Chapter 24: 024 Pretty Cute
“Pei Ningle.”
Wang Heng silently recited this name, feeling as if a trace of cold air was slowly rising from behind his back.
Of course, among those four girls, Pei Ningle was probably the one with the least scheming. Even so, her appearance still heralded some unavoidable dangerous fate, foreshadowing the possibility of an Asura Field. And that was what terrified Wang Heng the most.
And Pei Ningle? Almost at the same moment she discovered the Hamster, she also noticed Wang Heng striding toward them. Not only that, this sharp-eared and keen-eyed young girl also noticed the shape of his silently mouthed words, which seemed to be… her own name?
Pei Ningle first asked curiously, “Is this your Hamster?”
Wang Heng had a feeling that was hard to put into words.
After hesitating for two seconds, he sighed and said, “If you like it, I can give it to you.”
“No no no, how could I…” The young girl couldn’t help but ask again, “By the way, do you know me?”
Wang Heng quickly shook his head: “I don’t know you, of course I don’t.”
“But you just said my name, I saw your mouth shape and it looked like…”
“No, you got it wrong. What’s your name?”
“Pei Ningle.”
“What I meant was…” Wang Heng said seriously, “Pretty cute.”
The young girl was stunned for a moment before realizing that if the other person had silently mouthed ‘pretty cute’ those three words, it did look a lot like silently mouthing ‘Pei Ningle’. Although there seemed to be a slight subtle difference, upon closer thought, that tiny difference really made it hard to tell…
Wang Heng secretly complained to himself—this girl was exactly the same as in his impression. When talking with others, she often got hung up on some inexplicable details, her train of thought always differing from that of a normal person. And in daily life, she would occasionally space out, as if she always carried an aura of being scatterbrained. But on the other hand, this girl’s music talent was genuinely impressive; it was just a pity that she started playing music a bit late.
If she had revealed her talent back in junior high and then attended a professional Music Academy for further study, Pei Ningle’s later path in music wouldn’t have been so bumpy…
Suddenly, the young girl smiled at him: “Oh right, when you said ‘pretty cute’ just now, were you complimenting me?”
Complimenting a girl was one of the shortcuts to gaining favor.
Wang Heng knew this very well, so he decisively shook his head: “No, I was talking about the Hamster.”
Pei Ningle didn’t mind and squatted down, cupping the Hamster with both hands. Seeing the little guy obediently sitting in her palm, her big eyes grew even brighter.
She held the little Hamster, stood up, and reluctantly handed it back to Wang Heng.
Wang Heng: “If you really like it, I really don’t mind giving it to you.”
Pei Ningle waved: “No no, I can’t even earn a living for myself, let alone take care of a Hamster.”
Can’t even earn a living for herself?
Wang Heng keenly noticed this detail and realized the other party might need some support. But thinking it over, since the Time-Space Administrator hadn’t reminded him, it meant Pei Ningle’s current difficulties were probably temporary and would improve soon, right?
So Wang Heng remained silent.
But the young girl spoke again: “What’s its name?”
Wang Heng: “Administrator.”
“What?”
“It is the chosen of the Rodentia order, king of the nutshell space, guardian of the Teeth Grinding Stone, mouth-strong support, Causality chewer, and most importantly—the multidimensional Plane Time-Space Administrator. In summary, abbreviated as Administrator.”
The more seriously Wang Heng spoke, the more Pei Ningle couldn’t stop laughing.
“Hahaha…” The young girl clapped and laughed heartily, “You’re such a funny person! Right, what’s your name?”
Pei Ningle, who usually lacked social awareness, actually asked for someone else’s name. This phenomenon immediately put Wang Heng on alert. He suddenly realized that his earlier words, half grumbling and half joke, seemed to have hit this girl’s wavelength?
Risk quietly increased a tiny bit.
Wang Heng looked down and saw the Hamster in his palm glaring at him, as if saying: If you deliberately act different from a normal boy, that would be even worse.
He said softly: “Wang Heng.”
“The ‘Heng’ as in scar?”
“That’s the front nasal sound; mine is the back nasal sound, and besides, which parents would give their kid such an inauspicious name… Stop guessing, it’s the ‘Heng’ as in balance.”
“You’re Wang Heng, I’m Pei Ningle; sounds like we have quite some fate.”
Wang Heng was utterly speechless: “What kind of logic is that?”
Pei Ningle rubbed her hands and smiled, finally revealing her real intention: “Anyway, I’m from out of town, and I just got off the train today and got lost. I only have two bucks left in my pocket, but I’m really hungry, so…”
“You want me to treat you to a meal?”
The young girl nodded quickly, not holding back at all.
Wang Heng: “We just met a few minutes ago.”
The young girl kept nodding, clearly having zero social awareness.
Wang Heng sighed deeply: “Alright, what do you want to eat?”
Pei Ningle immediately raised her hand: “Hot Pot!”
He said in astonishment: “Don’t you think your appetite is a bit too big?”
Perhaps because he hadn’t experienced this girl’s style for a while, Wang Heng actually felt a bit unaccustomed. Of course, more crucially, after investing in Bitcoin and paying tuition fee and accommodation fee, he only had about 5,000 left on his bank card. A hot pot meal would cost at least one or two hundred, so he couldn’t be that luxurious.
Pei Ningle touched the back of her neck sheepishly: “I think it’s a bit excessive too… but you asked what I wanted to eat. Since I’m in Rongdu, of course I want to try hot pot!”
Wang Heng calmed down and asked: “So within a twenty-buck budget, what do you want to eat?”
“Uh… McDonald’s okay? I passed by one earlier and was tempted by the fried chicken smell inside. Sorry sorry, I know this still exceeds the budget a bit; otherwise, let me think again?”
“Forget it, this it is.”
Wang Heng didn’t want to tangle with her anymore. And compared to other restaurants, the best thing about McDonald’s was that getting the food and eating should both be quick, allowing him to end this unexpected encounter sooner.
“Heehee, thanks a lot!” The young girl looked up, her smile brighter than the sunset.
In the memory of the previous cycle, before the final tragedy occurred, Wang Heng had of course shared joyful times with them. He remembered that getting along with Pei Ningle was always so pure. Even in utter silence around them, it felt like it was accompanied by a shepherd boy’s flute, leisurely and joyful. Just like the young girl’s charming smile at this moment—slightly willful, yet carrying a wonderful healing feeling.
But this feeling was far from enough to shake Wang Heng’s determination.
He silently looked away and silently recited three words—”TMD”.
Pei Ningle noticed this detail again and couldn’t help asking: “What did you just say?”
“Oh, I said… pretty cute.”
“This time it’s definitely complimenting me, right?”
“Mm.”
“Thanks!”
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