Chapter 53

+— Author’s note —-+

Proofreaded by P.D Webb

(1) Tsundere: A Japanese term Tsun Tsun refers to someone who acts cold, blunt, or curt.)

+—————–+

Bing Shi gazed at the stained bedsheet with a giggle, “Xuan Mu, you are so... messy.” After they cleaned and clothed themselves up, Xuan Mu had to tidy her bed.

Xuan Mu put a new white bed sheet over the queen-sized bed, blinking at her innocently, “It’s MuMu’s fault.” He walked to the bathroom and put the stained bedsheets into a washing machine while she tagged along.

‘So cute ??’

.....

Xuan Mu continued, “He is yours, meaning, you are at fault too.”

‘I take it back...’

“You are at fault! Your whole family is at fault!” Instead of pointing her finger at him, she sent him a “death” glare.

“Mm, that’s what I said just a moment ago. Bing Shi, you are a terrible Tsun Tsun(1)” Grinning, he walked to the bedroom with his hands in his pockets.

“Yeah, hehe,” Bing Shi went to the kitchen to prepare tea and fried rice with eggs. They didn’t eat the whole day, he must have been hungry.

· · ———- · ???· ———- · ·

Bing Shi placed the food before Xuan Mu, who was working on his laptop behind her desk, “They said that seven suicides never made the headlines, is he going to be a part of them?” She started to massage his shoulders.

While being her massage guinea pig, he smiled devilishly, “They told you, huh? It’s up to fate. He’ll be out of confinement tomorrow. Those suicides happened. If he is strong enough to fight the inmates, he won’t die... Bing Shi use more force.” He could enjoy a massage, read, and write emails while answering Bing Shi’s questions at the same time, “He could be charged as a stalker too, but it won’t have such an impact on his life when he leaves the prison.”

Bing Shi gaped at his multitasking skills with amazement; she put more pressure on his stiff shoulders, “You are having the time of your life, huh?” She grinned.

‘For god’s sake, you are playing with people’s lives! I should have named you Karma...’

“I hate this world, at least let me play with it,” Xuan Mu pressed his lips together in a little sulk, “If you mean your massage, yes.” He wanted to hear her opinion, even though he knew she would disagree, “Bing Shi, be more careful around your surroundings. Why don’t you become my assistant? I’ll double your wage.”

“Your money is my money, won’t I be at a loss? I’m going to found my own company,” Bing Shi flatly refused, “Why would I choose to be a mere assistant if I could be a boss?” She started to massage his neck, “Also, you have Mia. She would kill me if I stole her position.”

Xuan Mu showed her an email with laughter, “I think I influenced you too much.”

“Not only influenced, you did much more. Without you, I’d be a walking corpse,” Bing Shi leaned over his shoulder and checked the email, “Oh my god!! They agreed?” She squealed in excitement and hugged him from behind.

“Without you, I’d be a corpse,” Xuan Mu smiled and caressed her arm tenderly, “Mm, the whole country is going to develop an old world. People like you are going to be in demand. Happy?”

“Mmm, very happy,” Bing Shi nodded with a broad smile, “And you?”

“A bit,” Xuan Mu grinned, “Feels good but not as good as your hugs.”

“Aw, My Xuan Mu is so smooth ??.” She ran to her handbag, took out her vlog camera, flipped the screen up, and ran behind Xuan Mu, “Enough screenshots. From today onwards, let’s create beautiful memories together.” She hugged his shoulder from behind and pressed their cheek together, “Say my name.”

His eyes brimmed with warmth, “Bing Shi?” When he realized what she did, a photo was taken, ‘Did she just...trick me?’

A young man in a simple black T-shirt and a cute girl in tiger pajamas. Her black-rimmed glasses made her look like a highschooler. Her hand hugged him from behind; their cheeks pressed together. She had a smile on, the same as his.

When someone tried to say Bing aloud, their mouth would naturally raise in an arc. With Shi, the smile would grow wider. Combined, the eyes of the person would brighten.

“Hahaha, the smile with my name looks better than cheese, right?” She laughed out loud, “Suoabn....” Her mouth was silenced by his. He stole her camera and took another photo.

*Sounds of a shutter.*

*Sounds of a shutter.*

After two minutes...

Bing Shi took back the camera with a cheeky grin. Happily, she connected it to a computer and sent the pictures to him via his private chat program. She walked towards his pants on a hanger, took out his wallet, and put the photo behind another – the one where she was hiding behind her arms four years ago.

She ran back and sat next to him, “Try out my cooking.”

Xuan Mu stopped working and looked at the plate with a happy grin. He took the spoon and scooped a spoonful of rice, “If I die, please, place a small rock on my gravestone.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“No worries, I practiced on myself,” Bing Shi pumped her chest proudly, not offended by his teasing at all, “Why not flowers?”

“Don’t you dislike flowers because they die fast? A rock stays forever,” Xuan Mu put the spoon inside his mouth and took in all the flavors.

“Ooh, makes sense,” Bing Shi chuckled and scooped a spoonful for herself.

On Break