After Being Bent by Reader

After completing the book, Xu Chuanchuan didn't hurry to start a new one. Instead, seeing that she had made quite a lot of money from this book and the readers' response toward it was enthusiastic, she decided to give something back to her readers.

It took her a whole week to do the proofreading personally. After doing so, she handed the manuscript to the workshop she previously worked with to print the physical copies of her books. After telling the workshop her requirements, the other side quickly completed the necessary arrangements. As she was only printing 20 books this time, she received the finished product in no time.

For fairness's sake, Xu Chuanchuan decided to give away the books in the form of a Weibo lottery. Before publishing the Weibo post, though, she suddenly thought of a certain someone. So, she tapped on Passerby Shi's QQ avatar.

I Love Malatang: "I made physical copies of the latest book and kept a copy for you. Should I send it to the previous address?"

Unfortunately, Passerby Shi did not reply.

It had already been a long time since Passerby Shi had "disappeared" from her novel, so Xu Chuanchuan thought that the other party might be busy again in real life. However, since she already promised to give Passerby Shi a physical copy previously, even if the other party did not reply to her, Xu Chuanchuan still sent a copy to the previous address.

...

Murong Shi did not see the message Xu Chuanchuan sent her as she was helping Fang Qin pack her luggage. "Do you still want these six books?"

These were books Xu Chuanchuan had sent over. Although the cover of these books had already been creased, Fang Qin had hardly read any of their contents. Without even thinking, Fang Qin replied, "Of course I do."

Murong Shi fell silent. She still remembered what happened after she came home from celebrating Xu Xiangxiang's birthday two days ago. At the time, Fang Qin had come looking for her crestfallen and said, "It turns out that she often visits that pub after returning to the country."

Murong Shi didn't need to guess that "she" referred to Fang Qin's ex-girlfriend, so she did not interrupt her friend's words.

Then, Fang Qin mumbled to herself, "I thought she would be happy if she left me, but in fact, she isn't happy at all."

"Do you plan to get back together with her?"

Shaking her head, Fang Qin said, "Her mother is severely ill, and she promised her mother to get married before her mother departed. Between family and love, she chose the former. I don't blame her, really. I only blame myself for giving up everything for her. I even cut off contact with my family. I really am stupid. My parents must hate me to death now."

Afterward, Fang Qin decided to cast aside her lingering feelings and return home to beg her parents for forgiveness.

Meanwhile, hearing Fang Qin's decision to keep the books, Murong Shi found a piece of clean, floral-patterned cloth to wrap the books. Then, she placed the books into one of Fang Qin's luggage.

"Alright, I've bothered you for long enough. I'm going back now," Fang Qin said with a smile.

Although Murong Shi offered to drive Fang Qin home, the latter had rejected her offer. Before parting ways, Murong Shi said to Fang Qin, "Stop thinking of the past. You need to look forward."

Fang Qin nodded. Then, placing one hand on Murong Shi's shoulder, Fang Qin said with a serious expression, "I don't know who you'll end up with in the future, but I want to give you a piece of advice."

"What advice?"

Revealing a bitter smile, Fang Qin said, "You are a bit of a feminist, but make sure you don't fall for an emotionally weak person. Otherwise, you'll end up like me."

Murong Shi did not say anything in response.

Fang Qin stuffed her luggage onto the taxi's trunk. Then, before getting into the car, she solemnly said, "I still have another piece of advice. Make sure you do not provoke straight women. Otherwise, you won't have a good ending, either."

"Can't you say something nice?" Murong Shi grumbled, finally growing annoyed by her friend's parting remarks.

Fang Qin then ran away with a smile on her face.

…

The next time Xu Chuanchuan received Murong Shi's summons was through the phone. When Xu Chuanchuan heard her landline phone ringing, she answered the call without even looking at the caller ID. "Hello?"

"Come to my office after work. I have something to give you."

It had already been half a month since the two of them had any interaction with each other. Even if they in the company, they only regarded each other as invisible air. Hence, Xu Chuanchuan couldn't help but be startled when she suddenly heard Murong Shi's voice. Timidly, she asked, "What is it?"

"You'll know once you're here."

What's with the mystery?

After work, Xu Chuanchuan waited until most of the people in the Engineering Department had left before making her way to the general manager's office.

Before Xu Chuanchuan could say anything, Murong Shi pointed at a huge box set on the coffee table and said, "A gift from Aunt Lian."

When Xu Chuanchuan walked over and opened the cardboard box, she found that lychees and watermelon filled it.

The lychees were plump, and they were even attached to branches with leaves still. Judging by the color of the leaves, it appeared that these lychees had been picked only recently. And although there was only one watermelon in the box, it was round and chubby. It looked like it could easily weigh around five or six kilograms.

"This is..." Xu Chuanchuan was momentarily stunned.

"Aunt Lian brought those back from her hometown, and she had me bring them to you."

Her jaw dropping, Xu Chuanchuan asked, "All this is for me?"

"Mhm."

"But I can't finish everything by myself."

"Don't you have a fridge upstairs?"

"But...why give me so many?"

After a slight pause, Murong Shi said, "Aunt Lian likes you. She will always remember the time you helped her."

"But I really can't finish everything... Why don't you take some back?"

"No, we still have a lot more at home. This is Aunt Lian's token of appreciation, so just accept it. If you think you can't finish everything, you can share some with your little sister."

The big box was cumbersome, and Xu Chuanchuan struggled to pick it up. She also couldn't help but wonder how Murong Shi had managed to carry it all the way here.

Murong Shi appeared to be very busy as she immediately resumed typing away at the keyboard after their conversation ended. After wiping the sweat on her forehead, Xu Chuanchuan had no choice but to interrupt Murong Shi, "It's too heavy for me to carry. Don't you have a fridge here? How about I store some in it?"

Murong Shi stopped typing and looked toward Xu Chuanchuan and the box beside her. Then, she asked, "You can't carry it? Aunt Lian says it weighs less than 20 kilos."

Xu Chuanchuan blushed in embarrassment momentarily. Then, she asked, "Didn't you find it heavy when you carried it up here?"

In response, Murong Shi nonchalantly said, "I had security help me carry it."

"..." So, what right do you have to laugh at me?

"We'll carry it together, then."

Only after Murong Shi had left her seat and arrived in front of her did Xu Chuanchuan realized what Murong Shi meant. "Y-You want to carry it with me?"

Having already picked up one side of the box, Murong Shi said, "Hurry up."

"Okay..."

Murong Shi was wearing high heels, which further emphasized the difference in height between her and Xu Chuanchuan. This made it much more difficult for the two of them to carry the box up the stairs. Throughout the entire trip upstairs, Xu Chuanchuan's heart thumped with trepidation, afraid that Murong Shi would stumble and fall. Fortunately, the two of them arrived at their destination safely and soundly.

Dust covered the bottom of the box. When Murong Shi let go of the box, she found that her hands were dirtied. While patting off some of the dust, she asked, "Can I borrow the bathroom?"

Xu Chuanchuan nodded hurriedly. Although dust similarly covered her hand, she waited until Murong Shi was done washing her hands before entering the bathroom herself.

"Please thank Aunt Lian for me. Also, please tell her to stop being so courteous next time."

"That will depend on her. What can I do if she likes you so much?" Murong Shi said, smiling.

When Murong Shi smiled, the ends of her eyes became even more prominent, which made her even more attractive. Xu Chuanchuan quickly shifted her eyes away and evaded the subject at hand as she asked, "How about I cut open the watermelon now? We can share it."

After staring at Xu Chuanchuan for several seconds, Murong Shi said, "Nevermind. It doesn't seem like you're willing for me to stay here. Enjoy it at your leisure."

Xu Chuanchuan: "..."

After storing all of the lychees, Xu Chuanchuan found hardly any space left inside the refrigerator. So, she chopped the watermelon in half and scooped up the fruit into a bowl using a spoon. Then, she put the bowl into the freezer for 15 minutes.

Frozen watermelon was the perfect food to cool off from a hot day. After finishing half the bowl, Xu Chuanchuan had solved her dinner. Then, she grabbed some lychees, washed them, and started peeling and eating them while watching TV.

The lychees were sweet and meaty. They were also packed full of juices. The more Xu Chuanchuan ate, the more addicted she got to them. Before she realized it, she had already finished the ones she had washed. Then, she burped while rubbing her bloated belly.

Xu Chuanchuan felt that Aunt Lian was a genuinely wonderful person. First, the older woman had treated her to a wonderful meal. Now, she had given her a bunch of fruits. Xu Chuanchuan couldn't help but feel ashamed for receiving so many gifts. If not for Aunt Lian living in the same house as Murong Shi, Xu Chuanchuan would've very much liked to thank Aunt Lian in person.

After wracking her mind for some time, Xu Chuanchuan opened up Taobao on her phone and bought a handheld massager.

Middle-aged and elderly people generally had back problems. Xu Chuanchuan had previously bought a handheld massager for her mother as well, and her mother only had praises for the product. Hence, she decided to buy one as a gift for Aunt Lian.

After resting for a while, Xu Chuanchuan went to take a shower.

The fruits she typically ate came together with the food deliveries she ordered, and none of them tasted very good. But, after eating the fruits Aunt Lian gave her today, Xu Chuanchuan realized just how delicious fruits could taste. So, she was in an excellent mood when she went to bed.

However, tragedy struck when midnight arrived.

An intense abdominal pain rudely awakened Xu Chuanchuan. After turning on the lights, she promptly rushed into the bathroom to relieve herself.

After nearly falling asleep on the toilet, Xu Chuanchuan climbed back to bed again. Shortly after she laid down, though, her stomach began grumbling again, so she quickly got out of bed and made her way to the bathroom...

After going back and forth to the bathroom several times, Xu Chuanchuan eventually collapsed onto her bed with not a shred of energy left in her body. When she realized that the sun was already rising outside, she nearly broke down into tears. Had she known this would happen, she would've never eaten so much iced watermelon.

However, the stomach ache still wasn't the worst part.

The moment her phone's alarm rang, Xu Chuanchuan opened her eyes and sat up to turn it off. However, as soon as she sat up, she found that her whole body felt limp, and her head was suffering from a splitting headache.

Moreover, despite the air conditioner being on, she was sweating all over. When she swallowed her saliva, she also found that she had a sore throat. It was then that she realized that she might've had a fever.

Eventually, Xu Chuanchuan had to acknowledge her fate and called her department chief to apply for a leave.

After doing so, she boiled herself a pot of water. And just as she was about to place a wet towel into the freezer, her phone rang.

When Xu Chuanchuan saw the word "Murong" displayed on the screen, her mind instantly became fully awake.

The last time Murong Shi had called her, Xu Chuanchuan had mindfully saved it thinking that she would have a use for it one day. However, she didn't think that Murong Shi would take the initiative to call her at this early hour.

After a moment of hesitation, Xu Chuanchuan picked up the call and struggled to speak with her sore throat, "Hello—"

"You really have a fever? Is it because you ate too many lychees last night?"

"..." xu Chuanchuan was momentarily stunned. Then, she felt her face gradually heating up. "Probably..."

Murong Shi then sighed and said, "I forgot to remind you yesterday. Aunt Lian once warned me not to eat too many lychees at a time since there's a high chance of falling ill from overeating lychees. I didn't expect you to fall ill before I could have the chance to warn you."

Xu Chuanchuan: "..."

"Have you taken medicine yet?"

"Cough. No."

It took around five minutes to boil a pot of water. However, before the water in the kettle could boil, Xu Chuanchuan heard someone knocking on the door.

Everyone should already be at work at this time. Xu Chuanchuan was also living by herself now since Linda was on long-term leave. So, for a moment, she thought she had an auditory hallucination.

However, after the knocking continued for a short moment, Xu Chuanchuan heard a voice coming through the door, "Xu Chuanchuan, open the door."

The kettle just so happened to have started whistling when the person on the other side of the door spoke. In addition, the door also served to muffle the other person's voice, so Xu Chuanchuan failed to discern who the voice belonged to. For a moment, she thought Linda had returned.

However, when Xu Chuanchuan opened the door, she found that the person standing outside was Murong Shi.

"W-Why are you here?"

Looking at Xu Chuanchuan's reddened cheeks, Murong Shi said, "I still have some leftover medicine from the last time I had a fever."

After saying so, Murong Shi stuffed a plastic bag into Xu Chuanchuan's arms.