Rebirth: Slice-of-life Cultivation Chapter 1629 - 889: Countermeasures (Part 2)

Jiang Ning: "Tongtong, tell Dongdong to toss in some extra strawberries."

Mr. Qian offered another compliment.

Jiang Ning let out a low chuckle.

Right then, Xue Chuchu emerged from the living quarters carrying apples. Lacking a tray, she cradled the fruit in her hands, her fingers as delicate as jade. She pinched a pair in her right hand and offered them to Jiang Ning.

"Go ahead, have some," Xue Chuchu murmured softly.

Jiang Ning studied the peeled fruit. They were entirely pedestrian apples, yet an unexpected warmth surged through his chest.

He had been a solitary soul as a boy. From childhood through his youth, he handled every necessity himself—sweeping, laundering his own clothes, and preparing his meals. It was often called self-reliance, but in reality, he had no choice; there was simply no one there to look after him.

Back then, it would be a lie to say he felt no envy for the peers protected by their parents.

As he matured, Jiang Ning often felt a lingering emptiness within his spirit that haunted him for many years.

But since arriving at the River Dam, that void seemed to be doubly filled, leaving him with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for his current life.

Xue Yuantong scrutinized the apples, noticing a tiny imperfection on the skin.

She queried pointedly, "Chuchu, is this one rotting?"

Jiang Ning chimed in, "Chuchu probably snagged a quick bite."

Xue Yuantong snapped back instantly, "I know you're just looking to misunderstand her!"

Jiang Ning looked surprised: "Oh?"

Xue Yuantong let out a playful laugh: "Go on, guess why!"

Xue Chuchu remained silent.

However, Jiang Ning's Divine Sense had already revealed the truth. The nick in the fruit was a deliberate work of Chuchu's blade. After peeling them in the kitchen, she had sampled a sliver from each to determine the sweetest one, saving the best for them both.

A smile tugged at Jiang Ning's lips as he swapped his apple for the one in Chuchu’s hand.

...

As he finished the fruit, Jiang Ning told Tongtong he was heading out of the River Dam tomorrow, asking if she could air out his quilt while he was gone.

The trip was arranged with Guo Ran, who had already secured the travel tickets.

Tongtong replied with a pout, "I’m not doing it. From now on, you can just sleep in your stinky little nest."

Her banter trailed off, replaced by sudden panic. "Wait, my mom told me to wash her coat today—I totally forgot! What am I going to do?!"

Jiang Ning: "That’s simple, just tell her you already finished it."

Xue Yuantong shook her head vigorously: "My mom is a master chef; she’ll smell a lie in an instant!"

Jiang Ning: "Toss the jacket aside, then ask her where her clothes went. Pretend you searched the entire house and couldn't locate them."

Xue Yuantong: "No way, those clothes are expensive!"

Jiang Ning: "Well then, smash the TV; that should distract her enough to forget about the laundry..."

Xue Chuchu admired Jiang Ning’s inventive mind.

Xue Yuantong puffed out her cheeks in frustration, huffing, "You and your useless ideas! Chuchu, give me something better!"

She turned to the more grounded and logical Chuchu.

Xue Chuchu didn't let her down. After a moment of contemplation, she whispered, "Do we have cooking oil in the house?"

Xue Yuantong blinked, puzzled: "Yes, plenty—rapeseed, lard, sesame. Why would oil matter for cleaning clothes?"

This was clearly outside her realm of understanding.

Xue Chuchu murmured, "Just coat your ears with a bit of oil. When Auntie gets home and goes to grab them, she'll just slide right off."

Xue Yuantong stared at her, utterly stunned: "Chuchu, you’ve become scary!"

...

Regardless of Chuchu's transformation, the odds of Tongtong facing Aunt Gu's wrath remained exceptionally high.

Aunt Gu made her arrival at the River Dam Bungalow.

Jiang Ning and Xue Chuchu retreated to their home to avoid the fallout, promising to reconnect once the lecture concluded.

The ceiling lamp cast a warm amber glow, bathing the room in comfort. Xue Chuchu studied quietly, a workbook of errors open before her, occasionally tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

Jiang Ning reclined on the bed, tinkering with his tablet. Live streaming was in its infancy and short-form video wasn't yet ubiquitous, so he stuck to online forums, catching up with old gaming acquaintances from a past life.

Glancing up, he noticed Xue Chuchu was watching him, though she quickly returned to her studies.

In his previous life, in Class 8, the shy Tongtong blossomed as she interacted with him, eventually reclaiming her true, spirited nature.

Chuchu, however, remained unchanged—the same delicate girl in the light blue puffer jacket he had met years ago, as if she maintained a graceful distance from the chaos of the world.

"Xue Chuchu," Jiang Ning called out.

She lifted her head, her gaze clear and questioning: "Yes?"

Jiang Ning set the tablet aside and spoke with gravitas: "With Tongtong gone, you’re the only person who can save me!"

His eyes traced her long, slender fingers, which reminded him of fresh spring shoots—supple and elegant.

Sensing the intensity of his gaze, Xue Chuchu shyly pulled her hands into her sleeves.

Her mind raced: 'He wants to use my hands for something...'

They had shared light physical contact before, like when they traded apples earlier.

'Could it be...' her heart hammered as she thought: 'Tongtong, where are you when I need you? Oh, right, getting scolded.'

She forced her frantic thoughts down, her usually calm voice wavering: "What exactly do you need help with?"

Jiang Ning requested solemnly: "I need you to write my essays; I still have three to finish."

Xue Chuchu: "..."

...

On the eighth day of the New Year, Jiang Ning rose early to grab breakfast at Chuchu’s place before catching his train.

Tongtong was already up, glaring at him with heavy resentment, as if accusing him of having fun without her. Jiang Ning chose to ignore her.

While they ate, Jiang Ning checked his phone and saw Dan Kaiquan boasting about his WeChat Sports steps—over twenty thousand.

It was a new, trending feature. Examining the leaderboard, Jiang Ning saw his own count was around 8,000, while Tongtong’s was an impossible 10,000.

"Hold on," Jiang Ning questioned, "we were together all afternoon yesterday, right? Even taking a nap?"

"Yes."

"Then explain this, Chuchu." He pointed out the disparity on the leaderboard.

Xue Chuchu examined the numbers, bewildered. "That's strange. Given how close you two stayed, how could hers be higher? Is the app broken?"

Jiang Ning smirked: "She must have snuck out behind my back to play."

Tongtong panicked, dropping her spoon to argue: "Hmph! I did no such thing, it's just... it's because..."

She couldn't find her words.

Jiang Ning teased: "Yes? Because of what?"

Xue Yuantong went rigid with silence.

Xue Chuchu thought to herself: 'How cruel, it's clearly because Tongtong has shorter legs and has to take more steps to cover the same ground.'

...

Leaving a pouting Tongtong behind, Jiang Ning finished his meal, retrieved the bag she had packed, and wheeled his titanium-gray electric scooter to the exit.

Nearby, Zhang Ruyun was buffing his father's Dayun motorcycle. "Heading out, Jiang Ning?"

He rode the scooter toward Chuchu’s eastern gate.

Zhang Ruyun kept scrubbing. He’d had a massive fight with his girlfriend the night before after seeing her in a blind date’s car.

The harder he scrubbed, the more miserable he felt; no matter how clean it got, it was still just a motorcycle.

"Can't even reverse!" he grumbled.

Watching Jiang Ning, his pity grew. The kid looked cool on that scooter, but he clearly lacked the world-weary experience of adulthood. Once he hit his age, Jiang Ning would realize that guys didn't rely on scooters, and girls like Chuchu would eventually crave the comfort of luxury cars.

Jiang Ning responded calmly: "Reverse gear isn't that important."

Zhang Ruyun scoffed: "Without a reverse, you’re just waiting for a head-on collision."

Jiang Ning chuckled. He gripped the handlebars, leaned his weight to the right, and twisted the throttle. With a sharp squeal of rubber against pavement, the scooter executed a perfect, elegant 180-degree turn in place, pivoting like a dragon.

Zhang Ruyun stood paralyzed: "Holy crap, he actually spun it in place!"