Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 88 The Bell's Past

After finally squeezing off the crowded subway, Han Zhou and Zhong Ling left the subway station, took another bus, and then walked to the address of the mobile phone store provided by Lin Anyu.

This is a pedestrian street. Perhaps because the weather has cooled down a bit, there are quite a few people on the street. It is worth mentioning that most of these people are students on summer vacation, in the prime of their youth. Moreover, it seems that there are many couples, mostly a man and a woman. Han Zhou and his companion did not stand out in the crowd.

However, not being conspicuous doesn't mean not noticeable. Among all the men and women on the pedestrian street, they were probably the couple with the highest rate of turning heads.

Zhong Ling is tall and has exceptionally fair skin. Even though she is wearing a loose, plain short-sleeved shirt, she can't hide her amazing figure. Her chest is full and round, although not as exaggerated as Zhong Yin's, it is definitely well-endowed.

However, she has a cute appearance, with an oval face and big, clear eyes, giving people a sense of innocence. Standing next to Han Zhou, they don't look like senior and junior at all, and they don't look like lovers either. Instead, they look more like siblings.

Although Han Zhou's good looks have never been of any use in front of Gu Zheng, Mo Yixia, and the others, he is always a handsome guy who attracts a lot of attention when he walks down the street. And when everyone else is a man and a woman, the combination of the two of them, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, naturally attracts even more attention.

Seemingly having overheard the passersby's discussion about the "brother and sister" relationship, Zhong Ling secretly glanced at Han Zhou, then silently straightened her posture, her pretty face becoming more serious in an attempt to maintain her dignity as a senior student, but unfortunately it was completely ineffective.

"There seem to be quite a few couples today..."

Han Zhou didn't notice Zhong Ling's unusual behavior. He had been mostly adjusting to his enhanced hearing the whole way, since there was noise everywhere. Looking at the crowds of people coming and going, he couldn't help but wonder, "Is there some special holiday coming up?"

Zhong Ling thought for a moment and said in a low voice, "It seems like Qixi Festival is in a few days, but today shouldn't be a special day. I don't know why there are so many couples."

"Qixi Festival? Then there must be some kind of Qixi Festival event being held around here."

Han Zhou didn't care. These days, there are just too many holidays for couples to celebrate, and there might be even more in the future. Couples' money is often the easiest to make. Ordinary things can be transformed by adding a layer of skin and doubling their value under the guise of expressing affection. Naturally, businesses will try every means to make money on these days, and holding events is perfectly normal.

He snapped out of his thoughts and asked, "By the way, has senior sister ever been around this area?"

Zhong Ling shook her head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "No, I rarely go out. I spend most of my holidays at home. My sister said I am... yes..."

She tilted her head slightly, unable to recall the word for a moment, and looked somewhat troubled.

"A homebody?" Han Zhou tentatively took over her question.

"That's right, a homebody."

Zhong Ling's eyes lit up, and she nodded, saying, "That's what my sister told me, to go out and about when I have time, but I still prefer to stay at home."

Han Zhou asked curiously, "What about when you were at school?"

"Then stay in the dorm."

"She rarely goes out; that definitely qualifies her as a homebody..."

Zhong Ling turned to look at him, puzzled, and asked, "Don't you think being a homebody is bad?"

"That's not what I meant..."

"what does that mean?"

"..."

The two chatted a lot along the way. Perhaps because it was rare to meet someone with whom she could have a normal conversation, Zhong Ling had a strong urge to confide in Han Zhou. She told him about her experiences at university over and over again, with a faint smile on her face the whole time.

Han Zhou listened attentively; being a good listener was one of his good habits. He also took this opportunity to learn more about the school. With the start of the new semester approaching, it was about time he prepared himself.

However, it must be said that this senior's college life was quite uneventful, even somewhat boring. She basically lived a life between her dormitory, the teaching building, and the library. She didn't go out much during her free time. In her entire freshman year, she only managed to get to know the school, and she rarely even left the campus.

His usual hobby is reading in his dormitory. He has excellent grades in school, but his sports performance is mediocre. He sounds like a typical well-behaved student.

If it weren't for her soft voice, which led many to mistakenly believe she was mute, Zhong Ling would probably have become a goddess in many people's hearts long ago.

The reason why Zhong Ling became a homebody is not hard to understand. Her personality is probably only part of the reason, but more of the problem lies in her own issues.

Although she can speak, her language skills are essentially the same as being mute, making it very difficult for her to communicate normally with others. It would be quite troublesome for her to even get along with the people around her, let alone go out and about.

Moreover, she has an adorable girl-next-door face that easily evokes a protective instinct in others, so she must have no shortage of people trying to chat her up at school. However, she seems to lack assertiveness and the ability to directly refuse others, so she inevitably encounters some persistent guys that she can't handle, which makes her even less inclined to go out.

These were Han Zhou's speculations, and Zhong Ling was also very frank, saying that this was indeed the case. She didn't like people who would casually approach her, and her sister especially hated such guys. She even taught her a way to deal with all kinds of advances—that is, to tell everyone to get lost.

When Zhong Ling first met Lin Anyu, the reason she told him to get lost was because she used the method Zhong Yin had taught her. Although it was impolite and might cause unnecessary misunderstandings, the method was simple and effective, and it also made her try to speak louder.

At this point, Zhong Ling tugged at her small cloth bag and whispered, "I rely on my sister too much and don't know how to be flexible when things happen. But my sister can't always be by my side, so she can only teach me this simplest and clumsy method. Many times, I have to arrange what I need to do in advance."

This was clearly nothing to be proud of; to put it bluntly, it was like being a spoiled brat. Therefore, she was somewhat nervous, constantly watching Han Zhou's expression as she spoke, worried that he might develop a dislike for her. Han Zhou didn't offer any comment, only smiling and saying, "However, once you have a set goal, you're quite efficient."

He still remembered the time when Zhong Ling was shopping at the supermarket during their first meeting. She was quite efficient and quickly found and bought all the items on her shopping list. If she hadn't hesitated because the shampoo she wanted to buy was sold out, he might not have had the chance to continue talking to her.

Being overly dependent is indeed a problem, but Han Zhou thinks this senior is probably the kind of person with strong execution skills.

Zhong Ling paused for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No, I'm always clumsy, and my sister doesn't want me to help her."

She's just being overprotective of you... Han Zhou sighed inwardly and said with a wry smile, "I don't know if you're clumsy with your hands, but you're definitely not clumsy with your feet. You walk so fast, I can hardly keep up."

This was obviously a joke, but Zhong Ling does walk very fast, as if she's being chased; it seems to be her walking habit.

Zhong Ling was bewildered for two seconds before realizing that she had indeed walked too fast. Han Zhou should have been leading the way for her, but she had unknowingly become the one leading the way for Han Zhou.

So she quickly took small steps to walk behind Han Zhou, then slowed down and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I'll walk slower to keep up with you. My sister has mentioned this before, but I usually walk alone, so I don't notice."

She seemed a little embarrassed.

"No, no, no, don't apologize, I was just joking."

Han Zhou was taken aback when Zhong Ling took his words seriously and even apologized to him. He said, "Besides, walking fast isn't a bad thing, there's no need to apologize."

He remarked, "But Senior Sister really can't stop talking about Sister Yin. You two sisters have such a good relationship."

Zhong Ling followed a step behind him, a smile appearing on her face: "Yes, my sister has been taking care of me ever since my parents passed away. I like her very much and I am very grateful to her."

She paused, her expression becoming more serious, and continued, "My sister wasn't very nice to you before, but she didn't mean to target you. I apologize on her behalf, and I hope you don't mind."

Han Zhou said nonchalantly, "It's nothing, I understand. By the way, is the repair shop behind your house owned by Sister Yin?"

He was curious whether the blond guy had gone looking for trouble again.

"No, the repair shop was originally opened by my father. My sister took over the business after he passed away. We had already discussed selling the repair shop, but one day my sister suddenly changed her mind, quit her original job, learned repair skills, and kept the repair shop running."

Han Zhou remained silent for a moment. To be able to run such a large repair shop, Zhong Ling's family must have been quite wealthy before. It was just that some accident happened that led to the death of her parents, which caused their family to fall into decline.

This is actually somewhat similar to his family's situation. If Han Long hadn't been addicted to gambling, his family would actually be quite wealthy.

However, the two are of course incomparable. These sisters lost their parents, which is a very heavy experience for any family.

After hesitating for a moment, Han Zhou asked, "Senior, may I ask you a question?"

"what is the problem?"

Zhong Ling looked at him, seemingly realizing something, and asked in confusion, "Are you asking why my voice is so soft?"

Han Zhou was taken aback. He had originally intended to ask how Zhong Ling's parents had died, and to ask about Zhong Ling herself later. However, he did not expect that she would bring up this question directly, so he nodded hesitantly.

"Yes, I'm just a little curious, it's okay if you don't tell me..."

Han Zhou was a little nervous. Although the two had just been chatting and laughing, it was only their third meeting. Asking this question suddenly was really presumptuous. The reason behind it was probably not a pleasant memory, and it might even involve the other person's privacy.

However, the two had just had a very pleasant conversation, and Zhong Ling's attitude had been very good, with a smile on her face, which inevitably gave him the idea that "this senior seems to have a good impression of me." Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have thought of asking about the reason for her parents' death so soon.

However, this question will have to be asked sooner or later. The side quest is to make this girl cry from the bottom of her heart, which is undoubtedly a "technical task". Understanding the other party's past is naturally a very important part.

Zhong Ling was silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh.

Fortunately, although it was presumptuous, she did not show any resistance. She simply nodded and said, "You could say that my sister asked me before if I was willing to tell you. I had been wanting to tell you this."

She gazed into the distance, then quietly clutched the small blue cloth bag at her waist.

"This is actually related to the reason why my parents passed away."

Plans can't keep up with changes. There have been more things to do these past two days than I expected. This chapter was rushed out, but I'll make up for it later.

The reason this book is set in a parallel world is mainly to avoid censorship of place names and the like. Many important traditional festivals and customs still exist by default, such as Qixi Festival. Please don't worry too much about it.

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(End of this chapter)