Chapter 78 Chapter 78 This time, let’s make a serious wish…

41.

Gin put his arm around my waist as usual, and his eyes swept calmly over everyone except Vodka, which seemed to make the atmosphere, which had been somewhat stagnant due to their arrival, even more solemn.

He casually wiped off the light lip print I had left on his chin with the tip of his thumb, then put his arm around me and walked towards the chair that Vodka had pulled out in advance.

It wasn't until Gin patted me on the back that I obediently came out of Gin's arms and sat next to him. As soon as my butt touched the chair, I couldn't wait to put on disposable gloves, my eyes shining as I stared at the box of fried chicken that was so close at hand, emitting an enticing aroma, ready to devour it.

Vodka politely put on his gloves along with me, picked up a piece of fried chicken, and toasted with me in a formal manner. After a few bites, Vodka suddenly seemed to remember that there were other people present besides the three of us, and he symbolically waved his hand:

"You guys can eat together. Yingzi asked me to buy a lot, enough to share."

The Whisky trio exchanged glances. Ultimately, Scotland, the gentlest of the three, took the initiative. He donned gloves, picked up a piece of fried chicken, tasted it, and praised it sincerely, "Hmm, it really tastes good."

I immediately felt proud and shook my head proudly. "Really? This is my top fried chicken place. I ordered it in advance, otherwise I would have a hard time lining up to buy vodka."

You know, Scotland, thanks to the combined efforts of the original anime and the fangirls, has practically reached Conan's culinary god status. Having Scotland's approval of my fried chicken made me chuckle with deep satisfaction (?).

It's a shame that Scotland and I aren't close enough to know that they're good at cooking. Otherwise, I'd have to nudge them, or even cheat, into trying to replicate it. That way, I wouldn't have to go out and buy it in the future, and I might not even be able to find it.

Bourbon and I have a pretty good relationship, regardless of whether we're taking advantage of each other. But at that time, Bourbon hadn't yet unlocked his cooking skill points, and I shouldn't have known that he could cook. It's such a pity.

Oh, as for Lei... well, there's no need to expect anything from his cooking skills.

It's okay, it's okay, it's okay, as long as you have money. Before I had a "private contact" with the owner of this fried chicken shop, if I really couldn't buy it, I would choose to spend money to buy freshly baked and unopened fried chicken from kind people. It's okay to do this in the future.

——Anyway, it’s Gin’s card that’s being used, oh no!

Gin is my greatest confidence!

However, my biggest supporter didn't seem to have any plans to enjoy the fried chicken at the moment. He leaned back in his chair, his fingertips tapping the table sporadically, his eyes fixed on something unknown.

I followed his gaze, looking at Ley and then Bourbon. To prevent them from thinking Gin was suspicious of their identities, I nudged him with my shoulder, picked up the juiciest-looking chicken wing, and held it to his lips. I winked at him and said in a coaxing tone, "Zhen, have a bite? It's really delicious!"

Gin lowered his eyes, his gaze fixed on the fried chicken that was almost touching his lips. The golden batter shone with an alluring oily sheen under the light. He looked up at me again, his eyes devoid of emotion.

I wrinkled my nose and stubbornly pushed forward, the chicken wing gently touching his tightly pursed lips. He then seemed to give me a reluctant face, lowered his head, and took a small bite from my hand.

Then, he didn't show any intention of taking it himself. After chewing and swallowing slowly, he just looked at me calmly.

I understood. This meant I had to keep feeding him. In public, this top assassin of the organization actually accepted the feeding calmly, not feeling ashamed at all! Why did Gin suddenly lose face?

Since Gin didn't feel embarrassed, I naturally didn't feel embarrassed either. I kept holding the fried chicken and waited for him to finish eating. I didn't even bother to ask if it tasted good.

After all, if it didn't taste good, Gin wouldn't give me this kind of face.

I just curled my lips and grumbled quietly, "Gin, you're really ruining your image."

"Hmm?" He uttered a single questioning tone.

I nodded in the direction of the others and said, "Look how scared they are. They probably didn't expect Gin to need someone to feed him."

Gin, forcing him to eat whatever I want is a real hobby between us. Vodka is used to it. But doing it in front of so many strangers all of a sudden, if I wasn't thick-skinned and thought it was a great honor, I would have stopped it a long time ago!

Hearing this, Gin glanced at the Whisky guys again, stretched out his long arm, and put it on my shoulder: "What were you guys playing just now?"

Being easily distracted, I immediately pointed at Lei and said, "Lei lost the game of Alarm Clock Bomb, and he hasn't even played Truth or Dare yet!"

"Hey, so the punishment is truth or dare?" Why does Scotland look like I haven't discussed this with them before?

...Although I certainly didn’t discuss it with them, hehe.

Gin repeated, his tone flat: "Truth or Dare?"

Bourbon followed Gin's words and said with a smile that seemed to indicate he was looking forward to the show: "Are you going to make Lei choose truth or dare? Isn't this punishment too simple?"

The corner of my mouth twitched. "It's just a party game. It doesn't need a complicated punishment, right?"

Lei, I have to say it again, look at your popularity. I looked at Lei, the center of the incident, with sympathy on my face.

Lei, who was quietly eating fried chicken, met my gaze and smiled slightly. He said calmly, "The fried chicken is indeed delicious."

"Don't think you can get away with praising my excellent taste in food." I snorted, taking a big bite of the fried chicken in my hand with deliberate viciousness. After chewing and swallowing, I continued the conversation. "But Bourbon has a point. Choosing between the two is really not that challenging."

Lei's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he asked with a tone of resignation and curiosity: "Then how does Yingzi want to punish me?"

I felt Gin's hand on my shoulder tighten slightly, but then quickly loosened.

I felt that this statement was a bit strange, and I wondered if my stereotype of Ley was becoming less and less serious.

Is Gin overthinking the same thing as me? I turned to look at Gin in confusion. Seeing that his expression was normal, I put down the chicken bone and waved my hand: "Then I will punish you by making me a paper cutter."

"Paper cutting?" Lei was obviously surprised by this punishment.

I let out a laugh that I thought was very villainous: "Hehehehe...that's right!"

Gin expressionlessly withdrew his hand from my shoulder, and gestured to Vodka who was singing with the microphone in the corner, asking him to lower the volume.

However, Vodka, seemingly in a singing "flow," didn't know if his eyes had closed in ecstasy behind his sunglasses, but completely ignored his brother's gestures and continued his "ghostly howling." It wasn't until Gin's deep scolding that he suddenly woke up and awkwardly turned down the volume of the background music.

Just like that, with the background sound of vodka howling like ghosts and wolves, I stood with my hands behind my back, guiding Lei to cut paper with red paper like a supervisor.

I have to say that Lei is really deft with his hands. I don't know if it's because he's skilled in assembling gun sets, but after cutting sixteen pieces of red paper, Lei finally cut out a small red figure that has simple lines but vaguely shows my outline.

"But," Lei asked, somewhat puzzled, picking up the small red paper figure, "What are you cutting this for? Are you collecting it?"

"Of course not." I took the little statue with a smile and looked at it carefully under the light. The red paper cut-out gave off a warm glow. "It's for making a wish! It's snowing so heavily today. I heard that if you put the cut-out statue on a high branch, your wish will be more likely to come true!"

"Is there such a thing?" Bourbon seemed interested, and he cut out an apple, imitating the peace apple I gave them. "Then if I put this high on a branch, can I also make a wish for peace and safety?"

"Bourbon, you are this!" I gave Bourbon a thumbs up in admiration.

There's no custom in Japan of giving peace apples on Christmas Eve. This custom comes from the Chinese homophones for "apple" and "peace" (安平). Ever since my first Christmas Eve party with the Black Organization, I've been giving them peace apples, symbolizing peace, as a tradition from a previous life. But, after all these years, with so many people, Bourbon is the only one who's accepted my words and my wish for everyone to be "peaceful and safe"!

Wow, he's worthy of being the undercover agent who managed to survive to the end safely! What an awareness!

Scotland did not participate in our paper-cutting activity. He sat quietly a little further away, holding his bass, occasionally plucking a string or two, slightly matching the magic sound of the vodka.

Hearing my loud praise, he and Gin looked up almost simultaneously. His gaze fell on the delicate red paper apple in Bourbon's hand, and Scotland's eyes curved slightly, revealing a gentle smile.

How should I put it? If I temporarily ignore Gin's cold face, which looked as if everyone owed him hundreds of millions, and Vodka's noise, the scene before me was actually very beautiful.

On a table strewn with red paper-cut scraps, Rye and Bourbon, each resting their chins on their hands, gazed at me, beaming broadly as I held two paper-cuts in my hands. I, in turn, smiled at Scotland, his glass raised, and Gin, who, though expressionless, remained present. Not far away, Vodka, despite being ordered to lower the volume, continued to enjoy himself, swaying slightly to the beat...

42.

The time just turned to midnight.

"Merry Christmas, everyone! Merry Christmas!"

I shouted excitedly, and at the same time as Vodka, who was also in high spirits, we fired our party cannons. With two "bangs," colorful pieces of paper rained down from the sky.

Gin picked out a particularly conspicuous piece of reflective paper from his silver hair and glared at Vodka and me—

I immediately ran out with my down jacket.

As the saying goes, a friend's death is not as good as mine. I escaped successfully. Oh yeah!

Bending down with my knees to catch my breath, I smiled foolishly twice and stood on tiptoe to hang the small statue cut by Lei and the peace apple cut by Bourbon on the trees by the roadside.

Just as I stood on tiptoe, my fingers trying in vain to hang two paper cutouts on the branch, my body suddenly flew into the air.

"Eh???" I screamed subconsciously and looked down, but what I saw was...

This hat, this hair, this black windbreaker, Gin has caught up with us?

Without thinking, I apologized guiltily: "I was wrong. I won't dare to do it next time..."

"Aren't you going to put something there to make a wish?" Gin adjusted his posture so that I could sit sideways steadily on his strong arm, and his other hand firmly supported my back.

This height immediately allowed me to surpass the branches that were just out of reach.

"Is that enough?"

I was stunned.

"A little higher?" He asked again when he saw that I didn't say anything, as if he was really considering whether to lift me higher.

"No, thanks!" My hand fell on Gin's hat, and I couldn't help but feel my heart beating faster, my face flushing, and a smile rising at the corners of my mouth.

"Yeah." Gin responded, raised his other hand, and accurately crumpled the two pieces of red paper in my hand into a ball. Instead, he put two pieces of red paper-cuts in my hand.

It's still "me" and "peace apple," but... maybe it's because of the filter and the fact that I guess Gin cut it himself? It feels more refined, and that "me" is more like me.

As I stared at him in shock, filled with indescribable emotions, Gin raised his head slightly, his gaze fixed on the silent street tree, his voice steady as ever: "Make a wish."

Making wishes with paper-cut figurines on snowy nights was always a casual, trend-following game of mine. My original plan was to say something like, "God bless me with prosperity and wealth. I wish to live a balanced life of meat and vegetables," and then, with a touch of ritual, "May the adverse winds understand my feelings and not destroy me." But now, everything was stuck in my throat.

I lowered my eyes and looked at Gin. From this angle I couldn't see his expression, but I seemed to be able to imagine what he looked like.

I let go of the hand that was holding his hat with peace of mind, and didn't even hold his shoulders. I just sat steadily in his arms, clasped my hands in front of my chest, and closed my eyes.

This time, make a serious wish.

The kind of desire that cannot be expressed out loud for fear that it might not work.

43.

After waiting for a while and not hearing anything from me, Gin said, "Is it done?"

I nodded, looked down at the shadows of Gin and I on the ground, and couldn't help asking, "Can't I really just grow this tall?"

Wow, the times when Gin lifted me up were usually at home, and it didn’t feel real. So this is what the outside world looks like from this height.

Gin: “…”

I was dissatisfied: "Zhen? Ah Zhen? Zhen-chan? Say something!"

Gin put me down expressionlessly and looked down at my face carefully.

I grinned. "What are you looking at? Do you think I'm particularly beautiful today?"

Gin moved his lips: "I'm watching how you manage to have abnormal thoughts in your mind every day."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Wow, that's too much. Just a short while into being affectionate, and already you're attacking me again!

I stamped my feet in anger, ran after him, and tried to jump up and hit him with the hat.

Gin didn't even need to turn around to grab my wrist and pull me into his windbreaker: "Stop it, you're going to make me sick and torture me again."

Listen, is this even human language? How can you speculate about me like this? Damn it!

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The author has something to say: Hahahahaha, I am not late today, right? Yesterday's update is in the previous chapter, you can take a look if you missed it.

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I haven't added any more chapters today, I haven't recovered yet [chin-supporting]