Things finally quieted down on Yao Tao's end.
"Mom, I'll explain later." Only after Yao Tao settled down did He Zhen hurry to respond to Zhan Yan.
"You-you have a girlfriend?" Zhan Yan sounded astonished, her voice full of disbelief. "Is this girl why you fell out with Xinxin?"
"No." He Zhen fell silent after those words. "Mom, do you think she's the only one for me?"
"Isn't she?" Zhan Yan asked in return.
Her question left He Zhen feeling a tightness in his chest. "Mom, I've confessed to her three times."
He Zhen said, "Three times. She neither rejected me nor accepted me."
Zhan Yan said, "So you just found some random girl to make Xinxin jealous?"
He Zhen said, "Why can't I like another girl?"
This time, Zhan Yan fell silent.
Only after hanging up did He Zhen realize Yao Tao hadn't made a sound in quite a while.
He hurriedly checked on her and discovered she had simply fallen asleep.
With her cheeks flushed, the sleeping Yao Tao looked like a little angel.
God only knew how noisy she was when she was awake.
The driver glanced in the rearview mirror and, after a long while, said, "Young man, being young doesn't mean you can fool around. Don't lead other girls on."
He Zhen took off his jacket and covered Yao Tao with it. "I know, sir. Thank you."
He Zhen began wondering what exactly Fu Xin had told Zhan Yan.
As he thought about it, he couldn't help smiling bitterly. Look, even his mother thought Fu Xin was the only one for him.
Why?
What did he like about Fu Xin?
Seriously, did he enjoy the feeling of becoming a dad ahead of schedule?
He Zhen's phone chimed. It was Fu Xin.
Fu Xin: Zhen, what's going on with you?
Fu Xin: Aunt Zhan said you have a girlfriend?
Fu Xin: Who is she? Why didn't I know?
Fu Xin: Are you with your girlfriend right now?
He Zhen found this rather novel.
He scrolled up through their chat history. Most of the time, he did the talking while Fu Xin merely responded.
Fu Xin only acted a little cutesy when she wanted him to do something or help her out.
She rarely took an interest in his personal life.
He Zhen took out his phone and, without quite knowing what possessed him, replied: Yes.
Then he saw a flood of messages from Fu Xin.
So Fu Xin was capable of sending this many messages.
Unfortunately, every single one was full of accusations and hurt feelings.
What right did she have to question him?
He Zhen thought he might be drunk too, as though Yao Tao's drunkenness had rubbed off on him.
He Zhen blocked Fu Xin.
When they reached his apartment complex, He Zhen carried Yao Tao upstairs on his back. If he couldn't hear her thoughts, he would have suspected she was messing with him on purpose!
The moment he stepped through his front door, Yao Tao threw up all over him from behind.
He Zhen stood in the entryway, feeling as though someone had stuffed a ton of garbage into his brain.
The smell nearly made him throw up too, but then he saw Yao Tao cover her mouth and start running all over the place.
Where's my bathroom?
Where's my toilet?
So gross-
I'm going to throw up again!
He Zhen had no time to feel sick. If he kept standing there gagging, Yao Tao's vomit would soon be dribbled all across his living room!!!
Yao Tao ran around like a headless chicken, foul liquid leaking between her fingers-all the junk she'd eaten!
Now it was being thrown up, completely unchanged, inside He Zhen's home!
The entire living room was already starting to smell!
"Over here!" He Zhen hurried over.
The disoriented Yao Tao heard him but couldn't tell where his voice was coming from. She turned her head and slammed her forehead straight into the wall.
The sound of her head hitting the wall was exceptionally clear. He Zhen figured there was no way she wouldn't have a bruise on her forehead tomorrow.
The impact also nearly sent Yao Tao falling backward onto the back of her head.
Fortunately, He Zhen reacted in time.
Before He Zhen could even breathe a sigh of relief at serving as her human cushion, Yao Tao tilted her head, rolled sideways, and threw up all over his pants.
He Zhen froze on the spot, his mind going blank.
I couldn't hold it in.
My. Stomach. Is burning!
Help-
Call an ambulance!
Someone's trying to murder me!
Yao Tao's mind was muddled, and she kept yelling nonsense.
Even if none of it was coming out of her mouth.
He Zhen was utterly numb.
He had never had such a "disgusting" experience with a girl before. Everywhere he looked in his living room, there was Yao Tao's vomit.
The damage was already done. What could he possibly say to a drunk?
Yao Tao even suspected someone was trying to murder her!
With a face that looked almost like a dead fish's, He Zhen fought back his nausea and first dragged Yao Tao into the bathroom attached to the downstairs bedroom.
Fortunately, his little apartment had two bedrooms, two living areas, and two bathrooms. Otherwise, He Zhen really would have thrown up too.
He scrambled to get Yao Tao into the bathroom first. But the moment she grabbed onto the toilet, before she could even throw up, her chin hit its rim.
Bleurgh-
Ignoring the pain, Yao Tao clung to the toilet and vomited forcefully.
He Zhen was stunned.
He neither wanted nor was able to face the wreckage of his apartment alone.
He turned away, washed his hands, and took out his phone to start messaging Aunt Zhang.
That feels better-
Don't let me catch you.
You poisoned me. You're dead-
Just you wait!
After throwing up and mentally babbling away, Yao Tao tilted her head and nearly hit the edge of the bathtub.
He Zhen had just received Aunt Zhang's reply when he saw Yao Tao's head, her hair covered in filth, about to strike the bathtub. With some difficulty, he reached out to cushion it.
He was genuinely afraid she would have a concussion the next day.
The moment he caught her, He Zhen's face turned green.
Watching Yao Tao smack her lips twice and furrow her brow again, he suppressed his nausea, unwrapped a cup, and helped her rinse her mouth first.
He couldn't let her keep licking her lips until she threw up again!
Aunt Zhang lived right next door to He Zhen and had looked after him since he was little.
He Zhen had wanted to live alone, but Zhan Yan was still worried, so she had specifically sent Aunt Zhang along to look after him and help out.
Her child wanted to live alone? That was fine. Aunt Zhang could live next door. A perfect solution.
With Aunt Zhang helping to look after He Zhen, Zhan Yan felt more at ease.
And now He Zhen really, really needed Aunt Zhang's help.
Before Aunt Zhang arrived, he took off Yao Tao's filthy bag, moved her into the bathing area, and stood there waiting.
Covered in filth, He Zhen wanted to take a shower first, but he was afraid that if he stepped away, Yao Tao would bang her head against the bathtub again. What would he do then?
Fortunately, Aunt Zhang arrived promptly. The moment she entered, she saw filth all over the floor, giving off a nauseating stench.
Aunt Zhang opened the windows first, then found He Zhen standing in a daze in the bathroom, equally covered in filth.
"He Zhen, what happened to you?" The last time she'd seen him in such a sorry state had been when he was little!
"My classmate got drunk. Aunt Zhang, could you help clean her up?" He Zhen sounded utterly helpless.
"Fu Xin?" Seeing the long hair, Aunt Zhang instinctively assumed it was Fu Xin.
After all, she had never seen He Zhen tolerate this much from any girl other than Fu Xin. Not only had he let her throw up all over him, but he had even brought her home to look after her!
Aunt Zhang wasn't particularly fond of Fu Xin. Assuming she had gotten drunk, she couldn't help grumbling, "A girl drinking so much this late at night."
"..." He Zhen fell silent. Just how much did he like Fu Xin?
"It's not Fu Xin," He Zhen explained. "It's another girl from my class. She only had a little fruit wine."
Before you continue