Chapter 20

Ji Zhou replied lightly, “Oh.”
Chen Huai sniffed and opened WeChat.
He typed out a long paragraph of who-knows-what, then his face turned even worse. “She blocked me!”
Ji Zhou raised his brows. His usually restrained face showed a faint trace of schadenfreude.
“Blocked, then blocked!” Chen Huai held his pride up by force.
Not long after, Ji Zhou heard him mutter again, “I’ll go search Baidu for how to write a self-criticism.”
Ji Zhou let out a cold snort.
“Don’t laugh. Once you’re in love, you’ll understand. Properly softening your stance doesn’t lose face. Besides, girls need more coaxing.”
Ji Zhou agreed, “Mm. I’m dating.”
Chen Huai’s searching hand stopped. He turned and stared at him. “What did you just say?”
Ji Zhou patiently repeated, “I said you’re right.”
Chen Huai: “The sentence after that.”
Ji Zhou: “I’m dating.”
Chen Huai’s eyes cleared instantly. “Who? How did you meet? Why didn’t you mention her?”
Ji Zhou: “I did.”
“When did yo—” Chen Huai suddenly remembered and switched direction. “The one you were texting last time?”
A hint of a smile appeared on Ji Zhou’s face. “Mm.”
“So... you got together? Why don’t you bring her out and introduce us?”
“That may take a little more time. I haven’t met her yet either.”
“Wait.” Chen Huai was confused. “What do you mean you haven’t met her either? Aren’t you dating? Online relationship?”
Ji Zhou admitted openly: “Yes.”
Chen Huai choked. The singer on stage had changed; now it was a sweet little love song. The cute melody and sugary voice should have softened people’s hearts.
But Chen Huai had no mood to appreciate it. He raised his volume. “No, bro, how did you end up in online dating? You started gaming again? Or WeChat Shake?”
Ji Zhou answered calmly, “Seek.”
“Seek?” Chen Huai repeated reflexively. “That hookup app? Damn, how many proper people are even on there?”
Ji Zhou: “I am. She is too.”
Chen Huai: “Bro, online dating is risky.”
“How so?” Ji Zhou asked.
“Haven’t you seen all those failed online-to-offline meetups? The photos and real person can look completely different. And that’s still the better case—at least the gender matches.”
“Some people meet their online ‘girlfriend’ and she pulls out something bigger than his.”
That was way too crude.
Ji Zhou said, “Not to that extent.”
“What do you mean not to that extent? This is your first love! What if you get scammed? You finally opened your heart and accepted love’s baptism—I’m afraid this girlfriend will kick your heart-door shut again, and seal it tight this time!”
Ji Zhou: “She sent me voice messages. She’s a girl.”
Chen Huai: “Brother, there’s this thing called a voice changer now! He could be a fifty-year-old dude scratching his feet. Turn it on and boom—loli voice. I’m in entertainment; would I not know?”
Chen Huai owned a media company and had signed hundreds of streamers. The business had been booming lately.
“I trust her,” Ji Zhou said with a serious face.
“Hiss...” Chen Huai stroked his chin and studied him. “You look really hooked. What kind of girl is she?”
Ji Zhou opened his mouth, but right then Mianmian sent a message.
Mianmian: [[Image]]
Mianmian: [Husband, do my new thigh straps look good?]
Ji Zhou viewed the photo and replied calmly: [Looks good.]
After sending, he put down his phone and, with that cold face that looked incapable of lying, said, “She’s very innocent, likes attracting attention, and likes receiving praise.”
“Oh?” Chen Huai raised a brow. “Sounds narcissistic.”
Ji Zhou corrected him, “Not narcissistic. Cute.”
Chen Huai rolled his eyes internally.
“Anyway, before meeting in person, don’t transfer large amounts of money. If you want to make her happy, just buy lipstick or maybe a bag.”
Ji Zhou: “She has never asked me for any of that.”
Chen Huai looked as if he’d seen through everything. “Of course. You’re still in the early stage. She’s still baiting you.”
In short, Chen Huai didn’t have much good feeling toward people on Seek.
The night ended quickly. Chen Huai had to rush to write his self-criticism, and Ji Zhou had work the next day.
On Saturday, Ji Zhou had another day off. He hired a moving company and started moving his belongings.
They arrived at Shangjin Qingyuan around ten in the morning. When the door opened, no one seemed to be home.
Ji Zhou walked in front pulling two large suitcases, leading the movers.
When he reached the master bedroom, he saw a sticky note on the door.
He casually peeled it off, pushed the luggage into a corner, then read it carefully.
[Hello, I’m your next-door roommate Xiao Ye. To avoid unnecessary trouble later, I want to state my thoughts in advance. Let’s rotate cleaning the public areas week by week. You can use anything in the kitchen if you don’t mind, but please clean up after cooking. If you bring friends home, especially for group gatherings in the living room, please let me know in advance. Thank you. Of course, if you have any requests for me, you can tell me too. Oh right—I wake up very late, so please try not to look for me in the morning. Lastly, welcome.]
“Mr. Ji, where should these two suitcases go? The living room or your bedroom?” one mover shouted from the doorway.
Ji Zhou walked out and pointed to the open master-bedroom door. “Everything except kitchenware goes into the bedroom.”
“Got it!” the mover answered loudly.
Ji Zhou glanced at the second-bedroom door and said, “Please keep your voices down. There’s someone else at home, maybe still sleeping.”
The mover nodded. “Okay, okay.”
After everything had been moved in, Ji Zhou did not leave and started unpacking.
Thinking his roommate would likely cook after waking up, the first place he organized was the kitchen.
He didn’t cook often; most utensils had originally been bought by Li Meiling when she came over to cook. Ji Zhou arranged them one by one, then put newly purchased food into the refrigerator.