Chapter 211

At eight-thirty in the evening, when leaving Bihai Lanting, Xie Shuchen and Shao Youpeng felt numb all over.

They knew Li Luo, Ying Chanxi, and Xu Youyu got along well, but they never imagined the three were living together!

Living under the same roof every day—how could their relationship not be close?

"Ying Chanxi is Li Luo's cousin; it's understandable for relatives to live together," Xie Shuchen could only comfort himself, "Xu Youyu just happened to rent a room in their place—though it's a coincidence, it's not entirely unacceptable."

Niu Qingling beside them had little to say, only remarking: "But this kind of thing, we'd better not spread it around—you two should be careful."

Shao Youpeng nodded, originally planning to mention it to his cousin, but thought better of it, not wanting to further discourage him.

But the next second, he suddenly felt something was off, turning a suspicious gaze toward Xie Shuchen and asking curiously: "Where did you hear that Ying Chanxi is Li Luo's cousin?"

"Huh? Isn't she?" Xie Shuchen asked, puzzled. "She said it herself in class before."

"Really?" Shao Youpeng felt strange. "But I have a cousin who was in middle school with them—he says they're just neighbors living next door, childhood friends since childhood, no blood relation at all."

"What?" Xie Shuchen widened his eyes, disbelieving. "How's that possible? If they weren't relatives, how could Ying Chanxi's parents allow her to live with a boy? That's impossible."

Hearing this, Shao Youpeng found it somewhat reasonable, and became confused.

Still, he didn't care much about Ying Chanxi's situation—he felt a twinge of discomfort.

After all, the class monitor he'd secretly admired for so long was now living under the same roof as Li Luo.

Just thinking about it made him insanely jealous.

If this news reached the students of Fu No. 1 High, it would spark a massive gossip storm.

But since they'd been bandmates for a semester, none of them had any intention of spreading rumors.

After digesting this bombshell, Xie Shuchen and Shao Youpeng were filled only with envy toward Li Luo.

Too bad Li Luo's house only had four rooms, and the last one was already taken by Yan Zhusheng—otherwise, they'd pay double the rent just to move in.

As Niu Qingling and the others left, Li Luo was tidying up the living room of Bihai Lanting 1502.

As for the three girls… uh…

Li Luo listened closely and faintly heard laughter and splashing from inside the bathroom.

Hmm… after eating hot pot, they all smelled, so after seeing off the guests, Xu Youyu suggested a shower—and then grinned mischievously, dragging Yan Zhusheng and Ying Chanxi in with her.

She claimed it saved time.

But now it seemed it only wasted more.

After tidying the living room, Li Luo headed toward his bedroom.

As he passed through the hallway, he inevitably walked past the bathroom door.

"Chanxi, let me wash you."

"Academy sister, stop touching! You're way bigger than me—why do you keep feeling me up?"

"They're cute too—I love this tiny, one-handful size."

"Then go feel up Zhusheng."

"Zhusheng… still needs development."

"Mmm…" Yan Zhusheng stayed silent.

Li Luo could easily picture her, hands clasped over her chest, head bowed in quietness.

"But I love Zhusheng's legs the most, hehe." Xu Youyu, like a pervert, finished touching Ying Chanxi and rushed over to hug Yan Zhusheng.

"Academy sister, don't touch my legs in weird places."

"Cough… I'm just washing you."

Just hearing this, Li Luo thought his academy sister had gone insane—he hurried past and rushed back to his bedroom.

He opened his computer, typed a few lines to calm down, when the QQ icon in the lower-right corner began flashing.

He clicked it open and saw a message from his editor, Qianzhou.

【Qianzhou】: Don't forget the symposium on the 6th—remind your parents.

【Qianzhou】: If your parents are worried, I can arrange for you to bring them along.

【Chongran】: No need—I can go by myself.

【Qianzhou】: Alright, I'll arrive in Yuhang City on the evening of the 5th—we'll meet on the 6th.

【Qianzhou】: I'll send you the hotel and venue details later—rooms are already booked, meals and lodging included.

【Qianzhou】: But you're not short on cash—if the hotel food sucks, feel free to eat out.

【Qianzhou】: This symposium will have leaders from the Writers' Association, plus many big names from the Online Novel world—you should meet them.

【Chongran】: Got it.

Soon after, Qianzhou sent over some preliminary promotional materials for the symposium, listing numerous famous Online Novel authors.

All were ancient giants Li Luo had long known by reputation.

Some remained active for decades into the future; others became indelible marks in the history of Online Novel development.

For instance, the two who wrote "Doupo Cangqiong" and "Xuezhong Han Daoxing"—it's said they once shared a dorm room.

Li Luo thought of this, then thought of Xu Youyu—he realized they were now roommates too.

If both of them someday became Qidian Grandmasters, wouldn't that be a nice story?

As Li Luo pondered this, he noticed it was nearly ten p. m., so he went into the bathroom to shower.

But when he finished and came out to get a glass of water, he found Ying Chanxi and the other two still in the bathroom.

It wasn't until half past ten that they each emerged from the misty bathroom one by one.

If they'd showered separately, each would've taken no more than forty to fifty minutes—usually half an hour was enough.

But all three together took over two hours—no one knew what they'd been doing in there.

All Xu Youyu said as she rubbed her stomach toward Li Luo in the living room was: "I'm hungry."

"Didn't you eat plenty of hot pot tonight? Why are you hungry again?"

How could that be? It must be because I exercised too much just now.

But Xu Youyu didn't dare say it out loud—she could only write it like that when writing her novel; in front of her junior, she still had to maintain some modesty and grace.

"Stop asking so many questions," Xu Youyu said, kicking Li Luo's leg with her still-damp feet, "I want fried rice."

Yan Zhusheng, who was following behind, immediately chimed in: "I want fried rice too."

"Then I want some too!" Ying Chanxi, though not very hungry, added along, "Just a little bit, that's all."

"... You're really treating me like your personal cook," Li Luo said, standing up with a blank expression, heading toward the kitchen.

After being reborn, I was supposed to change my past fate—but now it looks like I'm still going to be cooking every single day?

In my previous life, I spent all day cooking for Xu Youyu and Yan Zhusheng; I never imagined it'd be the same now.

Except now there's also Ying Chanxi.

"Let me help you."

Ying Chanxi followed him into the kitchen, immediately putting on an apron and claiming a spot.

Yan Zhusheng curiosity followed them in, but Ying Chanxi pressed her shoulders down and pushed her back to the living room sofa: "Zhusheng, you're a guest—just sit here and watch TV for a while; I'll call you when the fried rice is ready."

"Oh."

In the kitchen, Li Luo and Ying Chanxi got busy.

Xu Youyu returned to her bedroom, planning to write some fiction and check her QQ messages.

Then she saw a message from her editor, Qianzhou.

The gist was similar to what Li Luo had just seen: reminding her to attend the symposium on February 6th, and adding that if her parents were worried, they could come along too.

Xu Youyu chuckled inwardly, thinking she'd never bring her parents—she'd rather avoid them entirely.

【EarlyToSleepWillMakeYouTaller】: Don't worry, Editor, I'll go alone.

【Qianzhou】: Then let's contact each other on the 6th. Since you're still a minor, I must prioritize your personal safety.

【Qianzhou】: Once you arrive at the venue, besides attending the event, during your free time, stay in the hotel unless you're dining with familiar author friends—avoid going out alone, okay?

With a girl, Qianzhou's warnings were noticeably more numerous.

After all, if anything happened, he'd have a hard time explaining to her parents.

【EarlyToSleepWillMakeYouTaller】: Got it, thanks for your concern, Editor—I'll treat you to dinner then!

【Qianzhou】: I'll be waiting.

After finishing her chat with the editor, Xu Youyu began typing again, only stopping when Ying Chanxi knocked on her door to call her for late-night snacks.

After the four of them finished eating in the living room, Li Luo patted his belly, handed the dishwashing duty to Xu Youyu and Yan Zhusheng, then got up and returned to his bedroom.

Ying Chanxi followed him in, sauntering into his room; Li Luo looked at her strangely and asked, "Why are you coming in?"

"Hmm… I was just thinking…" Ying Chanxi glanced shyly at Li Luo's bed, then said, "Tomorrow's the 1st—doesn't that mean we're going back home to live?"

"Right, it's winter break now—we definitely have to go home."

"So today's our last night here," Ying Chanxi said, her eyes darting, whispering a suggestion, "So… should we stay up late and watch a movie, like last time?"

Li Luo didn't mind watching a movie, but he stared at Ying Chanxi skeptically: "Can you even stay awake? Last time you fell asleep halfway through."

"Ah, that was New Year's Eve at school—I was just exhausted from all the fun," Ying Chanxi whispered in explanation. "Tonight I don't feel that sleepy—what do you think?"

"You're impossible," Li Luo sighed, shaking his head. He pulled out the notebook computer Yan Zhusheng had lent him, climbed onto the bed, and settled in.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi's face lit up with delight; she happily scrambled onto the bed beside him and sat upright against the headboard, obediently.

"What movie are we watching tonight?"

"Whatever. I don't care."

Since he didn't care, Li Luo picked a movie he'd never seen in his previous life.

But before the opening credits even finished, someone suddenly knocked on the bedroom door.

Yan Zhusheng opened the door and poked her head in, immediately spotting Li Luo and Ying Chanxi lying on the bed; her expression went momentarily blank.

"Chanxi, are you sleeping here tonight?"

"N-No! …" Ying Chanxi's cheeks flushed red as she waved her hands frantically. "We're just watching a movie together."

"Oh." Yan Zhusheng nodded, walked in, closed the door, then curiously edged over to the other side of the bed, glanced at the notebook in Li Luo's hands, bit her lip, and asked, "Can I watch too? I can't sleep."

"Y-Yes, of course!" Ying Chanxi found no excuse to refuse, and reluctantly agreed.

But when Yan Zhusheng unhesitatingly pulled back the covers and snuggled up to Li Luo's other side, Ying Chanxi silently bit her lip.

I should've been more generous earlier—just pulled Yan Zhusheng to lie beside me right away.

Now it was Li Luo's turn to be speechless.

This scene felt oddly familiar, except the person on the left had changed.

"Where's the senior?" Li Luo asked. "Since we're all watching, why not call her too?"

"The senior finished washing the dishes and went back to her room to sleep," Yan Zhusheng replied, not moving.

Ying Chanxi on the other side certainly wasn't getting up either; she merely said, "The senior's probably already asleep—don't go disturb her."

"Fine," Li Luo resumed the paused movie.

Ying Chanxi rolled onto her side and turned off the bedroom light.

The room plunged into darkness.

More than half an hour later, as Li Luo was fully engrossed in the film, he suddenly felt a weight settle on his right shoulder.

He turned his head—and sighed helplessly.

Ying Chanxi had dozed off, her head resting against his shoulder.

Before even a few minutes passed, his left shoulder sank too.

Li Luo stared blankly at the movie, thinking: Tonight, I guess I won't be sleeping at all.