After they fooled around for a while, Zhang Zhaomu finally grew a little more serious. Gazing into Chen Zhenzhen's eyes, he said:
"Having you all to myself and all that really would be pretty great, but... how about you don't change back?"
"Why?" Chen Zhenzhen asked casually.
"This is what you're supposed to look like." Zhang Zhaomu's tone was earnest. "It's not like you're the heroine of some second-rate wuxia novel. There's no reason you have to make yourself look ugly."
"I wasn't ugly before, either!" Chen Zhenzhen stressed irritably. "Besides, you've already cut my hair, so I can't go back to how I looked before. I just think... it's too eye-catching."
She repeated the words.
Only then did Zhang Zhaomu understand. He really hadn't thought of it that way; after all, boys and girls did think rather differently.
Come to think of it, girls who developed early did have that kind of trouble. It was just that Chen Zhenzhen had always dressed like a boy before, so she had less experience with it.
Naturally, she would have plenty of misgivings after suddenly changing into a shirt that showed off her figure so much.
As a boy, it was a little awkward to talk about this sort of thing. Zhang Zhaomu cleared his throat softly and tried to keep his tone normal as he said:
"There's really nothing you can do about that. You were born with it."
"Unless you plan on keeping your shoulders hunched and your back bent from now on, or wrapping yourself up with a strip of cloth or something-"
"Zhang Zaowan!" Chen Zhenzhen's cheeks flushed slightly. "Stop right there!"
She had no desire to discuss that kind of thing with him.
"You'll have to face it sooner or later." Zhang Zhaomu asked in return, "Besides, can you honestly say you don't like your current skin?"
Chen Zhenzhen fell silent for a moment. "I do like it, but..."
When she'd changed into it just now and seen herself in the mirror, the joy that welled up inside her hadn't lied. What girl didn't want to be pretty?
"Then there you go," Zhang Zhaomu said. "As long as you like it, that's what matters. There's nothing more fucking stupid than making yourself unhappy because you care what other people think."
"That sounds a little familiar." Chen Zhenzhen was suddenly a little speechless. "If I remember right, you said the exact same thing when you insisted on being sloppy about your appearance before, didn't you?"
She still remembered how, when she'd first heard him say it, she'd immediately taken it as gospel and set off down the road of no return to neglecting her appearance...
Zhang Zhaomu: "..."
He stubbornly retorted, "Just tell me whether I'm right or not."
"Yes, yes, yes, you're right no matter what." Chen Zhenzhen muttered, then felt disappointed in herself.
She was always too easily persuaded by him.
It was so frustrating. She felt like a lump of modeling clay, ready for him to mold into whatever shape he wanted.
"It's fine at school, but how am I supposed to explain it to my mom when I get home?" she asked. "I went off to school looking perfectly normal, and now I'm coming home with a different hairstyle and different clothes..."
"Isn't that easy to solve? After evening self-study, just stop by my place and change back into your clothes." Zhang Zhaomu smiled. "As for your hair, isn't it normal to get it cut on a whim?"
"...That works."
Chen Zhenzhen rubbed her face, then suddenly realized something. "Wait a minute!"
"You've been preaching all this high-minded stuff, but your real goal is still to use me as material for your ads, isn't it?"
"That's slander!" Zhang Zhaomu declared righteously. "I really am doing this for your own good!"
He paused, his voice dropping a little. "At most, there's a tiny bit of personal interest involved."
Seeing Chen Zhenzhen's eyes widen as she was about to blow up, Zhang Zhaomu hurriedly added, "It's definitely not the kind of personal interest where I use you as material for my ads! If I wanted to run ads, the photos I took just now would be enough."
"Then what kind of personal interest is it?"
"I'll tell you, but don't get mad."
"Say it!"
"I was just thinking, once you show up at school looking like this, wouldn't you take Duan Chan'er's place as the new campus goddess? And as your only best friend, I'd look pretty good too..."
Chen Zhenzhen: "?"
Wait, was there seriously something wrong with the way this guy's brain worked?
Looking at Zhang Zhaomu's shifty, guilty gaze, she really wanted to pretend to be angry, but the corners of her mouth wouldn't quite obey her, rising almost uncontrollably.
That kind of honesty wasn't so bad, but if he wanted to compliment her, he could just do it properly instead of going all the way around in a circle. Hmph!
"I'm not as pretty as Duan Chan'er." Chen Zhenzhen rolled her eyes at him. "Besides, don't you seem pretty close to Duan Chan'er too? And your deskmate is gorgeous. By that reckoning, you've already got all the face you could want at school."
"That's different!" Zhang Zhaomu said earnestly. "Think about our relationship! Duan Chan'er wouldn't play games with me, or walk the streets with me every night, much less wear white stockings for me-"
Chen Zhenzhen hurriedly interrupted him. "Don't just casually tack on weird stuff like that!" she said irritably. "I wouldn't either!"
Not bothering to keep arguing with him, Chen Zhenzhen rubbed her belly and said, "I'm hungry. You promised to treat me to lunch today, and no instant noodles!"
"The stir-fried rice noodles by the school gate are pretty good," Zhang Zhaomu suggested.
Chen Zhenzhen shook her head vigorously. "I want to eat at a restaurant!"
"Chen Zhen, you know me." Zhang Zhaomu explained earnestly, "One meal at a restaurant will cost me at least twenty hours of internet café time this month. You wouldn't want me to be unable to keep you company at the internet café because I'm broke, would you?"
"I can lend you the money."
Zhang Zhaomu shook his head. "You know I've never been one to borrow money."
That was true. Even if he had to live on steamed buns, Zhang Zhaomu wouldn't ask anyone to lend him money. That was why he always carefully budgeted every yuan, doing his best to avoid ending up broke.
"I don't care!" Chen Zhenzhen stepped closer and looked up at Zhang Zhaomu. "You promised, and besides, won't you be making money from makeovers soon?"
"That's still just an idea..." Zhang Zhaomu sighed. "All right, I'll really shell out this once. But after lunch, you're coming to my classroom with me. No running off halfway!"
"Deal."
"Huh?" Zhang Zhaomu was the one caught off guard. "Why did you agree so readily this time?"
"Heh." Chen Zhenzhen's tone was disdainful. "As if you wouldn't drag me to your classroom if I didn't take you up on lunch."
Her tone carried the pride of someone who had seen right through him. "Rather than let you freeload off me, I might as well collect some interest first!"
"That's my Chen Zhen." Zhang Zhaomu gave her a thumbs-up. "Smart as fuck!"
"Of course!"
Chen Zhenzhen's high spirits lasted only a few minutes.
As soon as she went downstairs and stepped onto the street, she felt uncomfortable all over.
Before, she'd just been invisible, and hardly anyone had looked at her when she walked down the street. Now it was completely different. Every gaze around her felt almost tangible: some people pretended to glance over casually, some held their phones sideways to sneak photos, and one person even stared at her in a daze and walked headfirst into a utility pole.
By reflex, Chen Zhenzhen hunched her shoulders and bent her back, trying to escape those gazes.
Then Zhang Zhaomu smacked her on the back.
"Private Zhen! Stop acting like a quail!"
He scolded her, "Chest out, head up! Show some manly spirit!"
"You fucking-!" Chen Zhenzhen gritted her teeth.
"I was born without a shred of that manly spirit stuff!"