008. Punishment
“Zhang Shaoqing!”
I have to say, when Ning Chu’s clear, innocent voice shouted, it completely lacked any real intimidation; those big, watery eyes, even when glaring in anger, looked more like a cute pouting doll.
What a waste of not being a girl.
Seeing that pitifully angry look, Zhang Shaoqing felt a twinge of guilt deep down and awkwardly glanced at the mobile phone on the floor, now a sad green screen. But he still stubbornly said, “Just get it fixed… Why are you so angry over a little thing?”
“I don’t have any money! Do you think it would k*ll you to come in quietly?”
Ning Chu shot him another glare before bending down with great sorrow to pick up the phone. Most of the screen was green, the touchscreen completely unresponsive—clearly, the display was shattered beyond repair.
Well, what’s done is done; Ning Chu could only let out a deep sigh.
“Don’t worry, I’ll pay to fix it for you.” Zhang Shaoqing crossed his arms, leaning casually against the wardrobe door.
“Then what am I supposed to use these days…?”
He furrowed his brow, reached into his pocket, and slapped his own mobile phone down on Ning Chu’s desk, “Use mine!”
“Ah?”
“What ‘ah’! Just don’t delete my stuff, okay? My watch can call, so it’s fine.” Zhang Shaoqing frowned, grabbed the broken phone, stuffed it into his pocket, and continued, “We’ll get it fixed tonight; for now, use my phone.”
“Fine then…”
Zhang Shaoqing’s way of handling this left Ning Chu with no room to argue.
Look at that blonde hair, always acting like a carefree delinquent; when it came time to take responsibility, he actually acted quite manly.
A small conflict had brought a bit of awkwardness between them, and while Ning Chu was stony-faced and expressionless, he opened a mini-game on his phone. But not two minutes in, Zhang Shaoqing couldn’t resist coming back over, grinning like a Cheshire cat.
“Ning Chu, Wen Yang agreed to break up with Ling Ling.”
“Oh.”
“Honestly, there are so many girls chasing him; he won’t mind losing one, especially after just a few days.”
“Mmm.”
Ning Chu’s cold responses were accompanied by an involuntary smile creeping to his lips.
Bye-bye, first chapter of the novel!
If we’re talking about a butterfly effect in the plot, this could even lead to subsequent events being altered.
That means the chances of him turning into a girl just got smaller!
Just when this thought crossed his mind, a sudden stabbing pain hit his lower belly, causing him to gasp sharply and instinctively curl up, hands clutching his abdomen.
“Ah~”
“What’s wrong?”
Zhang Shaoqing was taken by surprise, and Wang Jie, busy gaming, quickly got up and hurried over.
“It’s… nothing.”
Curled up in his chair, tears were pouring down Ning Chu’s face, his body shaking violently; he bit down on his lip, trying desperately to hold back any cries of pain.
“Let me check if there’s a painkiller; you should take one!”
“What’s going on? Acute gastroenteritis? Should we call an ambulance?”
The two roommates were acting like headless chickens; Wang Jie was ready to call for help while Zhang Shaoqing rummaged desperately through their dormitory for the medicine kit.
The wave of pain soon subsided, and a layer of cold sweat appeared on Ning Chu’s forehead as he weakly rested it on the desk, finally letting out a long sigh of relief.
That sudden pain made him realize the plot had gone haywire.
In his theory, today’s pain was punishment for altering the novel’s storyline.
The mild cramps that started this morning were a result of his interference with Wen Yang’s date last night, while the recent sharp pain was a punishment for Wen Yang breaking up with Ling Ling, completely wrecking the first act.
But this little pain couldn’t defeat him!
After resting for a few minutes, Ning Chu weakly lifted his head.
“I’m going to take a shower.” He looked back at Zhang Shaoqing, his eyes still glistening with unshed tears, “When my takeout arrives, could you get it for me?”
Seeing his pitiful, tear-streaked eyes, Zhang Shaoqing hesitated for a moment before awkwardly turning his head to avoid his gaze, “All better now?”
“It’s fine; it just hurt for a second.”
Noticing the lightness in Ning Chu’s tone and his lack of concern, Zhang Shaoqing wondered if this roommate had a bit of a masochistic streak.
“Don’t you want to go to the hospital?” Wang Jie interjected, concerned.
“No need!”
After being in so much pain moments ago, now Ning Chu seemed completely carefree and had no intentions of checking in at a hospital, even sounding pretty cheerful about it!
Zhang Shaoqing watched as Ning Chu strolled to the wardrobe, undressing from his military uniform jacket and slipping off his trousers, revealing the tight-fitting boxer shorts that hugged his rounded backside and those long, fair legs.
Even though this was a nightly routine, for some reason, Zhang Shaoqing felt a bit different this time.
That backside seemed perkier, rounded a bit more?
Thank goodness his orientation was alright; he had his eyes set on another girl already.
He quickly turned back to his desk but suddenly had another confusing thought.
Did Ning Chu have absolutely no leg hair?
Not because he wanted to check out a guy’s legs, just pure curiosity!
Zhang Shaoqing looked back again, only to find Ning Chu had already grabbed some fresh clothes and their eyes met.
“What are you looking at?”
“Hurry up; I need to shower too.”
Finding an excuse, Zhang Shaoqing’s gaze inadvertently fell to Ning Chu’s chest.
“Got it.”
Noticing where Zhang Shaoqing was looking, Ning Chu frowned and shot a glance at the two rather conspicuous red spots on his chest, subconsciously raising his arm to cover himself with the clothes in his arms.
Though it was perfectly normal for a guy to have some protrusion, he felt inexplicably guilty and worried about being mocked.
He changed into slippers and hurried toward the balcony.
“What’s his problem?” Once the sound of the bathroom door closing reached the balcony, Wang Jie curiously commented, “He wouldn’t really be suffering from what he ate last night, would he? So you’re the culprit?”
“Shut up! That’s none of my business!”
Zhang Shaoqing messily deflected the blame, “We’re all fine, and he’s the only one with stomach issues? If you told me he was about to give birth, I might just believe you!”
“Giving birth, really?”
At that moment, the dormitory door swung open, and Wen Yang walked in, looking bewildered at the ruckus in front of him, “What’s going on? Why is it so lively?”
Meanwhile, in the bathroom, Ning Chu was humming a tuneless little ditty under the shower, eyes closed and head tilted back, reveling in the warm water healing his woes.
After he completely wrecked the story’s original plot, the unknown punishment hit him out of nowhere.
Perhaps this situation was something that those who had brought him here—who did not wish to be seen—would rather not witness.
“If I keep messing up the plot like this, I won’t need to be a girl anymore~”
No more suffering!
Living as a man in a place filled with beauties and opportunities—having a stable life, getting married, and starting a family doesn’t sound bad at all!
“Phase one: success!”
Squirting some shower gel into his hands, Ning Chu suddenly paused.
“Hmm… why does it feel like I’ve grown two extra soft mounds on my chest?”
