Chapter 52: Playing House |
"Xiao Huan, let''s play house, okay?"
Yan Huan turned his head to look at the petite and cute black-haired little girl behind him.
Her small face had some baby fat, and her bright and sparkling eyes looked as if they were about to drip water.
"Xiao Huan will play the dad, and I''ll play the mom."
At this time, the greenery of the South District rustled in the summer wind, dappling the park''s sandbox with patches of light.
On the slide by the sandbox, Yan Huan looked at An Le in front of him with some helplessness.
But feeling the full expectation in her eyes, Yan Huan finally nodded.
"Alright, but just for a little while."
"Yay!"
"Husband Xiao Huan, you''ve worked so hard. Do you want something delicious to eat?"
"..."
Hearing this, Yan Huan cupped his chin, a sense of inexplicable satisfaction rising in his heart.
Originally, he had only agreed to play house to coax his childish childhood friend, but looking at the foolishly happy An Le in front of him, he took the initiative to play along.
"It wasn''t hard work, but what delicious food do we have at home? You used all your pocket money to buy me chocolate earlier. I told you not to spend your money so recklessly..."
Hearing this, An Le just blinked and looked at Yan Huan.
"..."
She didn''t say a single word, but she somehow gave off a feeling of being deeply wronged.
An Le was just like this.
Even if she felt wronged or unhappy, she would never say it out loud.
At most, she would just fall silent, but Yan Huan could always see right through her mood.
Unable to bear the gaze of her bright and sparkling eyes, Yan Huan sighed and had no choice but to say,
"Alright, alright, we''ll buy more next time. We can just buy it and eat it together. Don''t feel wronged, An Le."
"That''s not why..."
An Le lowered her head slightly, her two small hands rubbing her clothes. After struggling for a good while, she pouted and said to Yan Huan in a soft, sweet voice,
"You''re the dad, and I''m the mom. I called you Husband Xiao Huan... so Xiao Huan, you should call me Wife An Le too... but you didn''t..."
Hearing this, Yan Huan blinked and looked at An Le sitting next to him on the slide.
He opened his mouth, amused by her.
He couldn''t help but rub An Le''s head. Even as her hair was messed up by his rubbing, she didn''t resist at all, only turning her head in confusion to look at the boy beside her.
Then, she saw him smile helplessly and say,
"Wife... An Le?"
Not going to lie, it was quite embarrassing.
But after all, children speak without filter, especially in this moment when the two innocent childhood friends were alone together.
The words that made the soul from the otherworld feel a bit of embarrassment sounded as sweet as frosting to the other party.
An Le''s eyes seemed to be lit up by Yan Huan''s words, and then she showed him a sweet, satisfied smile. Even her legs dangling from the slide began to swing happily.
"Mhm!"
''Is she really that happy?''
Looking at her continuing to smile foolishly, Yan Huan couldn''t help but think this.
But he didn''t open his mouth to interrupt, simply turning his head away.
"Phew..."
But the instant he turned his head, he suddenly felt his left cheek being lightly pecked by the lips of the girl beside him.
Yan Huan froze completely, touching his face in disbelief, tracing the lingering warmth.
Then, he turned back to look at An Le.
He looked at her slightly reddened small face, her smile the same as always.
It was just that the summer sunlight was too bright, making her look as if she were glowing.
"Husband Xiao Huan, you''re the best.
"I like Husband Xiao Huan the most, the absolute most!"
The memory of being kissed by his childhood friend all those years ago seemed to strike Yan Huan right between the eyebrows at this moment. It was a joy stored deep in his memory, impossible to replicate, yet it was felt by Yan Huan once again, as vivid as life itself.
Not only that, all the joy he had ever experienced in his life surged into his brain at this moment, making his consciousness scatter considerably as he recalled many happy memories from the past.
Moving out of the orphanage and successfully renting public rental housing, Sister Tong paying him a very large salary, being admitted to the most excellent school in Linmen, cooperating with Yabashi Ki to successfully run for student council president...
The past events were vivid in his memory, surfacing before his eyes one by one.
The happiness accompanying those memories also surged forward like a rushing flood, causing Yan Huan to lose his focus for a moment.
In plain English: he felt so much pleasure that he was seeing a revolving lantern of his life flashing before his eyes.
Just like last time, it was activated instantly with zero frames of delay, leaving him absolutely no room to dodge before falling victim to the Modifier''s attack.
Yan Huan finally realized that these Modifier hosts had no martial ethics whatsoever, preferring to sneak attack him, the Student Council President.
"Meow!"
"Yan Huan!"
It wasn''t until he felt a soft paw continuously patting his numb, tingling cheek that Yan Huan recovered his senses from the overwhelming euphoria.
"How are you doing, meow? Are you alright?"
"I''m fine..."
"Her Modifier''s effect hasn''t ended yet. The percentage of your Resistance that was shattered has increased by two percent compared to last time. Her Modifier has evolved since the previous encounter."
''Modifier...''
''Right, the Modifier!''
Yan Huan''s brain, which had given up thinking due to the immense pleasure, suddenly cleared up a bit, allowing him to recall exactly what had just happened.
He had reunited with his long-separated childhood friend, An Le, and then... she was the fourth Modifier Host!
Thinking of this, Yan Huan''s pupils contracted as he looked at An Le, who was still sitting in front of him in the narrow passage.
He saw that she was also in a bit of a panic, but in the next second, within the darkness of the narrow passage, her face seemed to glow in Yan Huan''s eyes.
Her originally pretty and cute face looked as if it had been enhanced with the advanced natural beauty filters of a video app. All flaws, and all the unfamiliarity born from their long separation, completely vanished.
As she blinked in panic, a galaxy seemed to flow within her eyes, transforming into a deep affection and care for him...
Her original timidity morphed into a sky goddess''s compassion for mortal beings, making anyone who saw it unable to resist shedding tears of empathy...
In an instant, in Yan Huan''s eyes, An Le was so beautiful she didn''t seem mortal. Just staying by her side made him feel incredibly joyful.
What was even more terrifying was that, in Yan Huan''s mind, all the happiness surging forth at this moment felt as if it had been granted to him by the girl in front of him.
The government worker who had handed him the keys to the public rental housing was now An Le, wearing a suit and a pair of intellectual glasses.
Sister Tong, who had paid him a very large salary and always smelled heavily of smoke, had also transformed into a fragrant, soft An Le with a radiant smile.
Even the person who gave him that platinum credit card changed from the loving Ye Lan to An Le!
In a split second, it was as if all the joy in the world originated from the girl before him.
''Hiss...''
''Aunt Ye...''
''Am I going to betray the Church of Ye Lan?!''
Just by looking at her, that previous feeling of overwhelming pleasure causing a revolving lantern of memories was about to surge up again.
This made Yan Huan quickly avert his gaze, trying his best not to look at the sparkling An Le.
At the same time, he silently recited a mind-clearing mantra in his head and began thinking of countermeasures.
"I''m... I''m doomed! What... what did I do to Xiao Huan?"
In the darkness, An Le, having snapped back to her senses, looked at the blushing and panting Yan Huan in front of her. She finally realized that she had instinctively used her Modifier.
"Li-Little Finger, what should I do... Eh?! How... how did you become like this?"
An Le turned her head away, trying to mentally ask the avatar of the Modifier that granted her power why the superpower had activated on its own.
But what caught her eye was Little Finger, who had widened by more than just a single size, looking completely chubby.
It was hiccuping continuously and shot An Le an exasperated look.
"You... when you don''t use it, you never use it, but when you do, you drop something this massive... Sigh, An Le, don''t you think you''re being a bit too extreme?"
"Stop beating around the bush, Little Finger... sob, quickly tell me what to do!"
Seeing Xiao Huan currently displaying the exact same state as that salesperson from before, An Le was about to cry from anxiety.
When she saw that Xiao Huan had discovered the things she bought, she had completely panicked. She never expected the superpower to trigger automatically.
She had thought Little Finger did it, but seeing its speechless appearance, she figured out it probably wasn''t.
Little Finger curled its lip and let out another hiccup, looking as though it had a bit of indigestion.
"What else can you do? It''s not a bad thing, just let it be."
"How is it not a bad thing? Xiao Huan... Xiao Huan is suffering so much..."
''From what I can see, it''s not Xiao Huan suffering so much, it''s Little Xiao Huan that''s about to explode from the tension.''
Little Finger, having plumped up significantly, glanced at Yan Huan on the ground before looking at An Le beside it.
"Don''t worry, I''m the one who handles the memories automatically repaired by the Superconductor Mode. I''ll make him forget that he saw those games after this is over."
"Really?"
"Would I lie to you?! Of course it''s true!"
Little Finger couldn''t help but pat An Le''s shoulder with its tail, scolding,
"And don''t forget, you idiot, you chose the ability to give others pleasure. So no matter what happens, you''re only making people feel happy..."
In the darkness, Little Finger''s fattened body slowly shrank back, its shape becoming firmer. However, its overall size was still larger and longer than its previously skinny, slender appearance.
"Hic~"
Little Finger flicked its tongue and finally let out a long hiccup.
Its scarlet snake eyes looked at An Le in the darkness as it asked a rhetorical question,
"An Le, when it comes to happiness, people only ever hate that there''s too little of it. They never hate that there''s too much.
"Ask yourself, is making others feel happy really a mistake?"
An Le was slightly taken aback. After hesitating for a moment, she nodded.
"That... that''s true..."
"There, look at your Xiao Huan. He really, really likes you right now~ Are you sure you don''t want to do something about it?"
"Eh?"
An Le turned her head to look at Yan Huan in front of her. In the dark, she could faintly see the handsome young man''s features, and feel his heavy breathing and even his heartbeat.
She couldn''t clearly see his specific expression, but just recalling the salesperson''s face from earlier and substituting Xiao Huan''s face into it...
"..."
An Le suddenly felt a bit of dry mouth, craving a drink of water.
Scattered beside Yan Huan were the new game releases that An Le had been eagerly anticipating for a long time.
But now, with Yan Huan right next to them, An Le didn''t even want to spare those games a single glance.
How could any galgame compare to how enticing Xiao Huan was?
"Xiao Huan..."
An Le was not a complete novice like Ye Shiyu. The games she bought were proof enough that she was highly experienced in these matters.
It was just unknown how good her actual driving skills were in practice.
Therefore, her words at this moment surprisingly carried an unprecedented...
Excitement?
But Yan Huan, who had been silently reciting the mind-clearing mantra, almost had his defenses broken when he heard An Le suddenly speak up and ask.
Right now, even just hearing her voice made his heart race; it sounded like the music of heaven.
It gave him the feeling of falling in love.
In the dark, Yan Huan gritted his teeth and sat up, panting,
"An Le..."
Just as he was about to speak, the Resistance that had been partially shattered by An Le finally revealed more of its drawbacks.
He seemed completely unable to suppress the urge to express his affection for An Le in front of him, feeling a strong desire to praise her.
Thus, the words he had originally formulated took a sudden turn.
And became:
"An Le... you smell so good."
"Eh?!"
Hearing this, An Le''s small face instantly turned beet red.
She hurriedly pinched her sleeve and sniffed herself.
"There''s... there''s no weird smell... And rather than saying I smell good, it''s more like you, Xiao Huan... smell even better!"
As if the words she spoke were too embarrassing, An Le quickly lowered her head again.
''Wait a minute, am I...''
''Am I making a cuckold out of Vice President Sakuramiya right now?''
Thinking of this, An Le''s excitement finally dampened a bit.
''Xiao Huan was so intimate with Sakuramiya Hitomi earlier. Are they really in that kind of relationship?''
An Le was not like Spencer. After sensing that Xiao Huan might have an intimate relationship with Sakuramiya Hitomi, she wouldn''t develop the desire to seize him for herself...
She would only suffer in silence.
But just as Little Finger had said, nothing was set in stone yet. Now was the perfect time to ask Xiao Huan for the answer!
"Xiao Huan..."
Thinking of this, An Le retreated a little and asked very nervously,
"Have you and Vice President Sakuramiya... already become boyfriend and girlfriend?"
Hearing her voice, Yan Huan, under the influence of the Superconductor Mode, almost morphed into her simp.
''No! No! Of course not!''
Alternatively, Yan Huan felt an even more extreme reaction was possible. Even if he really did have a girlfriend right now, under the influence of such immense pleasure, he would even feel that everything in the past wasn''t worth it.
''Only An Le is worth it. Only An Le can grant me true happiness...''
Such thoughts triggered Yan Huan''s vigilance.
''Is An Le''s Modifier related to pleasure?''
He silently moved a bit further away from An Le, even though his body, in its pursuit of pleasure, was fiercely resisting the action.
But after putting some distance between himself and An Le, that stimulation, which had clung to him like a gangrenous sore, finally seemed to weaken a little.
''Is the effect of An Le''s Modifier related to distance?''
Yan Huan couldn''t see the white mist currently connected to his body. He could only feel his consciousness becoming significantly clearer.
However, looking at An Le, his thoughts were a bit complex.
Happy memories of the past with An Le inevitably surged into his mind. In Yan Huan''s heart, An Le had always been exactly the same; she had never changed.
But at this moment, due to the existence of the Modifier, things had taken on a bizarre tint.
This made it somewhat difficult for Yan Huan to face An Le right now.
''A childhood friend reunited after a long time?''
''A Modifier Host that needs to be dealt with?''
At this moment, Yan Huan truly didn''t know how to face or handle An Le.
But there was no other way. In order to restrict the Modifier, he had to treat An Le solely as a Modifier Host.
Moreover, if it came down to a method to resolve the current predicament, one had already appeared in his mind.
Because he understood An Le very well, and he knew her weakness.
After a moment of silence, his eyes darkened for a split second, and he once again chose to activate his Perfect Expression Management ability.
"..."
The handsome face was covered by the miraculous ability as if by a solid mask, instantly restoring the fractured expression that had cracked when part of his Resistance failed back to normal.
Feigning deep infatuation, he suddenly leaned closer to An Le for a moment, his palm supporting her long black hair as if caressing a precious treasure.
An Le''s eyes widened. Her face flushed pink, and she looked at Yan Huan in front of her, trembling all over.
She watched as he gently approached her cheek and said,
"Sakuramiya and I are not together...
"Wife An Le."
''Playing...''
''Playing house?!''
"Eh?!"
Just as Yan Huan''s joy had been manipulated by the Modifier, striking his brain with memories from a decade ago.
This single sentence from Yan Huan instantly struck the deepest parts of An Le''s memories, causing her entire body to go weak and numb.
She also remembered that when she was a child, her stamina was poor, so she couldn''t run around and play active games with Yan Huan.
Therefore, she and Yan Huan had spent a period of time playing the game of house.
But that was before they even started elementary school. As a child without a filter, she understood nothing and had said all kinds of embarrassing things.
When she told her mother about it, her mother had laughed loudly for a long time.
It wasn''t until she reached elementary school and understood a lot more that An Le belatedly realized what shameful things she had done.
Inherently sensitive and shy, she had an extremely deep memory of this event; it had almost become a switch for her.
At that time, whenever Yan Huan imitated how they were when playing house and called her "Wife An Le," her brain would crash, leaving her incapable of doing anything.
It was exactly the same right now. An Le''s body trembled as she hastily covered her beet-red face and frantically backed away, begging for mercy as she retreated,
"Wait a minute... Xiao Huan, don''t... don''t call me that... ah... at least wait until we''re married..."
"..."
This method could hard-control An Le for at least half a day when they were kids, but it looked like the effect was even more severe now than before.
Just as Yan Huan thought his scheme had succeeded and that he could finally take a good look at the effects of An Le''s Modifier...
"Ring, ring, ring~"
Behind him, his mobile phone suddenly rang.
"?!"
''The mobile phone has a signal?''
Yan Huan''s face, hidden beneath his Perfect Expression Management, showed some disbelief. After all, the last time he and Sakuramiya had been locked up together, there had been no signal.
''What''s going on?''
Acting as though he was still under the effect of An Le''s Modifier, Yan Huan didn''t dare turn his head, but he could hear that it was the ringtone of a Plane voice call...
An Le was similarly stunned. Her face still flushed red, she raised her head in a panic, only to see the avatar of a middle-aged woman prominently displayed on the phone screen.
As well as the username that the avatar belonged to:
"Bai Yi''s Mother"
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