Chapter 168 : Heavy Guilt
"Is something wrong with you two...?"
While eating takeout, Xia You looked at the mother and daughter who hadn’t said a word. Something felt off. Usually, when they ate takeout, they would complain about whether it was good or bad, but today, it was excessively quiet.
"I'm finished!" x2
Their response was astonishingly synchronized.
Xia You looked at Ling Ning, then at Ling Ye, still unable to grasp what was going on. She shook her head helplessly and said, "I'm done too. Give me the containers, I'll throw them out."
"Ye Ye, Mom wants to ask you a few questions~" After Xia You left, Ling Ning composed herself and spoke to her daughter.
Hearing her mom's words, Ling Ye nodded.
"So, um... how much of Mom’s novel have you read?"
"All of it~" Ling Ye replied without a moment's hesitation. She had read everything her mom had written—whether drafts or published chapters—countless times because she found it just that good. She had probably read it over ten times by now.
This was exactly why her writing style was so similar to her mom’s.
Hearing her daughter’s answer, Ling Ning covered her face, and a wave of embarrassment washed over her. The thought that her daughter had read all those risqué jokes and innuendos she’d written made her want to disappear.
"And... and... the parts about... the intimate interactions between people—do you understand those parts?" Ling Ning stuttered, her face flushed.
"Intimate interactions between people? What’s that? Ye Ye doesn't get it~ All I know is that Mom’s story is really interesting." Ling Ye answered with an innocent expression.
In reality, Ling Ye understood all of her mom’s innuendos perfectly. In fact, Ling Ye knew more than Ling Ning did. If Ling Ye ever decided to get raunchy, she’d definitely outdo her mom.
Ling Ning let out a sigh of relief at her daughter’s answer. As long as she didn’t understand those parts, it was fine. Either way, she should probably be more cautious when writing from now on. Even if her daughter didn’t understand it now, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t later. Better to be careful.
"Oh, Mom! I have some questions for you." Now that her secret writing project was exposed, Ling Ye decided not to hide anything anymore and brought up the issues she’d encountered while writing.
Ling Ning was more than happy to answer her daughter’s questions.
When Xia You returned from throwing out the trash, she found a harmonious mother-daughter scene. She scratched her head in confusion. How had the mood shifted so much just from taking out the trash? She really didn’t get it.
But Xia You wasn't one to dig for answers. After washing her hands, she silently crawled back into the kotatsu, wrapping herself around Ling Ning's long legs and falling asleep.
As Ling Ning helped her daughter with her questions, she suddenly felt someone clinging to her legs. Not that it was surprising—she immediately knew it was Xia You. She had no idea why Xia You loved hugging her legs so much while sleeping, but she didn’t mind it. After all, she loved resting her head on Xia You’s lap, too.
However, after a while, Ling Ning started feeling something wasn’t quite right. Since Xia You's face was resting directly on her thigh, each breath she took sent a rush of warmth under Ling Ning's skirt, leaving her feeling uncomfortable.
Ling Ning reached under the kotatsu, trying to adjust Xia You’s position. But... but Xia You ended up biting her index finger. Ling Ning was speechless. Why did Xia You have to bite something every time she fell asleep? Last time it was her toe, and now it was her finger.
As she felt Xia You's small tongue tracing along her finger, Ling Ning had a strange urge to pull her hand away, yet a peculiar itch lingered in her heart.
"Mom, what's wrong?" Ling Ye asked, puzzled. She had already asked her question several times, but her mom seemed lost in a daze, failing to answer.
"N-nothing! About this part, it might be better to phrase it like this." Ling Ning snapped back to reality after hearing her daughter's voice.
"Oh, Ye Ye! Did the editor reach out to you about signing a contract?" she asked.
"Yep, already signed it~ If I don’t sign, it’s hard to get featured." Ling Ye answered matter-of-factly.
"Oh~" Ling Ning nodded. She remembered that she hadn’t signed her contract until her book was about to be published. If it hadn’t unexpectedly taken off afterward, it would have likely just been a flop.
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Later that night, after dinner, Ling Ning received a call from Zhou Xiaoxiao, wanting to discuss when she would visit her house.
After some thought, Ling Ning decided to go the day after tomorrow. Since it was winter, her previous men's clothing wasn’t suitable for the cold, so she needed to buy a new winter outfit.
The idea of buying another men’s outfit made her feel as if her wallet was being drained again. Even though she could now be considered somewhat well-off, who would ever think they had too much money?
And then there was that cursed chest binder. Just thinking about wearing it again made her chest ache. If only she were as flat as Zhou Xiaoxiao—then it wouldn’t be a problem. But, sadly, that wasn't her case. She still had no idea how Li Si managed all these years without suffocating.
Thankfully, she hadn’t neglected her voice practice. Every night in the bath, she would practice in front of the mirror. Though her voice was no longer raspy, it sounded similar to how it did when she last visited Zhou Xiaoxiao’s house.
As for makeup, that could be handled by Sister Liu. All it would cost her was one meal—something she could definitely afford.
After her bath, Ling Ning rummaged through her room, trying to find the outfit from last time. Though the clothes might not fit, the wig was still usable.
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Zhou Xiaoxiao lay on her bed, filled with excitement. Just thinking about Ling Ning coming over the day after tomorrow made her heart race.
Although she kept repeating in her mind that "Ling Ning is a girl," it seemed to have no effect. Somewhere along the line, whenever she saw Ling Ning, she couldn’t help but feel her heartbeat quicken, her face flush, and a desire to impress her.
She wasn’t the clueless protagonist in some anime—she knew exactly what these feelings meant. She also knew that such emotions shouldn’t arise, yet she couldn’t stop herself.
"Ling Ning..."
⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱⊰⋆⋅⭑⋅⋆⊱
Author's Note:
Today, I'm being a lazy salted fish. Recommending a book, "My Chastity Can’t Be Easily Taken Away" by our own RBQ 'Ling Xi.' It's a really fun read. No space for a long summary, but trust me, it's worth it.