Chapter 26 : Turns Out I Have More Than One Fangirl
Chapter 26 : Turns Out I Have More Than One Fangirl
Turns Out I Have More Than One Fangirl
5:55 a.m. the next day.
Chu Tianxing had packed his travel gear the night before and made all his preparations. He'd even handed over his novel updates to Flower of the Eastern Depot and given her a whopping 30,000-word stockpile. Now, with his backpack slung over his shoulders, he arrived at the residential complex entrance a full five minutes early.
The moment he stepped through the main gate, he spotted Qin Ling walking toward him from the opposite direction.
She was also carrying a backpack and dressed in a short-sleeved T-shirt and tennis skirt. The whole outfit was pristine white, perfectly complementing her fair, porcelain-like skin, making her look like a pure, translucent little flower in full bloom.
Her long, slender legs were particularly eye-catching, and Chu Tianxing couldn't help but steal a couple extra glances.
Noticing his appreciative stare, Qin Ling puffed out her chest with obvious pride and grinned. "Well, well, what a rare sight! You actually came out early to wait for me today. Should I be flattered?"
Chu Tianxing replied with mock seriousness, "Being flattered is fine, but whatever you do, don't let it go to your head."
"In your dreams!"
Qin Ling shot him a playful glare, then looked him up and down with her hand propping up her chin. "I keep feeling like you've gotten taller recently... and more built too."
"You've got a good eye for detail," Chu Tianxing said approvingly. "Like I told you before, I found Thunder God Yu Jiang's Creation Pill. One golden pill and I was completely reborn. My fate is my own to decide, not Heaven's—"
"Stop, stop, stop!"
Qin Ling made a timeout gesture with her hands. "Tianxing, are you still half-asleep? Why are you still dreaming? Guys can keep growing until their early twenties. If you're still getting taller, it just means you haven't finished developing yet. Alright, enough nonsense. Let's hurry up and get to school."
Chu Tianxing just smiled and walked shoulder-to-shoulder with her toward the school.
By the time the two of them arrived at the school after a leisurely walk, quite a few of their classmates had already gathered around a large bus parked at the main gate.
When he examined the group, the majority were unknown to him. He could identify only a small number of familiar individuals.
"Guess that's what you get in an alternate timeline. The fact that my childhood friend Qin Ling is still with me is nothing short of a miracle..."
While he was lost in thought, he suddenly spotted Xiao Hu chatting with his usual crew of followers.
Chu Tianxing had a soft spot for his number-one fan, so he casually drifted closer to listen in while pretending to mind his own business.
Xiao Hu had quite the voice on him, so Chu Tianxing didn't need to get too close or strain his ears to hear every word crystal clear.
"Did you guys read that Legend of the Condor Heroes I recommended a few days ago?"
"Brother Hu, I've been swamped lately..."
"No time? You think you're busier than me? I spend at least four hours a day on martial arts training, plus piano lessons, calligraphy practice, basketball... I'm packed to the gills, but I still squeeze in time every day to read and enrich myself. You sit around doing jack shit all day and claim you don't have time? Let's cut the crap. If I recommend a novel to you, you damn well better read it. Otherwise, we won't have anything to talk about, and we won't even be bros anymore!"
"I read it! Even got VIP membership yesterday and subscribed to the official version."
"Brother Hu, I read that Legend of the Condor Heroes you recommended too. Your taste is spot-on; that novel is absolutely killer. I subscribed to every single chapter the moment it went premium!"
Xiao Hu nodded with satisfaction and turned to scold the one slacker. "Li Xiaofei, you heard them. All the bros read it and even subscribed. Now you're the only one who hasn't. Figure it out."
Xiao Hu gave Li Xiaofei's shoulder a hearty slap. "Now that's what I call seeing the light! That's my bro!"
Listening to this exchange, Chu Tianxing couldn't help but feel touched. "What an adorable hardcore fan! Not only does he create ten accounts to fully subscribe himself, but he's actively promoting my work... A reader like this is worth treasuring."
As he thought this, his internal label for them changed. They were no longer "Xiao Hu and his lackeys," but "Xiao Hu and his little buddies."
Just then, one of Xiao Hu's buddies noticed Chu Tianxing nearby. He glanced around and saw that Qin Ling was chatting with some girls and wasn't by Chu Tianxing's side, so he quietly tugged on Xiao Hu's sleeve.
"Brother Hu, Chu Tianxing's over there. Qin Ling isn't with him. It's a good opportunity!"
Xiao Hu perked up. He had been planning to use this chance to go over and warn Chu Tianxing to be less clingy with Qin Ling during the trip.
But the moment he glanced in Chu Tianxing's direction, he found the guy staring back at him with this weird expression. When their eyes met, the corners of Chu Tianxing's mouth even curled up into a smile. It was a smile as warm and gentle as if he were looking at a close family member...
Recalling their previous encounter at the Martial Arts Association and all of Chu Tianxing's bizarre reactions, Xiao Hu felt a chill run down his spine. His scalp prickled with unease, and he quickly averted his gaze.
He turned back to his buddies and said in a low voice, "Something's not right with Chu Tianxing mentally... He's been unable to practice martial arts since childhood; his martial path is basically dead. His only hope was academics, but that didn't pan out well either. His college entrance exam scores didn't even reach the first-tier cutoff.”
"After all these setbacks, I suspect he's cracking under the pressure and starting to lose it mentally. The way he is now, we shouldn't keep picking on him. I'm afraid he will jump into the sea to commit suicide during the trip."
His buddies thought about it and realized he had a point.
Chu Tianxing fancied himself a "poet," and weren't poets the most famous for having hearts of glass? Throughout history, both at home and abroad, poets made up the largest number of literary figures who committed suicide...
Moving on from that topic, Xiao Hu went back to chatting about the novel with his little buddies.
Chu Tianxing also stopped paying attention to his most adorable hardcore fan.
After all, constantly staring at a six-foot-tall guy with a face full of muscle would look pretty weird and might make people question his preferences.
So after listening for a bit, Chu Tianxing casually drifted away and found himself by the flower beds near the school entrance, quietly counting petals.
He was enjoying a moment of solitude, trying to contain his overwhelming charisma, when a melodious female voice echoed behind him.
"Most beloved are the flowers of early morning,
Swaying gently in the misty hours,
Dewdrops like tears in morning light,
Gleaming bright,
Like stars lost in their dreamy flight..."
Chu Tianxing was completely baffled. He turned around to see a petite girl with a baby face and big eyes, skin like milk, smiling at him.
This girl didn't have Qin Ling's tall, willowy figure, nor was she the same type of bright, sunny beauty. But she was definitely a high-level little beauty in her own right.
Especially with that baby face and those big eyes, which had the cute feeling of an anime heroine.
Yet Chu Tianxing was still completely lost. "Uh... were you talking to me just now?"
The girl looked stunned. "Ah, but I was reciting your poem!! Chu Tianxing, your work is truly wonderful. I am a big fan of yours..."
"What?" Chu Tianxing was dumbstruck. "That... thing you were just reciting, that was a 'poem' written by me?"
The girl looked completely baffled. "It's not?"
Chu Tianxing scrunched up his face. "It doesn't even rhyme. That kind of..."
He was about to say this kind of garbage couldn't possibly be mine, but the words caught in his throat.
Wait a minute, his previous persona was someone who liked writing pretentious poetry and fancied himself a "poet"!
So I actually wrote that garbage?
And she... likes it?
Girl, your taste in poetry is seriously lacking.
He shook his head and turned to the girl who was definitely in his class; he still had no idea who she was. "What you recited just now... uh, it was just something I wrote as a joke. It can't be taken seriously. You should just forget it."
The girl protested, "But it's really well written!"
"No, it's really not." Chu Tianxing shook his head firmly. “It's really not. I refuse to take credit for... that."
The girl pouted. "But it's clearly your masterpiece..."
He was at a loss for words. His head was starting to pound. He scanned the crowd, found Qin Ling, and made a break for it. "I've got things to do. We can chat later... Actually, let's not talk about poetry anymore. At least when it comes to poetry, I'm officially retired..."
But the girl wouldn't give up. She grabbed onto his sleeve. "No way! You need to explain yourself. That poem is my absolute favorite piece of modern poetry! You can't just..."
"What a disaster!" Chu Tianxing groaned internally. "Why did I have to write poetry of all things? And this girl thinks that trash is the best thing ever... What is wrong with modern poetry in this world?!"
As he lamented, he noticed the girl had a death grip on his sleeve. He didn’t want this turned into a tug-of-war game with her.
And so, Chu Tianxing decided to go nuclear.
“You love modern poetry, correct? Forget that garbage, I’ve got something better.”
“I am a cloud in the sky,
Now and then, my shadow crosses the heart of you,
You need not be surprised,
Much less rejoice,
For I am fleeting.
You and I meet on the dark sea of the night,
You on your way, I on mine.
Remember if you will,
Or, better still,
Forget the light we exchanged in that passing encounter."
When he finished reciting this poem, the girl was completely stunned. Her eyes went wide, her lips moved soundlessly as she desperately tried to memorize every beautiful word of the poem Chu Tianxing had just shared.
Chu Tianxing sighed softly, gently prying away the girl's fingers, which had unconsciously loosened their grip. He murmured quietly,
"I bloom amidst slaughter, like a flower at dawn... My dear classmate, I am a flower that withers in an instant, a cloud that appears and vanishes in a moment... Better you forget the light we exchanged in this passing encounter."
Taking advantage of the girl's dazed state, Chu Tianxing quickly escaped to find Qin Ling.
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