Chapter 534 : Do You Want the Red Fox or the White Fox
“The movie just now was pretty good~”
Ling Ning and Xia You walked out of the theater, Ling Ning still mulling over some of the plot points. While the story had initially seemed somewhat cliché, the twist at the end had been a delightful surprise.
Xia You absentmindedly murmured a “Mm.” She’d already familiarized herself with the movie’s plot in advance, so it didn’t leave much of an impression on her. What she was truly thinking about was the popcorn. Why had she bought such a small portion? The movie had barely started, and the two of them had already finished it.
Feeding Ling Ning was so satisfying! After finishing the popcorn, Ling Ning would even lick Xia You’s fingers like a little animal—it was so cute and incredibly thrilling.
Checking the time on her phone, Ling Ning turned to Xia You and said, “For dinner, let’s head home. I’ll cook a feast~”
“Okay.” Xia You nodded lightly. She had already anticipated this and even prepared a menu in advance.
The two of them made their way to the mall downstairs. Just as they were about to enter, Xia You suddenly stopped and, somewhat shyly, said, “Um... Ling Ning, I need to use the restroom.”
“Go ahead. I’ll wait here.”
With that, Ling Ning pulled out her phone and began reading a novel. To her delight, she saw that her daughter had already uploaded a new chapter. She clicked it open immediately—her daughter’s writing was one of her daily must-reads.
Ling Ning noticed that her daughter’s writing skills were improving steadily. However, in the details, she could still see traces of her own influence. After all, Ling Ye had been guided by her from the start. She was already far more talented than Ling Ning had been back in middle school.
Quickly finishing the latest chapter, Ling Ning looked up just as Xia You emerged from the restroom. Xia You casually linked her arm through Ling Ning’s and whispered, “Let’s go.”
“Mm.”
Not far away, Li Si stood frozen, staring at the scene before her. She had initially assumed that Ling Ning and Xia You were simply out shopping, but seeing them interact so intimately—like any couple on the street—she felt something was off.
She then remembered that Xia You lived right next door to Ling Ning and how close they seemed to be. Could it be that their relationship was...
Before she could delve deeper into her thoughts, Zheng Yun interrupted her.
“Li Si, why are you standing there blankly?”
“N-No reason.”
Although Li Si denied it verbally, her mind was still preoccupied with the earlier scene.
After enduring another round of shopping with Zheng Yun, Li Si was finally freed when Zheng Yun decided to stop for the day.
The two of them sat down at a café downstairs.
As Li Si sipped her coffee, enjoying a rare moment of peace, two familiar figures entered her line of sight again.
Ling Ning and Xia You were standing by the roadside, seemingly waiting for a car. Their hands were linked in an intimate manner, and Li Si tried to console herself by thinking it was just typical closeness between friends.
However, before she could fully reassure herself, Xia You suddenly glanced around nervously and then quickly planted a kiss on Ling Ning’s cheek. The gesture was so swift and subtle, and since there was hardly anyone around, no one seemed to notice. Ling Ning didn’t mind either, responding with a light laugh and saying something to Xia You.
Li Si stared in stunned silence. Even for close friends, such behavior was hard to explain away. Perhaps their relationship was indeed what she suspected—it wasn’t impossible that they were a couple.
Zheng Yun noticed Li Si’s dazed expression and followed her gaze. However, her poor eyesight, compounded by not wearing her glasses for the sake of her look that day, left her unable to make out what was happening.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m not feeling well today. I think I’ll head back now.”
With that, Li Si stood, settled the bill at the counter, and walked out of the café. Zheng Yun hurriedly grabbed her things and followed. She couldn’t understand what had gone wrong. The day had been going so smoothly—why had Li Si’s mood suddenly taken such a drastic turn?
Meanwhile, as Ling Ning waited for their car, she instinctively turned to look over her shoulder, feeling as though someone was watching her. Yet, she didn’t see anyone familiar. Shaking her head, she dismissed it as her imagination and began contemplating what delicious dishes to prepare for dinner.
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“Ye Ye, Mom’s home~”
The moment Ling Ning entered her apartment, she cheerfully called out.
Ling Ye, who was curled up under the kotatsu, barely responded with an indifferent “Oh” and continued staring at her phone screen. It was Christmas Eve—why hadn’t she gotten any rare drops yet? She’d already attempted several thousand runs!
Sure, if she handed it over to her mom, Ling Ning could probably get the drop within a few tries, but Ling Ye’s pride wouldn’t allow it. Why was her mom so lucky while she was cursed with bad luck? Was she not her mom’s biological child?
Wait... She wasn’t, was she?
This realization brought a conflicted sigh from Ling Ye. Slowly crawling out from under the kotatsu, she looked at Ling Ning and said, “Mom, help me get a ship.”
“Get a ship?”
“Yeah.”
Ling Ning blinked in confusion. She wasn’t sure what her daughter meant, but it seemed related to a game. Normally, Ling Ye wouldn’t ask for her help with gaming unless it involved gacha mechanics.
Suddenly remembering something, Ling Ning pulled out a beautifully wrapped gift from her bag and handed it to Ling Ye. “Even though tomorrow’s Christmas, here’s your present a day early.”
After handing over the gift, Ling Ning casually picked up her daughter’s phone. On the screen was a game she recognized—she’d seen it advertised by Xia You.
The controls were simple, and with Ling Ye’s high-level ships, all she needed to do was run the game on auto-mode.
A while later, while engrossed in admiring her new limited-edition Xiao Ai figurine, Ling Ye suddenly heard her mom call out, “Ye Ye, do you want the red fox or the white fox? Why do the same ones keep appearing? Aren’t there any others?”
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Author’s Note:
No Maya on 8-4. None at all!