Home Theater Audio System

Su Bai couldn't help but take another look at the man.

Hmm...

Making one more friend wouldn’t hurt. This guy seemed to know his stuff—maybe Su Bai could ask him for camping tips later.

Often, the quality of an outdoor trip hinges on small details, things inexperienced newcomers easily overlook.

When you’re financially comfortable, making friends becomes effortless.

Su Bai had recently come to deeply appreciate this.

While exchanging WeChat contacts, the man sent Su Bai his name:

Liu Chenhu.

His profile picture was a tiger in a "guochao" (national-trend) style...

To the man, it probably looked fierce and majestic, but to Su Bai, it just seemed silly and cartoonishly aggressive.

Well, generational gaps in taste were best left unmentioned.

"Ah, if only my lazy son could occasionally get up early like you to breathe in some fresh air! That kid’s already got a weak constitution, yet he still loves sleeping in. No matter how many times I scold him, nothing changes!"

Weak constitution...

The keyword flashed through Su Bai’s mind like lightning. Combined with the man’s name, it sparked an uneasy suspicion.

Come to think of it, upon closer inspection, the man’s features did bear some resemblance to Yangyang’s.

Su Bai’s instincts were usually spot-on, but he’d need to confirm with Liu Chen'ang first.

After parting ways with the man, Su Bai sent Liu Chen'ang a message before heading home but got no immediate reply.

That pretty much settled it—if the man’s words were anything to go by, "Lao Liu" was still asleep...

A sleeping Yangyang naturally couldn’t respond.

There was another clue, too.

The undisguised disdain on the man’s face when he mentioned his "son."

Su Bai had always found such parents irritating. If you really wanted a son, just have another kid—why force your daughter to cosplay as one? Wait... unless...

Maybe the man physically couldn’t have another child.

Or perhaps some superstitious belief prevented him from trying.

"So complicated, the affairs of the wealthy... Aunt Jiang’s much simpler, sigh."

Su Bai actually felt grateful for his own family situation. If he had to get tangled up in some rich-family drama, he’d much rather stick to his modest, comfortable life.

He was a man who prized peace above all else.

By the time Su Bai returned to Yashige, the team scheduled to install his new sound system was already in the study of his duplex apartment.

Zhou Jialu was directing them as they moved equipment inside.

Spotting Su Bai, she blinked playfully at him.

"Did you and Shengsheng have fun last night, junior?"

"Of course. We have fun every day." Su Bai stepped closer and hugged her, then suddenly gave her plump backside a firm pinch. "I suspect you put her up to last night’s antics."

"How dare you slander my good name?!"

Zhou Jialu feigned shock, her expression exaggerated.

Then, as if realizing her acting was terrible, she burst into giggles. "Hehe, wasn’t it for your own good, junior? You should decide when you go to bed—those two were just hogging the spotlight."

"Talking smack about your girlfriends behind their backs now?"

"Ehh, it’s not that serious~ Anyway, I’ll always support you, hubby~"

Zhou Jialu was the type who excelled at acting cute. More importantly, she knew exactly which lines she could cross and which antics Su Bai would tolerate.

Of course the girls would compete for his attention—why else would she work so hard in training?

"Focus on the sound system first. I’ll deal with you afterward," Su Bai pretended to scowl.

"Awooo~ Be gentle, junior..."

Home theaters had always been mythical to Su Bai. Growing up in a tiny 50-square-meter apartment with paper-thin walls, he’d relied on headphones for movies—especially the other kind.

Headphones on, world off.

But with ample space, speakers were undeniably better—liberating, even.

Su Bai watched the installers work with interest, occasionally stepping in to help.

Once everything was set up, he snapped a few photos of the upgraded study.

Hah, the urge to flex on social media struck again.

Too bad there wasn’t a "post-for-cash-back" feature...

This time, the first to comment was none other than "Huyé" (Lord Chu).

[Love Ancheng Leilei: Holy shit, Su Bai, you bought Dynaudio’s new home theater system?]

[Fluffy White Goose: Probably the new model? I’m not entirely sure...]

[Love Ancheng Leilei: This one’s killer! Uses new diaphragm material tech—great value for the price. At 100K+, it rivals systems twice as expensive!]

[Love Ancheng Leilei: Crisp highs, sweet mids, tight lows, wide soundstage, precise imaging...]

After flooding the comments, Chu Mingzhe enthusiastically continued the discussion in their DMs, as if finally approving of Su Bai’s taste.

Su Bai was mildly exasperated.

Chu Mingzhe wasn’t a bad guy—just extra. That avalanche of audiophile jargon made Su Bai’s head spin.

Truthfully, Su Bai had just picked what looked cool within a "high-enough-price-to-avoid-garbage" range.

Still, Chu Mingzhe meant well, so Su Bai humored him with some small talk, treating it as a free crash course.

To be fair, Chu Mingzhe actually knew his stuff when it came to acoustics—probably more than Xue Tao understood about cars.

That dummy couldn’t even explain the Carnot cycle vs. Atkinson cycle, copied Su Bai’s physics homework in college, and likely only memorized car specs.

And his driving? Painful. During their last trip, his parking "skills" left Su Bai speechless.

Su Bai, after one day of driver’s ed, could park better.

But what really caught Su Bai’s attention was Chu Mingzhe’s updated username:

Love Ancheng Leilei

Su Bai recognized "Leilei"—probably that "landmine girl’s" name. Who’d have thought "Tearful" was from his hometown? Hilarious.

Clearly, Chu Mingzhe was now officially taken, judging by the braggy username.

The real question was: how far had things progressed?

If Chu Mingzhe "ate" before Xue Tao, the local man might just starve himself out of sheer frustration.

[Fluffy White Goose: What’s with the username, Huyé? Official couple status now?]

[Love Ancheng Leilei: Sort of.]

[Fluffy White Goose: "Sort of"?]

[Love Ancheng Leilei: She agreed to deepen our relationship, but due to family issues, she can’t let her circle know about me yet...]

[Fluffy White Goose: ...]

[Fluffy White Goose: [Dong XueLian_New Year Sticker: Yeah Right]]