Chapter 463

Trapped In Paradise

Usually, after having ‘late-night snacks’, Ning Chu would wake up early the next day, full of energy.

But since she drank last night, she slept all the way until noon. It wasn’t until she heard knocking outside the room that she groggily opened her eyes and pushed the arm she’d been using as a pillow.

“Someone’s knocking…”

Her voice was hoarse and soft, her head still foggy with a faint ache. It made her not want to get up at all—she just wanted to stay in bed.

“I’ll get it.”

Wen Yang pulled his arm out from under Ning Chu’s head, shook out his sore arm, got up from the bed wearing only a pair of loose shorts, and went to open the door.

“Big bro, the sun’s already shining on your butt and you’re still not up?”

Zhang Shaoqing appeared at the door with a cheeky grin, calling Wen Yang “big bro” every other word while waggling his eyebrows. “Mind if I come in? Must’ve been a rough night, huh?”

“He went downstairs to buy lunch.”

Zhang Shaoqing trotted in, glanced over at the bed, and saw Ning Chu with most of her head buried under the blanket, only a pair of half-open eyes showing.

The bed was neat and tidy, with no signs of any intense battle at all.

“Big bro, we’ve got to check out in an hour.”

“Alright, I’ll pack up real quick.”

“Why are you calling Wen Yang ‘big bro’ now?” Ning Chu poked her head out from under the blanket, yawning as she asked.

She was dressed neatly, just a little rumpled. Even though the hotel bed looked clean, she still found it gross—whenever she stayed in a hotel, she always slept fully dressed.

“Because his dick is huge!”

“???”

Ning Chu froze for a second, not immediately processing what he meant.

Zhang Shaoqing clasped his hands together at Ning Chu in mock respect, bowed deeply, and shouted, “Sister-in-law!”

To be honest, he didn’t know whether he should admire Wen Yang for being able to stay so lively with a succubus as his girlfriend, or admire Ning Chu for being able to handle a boyfriend with such… exceptional “talent.”

Either way, both of them were impressive.

No wonder Wen Yang never seemed tempted by all those pretty girls throwing themselves at him, turns out he knew ordinary girls just couldn’t handle it.

“Idiot!” Ning Chu couldn’t be bothered to deal with this clown. Propping herself up with her weak body, she leaned against the headboard.

She rubbed her sore eyes, then stared blankly ahead with those dazed, pretty eyes.

“Sister-in-law, here, have some water.”

Zhang Shaoqing, wearing a mockingly respectful grin, handed Ning Chu a bottle of mineral water.

She hadn’t had any water all night and her throat felt like it was on fire, so Ning Chu didn’t refuse. She took the bottle and gulped down a few mouthfuls.

“Sister-in-law, when you were living in the boys’ dorm back then, had you already set your sights on kidnapping Wen Yang?”

“What year’s-old rumor is that? Why are people still bringing it up now?” Ning Chu muttered.

It was something Lin Li had made up back then after getting her plans ruined by her, spouting nonsense in the class group chat. No one had taken it seriously.

“Oh~”

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

She suddenly felt wary, afraid this guy had some weird ideas about her.

“At the start of last school year, you were kind of a little handsome guy…” Zhang Shaoqing muttered as he turned his head away and sat down in the computer chair. “Who knew you’d turn out to be a succubus? Such a huge change.”

That casual remark instantly made Ning Chu’s face flush bright red, like it was on fire.

Can you not bring up the past?!

She’d almost forgotten she used to be a guy…

“Back then she hadn’t started developing yet and had short hair, of course she looked like a boy,” Wen Yang said casually as he finished washing up and walked out of the bathroom, helping Ning Chu explain.

“True. After growing her hair out, she did get a lot prettier.”

Footsteps sounded in the hallway. A moment later, Wang Jie came in carrying several large bags.

“Lunch!” Wang Jie set the fried chicken and burgers down on the table and turned to Zhang Shaoqing. “I’ve gotta go see my girlfriend later. I’ll head out after we eat.”

“Wow, really? The whole dorm finally gets together and you’re already thinking about women?” Zhang Shaoqing scoffed.

Wang Jie gave a wry smile. “I don’t want to go either, it’s a hassle. The ride alone takes a few hours.”

“I’ll drive you! Let me see what your girl looks like while we’re at it?”

“Well… sure, I guess?”

“Exactly! What are you hiding her for?” Zhang Shaoqing said as he casually opened the wrappers on the burgers and fried chicken, teasing, “I thought your girlfriend must be some kind of beast. Every weekend you come back looking half-dead. Turns out you’re just too weak.”

“……”

“If you were at Wen Yang’s level, wouldn’t you have your wife completely wrapped around your finger?”

“She’d probably end up in the hospital first…”

Ning Chu silently agreed with that.

“Get up and eat your burger! What are you two doing later?”

“I’ll take Ning Chu to watch a movie,” Wen Yang said with a smile as he handed her a burger. “I’m usually pretty busy on weekends. Today I’ll spend some proper time with her.”

“What are you even busy with?”

“Part-time jobs. Gotta make some money.”

Zhang Shaoqing scratched his head and muttered, “Why don’t you just queue up with me? I’ll give you ten bucks a game. You won’t make much working part-time anyway.”

Wen Yang could only shrug. There wasn’t much to talk about on this topic with a rich second-gen.

Even though lunch was just burgers and fried chicken, Ning Chu hadn’t had this kind of food in a long time, so having it once in a while wasn’t bad.

While eating, Wang Jie still logged into his game to do some daily tasks. Zhang Shaoqing, as usual, cracked jokes and teased his roommates. Ning Chu sat at the head of the bed with her legs curled up, looking at the familiar scene in front of her and letting out a long sigh.

Life now was pretty good, but she still found herself missing those days when she was a guy, messing around recklessly in a crowd of men.

As time went by, she could no longer clearly piece together what she’d looked like as a man. Those old memories were becoming more and more fragmented, as if she’d been born a woman to begin with.

“Here’s a drumstick.”

Wen Yang wrapped a chicken drumstick in a napkin and handed it to Ning Chu, reminding her softly, “It’s a bit hot. Be careful.”

“Mm… I don’t really want the bun anymore…”

“Give it to me. You just eat the meat.”

Zhang Shaoqing muttered from the side, “Who eats a burger without the bun?”

“I don’t want the skin on the drumstick either.”

Wen Yang replied with a simple “okay,” crouched by the trash can, and carefully peeled off all the crispy skin from the drumstick, leaving behind the tender, juicy meat.

“Who eats a drumstick without the skin?”

“I’m afraid of getting fat!” Ning Chu answered righteously.

“You eat late-night snacks every day and you’re not afraid of getting fat then.”

“Huh?”

She froze for a moment, instinctively tensing up, her fingers crumpling the napkin in her hand.

Handing her the drumstick, Wen Yang lowered his voice. “He thinks it’s just late-night snacks.”

“Oh…”

Ning Chu let out a small breath of relief. “I thought I might’ve said something weird last night when I was drunk.”

“Not really. You were just pretty wild. No idea if the soundproofing here is any good, though.”

“!!!”

Ning Chu’s big eyes filled with flustered panic. She glanced nervously at Zhang Shaoqing and tried to comfort herself. “This is an e-sports hotel. The soundproofing should be pretty good, right?”

Seeing how embarrassed and shy she looked, Wen Yang smiled and nodded. “Maybe.”

Link for character illustration:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IxOucqi87ss3bmqfO9zI2gYiM1Gy8Hz2