Love Apartment: Yifei is my junior aunt

Chapter 98 In the Name of Ziqiao's Aunt (Part 2)

Ziqiao remained standing there, dejected.

Just three days ago, he had a reputation that was neither good nor bad, a not-so-well-behaved but lively and adorable roommate/fake couple, and a group of friends with a lot of quirks but who were loyal to each other.

People are always forgetful; at least Ziqiao has forgotten whether this kind of life is the life he dreamed of during those wandering nights.

However, thinking about these things now is of little use. Everything he once possessed has been completely taken away by his selfishness, willfulness, and luck.

Ziqiao thought he would be regretting it so much he couldn't breathe, but he wasn't.

He felt as if everything he had experienced in the past few days was just a nightmare, and that he could return to his previous life once the nightmare ended.

Whether it's going back to the happy times of three days ago, or going back to the state of being all alone three months ago.

It's better than it is now, no matter what.

God, Guan Yu, Buddha, Jade Emperor, Jesus Christ, Ultraman King, the Yellow King...

I just want any one of them to wake me up from this nightmare.

I want to go back, let me go back.

Please...

Let me go back!

As Ziqiao thought this, he seemed to hear calls echoing in his ears.

He quickly turned his head to look and saw the round-faced girl looking at him with concern.

"Sir, Mr. Ziqiao, are you alright?" the round-faced girl asked.

Ziqiao swallowed hard, his voice even more hoarse than when he was seriously ill: "I'm fine. Do you need to pay? I'll pay."

Ziqiao fumbled in his pocket and pulled out his phone, then seemed to remember something and gave a wry smile.

It turns out that he has lost everything, including his money.

How could I have lived such a failed life?

"No, Mr. Ziqiao, your Mr. Shan Nanfeng has already bought it."

"He told me to tell you something: if you're not feeling well, you can rest here for a while and don't need to go back so soon."

Well, they think I'll be in their way if they go back.

Ziqiao sat dejectedly in his seat, looking up at the round-faced girl: "Do you have any wine here?"

"As Mr. Nanfeng just said, if you get drunk, I'm afraid no one will take you home."

"Damn it!" Ziqiao cursed under his breath.

You bastard, you wretched devil Nanfeng, what kind of petty demon are you?

Ziqiao never expected that despite his lifelong intelligence, he would be defeated by Nanfeng's petty-mindedness.

If it weren't for Yifei he brought along, would things have turned out this way?

The round-faced girl was waiting to see if Ziqiao had any other needs, but then she saw him muttering curses under his breath one minute and laughing so hard that tears were about to stream down his face the next.

"Sir, are you alright?" the round-faced girl asked casually.

After an afternoon of this ordeal, the round-faced girl's tolerance has improved dramatically. Zi Qiao's current level of madness is nothing to her anymore.

Ziqiao waved his hand, laughing so hard he could barely breathe, and said, "It's nothing, I'm just laughing. Even at this point, I'm still trying to shift the blame onto others."

He knew, he always knew that things had gotten to this point, and it wasn't Nanfeng's fault, nor Yifei's fault, it was all his own.

It's all my fault for being selfish, willful, and taking a chance.

Because of his willfulness and wishful thinking, he didn't listen to Meijia's advice. Even though he knew that Yifei was watching him and Zheng Yan, he still went to the Yanyangtian Bar to pick up girls.

Because of his selfishness, he abandoned Teacher Zeng and the others and chose to run away, leaving them to bear the brunt of his ex-girlfriend's anger.

Also because of selfishness, Mika declared that she would have nothing to do with him after today.

Just now, he was still clinging to the wishful thinking that Nanfeng wouldn't punish him for his misdeeds, which caused him to lose almost all of his friends.

In these three days, I clearly had countless opportunities to salvage the situation, yet I watched helplessly, or even actively, turn it into this irreversible and hopeless predicament.

Who can a scoundrel like him blame?

Ziqiao thanked the round-faced girl in a low voice and told her to go about her own business.

He kept his head down until he caught a glimpse of his phone in the corner of his eye.

His phone's screen saver was a group photo from his wedding day, which Meijia forced him to change to, and he was quite unwilling at the time.

Looking back now, I realize how happy we all were that day. I wonder if I'll ever have the chance to laugh so freely with them again.

Ziqiao stared at his phone's screen saver for a long time without looking away.

Finally, he turned on his phone and shakily dialed a number.

"Hey..." The person on the other end of the phone yawned. It seemed that he had only just realized the phone number. In the blink of an eye, his attitude changed and he cursed, "I'll spray you to death with a mouthful of salt water, Lu Ziqiao, are you sick?"

"I was just dreaming about my Prince Charming kissing me awake, and their lips were practically touching. Then you called, and my beautiful dream was over."

"Lu Ziqiao, did I owe you something in my past life? I haven't had a single happy day since I was with you, and now you won't even let me have a good dream!"

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Ziqiao's emotions, which had been surging like an undercurrent, suddenly surged into a raging torrent, instantly engulfing his reason.

In such a desperate moment, if Ziqiao had to choose someone who could pull him out of this predicament, this was the only person he could think of.

"Mika..."

Before Ziqiao could finish speaking, he heard a "beep" notification sound.

Meijia hung up the phone immediately.

A tidal wave of emotions crashed over Zi Qiao's already crumbling heart. The phone in his hand slipped limply to the ground and shattered into pieces, just like his heart, which was breaking into pieces.

If we follow the development of melodramatic and tragic literature, then it should be like this.

Unfortunately, the phone Ziqiao was using was a knock-off waterproof Phelps phone that Meijia had given him. It was sturdy and durable, but at such a height, it was impossible for the phone to be affected in any way.

Then the WeChat notification sound from his phone brought Ziqiao back to his senses.

He picked up his perfectly intact phone and watched the video call from Meijia, finally bursting into tears of laughter.

On the other end of the video, Meijia was still lying in bed yawning, rubbing her sleepy eyes and saying, "Lu Ziqiao, are you out of your mind?"

"What era are we living in? Who still calls people directly now?"

"Are you complaining about your phone bill being too high?"

Ziqiao choked back tears as he said, "Meijia..."

Meijia raised an eyebrow: "Why are your eyes so red? Are you crying? I never knew you, Lu Ziqiao, could cry. I thought your heart was made of iron."

Before Ziqiao could reply, Meijia clapped her hands and cheered: "No matter what the situation is, as long as you cry, it's a good thing. Today must be my luckiest day."

"It seems like Teacher Zeng's audition today is a sure thing. I'm going to buy a lottery ticket later; who knows, I might win a multi-million dollar jackpot."

"Then it won't be Prince Charming kissing me anymore, but me waving money around with a bunch of handsome young men at my feet for me to choose from."

Meijia's words became more and more beautiful, making Ziqiao's lips twitch wildly. The surging emotions in his heart were completely stirred up by Meijia.

"Chen Meijia, is it really necessary for you to be so gloating?"

"Given our relationship, I was just gloating and didn't kick him when he was down, which shows I'm kind-hearted."

Mika jumped up from the bed, her eyes now wide with no trace of sleepiness: "Tell me, which angel stood up for me?"

"You promise not to yell at me while I'm talking," Ziqiao said weakly.

Meijia sneered: "Then you don't need to say anything, you must have been caught chasing girls again."

"Lu Ziqiao, Lu Ziqiao..." Meijia gave him a thumbs up, both angry and amused. "You never stop for a day. I scolded you in the early morning, and now you've caused trouble again tonight."

"What did you say back then: 'A prodigal son who returns is more precious than gold.'"

"Pah!"

"What's wrong? You turned back at dawn, but you've already turned back again tonight?"

"You prodigal son, didn't you turn your head a little too fast?"

Normally, Ziqiao wouldn't take Meijia's sarcasm to heart. Even if he did occasionally, he would forget about it after a while.

However, the blows Ziqiao suffered in these three days were far greater than those he had suffered in the past few years. These continuous blows finally shattered Ziqiao's defenses.

"I know I was wrong, I really know I was wrong," Ziqiao murmured, feeling utterly ashamed.

"You don't know you were wrong, you're just scared and regretful," Meijia said something similar to Nanfeng's.

If we're talking about the person in the world who understands Zi Qiao the most, Mei Jia would dare to say she's second, and absolutely no one would dare to say they're first.

Meijia then added sarcastically, "Do you know that you're just like a little kid? Every time you realize you're wrong, it's never because you realize there's something wrong with what you did."

"You're just afraid of your parents' punishment, and you're just regretting why you got caught. Your apologies have never been from the bottom of your heart; they're just a way to lessen the punishment."

"I don't accept this kind of apology, and I believe no one else will accept it either."

"But whether we accept it or not is none of your business. Although I don't know what happened tonight, isn't your best skill at running away when you encounter trouble?"

"You can still run away this time. The worst outcome is just starting over in another place and continuing to live the carefree life of Young Master Lu, riding a dragon and galloping on horseback."

"Isn't this better than being looked down upon in the Love Apartment?"

Ziqiao's gaze was unfocused, his mind wandering, as if he hadn't heard a word Meijia said.

Meijia gave a self-deprecating laugh, as if mocking herself for still wasting her breath.

She was about to hang up the video call, but just before she did, Ziqiao finally spoke.

"Meijia, can you help me think of a solution?"

"I don't want to run away this time."

Meijia was taken aback, her gaze meeting Ziqiao's eyes, which were full of regret yet unwavering determination.

Meijia had only seen Ziqiao with such a determined look in his eyes once before, and that time was...

"Wait a minute, I'll go change my clothes first." Mika hurriedly threw the phone aside.

Frustrated, she took a lollipop from the drawer and put it in her mouth.

【Chen Meijia, he's lying to you. He won't change. How could someone like him ever change?】

Don't give him any more chances, and don't give yourself any more hope.

[He, Lu Ziqiao, is the most shameless, most despicable, and most irredeemable bastard in the world!]

Meijia repeatedly reminded herself of this.

Finally, after Meijia changed her clothes, she looked at Ziqiao on her phone and said irritably, "Speak."

"What did you say?"

"How can I help you if you don't tell me what happened tonight?"

This is the last time, the last time, I promise it's the last time.

……

Then Ziqiao honestly recounted what had happened at the cat cafe that day.

In fact, Meijia regretted it the moment Ziqiao uttered his first words.

That bastard is definitely not worth saving; I'm even worried about him polluting the environment if I scatter his ashes.

As Meijia listened to Ziqiao's account of his crime, she chewed her lollipop to pieces. The lollipop, which she used to lick for a long time, was now crunching noisily in Meijia's mouth.

She really wanted to hang up the video call right away, as if nothing had actually happened.

But seeing Zi Qiao's attitude, which was completely different from before, Mei Jia forced herself to listen.

After Ziqiao finished speaking, Meijia felt that the words she had used to curse him at the rabbit doll in the early morning were not harsh enough or mean enough: "Lu Ziqiao, tell me honestly, do you have a grudge against the people of 3601?"

"Yesterday, Teacher Zeng almost lost his reputation and job because of your group of ex-girlfriends."

"So today it was Yifei and Zhanbo who almost got screwed over by you, does that mean Wanyu will be next tomorrow?"

"That's impossible. Wan Yu's family background is too terrifying. If anyone really messes with Wan Yu, I'm afraid they won't see the sun tomorrow."

It must be said that Ziqiao's ability to adjust his mindset is indeed very strong. In just a short while, he returned to his usual carefree and jovial personality.

It can only be said that Nanfeng seized the opportunity with great precision. With Ziqiao's shameless nature, who knows when he will break down like he did today again.

Meijia sneered, "With your incorrigible attitude, it wouldn't be a problem for Sister Yifei to make you move out."

"Meijia, I really know I was wrong this time. Please help me think of a way." Ziqiao raised three fingers and swore, "I swear on my dearest aunt that I will never use other people's names and identities when I'm picking up girls in the future."

"And when we break up in the future, I will definitely act like a normal person and never disappear or lie again."

"I'll have a proper breakup with her, making sure it's an amicable separation. I absolutely won't let my future girlfriends have any thoughts of revenge, so as not to cause them any more worry."

"If your aunt knew, she would definitely slap you twice for using her name to do this."

Meijia was both angry and resentful: "You can't even come up with a bigger lie. Can't you just say you're planning to find a serious partner and date with marriage in mind?"

Ziqiao looked embarrassed: "I'm making an oath, not a grand vow."

Meijia: "..."

Just as Meijia was about to tease Ziqiao a bit more, she heard Ziqiao say, "And I really didn't lie this time, I'm serious."

"In your aunt's name?" Meijia was amused by Ziqiao.

"In the name of my dearest aunt, I promise: I will definitely do everything I just said."

Ziqiao withdrew his sworn finger, his eyes shining brighter than the stars, his tone more resolute than any vow: "Meijia, this is the limit I can do right now."

Meijia fell silent. This was the second time she had seen Ziqiao speak with such conviction and determination.

The first time was when Ziqiao confessed his feelings to her.

【Meijia, in the name of my dearest aunt, I promise you.】

Although selfishness is my nature, freedom is my instinct.

But I will go against my nature, defy my instincts, and love you forever, until death do us part.

Ziqiao's promise still echoed in my ears, but so many years have passed, and the two of them are no longer the same people.

Will you love me forever? Until death do us part?

He probably makes that promise to all girls!

Back then, I was young and naive, and I believed his nonsense. But things are different now; I've grown up and matured.

Therefore, this time, I absolutely, positively, absolutely cannot believe him a third time.

Recalling the past, Meijia felt both hatred and resentment, but seeing Ziqiao's state, she finally softened: "Has everyone left now?"

Ziqiao looked around and confirmed that he was the only one left on the first floor: "They left a long time ago."

"Then go after them," Mika said. "Don't hesitate, don't wait, right now, immediately, do everything you can to find them and catch up with them."

"While you're still genuinely repentant, repeat your promises and commitments to them. If they punish you, accept it; if they scold you, endure it."

"If they don't believe what you say, then keep saying it every day and show them what you've promised."

Ziqiao was stunned: "It's...it's that simple?"

"Otherwise what?" Mika, with a lollipop in her mouth, turned away and stopped looking at him. "People who are willing to give you a chance to change will forgive you as long as you are really willing to change."

"Those who are unwilling to give you a chance will still not give you a second glance, even if you completely change yourself."

The reason why people are disappointed in you is because they have always had hope for you.

"It wasn't Nanfeng and the others who abandoned you; it was you who stubbornly pushed away everyone who wanted to help you."

"You always say that a prodigal son's return is more precious than gold, but what's so special about a prodigal son returning? What's truly irreplaceable are those friends who have been waiting for you to turn back."

"Ziqiao, don't disappoint those who love you this time."

Ziqiao fell into an almost deathly silence.

He had already disappointed many people in his life. He had never cared before, so why should he care whether they were disappointed or not now?

Are they any different from others?

Ziqiao thought silently for a moment, then finally chuckled softly.

They are certainly different from others.

Just like Mika said, if there really is something in this world that cannot be bought with gold, then friends must be one of them.

Ziqiao took a deep breath and clenched his fists: "Meijia, wait for my good news."

After saying that, he hung up the video call and rushed out of the cat cafe.

Meijia put down her phone and let out a soft sigh.

As if remembering something, she quickly picked up the rabbit doll that she had kicked under the bed that morning and patted it clean.

"Things shouldn't happen more than three times, or I'll throw you away!" Mika said, pointing at the rabbit doll's nose.

[Rabbit plush toy: ???]

No, what does this have to do with me?

I'm just a rabbit!

……

Inside Winnie the Pooh's town, Guan Gu was still diligently drawing line art.

Originally, he could still casually draw while listening to Ziqiao chatting with the two girls, but later, Guangu, bursting with inspiration, couldn't control his strong creative desire and instinctively turned on his focused mode, ignoring everything else.

This unique focus is largely thanks to his father, Kenjiro Sekiya.

As is widely known, Kenjiro Sekiya is the eighteenth generation successor of Sekiya Cuisine. He went to great lengths to get Sekiya to give up manga and inherit the family business.

Often, when Guan Gu was drawing, Kenjiro would try all sorts of ways to disturb him, either by turning up the volume to watch TV next to Guan Gu, or by placing sushi utensils in front of Guan Gu to make sushi, all while telling him the secrets of Guan Gu's cooking.

Guan Gu was extremely annoyed by this, and the father and son had argued about it countless times.

However, both father and son were incredibly stubborn. Kenshiro refused to change, and Sekiya was even less willing to compromise.

Through this long and arduous struggle, Guan Gu actually developed this state of absolute focus.

The reason why Guan Gu ate mechanically at the dinner table before was because he devoted most of his attention to finding inspiration.

"The major overhaul is complete! All that's left is a tiny bit more polishing, and my side story will be done. Now, my 'Love Trivia' can finally be published smoothly, hahaha..."

While organizing his sketches, Guan Gu thanked Zi Qiao without looking up: "Zi Qiao, thank you so much. I never expected that sitting here listening to you guys chat would give me so much inspiration."

"For this side story, I plan to create a scumbag cat who plays with female cats' feelings. Can I just name him Xiao Bu?"

"Meow?"

The Ragdoll cat, which had been snuggling in Yao Yao and Qian Qian's arms, was still quietly lying on the table leg, refusing to leave.

It wasn't that it particularly liked Guan Gu, but rather that it discovered that as long as it lay there, the other two-legged creatures would assume that it was patronizing this creature, thus preventing any inconsiderate two-legged creatures from touching its long fur.

Being touched and groped by these two-legged creatures every day is exhausting.

At that moment, the Ragdoll cat saw that the two-legged creature, which had been relatively still, was suddenly acting silly and seemed to be chatting with another two-legged creature, and immediately let out a puzzled meow.

"Meow? (Is this two-legged creature crazy?)"

Guan Gu stretched his somewhat stiff body and gently patted the spot where Zi Qiao had been standing, but unsurprisingly, he patted empty air.

He then looked at the seat next to him, where Ziqiao, who was supposed to be chatting with two girls, had disappeared.

Moreover, not only was Zi Qiao nowhere to be seen, the entire second floor was practically empty, without a single person in sight.

Guan Gu: ? ? ?

No, where is Ziqiao?

Could it be that he abandoned me and ran off with the girl?

That's so disloyal!

But if Ziqiao leaves, then where are the others?

Surely they haven't all left.

"Ziqiao-jun?"

"South Wind Lord?"

"Miss Yu Mo, curry sauce?"

Guan Gu called out those names repeatedly, but no one responded. Only then did he accept the fact that he might be abandoned by everyone.

"What's going on? (What on earth is going on?)"

Guan Gu muttered to himself as he tidied up his sketches.

Guan Gu was upright in his conduct and didn't think much about it.

Anyway, I'm not bad with directions, so I can just go back first and ask them what happened later.

So Guan Gu picked up his drawing board and bag, stood up, and strode forward. But as soon as he took a step, the puppet's roar and Guan Gu's cry of pain rang out almost simultaneously.

"Meow!"

"Hiss... Oh, Mom!"

Guan Gu, so engrossed in his drawing, had clearly forgotten his miserable experience of doing the splits that afternoon.

Although Che Dan's pain had improved somewhat after an afternoon, because he had been drawing with his drawing board resting on his thigh for several hours, coupled with prolonged sitting, his lower limbs suffered from poor blood circulation, resulting in his legs going numb.

The worst part is that Guan Gu, whose attention hadn't fully returned to normal, didn't notice that there was a Ragdoll cat lying quietly next to the table leg, slacking off.

So Guan Gu strode up and stepped on the cat.

Before Guan Gu could even feel the pain in his groin and the numbness in his thigh, he was startled by the soft touch under his feet and the ragdoll's howl, and jumped back. The ragdoll's front paw, which he stepped on, was lifted up so high that Guan Gu could almost see his toes.

If Guan Gu were a little more flexible, we might have the chance to see an aerial split that is even more difficult than a land-based split.

That scene was truly breathtaking.

However, this high kick in the air, with a nearly 150-degree backward jump, was enough to make Guan Gu feel the pain of his groin being pulled again.

"Hiss... Oh, Mom!"

As Guan Gu jumped back and landed heavily on his buttocks, he didn't even have time to care about his backside. He clutched his groin tightly with both hands, writhing in pain and howling.

After the ragdoll cat jumped suddenly, it bared its teeth and looked at Guan Gu with a mixture of surprise and anger.

Even though this two-legged creature stepped on me, why does he look like he's in more pain than I am?

As the stairs began to thump and vibrate, the round-faced girl who heard the noise downstairs rushed up.

Then she saw Guan Gu clutching his groin in pain, rolling back and forth, while the ragdoll cat next to him bared its teeth at him, looking like it was about to attack him.

The quick-witted round-faced girl immediately understood the truth. Her face turned pale, and she pointed at the ragdoll cat, screaming, "Little Mimi, how could you scratch the guest there!"

Little Mimi: "Meow???"

[You stinky human, do you even want to listen to what you're saying?]

[It was me who got stepped on! It was me!]

[He was the one who bullied the cutest little Mimi!]

The round-faced girl, who couldn't understand cat meows, angrily picked up the walkie-talkie at her waist and shouted, "Winnie, Mimi has rebelled!"

"It dared to scratch the guest! You come and deal with it right now, and you can have as much dried fish and cat food as you want for the next three days!"

Little Mimi: "Meow!!!"

[You stinky human, I'm innocent! I'm innocent!]

Xiaomi rushed up to explain, but a bright orange figure had already dashed up to the second floor like lightning.

"Meow!"

Little Mimi ran away quickly, with Winnie in hot pursuit.

Ignoring the chaos between the two cats, the round-faced girl rushed forward to help Guan Gu up: "Sir, are you alright? Let me help you up."

Guan Gu clutched his groin, his face ashen, writhing in excruciating pain. He could only communicate in his native language: "Don't touch me! Don't touch me!"

Guan Gu, whose legs were pulled twice, could barely move an inch. If someone were to help him up, he would truly be unable to stand or walk.

I'll just let myself lie on the ground and suffer a little longer.

Guan Gu thought things through very carefully and spoke very quickly. Unfortunately, the round-faced girl couldn't understand Japanese.

So...

"Ogasa-san!" Guan Gu, who was barely able to stand up with the help of the round-faced girl, moved his leg slightly and was immediately in so much pain that he couldn't breathe, and he fell backward.

The round-faced girl tried her best to help him up, but Guan Gu was too big, and he still fell hard on his butt again.

Sekiya covered his crotch and shouted in great pain: "I hate cats!"

Here it comes! A long chapter of 7,400 words, a combined chapter of two, even more substantial than before!

Please subscribe, add to your favorites, give me monthly tickets, recommend me—I'll give you anything you can ask for, please!

The "Cat Cafe Rescue" chapter will conclude tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)