Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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Su Xi had things to do this weekend, and the cast on her leg was almost ready to be removed. She still had to be careful walking, but she could walk slowly without any problems. And her parents weren’t home, so she made an appointment with Gu Qin and Huo Jingchuan to go with them and get her cast removed first, then go shopping. They needed to buy some reference books, so she could not play games for too long.
So after visiting the lantern festival, she planned to log off. Before logging off, she touched the cub’s little hand, then wiped a little snow from under the eaves, and smeared it on the tip of the cub’s nose to tease him.
Lu Huan felt a chill of ice and snow on the tip of his nose. So he reached out and wiped it away, smiling, “Don’t make trouble.”
But then he realized something. Although there was still a smile on his face, his eyes were suddenly filled with panic.
His eyelashes trembled nervously, and he looked up into space, whispering, “…are you leaving for something?”
Su Xi touched his left hand.
He was stunned for a moment, his face showing a look of loneliness, like a deserted building after a bustling atmosphere. However, he tried not to let his disappointment show, and continued with a smile, “Well, see you tomorrow. Be careful with everything you do.”
Su Xi calculated the time and realized that by the time she would get back from shopping, it would be the next night in the game, just in time for the Imperial Palace Banquet. That way, she could spend some more time with the cub. So, she touched the cub’s left hand again, then raised her hand to open the system and exit the game.
When exiting this game, it was not terminated directly, but the screen slowly faded out as it returned to the main interface.
Before, the cub didn’t know about Su Xi’s existence, so he didn’t know every time Su Xi went online or offline.
But this time, when Su Xi exited the game, he was stunned. On the gradually dimming screen, she saw the tiny figure of the cub, still standing in front of the window. Since he didn’t know in which direction she left, he didn’t know where to look, and his gaze remained fixed on the void.
He seemed unsure whether she had left or not, so after she touched his left hand for the last time, he still stood there stupidly, motionless.
A dialog box then popped up on the screen— as he asked again, “Have you left yet?”
When he got no answer, white bubbles slowly appeared above his head – “So, when will we meet tomorrow?”
Still no response.
He was just left there, staring into space.
White bubbles—— “They’ve already left.
He then lowered his eyes.
….
Before the screen completely faded out, the cub was still waiting there. Without waiting for any response, and after making sure she was gone, he slowly turned around and looked out the window at the still bustling street below.
However at this moment, he was standing with his hands behind his back, his back to Su Xi, so it was impossible to see the expression on his face.
Su Xi: …
Why? She just quit a game, why was she treated like she was leaving him?!
Seeing the cub like this, Su Xi almost had the urge to log back online! But then Gu Qin called and urged her to hurry out. Her attention was immediately diverted. Afraid of being late for the date, she quickly jumped out of bed on one foot and went to change clothes.
….
Meanwhile, Lu Huan stayed in the clothing store for a while, looking at the lights of the streets, and then went downstairs from the store, holding the robe she had chosen for him and the bag of rouge in his arms.
Amidst the noisy lights, he walked through the crowd and returned to Ning Wang’s Mansion alone.
He knew that the ghost had her own things to do and could not stay by his side forever…but perhaps because she was invisible and intangible, he did not feel safe at all.
It’s like facing a void, and I can only wait passively, not knowing when she will appear or when she will leave quietly.
If one day, something unexpected happened, and like the last time, it disappeared for eight whole days—or even longer, or never appeared again, then what could he do…?
Lu Huan pondered these thoughts but didn’t show them on his face. He returned to Chaiyuan through the side door as usual. Earlier, the old lady had offered him a new resting yard to the west, where he could move in. That yard, with its flowing water, rockery, and clear springs, was just as good as the houses of the brothers Lu Yu’an and Lu Wenxiu.
But Lu Huan refused.
After all, Ning Wang’s Mansion was not a place for him to stay for long. He had never thought of staying here for the rest of his life. Besides, there were too many memories between him and that person in this Chaiyuan.
He raised his eyes and looked at the lantern swaying under the eaves, his eyes filled with warmth.
….
Su Xi changed into a pink sweatshirt and walked slowly down the sidewalk, arm in arm with Gu Qin. Huo Jingchuan carried their books behind them, looking bored. It was already noon, and the three of them planned to find a place to eat at the mall.
“Speaking of which, do you feel like your luck has improved recently?” Gu Qin glanced at her foot, which had been successfully removed from the cast, and said, “Ever since you won the lottery.”
In the past, Su Xi was extremely unlucky. Even drinking cold water would get stuck in her teeth. When walking on the street with her, her two childhood friends Gu Qin and Huo Jingchuan never dared to let her walk on the side close to traffic, for fear that a car would suddenly hit the flower bed and sweep Su Xi away.
But since she left the hospital, such bad luck had hardly happened again.
“…It has indeed gotten better.” Su Xi was the one who felt it most obviously, especially during this large-scale exam. She didn’t even have any problems like her pen breaking in the middle of the exam. It was truly a blessing from heaven that she was able to complete the exam smoothly.
Gu Qin complained, “You wore red underwear every year, and it didn’t work at all. How come your luck has suddenly changed now?”
Of course, Su Xi couldn’t say it was because of a game. Even if she did, her friends wouldn’t believe her and might even think she was crazy. After all, they couldn’t find the game on their phones.
The three of them found a Sichuan restaurant and sat down.
Gu Qin and Huo Jingchuan decided to take advantage of Su Xi and ordered a few more dishes.
The three of them chatted about school while eating, waiting for the rest of the dishes to arrive. A waitress then came with a plate of steaming fish soup, and said to Su Xi, “Beautiful girl, move the dishes inside so I can put the fish soup down—”
But at this moment, before the waitress could finish her words, her feet suddenly slipped.
The extremely hot fish soup in her hand was about to hit Su Xi’s shoulder. Gu Qin was frightened and screamed, “Be careful!”
Huo Jingchuan also stood up immediately.
Su Xi’s pupils shrank sharply, her heartbeat in her throat, as she hurriedly dodged to the other side.
The waitress was almost scared to death and tried to save the situation in a panic.
But.
“Bang!” The fish soup hotpot fell to the ground. Although the soup splashed all over the floor, not a drop of it splashed on Su Xi.
The ground was steaming hot, and this scene happened in a short moment, and the other waiters had no time to react.
After finally reacting, Gu Qin quickly stood up, ran over to Su Xi, and asked, “Su Xi, are you burned?”
Huo Jingchuan was a little angry and looked up at the waitress: “Sister, what happened to you?!”
Su Xi was shocked but shook her head.
At that moment, the fish soup looked like it was about to fall on her, but then it seemed as if an external force suddenly swept it away. Su Xi had experienced countless misfortunes, but this was the first time she’d been saved before it happened. Was it the luck brought by the koi fish the system mentioned? Did it offset her own misfortune?
Gu Qin breathed a sigh of relief and said, “You’re so unlucky. Fortunately, nothing serious happened.”
The waitress who brought the soup was so scared that she almost cried and apologized repeatedly: “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
The manager came over to mediate and asked, “Are the guests all right?”
Seeing that Su Xi was fine, Huo Jingchuan said with a dark face: “Fortunately, my friend is fine.”
Seeing that the waitress was having a hard time, Su Xi waved her hand and said, “Bring another pot. Just be careful.”
…And, maybe this incident wasn’t her fault, but rather due to her own unlucky constitution.
She patted her chest and breathed a sigh of relief. If this big basin of oil had fallen on her shoulder, although she was wearing thick clothes and would not get burned, if some oil splashed on her neck, she would definitely get blisters.
Being bound to the system, encountering a game that was almost like the real world, and winning the lottery were already magical things. So no matter what happened now, Su Xi was calm.
After dinner, she, Gu Qin and Huo Jingchuan went home separately.
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