Lin Zhexia knew he wasn’t good at being human, but she didn’t expect he could be this inhuman.
She didn’t know how to counter for a moment.
She could only force out a polite greeting: “When did you get back?”
Having just showered, Chi Yao spoke with a hint of lazy weariness.
Still, it couldn’t mask his youthful voice:
“Half an hour ago.”
“Then do you think it’s appropriate to talk to me like this when we haven’t seen each other for so long and you just got back?”
“What’s inappropriate about it?”
Lin Zhexia accused: “Is that how a human talks?”
“I don’t speak human language,” Chi Yao lifted his eyelids, expressing a casual surprise, “yet you can understand me.”
“…”
“It seems you have quite a talent for languages. Next time, when the golden retriever downstairs barks randomly, come help me listen to what it’s trying to say.”
“……”
The conversation had hit a dead end.
If they continued, it would imply that she wasn’t human either.
Fortunately, Lin Zhexia had strong adaptability, after all, they hadn’t known each other for just a day or two.
She spoke slowly: “Let me ask you a question, and you need to answer honestly.”
As she spoke, Chi Yao had already walked past her, opened the refrigerator, and pulled out a can of soda.
Cold vapor continuously rose from the soda.
He held the can with one hand, three distinct-knuckled fingers gripping it, then curled his index finger and slipped it into the pull tab. Almost simultaneously with the “pop” sound of the can being opened one-handed, he uttered a single word: “Ask.”
“If I hit you right now, what are my chances of winning?”
“Ten percent.”
“Let’s hear it,” Lin Zhexia perked up her ears, “elaborate.”
Chi Yao held the can in one hand and placed his other hand on her shoulder, seemingly embracing her but pushing her toward the door. Lin Zhexia was quickly pushed out, then watched helplessly as this dog-like person blocked her at the doorway, lowering his eyes to look at her and saying: “Turn around and go home right now, turn off the lights, get in bed, and try to dream about me tonight.”
Finally, he even curled his lips and added, “Good night.”
Lin Zhexia returned home, showered, and tossed and turned in bed for a long time.
She still couldn’t get over it, so she opened the chat with “Chi Dog.”
She sent a series of beating emoticons to vent her anger—
[Hit you]—
[Pound your head]—
[Wielding a 10-meter knife, slashing wildly]—
[Ada]
…
Finally, she imitated Chi Yao, trying to sound cold: Good night.
After sending it, she quickly fell asleep.
She was someone who rarely carried emotions overnight, otherwise she wouldn’t have maintained a friendship with someone like Chi Yao for so many years.
After a night’s sleep, she was back to normal as if nothing had happened.
When the “Nanxiang Small Squad” sent a group message in the morning asking if everyone wanted to go to Chi Yao’s place to watch a movie together, she replied with a “yes” while biting into her fried dough stick.
The area where they lived was called “Nanxiang.”
Nanxiang was the name of the street at the entrance of their residential complex.
There weren’t many people in the group.
The main reason it was called the “Nanxiang Small Squad” was that Lin Zhexia had originally suggested that using the residential complex name would make it sound like an ordinary residents’ group, without showing much momentum, while using the street name sounded more like street bosses.
—This childish remark from Lin Zhexia’s elementary school days had been approved at the time, and the name was never changed, continuing until now.
“Mom, I’m going to Chi Yao’s place later,” Lin Zhexia said, “we’re organizing an activity today.”
Lin He and Uncle Wei sat across from her, eating breakfast.
Lin He knew these children were close, so she didn’t say much, only asking: “Chi Yao is back?”
The three of them sat together.
Lin Zhexia spoke more steadily than usual: “Yes, he came back last night.”
Wei Ping also politely said, “Perfect timing, I just bought a watermelon yesterday. You can take it over later, and everyone can share it.”
Lin Zhexia took a sip of soy milk, having almost finished eating, and prepared to go pack her things: “Thank you, Uncle Wei.”