Luo Chen had not yet exited the train station when his ex-girlfriend from his previous life, Zhang Xiaoman, and her mother were already waiting outside.
The two stood beside a Chery QQ, attracting the attention of passersby, who were naturally not looking at the car.
In Xinzhou, while it may not compare to a provincial capital like Haidong, there are still many wealthy people around, with BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes everywhere. A Chery QQ is hardly worth a glance; what's there to see?
What caught people's eyes were the two women, one tall and one short.
Especially the taller one, who was particularly eye-catching.
Thanks to good maintenance, the taller woman looked like she was only in her mid-twenties. She was dressed very fashionably and boldly.
She wore extremely short shorts that barely reached the tops of her thighs, exposing her fair legs.
On her upper body, she had on a black crop top that revealed her flat abdomen, adorned with a red string, and her long hair was dyed blonde. With sunglasses on, she looked very stylish and sexy.
The shorter one, in comparison, was dressed more conservatively, in light blue jeans and a tank top that revealed a large expanse of her fair back. However, she was indeed quite beautiful, and her tall figure added to her exceptional aura.
The taller one was, of course, Zhang Xiaoman's mother.
At this moment, Zhang Xiaoman's mother crossed her arms and looked displeased.
"It's so hot! If I get tanned waiting here, what are you going to do? I had an appointment to get my hair done!"
Zhang Xiaoman's mother complained impatiently. Although their family wasn't very wealthy, she was extremely concerned about appearances and always felt she should be a lady of high status, so she cared a lot about her image.
Waiting at a train station for someone was not something a woman of her stature should be doing!
"Mom, the train has already arrived; he should be out soon," Zhang Xiaoman said helplessly.
"We've been waiting for three minutes! What if my carefully maintained skin gets tanned? That skincare set I have is imported from France and cost thousands!"
Even though they had only waited for three minutes, Zhang Xiaoman's mother was already very impatient.
"Didn't I tell you to bring an umbrella? You wouldn't listen."
"What? Now that you have a boyfriend, you dare to talk back to your mother?" Zhang Xiaoman's mother said with a frown.
"Fine, I'll call him now," Zhang Xiaoman said reluctantly as she dialed Luo Chen's number again, after all, that was her mother, and she couldn't be too defiant.
But just as she dialed, she saw Luo Chen walking out with his suitcase.
"Luo Chen, over here!" Zhang Xiaoman waved.
"Xiaoman, long time no see." Although Luo Chen had no feelings for Zhang Xiaoman anymore, due to some special reasons, he didn't deliberately act cold.
"What? You don't even greet me when you see me?" Zhang Xiaoman's mother suddenly sneered from the side.
From the first glance, she didn't think much of this guy. In her eyes, her precious daughter should find someone worth at least a billion.
And it was said that this guy came from a county town and had no worth at all.
Moreover, he looked somewhat rustic.
Zhang Xiaoman's mother casually glanced at him. Being knowledgeable about various brands, she could tell at a glance that his cheap jeans and T-shirt were probably just a few dozen yuan from a street vendor. He didn't even have a single branded item on him?
So, Zhang Xiaoman's mother was already very disappointed with her first impression of Luo Chen.
How could someone like him be worthy of being her son-in-law?
In her mind, she had a hundred reasons to be unwilling.
Compared to Chen Chao, who was pursuing her daughter, Luo Chen was simply worlds apart. Chen Chao was the son of a former vice mayor of Xinzhou, handsome, wealthy, and had status and power.
Luo Chen, in comparison, was like the sky and the earth.
"Let's go. By the way, this is my mother."
"Hello, Auntie."
"What's so good about it? You don't even know to greet your aunt when you first meet her. Young people these days really don't understand manners. And Auntie is not happy; haven't you seen that I've been standing here in the sun waiting for you? I'm about to turn into charcoal." Zhang Xiaoman's mother complained without holding back.
"Mom, can you say a little less?" Zhang Xiaoman said helplessly again.
"Forget it, why are we still standing here? Hurry up and get in the car; it's too hot." Zhang Xiaoman's mother said again, not in a good mood.
Once in the car, Zhang Xiaoman's mother naturally sat in the front passenger seat, pulling out a mirror to touch up her makeup.
Zhang Xiaoman then asked Luo Chen, "How have you been lately?"
"Pretty good." Since Luo Chen was no longer the same Luo Chen as before, he replied in a bland manner.
"Hey, what's with that attitude? Our Xiaoman is being nice to you, and look at your attitude!" Zhang Xiaoman's mother spoke again.
"Mom, just do your makeup." Zhang Xiaoman didn't say much more. A woman's intuition told her that Luo Chen seemed a bit different today. In the past, when he saw her, his eyes were filled with affection.
But for some reason, today, when he saw her, his eyes were clear but somewhat indifferent.
Perhaps it was because her mother was beside them, Zhang Xiaoman thought to herself.
At that moment, Zhang Xiaoman's phone rang. She didn't answer but didn't hang up either; instead, she placed the phone face down.
Just then, they passed by a row of upscale residential complexes.
"Daughter, do you see that? This is the Shidai Guandi in the city center. The scenery here is nice. I'm not asking you to be able to afford a villa in the future, just getting a duplex here would be enough."
"Then your mom and dad can also benefit from it; you live upstairs, and we live downstairs," Zhang Xiaoman's mother said.
"The average price here is at least over 30,000, right?" Luo Chen casually interjected.
With his memories from his past life, Luo Chen naturally knew about the Shidai Guandi. It was located near the city center, with an average price of around 30,000 per square meter. A duplex would require at least 600 square meters, meaning it would cost over six million.
"Look at what you're saying, over 30,000 is too expensive? Young people should have some aspirations, right?"
"The resettlement houses in the countryside south of the city are cheap, only over 3,000 per square meter. You're not planning to let my daughter live there, are you?"
"Let me tell you, we can't afford to lose face. It's not that easy to change from an urban household to a rural one." Zhang Xiaoman's mother was increasingly dissatisfied with Luo Chen.
It seemed that a country bumpkin like him was indeed not suitable to be a son-in-law. If her daughter married him, who knows how much hardship she would have to endure?
And of course, Luo Chen didn't respond to this remark.
Soon, the car passed through rows of residential complexes and arrived at Zhang Xiaoman's home. In fact, Zhang Xiaoman's family was not wealthy; they lived in an ordinary neighborhood in an 80-square-meter apartment on the first floor.
Moreover, this apartment was mortgaged, and it was said that they were still paying off the loan. Zhang Xiaoman's father was an ordinary worker at a factory, earning only a few thousand a month. However, Zhang Xiaoman's father and Luo Chen's father were classmates.
Initially, Zhang Xiaoman's father quite liked Luo Chen, but he couldn't withstand his wife's unreasonable behavior, which ultimately led him to also make things difficult for Luo Chen.
As Luo Chen looked at this place where he had suffered humiliation in his past life, he wondered how things would turn out this time.