over and asked quietly, "Hey, isn't it quite popular among those rich folks to have children out of wedlock?" "Not sure about having children out of wedlock, but there are a few cases that I've heard about 'playing the field'," Lu Liang couldn't help but chuckle. Suddenly, Lu Ya thought of something and looked suspicious, "So, is it that you don't want to or that... that..." S~eaʀᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "What are you thinking about, it's definitely not 'that'." Lu Liang suddenly realized the implication and glared at her annoyed. He had a medical checkup last month and was in excellent health. He always took precautions with girls whose risk status was unknown to him. A moment of pleasure or a lifetime, he had a clear line. For those whose risk status he knew, like Su Wanyu and Li Manli, they would usually take precautions themselves. It wasn't that Lu Liang forced them, it's just that one wanted to study for a higher degree and the other felt she was still a baby. He was quite laid-back about the matter, if they wanted to, they would, if not, and there was a "win", then have the child, it's not like he couldn't afford it. "Then I'm relieved." Lu Ya gave him a slanted look playfully teasing, "Little brother, you have to know, there's a heavy burden on your shoulders." "Seeing you is so annoying, already a mother of two, and yet you still act like this," Lu Liang said disdainfully. Lu Ya glared at him menacingly, "Dare to say that again and see if I'll cover for you in the future." Lu Liang smiled sheepishly and quickly changed the subject, "Dabao, Erbao come, come, Uncle will take you out with Grandpa and Grandma for a ride." Lu Ya squinted her eyes and brandished a victorious fist, she mused, money or not, he was still her little brother.

Chapter 153: Spring Festival

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