Chapter 30: Hee-hee, Ha-ha

Xia Yehe’s home was actually right above this barbecue restaurant. Chen Nuo carried Xia Yehe on his back, with the server, Tian, leading the way. Xia Yehe was indeed very light, but carrying her upstairs was still not particularly easy.

Anyone who has carried a drunkard knows that once a person is drunk, they become exceptionally heavy.

This building had six floors in total, an old house from the 80s. Not only was there no elevator, but the hallway was narrow and the steps were high. By the time Chen Nuo carried Xia Yehe up to the fourth floor where she lived, he was already sweating in the middle of winter.

Tian skillfully fished a key out of Xia Yehe’s bag and opened the door. "Usually, the two of us girls have to lift her together, and our boss isn't very happy about it. It’ll be better now that we have you."

Chen Nuo forced a bitter smile and carried Xia Yehe into the room.

Tian received a phone call at this moment; it seemed there were customers at the shop, and the boss was urging her to come downstairs quickly.

"That’s that, then. I’m heading to the shop first; you just put Sister He on the bed." Tian placed the key on the shoe cabinet and turned to head downstairs.

Only Xia Yehe and Chen Nuo were left in the room.

This was a sparsely furnished single room containing only a bed, a TV stand, and a 20-plus-inch color TV. Let alone air conditioning, there wasn't even a wardrobe, only a clothes rack. As Xia Yehe had said, she had already moved quite a few things to the dormitory, so the room was empty. Cold wind whistled in through the gaps around the windows and doors, chilling one to the bone.

Chen Nuo placed Xia Yehe on the bed, took off her shoes, pulled both quilts on the bed over to cover her, and draped several thick clothes from the side on top of the quilts. He didn't know if this would be warm enough, but looking around, he couldn't find anything else to keep out the cold.

Afterward, he glanced at Xia Yehe, whose eyes were tightly shut. Although he was a scumbag, he wasn't a loser; he couldn't possibly take advantage of someone in this state.

He didn't stay long, either; he closed the door quietly and left.

What Chen Nuo didn't know was that the moment he clicked the door shut, Xia Yehe, who had appeared to be completely unconscious on the bed, suddenly opened her eyes. She was indeed drunk and had truly blacked out, but as they went upstairs, her consciousness had slowly returned, and she had simply been forced to keep up the act.

By now, the sky had darkened, and the lights from the highway outside filtered through the window in shadowy patterns. Xia Yehe kept her eyes wide open in the darkness, her gaze flickering, though no one knew what she was thinking.

The next day, Chen Nuo received a call from Chen Kexin early in the morning.

On the phone, Chen Kexin seemed to be in a good mood. "Nuo-zai, I'm in Shanghai. Let's grab a meal together today."

Chen Nuo said in surprise, "Ah, Director Chen, have you finished filming the scenes in Jingcheng? I haven't even practiced my dance well yet."

Chen Kexin laughed. "Not at all. I'm here this time because the leadership summoned me. Oh, right, you're practicing dance at the song and dance troupe, right?"

"Yes."

"That’s perfect. I need to go over there to discuss some things, too. We'll talk when we meet."

After hanging up, Chen Nuo checked his watch and couldn't help but be startled. It was already past 8:20. He didn't know if his morning alarm hadn't gone off or if he hadn't heard it, but in any case, he was half an hour later than usual; it seemed he was definitely going to be late.

He blamed the dream he had last night—bizarre, vivid, and making him toss and turn in a daze, resulting in very poor sleep quality. Sure enough, by the time he arrived at the song and dance troupe, it was past 9:30. Xia Yehe and a few other girls were inside doing leg stretches. They had originally been chatting and laughing about something, and the laughter could be heard in the hallway, but the moment Chen Nuo appeared at the door, the group instantly fell silent.

"Teacher Xia, I'm sorry, I overslept this morning." Chen Nuo apologized repeatedly as soon as he entered. "I'm really sorry, it won't happen again."

Seeing Chen Nuo’s cowardly look in the mirror, a girl with a melon-seed face couldn't help but purse her lips and smile. "Teacher Xia, you're so amazing. Look at how you scared him; I feel so bad for him."

With her taking the lead, the other two girls also started chattering away.

"Xia Yehe, how did you train him? Such an obedient student, I want one too."

"That's right, Teacher Xia, don't hog him all to yourself, okay? Lend your student to us to use for a bit." A long-haired girl with a somewhat plump figure spun around in place, struck a curvy pose, and winked at Chen Nuo. "Chen Nuo, what do you think of me? Whatever Teacher Xia taught you, I can actually do it too~"

With the life experience of two lifetimes, there wasn't anyone Chen Nuo hadn't seen, but having been "eating vegetarian" for so long, he could only smile when suddenly encountering such enthusiastic and bold behavior, not to mention Xia Yehe’s reaction.

Her small face, originally as fair as jade, turned bright red, just like a ripe peach. She stomped her foot and said, "Liu Jiaojiao, stop messing around. Get out quickly, I’m about to start teaching dance."

"Oh." Liu Jiaojiao covered her mouth and feigned surprise. "Do we have to leave for Teacher Xia to teach? Teacher Xia, what kind of dance are you planning to teach? Is it the kind you dance with clothes on, or the kind you dance without clothes?"

"Haha..." "Giggle..."

As soon as she said this, the other two girls laughed until tears came out, making Xia Yehe so angry that she reached out to pinch Liu Jiaojiao’s waist. Liu Jiaojiao turned and ran, and the two of them ran and chased each other around the dance studio, with two others cheering on the sidelines; for a moment, it was extremely lively. Just then, a stern voice suddenly came from the doorway: "What are you all making a scene about? This is work time!"

A middle-aged woman wearing glasses stood at the door, her expression extremely serious, without a trace of a smile. Sharp eyes projected from behind the lenses like two keen blades, as if they would poke bloody holes in Xia Yehe and the others in the next second.

Xia Yehe and the others instantly shut their mouths and stood obediently in place, hands behind their backs and heads lowered, not daring to make a sound, looking exactly like elementary school students caught by a teacher.

"Mom, look, I really wasn't lying to you. They treat this classroom like a playground. They run here whenever they have nothing to do, and when they arrive, they don't practice dancing, they just mess around here, not taking you seriously at all." A man with a feminine appearance stood behind the woman, adding fuel to the fire.

Chen Nuo recognized this man; he was exactly that Guo Junxuan from yesterday, and this menopausal woman in front of Guo Junxuan was clearly his mother, the deputy troupe leader.

"Deputy Troupe Leader Li, we didn't..."

Hearing Guo Junxuan say this, Xia Yehe couldn't help but want to say something.

But she had only said two words when that Deputy Troupe Leader Li interrupted her in a shrill voice: "You didn't? What did I just see? First thing in the morning, you lot are here laughing and messing around; if this isn't treating the place like a playground, then what is it? Xia Yehe, the only reason you could be in a movie this time is because of my face, all because I’m soft-hearted. Have you forgotten how you were crying and begging me? And you dare to talk back to me?"

(End of chapter)