CH 37.2

meanwhile, si chu and ye feiran sat in the lounge area, with a large snake-skin bag filled with unwrapped blind boxes on the floor and a pair of big hidden figurines on the table.

“which one is little uncle trying to draw? the mystery edition?”

“i don’t know. all i know is, if he keeps drawing, he’ll miss his flight.”

“how about we snatch the wheelchair later and push him out?”

“that’s not very reliable. i think he’s not into the blind boxes themselves; he probably just enjoys the thrill of opening the unknown. how about we buy twenty boxes and let him open them on the plane for fun?”

“that works, it’s not like it’s expensive.”

as they discussed, the sound of the wheelchair rolling across the floor gradually approached. si chu and ye feiran both looked up simultaneously, seeing a particularly fatigued figure slowly approaching. xiao zhenyun placed his little hidden figurine on the table and pushed it toward si chu. “it’s for you.”

then, he added emotionlessly, “you like this one, and i just happened to draw it, does that mean we’re destined?”

si chu: “…”

he lowered his head to glance at the snake-skin bag, blind boxes on the ground and then looked back at xiao zhenyun’s utterly uninterested expression.

the little dog was shocked!!!

little uncle, have you lost your mind from opening blind boxes? can you even understand what you’re saying? why is someone spouting nonsense so early in the morning!

ye feiran furrowed his brow as he looked at the little hidden figurine on the table, then glanced at xiao zhenyun. he seemed to sense that something was wrong and discreetly pursed his lips, avoiding the gaze of the others.

finally, xiao zhenyun completed this agonizing game of luck. with a sigh of relief, he reached out and took the two big hidden figurines on the table. he turned to the cashier and said, “sorry for the trouble, but we’re in a hurry to catch our flight. we can’t take the rest of the blind boxes with us. could you please dispose of them for us?”

cashier: “…”

cashier: “safe travels?”

although he had mentally prepared for the high probability that the blind box drawing wouldn’t go smoothly, xiao zhenyun still felt physically and mentally exhausted. just thinking that this was just the beginning, and there would be more plot development on the plane, made him feel even worse.

originally, his seat was arranged in the first-class vip cabin. according to the plot, he would have to switch to the regular quiet cabin during the flight just to get closer to si chu. then, along the way, he would ask si chu if he was hungry, thirsty, or bothered by any noise.

xiao zhenyun reclined in the soft seat of the first-class cabin, which came with just a twenty-minute grace period. he really didn’t want to get up for business.

xiao nian, from school, sent xiao zhenyun a message after probably finishing a class: breakfast and the blind box plot have both passed the red marks, with restoration rates of 75% and 90%, respectively. well done.

xiao zhenyun: ?

xiao zhenyun: how did that happen?

xiao zhenyun: 90% for that? i opened six boxes, and it took at least seventy tries to get it right.

xiao nian: …

having spent several months with xiao zhenyun, the administrator had a good understanding of his temperament. he knew he was probably on the verge of exploding, so he quickly brought out sweet dates to console him.

xiao nian: do you know the scoring mechanism teachers use when grading exams? as long as you write down the vocabulary that earns points, it doesn’t matter what else you write. i believe the key points for this scene are casually picking one from a full box, the small surprise, and then giving it to si chu. si chu accepts it, and you recite the scripted line verbatim. anything explicitly stated in the novel needs to be faithfully reproduced, but for anything not clearly mentioned, you can improvise.

xiao nian: sometimes, even if you convey the general idea and achieve the same result, it’s acceptable.

xiao nian: so don’t stress too much. stay calm and keep going.

xiao zhenyun: …

xiao zhenyun: i understand now.

xiao nian: what do you understand?

xiao nian: hello?!

ten minutes after takeoff, the person in the seat to the left of si chu suddenly transformed into xiao zhenyun. the colleague who had been sitting in that seat before stood by, looking puzzled, and a flight attendant was also waiting, assisting xiao zhenyun in his wheelchair.

“little uncle?”

ye feiran, in the window seat, also turned his head in confusion, furrowing his brows involuntarily upon seeing xiao zhenyun.

“xiao chu,” xiao zhenyun ‘kindly’ asked, “you had such a small breakfast, are you hungry?”

si chu: …

si chu: “not hungry… little uncle, did you forget? most of your breakfast was actually eaten by me…”

xiao zhenyun smiled and asked again, “are you thirsty? should i have the flight attendant bring you your favorite guava grape juice?”

“it’s not necessary…”

“are you okay sitting here? is it too noisy?”

“no, it’s fine… this is a quiet cabin, and the other sentinels are sitting here too, right?”

“alright, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask me. no need to be formal with your uncle.” after that, xiao zhenyun smiled at the nearby flight attendant and said, “please help me back into my wheelchair.”

the airline’s flight attendants were indeed well-trained. faced with such a puzzling situation, they didn’t even furrow their brows. their standard eight-tooth smiles remained unchanged as they confidently helped xiao zhenyun back into his wheelchair.

“thanks for switching positions with me for five minutes,” xiao zhenyun said to the fellow sentinel standing beside him.

“no big deal,” the sentinel colleague chuckled heartily.

as xiao zhenyun walked away, si chu couldn’t help but scratch his head and joked, “feiran, do you think little uncle is acting strangely today? did he secretly drink again last night?”

“…si chu,” ye feiran wore a serious expression, and to prevent other sentinels from overhearing their conversation, he switched to typing on his terminal: little uncle does seem rather strange today. i feel like his attitude towards you… is unusually warm.

si chu concealed his expression: what do you mean?

ye feiran: well, how should i put it? he seems to be deliberately trying to please you.

si chu: is ‘please’ the right word to use? he’s always been good to me because he’s my little uncle.

ye feiran: how can a normal uncle-nephew relationship explain his current behavior?

si chu: i don’t understand what you’re trying to say.

ye feiran: i haven’t figured out the reason, but i just have a feeling that something is off about him.

ye feiran: could it be that he’s having problems with brother di? didn’t brother di mention that garry moved into little uncle’s place? brother di has been away for a while, and could little uncle have done something to hurt brother di, feeling guilty, and now he wants to make it up to you, brother di’s younger brother?

si chu: how can you fabricate stories about little uncle like that?

ye feiran: i’m just speculating. you have to admit that little uncle’s behavior today is very strange.

si chu: he didn’t get enough sleep, and brother di said he woke up in a bad mood. he had to wake up early today, so he’s not thinking clearly.

ye feiran: do you really believe that excuse?

ye feiran: and here’s another question, why does he insist on taking this flight? there are plenty of flights to the training ground for the tower and union, and he could have taken the one in the afternoon. he even qualifies to take the chairman’s special plane.

si chu: i don’t care. until you have concrete evidence, you’re not allowed to speak ill of little uncle.

ye feiran: can’t you be a bit more rational? don’t be so impulsive and dismissive. i never said that little uncle’s odd behavior definitely means he did something wrong. the earlier part was just one possibility. it’s also possible that he’s facing some trouble. what i’m saying is we need to pay attention to him.

si chu: i’m impulsive? why don’t you call yourself petty? holding a grudge for two or three years over a minor issue.

ye feiran: si chu, are you trying to pick a fight?

a pleasant nap in the air came to an end. xiao zhenyun was the first to get off, and as he waited at the luggage carousel, he saw ye feiran and si chu walking past, ignoring each other, clearly having a disagreement.

what’s going on?

have they actually matured? have they started to navigate the plot on their own?

hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). i hope you enjoyed the story! if you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! check out the link below for early chapters.  (๑>ᴗ