"I got away with it."
Seeing Duan Chan'er turn back and resume her work, Zhang Zhaomu breathed a sigh of relief.
Then I secretly rubbed my tailbone.
I forced myself to adjust my posture and land on my buttocks, which really shook me quite a bit.
"I dreamt I was a cat, that's ridiculous!"
When I tried to recall the details of my dream, I couldn't remember most of it. The only relatively clear image was the moment I saw my reflection in the mirror.
"I can't keep using the [cat] persona for too long, or my self-perception will actually start to resemble that of a cat, right?"
Zhang Zhaomu felt that this guess was not unreasonable. For example, with the " Refined " persona, after a long time, he would inevitably develop some lifestyle habits as a result.
"However, there's no need to worry too much. Anyway, after this week, you can freely uninstall and reinstall the [cat] persona."
At that time, the negative effects of this persona on daily life will no longer bother me; on the contrary, I can leverage its advantages at any time.
For example, the extraordinary abilities that cats possess.
Which teenager could resist the temptation to switch into superhero form at any time? In the future, if a crisis occurs, putting on the [cat] persona is like having an extra insurance card.
As she was pondering this, Duan Chan'er had already placed the dishes on the table.
Zhang Zhaomu first glance, the most eye-catching item was a plate of stir-fried green peppers and pork that looked delicious and appealing.
So that's where the culprit was. No wonder I choked and had a stress reaction in my dream.
Looks like I'll have to eat a little more.
"I didn't have much time at noon today, so I can only make some simple home-style dishes: stir-fried green peppers with pork, hot and sour shredded potatoes, and preserved egg and cucumber soup." Duan Chan'er handed over a pair of chopsticks. "Want to try some?"
Zhang Zhaomu took the chopsticks and exclaimed, "This is nothing! You call this just ordinary home-style cooking? It's like New Year's for me!"
He picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth, then his eyes lit up. "Delicious! It tastes even better than what you get in restaurants!"
Duan Chan'er was a little embarrassed by the praise, "Class monitor, you're exaggerating. I'm well aware of my own cooking skills."
While it was indeed quite well done, it certainly can't compare to that of a professional chef.
"Anyway, I love to eat it," Zhang Zhaomu said. "I feel like I could eat three bowls of rice in one go!"
"Plenty of rice!" Duan Chan'er placed the rice cooker directly on the table. "I cooked a lot because I didn't know how much the class monitor would eat."
The happiest thing for a cook is seeing others enjoy the food they make.
I feel much more accomplished than when I'm eating alone.
The two chatted idly, and the dishes on the table were quickly devoured. Of course, Duan Chan'er didn't eat much, and most of the food ended up in Zhang Zhaomu's stomach.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Zhang Zhaomu took the initiative to get up and clear the dishes.
"You can just put it in the sink," Duan Chan'er said. "I usually wait until I get back in the evening to wash it all together."
"You have to let me help out a little, right? Otherwise, I'll be eating for free!" Zhang Zhaomu said matter-of-factly. "Besides, there's no reason for the person who cooked to also have to wash the dishes."
"Okay," Duan Chan'er, "Then you'll be in charge of washing the dishes from now on."
Zhang Zhaomu was taken aback. "In the future?"
Duan Chan'er immediately realized that the other party had misunderstood, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly explained, "Didn't you say you would help with the Barbecue and feeding September during breaks this week?"
"Well, I can't just leave it at that... I happen to be quite good at cooking, so I'll cover your lunches for the week as a way of expressing my gratitude."
Zhang Zhaomu laughed and said, "No need, it's not a big deal. I even came up with the name for September!"
"If you're going to look at it that way, those two little ones only survived because of you," Duan Chan'er said. "Surely that's a big deal?"
Zhang Zhaomu: "... I just felt it was too much trouble for you."
"It's no trouble at all. I was going to cook anyway; it's just a matter of adding a pair of chopsticks," Duan Chan'er said. "It's decided then. What do you want to eat tomorrow? There's half a pig's trotter in the fridge; I'll make braised pig's trotters."
Zhang Zhaomu opened her mouth, but couldn't utter any words of refusal.
It's not that I'm shameless, it's just that the temptation is too great. What normal guy could resist a girl like Duan Chan'er cooking for him? And she's an exceptionally good cook!
If it were someone else, they probably wouldn't even have a chance to refuse; they would have eagerly agreed as soon as the other person opened their mouth!
Thinking about it this way, Zhang Zhaomu felt pretty awesome, and immediately felt at ease.
So she gave a thumbs-up, her face full of anticipation. "I love braised pork trotters."
Looking back, before last night, Duan Chan'er and I were just ordinary classmates.
Just because we found two puppies, our relationship seemed to speed up all of a sudden... I guess that's what they call a turning point?
"Perhaps I should thank the sudden sharp hearing that came with the [cat] persona last night... but I almost exposed myself in front of Duan Chan'er because of the stress, so I guess the good and bad outweigh each other."
"Okay, thanks for taking it back. Nothing happened."
Lost in idle daydreams, Zhang Zhaomu finished washing the dishes. It was almost time for class, so the two walked to school side by side.
They walked in silence until they reached the entrance of Class 9, Arts, where Zhang Zhaomu unexpectedly saw Chen Zhenzhen leaning against the corridor.
"Too slow!"
Her gaze swept over Duan Chan'er, then she glared at Zhang Zhaomu, approached him with a reproachful tone, and raised her hand to deliver a light punch to Zhang Zhaomu's chest.
Zhang Zhaomu groaned, staggering back several steps, his face ashen, clutching his chest, staring at Chen Zhenzhen in disbelief. "The Heart-Shattering Deadly Fist? Why did you suddenly attack me so viciously?"
Chen Zhenzhen's lips twitched slightly. "I'm not in the mood for nonsense with you. I have something to say to you."
"Okay." Zhang Zhaomu instantly returned to normal.
"I'll go into the classroom first then, you guys chat," Duan Chan'er said, then politely nodded to Chen Zhenzhen and went inside.
"What do you want to say?" Zhang Zhaomu leaned closer to Chen Zhenzhen: "About the reimbursement? Don't worry, I keep my word! I won't even flinch if it's under a hundred!"
"Who can afford to spend 100 yuan on a meal at the cafeteria?!" Chen Zhenzhen felt her anger rising, but she tried to control herself. "It's not convenient here, let's find a quieter place to talk."
"Oh..." Zhang Zhaomu looked around. "What about the men's restroom?"
Chen Zhenzhen took a deep breath and gritted her teeth.
"I was just joking to lighten the mood," Zhang Zhaomu said with an embarrassed laugh. "It's the stairwell, there's hardly anyone there now."
Chen Zhenzhen walked towards the stairs on her own.
Zhang Zhaomu quickly followed, saying in a solicitous tone, " Chen Zhen, you look so beautiful today! It's no wonder I picked out the clothes. And that bun is so perfectly round and neat; you couldn't achieve that kind of skill without decades of practice..."
Normally, Chen Zhenzhen would have already been ranting about these rubbish words, but at this moment she just kept a cold face, stopped in the stairwell, and finally spoke:
" Zhang Zaowan, what's going on between you and Duan Chan'er?"