562. Grassland
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When Lin Nan woke up, she felt a familiar sensation.
Her aunt was never punctual, but when it came to medical examinations, she was annoyingly on time—probably because of magic complications.
But why was there pain again?
It wasn’t severe, just a dull ache in her lower abdomen that didn’t interfere with life much, but it made her feel overall miserable.
It was like catching a mild cold; you wouldn’t see it on the outside, and medication wasn’t necessary, but the fatigue was downright unpleasant.
“Clearly, I haven’t had cola these past two days,” Lin Nan mumbled, expertly grabbing a heat pad from her bedside table, plugging it in before gazing moodily at the ceiling.
What was I thinking about last night? Saving up to buy my mom a house?
The sky outside was still dim, likely just past five in the morning.
Beside her, Chen Yao had probably stayed up late last night, snoring like a chainsaw, making Lin Nan suspect that she’d been awakened by those booming snores.
While Chen Yao usually snoozed away into a snorefest when tired, Lin Nan often went to bed early and wasn’t affected.
However, given the current situation, a cozy return to sleep seemed impossible.
With nothing to do, Lin Nan felt relieved that Chen Yao had recently bought the new game, Monster Hunter, which gave her an outlet to k*ll time.
After washing her face and holding her mildly aching stomach, she sat in front of her computer, booted the game, created a new save file, and after five minutes of cutscene, she promptly quit the game.
What a terrible game, and I can’t even fast-forward through cutscenes!
Her aunt’s pain had drained most of Lin Nan’s patience. After grappling with half of a cutscene, she forcefully exited the game, glaring at the still-snoozing Chen Yao, cursing under her breath.
She could have caught some more sleep if it weren’t for Chen Yao’s thunderous snores.
After freshening up, Lin Nan still had puffy eyes and a foggy head, mindlessly clicking on random videos, and before she knew it, it was already eight in the morning—time to head to school.
It seemed that, after Chen Yao had spent the last few days gaming late into the night, it was Lin Nan’s turn to wake her up, despite Chen’s usual early bird status.
After some idle procrastination, they stumbled into class by eight-thirty, ten minutes late, but luckily, the teacher followed closely behind them and was also late.
Tu Junhui and Xiong Da still hadn’t made it to class. The two just plopped down in a random spot, and Lin Nan laid her head down on the desk.
After a three-day break, many students were still in vacation mode, even as the teacher stood on stage ready to take attendance. The students below continued to chatter and play around, quite the scene.
Having been late by ten minutes and with only half the class present, the rest might still be in the dorms catching up on sleep, or perhaps still at their old homes.
With so much happening over the past three days, Lin Nan found it hard to adjust to the chaotic classroom once more.
Resting her head on the desk and cradling the heat pad, she blankly stared at the teacher who was calling names, her mind still mulling over what kind of gift to buy for Chen Yao.
Or maybe make one myself?
As they approached the end of the semester, Lin Nan realized that this time last semester, she had just transitioned into being female, and now, she was fully accustomed to the female lifestyle and mentality.
Should she be grateful that Lilith’s memories affected her mindset?
No, this was all Lilith’s fault!
Without that troublemaker, she wouldn’t have been turned into a girl!
Turning her head, she glanced back at Lilith and Li Na in the last row, with Lilith happily holding a cola.
Lilith caught her gaze and flashed a toothy grin.
Today was a big class, so Lilith was in the same class as Lin Nan.
But that grin had a rather provocative vibe to it.
Maybe it was just the pain that was putting Lin Nan in a grumpy mood, but seeing Lilith’s smirk made her feel uncomfortable, so she shot her a glare and grumbled internally.
But it seemed like Lilith really had reconciled with Li Na.
She wasn’t sure if they were in a romantic or just a close friendship. In the past, she often saw Lilith sneak attacking Li Na with her textbooks, but recently, Lin Nan had frequently spotted them giggling and whispering sweet nothings to each other.
Perhaps Lilith truly had her radical views changed by Li Na.
Or maybe she was just being submissive for the time being.
Lin Nan didn’t feel like overthinking it since it didn’t concern her anyway.
By the time attendance was concluded, Tu Junhui and Xiong Da finally arrived, strolling in fashionably late.
In the last few days apart, Tu Junhui had noticeably gotten a bit darker, and Xiong Da had a serious “I’ve seen things” face—whatever that meant.
Before Lin Nan could inquire, Tu Junhui opened his big mouth and spilled the beans about Xiong Da: “Xiong Da’s really down on his luck—he got himself a girlfriend, and just three days after the Dragon Boat Festival, he got dumped!”
What the heck? Major gossip alert!
Tu Junhui couldn’t help but laugh as he recounted, “Last night on his way back, he just so happened to see his girlfriend getting out of a car with someone else.”
Lin Nan gaped at him in disbelief.
Xiong Da smacked Tu Junhui on the head and hunched down, not refuting it.
That’s brutal! The last time he almost got dragged into a pyramid scheme during an online romance, and now he’s getting cheated on in an actual relationship?
She leaned over, glancing past Tu Junhui to Xiong Da, who had red-rimmed eyes but still maintained a poker face, trying to hold it together.
After getting smacked, Tu Junhui was a little more subdued and responded with faux indignation, “I asked some friends about that girl’s situation! She’s such a gold digger! She was only interested in Xiong Da’s money!”
“How much did Xiong Da spend on her?” Chen Yao, who had been paying attention, turned and asked.
“Probably tens of thousands…” Xiong Da replied dejectedly.
They’d barely been together a month, right?
“Revenge! We must have revenge!” Tu Junhui was practically bouncing in his seat, “Not only did she break Xiong Da’s heart, but she drained his wallet too! It’s downright criminal! If we don’t get our revenge, how are we supposed to keep our dignity in the dorm?”
“Seriously?” Lin Nan was utterly uninterested, laying her head down. “Xiong Da hasn’t even said much yet. Why are you so happy?”
“Can’t I be happy? Finally, I’m not the only one single in the dorm!”
What kind of sadistic glee was that? Can’t Xiong Da just cut ties with him?
Lin Nan shot a weird glance at Xiong Da, and he explained, “Whatever, it’s all in the past. Yesterday, Tu Tu even kept me company drinking all night…”
No wonder they were late to class.
But wasn’t this guy supposed to be allergic to alcohol when they first met in freshman year? Yet, he was somehow missing from every drinking session in the dorm.
Now he could drink?
“No way! She cheated because she thinks other guys have more money! We must get back at her!” Tu Junhui ranted, looking like he was ready for a soap opera showdown.
Xiong Da lay listlessly on the desk, ignoring him, which made Lin Nan and Chen Yao return to their own business—none of them paying Tu Junhui any mind.
“Seriously, you guys can stomach this? Getting cheated on? Goodness, Xiong Da, your head is practically a vast grassland!”
