Chapter Twenty-Two: Lu Mingfei's Metamorphosis

Weekend, early morning.

Arriving at the agreed meeting spot, the tall and upright young man smiled toward the empty air not far off, as if he had just finished chatting with someone he was close to. There was a brightness to his mood, as though he carried the joy of a pleasant conversation.

Could it be me?

Su Xiaoqiang gazed at the simple chat log on her phone, an unspoken emotion quietly stirring within her heart. She didn’t believe she could ever fall for this hapless boy, but if something as ordinary as a chat could bring him so much happiness, then she would feel just as proud and delighted.

There really isn’t anyone else, is there?

A ripple of emotion spread through the girl’s heart. She straightened her already prominent chest, her eyes—brightened by foundation—shining with confidence as she walked purposefully toward the boy.

Though she was only out to help a friend buy clothes, she had dressed with care this morning. The proud little goddess must make her entrance beautiful and radiant, outshining everyone else, blooming brilliantly—this was her ticket of pride.

"Hey, you’re here."

Lu Mingfei turned to look at the exquisitely dressed little goddess, his eyes lighting up instantly. He thought to himself: This outfit is really well put together—so fashionable. If all goes well, I should be able to get a nice new outfit myself today.

Once we're done shopping, I’ll show it off to Funning. Hopefully Su Xiaoqiang’s taste will live up to all the praise I’ve given her to Funning.

Otherwise, she’ll laugh at me.

"Yeah," Su Xiaoqiang nodded and said, "I didn’t expect you to come so early. I never realized you were this kind of person—how unusual."

"Is that so? I just couldn’t keep calm, thinking someone was looking forward to seeing me," Lu Mingfei replied, casting his gaze off into the distance with a sincere, heartfelt smile.

"Is... is that so?" Su Xiaoqiang’s heart began to race. Naturally, she assumed she was the one he was waiting for. In that moment, her mood soared—the feeling of being anticipated affirmed her pride and filled her with satisfaction.

She quietly observed the boy’s profile—clean, neat, unadorned. Even so, he was a handsome, minimalist youth. It was hard to imagine just how dazzling he might become after changing into new clothes and a new style.

Was he always this good-looking?

Su Xiaoqiang subconsciously questioned herself, sifting through her memories of Lu Mingfei. It seemed he’d always been like this, but his aura of misfortune was so strong, and his presence so slight, that it simply went unnoticed.

If this guy ever went to Japan, maybe he’d have the makings of Tokyo’s top host.

She couldn’t help but continue imagining.

"Let’s go. I’m at your disposal today."

"Then you’d better keep up, hmph!"

Lu Mingfei followed Su Xiaoqiang into the mall, stepping into a transformation all his own. Just as they left, a girl in a white dress with an artistic air arrived at the same spot and continued to wait.

...

Inside the mall, the little goddess meticulously scrutinized all sorts of clothes. One moment she’d inspect an outfit, the next she’d glance intently at Lu Mingfei, as if picturing how each garment would look on him.

Her thoughts were so earnest that she’d blush from time to time, and occasionally her expression would turn troubled and conflicted—it was truly impossible to guess what she was thinking.

Lu Mingfei didn’t want to overthink it. Instead, he continued the morning’s conversation with Funning in his heart. "Funning, I heard you had a nightmare?"

"I wouldn’t call it a nightmare exactly... it’s hard to say."

"What happened?"

"I dreamed you turned into a black dragon, long and shaped like a vernier caliper, dancing in front of me with the most bewitching moves."

Funning’s voice was troubled as she continued, "Why would I dream something like that? I don’t get it myself. I felt a bit scared in the dream, so I instinctively looked to Neuvillette beside me—only to see he’d turned into a blue vernier caliper, dancing behind you. It was so bizarre."

"..."

Lu Mingfei fell silent, genuinely at a loss for how to comment on Funning’s dream. He couldn’t even imagine what a dragon shaped like a vernier caliper would look like.

That description is just too abstract.

"Lu Mingfei, come try this one on!"

"I’ll go change first, let’s talk later."

"Okay."

...

Chen Wenwen, on a casual date with Zhao Menghua, wandered through the mall. As they chatted and strolled, they found themselves in the clothing section.

"You really think Lu Mingfei’s like a different person lately? Is it that obvious?" Zhao Menghua’s tone was curious yet disdainful.

He didn’t care about a small fry like Lu Mingfei. Everyone at school knew that among Chen Wenwen’s many suitors, he was the most promising—and Lu Mingfei the least. So he rarely paid attention to the hopeless boy, instead courting Chen Wenwen at his own pace.

"It’s pretty obvious. I think he probably realized he had no chance and just gave up. That’s normal for him," Chen Wenwen said, recalling her impression of Lu Mingfei.

"I must be seeing things from waking up too fast."

"What’s wrong?"

"Over there..." Zhao Menghua raised a trembling hand, pointing to where his gaze was fixed. "I can’t be seeing this wrong, can I? Lu Mingfei is actually on a date with Su Xiaoqiang? God, am I hallucinating? Is it because I didn’t sleep well last night? No, something’s really off here!"

"Huh?" Chen Wenwen followed his finger and saw Lu Mingfei in a new outfit, with Su Xiaoqiang standing before him, making comments and suggestions. Her mind went blank.

What’s going on here?

Wasn’t Su Xiaoqiang pursuing Zhao Menghua?

Wasn’t Lu Mingfei after Chen Wenwen?

Similar questions echoed in both their minds. They turned stiffly to look at each other’s incredulous faces, gradually realizing this was no illusion.

"Well, being chased by the little goddess is a hassle anyway. It’s actually nice not to have her around," Zhao Menghua said, sounding a bit awkward.

In truth, he’d always known he could never have Su Xiaoqiang as a girlfriend. Her family background was too impressive, her personality far too forceful—she was only after him because he was the second-best after Chu Zihang, the top choice in school, not because she liked him.

So, if he ever agreed to Su Xiaoqiang, he couldn’t even imagine what would happen.

If he were to actually date someone, he’d much rather pursue a gentle, ordinary girl like Chen Wenwen. It was far more comfortable to be with someone like her, and there was no pressure about family background. Even breaking up would be easy.

What a wonderful girl.