367. Zhang Shaoqing Paradox
“Jie~ Wow!”
Heidou suddenly jumped in front of her, making an exaggerated ghost face.
“……”
Ning Chu looked at her expressionlessly, her heart as calm as a still lake.
Even though she wasn’t in the best mood, she wouldn’t take it out on Heidou, who was trying to cheer her up. Instead, she wore a face of despair, lacking any enthusiasm for anything.
Her thumb incessantly scrolled through TikTok videos, but not a single clip could hold her attention for more than two seconds. Her mind felt like a blender of scattered thoughts, all blended into a mushy mess.
“Jie?” Heidou leaned over the bed, head tilted, her cat ears drooping a bit.
“Just let me be quiet for a while.”
“Alright~”
Heidou had never seen Ning Chu like this, withdrawn and self-isolated, but she remembered her own phase right after transcending and becoming a girl. She had often been shy and reserved back then.
After a while, she had slowly developed a fondness for the male lead she was writing, gradually getting used to her female body, and her tendency to withdraw decreased over time.
The sound of a door opening filtered in from outside.
Heidou jolted and dashed out of the bedroom, “Jiefu! Jiefu!”
“What’s up?” Wen Yang, who came to scrounge a meal, was about to help wash the dishes to win over his future mother-in-law when he saw Heidou dash over, pulling at his hand toward the room.
He was utterly confused but quickly sensed something was off.
Normally, when Ning Chu heard the elevator door in the hallway, she would rush to greet him. Today, though, he hadn’t seen Ning Chu’s shadow even after entering the house.
Upon entering the bedroom, Wen Yang looked at the slender figure lying on the bed and immediately understood.
His smile was warm as he approached the bedside and asked, “Want to go out for a stroll?”
“Don’t feel like moving…”
“Then I’ll sit with you.”
Wen Yang sat at the head of the bed, holding Ning Chu’s hand, their fingers intertwined tightly.
Ning Chu struggled slightly but soon relaxed, turning her back to him and staring blankly at the wall.
Heidou, with her big doughy eyes, watched them in confusion, her little head packed with questions. Her ears twitched, and she eventually backed out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Ning Chu turned over and rested her head on Wen Yang’s thigh.
For some reason, when Wen Yang showed up, her sadness languidly began to lift.
It was as if a strange gentle power seeped into her heart, smoothing out her emotions.
With her other hand hugging Wen Yang’s arm, she muttered softly, “Wen Yang, don’t you think I’m a completely different person from when school started?”
“Not really?”
“It feels like I’ve become someone else entirely…”
Wen Yang chuckled, ruffling her hair, which lay on his lap: “Don’t think too much.”
“Mm.”
Ning Chu hesitated, her gaze flickering as she turned her head away, biting her lip, about to say something when suddenly she felt her phone lightly vibrate.
Confused, she picked up her phone. Normally, aside from Wen Yang, no one else would reach out to her.
“Who?”
“Message from Shao Qing.”
Ning Chu ran her fingers through her messy hair, clicked on the message, and then, with a jolt, instantly perked up, sitting straight up: “Holy smokes! Shao Qing’s here!”
“Ah?”
Wen Yang looked at her, puzzled.
“Maybe he had another fight with his family and ran away? He’s already here!”
“Another fight? Isn’t that normal?”
“No, no! There’s so much embarrassing stuff in the rental apartment!”
Just the thought of Shao Qing stumbling upon her underwear, toys, tail… really anything had Ning Chu fearing she’d never hold her head high in front of that guy again!
And if that guy stayed in the rental apartment…
Wen Yang paused, starting to feel panicked: “You go tidy up the rental, I’ll go pick him up?”
While they spoke, Zhang Shaoqing called Wen Yang, urging him to meet him at the train station.
“Isn’t he still chasing Qian Qian? How does he have time for this now~”
All the previous gloominess was tossed aside; what mattered now was the situation at hand.
And if she thought about it differently, everything now was for the return of her mother… which she could accept.
Without so much as a comb through her hair, Ning Chu hurriedly followed Wen Yang out.
“Where are you going?” Her mother was on the sofa helping Heidou with homework and looked up at her anxious daughter.
“A friend is coming over to play.”
“A friend visiting during New Year?”
“God knows what that guy is thinking.”
“Come back early.”
Ning Chu answered as she closed the door, turning to Wen Yang, “You buy time, take him to eat something, and let me know when you’re close to coming back.”
“Sure.”
“I wonder if Shao Qing managed to win Qian Qian over or not…”
……
At the South Train Station, Zhang Shaoqing dragged his suitcase, staring blankly at this unfamiliar land.
He occasionally looked down to text Ning Chu and Wen Yang, sometimes regretting his impulsive decision to leave home.
“d*mn ridiculous!” he grumbled, shooting a glance at the temporarily frozen bank card, “Aren’t they afraid of me starving out here?”
In the cold wind, Zhang Shaoqing paced back and forth to warm himself, waiting a good half hour before finally spotting Wen Yang’s figure.
Excitedly, he pulled the suitcase over, looking curiously behind Wen Yang, asking, “Where’s Ning Chu? She didn’t come?”
“She’s got something going on.”
“That’s good! Just the two of us can have a nice meal! Let’s drink some wine!” He playfully slung his arm over Wen Yang’s shoulder, “Come on, that place has great food! It’s on me!”
“I still have to work this afternoon,” Wen Yang assessed Zhang Shaoqing, who looked just the same as he had two weeks ago, and asked, “What brought you here so suddenly? Another fight with your mom?”
“Don’t even get me started; just thinking about it annoys me!”
With a gloomy face, Zhang Shaoqing followed Wen Yang’s footsteps but could no longer hold back his rant: “Wait, don’t you think I’m feeling kinda strange?”
“Hmm?”
“It feels like I’m being stupid.”
Wen Yang looked perplexed, barely managing a smirk: “You don’t need to tell me that.”
He thought Zhang Shaoqing’s self-awareness was a tad late.
Zhang Shaoqing sighed with deep worry: “No, I mean… never mind, I’ll just catch a nap at your rental.”
“We should eat first.” Wen Yang tried to stall for time while curiously asking, “What’s going on with you and Qian Qian? Did you get her?”
“Mm, sort of.”
Wen Yang keenly noticed that Zhang Shaoqing’s eyes didn’t shine as brightly when he mentioned Qian Qian, lacking that excited spark he used to have.
That’s when it hit him—this time, Zhang Shaoqing likely wasn’t running away due to a fight at home; otherwise, he would’ve been cursing and complaining.
This probably had something to do with Qian Qian.
“Don’t tell me you got played?”
“Got played? When did I ever play someone?” Zhang Shaoqing retorted loudly, “I just made Qian Qian see her ex-boyfriend’s true colors. That’s a good deed!”
“Right, right, but what’s up with you?”
But soon, he mumbled feebly, “After I got her, I suddenly don’t like catgirls that much anymore…”
Wen Yang was stunned, “Sage mode?”
“Hell no! I haven’t even got to that!”
Zhang Shaoqing sighed deeply, “I just realized… I like girls who have high standards.”
“???”
“If she likes me, it means her standards are low, so I lose interest.”
“You’ve got issues.”
