Even If He Was a Player

I reached out and put my arm around Lu Xiaobei's waist, then turned and swam upwards, simultaneously swinging my Power Sword at least forty centimeters thick against the ice above!

"Whoosh!"

The sword flashed past, shattering the ice and releasing a torrent of water from the lake.

"Xiao Bei!"

I suddenly threw Lu Xiaobei onto the ice, then climbed up myself and returned to normal.

She was shivering from the cold, and her lips were bluish-green.

"Ding Han, I'm so cold..."

I quickly picked her up and ran a few steps forward, picked up my coat that I had thrown away earlier, wrapped it around her, and hugged her tightly.

The cold wind howled in my ears, and Lu Xiaobei buried her face in my chest and suddenly burst into tears.

"Xiao Bei."

I frowned, picked her up, and quickly ran to the Ferrari. After putting her in the passenger seat, I turned on the heater and said, "Where do you live? I'll take you home. Go back quickly, change your clothes, and take a hot shower, or you'll get sick."

"Ding Han..."

She reached out and ruffled my hair, which had turned to frost on my forehead, and asked, "Are you cold?"

"It's cold, let's go!"

"Okay, I'll send you the navigation."

As she spoke, she took out her phone, only to find that it wasn't waterproof and had already turned off. Meanwhile, my tri-fold folding phone had been instinctively thrown into the Dimensional Storage Space the instant I switched to Combat Form, thus escaping unscathed!

"It's over."

She said helplessly, "Use your phone for navigation."

I handed her my phone, and she quickly entered the address and started navigating. It wasn't too far; it would only take about ten minutes to get there.

Although the car's heater was on, I was still shivering with cold. My sweater and shirt were dripping wet, and it didn't feel good at all. But then I thought about the car I was sitting in, and I chuckled as I drove, "With all this water on us, this car's become a water-damaged car, and its value will drop. At least these leather seats are pretty much ruined."

"Can you please stop focusing on these trivial matters?" Lu Xiaobei, somewhat displeased.

You don't understand.

I said, "For kids from poor families like ours, sometimes when we fall off a motorcycle, our first thought isn't whether we're hurt, but whether the motorcycle is damaged. You can't understand that feeling."

"I understand without you saying it."

Lu Xiaobei said, "My family was very poor when I was a child, otherwise my grandmother wouldn't have passed away so early..."

"Oh..."

I stopped talking, because I realized I had a bad habit of jinxing things; whatever I said might trigger a painful memory for Lu Xiaobei.

"I wish I could go back to when I was a child."

Lu Xiaobei curled up in the driver's seat, hugging his knees, trembling.

Look forward, don't dwell too much on the past.

I said, "It's like you coming to the Ice Lake; all revisiting familiar places is like trying to find a lost sword by marking the boat. That year is forever left in that year; you can never go back."

I did not try to find a sword by marking the boat it had come from.

Lu Xiaobei said, "I'm just taking you through the places I visited in my childhood, leaving you with some memories so that no matter who you're with in the future, you won't easily forget me."

I Wu Yan once again.

Soon after, they arrived at the residential area where Lu Xiaobei lived.

After going upstairs, I found that she lived in a large, single-level apartment with a spacious area of at least 300 square meters. It's too luxurious for one person to live in such a big place, especially in the capital city where land is extremely valuable!

Lu Xiaobei quickly entered the room, and soon changed into a set of loungewear. Then she handed me a few pieces of clothing. "I don't have any men's clothes here, only these few pieces that I bought to look cool and unisex. You'll have to make do with them."

Before she took a shower, she led me to another bathroom and then left.

This place is too big; it makes me feel uncomfortable.

In my past life, my ultimate dream was to own a large, single-level apartment like this. It would be even more comfortable than living in a villa. Unfortunately, it's too difficult for ordinary people in modern society to own such a residence, even for a master's student from a top-tier university.

I quickly took a shower and washed my hair as well, because I could smell the fragrance of lake water on it.

After showering, she put on Lu Xiaobei's clothes, but unfortunately, it only included pants, a shirt, and a jacket, without any underwear. So she walked around the room with her underwear hanging down.

"Beep beep~~~"

Just then, the phone rang; it was Milo's number.

"Ding Han! I can't get through to Xiao Bei on the phone. What happened? Didn't she invite you to dinner? Why is her phone off?"

"It's a long story."

As I dried my hair, I said, "Xiao Bei took me ice skating on the Ice Lake, and I accidentally fell into the ice hole that the fisherman had chiseled out."

"What?!"

Milo asked anxiously, "How is it now?"

"It's alright now."

I said, "I switched to Combat Form and pulled her out, but we were both soaking wet. I'm at Xiao Bei's place now, just finished a hot shower, ouch..."

"Holy crap!"

Milo: "You and Xiao Bei both need some ginger soup. Do you have any at home? If not, I'll buy some ginger candy and send it over. Boil some water now. By the way, I don't know where Xiao Bei lives. Send me her address!"

OK.

Shortly after, Lu Xiaobei pushed open the door and sat down next to me, frantically rubbing her hair with a towel.

She looked at me and suddenly burst out laughing.

"You can still laugh?"

I said sternly, "Xiao Bei, you're so careless. Don't you ever check out the ice before you start skating? If I hadn't been here today, wouldn't something bad have happened?"

"I'm so sorry~~~"

She laughed confidently, "It's precisely because you're here that I dare to act so recklessly. Otherwise, I wouldn't dare to walk onto the ice in the dark."

"Still laughing!"

"Okay, I'll stop laughing!"

She looked at me with her lips pursed, her cheeks puffing out more and more, and finally she burst out laughing.

I was speechless for a moment, then said, "By the way, Milo called me. I sent him your location, and he said he'd send us some ginger candy now so we can drink some, otherwise we might get sick."

"Um."

She nodded.

"You've been hanging around BH City with Milo for so long, how come he doesn't even know where you live?" I asked.

"Otherwise what?"

Lu Xiaobei said, "Do you think I would just bring any man home? Even a good friend like Milo?"

"I was wrong, I'm sorry!!"

"Good attitude, you've improved."

Lu Xiaobei patted my shoulder. "I'm going to boil water to dry my hair and change my clothes. When Milo arrives, you can open the door for him."

I nodded.

A short while later, Lu Xiaobei finished drying her hair, came over, and took my soaking wet clothes to wash. Under my questioning gaze, she said, "I'll dry them for you after washing. It'll be quick, and you'll definitely be able to wear them when you leave tomorrow."

"Oh, okay..."

I think I underestimated the technological sophistication of her house.

Soon after, Milo arrived.

He brought not only ginger tea, but also a bag of beer and snacks such as duck necks, peanuts, and kelp strips.

"You two!"

After putting his things down, he began to scold, "Ding Han, it's one thing for Xiao Bei to be immature, but how could you be so immature? Letting her go ice skating on the lake in the middle of the night, how dangerous!"

"Depend on..."

I said helplessly, "I'm only three years older than her. I'm just a naive and clueless teenager, okay?"

"You're missing a damn thing, have some shame!"

"You daughter!"

I made two cups of ginger and brown sugar water, and Lu Xiaobei and I each took one and held it in our arms. After drinking some, we felt much better.

"Hurry up and drink, let's finish our drinks. It's rare for the three of us to get together."

Milo is a good person, but not in a good way.

"What's wrong? Are you under a lot of pressure too?" I asked.

"How could it not be big?"

Milo said, "You don't know how difficult some things are until you try them. That variation on the song with the Plain Face almost drove me crazy. There's still so much work to do. We've only just released our first album, and the boss is already rushing us. It's so damn annoying!"

"So dramatic!"

I took a sip of ginger tea and said, "Now is the best time for the album to sell well. When the album is no longer popular and no one buys it, you can show me your act, but you won't be able to complain about any of these things."

"That's right!"

Lu Xiaobei chimed in, "Milo, you're just being dramatic!"

"A bitch is just being pretentious!" I chimed in.

"He's a jerk even when he's not being pretentious," Lu Xiaobei echoed again.

"You two will drive me crazy sooner or later."

Milo simply started playing on his phone and ignored us.

Soon after finishing the ginger and brown sugar water, they started drinking alcohol!

The three men sat in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the spacious apartment, gazing at the distant Galaxy Grand View, drinking wine, eating duck necks and peanuts, chatting about everything under the sun, and indulging in their carefree spirit.

"Ding Han."

Milo suddenly turned to him and said, "How's the Feiyang Chain Internet Cafe's Flagship Store in Huaining City doing? You need to keep an eye on it. Xiao Bei and Old K have spent so much money on it, you'd better pay attention."

"Don't worry, it's profitable, the profit margin is not low."

I said, "I estimate we can break even in about two years, and then it'll all be pure profit."

"That's alright."

Milo asked, "How was your trip to BH City for the meeting...?"

"It went smoothly. Has your Left Hand not told you yet?"

"He goes for foot massages every day, and when we're not together, he doesn't talk to me at all..."

"Damn, he's really persistent..."

Lu Xiaobei was a little confused. "Who's on the Left Hand?"

"One of our less-than-reliable friends," I said.

Milo grinned. "Actually, it's quite reliable..."

"Too."

As he drank, Lu Xiaobei seemed to recall some sad things, his eyes filled with melancholy.

"Xiao Bei..."

Seeing her like this, I felt a little sad too.

"Ding Han."

She turned around and said softly, "Even if we can't be together, please don't ignore me or avoid me, okay?"

"Don't get me wrong, it's you who blocks me every time..." I felt a little wronged.

"Xiao Bei!"

Milo, suddenly seized by a sudden burst of energy, frowned and said, "I just don't understand, what's so great about Ding Han? You're so devoted to him, yet he still doesn't want to be with you. What is it about him that you like?"

"I have no idea."

Lu Xiaobei said, "I only know that I'm happy every second I spend with him, and that's enough."

"Give me a break, do you really think you understand him?"

"It doesn't matter what kind of person he is, I like him anyway," Lu Xiaobei said.

Milo stood up, gritting his teeth, and said, "Even if he's just a player?"

"Um!"

Lu Xiaobei was taken aback at first, then smiled with relief:

"Even if he were a cockroach, I'd still like him, let alone a gamer!"