After Divorce, I Can Hear the Future

Chapter 27: Sister, You’re the Naughty One!

"The one on the 16th floor, 240 square meters," Lu Liang decided.

He didn’t believe in feng shui, nor did he question it. He simply thought the office was ready, with partitions and desks already set up—perfect for a move-in.

For the foreseeable future, this company was just a shell corporation. A simple setup would suffice for now.

"Three yuan per square meter daily, including property management fees, for a one-year lease. Three months' deposit and three months' rent upfront. Xiao Liu, go fetch the contract."

Ordinarily, the rent was 4.5 yuan per square meter, but Meng Changkun cut Lu Liang a one-third discount with just a word.

"Brother Kun, you’ve helped me enough. Let’s stick to the standard price," Lu Liang replied seriously.

Friendship is based on mutual benefit, not taking advantage of others. He could accept help, but not outright generosity.

The words on Meng Changkun’s lips faded as he looked into Lu Liang’s resolute eyes. Suddenly, he laughed, "Alright then, 4.5 it is."

He finally understood why he appreciated Lu Liang so much. Lu Liang knew his boundaries, understood when to advance and retreat, and never appeared subservient despite their significant financial disparity.

This quality was rare and commendable.

At 135 yuan per square meter per month, totaling 240 square meters, the monthly rent was 32,400 yuan. With three months’ deposit and three months’ rent upfront, Lu Liang paid 194,400 yuan.

After completing the lease, Liu Jun helped Lu Liang fill out the company registration documents. Lu Liang provided the information, and Liu Jun handled the rest.

"The company will be called Tianxing Investments, with a registered capital of six million yuan, fully paid in," Lu Liang said.

He planned to reserve one million yuan as working capital, which should be sufficient in the short term.

While there were various strategies regarding pledged and paid-in capital, Lu Liang didn’t want the hassle of supplementing it later, so he decided to fully pay the registration upfront.

"Assistant Liu, I’m counting on you for this. Brother Kun, I’ll take my leave now."

By 5 PM, Lu Liang said goodbye to Meng Changkun and returned home with Li Manli.

Li Manli sprawled on the sofa, dramatically sighing, "Finally home!"

Aside from playing tennis with Lu Liang in the morning, she had been tagging along aimlessly all day.

She hadn’t understood the discussions between Lu Liang and Meng Changkun and couldn’t contribute. She had only made awkward small talk with Zhou Xiaoqi.

Sitting beside her, Lu Liang became a natural pillow for Li Manli as she rested her head on his lap and gazed up at him. "I’m starving," she complained.

She had restrained herself at lunch, eating with Lu Liang’s friends, but now her hunger had caught up.

"What do you want to eat?" Lu Liang asked, skimming through the materials Liu Jun had given him about company registration.

Once the business license was issued, he would need to hire at least two people—a financial officer and a receptionist—to handle basic operations like opening and closing the office and managing utilities and rent. Perhaps even cleaning if they were diligent. 𝐑Á𐌽Ɵ𝖇Ё𝒮

"I want Hainanese chicken rice," Li Manli said, scrolling through her phone. She didn’t feel like going out and opted for delivery.

"Order me a portion too." Lu Liang transferred 50,000 yuan to her.

When the notification popped up, Li Manli sat bolt upright. "What’s this about?"

Lu Liang pulled her into a hug. "Didn’t you say your current job was unsatisfactory? I’ve found you a new one."

"What kind of job?" Li Manli asked, shifting to a more comfortable position in his embrace.

"Look at this big place. What do you think is missing?" Lu Liang said, gesturing toward the spacious living room.

"Isn’t this a bit fast?" Li Manli asked, her eyes widening as her thoughts ran wild, unsure whether to be thrilled or overwhelmed.

Before she could speak further, Lu Liang tapped her forehead. "What are you thinking? Don’t we need a housekeeper?"

The 434-square-meter apartment, with four bedrooms and two living rooms, often felt cold and empty.

A few days ago, when Zhang Qian had stayed over for a few days, Lu Liang realized how inconvenient living alone was—he couldn’t even figure out what to eat.

He had long considered hiring a housekeeper who could, in turn, hire a cook to handle everyday chores.

Li Manli’s arrival was timely.

She had graduated last June, worked in a factory for six months, and then spent two and a half months at Wanli Palace.

With a high school diploma and having failed her university entrance exams, she was unqualified for office work.

Lu Liang didn’t want to blur personal and professional lines, even if Tianxing Investments was just a shell company for now.

After much thought, he felt the housekeeper role was the most suitable for Li Manli.

"A housekeeper?!" Li Manli pouted. She had assumed Lu Liang wanted her as the mistress of the house.

She hesitated because, in her mind, housekeepers were typically middle-aged and older.

Lu Liang laughed. "Who says a housekeeper can’t be young and beautiful? Haven’t you seen movies from Japan? All the housekeepers are gorgeous!"

Li Manli tilted her head, distracted by the change of topic. "The movies you watch… are they appropriate?"

"Sister, the question is, are you appropriate?"

Lu Liang cupped Li Manli’s chin and, drawn by her soft, pink lips, couldn’t resist leaning in for a kiss.

Li Manli squinted and wrapped her fair arms around his neck, responding in kind.

The setting sun cast orange hues across the living room, and as their clothing gradually lessened, the golden light painted Li Manli’s bare back.

Beads of sweat formed and glistened, enhancing the glow as time passed.

Suddenly, an ill-timed ringtone broke the atmosphere.

"Your… phone…" Li Manli murmured, her voice breathy and fragmented.

Lu Liang, breathing heavily, glanced at the screen. Seeing no caller ID, he ignored it.

The phone rang for 40 seconds, then stopped, only to ring again every five minutes.

By the third attempt, Lu Liang sighed, grabbed the blanket from the floor, and draped it over Li Manli and his lower half.

He finally picked up the phone, noticing the number looked familiar but couldn’t place it. Without thinking much, he called back.

A furious female voice immediately erupted from the other end. "When did you sell the house?!"

"Do I need to report that to you?" Lu Liang’s tone grew cold.

He recognized the voice—it was Lin Wenjing, his ex-wife.

"You changed your number, sold the house, quit your job. What exactly are you up to?" Lin Wenjing fumed.

After her initial calls to Lu Liang’s old number failed, she had visited his house and former workplace, only to meet closed doors.

At the house, a new owner answered. At his old job, her polite inquiries were met with hostility when she mentioned his name.

One young clerk finally told her that Lu Liang had resigned months ago, not before giving his boss an earful, leaving a bitter impression.

"I don’t see how it concerns you," Lu Liang replied icily.

"And my belongings?" Lin Wenjing demanded.

"I called you back then, and you said you didn’t want them. So, I threw everything out," he said with a smirk, calmly stroking Li Manli’s chin as if teasing a cat.

Li Manli, holding her breath, eavesdropped on the conversation, quickly deducing that the caller was Lu Liang’s ex-wife.

Her mischievous smile bloomed as she suddenly cooed in a syrupy, exaggerated tone, "Oh, geez, brother~ you’re so naughty, getting it all over my face…"

Lu Liang was stunned. On the other end, Lin Wenjing clearly heard the remark.

Through the phone, he could practically feel her seething rage.

"You’re something else, Lu Liang!" she spat before hanging up abruptly.

Lu Liang sighed. He thought back to a few months ago when he had heard a man’s voice during a call with Lin Wenjing.

Now the tables had turned. It should’ve felt gratifying, but instead, he felt a strange melancholy.

After all, when they had first married, he had genuinely believed in taking care of her for a lifetime. Now they were enemies.

"Brother Liang, I’m sorry. I messed up," Li Manli said, tugging at her earlobe in a pleading gesture.

From the conversation, she could tell their relationship was already poor. She had only wanted to help but seemed to have made things worse.

Lu Liang kept a stern face. "Your mistake was smearing my reputation. It was on your back, not your face."

Li Manli froze, then let out a soft "Oh…"

Realizing he wasn’t actually blaming her, she bit her lip, her cheeks flushing. "Should we… try again?"