I, Qing Huan (Modern Chapter) 15

Chapter 15

　　”Choo–“

　　Qi Yi sneezed.

　　”What’s wrong with you? Got a cold?” Zhu Qing Huan, who was sitting next to her, asked.

　　”No,” Qi Yi sniffed vigorously. “No snot.”

　　Before saying a few words, their voices were quickly overwhelmed by the howling KTV ghosts.

　　Holding the microphones is Zhu Qing Huan and Qi Yi’s college classmate, Liao Zifeng. This man is tall and handsome, three words were enough to sum him up.

　　Today was a gathering of several classmates from their university to have a good time. Zhu Qing Huan was about to join the group and they took advantage of her to make an appointment before joining the group. Zhu Qing Huan was an Arts Department Officer for the Student Union in the university. The others here were her colleagues. They’ve participated in many school activities together back then. The biggest event they did in the four years was when they set up a 100-square-meter stage on the campus in three days and invited ANT, who was not as popular at the time, to perform at the university. Although they weren’t as famous, the band still consisted of celebrities, attracting many people to come to the concert. Many of those people were idlers and not related to the school in any way. Their student IDs allowed them to bring friends, so many students sold their guest spots like scalpers.

　　After graduation, everyone developed independently and blossomed. Although Zhu Qing Huan became a top-notch celebrity flower in one fell swoop, it did not affect the friendship between them, especially Qi Yi. Qi Yi was attracted by Zhu Qing Huan’s face. When she was freshman, she wanted to come and confess secretly, but she completely gave up the idea after spending two days with Zhu Qing Huan. Zhu Qing Huan was just a hedgehog wrapped in cotton. She looked soft and gentle, but she was actually very defensive and would never show her heart to others. Qi Yi didn’t have the confidence to spend so much time and energy to warm such a piece of ice.

　　”Xiao Yi, take medicine if you have a cold!” Lin Xin shouted with a smile on the other side of the sofa.

　　”I don’t have a cold!” Qi Yi called back.

　　They were only two meters apart, but they could barely hear each other.

　　”Zifeng, how about you stop singing for a bit!” Zhu Qing Huan had to roar these words to be heard. Several of their faces were a bit ugly and her head was about to be blown up by Liao Zifeng.

　　Liao Zifeng’s singing stopped, he turned around and laughed before speaking loudly into the microphone: “Then we will invite our superstar, Miss Qing Huan! Come on! One! Song!”

　　Zhu Qing Huan stopped talking. She is an actor, not a singer. She sings like a high-speed serial tailgating scene.

　　Lin Xin thought of a better idea. She clapped her hands and stood up: “Let’s not sit around and listen to him screaming. How about we play some games?” Lin Xin asked the waiter to bring the same number of cups as the people they had. “Let’s play the bragging game. How about making the loser do Truth or Dare?”

　　”Let’s play. Let’s play.” Everyone agreed and Liao Zifeng finally put down the microphone.

　　No matter what the occasion, as long as the sieve cup is brought out to play the bragging game, everyone will get heated up.

　　Zhu Qing Huan has little desire to play, but since everyone wants to play, she can’t be an exception. Otherwise, no matter how familiar they are, there would be someone secretly saying that she is acting above them.

　　Five people sat down in a circle around a coffee table. The peanuts and melon seeds on the table were shoved to one side. One person picked up their cup and shook up the content inside it.  After shaking it, he slammed it on the table. Everyone sneakily lifted their lid to see their points and hid them for fear of being watched by the person next to them.

　　Zhu Qing Huan took a peek at her sieve cup. One 3, two 1s.

　　”You call it first, Zhu Zhu.” Liao Zifeng threw the start to Zhu Qing Huan.

　　”Six 6s.” Zhu Qing Huan lied calmly.

　　Fifteen dice with 6 starters are quite conservative. She doesn’t have a 6 in her hand, so let’s scream so that others will mistakenly think that she has a 6 in her hand.

　　Qi Yi followed: “Nine 6s.” She really dared to call. Generally, no one would dare to add three dice counts in one breath. It is estimated that they did have a 6 in their hands and Zhu Qing Huan was cheated again.

　　Zhu Qing Huan smiled and shook her head.

　　Qi Yi’s friend, Lin Xin, saw her shaking her head, and asked, “Zhu Zhu, what are you laughing at?”

　　Zhu Qing Huan replied, “I think you can drive her, there won’t be nine in 6.”

　　Lin Xin said, “Zhu Zhu is so confident? Then I can open it. If there are nine of them, you will come and be punished for me.”

　　Zhu Qing Huan nodded softly: “Okay.”

　　She didn’t expect this. The circle opened so fast, everyone opened their sieve cup. Zhu Qing Huan scanned everyone’s dice, silently counting the points of 6 and 1 (1 is the universal point). After counting a circle, she found that adding her two 1s, the sum was exactly nine.

　　Qi Yi couldn’t help laughing: “Zhu Zhu, why pit yourself? You have two omnipotent points in your hand and yet you still dare to ask Lin Xin to drive me. You really can’t calculate.”

　　Liao Zifeng interrupted: “Anyway, Zhu Zhu lost here. Willing to take a bet, you must be prepared to accept the punishments! Choose one, truth or dare?”

　　Several people around them laughed unkindly.

　　Zhu Qing Huan can understand their laughter. She is an artist. They are eager for her to choose truth so they can ask about some scandals that have been raging in the circle. No matter what they say, they will post anonymously on the Internet after they go home, “A friend in the circle said that XX CP is a fake, XX is a fostered XX, and XX and XX are actually divorced. Blah blah blah”. People love to gossip like this, especially with a sense of superiority from their “reliable” source.

　　But why offend unrelated fellows in the entertainment circle?

　　Zhu Qing Huan had no choice but to choose a dare.

　　”Come on, give me your phone.” Liao Zifeng smiled meaningfully.

　　”What do you want to do?” Zhu Qing Huan became vigilant. Her phone had too much classified work information and the company will be held accountable if it is leaked out.

　　”Don’t worry, I won’t look randomly. I just want to send a message to your boss,” Liao Zifeng raised an eyebrow, “just send her the KTV address and see if she will come.”

　　”What’s the point of this?” Zhu Qing Huan frowned, “What will we do if she really comes?”

　　”Come on, come on. Let’s sing together and get to know each other better.” Lin Xin patted Zhu Qing Huan on the shoulder. “My guess is that there’s an 80% chance that she’ll ignore it. The young boss is very busy. How can a simple message summon her all the way here?”

　　Liao Zifeng started grabbing at Zhu Qing Huan’s phone: “Hurry up! You already chose dare, don’t chicken out now!”

Zhu Qing Huan was tightly guarding her phone when a thought came to her. her fingers fingers relaxed and she half-heartedly let her phone be taken away by Liao Zifeng.

　　Suddenly, curiosity grew in her heart.

　　Will she… really come?

　　She wanted to see if Nanyang would really put everything down to come to her side because of a message.

　　Liao Zifeng confirmed with Zhu Qing Huan the dialog box of Nanyang on WeChat and quickly typed in several words. Within two minutes, he returned the phone to Zhu Qing Huan.

　　Zhu Qing Huan glanced at the phone screen with a guilty conscience.

　　At the top is Nanyang’s message to herself in the morning-“The porridge is on the table, remember to eat.” She did not reply to the message. The next text is the KTV location just posted by Liao Zifeng and a line of small words-“I’m sick.” Yes, come and pick me up”.

　　Liao Zifeng noticed Zhu Qing Huan’s astonishment when she saw the line of words and he shrugged, “I had to have an excuse, otherwise it would be too dry.”

　　”But this is…” Isn’t that bad?

　　Zhu Qing Huan frowned again. This is teasing Nanyang. If Nanyang did not come, then it would be fine, but if she did come? Seeing herself sitting here safe and sound and realizing that she was played by a game, what would Nanyang think?

　　But there was another voice in her heart saying that she was also looking forward to this. She hoped that Nanyang would really put everything down and come to her. She wanted to know if she really liked her that much.

　　She was caught in a tangled contradiction. While looking forward to Nanyang’s arrival, she also didn’t want her to come. The two voices were noisy in her heart.

　　The phone shook suddenly.

　　Zhu Qing Huan picked up the phone hurriedly and saw a new message from Nanyang-“Room number?”

　　Nanyang is a very strict person and this rigor is manifested in every detail of her life. For example, she never let her shirt appear wrinkled or stained. If it is dirty, she must replace it with a new one within an hour. Another example, each of her WeChat messages will use punctuation marks, commas, periods, and colons as standard and every sentence is as neat and tidy as the college entrance examination composition. If she needs to use a question mark, she will only hit one and there will never be a second one. As for the exclamation point, this kind of thing does not exist in Nanyang’s world at all.

　　Nanyang has no interest in exploring most things, so her communication with people basically ends with a full stop. Generally speaking, what makes her use a question mark is already the most important thing in her heart.

　　Zhu Qing Huan pursed her lips and looked at the [“Room number?”] on the screen. She sent the floor and room numbers in a ghostly manner.

　　After she sent the message, she couldn’t help but read WeChat nervously. The game was still going on, but she didn’t have any thoughts at all. She continued playing with a few friends perfunctorily, but her mind was as messy as paste.

　　After about half an hour, the KTV room door was gently pushed open.

　　Her heartbeat stagnated.

　　Zhu Qing Huan was ready to stand up at any time, both legs were nervously numb. When the door was opened, she hurriedly got up and looked over.

　　Nanyang touched the door with her left arm, frowning and looking around the noisy room with colorful lights flashing, her eyes filled with barely suppressed anxiety. She was only wearing a thin white shirt, an off-white down jacket on her arm, and her long hair was a little messy.

　　Zhu Qing Huan walked over to her and greeted her stiffly. After approaching, she discovered that the collarbone on Nanyang’s shirt was wet with sweat, her cheekbones were also faintly red, the hair on her temples stuck to the side of her face, and the frequency of her chest fluctuations was faster than usual. . The right hand half-hidden by the down jacket was holding a box of medicine and her thumb was tightly pressed on the carton. Only the words “Wei Shu” in the front could be seen in the name of the medicine.

　　As soon as she approached, Nanyang immediately grabbed her wrist, and a word overflowed between her lips and teeth: “You–“

　　”Oh, you are really here!” Liao Zifeng whistled, “Hurry up, let’s play a big adventure game! Boss Nan, come and play together!”

　　Nanyang’s words were interrupted and her mouth remained half-opened. Half a sentence of caring swallowed into her stomach, looking at these people in the private room, the ups and downs of her chest slowed. She took another look at Qing Huan, who was ruddy and healthy. Hearing the word game they said, the depressed anxiety in her eyes gradually cooled.

　　Zhu Qing Huan looked at Nanyang nervously. Apart from the greeting she had just said, she didn’t dare to speak any more, carefully observing Nanyang’s expression.

　　But Nanyang didn’t show an angry gesture. She was silent for a while and returned to her usual expressionless look. She let go of Qing Huan if nothing had happened, and said softly, “Have fun, I’m leaving now.”

　　After she finished, she regained her usual expressionless appearance. She turned and left.

　　”What’s wrong? This is…” Liao Zifeng still didn’t know good he had done. Qi Yi glared at the back of his head.

　　Zhu Qing Huan was stunned for a few seconds before she instinctively opened the door and gave chase.

　　In the corridor, she grabbed Nanyang’s arm, her voice a little anxious:

　　”Are you…are you angry?”

　　Nanyang froze and stood with her lips pressed for a while. When she spoke again, there was a gentle tone in her voice: “No, I’m not angry.”

　　She hid her emotions quickly and well, so well that Zhu Qing Huan thought that the disappointment in her eyes not so long ago was just her imagination. Zhu Qing Huan asked unwillingly, “Why aren’t you angry?”

　　Nanyang looked at her and the corners of his lips were naturally curved: “You are not sick again, why am I angry?”

　　Nanyang’s words rendered Zhu Qing Huan speechless.

　　Wouldn’t you be angry like this? Why isn’t she angry with the way she’s treated?

　　”You and your friends continue to play, I can’t accompany you.” Nanyang lowered her eyes, “I’m sorry, I don’t know how to sing, and I don’t know how to play those games. In front of your friends, maybe I’ll make you lose face.”

　　Zhu Qing Huan didn’t know how to reply.

　　”I’m leaving first, remember to go home early.”

　　Nanyang nodded at her as a farewell.

　　Zhu Qing Huan watched Nanyang go further and further, before finally disappearing at the corner of the stairs. Her body shook unconsciously and suddenly, a thought occurred.

　　She wants to follow Nanyang.

　　She wanted to see if Nanyang would explode after she left her. She wanted to know if Nanyang was angry, to what extent, and how she vents her anger.

　　So she followed her quietly.

　　She has been followed secretly by countless paparazzi. This is the first time she has followed others in such a despicable manner.

　　Follow your wife.

　　Nanyang walked out of the KTV, her half-wet white shirt fluttering in the cold winter wind, she walked very slowly, seemingly forgetting to put on her jacket.

　　As she walked, she suddenly stopped in front of a small shop. Then, she stood there for a long time, without talking or moving.

　　Zhu Qing Huan hid in the distance, holding her breath and staring at her.

　　Who knows how much time has passed when Nanyang finally took a step and walked slowly into the messy canteen.

　　Soon after, she came out of the commissary. Holding a paper box upright in her hand, when she came out, she asked the uncle sitting at the door to borrow a small folding stool. Holding the stool, she found a trash can and sat down right in front of the trash can. Then, she opened the box of golden chocolates she had just bought, took out a piece, peeled off the golden tin foil and stuffed it into her mouth.

　　Zhu Qing Huan could only see her slightly bulged cheeks chewing, chewing non-stop. After eating one piece carefully, she threw the tin foil into the trash can, took out the second and third pieces, and smoothly sent them to her mouth as if she was on the brink of starvation.

　　Zhu Qing Huan was taken aback for a moment, and what she said suddenly buzzed in her head—

　　”You are thirty-five years old, and prone to diabetes by eating this way. If you really like sugar, you can try chocolate. It’s pure cocoa butter and it tastes delicious.”

　　”Eat when you are sad, and you will feel better.” 

　　 Eat when you are sad, the mood will get better.

　　His eyes flickered, as if she had seen Nanyang who was sitting across from her that night again. Under the soft light, she was holding her elegant long hair, her side bangs hanging loosely on the side of her delicate face.

　　She nodded seriously and said:

　　Okay, I remember it.

　　Qing Huan bit her lips tightly, her nails sinking deeply into the skin, and her heart ached.

　　She stared at Nanyang and watched her eat a whole box of twenty-five chocolates in front of the trash can, wearing her thin white shirt with the cold wind blowing at her.

　　Twenty-five yuan. Not a single piece is left.

　　It takes twenty-five pieces of chocolate to soothe her sadness, how sad is she?

　　Why is she so sad and so gentle?

Author’s Theater
The way Nanyang loses her temper is to eat chocolate and eat herself to death

Tl’s note
The very first word of the chapter was Qi Yi’s sneeze. I changed it to Choo but the original was “Snee–” WHO DOES THAT???

Nanyang gonna get diabetes from how much Qing Huan’s gonna keep poking at her

Also I apologize for dying for 1+ month(s). Exams are hard on the body T^T

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