Chapter 327. Night Falls
As darkness gradually encroached upon the world, the streetlights flickered on one by one.
By the time Ning Chu returned home, it was already past six in the evening.
Her mother was lounging on the sofa watching TV, and she shot a glance at Ning Chu, who bounced into the house like a rabbit, rolling her eyes in response: “Oh~ you do remember to come back for dinner?”
“I thought maybe some guy had whisked you away~”
Ning Chu quickly put on a charming smile and cheerfully nestled up next to her mother on the sofa, leaning against her: “Mom~ I just had a little something to take care of!”
“What could you possibly have to do?”
She clearly saw her mother’s nose twitch, but today, she felt justified and didn’t play around with Wen Yang. Instead, she took the initiative to hug her mother’s arm and coquettishly said, “I just went to an internet café to play games! The computer at home is way too outdated.”
“Then you might as well go find your little boyfriend instead of going to an internet café,” her mother shot her a look before standing up and heading to the kitchen. “Go wake Hei Dou for dinner.”
“Okay!”
Ning Chu trotted over to the guest bedroom, pushed the door open, and leaned in to check the pitch-black room. On the bed, the little cat-girl Hei Dou was wrapped around a pillow, soundly asleep and snoring like a pig.
All she did was eat and sleep…
If left undisturbed and without anything interesting to do, this cat could sleep for seventeen or eighteen hours straight.
“Hei Dou, wake up.”
Ning Chu yanked the blanket off, standing with her hands on her hips at the bedside.
Hei Dou’s snoring stopped; her cat ears perked up, and her tail flicked impatiently a few times, yet she still showed no intention of getting up.
So, she reached out, grabbed Hei Dou’s tail, and gave it a gentle tug: “Wake up!”
The sudden pain jolted Hei Dou awake: “Aow!”
She instinctively covered her backside with her hands, lifted her head, and seeing Ning Chu holding her tail, complained pitifully: “Sis~ I wasn’t even playing with anyone’s tail!”
“You pretended not to hear me when I told you to get up.”
“I wasn’t pretending!”
Leading Hei Dou to the dining table, Ning Chu glanced at the dinner laid out, which was clearly quite pathetic.
Uncle and her brother had already left, and Wen Yang hadn’t come over for food either. Now there were just three people at home; her mother had hastily thrown together the leftovers to make a stir-fried rice.
Ning Chu actually liked stir-fried rice and noodles, but during dinner, her mind kept wandering back to Wen Yang.
Tonight, Wen Yang’s party was around ten.
If the plot didn’t trigger, that would be just peachy, and the cups she bought in advance would help Ning Chu relieve her hand cramps and sore mouth.
But if it did trigger the plot, that cup would be Ning Chu’s savior! She didn’t want to end up as that unsightly steamed bun described in the book.
Once the plot ended and everything got broken, it would likely be past eleven by then. Her mother and Hei Dou would already be asleep, and with her acting out, no one would notice.
Yet, she still felt a bit uneasy.
What if some passerby girl intercepted Wen Yang on his way back to the rental? Usually, Wen Yang could resist the advances of girls and remain steadfast, but a drugged-up Wen Yang would have zero willpower!
After all, he was the male lead she had nurtured for so long!
“What are you thinking about?” Her mother glanced at Ning Chu as she absentmindedly brought a spoonful of stir-fried rice to her nose, raising an eyebrow, “Thinking about your little boyfriend again?”
“No, no, nothing.”
Ning Chu quickly lowered her head, avoiding her mother’s gaze to hide her feelings.
She thought she might need to sneak out behind her mother’s back tonight and personally pick up Wen Yang after his gathering.
Otherwise, she just couldn’t put her mind at ease.
“New Year’s is coming up soon. Let’s go shopping together tomorrow afternoon and buy some clothes and New Year goods for both of you,” her mother said while watching a live stream with a parrot, “We need to do some spring cleaning too. Thankfully, your brother already cleaned the windows, so it won’t be too much trouble.”
“Uh-huh, uh-huh.”
Ning Chu responded distractedly.
Seeing her daughter like this, her mother could only shake her head helplessly.
That poor boy has taken her daughter’s body and soul away~
Hei Dou held her bowl, looking up to shove the last bits of stir-fried rice into her mouth and licking her lips. After swallowing the last grain of rice, she looked up at her mother with longing: “Mom~ there’s no meat to eat.”
“Isn’t there minced meat in the stir-fried rice?”
“Is there? I didn’t taste it!”
Her mother shot her a look: “Eat a little less for dinner, then go do your homework.”
Hei Dou rubbed her little belly in a pitiful manner, feeling despondent as she placed her bowl in the kitchen sink and sulked away with her tail hanging low.
It wasn’t that she wasn’t full; she just didn’t taste any meat, so she felt a bit empty inside.
“Come to think of it, does Hei Dou only have classes in the morning?” Ning Chu looked at Hei Dou’s rather forlorn back and asked, “No classes in the afternoon?”
“Worried she wouldn’t get used to it, so we’re easing her in.”
“That too.”
After dinner, Ning Chu also relaxed, holding her phone and sitting beside Hei Dou while chatting with Wen Yang, occasionally glancing up to help Hei Dou with her homework.
She heard her mother’s footsteps, turned to look, and saw her mother squatting by the front door putting on her shoes.
“Mom, where are you going?”
“Going to play mahjong.” Her mother cheerfully replied while looking back, “I might come back really late. You take care of your sister at home.”
Ning Chu immediately let her mind wander, thinking her mother might be going out to meet Uncle, but a glance at her mother’s casual outfit instantly overturned that assumption.
When her mother went out with Uncle, she would carefully choose a pretty outfit and put on exquisite makeup.
She was indeed going to play mahjong.
“Mom, how much are you planning to lose tonight?”
“Winning a few hundred back!” Her mother shot Ning Chu a warning glance, “If my luck is bad tonight, it’s all your fault for being a jinx.”
“Make sure Hei Dou is in bed by ten, and don’t buy her any late-night snacks.”
Hei Dou had already jogged to the door, eagerly handing her mother a scarf and gloves: “Mom~ what time will you be back?”
She feigned a little reluctance and longing, but the smile on her face was barely concealed.
Her mother wrapped the scarf around her neck and replied: “Probably until morning?”
“!!!”
Her ears and tail immediately perked up.
“Be good at home and listen to your sister.”
“Okay~ Bye-bye!”
That urgent look on her face seemed like she couldn’t wait for her mother to leave.
As soon as her mother left and the door closed, Hei Dou scampered back to Ning Chu’s side, looking at her eagerly: “Sister! Late-night snacks! Late-night snacks!”
“Weren’t you just eating?” She extended her hand and gently pressed down on Hei Dou’s slightly bulging little belly, “Tsk~ you must be full by now?”
“Just eat a little later! I still have homework to do!”
Hei Dou immediately abandoned her homework, turned on the TV, expertly retrieved her mother’s tablet from the main bedroom, and settled comfortably on the sofa, happily swinging her little legs.
Until Ning Chu grabbed her cat ears: “Do your homework! Like I don’t exist, huh?!”
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