For the sake of smooth plot progression, after much thought, I've decided to rewrite Chapter 57. The plot has been rearranged. The previous flawed Chapter 57 is invalid. Everyone should just pretend they never saw it. Consider yesterday's bonus chapter as if it never happened; this chapter is a bonus that will be compensated tomorrow.
To be safe, Leng Zhiwen specifically waited until the movie started and the entire cinema fell completely silent before entering the screening hall through the back door.
After all, this was the last cinema in Wenzhou, and it was the opening day for an American blockbuster. Consequently, the audience turnout was quite good, with the cinema nearly full, only a few empty seats remaining. This made it impossible for Leng Zhiwen to even know where her own seat was.
Fortunately, Leng Zhiwen still had her ticket. Following the guidance of her seat number, Leng Zhiwen found her spot, an empty seat in the back row on the left. It wasn't a good location; the position was clearly rather poor.
“Excuse me, miss, have you sat in the wrong seat?” A voice suddenly rang out, causing Leng Zhiwen’s body to instantly stiffen. She was so tense she could barely breathe, for this was unmistakably her cheap brother-in-law’s voice.
“I haven’t sat in the wrong seat. This is my seat. This is my ticket!” Leng Zhiwen said, her voice strained to prevent anyone from discerning her true voice. At the same time, she held up her movie ticket.
“That’s strange. I clearly instructed someone to buy consecutive tickets, yet I ended up sitting alone?” Huang He rubbed his head, a look of bewilderment on his face.
These tickets were bought by his subordinate, to whom he had specifically instructed to purchase adjacent seats. Yet, he had inexplicably found himself in the last row. Who could he even complain to?
However, Huang He didn’t suspect anything amiss. He simply believed his subordinate had performed poorly and intended to give him a good talking-to upon their return, reminding him why the boss was the boss.
In reality, Huang He had wronged his subordinate. The tickets his subordinate bought were indeed for adjacent seats. The problem was that Huang He had handed these tickets to his mother-in-law, who then mixed them up with the three tickets given by her two daughters. Ultimately, the ticket that ended up in Huang He’s possession was the single, solitary one. The other ticket had been taken by Leng Zhiwen.
Ah, yes, these two tickets were bought by Leng Zhimeng, who had specifically purchased seats in the last row to create an opportunity for her brother-in-law to take advantage of her. What a good sister-in-law, she was. Sadly, everything ended up in a mess.
However, in the end, things did sort themselves out. After all, it was still her younger sister-in-law who ended up sitting alone with Huang He.
“Perhaps my subordinate made a mistake. I apologize!” Huang He apologized several times before beginning to watch the movie.
Huang He had actually watched this movie in his previous life, and in a Blu-ray high-definition version at that, which was much clearer than what was shown in the cinema. The reason Huang He had brought his entire family this time was twofold: first, to entertain them, and second, because Huang He wanted to experience a cinema in 2001. After all, Huang He had never experienced the charm of watching a movie in an old-fashioned cinema before 2010.
But this was merely for novelty. With the movie completely spoiled for him, Huang He soon began to drift. His attention was involuntarily drawn to the beautiful young girl beside him.
To be honest, the first time Huang He saw her, he was somewhat shocked. He absolutely did not expect to encounter a cosplayer in Wenzhou in 2001.
Wearing a light gauze ancient costume, holding a sword in hand, and with a veil on her face – if not a cosplayer, then what else could she be?
After all, it seemed that even in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, such sights were probably rare.
This was simply too avant-garde.
Thus, Huang He kept glancing at her, and a little flutter suddenly arose in his heart, which then spiraled out of control… that Wuji Bailong wine finally began to take effect.
“Oh no, what’s wrong with me today?” Huang He tried to push those thoughts away, but various images uncontrollably popped into his mind, making him feel parched. He reached for the mineral water by his hand, which his mother-in-law had specifically brought for him to drink.
However, Huang He grabbed empty air. When he looked, he saw that his mineral water was being held by the ancient-costumed cosplayer next to him, who was gulping down the water.
“Damn it, are people in 2001 this unrestrained when watching movies?” Huang He stared, dumbfounded, but he felt too awkward to ask for it back. He could only sigh that this ancient-costumed cosplayer was no ordinary person.
On the other side, Leng Zhiwen also felt extremely awkward.
Firstly, she drank Huang He's water directly not because she was particularly unrestrained, but because she knew that her brother-in-law was sitting next to her. His water was their family's water, and it hadn't been opened. Drinking her family's water was actually very normal.
However, only after she drank it did she realize that Huang He didn't know her identity. So, in Huang He's eyes, how shameless must her actions appear?
At the same time, the water tasted strange, with a hint of alcohol. Leng Zhiwen suspected that Huang He had poured baijiu into the mineral water bottle.
But this was also not Huang He's fault. Huang He had poured the alcohol for himself to drink, not for Leng Zhiwen. She was the one who picked it up and drank it, which made her seem even more foolish.
“I have something to attend to. I’m leaving!” Leng Zhiwen felt she couldn't stay there any longer. She took the mineral water and the Qingping sword in her hand and made a hasty exit. The movie was only halfway through when she left the screening hall.
There was no other way. If Leng Zhiwen didn't leave, she would be utterly mortified.
“What the hell is this?” Huang He looked bewildered at the ancient-costumed cosplayer who had come and gone so quickly. He could only shake his head and continue watching the movie until it ended and he reunited with his family.
“Brother-in-law, this movie is absolutely amazing! The fighter jets are so cool. I want to fly fighter jets too in the future!” After the movie, Leng Zhiting expressed her wish.
“Alright, in the future, brother-in-law will not only help you fly fighter jets but will also find a way to send you to fly spaceships!” Huang He said with a smile.
“Really? Then let’s pinky swear!”
“Okay, pinky swear!”
Huang He, Leng Zhiting, and the others were all beaming with joy. Only Leng Zhimeng wore a dejected expression. She had planned everything so meticulously and thoroughly, yet in the end, Huang He ended up sitting alone. What sort of situation was this?
Her room booking was also wasted. To ensure there was only one room at the hotel, Leng Zhiting had spent tens of thousands of yuan, using up her brother-in-law's first month's bonus entirely!
Regardless of how frustrated she felt, Huang He eventually got into his Iveco and took his family home.
But for some reason, Huang He felt that whenever he thought of that ancient-costumed cosplayer, he would recall some inappropriate Japanese plots, becoming absent-minded and easily distracted.
Naturally, he wasn't paying proper attention to the road. After driving for a short distance, it felt as if the entire wheel had been caught by something. There was a violent shake and impact, and the people inside the car even hit the car's ceiling. If Huang He hadn't held onto the steering wheel tightly, and if there hadn't been almost no other cars on the road, Huang He would have followed his parents to their demise.
“What’s going on?” The car stopped, and everyone asked in a panic.
“Someone stole the manhole cover!” Huang He said, getting out of the car to inspect it, his face full of anger.