Chapter 516 : I Won’t Touch It, I Won’t Touch It
“What are you doing here?”
Zhou Xiaoxiao frowned at the sight of Qian Xu standing at her doorstep. She couldn’t fathom why he’d show up out of the blue after so long. Was he here to stir up trouble again?
Qian Xu gave her an awkward smile. “Uh... Xiaoxiao, I need to ask you something. I promise I won’t bother you!”
“Oh? Then just say it here~”
“Um... can I come inside? It’s cold out here.”
Zhou Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes but eventually let him in. After all, he was her childhood friend, and their families were close. No need to be too harsh.
Once inside, Qian Xu noticed Ling Ning sitting in the living room and looked surprised. He hadn’t expected anyone else to be there. Still, this might work to his advantage, as he could ask Ling Ning about his concerns.
Ling Ning, equally surprised, wondered why Qian Xu was here instead of hanging out with his “little brother” Chu Feng. Had he perhaps discovered that Chu Feng was actually a boy?
“So, what’s this about?”
“Well, uh... you’re working at that maid café, right?”
Raising an eyebrow, Zhou Xiaoxiao replied, “What of it?”
“You wouldn’t happen to... have your eye on someone there, would you?” Zhou Xiaoxiao asked with sudden suspicion.
Embarrassed, Qian Xu scratched his head and nodded. He unconsciously flicked his bangs aside in a feminine gesture, a habit from his frequent cross-dressing. Realizing how effeminate the motion looked, he froze, but it was too late. Both women had noticed, and their expressions turned strange.
Ling Ning, in particular, felt a wave of “gay vibes” radiating from him, making the atmosphere slightly awkward.
Sensing their unease, Qian Xu cleared his throat. “It’s like this. There’s a girl at your café named Chu Feng, right?”
“What? Chu Feng? But isn’t he—mmph!?”
Before Zhou Xiaoxiao could blurt out that Chu Feng was a boy, Ling Ning clamped a hand over her mouth, silencing her.
Qian Xu looked at them suspiciously. Was there something about Chu Feng they weren’t telling him?
Ling Ning chuckled. “Hold on a second. I need to talk to Xiaoxiao for a bit.”
Dragging Zhou Xiaoxiao to a corner, Ling Ning quickly explained the situation between Chu Feng and Qian Xu.
Zhou Xiaoxiao’s expression shifted from confusion to shock, then to delight. “I see, I see! I almost spilled the beans just now. Good thing you stopped me!”
“Exactly. So here’s the plan: we do this and that, and it’ll be fine. Got it?”
“Got it!”
Returning to the living room, Zhou Xiaoxiao adopted a serious demeanor. “You’re asking if Chu Feng works at the café, right?”
“Yeah. Is there a problem?”
“Not at all. She works there, usually on weekends. Why?”
“Oh, no reason. I just wanted to know what she likes,” Qian Xu said, his tone slightly bashful. While he had learned some things during his interactions with Chu Feng as Qian Xu, he figured it was safer to confirm with Chu Feng’s friends.
“Christmas is coming up soon. Are you planning to get her a gift?” Ling Ning asked, feigning nonchalance.
“Yeah. I want to prepare something in advance.”
Nodding, Ling Ning subtly signaled Zhou Xiaoxiao, who blinked and said, “Chu Feng, huh? I know she really likes cream cakes. Other than that, you might want to ask the café owner—she’s her sister.”
“The owner? Got it. Thanks for the help! I’ll be off now.”
After Qian Xu left, the two women burst into laughter. Ling Ning laughed so hard she slid off the sofa and onto the floor. Though she felt a bit bad for Chu Feng, she couldn’t resist the hilarity of the situation.
She had once hinted to Chu Feng that “Qian Xu” might be a guy, but Chu Feng hadn’t cared at all. He’d even joked, “Even if he’s a guy, I’m fine with it.”
Ling Ning couldn’t wait to see their reactions when the truth came out.
Sighing deeply, Ling Ning regained her composure and looked at Zhou Xiaoxiao, who was still chuckling. “Xiaoxiao, aren’t you forgetting something?”
“Huh? What?”
“Break time is over. Are you trying to slack off?”
“W-Who’s slacking?!”
Zhou Xiaoxiao’s eyes flashed with regret. She hadn’t expected Ling Ning to be so sharp and catch her trying to weasel out of more studying. While having Ling Ning tutor her was undeniably helpful, staring at study materials for too long was making her sleepy.
Thinking about sleep made her yawn involuntarily.
“Alright, think about next week’s test. If you don’t want your grades to tank, focus!” Ling Ning urged.
“I know~”
Zhou Xiaoxiao groaned. She understood the logic, but the densely packed text in her study materials was putting her eyelids at war with gravity. Before long, she was nodding off.
Noticing this, Ling Ning sighed and flicked Zhou Xiaoxiao’s forehead. “Fine. We’ll stop here for now. I’ll go make lunch, but this afternoon, you’d better study seriously!”
As she headed to the kitchen, Ling Ning thought about how to deal with Zhou Xiaoxiao’s short attention span. Maybe she’d try something like giving a light spanking whenever Zhou Xiaoxiao zoned out—or tossing her onto the balcony for some fresh air. Both seemed promising!
Meanwhile, Zhou Xiaoxiao, enjoying her TV break, suddenly shivered. A foreboding sense of doom crept over her.
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Author’s Note:
Ah, the struggles of a salty fish who never pulls the rare drops they want... a lament from an alternate timeline.