Forced into a romantic relationship

Today was neither a weekend nor a holiday, so there weren't many people at the amusement park entrance. Instead, a lot of people were gathered near the stone steps feeding the pigeons.

Seeing that Han Zhou's attention was focused on the flock of pigeons, Xiao Wang Leng Qiu suddenly asked, "Do you like pigeons?"

"If it were before, I wouldn't say I liked it or disliked it."

Han Zhou looked away and said with a smile, "I still like it quite a bit."

Sure enough, people are always changing. I can't even remember what animal I liked nine years ago... he thought to himself.

Do pigeons, like other birds, consider the first person they see after hatching as their mother?

Xiao Wang Leng Qiu thought for a moment, then suddenly asked a strange question.

"I think so... Why do you ask that?"

Han Zhou was a little confused, but he soon found out what was going on. He saw that a white dove had somehow landed in Xiao Wang Leng Qiu's hand, and several pigeons were hopping around her. He couldn't help but smile and say, "They seem to like you a lot."

"Were these pigeons just hatched from their eggs?"

Xiao Wang Lengqiu gripped Han Zhou's hand nervously, seemingly wondering if this was the "imprinting behavior" she had seen on television before.

"of course not."

Han Zhou laughed, "They just like you, they don't see you as their mother. Don't worry, they won't peck you."

"really?"

"Ah."

Xiao Wang Lengqiu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at the little creature in his palm, its head tilted and staring at him, his gaze softened. He reached out and carefully stroked the pigeon's head.

“It’s soft,” she said.

Seeing how much she loved it, Han Zhou's expression softened, and he remarked, "You really do like pigeons."

He had already thought it through. If the future was destined to be unchangeable, then there was no need for him to deliberately avoid anything, at least not to hurt a little girl's heart now.

"I only just started to like them myself," Xiao Wang Lengqiu replied softly.

"Yeah."

Han Zhou asked curiously, "Because the pigeon's head is soft?"

"Ah."

Xiao Wang Lengqiu nodded, then shook his head, raised his hand above his head, and let the pigeon fly away from his palm and land back in the flock.

As the pigeons took flight, the wind they created lifted the stray strands of hair on her forehead, which shimmered slightly in the sunlight.

A few feathers drifted down in the wind, just enough to block the slanting sunlight. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the feathers, casting dappled shadows on the girl's face.

"Also because they didn't treat me like their mother."

It felt like we were back on the day we first met, when this girl who rarely smiled started saying things that were hard to understand.

Han Zhou paused for a moment, and in a daze, he seemed to see the girl who always looked at him from afar again. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but he didn't know what to say.

Let's leave what should be said and what shouldn't be said for the future.

At least for now, let this girl enjoy the life she deserves.

But... is this right or wrong?
What if the future is not predetermined?
"What's wrong?"

Seeing Han Zhou staring blankly at her, Xiao Wang Leng Qiu grabbed his hand again and asked in confusion.

"nothing."

Han Zhou snapped out of his thoughts, smiled, and said, "Let's go into the amusement park first. We can feed these pigeons again this afternoon."

"it is good."

The girl nodded obediently.

The two bought tickets at the ticket booth at the entrance and went into the amusement park together.

……

"That's strange, why would I have such a dream..."

The first period in the afternoon was physical education class. In the past, after class, Zhong Yin would usually play table tennis with his classmates, but today he was not in the mood. As soon as class ended, he found a step and sat down, absentmindedly throwing stones in front of him.

This wasn't the first time she'd dreamt of Sun Wukong, but the previous times she'd only dreamt of him at night. Today, however, she dreamt of him even at noon, and even dreamt that he was hugging her, which made her a little concerned.

If that really happens in the future, what kind of relationship will she and Sun Wukong have then?
It's impossible for us to really become a family, right?

Did Mom and Dad adopt that guy along with Xiaoya?

There's nothing to be angry about him calling me "sister," I can't exactly call him "brother," so why did I feel so sad in my dream...?

Zhong Yin had dreamed about Sun Wukong many times, but today's dream was the clearest. In the dream, the guy hugged her tightly, his head resting on her shoulder, and she couldn't see his expression.

It was a cloudy day. The other person wouldn't let go no matter what, and seemed to say a lot of things, but all she could hear was "Sister Yin, I'm sorry."

The dream was a little scary because she couldn't hear anything except those words. It was as if all the sounds of the world had been swallowed up. The sounds of wind, water, and traffic were all dragged into a bottomless dark vortex, as if someone had pressed the mute button and thrown her into a dead silence vacuum.

The atmosphere was so oppressive that she was quickly awakened. Before she was awakened, she remembered that in her dream she had cried uncontrollably and cursed the guy as a bastard, telling him not to cover his ears.

...In short, it was a very strange dream.

There's no such thing as being unable to hear anything just because your ears are covered.

"What you think about during the day, you dream about at night..."

Remembering what Xiaoling said, Zhong Yin dropped the pebble in her hand, braced herself against the edge of the steps, and stared blankly at the sky. "But I don't really miss that guy that much..."

"Zhong Yin, why didn't you play ping-pong with Chen Yi and the others today?"

Just then, a girl walked over from the playground. It was Liu Shiyue, a classmate with whom she had a good relationship. Behind her were two boys wiping their sweat, who seemed to have just finished playing basketball. They were also classmates.

"I'm not in the mood," Zhong Yin said with a hint of melancholy.

Unlike the few friends she would have in the future, Zhong Yin was cheerful and outgoing in high school. She was popular with her classmates and could chat with almost everyone. Girls often secretly asked her for breast enhancement tips, while boys liked to peek at the tips on their own.

"What's wrong? Are you worried?"

Liu Shiyue sat down to Zhong Yin's right with a curious look on her face, very close to him, while the other two boys sat down to Zhong Yin's left, drinking water on their own, seemingly not intending to join the conversation.

"No, I probably didn't sleep well at noon, I'm a little tired," Zhong Yin replied.

She and Liu Shiyue had a good relationship, but not to the point where they could talk about anything. At least, she couldn't tell Liu Shiyue about this dream, not to mention that there were two boys sitting next to her with whom she had only a casual relationship.

"It's good that you're alright. If you're tired, just rest more. I'm tired from playing badminton too. Why don't you chat with me for a bit?"

"Okay, what do you want to talk about?" "How about we talk about the concert on Sunday?"

"I don't follow celebrities."

"It has nothing to do with idol worship. Didn't you say last time that you wanted to set up a stall during the concert to earn some pocket money? I've thought about it carefully and I think it's quite interesting. Why don't you take me with you?"

"But didn't you say you had plans to go to karaoke with your friends on Sunday and couldn't make it?" Zhong Yin asked, puzzled.

"That was before, I have time now."

Liu Shiyue clung to her arm, looking pitiful, and said, "I turned down all my friends' invitations for you, you won't abandon me, will you?"

"I……"

"Hey, move over a bit, I don't have a seat left." During their conversation, Sun Chengshuang, the boy sitting on the far side, suddenly shouted.

"What are you talking about? Your side is so spacious, you could easily lie down there, how could you not fit in a seat?"

Although he said that, Zhang Yang, the boy sitting to Zhong Yin's left, still smiled helplessly, casually moved closer to Zhong Yin, and unscrewed the bottle cap, pretending to drink water to hide his excitement.

“Very good, as planned, Liu Shiyue has blocked the escape route on the right. Sun Chengshuang said that as long as Zhong Yin doesn't resist my approach, it means she's also interested in me…”

Zhang Yang swallowed hard, but before he could even start to move, Zhong Yin immediately stood up and said, "I suddenly feel like playing ping-pong again."

—Okay, Jong Eun isn't interested in me.

Zhang Yang felt embarrassed and hesitated for a moment, but Sun Chengshuang immediately gave him an encouraging look and then secretly winked at Liu Shiyue.

The latter understood and stood up, smiling, "I'll go with you."

"Okay."

Zhong Yin pretended not to notice their subtle actions and replied with a smile.

She wasn't stupid; how could she not see what these guys were up to? This wasn't the first time she'd encountered something similar. What she didn't expect was that even Liu Shiyue would help Zhang Yang act as his wingman.

Are they on good terms?
Although their intentions were obvious, they hadn't openly revealed them yet, so Zhong Yin couldn't say much to their faces. He could only call Liu Shiyue away and tell her not to get involved in this kind of thing, and also tell her that he had found people to set up a stall with.

That guy said those things so solemnly at noon. If she dares to change her mind halfway through, not to mention what he will think, she will definitely be scolded by her parents first.

As she passed the playground, Zhong Yin immediately noticed several subtle gazes directed at her chest. This was also the reason why she only played ping-pong in PE class—at least this sport didn't involve jumping around, otherwise those strange gazes would only increase.

Thinking about this, she suddenly seemed to understand why she found Sun Wukong pleasing to the eye the first time she saw him—

That guy has such a thick skin, yet he never steals glances at her chest. Sometimes when we bump into each other in the living room at night while she's in her pajamas, he doesn't give her any strange looks. Although he might look at her legs a bit more, you can't expect him to look up at the sky, can you?

...Could it be because that guy rarely looks at my chest, unlike other guys, that I've developed feelings for him?
Pshaw, what are you thinking!

Zhong Yin blushed slightly and quickly dismissed the thought, but her curiosity about someone quietly increased.

At the same time, seeing Zhong Yin and the other leave, Sun Chengshuang, who was sitting on the steps, took a big gulp of water and said with exasperation, "Yang-ge, your expression and tone just now were too unnatural. Anyone could tell what you were trying to do. Have you forgotten how I taught you?"

"I haven't forgotten the three essential elements for pursuing girls: boldness, attentiveness, and thick skin."

Zhang Yang lowered his head, looking humble and receptive to instruction. "Sorry, I messed up."

"Oh well, I knew it would turn out like this."

Sun Chengshuang shook her head helplessly, "If Zhong Yin were really that easy to pursue, then it wouldn't be my turn... No, what I mean is, pursuing Zhong Yin is indeed very difficult. Your failure was already within my expectations, so there's no need to be discouraged. I have other plans."

Although he felt that his good brother was being a bit delusional—Zhong Yin clearly had no interest in dating, otherwise all the men pursuing her would have lined up to write self-criticisms in the office long ago—they were brothers after all, and since Yang Ge was so devoted, he couldn't bear to sit idly by. So now he had no choice but to go down this path to the bitter end.

If it works out, great; if not, Yang Ge should probably give up now.

"What plan?" Zhang Yang asked quickly.

"As you can see, I've already 'bribed' Liu Shiyue. She'll find a way to let you set up a stall with Zhong Yin on Sunday."

Sun Chengshuang said seriously, "This is a great opportunity for you two to get to know each other better. I will ask a few brothers from outside the school to help create opportunities. As for whether you can seize them, that's up to you."

"Good brother!" Zhang Yang said, his face full of emotion, "I'll cover all your lunches next week!"

"I want beef rice."

Sun Chengshuang retorted without hesitation, then said with a serious expression, "But as you can see, Zhong Yin has become wary of you, so you two need to get to know each other better before Sunday."

Zhang Yang looked nervous: "What should I do?"

"Come here."

"Do...do we really have to do this?"

Half a minute later, Zhang Yang looked at his friend with a blank expression and hesitated, "What if we get found out?"

“Repeat what I taught you!” Sun Chengshuang suddenly shouted.

Zhang Yang was startled and quickly replied, "Bold, meticulous, and thick-skinned..."

"That's right, now is the time to be bold yet careful."

Sun Chengshuang smiled slightly, "Don't worry, I already took action when I came to school at noon. It won't be discovered. Just do as I say after school. Remember, don't make a mistake this time."

"I...I'll try my best," Zhang Yang said guiltily.

"Yes for sure!"

Yes! Definitely!

Seeing her friend's resolute attitude, Sun Chengshuang nodded in satisfaction and stroked her chin as she analyzed, "If all goes well, you can ask Zhong Yin to find a place to chat today... In short, it still comes down to this: be bold, careful, and thick-skinned, understand?"

"I understand. So, where should I ask her to go? How about the library?"

This bookworm has really gone stupid from reading too much. The library needs to be quiet. How are you supposed to chat there? Read lips?
Sun Chengshuang had a headache and said with a slightly serious expression, "No, you have a skin disease. Going to the library would be very dangerous for you. We need to find another place."

"Why is going to the library such a dangerous place...?"

"Don't ask, I'm doing this for your own good."

"All right……"

"Oh, right, there's one last thing I need to tell you," Sun Chengshuang said solemnly.

"what's up?"

He smiled mysteriously: "If you cause trouble, don't tell anyone about your master."

……

That afternoon, Zhong Yin's angry roar echoed through the school's bicycle shed.

"Damn it, which bastard let the air out of my tires!" (End of Chapter)