Chapter 26
—So, Mr. Ghost, how do you eliminate a person's "feeling of unworthiness"?
—Hmm…Since the feeling of unworthiness stems from too much doubt or negativity from others or oneself, the most direct solution is: praise, it can't hurt! Praise to the skies!
Ha, I only said a couple of compliments and I'm already being accused of having ulterior motives.
Chi Jun also had no idea what Xu Qingzhou was thinking all day long, that she would suspect that she had ulterior motives even if someone praised her.
After being amused by his anger, Chi Jun belatedly realized that his last sentence, "No, I just wanted you to sleep in bed," when put together with the rest of the sentence, undoubtedly further proved that he had "ulterior motives."
Clearly, Xu Qingzhou had also noticed.
She looked at Chi Jun and blinked her eyelashes.
She blinked again.
His eyes were filled with shock and bewilderment.
Even the paper and pen in his hand were unconsciously gripped tightly.
Chi Jun sighed inwardly, suddenly realizing he was just being a busybody.
Is it that the book is bad or that I can't sleep well, why do I have to meddle in this little brat's business?
To stop Xu Qingzhou's thoughts from wandering further, Chi Jun gave an extremely perfunctory fake smile and explained, "What I mean is, you sleep on the bed, and I'll sleep on the floor."
Sure enough, Xu Qingzhou shook his head as soon as he heard that.
Chi Jun looked at her silently for a moment.
"what ever."
*
Even after Chi Jun took off his coat, carried his things, and went to the bathroom on the first floor to take a shower, Xu Qingzhou's mind was still in a daze, feeling like a tangled mess that was impossible to unravel.
Chi Jun had never praised her before, but tonight he deliberately praised her twice.
Is there really nothing you need her help with?
But Chi Jun didn't say, so she couldn't just keep asking.
Let's just assume he genuinely wants her to sleep in bed.
But is there any necessary causal connection between this and the previous praise?
Xu Qingzhou pondered for a while, but the more he thought about it, the more confused he felt. Nothing made sense, so he simply gave up and continued to focus on writing the test paper.
Xu Qingzhou must have caught a chill tonight. He sat at his desk wrapped in a small blanket, feeling waves of coldness and goosebumps.
When Chi Jun returned from his shower, she poured herself another cup of hot water.
The chill didn't subside; instead, I had to make two more trips to the public restroom behind the rental compound, only to feel even colder.
At ten o'clock at night, Xu Qingzhou felt a little dry, but also hot.
Even my eyes felt a little sore and swollen.
There are still Chinese and English test papers that haven't been finished, and I can't exactly finish them during morning reading time.
Xu Qingzhou rubbed his eyes, took a sip of water, and cheered himself up to continue working on the problem.
*
The small rented room was quiet, with only the occasional rustling sound of Xu Qingzhou turning the pages of a paper, intertwined with the sounds of wind and rain outside.
Because he's been coming home late lately, Chi Jun has stopped reading before bed. He just takes a shower, dries his hair, and goes to sleep.
The same will be true tonight.
Chi Jun, who had always slept well in his human form, was already forgetting about the embarrassment caused by the compliments tonight while taking a shower.
In the dimly lit rented room, illuminated only by a small desk lamp, accompanied by the pattering of wind and rain, Chi Jun quickly fell into a deep sleep.
However, in the middle of the night, while he was half asleep, Chi Jun suddenly felt something pressing against him, making him feel uncomfortable.
He thought it was just a quilt crumpled up and sticking to his body, so he kicked it aside. But the next second, when he stepped on it, it felt soft and fleshy.
Chi Jun suddenly regained some of his senses, propped himself up, and glanced around in the dim moonlight.
"..."
It is Xu Qingzhou.
The little girl curled up on her side next to him, motionless, as if she were asleep.
Chi Jun collapsed back down as if relieved of his fatigue. In a relaxed state, his eyelids were half-closed. He reached out and gently pushed Xu Qingzhou's shoulder: "Hey, didn't you refuse? Why are you climbing into bed without saying a word now?"
Xu Qingzhou did not respond, nor did he move an inch.
After waiting a while, Chi Jun frowned and called out again, "Xu Qingzhou?"
Still no response.
"..."
Chi Jun's mind was hazy. He closed his eyes, his voice choked with drowsiness: "You're still playing the hypocrite game, aren't you..."
Xu Qingzhou remained silent.
Chi Jun was so sleepy that he didn't have time to think about anything else. Seeing that Xu Qingzhou was determined to "play dead" to the end, he sighed heavily and pushed Xu Qingzhou aside with a little force.
He used a clever push; Xu Qingzhou was thin, and with that push, he immediately rolled to the other side of the bed.
Chi Jun tugged at the blanket, intending to just make do and continue sleeping.
Just as he turned his back to him, Xu Qingzhou rolled back and clung to him again.
"..."
Chi Jun simply reached out again and ruthlessly pushed her away.
However, Xu Qingzhou seemed to be possessed by a magnet tonight. Less than a minute after Chi Jun pushed her away, she was drawn back to him again.
Push again, inhale again.
Push again, inhale again.
After several unwavering attempts, Chi Jun was so tired that he finally lost all interest in playing along and let her cling to him like a pendant.
After a while, out of nowhere, a bit of kindness suddenly appeared. Chi Jun frowned and covered her with more blankets.
Thanks to Xu Qingzhou, Chi Jun didn't sleep well that night.
The main problem was that Xu Qingzhou always clung to him. When the two of them were close together, the temperature was much higher than when one of them slept alone. When Chi Jun reached out to push Xu Qingzhou away, she ended up being swept away along with the blanket.
With the temperature fluctuating between hot and cold, Chi Jun's sleep was completely disrupted.
The next day, before he opened his eyes, Chi Jun was still thinking about settling scores with Xu Qingzhou later.
As a result, she opened her eyelids, turned her head to the side, and in the few seconds that her mind gradually cleared, she stared at Xu Qingzhou, who was still sleeping wrapped in a quilt, and realized that something was wrong.
It's already seven o'clock.
Why isn't she up yet?
Although it's Saturday and there's no school today, Xu Qingzhou usually gets up at six o'clock to make breakfast, even on weekends.
"Xu Qingzhou?"
Chi Jun reached out and touched her, only to find that the girl was covered in sweat from head to neck, her wet hair was sticky and clinging to her face, and her cheeks were flushed abnormally.
Chi Jun frowned.
No wonder she dared to climb into bed last night; she was feverish and dizzy.
*
Xu Qingzhou was in a daze, sleeping soundly and unaware of what time it was.
She could feel herself in bed, her body drenched in sweat, her head pounding, each throb causing a throbbing pain in her head, and her joints aching dully all over.
She had actually woken up briefly in the morning and was about to make breakfast, but she felt dizzy and nauseous after sitting up for only half a minute, so she collapsed back down.
After that, I drifted in and out of sleep, waking up and falling asleep again.
Although I wasn't sleeping soundly and was aware of all the sounds around me, I could vaguely sense that my body seemed to be gradually getting better as I slept.
So she let herself continue sleeping.
I don't know how many times I opened my eyes, but there were already sounds of cooking coming from the courtyard of the rented house.
Xu Qingzhou looked at the bright sunshine outside.
It was noon.
She frowned, rubbed her throbbing head, and prepared to make lunch.
However, just as she struggled to turn over and prop herself up on her elbows to get out of bed, she saw the light at the door dim and Chi Jun walk in carrying two bowls of noodles.
He placed one of the bowls on the table and then took the other bowl directly to Xu Qingzhou.
Xu Qingzhou had never seen Chi Jun cook before.
After all... she was the one who washed the dishes after he finished eating...
Xu Qingzhou stared at the scene before him, feeling dizzy, and reasonably wondered if he was dreaming.
She stared at Chi Jun without moving.
Chi Jun also looked at her.
After a while—
"Can you handle it?"
After speaking, she seemed to have lost patience for a reply. She turned around, put the bowl back on the small table, and then came over to help Xu Qingzhou lean against the headboard, placing a pillow behind her back.
As he moved, his arm brushed against her cheek, and Xu Qingzhou felt the warmth. She also felt a little nauseous because of the sudden change in position.
It wasn't a dream after all.
He hadn't eaten breakfast, so Chi Jun must have been starving to cook lunch for himself.
Xu Qingzhou felt somewhat apologetic.
Thinking it over, Chi Jun brought the bowl back and pulled up a small chair to sit down by the bed.
Looking down from the bed, Xu Qingzhou saw that Chi Jun had cooked a bowl of noodles with a poached egg and a few green vegetables on top.
However, the egg looked a bit broken, with the egg white and yolk haphazardly coated on the noodles, and the greens looked wilted and yellowish, probably because they were overcooked.
Clearly, Chi Jun also felt that the presentation was rather underwhelming.
He glanced at Xu Qingzhou, who was staring intently at the noodles in the bowl, and calmly explained while picking up some noodles with his chopsticks and bringing them to Xu Qingzhou's mouth, "It's my first time making this, so the appearance is indeed rather ordinary, but I tasted it beforehand, and the taste should be—"
He suddenly stopped before he could finish speaking.
Because Xu Qingzhou burst into tears the moment she put a mouthful of noodles in her mouth.
"..."
Has it gotten this bad?
Seeing Chi Jun's expression freeze, Xu Qingzhou realized what was happening and quickly waved her hand. She then tried to get out of bed to get paper and pen, but Chi Jun stopped her.
"Alright, I know exactly how much these noodles weigh, no need to explain."
"..."
Xu Qingzhou still shook his head longingly.
Tears were still welling up in her eyes, making her look pitiful.
Chi Jun had been sick before, so he could easily figure out what was wrong with Xu Qingzhou. It was simply that she was emotionally sensitive when she was weak, and easily reminded of certain people or events, yet she still teased her:
"Could it be... that it's so delicious it made you cry?"
Xu Qingzhou looked momentarily stunned.
But in the next second, to protect Chi Jun's pride, she pursed her lips and nodded cautiously.
Chi Jun immediately smiled.
"Xu Qingzhou, are you lying or not?"
Xu Qingzhou blushed and smiled a little shyly.
"Since you say you're still going to eat, then you should eat more."
Xu Qingzhou nodded obediently.
In fact, Chi Jun himself felt that he had cooked too much noodles, but every time he fed Xu Qingzhou a bite, Xu Qingzhou would eat a bite, like a silly little girl who couldn't refuse.
With one-third remaining, Chi Jun paused the conversation and said:
"Let's eat this much for now. It'll be uncomfortable to lie down if we're too full."
Xu Qingzhou was indeed a little too full to eat anymore.
She nodded, watching Chi Jun get up and put the bowl and chopsticks on the table, then turned to ask her, "Are you going to see a doctor?"
Xu Qingzhou shook his head and pointed to the pile of miscellaneous items.
Chi Jun went over and rummaged through the contents, and sure enough, he found a small bag of medicine inside, along with a thermometer.
Which one to eat?
He casually handed the paper and pen to Xu Qingzhou.
Xu Qingzhou: [The fever reducer in the yellow and white box, after taking it and sleeping it off, you'll feel better.]
Chi Jun didn't try to persuade her further.
"OK."
*
After taking the medicine, Xu Qingzhou crawled back into bed and went back to sleep.
Chi Jun didn't go out either. He casually picked up a book and sat down in the corridor outside. The small rented room was quiet, with only sunlight streaming in through the doors and windows and the occasional chirping of birds.
Xu Qingzhou slept more soundly than in the morning, sleeping intermittently for a total of four hours. When he woke up again, his mind was much clearer than in the morning, and even the dull pain in his joints had subsided considerably.
In the evening, Chi Jun steamed some buns and cooked some porridge.
Xu Qingzhou ate while sitting on the bed, but this time, she had the strength to hold the bowl herself.
After the meal, Xu Qingzhou was thinking of going to work part-time at the supermarket, but she was worried that if she suggested going to school to study, Chi Jun would refuse to let her go on the grounds of her health.
What's even more terrifying is, what if Chi Jun insists on personally taking her to school? Wouldn't that give him away?
When the thought first popped into his head, Xu Qingzhou laughed at himself for being presumptuous again.
But think about it, Chi Jun cooked two meals today, and even personally fed her bite by bite during one of them.
Xu Qingzhou scratched her head and suddenly felt... perhaps she wasn't being too far-fetched.
Fortunately, Chi Jun was going to a friend's house to play video games that night, so Xu Qingzhou calmed herself down and patiently waited for him to leave before quickly getting ready to go to her part-time job at the supermarket.
Who knew that this wait would lead to—
Half an hour passed.
An hour passed.
Xu Qingzhou had almost finished writing on one of the papers, but Chi Jun still showed no sign of leaving.
Seeing that it would be too late if he didn't go to the supermarket soon, Xu Qingzhou finally couldn't help but ask:
Aren't you going to your friend's house to play a match today?
Chi Jun was sitting on a small chair, leaning lazily against the wall reading a book.
Hearing this, he put down his hand, glanced at her, and said, "I'm not going."
Xu Qingzhou: "..."
She thought for a moment and said, "Go ahead, I'll be fine."
Chi Jun stared at her, slowly raising his eyebrows:
"You...have you misunderstood something?"
Xu Qingzhou: "..."
Sure enough, I was just being delusional again.
Chi Jun adjusted his posture and, seeing the girl's embarrassed expression as she lowered her eyes to continue reading, unconsciously curled the corners of his mouth upwards.
"There's no game tonight, so I don't need to go."
ah……
What should she do then?
Xu Qingzhou thought about the foreman's fierce face and began to tremble with fear.
She bit her lip anxiously, pondering what to do, when Chi Jun suddenly looked up and stared straight at her again.
"You're not thinking of going to study, are you?"
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