The next day, I was made to stand for one class during Teacher Xiaozhen’s first period because I was fast asleep. When class finally ended, Yun Qingqiong turned around and asked me,
“What’s wrong? You seem so listless this morning, and you have really dark circles under your eyes.”
“…I just didn’t sleep well last night, it’s nothing~ Ahaha…”
What was I even laughing about…
Last night, I tossed and turned but still couldn’t sleep. The scene with Lan kept replaying in my mind, and I felt a bit of regret. I should have tried to keep her there a little longer… No, even just getting to know her would have been nice.
This feeling didn’t dissipate until morning, which is why I didn’t sleep at all. My eyes still feel sore and my Spiritual Power hasn’t been replenished, so my head is heavy and I feel terrible.
“Don’t tell me you were up all night with yourself?”
“I say, your language is getting less and less proper lately.”
“Heh heh, aren’t we friends!”
Why the smug look?
Sigh, whatever. In her understanding, this is probably how friends tease each other.
After spending these past few months together, I’ve come to understand what kind of person Yun Qingqiong is.
To put it in one sentence, she’s an extremely impulsive doer; she does whatever she decides to do. She’s the type who easily gets tricked… As her friend, I’m quite worried about her future. This naive girl trusts people too easily.
“Speaking of which, today is Christmas Eve.”
“Yeah, that’s why there are only two classes this afternoon, and no Evening Study Session tonight.”
Although it’s not a public holiday, the school is generous enough to give us half a day off… so that everyone can enjoy the festive atmosphere.
Some classmates have been discussing what to do tonight since this morning. Some said they were going to KTV, some said they were having a Christmas party together, and one person said he was going on a date with his Girlfriend tonight… He was mobbed by a bunch of single dogs before he could even finish speaking.
“Usually, Christmas is celebrated with a Christmas party at home, right?”
“Yeah, something like that…”
I don’t know about others, but for our An family, Christmas is a ‘family gathering.’ Even though I can’t go home now, I still want to celebrate Christmas at home as much as possible.
I didn’t have any specific plans, so I was thinking of making tonight’s dinner a bit more extravagant, to make up for forgetting to cook dinner last night. By the way, last night I ended up ordering a bucket of fried chicken for dinner.
“But let me tell you, our family’s Christmas isn’t a ‘whole family gathering,’ it’s a ‘retired couple’s event.’ Mom and Dad cheerfully held hands and went out this morning, they didn’t even leave me breakfast! How rude!”
“…That does seem a bit much? No, it’s way too much!”
“Right, right!”
“You should at least have left some money as compensation!”
“Is that where the problem lies!”
Yun Qingqiong clenched her fists and leaned forward towards me, protesting. In her excitement, she lost her balance, and just as an unexpected kiss was about to happen, I quickly grabbed her shoulders.
“Don’t get so worked up, I was just joking. Didn’t you just joke with me too?”
Yun Qingqiong’s face flushed slightly. After regaining her balance a little awkwardly, she wiped her upper lip and said.
“In short, this year I might be spending Christmas alone again.”
Every Christmas Eve morning, my parents would go out on their own and wouldn’t return until after Christmas the next day.
“That’s really pitiful.”
Speaking of which, if Nana hadn’t taken me in, I probably would have spent Christmas alone like her? I don’t even have my own home, it would be cold, desolate, and melancholic.
“So, um, what I wanted to say is… um, Juncheng, are you free tonight?”
I didn’t expect her to ask if I had plans tonight at all, and pointing at myself with my index finger, I asked in surprise,
“Huh? Me?”
“Yes, I mean, if you don’t have plans, then, um, can you go out with me…”
“That might not be possible. I have to prepare Christmas dinner tonight, so I need to go back early to get ready.
I need to buy the ingredients for dinner… and then prepare dinner immediately. I’ll have almost no time for fun.”
“Ah, um, I see…”
She looked very disappointed.
Pitiful, like an abandoned puppy.
If Yun Qingqiong had ears right now, they would surely be drooping, as would her tail.
She exuded a terribly disappointed atmosphere, like dark clouds gathering.
Uh, I feel like I did something wrong. Should I have refused more gently… But no matter how gently I refused, refusing her would still make her feel bad.
Is there any good way to resolve this… Ah, here’s one! And it’s an incredibly simple one!
“Ah, why don’t you come to my place for dinner?”
“Didn’t you say your parents left you to be romantic, which is why you wanted to spend Christmas with me?”
“Uh, uh…”
“In that case, coming to my place would also be spending Christmas with me.”
Yun Qingqiong gasped, her mouth forming an ‘O’ shape, and looked at me with a truly amazed expression.
“But, um, is that okay? Won’t it bother you? And your family will be there too.”
“It’s alright, I… um, the situation is a bit special. Essentially, I’m also an outsider, so you don’t need to worry.”
I’m sure Nana will agree. Besides, it will be more lively with an extra person.
“In that case, please let me come!”
“Why are you using honorifics… So, should I tell you the address, or will you come back with me after class?”
Hmm, I don’t need to change into a formal outfit or anything? Also, I haven’t prepared a Christmas Gift yet…
“No, no, don’t be so formal, just be casual. You don’t need a gift either. I haven’t even prepared a gift myself. It’s just a meal.”
“Is that so… Okay, I understand! But please let me go back and change first! Just send me the address on WeChat.”
“Ok. Oh right, since that’s the case”
Thinking that since I’ve invited one extra person, inviting another one shouldn’t be a problem.
So, I directly called out to Keling in front of me.
“Hey! Keling! Come to my place for dinner tonight!”
…
Huh? Why aren’t you responding to me…
It’s impossible that she didn’t hear me… Which means she’s pretending not to hear and is completely ignoring me?
Uh, have I done anything to upset her lately?
I searched my recent memories carefully, and it didn’t seem like anything was wrong… Last week was fine, so why has she suddenly become cold this week?
“Tch, don’t mind her. She’s probably on her period, making her all grumpy.”
…Still no reaction, she doesn’t even seem inclined to turn around.
Normally, if Yun Qingqiong mocked her, Keling would have retorted ten times over, but today she’s completely unfazed, which is quite unusual.
I wanted to go over and talk to her, but just then the class bell rang, so I had to give up.
Later, I tried several times to find an opportunity to talk to her, but Keling seemed to be deliberately avoiding me, not giving me a chance to speak.
Uh, what is this all about?
And so, it was afternoon after school. After the early dismissal, I headed straight to the shopping street to buy the ingredients for dinner.
To save time, I took a shortcut through an alley. These alleys were originally entrances and exits to the Black Street, but the Black Street doesn’t exist in this world, so they’re just ordinary narrow paths.
This narrow path was bumpy and uneven; one wrong step and you could trip. Forget surveillance Cameras, there weren’t even any streetlights.
Suddenly, I heard a strange noise ahead, like a woman’s scream. I continued forward and saw a man in a windbreaker pinning a girl against the wall by her hands, and forcibly covering her mouth.
There were three other men acting as lookouts nearby.
Even though I was far away, I recognized the girl instantly…
It was Keling!
She’s in danger!
Without thinking further, I charged forward and delivered a flying kick to the nose of one of them.
Before the guy could figure out what was happening, I immediately grabbed his head and slammed it hard onto the ground. The first guy was thus dealt with.
“What’s going on here? Hey!”
“No way? Is he her boyfriend?”
“I’m not her boyfriend… I’m just a good person passing by.”
Something inside me erupted. My head was buzzing. I hadn’t been this angry in a long time.
How dare they bully my Younger Sister…
Looking for a death wish?
“Because I’m a bit of a clean freak, I came specifically to clean things up. Thank me, you trash.”
I couldn’t help but smirk, which was actually a result of laughing in extreme anger.
The other party wasn’t scared into trembling by this. Unscrupulous thugs are just so clueless.
“The heck are you calling trash?”
“Hey, aren’t you overdoing the tough guy act a bit?”
The second man lunged forward and threw a punch.
Thought Acceleration, I semi-crouched and dodged, then struck at the opening in his chest with a punch to his abdomen. He immediately bent over like a cooked shrimp. I followed up with a knee strike to his chin, and he wouldn’t be getting up anytime soon.
“To deal with you guys, I don’t even need Spiritual Power… Come on, I’ll attack first! All of you, attack me together! You pieces of trash!”
“Damn it! How dare you look down on us!”
Oh, a knife?
Calling you trash really wasn’t wrong. You’re even using this thing.
“If you’re going to use a knife, at least bring a decent one! This is for cutting fruit, isn’t it dull for stabbing people!”
Too slow.
I could clearly see the opponent’s movements. Compared to Xue’s sword speed, it was like watching a slow-motion playback.
Dodging the thrusting attack by stepping sideways, I then used my palm to push his chin down to the ground and stomped on his groin.
I learned some self-defense techniques from Lianbing, and I never expected them to be useful now…
They’re not much use against Anomalies and monsters, but for dealing with three or four ordinary people, they’re more than enough.
“And one more.”
I flexed my fingers and walked towards the Windbreaker Man, my expression turning even more grim… Don’t worry, don’t worry. I definitely won’t hold back. It’ll be hard to relieve my anger if I don’t beat you half to death.
“Who are you? Are you trying to be a Hero saves the damsel?”
Hero saves the damsel? No, no, no, it’s just a brother stepping up for his Younger Sister… So….
“How dare you bully my Keling, AHHHHHH”
Die for me!
