novelraw Chapter 76
Chapter 76
Chapter 76
Creak. Creak.
While Yan Huan grunted through his final lat pulldown, Tong Yingying sat behind him, chin in hand, and yawned.
He finished the set and turned. She lifted her eyes, unimpressed.
"That's it?"
"..."
Yan Huan kept smiling, but a vein throbbed under the thin film of sweat on his forehead.
"Tong Yingying, I can't say I enjoy being mocked by a chain-smoking, drink-til-dawn type like you."
Tong Yingying didn't even blink. A silver lighter danced between her fingers, a brief tongue of flame licking out before it vanished.
"I walk a different road, sure, but I know training. Every set should go to failure. You clearly had more in the tank."
Yan Huan hesitated, stepping back to her. "Seriously? You actually know this stuff?"
She shot him a languid glance and declared, "Hmph, I'll be your coach. We'll see results soon enough."
"...Mm."
Still doubtful, Yan Huan explained, "Thing is, my body's weird. If I push to failure, tomorrow hurts—bad."
Blame that accursed debuff.
Right now, Bare Skin was active, letting him over-perform. The price: tomorrow's explosion of pain the moment he put on clothes. So he chose patience over peak efficiency.
"Oh~"
Tong Yingying studied the faint swell of muscle across his back, then reached out and poked it. He winced.
Her brows rose. "Sensitive and pain-prone?"
"...Not exactly."
Instead of pulling back, she smiled a smile he couldn't read and crossed one long leg over the other. Today she'd swapped her usual jeans for a midriff-baring gym set. The motion bared shapely calves and pale ankles.
Yan Huan stared a second too long.
She noticed. "So, Yan Huan... didn't know you were into legs."
"Huh?"
He met her gaze and found amusement glinting in her sleepy eyes.
"Little pervert."
"..."
He blinked. "Your legs are just really well-proportioned. You actually train?"
He meant it. Beneath the loose jeans she always wore, her body was lean and sculpted—no couch-potato softness anywhere. Yet the way she'd just angled her leg felt... dangerously inviting.
Admiring the legs? True. Liking them? Also true.
"Oh? You think so?"
She sounded skeptical, but the same image that had tempted him now flooded his mind with horror reels: Tong Yingjing brandishing a stun baton, docking his pay, flailing drunk on her bed, cigarette dangling as she karate-chopped his skull.
"Absolutely, Tong Yingying—more real than pearls!"
He shivered, forced a grin, and stood. "Rest's over. Next set."
Tong Yingying folded her arms, tucked her leg back, the spark in her eyes dimming to its usual languor.
"Go on, then. I'm hitting the restroom."
"Roger that, Tong Yingying."
Hands in pockets, she strolled toward the far end of the VIP zone. Yan Huan sat back at the machine and gripped the bar.
Creak.
The sound of the pulldown shuttle wove through his thoughts. Tong Yingying's legs had crowded out the usual ache, leaving only confusion.
I didn't pick that damned Procreation buff on Sunday!
Why did I lose control around Spencer—and now Tong Yingying?
"Meow-chan."
"Meow?"
The translucent cat materialized on the steel frame, tilting her head.
A bead of sweat slid down Yan Huan's jaw. "Did you secretly slot some fragment that boosts... reproductive urges?"
"Meow?"
Meow-chan's eyes went round, ears twitching. She hopped to his shoulder. "Why would you think that?"
He recounted his doubts. The cat stared at him in flat disbelief.
"Yan Huan, how old are you again? Did overwork in your last life leave you... impaired? Don't pin your hormones on me, meow!"
"Besides, you felt something for Spencer this morning, and a flicker for Ye Shiyu before she scared it off—so why blame me only when Tong Yingying shows up?"
Yan Huan's reps slowed; he sighed. "Maybe because she's... Tong Yingying. Makes me wonder if my XP system is corrupted."
"I'd call it 'familiar-person embarrassment.' Besides, how well do you really know her, meow?"
Her tail brushed his Adam's apple. He swallowed.
Memories surfaced—bits of conversation he'd overheard between Tong Yingying and the gym owner. There were things she'd never said, things he'd never asked.
"...Fair point, Meow-chan."
Creak.
He resumed lifting.
Behind him, the VIP door beeped open. Two voices, fragrant with perfume, floated in.
"Seriously, Chi Yuan? He actually said that?"
"Of course. That drunk old goat thinks with his—well—never mind. I ought to yank his tongue out and flush it."
Bold talk. Yan Huan glanced over his shoulder. Two athletic women in workout gear were setting down bags. Their figures were striking, but what caught his eye were matching black wing tattoos across their backs.
Definitely locals—same accent as Tong Yingying.
As he stared, one woman's gaze snapped to his. The smile she'd worn while listening vanished.
Her eyes lit up; she suddenly tapped the friend beside her.
"Hey, hey, Chi Yuan—look."
"Meh?"
The two mature women turned toward Yan Huan and, in perfect sync, broke into knowing smiles.
......
That grin sent a chill down his spine.
He pretended not to notice and reached for the next machine.
But the sound of footsteps behind him made his heart lurch.
"Handsome kid—new face around here?"
"Yeah, you live nearby?"
......
After a beat of silence, Yan Huan lowered the weight stack, turned, and smiled. "Can I help you?"
Both women hesitated, taken aback by the smile.
Then one of them—cheeks faintly red—nudged the still-dazed Chi Yuan.
"A-hem..."
Chi Yuan snapped out of it, stepped closer, and looked Yan Huan over.
"Working back today, handsome? You're already this hot—who are you trying to kill?"
He didn't answer. Instead, he studied the black-wing tattoo on her arm; the design looked oddly familiar.
He'd seen that same mark... in Tong Yingying's bedroom.
"No need to sneak peeks," Chi Yuan teased, eyelashes fluttering. "Tell big sis what you like and I'll let you take a closer look."
Yan Huan snapped back to the moment, meeting her playful gaze. This time there was none of the flirtatious warmth he'd shown Tong Yingying—only the sense that she'd crossed a line.
He set the heavy plates down; the clang made Chi Yuan jump.
She blinked; Yan Huan's polite smile didn't waver. "Ladies, what can I do for you?"
Before Chi Yuan could speak, Bailu stepped forward with a card.
"Little brother, interested in a part-time job at our place?"
"A job?"
He didn't take the card, but he caught the logo of a famous South-District nightclub.
Bailu's eyes roamed over his face and torso as she tapped her chin.
"You know how much a looker like you could earn in one night?"
"Oh? How much?"
Yan Huan's mild surprise was matched by Chi Yuan's.
Because the reply hadn't come from him.
Bailu, transfixed by his face, assumed he was hooked. Excited, she wet her lips.
"Twenty-five hundred a night—no, more. You're willing to put in the effort? Four thousand minimum."
"Wow, that much? What kind of effort?"
"My, so innocent. Don't worry—big sis loves blank slates. Let us teach you tonight, okay?"
"Bailu!! Bailu!!"
Chi Yuan's voice cracked—half panic, half warning. The sharp hiss yanked Bailu from her daydream.
She blinked, turned, and saw Chi Yuan trembling, head bowed, shoulders shaking.
A pale hand rested on Chi Yuan's right shoulder—someone had already seized control.
Bailu's brain blue-screened. Before she could move, an iron grip clamped onto her own left shoulder.
A shiver ran through her. She turned slowly and met Tong Yingying's dead-eyed smile.
"Eep!!"
"To-Ton-Tong..."
Bailu's face went paper-white, cold sweat beading. Just as she tried to stammer a greeting, Tong Yingying's terrifying grin flattened into a drill-sergeant mask.
"Pain? Good. Pain means you're learning."
Both hands dug in; agony shot from their shoulders like venom. The two women collapsed.
"Sss!!"
"Uuuh..."
They rubbed their aching shoulders, tearfully watching Tong Yingying step past them toward Yan Huan.
He pointed at the pair. "Tong sis, friends of yours?"
Chi Yuan and Bailu nodded miserably.
Tong Yingying's glare snapped to them.
"No."
They hastily shook their heads instead.
"So you know them?"
Another nod.
Tong Yingying lit a cigarette. "Don't know them."
They shook their heads again, as if strangers.
Yan Huan opened his mouth; Tong Yingying cut him off, voice earnest.
"This world's full of scoundrels. Yan Huan, don't let your guard down just because they're women."
Behind her, the two women rolled their eyes and mouthed in perfect sync:
"So many scoundrels~"
"Don't let your guard down just because they're women~"
Tong Yingying paused mid-light, then barked over her shoulder.
"Get lost. Don't come back."
"Yessir, Tong—"
Chi Yuan scrambled up; Bailu pinched her before she could finish, making her yelp.
"Ow! That hurts!"
"Move, move!"
Hands over their faces, Bailu dragged Chi Yuan toward the exit. Chi Yuan snatched her water bottle and jacket, shot Yan Huan a wink, and the two bolted through the glass doors.
Yan Huan watched them vanish, then turned skeptical eyes on Tong Yingying.
"Tong sis, they definitely know you."
She lit the cigarette and smiled thinly. "Irrelevant."
"...It reeks, Tong sis. Can you not smoke in here?"
Tong Yingying flicked ash, arms crossed. "If I hadn't shown up, those two would've eaten you alive. One cigarette as thanks isn't much. This gym's mine, I'm letting you use a private VIP room—don't bite the hand that feeds you."
"..."
Pretty sure the real scoundrel is standing right here, Yan Huan thought, returning to his set.
"You're not bad-mouthing your beloved boss, are you, Yan Huan?"
"Of course not. Loyal to the end, Tong sis!"
"Hmph."
Before he could grip the bar, her icy fingers clamped onto his lats. Yan Huan's handsome face twisted in pain.
"Ow-ow-ow! Tong sis!"
"Hurts? Good."
Her dead eyes glinted, cheeks faintly flushed.
Outside the VIP lounge, Chi Yuan and Bailu crouched behind the glass, clutching their belongings.
Watching Tong Yingying's hand roam freely over Yan Huan's pale back, Chi Yuan spat out her gum.
"Damn—Tong, the eternal ice-queen, is secretly feasting while ditching us sisters?"
Bai Lu wiped sweat from her brow, teeth clenched.
"Exactly. 'I've gone straight,' she says—turns out she's just too busy enjoying herself."
Chi Yuan unwrapped another stick of gum, eyes still on the pair inside.
"But from what I see, Sis Tong and that guy aren't together—no, I don't even think they're flirting."
Bailu nodded vigorously, grinning.
"Obviously. Sis Tong's temper is awful and her personality's worse, and she's probably way older than him too. Would he have to be blind to fall for her?"
"Even if he did, it'd be for her money."
"Or maybe he's just playing around."
"Hey, I've got an idea."
"Hey, I've got an idea."
They spoke in unison, eyes lighting up, then looked at each other.
"You go first."
"How about we help Sis Tong land this kid—"
Chi Yuan's face lit up.
"You're thinking the same thing, right? Sis Tong never sticks her nose into anything; owing us a favor would be pure profit."
"After all, White Mommy groomed her to be the next in line. Of course it's worth it."
"Heh-heh."
"Heh-heh."
The two pretty women seemed to reach a silent agreement, smirking as they glanced once more at Sis Tong, who was busy coaching Yan Huan.
Sis Tong, arms folded, suddenly felt a chill and looked over her shoulder.
Beyond the glass doors, the corridor was empty.
—
In a first-floor girl's bedroom inside a villa in Jinghe District, soft lamplight spilled across a tidy, cozy bed. On it, a black-haired girl in a cotton house-dress pouted at her phone.
It was Bai Yi, the idol of Year 1 Class B at Yuanyue.
Her screen showed Plane open to a chat labeled "Fan A."
No messages had been sent in either direction, yet Bai Yi kept staring at the empty chat.
As the minutes crawled by, her pout rose higher, her cheeks redder.
"Ugh—come on!!"
Unable to stand it any longer, she tossed the phone aside.
She flipped onto her stomach and began drumming her fists and feet against the mattress like a tantrumming toddler.
"I called him at lunch and told him something super important! Why hasn't he replied even once?!"
"Does he want me to spell it out—say... say..."
Her body melted into the sheets; she buried her burning face in the quilt.
"Mmph."
A muffled whimper later, she flopped over again, flopping like a fish on land.
"Argh!! Maybe he didn't hear me at lunch? Even then, Sakuramiya Vice-President should've told him I came to the office!
"What the heck is going on?! I—I have to find out!"
With heroic resolve, she sat up, hair wild, cheeks scarlet, and grabbed her phone.
She tapped out one line:
"U there?"
Then she muttered, cheeks aflame, "That sounds so clingy, and what if he still doesn't answer, or takes forever—"
Delete. She tried again.
"President Yan, good evening. About the MV I mentioned at noon—"
Ahhh!
Way too formal!
She buried her head in the blanket again, deleted everything, and drummed her feet on the bed like drumsticks, brain overheating.
Finally, puffing out her cheeks, she whispered,
"And I'm always texting first—it makes me look way too eager...
"But... but I really want to know what he thinks!"
"Ugh, seriously."