‘Lin Yizhou had to admit one thing. Su Ziling’s emotions were really stable. And it was no exaggeration to say that she was almost too stable. This extreme rationality was completely unlike what a girl should have. Forget shyness, Lin Yizhou could hardly read any other emotion on her face. The only thing he could glean anything from was the warmth she showed through her actions and words. But could it be said that she had no defenses at all? On the contrary, people with this personality had the deepest defenses against others. If someone tried to cross the line, she might unceremoniously slap a “Good Person Card” on him. You ask why he was so sure? Of course, it was because he had experienced it that he was clear~’
Lin Yizhou shook his head in self-mockery.
“Mom, I bought the medicine!”
Just as the two were silent, Su Lili timely pushed open the room door and walked inside.
“I also bought fever-reducing patches!”
Su Lili raised the bag in her hand as if showing off.
Her appearance naturally interrupted Lin Yizhou’s train of thought. He quickly ate a couple of bites of the food, then took the medicine from Su Lili’s hand and said to the pair of one big and one small in front of him.
“Well… thank you for your help.”
“Hmph hmph hmph~” Su Lili puffed out her chest and said proudly, “No need to praise me, praise Mom more. I’m just an errand runner.”
Seeing that Lin Yizhou had already gotten the medicine, Su Ziling naturally knew it was about time for her to leave, so she took Su Lili’s hand and spoke.
“For a high fever, it’s recommended to drink more hot water, take medicine on time, and also go to sleep on time. Don’t keep thinking about playing with your phone…”
Although Su Ziling wanted to let Lin Yizhou go to the hospital, the hospital system here wasn’t as convenient as in her previous life. After all, as mentioned before, the social environment here was a bit like America.
Going to the hospital was not only expensive, but more importantly, it was time-consuming. You’d probably be better before the medical process was even finished.
“Okay, okay,” Su Lili tugged at Su Ziling’s hand, interrupting her rambling, and said to Lin Yizhou, “Dad, finish eating and rest quickly! Mom and I will go back first! Don’t forget to let Mom know you’re safe when you get better!”
With that, the two, one big and one small, left the room.
With a soft click of the door closing, the room suddenly fell into silence, as if the previous noise had never existed.
Only Lin Yizhou was left in the room again.
He quickly ate two more bites of food.
Perhaps it was the high fever, or maybe the food had lost its warmth; it tasted like chewing wax, utterly flavorless. His head was as heavy as lead, and his stomach had no appetite.
After eating a few bites hastily, he lost all interest. He swallowed the fever reducer, stuck on a cool fever-reducing patch, and laboriously climbed back into bed, falling into a deep sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, the sky outside had completely darkened.
Lin Yizhou’s consciousness returned to clarity. Although his mind was still a bit groggy, it was much better compared to noon.
He got up, drank a glass of water, and measured his temperature.
37.9 degrees.
It had indeed gone down.
But at that moment, Lin Yizhou suddenly remembered Su Lili’s words when she left.
So, he fumbled and picked up his phone from the bedside.
When the screen lit up, the harsh light made him squint. His fingertip slid through the contact list and finally hovered over the solitary word “Zero.”
In the message list, there was only a lone payment receipt.
That was his transaction with Su Ziling, the meal fee for this month.
However, after Lin Yizhou typed out the message, his finger seemed stuck by invisible glue, unable to press send.
Thinking back on various past events, he couldn’t help but sigh.
‘Lin Yizhou didn’t want to interact with the opposite sex. Because it was exhausting. Once the message was sent, his heart would be up in the air. You couldn’t help but guess the other person’s reaction, worry if she misunderstood. Every second waiting for a reply was stretched unbearably long by anxiety. And the most suffocating thing was the belated reply that felt like it came centuries later, often just a cold “mm” or a meaningless symbol. It was like a bucket of cold water, extinguishing all expectations. So interacting with the opposite sex… was really tiring. Rather than that, it was better to choose not to send from the start.’
Lin Yizhou sighed and put the phone back on the bedside.
It wasn’t anything very important anyway.
‘That’s it… Being alone was fine.’
Lin Yizhou put down his phone. Fatigue hit him again. He closed his heavy eyes, and his consciousness sank into darkness.
—
“Mom, Mom, I want to watch Magical Girl Meluke.”
At Su Ziling’s home, Su Lili said in a sticky, sweet voice and kept shaking Su Ziling’s arm, pleading.
“Just one episode, just one more episode.”
“Sigh…” Su Ziling sighed helplessly. “How come you have the same taste as your dad?”
“Because Magical Girl Meluke is super cool, okay!” Su Lili waved her little fists. “My dream is to become a magical girl like her, with strength and fame!”
“Okay, okay, first put your feet down from the sofa.”
Su Ziling turned on the TV, found “Magical Girl Meluke” and started playing it.
Watching the magical girl full of righteousness in the anime and the somewhat childish plot, she really couldn’t appreciate it.
‘I don’t know how Su Xiaomeng, Su Lili, and Lin Yizhou could stand watching this… No? How come she was the only one in this family who seemed out of place?’
Su Ziling scratched her head and then had no choice but to continue watching.
‘Hmm… To be honest, although the magical girl designs were indeed pretty, the plot really… made her want to sleep.’
“Do you like this Meluke a lot?”
“Of course!” Su Lili nodded repeatedly. “And this magical girl actually has a real-life prototype! She must be a chivalrous and powerful magical girl!”
Hearing this, Su Ziling thought of Pei Keke.
‘Why did the other party persistently want to invite her to cooperate? If it was just for fame and money, there was no need. Or was there some other intention?’
Su Ziling couldn’t figure it out, but she wouldn’t burst Su Lili’s beautiful fantasy.
It was like a phrase Su Xiaomeng often muttered: “If a Kamen Rider actor had a scandal, what did that have to do with my favorite Kamen Rider suit?”
It was the same logic.
After accompanying Su Lili to watch for who knows how long, Su Ziling couldn’t help but yawn. Just as she was about to ask if they should continue watching the next episode, she found that Su Lili had already leaned on her shoulder and fallen into a deep sleep.
Her breathing was very even and gentle, she seemed to be sleeping soundly.
If you listened carefully, you could faintly hear things like “Mom, Dad” in her dreams.