Chapter 8

“Thanks for that,” Xue Ling said as she walked up to Wen Jiuze after cleaning up.

She intended to keep it brief, expecting him to either say it was nothing or just ignore her before she returned to her dorm for a late-night snack to soothe her earlier embarrassment.

But Wen Jiuze asked her, “Why didn’t you just refuse him directly?”

Surprised by his sudden question, Xue Ling paused for a moment and forced a smile. “I’m not very good at refusing others.”

Not being able to refuse was a habit Xue Ling developed from a young age.

When she was little, her parents divorced. To succeed in the divorce and gain custody of her, her mother had to give up their savings and home, leaving with almost nothing.

With a young child to care for, her single mother felt immense pressure while working.

Her mother often lost her temper for no apparent reason or suddenly broke down in tears in the living room. The young Xue Ling was terrified of her mother’s anger and even more afraid of her crying.

So Xue Ling knew from a very young age that she should not make her mother angry or upset because her life was so hard because of her.

Xue Ling was always a well-behaved and sensible child. So when her mother had to work in another city and left her with her uncle’s family, she didn’t complain but agreed obediently.

Her uncle’s home was small, and Xue Ling had to share a room with her cousin, who was two years older.

When she first arrived at her uncle’s house, her cousin threw a fit, refusing to let her in the room, claiming it was her house and she wouldn’t share it. She even tossed Xue Ling’s little bag outside.

Her cousin complained for a long time about having Xue Ling live there. Although she eventually accepted her, she would still sometimes say, “This is my house, you shouldn’t be here.”

As they grew up, they understood each other better and the cousin no longer threatened to kick her out.

People often joked about their childhood squabbles at the dinner table, teasing how close they became despite their earlier fights.

Living under someone else’s roof shaped Xue Ling into a person without any temper.

She didn’t dare to lose her temper like her cousin. She would cry or make a fuss whenever she wanted. She also seldom made any requests or caused trouble to others, whether it was a school bag, notebooks and pens, toys,or new clothes and shoes for the new semester.

She would take the initiative to help with cleaning and cooking for her aunt, and even when washing her own shoes, she would not forget to wash her cousin’s shoes.

Everyone praised her for being obedient and sensible, but Xue Ling was merely afraid they would think she was misbehaving and would throw her out.

Even though she knew she wouldn’t be easily cast aside, the fear of being abandoned with nowhere to go lingered throughout her childhood and adolescence.

Only during holidays, when her mother returned from work, did she feel a sense of safety.

After graduating high school, her mother told her that she had grown up and completed her responsibilities. She remarried, moving to another city with her new husband.

Seeing her mother relieved made Xue Ling choose not to join them in their new family, opting instead to rent a place of her own.

Not only around relatives, but at school, Xue Ling was also seen as a well-mannered person without a temper.

If someone asked her for help, even if it was inconvenient, she would agree if they asked a couple of times.

She feared making people angry by refusing and worried they might dislike her.

Everyone said she was gentle and kind, with no temper. Hearing it repeatedly, Xue Ling unconsciously boxed herself into their words, striving to meet others’ praises and expectations by pleasing everyone around her.

This incurable “old habit” continued into college. Her inability to refuse brought her many troubles, particularly with numerous admirers and confession attempts.

Though she wasn’t extremely beautiful, she had a gentle, unassuming appearance that matched her temperament.

This was precisely the worst part. Girls who were exceptionally pretty often deterred many boys from pursuing them, but a girl like Xue Ling invited many to try their luck, believing they stood a better chance.

Most of them didn’t truly like her. They simply thought she would make a good girlfriend and were less likely to be rejected.

Even when she turned them down, because she wasn’t harsh, they often assumed she was just playing hard to get and wouldn’t give up.

As Xue Ling stood before Wen Jiuze, a boy she didn’t know very well, and reluctantly admitted, “I’m not very good at refusing,” she already dreaded how the boy who had just confessed would continue to pester her.

Feeling dejected, she lost the energy to keep talking.

Wen Jiuze looked at her and said, “Not good at refusing others? I don’t believe that.”

His expression conveyed skepticism and a hint of mockery.

Xue Ling didn’t know why she felt compelled to explain. “Really, I—”

Wen Jiuze interrupted her, leaning on the railing with a smile. “Then how about you be my girlfriend? What do you think?”

Xue Ling was taken aback, staring at his amused expression, and inexplicably nodded.

Now it was Wen Jiuze’s turn to be surprised. He had merely teased her, not expecting her to actually agree.

He paused for a moment, studying her with a strange gaze, and said, “Alright, now I believe you.”

Xue Ling felt so embarrassed that she wished she could hide in the nearby trash can. She had completely short-circuited in that moment—

“Tell me, what were you thinking?” Wen Jiuze seemed to be trying to understand her thought process.

Xue Ling controlled her embarrassment and tried to come up with a reasonable explanation under Wen Jiuze’s gaze.

“Because, um, that guy from earlier will definitely come looking for me again. This kind of thing is quite troublesome, so I thought if I had a boyfriend, it wouldn’t happen anymore…”

The real reason was a bit too hard for her to say.

If she said the guy who confessed earlier looked like a typical boy, and that the previous Wen Xuan was clearly a handsome guy, then the Wen Jiuze in front of her was an exceptionally good-looking man with a great figure and charm. He was the kind of person who would catch anyone’s eye while walking down the street.

She had been momentarily dazzled by his looks and had nodded without thinking.

After hearing her explanation, Wen Jiuze nodded and said, “Alright, let’s go with that.”

But what did “let’s go with that” mean? Xue Ling began to nervously scratch her foot against her slipper, wishing she could turn back time and avoid talking to him.

“So we’re in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship now. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Wen Jiuze.”

“Ah… I’m Xue Ling.”

She watched in a daze as Wen Jiuze stood up. Looking up, she could see his chin, and she heard him chuckle softly.

They had inexplicably and casually established their relationship.

Wen Jiuze was a rather troublesome guy. Xue Ling realized this not long after they started dating.

The most common phrase he would say was, “You’re not mad? I don’t believe it.”

Then he would start teasing her in various ways. Strangely enough, Xue Ling had put up with many frustrating situations before, but somehow, Wen Jiuze always managed to make her snap.

Wen Jiuze was exceptionally keen on getting her riled up, and the results were worth his efforts.

After twenty years of being a soft and easy-going person, Xue Ling had been turned into a tough loaf of Russian rye bread by him.

Everyone who knew Xue Ling said she had changed. She had become much more irritable.

Her friends, who often asked her for help, started to dwindle in number. The boys who used to flirt with her for no reason disappeared as well.

They lamented that her temper had worsened since she got a boyfriend, and they were afraid to provoke her.

Yes, her temper was indeed cultivated by Wen Jiuze.

It had only been a little over a year, yet he easily transformed her into someone else.

Xue Ling had once wondered if Wen Jiuze would break up with her without a care because he thought she had changed.

Isn’t there a classic breakup line that guys use? “Why have you changed from who you used to be?”

Could that really be the reason? Damn Wen Jiuze, it was clearly his own fault!

Xue Ling suddenly became angry. She no longer doubted herself. She was angry now and wanted to go crazy! Go crazy!

She propped her head up from the passenger seat, checked the road conditions ahead, and then suddenly raised her hand and smacked Wen Jiuze, who was driving.

Wen Jiuze flinched and said, “I don’t think I did anything to provoke you. What’s wrong?”

Xue Ling ignored him and flailed her limbs, banging her head against the backrest.

“Stop banging your head. It’s going to get even more flat if you keep hitting it that hard.” Wen Jiuze raised his hand to block her head.

Inside the cramped car, it was chaotic. Wen Jiuze pulled over to the side of the road, let her go, and then hugged her as they got out of the car.

“Come on, stretch your arms and legs outside.” He squatted by the roadside, looking at her and said, “Why do you act like a cat, getting all restless when locked in a car?”

Ignoring him, Xue Ling wandered around nearby while Wen Jiuze leisurely followed her. Once she calmed down, he picked her up again and stuffed her back into the car, then drove off.

He didn’t know where to go. Except for when Xue Ling suddenly went wild, he would stop to let her out to walk, and he hardly took a break. Even when eating, he would casually munch on convenient compressed rations and canned food while driving.

After a stretch of smooth road, they came across a small path that hadn’t seen traffic in ages. Wen Jiuze had to get out and push aside the cars that were blocking the way.

He had always been strong, but now he was even more impressive. He could push smaller cars out of the way with a crowbar and his muscles.

For larger vehicles, he would use a rope to pull them aside, clearing the path.

While he was clearing the road, Xue Ling wandered nearby.

In this dust-covered desolate world, she saw abandoned cars and houses, as well as abandoned zombies.

Xue Ling ventured a little further and noticed a few of her kind wandering nearby.

Wild zombies were everywhere. She had once been wild herself, but now she was captured. The human who captured her didn’t see her and came to her soon.

The wild zombies smelled food and rushed forward, only to be dispatched by Wen Jiuze with his crowbar.

“You’ve wandered too far; I can’t see you anymore,” he said, grabbing her arm as he held up the bloody crowbar and pulled her back to the car.

Taking advantage of his second trip to push a car, Xue Ling found another direction to sneak off.

She spotted a drainage pipe overgrown with weeds by the roadside and bent down to slowly crawl inside.

The dry pipe was quite clean, with only a bit of dust, and Xue Ling quietly lay inside.

In the past, she had slept in such pipes to avoid humans, and it was rather nice—quiet and clean. Once, though, during a heavy rainstorm at night, she had almost drowned.

Before long, she heard Wen Jiuze calling out.

“Xue Ling.”

“Xue Ling.”

“Xue Ling.”

He called her name, his voice growing fainter and closer.

No one answered him, and he stopped calling.

Right, zombies can’t understand, so what was the point of shouting names? Xue Ling thought, remaining still.

The wind swayed the weeds at the pipe’s entrance, making them dance.

The weeds trembled for a long time before a large, rough hand pushed them aside, and Wen Jiuze squatted at the entrance of the pipe, leaning down with a smile. “Are you playing hide-and-seek with me? You hid really well.”

Wen Jiuze, undeterred, once again pulled her out to take her back.

After the seventh failed attempt to leave, Xue Ling thought as he carried her back that people said she had a good temper, but in reality, Wen Jiuze had the best temper. She had never seen him angry.

Sometimes she was also curious about what Wen Jiuze looked like when he was angry.

But like this, even if she deliberately hid and made him look for her for a long time, he would not get angry.