Lu Mingfei, why are you slaying dragons if you're not involved!

Chapter 78 Dream Wedding

[Warning, it's time for your [washing up] routine...]

Lu Mingfei put down his pen, stood up, and stretched.

After getting used to entering "flow" mode, you have to constantly remind yourself not to enter "flow" mode, and also make sure you don't get distracted and get an electric shock warning... It's not an ordinary kind of exhaustion.

Therefore, Lu Mingfei's study efficiency tonight was not very high. Even with Zero by his side providing answers at all times, his chemistry proficiency only increased by 6 points in more than an hour of self-study, reaching 88/100.

But it didn't matter. Lu Mingfei knew very well that even if he put his whole heart into it, he wouldn't reach 100. He would only level up tomorrow anyway. Rather than staying up all night worrying about how many points he was short of proficiency, he might as well leave it for tomorrow.

The most important thing is to get through tonight!
Now it seems like it's all in the past?
"zero……"

Lu Mingfei looked at Ling, who was sitting on his bed reading a book, and carefully considered his words.

He could only be cautious around a girl who remained expressionless and spoke in a flat tone throughout, whose emotional fluctuations were imperceptible even in his [Emotion Perception] system.

He's incapable of feeling sadness, joy, or anger; he's practically a heartless, loveless robot. Yet, standing before him is a beautiful, living girl. What if she hurts him with a single word without him even realizing it?
Lu Mingfei thought of Rei Ayanami from "Neon Genesis Evangelion," who was almost exactly like Zero. But Rei Ayanami later developed the desire to warm others and be warmed by others, while Zero... would he?

Would someone have such feelings for themselves?

Lu Mingfei was unaware of this, even though he knew from the information he received from Kassel College that Zero must have taken a liking to him to stay.

What intelligence can compare to firsthand experience? What can compare to the reliability of emotional perception?
But Zero treats him with a very special kindness, which is an undeniable fact. Despite being a germaphobe, she doesn't mind his unkempt appearance at all, and is even willing to tidy his clothes and wardrobe for him...

If it weren't for this, Lu Mingfei wouldn't be so cautious. He's not the type to be overly careful around pretty girls. He only treats those who are good to him first well, repaying them many times over; as for the rest… who cares!

"I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. Are you going to take a shower too?"

As soon as he asked the question, Lu Mingfei almost slapped himself. What had he been hesitating about for so long? The implication of his words was practically, "I'm going to take a shower, do you want to come with me?" It was nothing short of lewd!
He explained quickly.

"What I mean is, taking a hot shower at the same time will shrink it, so I'm asking if you want to take a shower or not..."

Ling closed her book, stood up, and walked to Lu Mingfei. She was still standing in that ambiguous yet intimate spot, looking at him expressionlessly.

"This villa has an independent water supply system, with water heaters installed in each bathroom. The main cold water pipe has stable and high enough water pressure, so showering at the same time won't affect the water flow," she said casually.

"Yes, really..."

Lu Mingfei scratched his head.

Having lived with his aunt for many years, he was naturally unaware that there was such a thing as having an independent water heater in each bathroom—a practice that showed he had plenty of money and wasn't worried about maintenance.

My aunt's house has two bathrooms: one in my uncle and aunt's master bedroom and one in the living room. They share hot water from a gas boiler installed in the kitchen, and if they turn it on at the same time, they will fight for the hot water.

Every time Lu Mingfei takes a shower, if his uncle or aunt in the master bedroom happens to be showering, he gets nagged. Over time, he developed the habit of asking before showering.

"follow me."

After saying that, Zero turned around and headed straight for the bathroom.

Now Lu Mingfei couldn't help but feel terrified. He wondered if this pretty girl was really planning to take a bath with him? They were both minors, it was inappropriate for children, this episode couldn't be broadcast!

Fortunately, she changed direction halfway there, and her destination became Lu Mingfei's wardrobe.

Zero reached out, pulled away, and turned to look at him.

Without her needing to say anything more, Lu Mingfei walked over in a few quick steps.

What he saw was a completely different wardrobe from the messy, crammed mess he had seen before. Lu Mingfei had never imagined that his wardrobe could be so neat and tidy one day.

T-shirts were stacked in layers of varying shades, thermal underwear was neatly arranged, long and short socks were all crumpled up and placed side by side in the drawer according to size, and even the hanging trench coats were neatly arranged... Even the underwear was folded up properly.

How long did it take this iceberg-like, germaphobic girl to fold these things?

It was something that could have been just a simple call for housekeeping, but he did it himself. Perhaps it was because it involved his personal belongings that he did it himself?

"Thank you for your great kindness..." he murmured.

"You're welcome."

Ling said casually, reaching into the closet to take out a set of thermal underwear. "Your old underwear is quite worn out, but given the rumors that some boys like to wear old underwear and that new underwear has an adjustment period that can cause discomfort, I didn't throw it away for you, but prepared some new ones."

Lu Mingfei then noticed that his underwear was divided into two piles, one pile being slightly larger and older, while the other pile was brand new.

Ling handed him the thermal underwear, and Lu Mingfei took it instinctively.

The instant their fingers touched, it was as if lightning struck Lu Mingfei's brain, and an image flashed before his eyes... It was a boundless ice field, where he held the girl tightly and kissed her lips.

"Good night."

Zero's soft voice interrupted the sudden flash of the image. The girl's face overlapped and then separated, leaving Lu Mingfei momentarily unable to distinguish whether what he had just seen was an illusion or reality.

"Good...night," he replied blankly.

Ling turned and left, and Lu Mingfei watched her go. He hesitated for a moment, but still didn't say what he had just seen.

This is so weird. What "Kiss of the Icefield"... it's not just "no different from being a hooligan," it's blatant hooliganism!
Moreover, Lu Mingfei had absolutely no recollection of ever having been to such a vast ice field; it seemed as if he had never left the city since he could remember.

As for when he lived with his parents, that was even more impossible. He can barely remember what his parents look like, how could he possibly remember anything else? Besides, he couldn't possibly have kissed a girl when he was that young...

"Could it be that I've been suppressing my 'tiredness' for too long, causing me to start hallucinating?"

Lu Mingfei's heart skipped a beat. He realized that this was very likely—since his biological upgrade around four or five in the morning, he had been using vital sign micro-management to change his "drowsy" state to "awake" until now!

"I only changed the [Hunger] stat for about an hour, and I was starving after it was removed. But I changed the [Drowsiness] stat for almost twenty hours... Will I just die suddenly after it's removed?"

[Warning, electric shock countdown...]

Lu Mingfei was startled and quickly grabbed a pair of old underwear, carrying the thermal underwear towards the bathroom.

The process of preparing a change of clothes is naturally included in the "washing" schedule, which is why he wasn't given an electric shock warning earlier.

However, the total amount of time allocated in the plan is limited. If more is used now, less will be available later.

Lu Mingfei didn't want to get electrocuted halfway through a shower; the scene was too gruesome for him to bear.

……

The time spent washing up was extremely short—considering that he had already taken a shower at the gymnasium that afternoon, Lu Mingfei managed to squeeze out an extra minute from the three minutes he already had.

This minute is certainly necessary.

He hurriedly put on his thermal underwear, walked out of the bathroom, and immediately looked out the window.

Just like last night, Liu Miaomiao was sitting by the window, hugging a pillow, staring blankly outside, seemingly looking at nothing in particular.

Lu Mingfei waved.

So the girl's gaze shifted again, but instead of becoming lively as quickly as last time, she buried her face deeper into the pillow, leaving only her very obedient, but slightly swollen, eyes peeking out from the edges.

Stare--Stare

Lu Mingfei scratched his head, thinking that this scene was about to turn from a heartwarming little interaction into a ghost story!
But he naturally wouldn't say such things, after all, there was still such a long distance and two soundproof windows between them, it would be useless to say them, and it wouldn't be good to disturb the neighbors late at night.

But what other way is there to solve this?

The scene from last night is flashing before my eyes again.

So Lu Mingfei stretched out his hands, placed them lightly on the glass, and tapped them gently.

The night sky was cloudless and the stars twinkled, with only silent musical notes flowing from the boy's fingertips.

This time it was the girl's turn to be stunned, as if a string of a musical instrument was being plucked beside her ear, vibrating straight to the depths of her heart.

That was... a wedding in my dream.

(End of this chapter)