125. Liu Xuefei’s Doubts
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“So, why is it that after just a few weeks, you’ve become… so much prettier?”
At the school gate, Wu Guodong’s car had already driven off, and Liu Xuefei couldn’t help but lean in to get a closer look at Lin Nan. She even reached out and poked Lin Nan’s cheek, still utterly baffled and exclaiming, “But you’re not wearing any makeup!”
Lin Nan wasn’t keen on being so close to anyone and took a couple of steps back, brushing it off with, “Must be natural beauty, right?”
“You don’t even need makeup now! Just throw on a wig and a dress, and no one would mistake you for a boy!” she gasped. “Last time you dressed as a girl, I was jealous of your legs, and now your face is making me jealous too!”
Lin Nan took another two steps back, clearly embarrassed, and muttered, “I’m not that pretty… way off from those celebrities.”
True enough, Lin Nan was still a guy at the core. Even with Lilith’s enhancements, he wouldn’t be snagging any ‘Goddess of Beauty’ awards. At most, he was a cute, fresh-faced little beauty with just a hint of flirtation.
“You really aim high, wanting to compare yourself to celebrities…” Liu Xuefei sighed dramatically. “Besides, the women who are older than twenty? They’re all just riding the makeup train to success, you know? Those actresses in dramas look flawless, but in reality? They’re skin and bones!”
Is that so?
Lin Nan always thought that stars must be goddesses even without makeup.
But…
“Aren’t you a little too close to me right now?” Lin Nan said, leaning back slightly, his face starting to turn pink. “People are watching us…”
But there was nowhere else to retreat to — behind him were the low flowerbeds just outside the school walls.
“Who cares about them!” Liu Xuefei, full of excitement, took a step back and clicked her tongue at Lin Nan. “If you were a girl, you’d have a line of admirers stretching for miles!”
You might not care, but I really do…
The sidewalk at the school gate wasn’t wide, and as students passed by, their comments slipped into Lin Nan’s ears without a filter.
“Is that the guy who dresses up as a girl on forums?”
“He actually likes girls, huh…”
“What’s his name again? Nan Nan, right?”
Even though there was no outright bullying in their comments, just being the center of attention was hard for Lin Nan to handle.
Having grown up feeling unappreciated by her family, Liu Xuefei was observant and quickly noticed Lin Nan’s slight shift and the anxiety etched on his face.
“Let’s walk and talk over there, okay?”
Lin Nan weakly replied, “What’s there to talk about…?”
“Obviously about your skincare routine that keeps your skin looking so good! How do you maintain your figure? What nutritious goodies are you munching on to get prettier?”
I don’t even wanna know what’s going on in your head.
“And by the way!” she suddenly lowered her voice, leaning in close, “Why does your chest seem bigger than mine, being a guy and all?”
“…”
Lin Nan couldn’t even begin to explain that one. Sure, he could’ve brushed it off as being out of shape in the past, but now that his chest had started to take shape and definitely wasn’t sagging like Tu Junhui’s, Liu Xuefei, as a girl, could tell.
He thought discussing this was downright embarrassing and was ready to bolt when Liu Xuefei chased after him, firing off questions, “Did you have some kind of awakening after dressing up last time and bought yourself some fake ones?”
“Or maybe you’re really a girl? Just hiding your identity for various reasons?”
“It can’t be all those junk foods you eat, can it?”
Without missing a beat, Lin Nan admitted, “Yes! I love burgers and soy products!”
Rumor had it that eating too much fried food could enlarge the chest, and soy products had similar claims. Although he didn’t quite understand the science, he’d seen news articles before.
Yet Liu Xuefei wasn’t buying it, her skeptical gaze focused on him. With his head down, Lin Nan hurried toward the dorm building.
Normally, it was just a ten-minute jaunt from the school gate to the dorm, but under Liu Xuefei’s watchful eye, the journey felt like a torturous march.
Finally, stepping through the dorm’s entrance, Lin Nan thought he could catch his breath, only to spot the dorm supervisor sitting on a wooden bench, smoking and giving him a suspicious once-over.
This supervisor still thought Lin Nan was a girl but couldn’t quite catch him doing anything wrong.
Lin Nan awkwardly nodded at the old man before rushing upstairs.
Once back in his room, Lin Nan finally sighed in relief — only to look up and see Tu Junhui hastily pulling on a short-sleeved shirt.
What’s this guy doing? It’s just his bare skin — why’s he hiding from me? Like I’ve never seen a pile of fat before!
Then he glanced at Chen Yao, who quickly shut down a media player on his computer, and Xiong Da, who returned to his seat with a casual expression that screamed “I’m not hiding anything.”
Something felt off — it was like his roommates were keeping some secret from him.
Lin Nan wasn’t fond of that feeling when anything was being kept hidden, but before he could ask, Chen Yao greeted him with a grin, “Nan Nan, why are you back so early?”
“What? You don’t want me back?”
“Not at all.”
The sudden distraction made Lin Nan forget his previous thoughts. He returned to his wardrobe and hung up some clothes that had been washed at his uncle’s place but were still drying.
After organizing everything, Lin Nan stretched and yawned, ready to take a nap.
“Tu Tu, I’m napping! Don’t disturb me for the next two hours.”
Tu Junhui gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up but suddenly noticed Lin Nan’s shoes. “Whoa! Nan Nan’s wearing girl’s shoes now?”
“They’re boys’ shoes!” Lin Nan insisted. “They’re unisex! Not girl’s shoes!”
“You sure about that? At this rate, you might as well get used to wearing dresses too,” Tu Junhui teased. “With those tiny feet, where are you going to find guys’ shoes? Don’t tell me you’re getting kids’ shoes?”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Lin Nan surprisingly didn’t retort, going uncharacteristically quiet instead.
He felt a bit lost. Not sure which of Tu Junhui’s comments hit him in the feels, he quickly scrambled to apologize. “My bad! My bad! Now go sleep, we need to practice our skills for the five-player matches – the finals are on Tuesday, and there’s a thousand bucks on the line!”
Sure enough, whenever money was brought up in relation to Lin Nan, anything could be resolved. His expression brightened immediately, nodding vigorously. “We must win that championship! Anyone who slows me down better watch out – I might just turn into a villain at night!”
“Cheers to the big boss,” Chen Yao chimed in, sliding a cup of milk tea over, “Xiong Da accidentally ordered an extra one.”
“Hmph! This little favor doesn’t come close to compensating for my championship! Now hustle and go practice your solo skills while I take a nap!”
Lin Nan tilted his head back, climbed onto the bed with his milk tea, and, fearful of spilling it, placed it on Chen Yao’s bed.
Now, even if it spilled, it’d be Chen Yao’s problem, not his.
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Thanks to the generous 50,000 fire coins from Longhe, and a massive 10,000 from Fengyu Wangxiang. Current count: 0/98.
No need to tip if no extra chapters pop up; we’re almost at the hundred mark…
