Since it was summer vacation, Gu Fan was oversleeping comfortably, indulged in a lovely dream about Lin Xi. Just as he was about to kiss her in his dream, a sudden noise from downstairs startled him, making him bolt upright in bed.
Thinking he was under attack, Gu Fan rushed downstairs, ready to fight for his life. To his surprise, he found a single pot on his kitchen floor and Su Hui bustling about with an apologetic expression on her face, "Sorry for waking you up. I didn't do it on purpose."
"Oh, it's alright. I can always catch up on my sleep in these next few days," Gu Fan responded with courtesy, secretly marveling at how difficult it was to be angry with such a beautiful woman, even if she made a mistake.
Su Hui busied herself preparing a mediocre breakfast, using the milk and other food from Gu Fan's fridge. She also made sure to prepare his share to avoid criticisms.
Seeing that she had prepared a meal for him, Gu Fan didn't say a word. Nonchalantly, he said while eating, "You are my first tenant, and to my surprise, you are the one preparing breakfast for me. In my future rental ads, I should mention that the tenant must know how to cook breakfast."
"Really?" Su Hui said, her eyes curving in mirth. She then asked, "If a man made you an affectionate breakfast, are you sure you could eat it up?"
Her words made Gu Fan lose his appetite. Heaving a sigh, he said, "Why must you ruin the taste of my food?"
"My apologies. Let's just forget what I said." Su Hui laughed and then received a call on her mobile phone. She seemed nervous to check it, and her excitement fell when it wasn't the news she was hoping for.
Seeing her sudden drop in excitement, Gu Fan guessed something was amiss and asked, "Are you still giving your parents the cold shoulder? Why don't you go home and apologize? After all, they are your family and won't hold a grudge."
Su Hui merely hummed in response and emotionlessly drank her milk. However, she exuded a faintly murderous look, leading Gu Fan to decide to not pursue the topic further.
"Alright, I'm off to work now. You should get started on your summer homework." After saying this, Su Hui left with a disgruntled expression, leaving Gu Fan puzzled. Since when did university students have summer homework?
As Gu Fan was contemplating this, he heard a heavy door slam, confirming that Su Hui was deeply upset about something. He only hoped her frustration wouldn't be taken out on him.
After finishing his breakfast, Gu Fan received a call from a second potential tenant wanting to see the house, and, hopeful that business was starting to look up, he immediately agreed.
Throughout the day, Gu Fan met with many different people; executive officers looking for a house closer to their company, departments looking for collective staff living accommodations, and many who were planning to stay long-term.
Exhausted, Gu Fan wondered why nobody read the rental ad properly. It expressly said that long-term stays and commercial accommodation were not permitted.
Learning his lesson, Gu Fan started asking people about their situations before agreeing to show them the house. If they didn't meet his requirements, he would reject them promptly to avoid wasting anyone's time.
Still, an entire day passed without anyone showing any genuine interest. Most were looking for long-term stays; others Pwho were seeking short-term accommodation could easily stay in a chain hotel; the remaining ones were dissuaded by the house's old and shabby look.
One potential tenant even ridiculed Gu Fan's house; while it looked fancy from the outside, it was run-down on the inside.
Gu Fan retorted firmly, "What do you mean by 'run-down'? The bricks, cement, and steel used in this old house are of much better quality than many modern 'tofu dreg' projects."
This old house was a legacy from Gu Fan's great-grandfather. Having grown up here under the care of his grandfather, while his parents were out working, Gu Fan held the house close to his heart. Gu Fan had once asked his grandfather why he didn't consider renovating the old house.
His grandfather had said, "We keep it like this to remind us of our humble beginnings so that we never forget the hard times, no matter how prosperous we become."
Gu Fan respected his grandfather and took this philosophy to heart. This old house held great significance for him, and he would not let anyone belittle it. This house symbolizes the hard work of his great grandfather, grandfather, and father, representing the roots of the Gu family.
Upholding the dignity of his old house was one thing, but dealing with the harsh realities was another. Gu Fan admitted that things were not going as he had imagined. He hadn't managed to secure even a single tenant after a full day's work, leaving him to wonder if he was truly cut out for business.
By evening, Gu Fan had accepted it as a failed day and was about to retire when suddenly, the door pushed open, and an attractive figure with an air of grace walked in, briskly making her way upstairs with a suitcase in tow.
Gu Fan was taken aback, feeling that something was off, and quickly rushed over. Then he heard an indignant voice coming from Su Hui's room: "Fine, if you don't come to find me, I won't search for you. I don't give a damn. Don't think that I'll be homeless without you."
Hearing this, Gu Fan didn't dare to go in, even from outside the wall he could feel a greatly murderous look emanating from the room. Gu Fan was sure that what Su Hui said earlier about having disagreements with her family and running away was true. But the family she mentioned shouldn't be her parents, but rather a husband or a boyfriend.
"What should I do, what should I do?" Gu Fan felt a little helpless. Going in might lead to being scolded if he says the wrong thing when she's still angry. He knew how unreasonable women could be when they were angry, like Lin Xi.
But if he didn't go in, it would seem as if he, the host, was being stingy. But after thinking it over, Gu Fan decided that it was better not to meddle in what had nothing to do with him.
"Kid, are you outside? I want to see you." Su Hui's voice was very serious and she was obviously still angry, making Gu Fan feel that something wasn't right. But he still plucked up his courage and walked in.
As soon as he stepped in, Gu Fan saw a stack of money on the table that seemed to be around 10,000 yuan, making his eyes light up, and being short on money at the moment.
Su Hui sat on the bed with her arms crossed and legs crossed at the ankles. Though her face was stern, she was still very pretty. Her short and neat hair complemented her assertive police look, which portrayed an intimidating 'big sister' sort of aura that made Gu Fan feel compelled to submit.
"This money is for you," Su Hui said dismissively, to which Gu Fan was overjoyed. Great, half of the 20,000 yuan debt was resolved, which felt like divine intervention.
But Gu Fan's joy did not last long as he soon regained his composure: "Hang on, Officer, what do you mean by this?"
Su Hui gave Gu Fan a disdainful look, which was particularly fierce, making Gu Fan's heart beat frantically. He had no idea what this lady was preparing to do.
"Don't you understand! Initially, I planned to stay for a short time, but now I've nowhere to go. Hence, I plan to stay for a while," Su Hui said, acting justified as if it was not a big deal.
This put Gu Fan in an awkward position: "But we agreed, a short stay for two days only. If my parents find out, they will scold me to death."
Upon hearing this, Su Hui looked at him doubtfully: "Didn't you say last night that you had full control over this house?"
Gu Fan laughed awkwardly: "That was yesterday, today is a different day. As time develops, my rights are also being stripped."
Su Hui just waved her hand dismissively, not wanting to discuss it anymore: "I don't care, if it was not for assisting you with that case, I wouldn't have run into this bad luck. And now it's your turn to return the favor. Also, the missing case, under normal circumstances, you would need to wait 24 hours before reporting, I've granted you special treatment. Moreover, I know you're involved in a fight and owe 10,000 yuan for the damages. I suppose you wouldn't want your parents to know, right?"
Oh God, that's true. Gu Fan glanced at the 10,000 yuan on the table, thinking internally about how he could be seduced by money, but then he remembered Du Jun's superior expression of 'if you can't afford to pay I will help' which rekindled his fighting spirit.
However, given that Su Hui seemed to be planning on staying for a while, she would definitely be discovered by his parents who occasionally visited. Gu Fan didn't wish to be scolded, especially for letting in a stranger with an unknown origin.
Wait a minute, the other person is a police officer, so her credibility is guaranteed. Gu Fan realized he didn't just randomly find a tenant, so there was no need to worry about that.
But the problem was that, regardless of whether or not the other party was a policeman, Gu Fan couldn't rent out without the family's approval. He was already under a lot of stress due to the missing student; dealing with this troublesome matter was hard. Inviting spirits is easy, sending them away is hard.
"Wait, isn't this the perfect solution?" Gu Fan thought of the crucial point and was immediately overjoyed. Even getting excited, he quickly agreed to take the money, and put on a very sincere look saying: "No problem, you can stay as long as you want. You can even stay for a lifetime. We, police and civilians, are one family. I welcome you and I believe my parents will also welcome you." After saying that, Gu Fan picked up the money, turned around and ran off, as if he was afraid Su Hui might change her mind.
At this, Su Hui was taken aback. She had just seen how difficult Gu Fan was finding it to make a decision, hesitating and struggling. But all of a sudden, he had this epiphany and seemed as if he had struck gold. Especially that part about police and civilians being one family and being able to stay for a lifetime. What a mess.
Suddenly, Su Hui thought of something, and immediately felt embarrassed. She wondered if this was the kind of implication she was thinking of.
At this time, Gu Fan was pacing excitedly in his room. His biggest concern now was not about how to explain to his parents about letting a stranger live in their home, but whether he could defend himself if bad guys come knocking. Now with Su Hui, an exceptional skilled policewoman around, what more could he worry about? He was making money and had hired a bodyguard. He was hitting the jackpot. It felt like the perfect business decision.