080 The Formally Shaped Battlefield of Love
“Little Wang didn’t come?”
The next morning, on the way to the train station to see her parents off, Pei’s mother finally couldn’t help but ask.
Pei’s father remained silent, seemingly still looking down at his phone. But his finger, which had been swiping through the news page, quietly stopped.
Pei Ningle took out her phone and opened her text message history. “Look, he said he had to work today. Something came up, and he had to go to the Penguin building…”
Pei’s mother frowned and asked with great acuity, “Does he need to work every weekend? Did he go yesterday?”
Pei Ningle was not very sure. “He probably… did.”
As she spoke, she recalled Wang Heng’s actions these past few days, and the more she thought about it, the more uncertain she felt. As long as he was by her side, that sense of security was real, but the problem was, what if he didn’t want to stay by her side?
Thinking of this, the girl asked again, “If he avoids me, what should I do? Mom, can you help me think?”
After some careful consideration, Pei’s mother shook her head. “Forget it. We won’t get involved in you young people’s affairs. If the two of us say too much to him, we might put too much pressure on him and scare him away. Besides, the way people date these days is different from our time. Don’t be dogmatic.”
Pei’s father, who was beside her, said leisurely, “It’s already very open-minded of us to allow you to date now. You still want us to be your strategists? In your dreams.”
Pei Ningle looked at the text message on her phone and couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.
After a long while, Pei’s mother finally couldn’t bear it and gave some advice. “How about this, Little Le, listen to me. A stubborn and headstrong child like you, many boys will like, but you can’t be too single-minded. Don’t force him; attract him. Young boys can’t resist temptation, so you must clearly express your affection, but you can’t be aggressive. You have to give him some space. For a girl, being reserved is very important, but you can’t be too reserved either.”
The girl said thoughtfully, “So, I should show my affection, but not be in a hurry to confess?”
“Exactly!” Pei’s mother nodded with satisfaction and continued to advise, “When it comes to dating, the most time-consuming part is before you confirm the relationship. You can’t make it clear until you’re ninety percent sure. And the most important point is… if there’s a competitor, then get on good terms with the competitor. First, figure out the enemy’s situation before deciding how to act. Remember, you have to appear very reserved, but that’s for the boy to see. You can’t just sit and wait.”
Pei’s father, who was beside her, suddenly put down his phone, stared at his wife who had been managing him strictly for many years, and asked, “Is that what you did back then?”
Pei’s mother was suddenly choked.
Pei’s father’s face was filled with the sudden realization of finally learning the truth after many years. “So that’s how it was. I was wondering why there were so many coincidences back then! What fate? It was your scheming!”
Pei’s mother: “…Oh right, the food on the train is not good. I’ll buy some instant noodles later!”
**
Wang Heng sat in the office of the Penguin building, facing his computer, slacking off.
He had already finished all the work he needed to do last weekend. Lu Qi hadn’t assigned him any more specific tasks, and it wasn’t appropriate for him to interfere. Even slacking off wasn’t that enjoyable… He had already seen most of the new anime, manga, and web novels he was interested in. He could even go to the authors and guide them on how the plot should develop.
“It’s a good thing I have some integrity. Otherwise, if I were to write Lord of the Mysteries or My House of Horrors now, wouldn’t that be… Forget it. I don’t remember the details of the main text clearly. It’s useless.”
He closed the web browser, yawned with some melancholy, and then opened the Atom editor to write his own code.
After a night of thinking, he had come up with a good way to ensure he wouldn’t be followed by the female assassins—write an app himself, find an opportunity to put it on their phones, and monitor their geographical location in real time. When the distance between them and himself was less than one kilometer, it would trigger an alarm, and the alarm information would be secretly sent to his own phone.
But because he hadn’t slept well last night, he really didn’t have much energy today. He was in front of the computer, but he couldn’t quite write the code. He could only set up a framework for now and slack off a bit…
Suddenly, his phone vibrated. He glanced at the caller ID. It was Pei Ningle.
Wang Heng picked up his phone and walked quickly to the empty break room. In just these ten-odd meters, he had already made up his mind.
When the call connected, they both said at almost the same time:
“I have something to tell you!”
“I have something to tell you…”
After a two-second pause, Pei Ningle asked first, “What’s up?”
Wang Heng: “No, you go first.”
So the girl cleared her throat and announced in a serious tone, “The melody for that song of mine is finally finished! Actually, it’s not just the composition. I’ve also thought a lot about the arrangement. As soon as I fill in the lyrics, I can start production!”
Wang Heng: “Oh, congratulations.”
Pei Ningle asked with a smile, “Then what about you? What did you have to tell me?”
Wang Heng swallowed and prepared himself mentally.
Then he said in the calmest tone possible, “I’m in a relationship.”
Pei Ningle: “…What?”
Wang Heng: “I said, I have a girlfriend.”
Pei Ningle: “…”
The other end of the line fell silent.
Wang Heng’s feelings at this moment were quite complicated, but he felt that if he could nip the danger in the bud, and extinguish the fire when it was still a small flame, that would undoubtedly be the best.
After a long few seconds of silence, the girl on the other end of the line spoke again, “That’s great. Congratulations! Is it convenient to say where you met your girlfriend? A university classmate?”
Wang Heng: “Not a university classmate. A high school classmate.”
Pei Ningle laughed. “Then can I meet her next time?”
“Of course, of course, no problem.”
Just like that, after hanging up the phone, Wang Heng was still secretly rejoicing. Clearly, Pei Ningle’s level was far below Han Yixuan’s. Under her forced smile, the strained feeling was not difficult for him to hear.
Although this was a bit too cruel… but as long as he didn’t give her a chance to grow and develop, and nipped her thoughts in the bud now, it should be foolproof, right?
**
Pei Ningle sat on the sofa in her apartment, hugging her knees, almost curled up into a ball.
She didn’t get a tissue, so the pants on her knees were soaked with tears. The fact that she hadn’t cried out on the phone just now had already exhausted all the strength of a girl experiencing this for the first time…
“What ‘probing the enemy’!” Pei Ningle slapped the cushion hard and muttered to herself with a sob, “I don’t even know who the enemy is. How can I probe!”
After another long while, she finally calmed down a little and suddenly felt her throat was dry and uncomfortable. She wanted to find some water to drink, but when she looked up, she saw a small hamster climbing in through the window.
Wait, isn’t that Wang Heng’s hamster?
