Trillionaire's Slice of Life

The time was 10:05 AM.

The sunlight overhead already carried a scorching heat.

Even though the path was still lined with splendid blooms and surrounded by shady green trees, the mood of the group of four had shifted from relaxed anticipation to a certain solemnity and silence.

The noisy magpies that had been chattering incessantly in the branches had flown away, and the colorful koi in the pond below the rockery had sunk to the bottom, out of sight.

The man named Wu Chao, wearing black-framed glasses, eventually lost his patience and said with a barely concealed annoyance,

"Mr. Wang, what exactly does that Chu junior mean? He neither discussed the contract with us nor haggled over the price.

The documents we spent two days preparing... he glanced at them for all of two seconds, at most... Does he just have no intention of investing and is deliberately toying with us?"

As the bespectacled man finished speaking, the silence among the four was broken, and at that moment, as they were respectfully seen off by a maid, they stepped out of the vast courtyard. It was then that their mentor, Wang Jianwei, took a deep breath and spoke softly,

"Not necessarily..." After a pause, the middle-aged man continued,

"Look at the surroundings here. You should have some idea of the status of the people who live in such a place. And that Chu Mo…

Just the number of maids we saw amounts to eight, not to mention the seven bodyguards in the living room, plus at least another four or five on alert around the yard. Such a person is not likely to go back on his word.

Moreover, this matter is backed by Sun Shangwu of Fuli Industry. Sun Shangwu is a distinguished alumnus of Fudan University who often gives lectures at our school. You should have heard of his reputation.

As for today's events, all we need to do is report the truth, and the rest will be handled by Dean Lu."

As Wang Jianwei finished speaking, a Bentley slowly drove out of Villa No. 1. As the multimillion-dollar luxury car passed by them, Li Tingting, who had been silent, suddenly said,

"Mr. Wang, I just remembered that I left my phone on the villa's sofa. You guys go ahead; I'll just retrieve my phone and head straight back to the university."

"Junior sister Li, let me accompany you to get it. It's better to have someone with you for company."

Wu Chao, the man with the black-framed glasses, spoke eagerly, but Li Tingting immediately refused, earnest,

"There's no need. Mr. Chu's place isn't some dragon's den or tiger's lair; I'm just fetching a phone, I'll be right back."

The glasses-wearing student wanted to say more, but mentor Wang Jianwei suddenly nodded,

"Then let's do that. Tingting, just be mindful of how you handle things here; it's not the same as the school."

Leaving those words behind, the middle-aged man led the two students away. Meanwhile, Li Tingting took a deep breath and turned towards the villa entrance.

When the Bentley had passed by earlier, Li Tingting clearly saw the middle-aged man sitting in the back of the car, holding the signing documents.

So, that man called Chu Mo hadn't even looked at the contract and the materials; instead, he had someone take the documents away, hadn't he?

Among the group, the leading mentor and the two senior students were just assistants invited by Dean Lu; their only responsibility was to sign the contract. Whether the deal succeeded or not, it didn't greatly concern them.

But as Dean Lu's direct disciple and someone who had been involved in the entire research process from the start, Li Tingting was one of the direct beneficiaries of this project.

If they couldn't secure the funding, the project could very well be shelved, and the three years of hard work she, her teacher, and several assistants had put in would go down the drain.

On the other hand, if they managed to secure the funds and the project proceeded smoothly, success in the research would mean reaping the rewards. It would be a significant achievement in her life.

Li Tingting was not willing to give up just like that.

Arriving at the entrance to the villa, she explained her purpose to the bodyguard who had been standing watch. Because she had been there before, he didn't give her trouble and quickly let her in.

Guided by the bodyguard to the villa's hall, a maid immediately came forward to greet her.

"Miss Li, I'm terribly sorry, but we've searched the entire hall and couldn't find your phone. Are you sure you didn't leave it somewhere else?"

With undisturbed calm in her eyes, Li Tingting softly replied,

"May I look for it myself?"

The maid before her hesitated for a moment, but immediately nodded and, while stepping aside, made a casual gesture with her hand.

Li Tingting, with an unhurried pace, casually glanced around the living room, spun around the sofa she had once sat upon, then suddenly her eyes lit up. While bending slightly, she picked up a mobile phone from the maid's blind spot and smiled,

"Here it is, it was under the cushion, sorry for the trouble."

The maid blinked in slight confusion, having already searched the sofa thoroughly, her eyes flashed with realization, and then she bent down to say,

"I'm sorry, it was our oversight… Mr. Chu is in the kitchen, would you like me to inform him?"

With the phone in hand, Li Tingting turned her gaze toward the kitchen across the hallway, from where a faint aroma wafted constantly.

Li Tingting, gesturing a no-thank-you to the maid, headed straight for the kitchen, while saying with a hint of gratitude,

"No need, I'll go myself, thank you."

Tall and poised, Li Tingting strolled to the kitchen door, where she immediately spotted a young man washing ingredients by the sink.

The tall youth washed potatoes with dexterous hands before skillfully peeling them, and when Li Tingting saw him cutting the potatoes into strands with a diamond-encrusted knife at an impressive speed, she knew that this young man, worth billions, truly enjoyed cooking.

His knife skills were exceptional; the potato strands he cut were of equal size, almost identical to each other.

Such knife skills couldn't be achieved without years of practice, could they?

At least Li Tingting, whose hands never touched spring water, could only envy him.

There she watched him continuously process various ingredients, occasionally flipping a spoon under the chef's instruction, his entire demeanor one of seriousness and focus.

It wasn't until their gazes met after a while that the obviously startled young man just nodded slightly at her, then once again concentrated on the ingredients before him.

Which is to say, in his heart, she was less important than the meal before him, huh?

Reaching such a conclusion, a hint of an unusual light flickered through Li Tingting's originally serene eyes.

Having been busy from ten in the morning until half-past twelve, when the full eighteen dishes were complete, the young man who had just rinsed his hands in the sink finally left the kitchen, all smiles as he said,

"Sorry for the wait, if you don't mind, let's have lunch together."

After standing for two and a half hours, Li Tingting responded crisply,

"I'll trouble you then, Senior Chu."

Following him to the dining room, as the maids laid out the beautifully prepared dishes on the table, Li Tingting, who just sat down without having time to marvel at the wealthy's luxury, saw the youth at the head of the table looking at her with full anticipation,

"I cooked most of these dishes, try them and see how they taste?"

Li Tingting, taken aback, gazed distinctly at the youth before her, whose worth was in the billions.

In that moment, Li Tingting could clearly see a tinge of caution and expectation in his eyes.

As if no one had ever shared good food with him before, and having her there to taste his cooking was already an extraordinary luxury for him.

Without hesitation, Li Tingting elegantly picked up the chopsticks in front of her and, amid the nervousness of the young man beside her, gently picked up a piece of vegetable and placed it in her mouth, tasting delightfully fresh.

"It's very tasty."

As Li Tingting conveyed her thoughts, the young man who let out a sigh of relief seemed much relieved, and even his eyes brightened.

Was he really this happy to be acknowledged?

What an odd person.

At that moment, Li Tingting had already made her assessment of the young man in her heart.