The next day, upon waking, Li Haochen felt terrible from the hangover, his head throbbing. He shook his head, raised his hand, and pressed his thumb and middle finger against his temples, rubbing them.
After a few minutes, feeling some relief, he sat up and looked around, his brow furrowed, "Where is this place?"
He stayed still for a moment, then chuckled wryly, holding his forehead, "Alcohol is truly a double-edged sword, it makes one's brain so sluggish."
He threw off the covers, pushed himself up, and after a few steps, felt something was odd. He went to the bathroom, about to pull down his pants to relieve himself, "Uh, where are my pants?"
Looking down, he saw he was only in his underwear. It was then he realized the strangeness. He knew without a doubt that Murong Yanran was behind this masterpiece. Once he understood, Li Haochen felt a little embarrassed and excited, but also a bit regretful that nothing more had happened, "Why only a partial blackout?"
Li Haochen pushed open the dry and wet separation door and stepped into the bathroom. He used the showerhead to clean the bathtub. Regardless of the hotel's star rating, even if the cleaning was exceptionally thorough, one never knew who had used it before. This was a common sentiment among hotel guests, and Li Haochen was no exception.
He filled the large bathtub with hot water. Beside it was a small dish of rose petals. Li Haochen, feeling inspired, sprinkled the petals into the water and poured in some scented bath lotion.
Lying back in the bathtub, only his head exposed, the heat of the water, the rich and pleasant fragrance of the bath lotion, and the subtle floral scent caused all of Li Haochen's pores to relax. It felt incredibly comfortable.
As Li Haochen was enjoying his floral bath, Murong Yanran opened the room door, carrying a bag of clothes. Seeing the bathroom light on, she walked over and knocked, "Haochen, are you bathing?"
Hearing Murong Yanran's voice, Li Haochen wanted to get out, but he was completely naked, and his underwear was outside. He had no choice but to stay in and reply, "Yes, I'm taking a bath."
Murong Yanran's face flushed. She pushed open the bathroom door and placed the towel and clothes in the laundry basket beside the bathtub. "Hurry and change your clothes, we need to go home. The groundbreaking ceremony is soon, and we can't be late. Auntie Lian has already postponed other calls."
"Uh, I almost forgot," Li Haochen said.
Just as Li Haochen was about to emerge, he looked at Murong Yanran, his face also turning red, "You go out first."
Murong Yanran blushed and shot Li Haochen a playful glare, saying softly, "I took off all your clothes yesterday, I've seen it all, why are you blushing?"
"Then I'm really getting out."
Li Haochen actually stood up, startling Murong Yanran into covering her eyes and turning to bolt out the door. Watching Murong Yanran flee in a flustered state, he smugly declared, "Little brat, just you wait."
A few minutes later, Li Haochen emerged after changing. Murong Yanran had already come to meet him, reaching out to straighten his collar, "So handsome."
Their eyes met, and they gazed at each other affectionately. Their lips, like magnets, slowly drew closer, touching softly. They instinctively pulled each other into a tight embrace, the crackling sounds filling the room with an amorous atmosphere.
"Ring ring ring~"
Their intimate moment was interrupted by an urgent ringing. Both felt a pang of annoyance, especially Murong Yanran, who had been deeply moved just moments before and was about to... when they were abruptly brought to a halt.
Li Haochen was also displeased. He had been feeling quite aroused, but that sudden interruption caused him to deflate. Someone with a weaker constitution might have completely lost it.
He picked up the phone. It was his mother. Any lingering annoyance vanished. As soon as he answered, his mother's voice boomed, "You good-for-nothing, why aren't you back yet? Hurry up, or I'll beat you when you're late. Goodbye."
"Beep beep beep..."
"Uh, Mom's call. I have to get back quickly."
They didn't even have time for breakfast and immediately drove home. Upon returning to the village, Xie Baolian's call came again, "You two, come directly to the construction site. We're already here."
Arriving at the site, bulldozers had already cleared a dirt road over three meters wide. Fortunately, the weather had been dry recently, so the soil wasn't damp. If it had rained, it would have been a muddy mess.
Murong Yanran linked her arm through Li Haochen's and they walked towards the top of the hill. Having a road made it convenient; it took less than a minute to ascend.
At the summit, Xie Baolian was already busy, her clothes damp with sweat. Seeing Li Haochen and Murong Yanran arrive, she hurried over, "The auspicious hour is almost here, hurry."
Li Haochen was about to start when Xie Baolian swatted the back of his head, "Don't mess around. Go wash your hands first."
Li Haochen didn't dare to object. It was best to follow Xie Baolian's instructions. This was called burning incense and purifying hands, a gesture of respect and prayer for important matters.
After washing his hands and calming his mind, he approached the altar with reverence. The altar was already set with offerings of three types of meat, five types of fruit, candles, and wine. Xie Baolian handed Li Haochen a large bundle of incense, saying, "Son, be sincere."
Taking the incense, Li Haochen prayed sincerely. After bowing three times, he handed the incense to Murong Yanran. He then picked up the wine from the altar and poured it onto the ground from left to right, also three cups. After completing the pouring, he picked up the wine pot and poured three more cups, then made way for Murong Yanran.
After Xie Baolian had also completed this series of rituals, she distributed the incense to Wang Lunhao and his team, three sticks for each person. After each had paid their sincere respects, Xie Baolian set fire to the paper money at the side of the altar.
Once everyone had paid their respects again, Li Haochen picked up a string of firecrackers, lit it, and threw it onto the open ground not far away. After a few seconds of crackling, Xie Baolian announced, "The ceremony is complete. May the construction be auspicious."
Xie Baolian took a thick stack of red envelopes from her handbag. The thickness indicated there was a considerable amount. She handed them to Li Haochen, saying, "Son, distribute these to all the construction workers."
Li Haochen took the red envelopes and walked over, giving one to each construction worker. Murong Yanran followed behind, offering cigarettes.
"Team Leader Wang, uncles and brothers, thank you for your hard work."
"It's no trouble, it's what we should do."
"Team Leader Wang, if you encounter any difficulties, please let us know. We'll leave you to it now."
After tidying up the altar, the three of them left the construction site. Upon returning home, Xie Baolian pulled Li Haochen aside and said, "Son, it's almost lunchtime. Make sure the catering is arranged well and that they are taken care of. This way, our house won't have any issues."
"Don't worry, Auntie Lian. I've already made arrangements. I asked the hotel to prepare and pack two meals for a banquet."
Li Haochen was delighted that everything was handled perfectly by the two of them, leaving him nothing to worry about. He immediately went up and hugged them both, "It's so good that you've handled everything. I don't have to do anything, hehe!"
"What do you mean you don't have to do anything? Pay up."
"That's right. We're just helping you out. You have to pay. Hurry up and give us the money, and last night's hotel expenses, a mere 999,999, hehe." Murong Yanran chimed in with agreement.
Li Haochen, hugging Murong Yanran, said pitifully, "Wife, how about I pay with my body?"
"Get lost..."