"I'm a little painter, with painting skills so strong..."
Brother Nan hummed the song happily. She pulled out her wallet and placed the card in its holder in front of Zhou Li, then raised her eyebrows at him. "If you're so capable, go on and steal it when I'm not looking."
Just then, his phone rang. It sounded like a voice or video call. He picked it up to check.
"Who?" Brother Nan asked immediately.
"Oh," Brother Nan nodded. "Are there any girls at school who added your QQ and keeps messaging you 'good morning' and 'good night' every day?"
Zhou Li signaled her to be quiet and brought the phone to his ear.
Brother Nan fell silent. She tiptoed closer to him, bent down, and pressed her ear against his phone too. As a result, their faces were now separated by little more than the phone, some of their skin even touching.
Both held their breath.
However, there was no sound from the other end of the call.
"'Hello?' Brother Nan said.
"'No sound?' Brother Nan turned her head to look at Zhou Li in surprise, then immediately pressed her ear against the phone again. Her slightly intoxicated and endearingly silly appearance left Zhou Li somewhat stunned.
"'Hello?' she tried again.
"What are you two doing?" Huai Xu's voice finally came, but not from the phone.
It was... right beside them.
Both turned their heads simultaneously, only to see Huai Xu holding a plate of strawberries, standing in the corner of the room and looking at them strangely. "Why are you two so close? Are you about to start some scene I shouldn't be watching?"
They hurriedly moved apart!
Huai Xu still stood there, blinking, pretending to be clueless. "Did I come back at a bad time?"
"'Why did you voice call me?'"
"'Oh, I left my phone in your room. Don't hang up; let's keep the call active. Just put your phone on the table,' Huai Xu explained, finally walking over with the strawberries. 'That way, if someone from your family calls for you, I'll hear it and can pop over.'"
"'You're quite thoughtful.'"
"'Zhou Dao?' Huai Xu mused. 'That's a nice name. Sounds good, easy to say, and easy to remember.'"
This old monster is really something else.
As the night grew colder, Brother Nan closed the window, pulled the curtains, turned on the air conditioner, and continued playing games.
As they played, Zhou Li really couldn't take it anymore. He tapped Brother Nan's shoulder and said, "You guys keep playing. Just get me a blanket. I'm going to sleep on the couch; I can hardly keep my eyes open."
"'Such a lightweight,' Brother Nan said, waving her hand dismissively. 'There's no blanket, or at least I don't know where one is. Just go sleep in my room. I'll take you.'"
"What about you guys?" Zhou Li asked.
"We aren't sleeping."
Zhou Li was then led to her room by Brother Nan.
The room wasn't too big or too small and was simply decorated. It lacked any overtly girlish touches, though if one sniffed carefully, they could smell the faint fragrance of laundry detergent. On the bed were two pillows, two throw pillows, an old-looking stuffed toy, and, nestled right in the middle, Big Orange.
Zhou Li looked at the stuffed toy with interest. "I didn't expect you'd have a plush doll in your room."
"'That's from when I was a kid. I've gotten used to having it around over the years, so I just keep it on the bed...' Brother Nan started to explain, then suddenly felt something was off. 'Hey, what's that supposed to mean? I can't have a plush doll on my bed?'"
"'Then what do you think should be in my room?'"
"'Enough with the smart remarks! Go to sleep. I'll chase this fat cat off for you.'"
Brother Nan strode forward and gave Pumpkin a smack on the rump. THWAP!
Big Orange lazily turned to look at her.
SMACK! The source of thɪs content is 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚑𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⚑𝕟𝕖𝕥
Big Orange widened his eyes, a look of astonishment on his face.
Big Orange finally stood up, ambled forward a few steps, hopped from the bed to the windowsill, and settled down again.
Eyes closed, the old cat appeared to enter a state of deep meditation.
Brother Nan dusted off her hands and said to Zhou Li, "Go to sleep. If you want to wash up, go ahead. The blue towel is mine, and you can wear my slippers. If you're too tired to bother washing up, that's fine too. I don't mind, really."
Zhou Li just responded with an "oh."
「Twenty minutes later.」
Zhou Li closed his eyes, lying on the bed, finally enveloped in a faint, pleasant fragrance.
The fragrance emanated mainly from the pillow—the scent of shampoo. Next was the comforter's lining, which carried a blend of shower gel, soap, and a soft, sweet, milky aroma he couldn't quite place. He'd smelled this milky scent on Brother Nan before; it was very comforting.
These scents made him feel at ease, and he soon fell asleep.
「The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtains.」
Zhou Li hadn't quite slept enough; his internal clock had woken him. He sat up and stared blankly for a moment, listening to the quiet in the living room. From outside, he could faintly hear the sharp yaps of what sounded like a small dog.
He checked his phone.
It was only seven-thirty.
He also had two messages, sent an hour ago:
Huai Xu: I've gone home to continue pretending to be you
Li Daimao: I'm taking a nap. If you wake up, feel free to do whatever. There's food in the fridge and on the coffee table. I've set an alarm for nine-thirty.
Zhou Li turned off his phone, got out of bed, and walked outside.
Brother Nan had found a blanket from somewhere and was asleep on the sofa, wrapped up like a caterpillar.
Big Orange was nestled on the back of the sofa.
The coffee table was laid out with snacks, milk, and fruit.
Zhou Li tiptoed over to peer at Brother Nan. Good thing she didn't go sleep in her parents' or brother's room, he thought. Otherwise, being left alone in this empty, unfamiliar house would have made me pretty uncomfortable.
Sleeping, Brother Nan looked very peaceful. Her skin was fair and flawless, her features exquisite; she was incredibly beautiful.
Not that she isn't pretty when she's awake, of course.
Just a different kind of charm. A different kind of charm.
Zhou Li glanced upward.
Too bad, Zhou Li thought. Brother Nan's head was pressed against the back of the sofa, so he couldn't see if she had that silly tuft of hair, nor could he play with it. His gaze then drifted back to her peaceful face. A strand of hair had fallen across it, trembling slightly with each even breath she took.
So, he walked over, crouched down, and under Big Orange's wide-eyed stare, he pinched Brother Nan's cheek.
Felt nice. Delicate and smooth.
Then, using another finger, he gently pulled Brother Nan's lower lip downward... tug... tug... tug...
He took out his phone and took a photo.
After taking the photo, he suddenly withdrew his hand—
Her lip snapped back into place.
Zhou Li couldn't help but smile.
Seeing that Brother Nan looked like she was about to wake up, he magnanimously decided to stop for now and continue his fun later.
He was, after all, a considerate person. Even though Brother Nan had told him to make himself at home and do whatever he wanted when he woke up, he still didn't want to disturb her sweet dreams. Modern society is truly lacking in people as thoughtful as me, he mused.
「At nine-thirty, the alarm went off.」
Brother Nan groggily opened her eyes. Her face felt a little strange, probably from the alcohol and staying up all night.
Turning her head, she saw Zhou Li sitting across from her, playing with his phone. She noticed he was wearing the small chain on his wrist.
"When did you wake up?" she asked.
"Have you had breakfast?"
"'The small buns from your coffee table, a bottle of milk, and some food Huai Xu fed me.'" To be honest, Zhou Li hadn't expected he would one day be fed by Huai Xu.
"Aren't you going home?"
"...No, let Huai Xu enjoy a proper meal for once," Zhou Li said after a moment's thought. "Usually at home, he just watches me eat, and then I just bring him some random leftovers back to the room. He's complained about it many times."
"'Didn't he eat well yesterday?' Brother Nan asked, spotting the flaw in his reasoning.
"'Oh. So, what are you doing now?'"
Seeing Brother Nan starting to sit up, Zhou Li nonchalantly long-pressed the home button, closing the photo album app. "I heard the provincial government issued a document ordering the removal of all roadblocks."
"'Oh,' Brother Nan said, patting her head. 'My head hurts a bit.'"
"I'll get you some water."
While he turned to get her water, Brother Nan snatched her wallet from the coffee table and checked it. Good, the Obedience Card is still there. She pursed her lips, subconsciously rubbing her lower lip as she continued to watch Zhou Li's back. This kid is actually pretty honest, huh.