NOVEL NEXT Chapter 89: Relationship Guru—Shu
"Um… do you mean social death?" Yun Mengxi replied softly, then tucked her hair behind her ear and sat down beside Shu.
Shu stiffened, surprised that she had picked up on his joke. He sat there, silent and still.
"How long have you been here?" Shu thought that maybe he shouldn't engage in such behavior in the future. His earlier feelings of grievance didn't seem like much now.
Just like his elders used to say when they were emotionally manipulating him, "Are you feeling wronged? It's not like you'll lose a piece of flesh for feeling wronged…"
Shu instinctively reached for his chest, then winced.
Damn it, so I can lose a piece of flesh…
"…" Yun Mengxi tilted her head, looking at Shu, who was radiating stiffness. She thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't know. I didn't see anything… or hear anything."
"Heh, I don't believe you." Shu scoffed, turning his head away from Yun Mengxi.
"I really didn't see anything!" Yun Mengxi seemed anxious, quickly adding, "Or hear anything."
Hey, you're actually a nice person.
Shu kept his head turned, saying nothing.
Yun Mengxi pouted, finally giving up on repeating herself. She and Shu sat there quietly.
Shu was truly silent now, perhaps because someone was beside him, or perhaps because his chest was starting to hurt again.
"Why aren't you sleeping so late?" After a few minutes, Shu's chest pain became unbearable, forcing him to speak to distract himself.
Yun Mengxi hugged her bent knees, this time turning her head away, avoiding the topic.
Shu waited for a moment, then frowned slightly. "You… did you have a fight?"
"How did you know?" Yun Mengxi was startled and instinctively turned back to ask.
Shu raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected his wild guess to hit the mark.
So I actually have the ability to understand a girl's heart!
I'm amazing!
"Who did you fight with? Was it Liu… uh…" Shu paused, not remembering the woman's name.
"Liu Zhuohua…" Yun Mengxi added softly, then rested her head on her knees, her mood low. "It wasn't with Director Liu…"
Not with Liu Zhuohua? Who else could it be?
Shu began to ponder.
Yun Mengxi was Yun Feng's sister, and Yun Feng had considerable influence here. Logically, no one would dare to argue with Yun Feng…
Or was this a soap opera where even the maids could bully the young heiress?
No, no, that's too cliché. Could there be a fake heiress who stole all of Yun Feng's affection?
But when he had negotiated with Yun Feng, the man's happiness at seeing Yun Mengxi safe hadn't seemed fake…
Eliminating other possibilities, Shu looked up. "Did you fight with your brother?"
Yun Mengxi kept her head down, neither denying nor acknowledging the topic, essentially confirming his guess.
"Sigh…" Shu sighed. This was a family matter, so he shouldn't interfere… But when he looked at Yun Mengxi's aggrieved expression, it reminded him of himself earlier.
No, Yun Mengxi hadn't cried and shouted, or writhed around on the ground like a twisted worm.
"Do you… want to talk about what happened?" Shu figured he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight anyway. To avoid boredom, he decided to delve into the topic.
Half of Yun Mengxi's face was hidden. She turned her head and gave Shu a speechless look before turning back. "No…"
Yun Mengxi's head bobbed as she spoke, like a trembling hamster.
"Hey, you need to vent your frustrations, even if it's just to the empty night sky. That's how those venting hotlines and websites started, right?" Shu smiled and spoke sincerely to Yun Mengxi.
"…Like you were doing just now?" Yun Mengxi looked up at Shu, speaking softly.
Shu: "…" Thanks for that, I feel so attacked.
"Yeah, I guess so…" After thinking about it, Shu didn't deny it, freely admitting that he had been venting. "It feels really good. How about you try rolling around on the ground a couple of times?"
Shu looked at Yun Mengxi expectantly, then awkwardly withdrew his gaze when she gave him a "Are you stupid?!" look. "Okay, but everyone has to try something for the first time…"
Watching Shu continue to argue, Yun Mengxi looked away. Suddenly, she felt a little less gloomy.
Seeing someone else more frustrated than her had brought her a sliver of joy.
Noticing Yun Mengxi had looked up, Shu stopped his rambling.
There was a reason why "roasting" could develop into a way of bonding. As the saying goes, "You worry when your brother's struggling, but you also worry when he's driving a luxury car." It was all about finding common ground with the people around you, plus a little bit of "schadenfreude." That was the meaning of having "frenemies."
Mutual amusement, mutual adjustment. During low points, frenemies were definitely better at pulling someone out of their misery than close friends.
Because they wouldn't feed you inspirational platitudes, but would instead look at you blankly and say, "Huh?! Are you trying to subtly brag?" pulling their friend back to reality.
Yes, that's how Shu interacted with Fu Hua too.
"If you have something bothering you, just talk about it. If you keep it buried inside, it might take root and sprout one day." Shu took a deep breath and changed the topic.
"Nothing…" Yun Mengxi said softly.
"Okay, you don't want to tell me?" Shu thought for a moment, then stood up and stretched his muscles. "If that's the case, I'll leave. You can talk to yourself if you want. You'll have to say these things eventually."
"I'm leaving then." Shu waved at Yun Mengxi and turned to go.
"…" Yun Mengxi didn't try to stop him. Shu cursed inwardly.
Damn it, dating simulators are a lie. No wonder our generation has such a low dating rate.
But Shu didn't intend to turn back. He had said what he needed to say, vented his frustrations, and his body wasn't hurting as much anymore. Shu felt much lighter now.
Maybe I can still catch some sleep.
"Can… can you wait a moment?" Just as Shu had walked a few steps away, Yun Mengxi's voice, as soft as a mosquito's buzz, reached Shu's ears, making him stop abruptly.
He turned back and saw Yun Mengxi looking at him with surprise, as if she hadn't expected Shu to actually hear her and stop.
But since he had already turned back…
Yun Mengxi encouraged herself, wanting to pour out all her troubles at once, but the words swirled in her mind, eventually forming a simple question.
"Guru…"
What the heck, Guru?!
Shu rolled his eyes, accepting the title of "Relationship Guru."
"If… when you're moving forward, there's another path in front of you, and it can also lead to the destination you want, and there's scenery you love along the way… would you choose it? Even if… it's… a bit roundabout?"