Chapter 17
Chi Jun was never one to follow the rules and stay home to study and write. His life was always colorful, from climbing trees to catching fish, from drinking and carousing to getting into fights. He did all sorts of things and could do them in a very creative way.
Despite being frequently beaten and scolded by his father, he never changed his wild nature, which led to him being surrounded by a group of scoundrels.
Now that he's been thrown into the human world, it wouldn't be so bad if he were still in his fox form, but now that he's transformed into a human, there's absolutely no way he could stay at home quietly racking his brains for ideas.
We need to come up with ideas.
Playing games is a must.
Therefore, in less than three days, Chi Jun played chess and cards with the old men in the park, learned a bit of Tai Chi, and played billiards a few times... Internet cafe games were naturally a given.
However, if asked which recreational activity he likes best, it would have to be basketball.
There's cooperation, competition, and the exhilarating feeling of sweating it out.
That day, Chi Jun, who had come back for lunch, put down his bowl and chopsticks, wiped his mouth, locked the door, and went out again.
The male ghost was stunned by his smooth little combo. He turned to look at Chi Jun in a daze, then looked down at the door lock: "Brother Jun, what are you going to do?"
"Playing basketball."
No, is it really that urgent to play basketball?
The male ghost blinked.
"Um...did you forget something?"
Chi Jun put the key in his pocket and turned to head towards the stairwell.
"What"
"You haven't washed the dishes yet."
Chi Jun said "Oh," and replied, "I haven't forgotten."
"?"
Just as the male ghost was about to say that these one or two bowls had to be left to be washed until tonight, which seemed rather lazy, Chi Jun added, "I just don't want to wash them."
Male ghost: "..."
If you don't wash it, do you expect the little mute to wash it when he comes home from school at night?
To the male ghost's surprise, it seemed that Chi Jun really did intend to do so.
Over the next few days, the male ghost noticed that Xu Qingzhou would come back from class exhausted every day, and before he could even start cooking, he had to wash Chi Jun's breakfast and lunch dishes.
She was hardworking and never complained about Chi Jun, but the male ghost couldn't stand it.
Is this the kind of arrogant, uncultured person who's been pampered since childhood?
At first, he tried to instill in Chi Jun some social etiquette in the human world, such as being observant when staying at someone else's house, taking the initiative to help with cleaning and laundry, and doing what he could.
But soon, the male ghost discovered that Chi Jun was not ill-mannered.
He's just shameless! Completely shameless!
To the male ghost's earnest advice, Chi Jun's response was always the same—
"In no mood."
"lazy."
"Why don't you help her for me?"
Help, help, help! Help my ass!
Who is it, you or me, who eats and lives with the little mute?
To be honest, when Chi Jun lingered for so long, the male ghost secretly harbored some resentment towards Xu Qingzhou: He knew she was lonely, but if she was lonely, she could have found another pet, or even a relationship. Why did she have to cling to this fox and refuse to let go?
However, after witnessing firsthand everything that happened after Chi Jun moved in, the male ghost began to genuinely sympathize with Xu Qingzhou:
This isn't about finding a companion, it's about finding yourself a living ancestor!
Xu Qingzhou was like a hardworking nanny—no, while others earn money as nannies, I've never seen anyone pay out of their own pocket like her. She took care of all of Chi Jun's needs from beginning to end without a single complaint. Not only did she take care of all his needs, but she also spared no effort in providing him with entertainment and spiritual enrichment.
At first, she noticed that Chi Jun was interested in her Chinese textbook, so she borrowed a few extracurricular books from school for him to pass the time. After that, she would frequently bring Chi Jun other little trinkets, such as:
Gomoku, jigsaw puzzles, yo-yos, Rubik's Cubes, old-fashioned game consoles...
—These are all things that Chi Jun had played with or mentioned verbally the day or two before, or even just mentioned briefly in conversation, and that he himself had forgotten about afterward.
Although at first glance they were all worthless little things, when added up, they amounted to a considerable expense for Xu Qingzhou, who was struggling financially.
Chi Jun played with them only on a whim, and after a couple of tries, he put them aside. But his indifference to these things did not affect his willingness to accept all the small gifts Xu Qingzhou gave him.
Upon closer observation, the male ghost quickly discovered that Chi Jun's attitude towards Xu Qingzhou's gift-giving behavior basically followed three principles: not taking the initiative, not refusing, and not taking responsibility.
Isn't this guy a total scumbag? Huh?
The male ghost finally understood.
That scoundrel is clearly a heartless bottomless pit. Let alone this small amount of money, even if you threw in a golden pig, the little mute wouldn't hear a sound.
He began to hope that one day the mute boy would come to his senses, crush this hopeless fellow, throw him in the trash, and end this completely unequal relationship.
But this expectation gradually became half-dead under the daily, one-sided efforts of the little mute.
Until one day, when he saw the little mute boy give Chi Jun two sets of the same style of jerseys in different colors, as well as a basketball, the male ghost's heart finally died completely.
One day, I saw Chi Jun wearing the green jersey the little mute boy had bought for him, heading towards the basketball court full of energy. On the way, he didn't forget to stop at the convenience store to buy himself a bunch of brown sugar plum lollipops.
The male ghost rolled his eyes repeatedly, then, remembering the little mute's thin, frail body, he finally couldn't hold back and spoke again:
"Brother Jun, do you think it's tiring for the little mute to do this every day?"
Chi Jun moved the lollipop in his mouth, dribbled the ball forward, and casually said:
"Are you tired?"
You fucking know she's tired?
The male ghost desperately resisted the urge to throw the ball onto the main road and let it be crushed by a car. He gritted his teeth, and even the forced smile he managed was distorted.
"If you're feeling tired, why don't you help her out?"
The dribbling sounds suddenly stopped.
Chi Jun stopped the ball, turned to look at the male ghost, and asked, "Why should I help?"
"?"
Is this suggestion... rather absurd?
Perhaps intimidated by Chi Jun's unreasonable demeanor, the male ghost blinked, his mind not quite processing what was happening. He was so overwhelmed that he stammered for several seconds before finally managing to stammer out a rather pathetic sentence:
"She...she needs you."
Chi Jun laughed nonchalantly, then slammed the ball to the ground and dribbled forward.
An autumn breeze blew in my face, carrying Chi Jun's magnetic voice, which fell into my ears, languid yet slightly cool.
"There are still people on the field who need me; there are many more of them!"
"..."
So many people need you, do they even know who you are? Huh?
—If you ask me, only that mute little fool who's never seen the world would treat you like a treasure. Here you're just a loser with no education, no job, and no savings. Do you really think you're something special?
—I'm not trying to be mean, but with your qualifications, you wouldn't even be able to find a wife in our human world.
In the days that followed, whenever the male ghost recalled the embarrassment and fear he felt when Chi Jun stared at him that day, he would bring up these words from the bottom of his heart and curse Chi Jun several times to find psychological balance.
He knew it was unfair to force Chi Jun into the rules of the human world and to examine and criticize him with worldly eyes, but... who told him that a fallen phoenix is no better than a chicken and now has to live in the human world?
Just yell at him!
After cursing like this for two or three days with a very self-deceptive, Ah Q-like spirit, the male ghost finally felt much better.
However, before he could even enjoy his newfound freedom for a few days, the male ghost happened to pass by the basketball court one day and was stunned when he observed the enthusiastic cheering crowd around him.
Are there really a lot of people who need this scumbag fox?
*
It turns out that Chi Jun's connection with basketball began on the afternoon of the second day after he stayed on the team.
There were a dozen or so young people playing basketball on the court at the time. The teenagers were playing with great enthusiasm and passion, often laughing or cursing on the court, and itching to play as others watched.
But collaborative activities like playing ball usually involve a group of friends making plans in small groups, with one person inviting two more and another three more. Even if the relationship isn't very close, at least there's someone you recognize.
Chi Jun, who suddenly appeared and didn't know anyone, could only watch from the sidelines at first. But some people, just by standing there, with their outstanding appearance and temperament, were destined not to blend into the crowd.
Soon, in addition to the girls cheering him on from the sidelines, the people focused on playing on the court also gradually noticed his presence.
"Hey, who's that guy? The one in the white T-shirt and black pants."
"I don't know, she's quite good-looking."
"Holy crap, you don't actually like her, do you? I never would have guessed, Rui, are you bisexual?"
Amidst the joking laughter, malice quickly surfaced—
"Just a pretty boy, probably looking for a rich woman."
Upon hearing this, those around him frowned slightly, and one of them teased him jokingly, "Qi Shuai, are you jealous because you saw your crush getting close to someone else?"
Qi Shuai's eyes turned cold: "Be jealous of your sister!"
As he spoke, he suddenly slammed the ball toward Chi Jun.
"Hey! You can play ball—"
Before the last "ma" could be uttered, everyone's expression suddenly changed.
The ball was less than ten centimeters from the girl's nose when it was firmly caught by a hand. Chi Jun held the ball, his eyes cold, and slowly stood up from the ground.
The girl who was almost hit looked terrified, and when she came to her senses, her face turned even redder.
"Thank you..."
Chi Jun didn't answer, but his cold expression was instantly covered by a nonchalant smile, and he also imitated Qi Shuai's tone.
"Hey, you threw it a bit off-target."
This nonchalant remark, coupled with those eyes that naturally carried a hint of mockery and disdain when they smiled, drove Qi Shuai mad on the spot, and also drove the girls watching the scene mad.
From that day on, Chi Jun officially joined the ranks of basketball players.
It's perfectly normal for girls to watch when boys play ball.
But this normalcy increased exponentially after Chi Jun joined, eventually reaching a terrifyingly abnormal level—
Before the boys even arrived at the basketball court, they could see from afar that a large group of girls had already gathered around it in layers.
Besides the girls who originally liked to watch the game from the sidelines, many unfamiliar new faces appeared. Among them were girls from the junior high school who were unanimously considered to be very well-behaved and obedient, as well as art students from the senior high school with different temperaments. Later on, even a certain class beauty and school beauty who was usually arrogant came.
Chi Jun dunks, and the girls scream.
Chi Jun fell down, and the girl screamed.
Chi Jun glanced back; the girl was still screaming.
Looking at the sea of heads, the other team members silently thought that if Chi Jun were to faint from low blood sugar, he would probably be devoured alive by this group of women on the spot.
Meanwhile, the male ghost was furiously cursing Chi Jun for being shameless and boasting without thinking, while Xu Qingzhou was also busy with three points and was covered in dust.
Xu Qingzhou was always oblivious to what was going on outside his window, so naturally he was completely unaware of Chi Jun's popularity.
However, her keen senses gradually began to detect something unusual in her monotonous life of going back and forth between three points.
For example, when she was sitting at her seat doing her homework after class, she would occasionally look up at the window and see several girls staring at her and whispering to each other.
Occasionally, when I went to the restroom during breaks and came back, the girls I met in the hallway would always glance at my face, intentionally or unintentionally.
At first, Xu Qingzhou thought he was overthinking things, but as time went on, this situation occurred more and more frequently.
She, who had always lived like a ghost in class, even started receiving invitations from her classmates to get water and go to the toilet together.
Xu Qingzhou found it strange, but he didn't want to ask directly, so he politely declined and pretended not to know anything.
Until one day, a boy called her from the back door, saying that someone was looking for her.
Xu Qingzhou went outside and found that it was a girl from the next class.
The girl is a broadcasting student. Because she is pretty and has a generous personality, she is usually the first choice to host school events, whether it's a speech under the national flag or any other event, big or small.
The girl handed Xu Qingzhou a cup of milk tea, which he gently shook his head to refuse. She then pushed it forward a little and urged, "It's for you, take it."
Xu Qingzhou still didn't answer.
"Okay, if you don't want to drink, then forget it." The girl shrugged, then looked at Xu Qingzhou with bright eyes: "Hey Qingzhou, you should know me, right? I'm in Class 1, my name is Xu Yunyun."
Xu Qingzhou nodded.
Xu Yunyun smiled with satisfaction.
"So, I have a question. What's your relationship with Xu Jun?"
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