Chapter 29: An Evening Out and a Private World

Returning to the private room, Wang Linshu was already growing a little impatient. He quickly asked, “Why did you take so long?”

Lin Duo was not in a good mood. She glared at him in annoyance. “It takes a long time for girls to use the restroom. Don’t you even know that?”

Wang Linshu had no idea what he had said wrong, his face a picture of bewilderment.

Their time in the private room expired, and the two left the KTV. It was already six in the evening, the sky beginning to darken.

Observing the surging, unfamiliar crowds around them, Lin Duo felt a pang of fear, a desire to return home welling up within her. “Um, Wang Linshu, let’s go back. Mom always said it’s dangerous for a girl to be out alone at night.”

“There are people everywhere here, what danger could there possibly be?” Wang Linshu dismissed her concern. “Oh, right, you like reading too. There’s a huge discount bookstore to the west, why don’t we go take a look?”

Lin Duo genuinely loved to read, especially all sorts of novels. Wang Linshu’s suggestion, therefore, perfectly suited her tastes. After a moment of hesitation, she agreed.

While there were bookstores near the fruit shop, they couldn’t compare to this one. Every corner of the vast space was filled with bookshelves, organized into several tiers by genre.

The store was bustling with customers, many of whom had found a spot on the steps to leisurely read their chosen books.

Lin Duo followed suit, picking up a contemporary novel and finding a place to sit. Her fair, slender hand turned to the title page, slowly immersing herself in the world within the book.

“Lin Duo, the bookstore is closing soon! We need to leave quickly. Hey, hey!”

It took several calls from Wang Linshu, shouted right into her ear, for Lin Duo to finally lift her head, her expression one of confusion. “We haven’t been here long, why would they be closing?”

With a helpless look, Wang Linshu pointed to the time on his phone. “See, it’s 8:50 PM. It’s definitely closing time.”

“I actually read for over two hours straight!” Lin Duo herself was a little astonished. “Oh no, why didn’t you remind me earlier? Now there’s no time to look at other books!”

Wang Linshu shrugged. “You were so engrossed in your reading, like a beautiful painting. How could I bear to disturb you? But it’s fine, we can come earlier next time. Come on, let’s hurry to the cashier!”

Lin Duo gazed at the novel she had already read halfway through, a hint of hesitation in her eyes. Should she buy it? She had already read half, so it felt like a waste. But if she didn’t, she wouldn’t know the ending, and that thought gnawed at her.

Since Lin Duo’s thoughts were clearly written all over her face, Wang Linshu saw through her at a glance. He took the novel from her. “Alright, I’ve actually wanted to read this one too. I’ll buy it, and we can check out together. But you can read it first; just return it to me after you’re finished.”

This solution greatly pleased Lin Duo. “Perfect, I was still debating whether to buy it or not! Oh, by the way, what books did you get today?”

“Lots of different kinds. Here, look at this one…”

As they chatted, the two arrived at the cashier. After settling the bill, night had already fallen outside. Yet, the main street remained brilliantly lit, and there were even more pedestrians than during the day.

Lin Duo smoothed her wind-tousled bangs with a delicate hand, sighing softly. “The nights here are so lively! When will we finally be adults, free to have all the time we want?”

“I’m not particularly keen on growing up. My dad, even though he’s an adult, is incredibly busy every day, sometimes not coming home for a month or so. My mom is the same, which is why they sent me to live with my grandpa.” Wang Linshu walked slowly with Lin Duo towards the bus stop.

“Even though my parents always say I’ll inherit the family business someday, I don’t really like being so busy. I want a more relaxed and free life. Oh, right, Lin Duo, what do you want to do when you grow up?”

“When I grow up…” Lin Duo looked up, her gaze drifting over the dazzling, colorful billboards above. “I don’t have too many specific ideas. Perhaps just a normal girl’s life would be good enough?”

Naturally, Wang Linshu failed to grasp the true meaning behind her words, and he felt a slight disappointment. “That’s a bit too vague, isn’t it? Be more specific, for instance… hmm… what kind of man do you want to marry?”

“Marry?” A gentle breeze swept past, and Lin Duo hugged herself tightly, trying to keep warm. ‘Marry? Who would ever be willing to accept my true self?’

Half an hour later, Wang Linshu escorted Lin Duo back to the entrance of the fruit shop. He tried to force a smile. “Um, Lin Duo, I had a really great time today. How about we pick another time to hang out again?”

“Let’s talk about it next time,” Lin Duo replied, her mood somewhat subdued.

Wang Linshu couldn’t understand which of his words had upset the girl he admired. He could only grumble to himself, ‘A woman’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea,’ as he reluctantly parted ways with Lin Duo.

Returning to the small apartment upstairs, her adoptive parents were seated on the sofa, watching television. Seeing Lin Duo come back, they exchanged a smile, and it was Wu Bijuan who asked, beaming, “Daughter, how was your time with Wang Linshu today?”

“Mm, it was alright…” Lin Duo’s spirits weren’t particularly high.

Wu Bijuan’s smile softened slightly. “If you don’t like him, then don’t worry about it. You’re still young, after all, and you can’t force matters of the heart. Uncle Wang should understand these things too.”

At that moment, Yue Renhui, who had been sitting beside them, cleared his throat. “Um, Duo Duo, to celebrate your successful junior high exams, we’ve prepared a gift for you.”

“A gift?” Lin Duo curiously scanned her surroundings, but found nothing new in the living room.

“It’s right here!” Yue Renhui reached under the sofa and pulled out a brand-new, large gift box, handing it to Lin Duo. On it was an enticing tagline: ‘Godlike Brand Laptop: Help You Go Godlike Every Game!’

A laptop! Lin Duo had never imagined her adoptive parents would give her such a valuable gift. For a moment, she covered her mouth in delighted surprise.

Yue Renhui gently patted Lin Duo’s head. “Ah, it’s a bit shameful to say, but most kids your age probably already have computers, and we never did. But it’s not too late now. This one was recommended and bought for us by Little Wang, who runs the computer repair shop across the street. He said it’s pretty and lightweight, something a girl would definitely love.”

“Thank you, Mom and Dad!” Lin Duo bowed, overcome with emotion.

“We’re family, no need for formalities.” The more Yue Renhui looked at his beautiful and well-behaved adopted daughter, the more pleased he felt. He paused, then continued, “You don’t have to worry about the internet either. Old Man Zhang upstairs and I have arranged to share wireless, and of course, we’ll contribute to the cost. Here, the Wi-Fi name and password are on this note. Go on, hurry inside and try out your new computer!”

Lin Duo returned to her bedroom, excitedly tearing open the packaging. The laptop was indeed beautiful, with a pink cover, a slim keyboard, and a light screen. It felt lighter than even a few books combined.

Lin Duo lay on her bed, plugged in the power, and turned on the computer, successfully connecting to the internet. For a moment, she wasn’t sure what to do, so she decided to install QQ first and contact some familiar people.

Lin Duo had joined several ** groups a long time ago, but he belonged to the low-key ‘lurker’ type. His avatar rarely lit up, and his most frequent interactions were with the drug dealers within the groups. He had previously consulted some seniors in the group about certain matters, but he always maintained a strong sense of caution, never revealing any of his true information.

Moreover, out of caution, after arriving in Nan’an City, Lin Duo registered a new QQ account and re-added the drug dealers he was familiar with. As for his old QQ account, he had never logged into it again.

Although the drug dealers knew more about his personal information, they upheld their professional ethics and would not easily disclose it externally.

After reconfirming the new drug purchase and payment procedures with the drug dealers, Lin Duo opened the class group chat window, which he had only joined a few days prior, to see what everyone was discussing.

For the past two days, the class group chat had mainly been discussing the admission cut-off scores. According to regulations, the cut-off for municipal key schools was announced first, followed by district key schools a few days later, and finally ordinary middle schools.

This afternoon happened to be the announcement time for the district key school scores, and now the classmates in the group were all buzzing about it.

Someone with sharp eyes noticed Lin Duo’s QQ avatar light up and typed in the public chat: “Hey, look quick! Our great beauty Lin is online!”

Immediately, a string of messages appeared below:

“Welcome, welcome! =3”

“Oh wow, long time no see you online.”

“Class 2’s Goddess has arrived! Everyone gather ‘round!”

“Congratulations on getting into Nanli Affiliated High School!”

“Student Lin, you’re really amazing! Your score ranked second in the entire class this time! Only Pei Zhezhi scored a little higher than you.”

…

As he looked at the messages on the screen, Lin Duo felt a warmth spread through his heart. He hadn’t realized until the graduation dinner that his popularity among the boys was so high. A slight smile played on Lin Duo’s lips as he placed his slender fingers on the keyboard, replying to each greeting one by one.