11: Chapter 11 Since you're chasing

The air froze.

It wasn't just because of the silence of Leng Qingxuan's bare feet treading on the floor, but also because of the breathing on the other end of the phone that had suddenly cut off.

Leng Qingxuan's expression—that of a curious baby examining the computer case—seemed to have been hit with a pause button, freezing on her face.

Although she lacked common sense in daily life, that didn't mean she was a fool.

On the contrary, as the top student in the entire school, her train of thought at certain moments spun faster than those two 4090 graphics cards.

A female voice.

It was a female voice on the phone.

Judging by the tone, it was familiar, intimate, carried a hint of a nagging wife's interrogation, and even had a touch of tsundere coquettishness.

This was highly unlikely to be some insurance sales representative or a food delivery girl.

The boundaries didn't even seem like those of a regular friend of the opposite sex.

Leng Qingxuan's brain, addicted to all kinds of 2D works, instantly broke free like a wild horse, beginning a wild gallop of imagination.

Could it be... is this the legendary girlfriend?

Did that Huang Mao, who seemed plain and unremarkable at school but was actually a hidden second-generation rich kid, already have a childhood sweetheart or an official girlfriend of this caliber?

Leng Qingxuan subconsciously looked down at her current attire.

She was wearing this man's oversized black T-shirt.

She was wearing nothing underneath.

She had nothing on her legs.

Just a few minutes ago, downstairs from this room, she had shown this man her most private pink lace underwear.

And now, she was standing barefoot in his bedroom, even wanting to walk further inside.

At this moment, countless tropes from melodramatic manga exploded in her mind.

If she were a normal girl, she would probably be dying of shame and anger by now, or so embarrassed that she'd want to crawl into a hole in the ground.

But Leng Qingxuan was not a normal girl.

Under long-term suppression, a near-pathological rebellious factor had long since germinated deep within her heart.

A strange sense of excitement actually surged up along her spine.

What is this?

NTR in person?

Or the legendary scene of catching someone cheating in a shuraba?

If the person on the other end of the phone really was his girlfriend, then wasn't her current identity that of a "bad woman" who was taking advantage of the situation, and even deliberately making noise to provoke the "official partner" while she was checking up on him?

It was... too thrilling.

This sense of immorality was a hundred times more intense than when she had accidentally exposed herself in the bathroom earlier.

Leng Qingxuan felt her cheeks starting to burn again, but this time it wasn't because of shyness, but because of some strange anticipation.

She even had an urge.

She wanted to lean toward the phone's microphone and say in that lazy, just-woke-up voice: "Darling, who is it? How much longer until you come to sleep?"

Since she wanted to pursue excitement, why not go all the way?

Anyway, she was already set up as a runaway delinquent girl; adding the label of "bad woman" seemed pretty cool, right?

Just as the script in her head had fast-forwarded to such an absurd plot as "living together as a trio," Huang Mao's voice interrupted her casting.

"Um... could you stop talking for a moment?"

Huang Mao covered the phone's microphone with one hand and rubbed his brow with the other, his face filled with despair.

He wasn't actually that panicked.

For someone with such extremely stable emotions as him, this kind of situation was at most "a bit troublesome," not quite reaching the level of "the sky is falling."

It was just hard to explain.

"Oh..."

Leng Qingxuan obediently shut her mouth, but her eyes twinkled with that look of someone who feared the world wouldn't be chaotic enough.

Huang Mao took a deep breath, took his hand off the microphone, and tried to keep his tone steady: "Hello? Are you still there?"

There was dead silence on the other end of the line.

After several seconds, An Ran's voice, which was clearly trembling, finally came through, sounding like it was squeezed out from between her teeth.

"Just now... that voice... who was it?"

"If you dare tell me it was a sound from the TV, or some weird noise you made because your voice change isn't over, I'll take a taxi over there right now and crush your head with a scissor kick."

Huang Mao scratched his head.

Lying at this moment was actually a technical skill.

Say it was a food delivery person? What kind of delivery person enters a bedroom late at night and asks if you're asleep?

Say it was a cleaning lady? The voice clearly belonged to a young girl.

"Just a friend."

Huang Mao chose the most unadorned opening.

"A friend?"

An Ran's voice went up an octave, "Since when do you have a female friend I don't know, who is close enough to enter your bedroom late at night?"

"And judging by what she said, you're living together now?!"

Huang Mao sighed and brought out his backup plan: "Oh, I misspoke, actually it's a distant relative."

"A cousin?"

"Yes, a cousin." Huang Mao went along with it, "She just came here for school and didn't get a dorm room. You know my place is quite big, so my family arranged for her to stay here."

"Are you a bot? Who changes their story like that! Who would believe that!"

An Ran took a deep breath, "And I don't remember you having a relative who sounds about that age!"

Huang Mao was choked for words.

This was the downside of having a childhood sweetheart.

You're too familiar.

"Even if there really were such a relative, you shouldn't be reacting like this, right?"

Huang Mao tried to shift the conflict, "Given our relationship, do I have to report my entire family tree to you whenever a relative visits?"

"Is that the point right now?!"

An Ran was almost roaring on the other end, "The point is you actually hid it from me! And... and..."

And what, she didn't continue.

That sense of grievance and panic could be felt even through the screen.

Just as Huang Mao was racking his brain trying to figure out how to smooth over this lie, Leng Qingxuan, who was standing to the side, suddenly moved.

She seemed to have snapped out of her earlier imaginative drama, or perhaps she felt that the current atmosphere was a bit too stiff.

Consequently, she made a move that made Huang Mao want to throw her out on the spot.

She scratched her cheek, tilted her head slightly, and asked in a tone that seemed innocent but was actually fanning the flames:

"Um... did I come at a bad time?"

Huang Mao: "..."

The fans of his two 4090 graphics cards seemed to stop spinning at that moment.

Sister, let's not talk about whether you came at a bad time or not.

You certainly know how to add fuel to the fire.

Is that how that line is used?

Huang Mao's mouth twitched uncontrollably.

He glanced at Leng Qingxuan, his eyes full of "Are you doing this on purpose?"

Leng Qingxuan blinked, looking innocent.

"Ahem... well, that's actually nothing."

Huang Mao forcibly ignored this fatal line and said into the phone, "An Ran, this is a bit complicated, I can't explain it in a sentence or two, I... hey, why did you hang up?"

...

At the same time.

At the girls' dormitory building a few kilometers away.

Although it was late at night, one could still occasionally hear some playful fighting and the sound of washing in the hallway.

But in Dorm 404, it was eerily quiet.

The other three beds were empty; only under the bed by the window was a small, warm yellow desk lamp lit.

An Ran sat in her chair, wearing a cotton pajama set with a Pikachu pattern printed on it.

Her energetic ponytail, which was usually tied high, was now slightly messy and draped over her shoulders, making her look a bit listless.

That face, which was always brimming with confidence and vitality, was now somewhat pale.

Her phone was thrown on the desktop, the screen still lit, showing the call-ended interface.

She stared fixedly at the screen, as if she wanted to stare a hole through it.

Why did she hang up?

An Ran was asking herself this question too.

She had been so angry just a moment ago, and she had a stomach full of questions she wanted to throw in his face.

But when she heard that woman's voice again, heard that line, "Did I come at a bad time?"

She was afraid.

An unprecedented panic, like a cold hand, instantly gripped her heart.

What was she afraid of?

Afraid that the woman really was a girlfriend he had started dating without her knowing?

Afraid that he would actually admit, "Yes, this is my girlfriend, we're living together"?

If that were really the case... then what was she?

A childhood sweetheart who had followed behind him since she was little, only knew how to play games, and was like a tomboy?

A coward who didn't even dare to confess, only daring to cling to him under the guise of playing games?

Once that fact was laid out on the table, she might not even be able to maintain the relationship she had now—where she could freely get angry at him and call him whenever she wanted.

"I'm such a coward..."

An Ran hugged her knees and buried her face in her arms, her voice muffled and tinged with a hint of crying.

Could this be the "childhood sweetheart always loses" theory that people talk about online?

Was she already destined to regret this for the rest of her life?

No, I don't want that!

At least... at least a few years later, right?

Wait until I become a little prettier, a little more feminine, or wait until the day I have the courage to speak up...

But what if it's already too late?

That woman's voice sounded so pleasant; even that bitchy line had a hint of charm that could make one's bones melt.

It was completely different from her own personality of only knowing how to yell at people.

Does Huang Mao... like that type?

An Ran suddenly lifted her head and grabbed her phone.

Even though she had hung up the phone, she still couldn't help but want an answer.

Even if he was lying to her, it was fine.

Even if it was a lame excuse, it was fine.

As long as he said no, as long as he said it wasn't that kind of relationship.

She would believe him.

Just then, the phone vibrated.

A WeChat notification popped up at the top of the screen.

【Huang Mao: She really is just a friend. The situation is a bit special; she was basically stranded on the street, so I'm letting her stay.】

【Huang Mao: I'm really not lying to you.】

【Huang Mao: If I'm lying, my 4090 graphics card will explode on the spot, my CPU will instantly degrade, and my Steam account will be permanently banned.】

An Ran looked at these few lines of text, and the tears that had already welled up in her eyes were forced back.

"Pfft..."

She couldn't help but laugh through her tears and sniffled.

If he was the one making such a poisonous vow...

It seems... it's true?

An Ran let out a long sigh of relief; the boulder pressing on her chest seemed to be lifted in an instant.

As long as it's not a girlfriend, that's fine.

Even if it's a beautiful woman, as long as they haven't confirmed a relationship, there's still a chance.

She picked up her phone, her fingers tapping quickly on the screen. She originally wanted to reply, "Then hurry up and get online," but her finger hovered over the send button and stopped.

No.

Even if she's not a girlfriend, there is definitely a woman in his room right now.

And it's a woman who can enter his room freely late at night.

How can one be at ease with this?

If she played games with him now, what if that woman was watching from the side?

Just thinking about that scene made An Ran feel congested in her heart, and a wave of jealousy surged up.

【An Ran: Oh.】

【An Ran: I suddenly feel a bit dizzy here.】

【An Ran: I won't play tonight. I'm going to sleep first. We'll talk about it tomorrow.】

After sending these messages, she stuffed her phone under her pillow and lay down on the bed.

She couldn't sleep.

She couldn't sleep at all.

Her head was filled with that woman's voice from earlier.

"Tomorrow..."

An Ran turned over, gritted her teeth, and stared at the ceiling.

"Tomorrow, I must go find him and question him face-to-face!"