Chapter 3: The Countdown Begins

Luo Xiaoyun descended the spiral staircase toward the dining room.

The room was filled with the aroma of toasted bread and coffee.

Three people sat at the long table: her second brother, Luo Jingming, lazily scrolling through his phone; her father, Luo Junhe, reading the morning paper; and her mother, Shen Zhiyao, holding a white porcelain cup, her gaze tender as she looked over.

“Yo.” Luo Jingming looked up, raising an eyebrow. “Where’d this white-haired kid come from? Playing cosplay?”

Luo Xiaoyun’s heart skipped a beat, but she forced herself to stay calm. She pulled out a chair and sat down, casually picking up a slice of toasted bread.

“What do you know? This is called fashion. Where’s big brother? Isn’t National Day holiday over yet? He’s already at the company?”

“You think everyone’s like you?” Luo Junhe glanced up from behind his newspaper, his tone flat but carrying his usual authority. “All you do during break is eat and sleep. You never take work seriously.”

“We have big brother and second brother for that.” Luo Xiaoyun spread jam on her bread, trying to keep her voice casual. “Why would I need to worry?”

“Less of your cheek.” Luo Jingming scoffed, putting down his phone. “You’re just lazy. School starts the day after tomorrow. When do you plan to go back?”

“Tomorrow morning.” Luo Xiaoyun took a bite of the bread, jam sticking to her lips. “You?”

“I’ll leave soon. I’m planning to apply for an early internship; I’ve already talked to the professor.” Luo Jingming paused, then suddenly squinted. “But speaking of which… what’s up with your hair? Did you dye it?”

Luo Xiaoyun froze.

“I… just felt like trying it.” She lowered her eyelashes, poking at the fried egg on her plate with a fork. “Doesn’t it look good?”

Shen Zhiyao spoke softly. “It looks good, but it’s too eye-catching. Will school… be okay?”

“It’s fine. I’m expressing my individuality,” Luo Xiaoyun mumbled.

Breakfast ended with fragmented conversation. Before leaving for his study, Luo Junhe turned back to look at Luo Xiaoyun. “Pay attention to your appearance. Don’t be so careless all the time.”

“Got it, Dad.”

After their parents left the dining room, Luo Jingming leaned in, lowering his voice. “Honestly, did something happen to you?”

“No.”

“Really?” He studied her. “I feel like something’s different… Your skin looks better? And this smell.” He suddenly leaned closer, his nose twitching. “Did you spray perfume? Jasmine?”

Luo Xiaoyun jerked back, her back hitting the chair. “It’s—it’s just the smell of body wash!”

“…Is that so?” Luo Jingming stared at her for a few seconds, then finally shrugged. “Fine. I’m leaving this afternoon. No need to see me off.”

Watching her second brother’s back as he went upstairs, Luo Xiaoyun finally breathed a sigh of relief. She raised her wrist to her nose and sniffed. The faint scent of jasmine had indeed seeped into her skin.

Back in her bedroom, she closed the door.

Luo Xiaoyun threw herself onto the bed, burying her face in the pillow. Morning light streamed through the gap in the curtains, dancing on her silver-white short hair. She pulled out her phone, and the screen lit up.

Ding. A WeChat notification sounded. A group chat message popped up:

– Xu Xiangyang: @everyone Comrades! Less than 48 hours of holiday left!

– Cheng Fang: Catching up on homework. Do not disturb.

– Zhou Yu’an: @Luo Xiaoyun When are you coming back, Brother Xiaoyun? Bring food!

– Xu Xiangyang: Yeah! Since you’ve been gone, no one’s brought me food!

Luo Xiaoyun fell silent. How should she reply?

Say “I’ll be there tomorrow”? This appearance should be fine, right?

“System,” she called in her mind, “the ‘male voice’ skill—no problems, right?”

“Just think ‘activate’ in your mind, and it’s done.” Sister Tongzi’s voice carried a hint of laughter. “But a friendly reminder: limited to eight hours a day. Please use your time wisely.”

Luo Xiaoyun closed her eyes and tried to think the word in her mind.

Suddenly, a slight burning sensation rose in her throat—very brief, then gone. She cleared her throat and tentatively said, “Ah.”

It was still the familiar male voice of “Luo Xiaoyun.” Low, with a touch of youthful clarity.

She breathed a sigh of relief and tapped on the input box.

– Luo Xiaoyun: I’ll be there tomorrow morning.

– Zhou Yu’an: !! Bro Xiaoyun appears!

– Xu Xiangyang: I got two hot girls lined up. Waiting for you to drink together.

– Cheng Fang: @Xu Xiangyang You’re hogging it all, asshole. I’m coming too.

– Luo Xiaoyun: With my looks, do I need to go pick up girls?

– Xu Xiangyang: Tsk, who was it that stuttered whenever talking to girls?

– Zhou Yu’an: +1

– Cheng Fang: +1

Luo Xiaoyun watched the barrage of messages, the corners of her mouth lifting uncontrollably. This familiar, noisy routine made her feel for a moment that nothing had changed.

But when her fingers brushed across the screen, she saw the skin on the back of her hand—fair, delicate, with a faint blush at the knuckles, nails neatly trimmed, fingertips rounded.

Staring at her hand, which didn’t look like a boy’s, she fell into deep thought.

“Host seems to miss the past quite a bit,” Sister Tongzi’s voice chimed in leisurely.

“…None of your business.”

“Just a reminder: the main quest countdown has already begun. In fifty-nine days and twenty-three hours, if you haven’t confessed to your parents, the punishment mechanism will trigger automatically.”

Luo Xiaoyun turned over, staring at the chandelier on the ceiling.

Two months.

She only had two months to find a reasonable explanation for this absurd transformation.

From outside the window came the sound of a car engine starting. Her second brother was leaving.

She walked to the window and lifted a corner of the curtain. Downstairs, Luo Jingming was putting his suitcase into the trunk. He looked up toward her room.

Luo Xiaoyun instinctively ducked behind the curtain.

When she peered out again, the car had already driven out of the courtyard and disappeared at the end of the tree-lined avenue.

The room suddenly became eerily quiet.

Sunlight spilled across the carpet, dust dancing in the beams.

Luo Xiaoyun stood by the window, her silver hair tinged with pale gold. She gripped her phone; the screen was still lit, the wallpaper a cute white cat.

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