Soon, we arrived at his house—a house with some years on it.

I was a little nervous, straightened my clothes, and checked that my makeup was elegant and appropriate.

I’d put a lot of thought into the gifts, choosing things his parents would like.

I took a nervous deep breath, waiting for the elevator to open.

When the elevator doors slid open, he knocked on his door, and my heart raced even faster.

After a moment, his mother came to open the door.

She was wearing glasses, and didn’t show much expression when she saw us: "Come in."

I smiled and greeted her: "Hello, Auntie!"

His mother nodded, didn’t say anything else, and went back to the living room.

I felt awkward—my smile froze on my face, but she was already walking away.

I forced a faint smile.

Lu Hao, however, seemed right at home. He walked in, put down the things, changed his shoes, and went into the living room, asking as he walked: "Mom! Where’s Dad!"

"Your dad’s friend asked him for something. It’s Uncle Zhao—his daughter just came back from studying abroad and recently got admitted as a civil servant, at your unit," his mother said.

She seemed to be in a good mood talking about this, chatting more and in a friendlier tone.

I listened to Lu Hao and his mother talking in the living room, but couldn’t get a word in to ask Lu Hao to get me a pair of slippers. So I had to take off my shoes and step barefoot on the floor.

Lu Hao finally remembered me. Seeing me still standing at the door, he called out loudly: "Come in!"

I saw his mother glance up at me from the sofa, arms crossed. Noticing I was barefoot, she said flatly: "There are slippers in the shoe cabinet next to you."

"Oh… okay."

I opened the cabinet and found a pair of slippers.

When I walked into the living room, I felt even more awkward—I didn’t know where to sit. Lu Hao and his mother were both on the sofa, so I sat gently on the edge.

Finally, Lu Hao was useful. He introduced me to his mother: "Mom! This is Gu Jia—you can call her Jiajia."

I stood up, bowed slightly to his mother, and said: "Hello, Auntie! It’s nice to meet you. I brought some things for you and Uncle."

His mother nodded and hummed: "Xiao Gu, sit down. We don’t lack these things at home."

I looked at the gifts I’d brought—they were nice!

They’d cost me 3,000 yuan!

Were they really that unimpressive?

"Xiao Gu, how old are you?" his mother asked. I quickly replied: "I’m 25, Auntie."

"Oh, so you’re a Tiger. Our Hao Hao is a Monkey—your zodiac signs don’t match very well!" She pushed up her glasses, frowned slightly, clearly dissatisfied with my zodiac sign.

I felt speechless!

Zodiac signs not matching?

I didn’t even mention that Lu Hao was 31, six years older than me!

And people of our generation didn’t really believe in zodiac compatibility.

So I didn’t know what to say, just replied perfunctorily: "Yes, Auntie."

"Xiao Gu, what do you do for work?"

I subconsciously glanced at Lu Hao. He signaled with his eyes for me to say I had a stable job, to get through it first.

I felt torn. If I told one lie, I’d have to tell more to cover it up.

And I really didn’t like lying!

I didn’t want to tell an even bigger lie.

Besides, coming to Lu Hao’s house today, I didn’t know if he hadn’t told his parents I was coming or what, but the whole vibe felt off.

In the end, I decided not to lie.

I’d just be myself!

With that thought, I wasn’t as nervous as before.

"Auntie, I’m a freelancer. I usually write novels and draw pictures," I said with a smile.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lu Hao staring at me in shock, wanting to say something but holding back because his mother was there.

But I ignored him!

This time, his mother didn’t say anything—she just frowned even deeper.

It seemed like this was more serious than the zodiac issue.

But since I’d made up my mind to be myself, it didn’t matter. Let her frown all she wanted.

Seeing Lu Hao glare at me, I glared back!

His mother kept her head down eating, then suddenly said: "Xiao Gu, our family is all in the civil service, and Hao Hao is even a civil servant. Logically, his monthly salary is enough for him, and he usually gives some to the family. But he hasn’t brought any money home for almost a year. Can you tell him to spend less? Making money isn’t easy."

If I couldn’t tell what she was implying, I’d be an idiot!

She thought her son was spending money on me.

I smiled and said: "Auntie, Lu Hao and I meet about once a week. We usually spend our own money. The economy is really tough right now, so I’ll talk to him and tell him to cut back."

I had no idea where Lu Hao’s money went.

It certainly wasn’t spent on me!

He was six years older than me. With his salary of only three to four thousand yuan a month, I even lent him money sometimes when I earned more.

But I never cared about that. If we really counted, I spent more on him than he did on me.

The most expensive gift he’d given me was a 200-yuan AI portrait of us, while I’d given him wallets and ties worth thousands.

"Yes, the economy is bad. You probably don’t earn much right now either?" His mother’s tone sounded strange. She never looked at me while speaking, keeping her eyes on her bowl.

I thought about it. Writing novels was unstable, and the market had indeed been tough lately.

Even so, I still made around five to six thousand yuan a month.

But compared to my previous monthly income of over ten thousand yuan from manuscripts, it was indeed less.

I nodded. That was true!

His mother laughed softly: "You’re dating now. Our Hao Hao is no spring chicken—he’s 30. We hope he gets married soon, but marriage involves a house and kids. How can his salary alone be enough?"

"Besides, having a stable job means security for the future. At the very least, you won’t have to rely on others!"

Lu Hao secretly winked at his mother, but she glared at him to stop.

I thought about her words carefully. Although they were blunt, they made sense!

Even though I earned more than Lu Hao now, my job was unstable. Having security for the future would be good.

I already paid several thousand yuan a month for social security. Having a unit pay for five insurances and one fund would be great.

That thought took root in my mind.

The meal ended quickly. After eating, Lu Hao leaned close to my ear and whispered: "Be smart later—wash the dishes."

I glared at him: "Why don’t you wash them!"

"It’s your first time here. You should make a good impression!"

His mother finished eating and went back to the living room to watch TV, showing no intention of cleaning up.

I looked at the dishes and bowls in front of me, and at Lu Hao, who was going to cozy up to his mother.

At that moment, I realized this mama’s boy was hopeless—and his family was even worse!

I picked up my bag and walked to the door: "Auntie, I have something to do later, so I’ll head out now."

I didn’t wait for a response, changed my shoes, and opened the door. Lu Hao tried to chase after me, but I faintly heard his mother stop him.

I didn’t know what happened next.

But Lu Hao didn’t come after me!