House Dad's Literary Life

Chapter 458: The New Villa

Nearly ten days had passed since the media exposed the relationship between Mo Fei and Yang Yi, but the buzz showed no sign of dying down. The media were still persistent in digging up news about Yang Yi, or rather, Mu Li’ang, and tirelessly tried to fabricate a love story between the two of them from the songs Mu Li’ang had written for Mo Fei.

By now, none of this was anything unusual. However, Yang Yi’s Weibo account was also exposed because Mo Fei followed him. Moreover, almost all of the posts Yang Yi had made on Weibo were related to Xixi. Even though the photos would have the little girl’s face edited out, anyone with a discerning eye could tell that the long-legged little girl was Mo Fei’s and Yang Yi’s daughter.

The exposure of his Weibo account brought him many new followers, but it also gave the media a new angle to work with. Seeing that Yang Yi’s daily life revolved around nothing but his daughter and cats, the media couldn’t help praising him again, saying that Yang Yi was a rare domestic family man, the kind one might encounter only once in ten thousand years, and that Mo Fei had truly married the right man.

To be fair, Yang Yi didn’t like being praised like this. In his previous life, the media’s praise had always been poisonous flattery, and few celebrities had managed to escape it. He didn’t know whether the media in this life still had such powerful skills. But Yang Yi also tried his best to keep a low profile and refused media interviews, hoping to let this wave of attention pass.

“But we’re going to have to buy a new house. Lately, reporters have been showing up at our door to interview us,” Yang Yi discussed with Mo Fei. Mo Henian sat nearby watching television, but his ears had perked up.

“Do you want to move back to my place? Although no one has lived there for more than half a year, it should still be fine after we tidy it up,” Mo Fei asked.

“No need. We still have some spare money right now. I’ll ask Lan Zhoukai to help us find a villa in the villa community where his family lives. The security measures are excellent. Even if reporters find out where we live, they won’t be able to get in. It’s quiet and safe, and the environment and air are also very good,” Yang Yi explained.

“I’m a little reluctant to leave this place.” Mo Fei said, looking around with reluctance. “And the flowers we planted downstairs haven’t even bloomed yet!”

It wasn’t that the house itself was particularly good. In terms of its condition and furnishings, it was even inferior to Mo Fei’s house in the Binhai District. But this place carried too many beautiful memories for Mo Fei.

“It’s fine. We’re not abandoning this place either. For now, Huanhuan and Ding Xiang can live here, and we’ll keep the master bedroom for ourselves. If we ever feel like coming back to stay for a few days, we can,” Yang Yi wrapped his arm around Mo Fei and said softly, “Tomorrow, let’s go see the new villa together. I’m sure you’ll like it!”

“Ahem! Ahem!” Mo Henian knew there was nothing unusual about a married couple leaning against each other for a while. But Mo Fei was his daughter, after all, and seeing Yang Yi snuggling up to her made him unhappy. He deliberately gave two heavy coughs.

Yang Yi and Mo Fei hurriedly sat upright and moved apart.

……

The next day was Sunday, and Xixi didn’t have to go to school either, so Yang Yi drove the whole family, including Mo Henian, to look at the villa.

The villa was located at the foot of one of the mountains with the best feng shui in the Tingshan Mountain Range. It had both mountains and water nearby, with the lush Ninth Peak of Tingshan behind it and a stream running alongside. Lan Zhoukai’s real estate company had built a greenway along the route, where people could run, cycle, or take a walk after meals.

Hearing that Yang Yi’s whole family had come, Lan Zhoukai, the big boss, personally came over to receive them. He even sent away his own sales manager, rolled up his sleeves, and personally took over, explaining the villa to Yang Yi, Mo Fei, and Grandpa Mo.

“First of all, the villas here have a high level of security. I won’t even mention the security force we’ve built by hiring a large number of retired soldiers. The people who live in this villa community are either rich or influential. Having money alone isn’t enough to buy a villa here. You also have to pass an identity check. Only wealthy people with a certain level of status and standing are allowed to live here. So, you don’t need to worry about security or privacy.”

It was also because Lan Zhoukai and Yang Yi had a very good personal relationship, and Lan Zhoukai knew about the business identities Yang Yi kept hidden, that Yang Yi had a chance of buying a villa here. Otherwise, if he had only the identity of a celebrity’s husband, the villa community’s sales team would have politely turned him down.

The villas here were built somewhat like private residences in America. Their courtyards didn’t have tall walls. Instead, to suit Chinese preferences, they were surrounded by low evergreen shrubs. Even from outside, people could still see the lush green lawns within. This wasn’t a bad thing. The open view made the surroundings feel spacious and put people at ease.

“The lawn here is quite spacious. Of course, if you prefer, you can remove it and plant flowers instead,” Lan Zhoukai said with a smile. “The property management staff will come by periodically to trim the shrubs used as the fence, but everything inside the fence is your private space. You’ll have to maintain it yourselves or hire someone to do it.”

The space was truly large. Yang Yi estimated that the courtyard alone was nearly 100 square meters, of which more than 60 square meters was greenery. The rest consisted of the driveway and the parking space by the entrance.

The villa hadn’t been handed over to Yang Yi yet, so someone was still maintaining the lawn. It had been trimmed as neatly as a soccer field. Xixi and Lan Xin were already happily holding hands and running back and forth across it, stepping on the soft grass and having a great time.

Seeing that Yang Yi was paying attention to the parking area, Lan Zhoukai explained, “This is only a temporary parking area. If you don’t park here, you can also use the space for the children to play, like setting up a simple basketball hoop. But I think both your child and mine are girls, so they probably won’t play basketball, right?”

As he spoke, Lan Zhoukai laughed. He continued, “There’s also an underground garage in the backyard. I’ll take you all to have a look in a moment.”

“Xixi, Xin’er, come here. We’re going inside to have a look!” Yang Yi called.

“Coming!” Xixi answered happily. The two little girls held hands and came running over, hopping and skipping, full of energy.

While they were still changing their shoes before entering the already-furnished villa, Xixi couldn’t help asking her father, “Papa, Papa, are we going to live here?”

“What? You don’t like it?” Yang Yi asked. His daughter’s opinion was equally important.

“No, I super like it! Xin’er said, Xin’er said her family lives here too. So does that mean I can go to her house to play in the future?” the little girl asked excitedly.

Yang Yi laughed. “Of course. You can also invite Xin’er over to our house.”

“Ah! That’s great! Xin’er, do you want to come to my house?” The two little girls excitedly shouted and jumped around.

The villa had a very modern design. It was a three-story building, not particularly large, but each floor had been designed very cleverly. The white and coffee-colored exterior also gave it a simple and elegant appearance. Mo Henian, who had once been an architectural designer, looked around and showed an approving expression as well.

The first floor mainly consisted of the living room, dining room, kitchen, and other functional areas. The second and third floors contained five large bedrooms and a large study. The second floor also had a large terrace with a glass railing. Small barbecue gatherings or private parties could be held there. Of course, on a clear summer night, laying a bed out here and looking at the stars would also be a very romantic thing to do.

Directly below the terrace was the parking area Lan Zhoukai had mentioned earlier. On the side of the villa, there was also a small swimming pool, a really small one. With Yang Yi’s build, he could reach the other end of the pool after kicking his legs twice.

Even so, a villa with a private swimming pool was already quite good, and a pool like this was especially suitable for children.

After looking over the villa as a whole, the adults were much calmer than the excited children.

Mo Henian only thought that the villa’s exterior and structural design were quite good. To him, this kind of small villa wasn’t anything particularly impressive. It still couldn’t compare with the super-luxurious mansion Old Mo had designed for himself on his farm in America.

But Mo Fei liked it very much. She felt that a house like this had a strong sense of everyday life.

“I don’t like houses that are too big. This size is just about right. If it’s too big, it feels too empty and not cozy,” Mo Fei said to Yang Yi.

“Mm. No matter where we live, the most important thing is that we can be together!” Yang Yi held Mo Fei’s hand and said softly.