Chapter 128: Moving Into the Love Apartment (Please Subscribe, Second Update)

"That's wonderful—young, wealthy, and incredibly handsome," Chen Meijia thought to herself, then smiled at Xiao Xie and said, "Welcome, welcome, a very warm welcome."

"Ziqiao, we're out of soy sauce across the hall. I'm just going to borrow some from you!" At that moment, a rather ordinary-looking man, whose demeanor radiated a certain shamelessness, pushed open the door and walked in.

"Mr. Zeng, you’re just in time. Someone’s pretending to be our landlord—come and expose him!" Lv Ziqiao called out to the newcomer, Zeng Xiaoxian.

"Let me, the deputy chairman under the tenants’ committee, see who dares to impersonate our landlord!" Zeng Xiaoxian said, his face beaming with a sly, sycophantic grin.

"Me!" Xiao Xie smiled faintly, took off his sunglasses, and revealed his strikingly handsome face.

The moment Zeng Xiaoxian saw Xiao Xie’s face, he immediately put on the look of a fawning lackey and laughed, "It really is the landlord himself! What wind brings you here today, sir?"

Although Zeng Xiaoxian had never met Xiao Xie in person, he had seen his profile photo before, so he recognized him instantly.

"So handsome! But why does he look so familiar? Wait, you’re Xiao Shen!" Chen Meijia shrieked, pointing at Xiao Xie.

"It really is Xiao Shen! The landlord is Xiao Shen!" Guan Gu also recognized Xiao Xie as soon as he took off his sunglasses. After all, Xiao Shen, the multitalented internet sensation, had been the hottest topic online lately.

"Ah, haha, so it really is Mr. Landlord. I knew that someone as charismatic as you couldn’t be an ordinary person! I recognized you as Xiao Shen at a glance—your ghost-step dance is just amazing. I’m a true fan of yours!" After hearing Zeng Xiaoxian and the others, Lv Ziqiao quickly confirmed Xiao Xie’s identity and shamelessly started flattering him with wide-eyed lies.

Xiao Xie turned and fixed his gaze on Lv Ziqiao, then raised the corner of his mouth in a smile. "Although it’s a bit obvious you’re buttering me up, it still feels pretty good. Your rent next month is waived."

"Xiao Shen, you’re truly generous! Do you need anything? Tea, or coffee? I can get it for you!" Lv Ziqiao asked eagerly, trying to please him.

"Coke, please," Xiao Xie replied indifferently.

"Right away!" Lv Ziqiao hurried to the fridge, grabbed a can of coke, and handed it to Xiao Xie with the utmost respect.

"Very good," Xiao Xie nodded approvingly at Lv Ziqiao’s fawning manner, then took the coke and started to drink.

"Lord Xiao Shen, do your shoulders feel sore? Shall I give you a massage?" Seeing how Lv Ziqiao’s flattery had just earned him a month’s free rent, the penny-pinching Chen Meijia instantly seized the chance to curry favor as well.

"Lord Xiao Shen, how’s this? Should I press harder? Or maybe here? Does it feel good? If there’s anything you’re not satisfied with, just say the word." Without waiting for Xiao Xie’s response, Chen Meijia had already darted behind him and begun massaging his shoulders.

"Hmm, a little harder on this side—yes, right there. Very good. Your rent next month is also waived," Xiao Xie said with a light laugh.

This made Chen Meijia massage even more earnestly; after all, the man before her was their benefactor—he must be served well.

"Meijia, Ziqiao—how could you both behave like this?" Zeng Xiaoxian scolded, his tone full of feigned indignation, then suddenly shifted to a sly grin and said ingratiatingly, "Dear landlord, you haven’t eaten yet, have you? Why not dine with us? I’ll personally cook for you!"

"Mr. Zeng, I despise you!" Lv Ziqiao, Chen Meijia, and Guan Gu all raised their middle fingers at Zeng Xiaoxian in unison.

"Sure, let’s go!" Xiao Xie smiled. Though he already knew Zeng Xiaoxian was notorious for his shamelessness, seeing him in person was still highly entertaining.

"After you, sir," Zeng Xiaoxian opened the door for Xiao Xie and followed after him obsequiously.

"You shameless Zeng! Even fetching soy sauce takes you this long—the pot’s about to burn!" As soon as the door to Apartment 3601 opened, a voice rang out, reaching Xiao Xie’s ears.

"Zeng Xiaoxian—Xiao Shen!" A tall, long-haired beauty, wearing a white tunic and black jeans, with elegant yet striking features and an air of heroism that rivaled any man, pointed at Xiao Xie in disbelief.

"Feifei, what are you shouting about—Xiao Shen?" Another long-haired beauty, dressed stylishly and exuding gentle grace like a true lady, came out. Upon seeing Xiao Xie, her jaw dropped in astonishment.

"Hu Yifei, Lin Wanyu, allow me to introduce you: this is the landlord of our Love Apartment, and also the wildly popular Xiao Shen. He’ll be living next door from now on," Zeng Xiaoxian announced, emerging from behind Xiao Xie, soy sauce bottle in hand.

"Hello, I’m Hu Yifei." Hu Yifei tried her best to appear calm, though she was secretly a fan of Xiao Xie herself.

"Delighted to meet you, Miss Yifei," Xiao Xie said, taking her right hand and bending to kiss the back of it.

Hu Yifei blushed and smiled, "You’re too kind."

It must be said: this is the privilege of being handsome. Such a hand-kissing gesture from a handsome man is called a chivalrous greeting; from someone ugly, it would only be called harassment.

It’s like this: unattractive men need tricks to woo women, while the handsome need only show up.

"My name is Lin Wanyu—nice to meet you," Lin Wanyu extended her right hand to Xiao Xie.

"Very pleased to meet you here, Miss Wanyu," Xiao Xie replied, lightly kissing her hand as well.

"I’m also very happy to meet you, Xiao Shen," Lin Wanyu said sweetly, her demeanor that of a demure young lady.

"Zeng Xiaoxian, aren’t you going to start cooking?" Hu Yifei barked at the oblivious Zeng Xiaoxian, then turned to Xiao Xie with a gentle smile. "Xiao Shen, please have a seat. Dinner will be ready soon."

"Hu Yifei, you’re really letting beauty outweigh friendship!" Zeng Xiaoxian replied with a sly grin.

"Mm!" Hu Yifei shot him a glare.

"I’ll go cook! I’ll go cook!" Startled by Hu Yifei’s glare, Zeng Xiaoxian quickly raised the soy sauce bottle in surrender and retreated toward the kitchen.

Watching this familiar scene, Xiao Xie couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Hu Yifei and Zeng Xiaoxian—those two frenemies. Zeng Xiaoxian, knowing full well that angering Hu Yifei would never end well, still couldn’t resist provoking her. One’s a teaser, the other a disciplinarian—they’re quite the pair.

"The king sent me to patrol the mountain, to catch a monk for dinner—Sis, I’m home!" Lu Zhanbo bounced through the door, singing the internet’s latest hit tune, "The King Sent Me to Patrol the Mountain."

"Xiao... Xiao... Xiao Shen!" Lu Zhanbo stuttered, pointing at Xiao Xie, then dashed into his room. Seconds later, he rushed out with a notebook and pen, running up to Xiao Xie. "Xiao Shen, I’m your fan—can I have your autograph?"

"Uh... all right," Xiao Xie was a bit taken aback by Lu Zhanbo’s excitement, but smiled, took the notebook, and scrawled his signature.

"Xiao Shen, please don’t mind him. This is my younger brother, Lu Zhanbo. He’s a little off—he must have forgotten to take his meds today," Hu Yifei said, dragging her brother away from Xiao Xie’s side, mortified he might scare off their distinguished guest.

"It’s fine. Actually, I find him rather interesting," Xiao Xie replied with a smile.

"Xiao Shen, what brings you here? Don’t tell me you were forced into marriage and came here to run away, too?" Lu Zhanbo asked, his imagination running wild.

Xiao Xie’s mouth twitched at the question.

"Zhanbo, Xiao Shen will be living next door from now on, so please don’t make a scene. Not everyone comes here because they’re being forced to get married," Lin Wanyu said helplessly. Though she herself had come to Love Apartment to escape an arranged marriage, that didn’t mean everyone else had.

"Xiao Shen, I love your stories! Could you write one about Transformers fighting Iron Man?" Lu Zhanbo asked, eyes bright with excitement. He loved all of Xiao Xie’s works, but lamented that none featured his favorite Transformers.

Xiao Xie looked wordlessly at the overexcited Lu Zhanbo. If he didn’t already know this was just his personality, Xiao Xie might have shown him what a fist the size of a sandbag could do.