Dinner was almost exactly the same as lunch—aside from a new dish of cola chicken wings, everything else was leftovers.
No one at the table minded. In fact, Black Bean was happily munching on the chicken wings, her head bobbing as she chewed. Her ears twitched in rhythm with her movements, and the sauce had smeared all over her face, making her look like a little kitten with a messy face.
Their mother was busy playing mahjong on her phone with her best friends. Occasionally, she’d look up to chat with the uncle. And when she won a hand, she’d squeal in excitement like a teenage girl and proudly show off:
“I won! Look at this hand—so big!”
The uncle would lean over with a chuckle, take a glance, and agree, “Not bad! Maybe you should buy a lottery ticket later?”
“They’re all scams.”
Despite saying that, Mom happily went back to her game. But then she looked up again—this time at Ning Chu sitting across the table.
Ning Chu instinctively shrank back, lowering her head and shoveling rice into her mouth in a guilty panic.
Too suspicious!
Even though she looked totally clean and composed on the surface, Ning Chu mom's nose twitched—she could still smell that faint leftover scent of... desire.So she rushed out of the house this afternoon to meet up with her boyfriend, huh?
Ning Chu couldn’t handle the stare.
Even though nothing “real” had happened with Wen Yang earlier in the afternoon, just being caught acting a little too flirtatious by her mom was enough to make her heart skip in panic.
Even back when she was still a guy, she’d get embarrassed if her mom found out she went on a date with a girl…
And now she was a girl herself, going out with a guy—and got caught by her mom?
In front of her mom and older brother, she still habitually saw herself as the “younger brother.”
That made the whole thing even more embarrassing. Her face flushed bright red.
“Mom, I’m done eating.”
She had barely eaten half a bowl of rice before standing up.
“Sis! You barely ate anything!” Black Bean looked up, frowning like a little adult. “Sis! You know every grain is hard-earned!”
Lily is working hard alone at home…
That odd thought popped into Ning Chu’s head, and she quickly made up an excuse:
“My appetite’s just small—”
“Sis! Did you sneak off to eat this afternoon?!”
“!!!”
Oh crap! How did she know that?!
Ning Chu completely lost her composure and almost tripped on her own feet.
“And you didn’t even bring me any.”
She stole a glance at her mom, who was covering her mouth trying not to laugh. Only then did she realize Black Bean was using “sneak off to eat” in the literal sense.
Ning Chu awkwardly replied, “Next time—I’ll bring you some next time.”
Ning Yuan looked after her retreating figure in confusion. “What’s up with her today? She almost tripped walking on flat ground?”
“She’s feeling guilty from sneaking off to eat and not sharing!” Black Bean declared proudly.
The uncle looked equally puzzled but kept quiet since he was still getting used to the family.
As Black Bean ranted about Ning Chu being selfish, their mom just kept laughing nonstop.
Ning Chu didn’t even bother to wipe her face. She just fled back to her room.
She threw herself onto the bed, legs dangling off the edge, swinging gently back and forth.
Living at home is really inconvenient…
She stuck out her tongue and gave her lips a quick lick—then froze. Her eyes widened as she blushed all over again.
She quickly sat up and grabbed some tissues to wipe her mouth.
There was still that sweet scent left on her lips!
No wonder her mom had noticed something was off, even though she’d showered and didn’t get her clothes dirty.
I should've brushed my teeth too…
She stared blankly at the ceiling, feeling like she just wanted to evaporate.
Now she was trying to figure out how to cover things up better in the future.
Even though her body was that of a succubus, she’d been a man for over twenty years.
Getting caught sneaking off to “meet with a guy” by her mom was way too much for her poor heart to handle.
“…Wait. Why am I thinking about how to hide it, instead of just not doing it at all?”
That sudden realization caught her off guard. After a moment of thought, she muttered to herself:
“Because I’m a succubus~”
Yep. Solid logic.
She instantly convinced herself.
“Sis~ I finished memorizing that ancient poem! You need to sign it for me later,” Black Bean suddenly pushed open the door and poked her head in.
“You’re done eating already?” Ning Chu asked, still lying flat on her bed.
“Mom said we should eat less at night, or we’ll get fat.”
“Oh~”
“Big Brother said he’s taking me out shopping tonight! I wanna eat barbecue!”
“…”
Ning Chu took the textbook Black Bean handed her and scanned it while still lying down.
It was a very familiar poem. Although this world differed from her previous life in many ways, there were also surprising similarities.
She listened as Black Bean stumbled through the five-line poem and then casually signed her name on the paper.
As she did, she asked, “What about the uncle? Is he staying the night again?”
“Dad usually sleeps over and only leaves after lunch the next day.”
“I knew it~”
Mom’s totally siding with him now—she even made her own son sleep on the floor just to keep that man comfortable!
And she still has the nerve to call me out? Please.
From outside the room, Ning Yuan’s voice called out, “Ning Xin! Are you done reciting? Ask your sister if she wants to come shopping too.”
“Sis, wanna come?” Black Bean turned back to ask.
“No, I’m tired. Feeling kind of sleepy.”
The rented apartment that she and Wen Yang got was only sectioned off with thin walls—it was more of a partition than a real room. The walls were so thin that she was constantly worried that people in the hallway or next door might overhear something.
Because of that, she had to bite into a pillow and do everything she could to muffle any noise.
The worst part?
Seeing her trying so hard to stay quiet had made Wen Yang even more excited and aggressive. He even pulled out a toy—god knows why he thought to pack that with him!
As a result, she ended up more exhausted than usual.
She had forced herself to stay awake just to have dinner, and now, after barely lying down for a few minutes, she was already too drained to keep her eyes open.
“I’m heading out now!” Black Bean clutched her textbook and dashed away.
“Close the door.”
“Okay!”
Things stayed noisy outside the bedroom for a bit, but soon after, the front door shut with a soft clunk, and the house quieted down.
In the distance, she could vaguely hear her mom chatting with the uncle at the dinner table.
Ning Chu yawned, pulled her legs up onto the bed, turned onto her side, and wrapped the blanket into a long tube. Hugging it like a body pillow, she curled around it like an octopus.
Her eyes were closed in a daze, but after an unknown amount of time, they opened again.
Damn it. I can’t fall asleep alone.
The longer she lay there, the more awake she felt.
Even though her body was exhausted and her mind tired, she just couldn’t fall asleep.
And worst of all—her big, soft, warm body pillow was missing.
Ning Chu grabbed her phone to check the time.
Turns out she had already dozed off in a fog for an hour—it was 8:30 PM.
The apartment was completely quiet now. The living room lights were off, and through the small gap under the bedroom door, the whole place looked dark.
Yawning, Ning Chu sat up and slowly shuffled toward the bathroom.
But just as she reached the door and placed her hand on the knob, she suddenly froze.
Wait! What if Mom and the uncle are… doing something?
If I open the door right now, won’t I totally barge in on them?!
She immediately lightened her steps and moved cautiously.
Turning the doorknob slowly, she gently cracked open the door and peeked into her mother’s bedroom.
“…She’s not here.”
Right. She knows not to fool around at home. Of course Mom wouldn’t do something like that here.
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