Chapter 48: New Year's Money: There is no snow in the deep city, but there are still some trees growing.
Ever since the fight that night, Fang Qingzhuo's social circle was completely closed. He went out with a face covered in scars. Those who knew about it were in a 1v1 fight, while those who didn't thought he was being hunted down for smashing up someone's ancestral hall. Tsk, he couldn't afford to lose face.
As for the relationship with Gu Yang, although they didn't become enemies, the possibility of reconciliation was almost zero. Guan Siqi had heard that Gu Yang went to work normally the next day, as if nothing had happened, but he had stitches on his brow bone, and he was wondering how he was going to explain to his family.
How to explain? No explanation.
Every night after dinner, Fang Qingzhuo would pick up a chair and sit in front of the fish tank, looking at the fish and thinking about his mistakes.
Either looking from afar or close up, he would sit there for two or three hours, sometimes silent and sometimes excitedly sending voice messages to Luo Shu to report who was fighting with whom and who won.
Luo Shu sometimes replies immediately, and sometimes replies later when she is shopping with friends.
New Year's Eve was like a timer, the vast living room ditching light for darkness, a dead, hushed atmosphere. Only the clockwise ticking of the second hand on the wall and the vibrant swimming of the fish tank indicated the normal functioning of this spatial dimension. Unfinished takeout sat on the coffee table, while outside, fireworks and firecrackers went off relentlessly, a chirp here and a bang there. Jinmao Mansion's property management policy prohibits the use of fireworks in crowded areas, but some brave individuals still defy the rules.
Fang Qingzhuo turned over and suddenly heard the chattering in the stairwell corridor. It must be the neighbor's kids, because he heard the content clearly, and they were discussing going downstairs in the community to set off rockets and firecrackers.
It was so noisy. If he had known this would happen, he should have just connected the two households directly.
He took out his cell phone and squinted his eyes uncomfortably because he was not used to the bright screen. The owners' group was deserted at this moment. His fingertips had already touched the property management's contact information, but after a pause, he gave up and threw it on the table.
Forget it, it’s New Year’s Day.
Fang Qingzhuo lay down for a while, then got up and walked to the balcony, sealed the doors and windows, and pulled down the curtains. The effect was minimal, but it was better than nothing.
Passing by the fish tank, he sprinkled a small spoonful of fish feed. The fish seemed to be very grateful that he was still thinking about them when he had nothing to do. They all rushed over, shaking their heads and tails, and opening and closing their mouths.
The transparent glass reflected Fang Qingzhuo's half-smile. If you didn't look carefully, you couldn't see any injuries at all. I don't know what he was thinking about. Then, he turned off the viewing light of the fish tank.
The unstoppable strong emotion of missing someone at this moment was like a mountain torrent, coming suddenly and unstoppably, allowing it to break down his fragile nerves and his consciousness.
After doing all this, Fang Qingzhuo returned to the sofa and continued to sleep soundly. Only he knew whether he was really asleep or not.
The increasingly dark living room was like an isolated island, isolating everything, trapping his body, locking up his desire to communicate, and shrouding him in a prison made of lines, as if no color existed here except black.
After a long time, a cheerful and abrupt music suddenly came on, breaking the silence that had lasted for several hours. Fang Qingzhuo opened his eyelids and saw a phone call ringtone from someone. He turned his head to look at the glowing phone screen, squinting his eyes and slowly adapting to the light that was not even as bright as a palm. It was a bit dazzling but it penetrated into the boundless darkness little by little.
He stretched out his arms while lying down, grabbed the phone, and after a moment of calming down, he pretended to be very casual and nonchalant: "What's wrong, my girlfriend?"
"It's okay, I just missed you."
Listening to the murmuring sound coming from the hands-free phone, Fang Qingzhuo slowly smiled: "I miss you, too."
In the picture, Luo Shu was about to speak in a bedroom that he was not familiar with. It seemed that someone called her outside the door. She looked away from the camera for a moment, and it was unclear who she greeted. She was talking and laughing. It was probably a relative who came to visit.
Fang Qingzhuo knew in advance that she was going back to her distant grandparents' home to celebrate the New Year. Hearing the faint sounds of adults chatting and children making noises around him, he guessed that the call must have been made secretly to him while hiding in the room.
After chatting with her cousin whom she hadn't seen for a long time, Luo Shu picked up her phone again and faced the dark video call interface: "Why haven't you answered the video recently? I want to see you."
"Where do you want to see me?"
"all."
"Luo Shu, you are so greedy."
"I'm greedy. Just hearing your voice isn't enough. I want to see your face."
Like fresh oxygen infused into his body, Fang Qingzhuo immediately recovered from his listlessness to become eloquent: "Why, you just love my face."
Relying on the fact that the emperor was far away, she took it for granted: "What else?"
"Then I won't show it to you." Fang Qingzhuo said sarcastically, "It's called keeping things fresh. I learned it online so you don't get tired of it and end up dumping me."
Did this sound like something he would say? Luo Shu's intuition told her that things were not simple. With a serious expression, she boldly speculated, "Fang Qingzhuo, you didn't hide it from me and had plastic surgery, did you?"
Fang Qingzhuo was amused by her imagination and followed her topic to have fun: "How did you know there's a new medical beauty clinic opened near my house, and they're offering a 50% discount for the opening?"
Luo Shu looked as if the world had fallen, poking at the screen: "I'm warning you not to be impulsive. If you end up getting disabled, I'll really dump you. You, a single dog, can just go cry in the corner."
During the break, Fang Qingzhuo got up in the dark and opened a bottle of mineral water.
After some earnest persuasion and the threat of knife-wielding, Luo Shu keenly realized that apart from the rustling sound of him sipping water to moisten his throat, the other side was basically silent. "Where did you spend the New Year so quietly?"
Fang Qingzhuo licked the water stains on his lips and said casually, "I'm spending the New Year at home. Where else can I be?"
But this family is not the same as that family. His face injury has not completely healed yet. If he really goes home for the New Year, it will be difficult to explain to the old lady.
"So what delicious food did you eat on New Year's Eve?"
Glancing at the outline of the family bucket on the table, Fang Qingzhuo lied with his eyes wide open: "Delicious soup, and roast chicken, a roast chicken that's twice as big as your head."
Luo Shu lay sprawled on the bed, pounding her sore calves and saying she didn't believe it. She then asked him where he had gone to play. At the same time, she exited the video call and opened her WeChat step count. She saw that she was not the one occupying the cover, but only second. She scrolled all the way down, trying to see where Fang Qingzhuo was. She finally found the familiar avatar when her wrist was sore. It was ranked 305 with only 10 steps.
But the person on the other end of the phone was clearly saying, "Let's set off fireworks after dinner. They're not allowed in the city, so my friends and I drove to a place more than ten kilometers away where we can set them off. It's far enough away from the city that you can't hear us."
She was happy because his answer was so flawless that she couldn't tell whether it was true or not. Or maybe the system had messed up. How could he have only taken ten steps? Today was New Year's Eve. Her thoughts were tangled and she simply changed the subject to something more cheerful: "Guess how much New Year's money I received today?"
“I received it today.”
"Yes, my grandparents and uncles secretly gave it to me."
"two thousand?"
"Use your imagination again."
"Eight thousand?"
"No, guess again."
"I can't guess."
Luo Shu said a number.
"Quite a lot."
"I'll give you half of my New Year's money."
Fang Qingzhuo fell silent, holding the water bottle and digging his nails into the flesh without saying anything.
Luo Shu didn't urge him. Even though she couldn't see anyone, she kept her eyes fixed on the screen. After about half a minute, she blurted out, "Fang Qingzhuo, Happy New Year."
He blurted out subconsciously: "It's not even New Year's yet, isn't it too early to be happy?..."
I glanced at the time and it really jumped to midnight.
He took a deep breath, smiled and changed his words: "Happy New Year."
Fireworks were set off outside the window, and the elders at the wine table were laughing and talking happily, occasionally mixed with the ups and downs of the New Year's blessings from the Spring Festival Gala host on TV. On the other side of the wall, Luo Shu lay on the pillow, listening to the sweet words coming from thousands of miles away.
After the New Year, Fang Qingzhuo finally stepped out of the room. The reason was simple: he was tired of eating takeout. For several days in a row, he had to go out for three meals a day. Luo Shu would call him via video and eat with him. When she was in a good mood, she would tell a joke to liven up the atmosphere. However, she would start laughing before she finished the joke. The screen was shaking with laughter, and Fang Qingzhuo's heart was shaking as well.
One day, he came home from the gym and just stepped out of the elevator with a bag of snacks when a suspicious person dressed as a brown bear spirit came into his sight. He sneaked into his door lock and entered the password. The funny thing was that he would scratch his head and cheek in anxiety after each number he entered.
The person who was actively asking about his whereabouts on the phone just a second ago was now standing at his door with a suitcase.
"Luo Shu."
Hearing someone calling her name, Luo Shu stopped the busy unlocking business, turned her neck one by one, and the moment she met Fang Qingzhu's sight, she dropped the suitcase and ran towards him.
Fang Qingzhuo looked at Luo Shu, who was wearing the same furry Lei Feng hat as Bald Qiang and was rushing towards him. Without thinking, he instinctively opened his arms, thinking that she was going to jump into his arms, but it turned out not to be the case. Instead, she jumped up and hugged him around the waist, causing him to stagger and take two steps back. After finding his footing, he held the shopping bag in one hand and supported her butt with the other hand to keep her hanging steadily on him.
At the same time, his brain was working fast, thinking about what went wrong in the past few days of the New Year, and there was no news at all. After hanging up the phone that night, she really sent half of the red envelopes, ten in a row. He didn't act pretentiously and clicked to receive the money. After all, the blessing was very touching. I wish Zhuobao will be more and more handsome in the new year, and I wish Zhuobao's career will flourish in the new year. By the way, I praised myself and wished Zhuobao's beloved girlfriend Luo Shu to be invincible, smooth and beautiful forever.
The next day, he made a huge profit including the principal and interest, and took advantage of the New Year to transfer the 100,000 yuan he had "borrowed" from her last time back to her account.
Back to reality, Fang Qingzhuo still couldn't believe what he saw and stammered, "You... came back... early?"
Luo Shu put her arms around his neck and nodded, "Fang Qingzhuo, I have nowhere to go. You have to take me in for two weeks until school starts."
The fact is, she observed his step count on WeChat every day and worried about his lies full of loopholes, and when the whole family was preparing to go on a trip, she resolutely chose to come to see him.
Fang Qingzhuo was not so easily fooled: "But aren't you spending the New Year in your hometown?"
"The New Year has already passed." Luo Shu blinked.
The night before returning to Shenzhen, a heavy snowfall had fallen in her hometown. Before the snow melted, she and her cousin squatted in the yard, building a snowman. For an art student, the work was meticulous and painstaking. When they were finished, her cousin, chin propped up beside her, asked her what was so good about Shenzhen, saying it never snowed in the city. Luo Shu had already quietly smiled, spreading her palm to catch a six-pointed snowflake.
There is no snow in Shenzhen, but there are green shoots growing there.
"Not a surprise?"
Fang Qingzhuo weighed the person in his arms: "This is a shock."
Fortunately, I went out today, otherwise it would be difficult to explain why I saw him looking so confused and miserable. He still cared a lot about his image in front of her.
Luo Shu had no idea what was going on in his mind. She hadn't seen the face she had been thinking about day and night for a month, and now it was mostly covered by the brim of her hat. She felt extremely irritated and couldn't help but tilt her head and touch his lips lightly: "Is this a surprise?"
Fang Qingzhuo was immersed in his own world of reflection when he was kissed unexpectedly. He looked up at the instigator, trying to figure out whether she was serious or not.
"Hasn't someone repeatedly warned us not to kiss in public, saying it's against public morals?"
Luo Shu: "Don't forget it."
"want."
The hand that was supporting him immediately changed to circle around his waist, responding warmly to the kiss that swept away his depression of the past few days.
The kiss made him forget himself, and the wound at the corner of his mouth was pulled, and Fang Qingzhuo let out a muffled groan.
Luo Shu accurately caught the abnormality, paused, pinched his chin and lifted it up, and when she found the bruise, she got off him swiftly, took off his baseball cap, lifted his hair, and checked him one by one like a scanner at the airport security check.
Fang Qingzhuo let her search his face with the meticulous eyes that she used to examine the traded goods without resisting. It was not because he did not want to stop her, but because his brows had already been unintentionally furrowed.
It turns out there's more than just that spot, there's also a shallow new scar at the end of the eyebrow.
Everything is explained.
Luo Shu was furious: "What happened? Did you fight?"
"How is that possible? Do I look like someone who can fight?"
"How did you get injured?"
"I fell."
Luo Shu's expression became increasingly heavy, revealing a bit of displeasure and a bit of heartache.
After all, there was no real reason to get away with it, so Fang Qingzhuo came up with another plan: "I'll go and do what's right."
"Make it up. If you are a kind-hearted person, just make it up."
"I just wanted to make a joke to liven up the atmosphere. Look..." He moved his face closer, "It's almost done."
After spending so much time, he still had no chance to take advantage. Luo Shu felt like she was hitting cotton with her fists. When he had a hard time speaking, she feigned anger, exclaiming how unreasonable it was. She took his chin and pulled it down, starting to mutter: "Who is this, to use such a ruthless force? Are you trying to steal someone's girlfriend or dig up their ancestors' graves? You have to hit such a handsome face on New Year's Day."
She complained incessantly, and Fang Qingzhuo digested them carefully until he heard her say that he must report the matter to the central government to get an explanation from him.
"continue."
"Continue what? Help you scold him?"
"Keep kissing me."
Luo Shu immediately showed an embarrassment: "I can't bring myself to eat this."
Fang Qingzhuo: "..."
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The author has something to say: Having written this far, I have to give everyone a heads-up. In about two or three chapters, our Luo Shu will discover the truth and find out who is impersonating her, but the price is that the innocent Luo Shu will disappear overnight. And I feel like the male protagonist in my novel seems to have been decided, but there is no definite news, because the second male lead, the little angel, has not been officially written yet (spoiler in advance, he will appear in the subsequent urban plot. He is not a gentle and honest person. He is the type who will make things difficult for his rivals and poke people in the lungs). For example, he relies on his youth to satirize his rival for being older) and I also want to write about Fang Qingzhuo's madness and humbleness in the future. After all, I am a fickle woman. It should be quite satisfying to write about his complex personality. The important thing is that I must give my girl an explanation. His many tricks make him suspicious, but he has to put away his thorns and blindly please people. The key is that he is really crazy and a masochist. For example, after slapping him, he will turn his face back with a smile and say that this slap is not as satisfying as the last time, and then he will immediately find a good angle and slap the other side.
Okay, that seems pretty cheap.
Or maybe it's the step-by-step compromise in the psychological journey of asking for forgiveness, from the tyranny of "you can only love me" to the wavering of "you can like other people but can't let me know", and then to his broken jar on the 2nd, 4th and 6th of every day.
Faced with indifference, I have no choice but to kneel down and beg you for a long time.
He really doesn't care about status. No matter whether it's the main wife or the third wife, he will cry, fight and grab, and he has a lot of sinister tricks up his sleeve.
In order not to keep everyone on suspense and disappoint those who have been waiting for the second male lead, as to whether it will be a wife-chasing funeral or the second male lead taking the position, I will tell you that based on my current state of mind, the possibility is that the current male lead will be more likely.
As for why the second male lead was originally set to take the role, we’ll find an opportunity to talk about it another day.
I have said a lot today, so I will continue typing. The golden months of March and April are really busy, so please forgive me for the update delay.
After I finish this busy period, I will study the lottery and have another one.
ps: This is not an April Fool’s Day joke!
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