I turned reality into a romantic comedy.

As if to show how well prepared he was, Lin Mu showed Chen Junqian the tote bag he was holding.

Unlike school, where you only need to bring a pencil case and a few supplementary teaching materials each time you go to a tutoring class, children usually don't choose to carry just those books in a backpack. Instead, they choose to bring a tote bag, like the one Lin Mu is carrying now.

However, unlike the other person's handbag, which was clearly carefully selected and featured a cute chibi-style little girl in a dress, wearing a flower crown, and smiling with delicate eyebrows and eyes, surrounded by the words "Cute Princess," Chen Junqian remembered that when he went to tutoring classes in his previous life, he used leftover wine bags from the Lunar New Year.

Seeing that Chen Junqian's gaze lingered on his handbag, Lin Mu picked it up a little more and showed it off in a generous manner:

"How is it? Isn't it beautiful?"

"Yes, it looks good and suits Mumu very well."

After all, they came to look at houses today, and both Mom and Lin Mu had things to do in the afternoon, so the two of them didn't chat any longer and started looking at houses with Wang Hongling.

Actually, although we said we were looking at apartments, my mom and dad had already discussed buying one in Yunqi Jinyuan before we came. So, the main purpose of this trip was to see the environment in person and choose a specific floor.

After looking at several apartments, Chen Junqian and his mother finalized the address of their new home.

"Unit 2, Building 2, Apartment 301, Yunqi Jinyuan..."

When Chen Junqian saw Lin Mu muttering the address to herself, he was momentarily dazed. However, just like when he first entered Lin Mu's house, Mu Mu seemed to be the carefree child he had met then, and after reciting it, she smiled at him proudly.

“I’ve already written down Qianqian’s new address. I’m 302 and you’re 301. It sounds like we’re neighbors.”

"Actually, they're not even in the same neighborhood."

"Don't call me out on this. Doesn't Qianqian want to be my neighbor?"

It felt like Lin Mu had become increasingly skilled at using rhetorical questions, but Chen Junqian just couldn't refute them every time he used them.

And to be honest, if he really becomes neighbors with Lin Mu, then the other party will instantly be promoted to a system-recognized childhood sweetheart, and it's unimaginable how easy it will be to achieve the subsequent accomplishments.

"But that's just how it is. It seems like nobody lives around here."

As he spoke, Chen Junqian walked out of his still empty future home and glanced at the house next door. It was also a bare-bones house, so it seemed that no one had moved in yet.

After glancing at the time on his phone again, Chen Junqian reminded Lin Mu:

"Now that the house is confirmed, let's go eat, otherwise I'm afraid you won't make it to your afternoon tutoring class."

"Well, let's go."

Lin Mu glanced curiously at room 302, which had the same address as her own and was currently vacant, before nodding in agreement. After having a quick bowl of noodles with Chen Junqian and his mother at a nearby noodle shop, she went to her tutoring class. She had missed several classes due to her trip and needed to catch up quickly.

After settling into her new home, my mother, who also seemed to be in a good mood, was preparing to go back to the factory. She had been transferred to an office position, where her work was much easier than before.

"Will my son come back with me?"

"No, I'll wander around the streets a little longer."

"Okay, then I'll go back to work."

Watching his mother ride away on her newly bought Aima electric scooter until she disappeared from his sight, Chen Junqian recalled the brand's classic advertising slogan, still endorsed by Jay Chou: "Aima electric scooter, if you love it, take action now!" Then, turning his head, he spotted another electric scooter store with a low brand awareness, currently only available in Jiangsu and Anhui provinces.

Actually, before becoming an anime expert after his rebirth, Chen Junqian didn't have any particular impression of the brand called 'Oupai Electric Vehicle'. But ever since he got into the world of anime, he always felt that the brand looked strange, yet he also felt that this thing might help him achieve some mysterious accomplishment someday.

[Gentleman's (Perverted) Quotes Collector]

In many romantic comedies, the cross-server chat or the gentlemanly (perverted) remarks that have to be made due to certain uncontrollable factors (such as the romantic choices in one's mind) are always an essential part of the experience.

As the saying goes, something may be 100% terrible, 200% embarrassing, but it might inexplicably make your heart race 300%. If the occasion and the people are right, even the most bizarre statement might become a breakthrough in a relationship.

Find the right balance between romance and calling the police, and then gamble on whether the woman in front of you will blush, fly into a rage, or be subtly moved.

Condition for achievement: Say one of the following classic gentlemanly lines to any heroine who is suited for romantic comedies.

As for the connection between this achievement and electric vehicles, it has to be said that the Japanese pronunciation of "chest" is exactly what he sees as "oppai" now.

So if you operate it well, it feels like you can completely fool that embarrassing system.

Just as Chen Junqian was pondering the specific steps, another girl he had arranged to meet that day walked up to him.

"You finally decided to come back?"

Zhu Wenyun's nearly long hair cascaded down like a waterfall in front of Chen Junqian as she slightly tilted her head, setting off her increasingly exquisite features like the perfect backdrop.

"Oh right, I came back to accompany Wenyun on her research trip."

So, finding material is really a great excuse for writers to slack off, huh?

Chapter Thirty-Two: Wen Yun's Wishes Are Always Simple (Part Two)

Although it was supposed to be a research trip, Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun were actually just strolling around the streets. If this happened more than ten years later, they might have been given a fancy-sounding code name like "Citywalk," but nowadays, this kind of behavior is generally called "strolling around."

As it turned out, strolling around at midday in the sweltering summer heat was clearly not a good choice, so the two of them soon went into a nearby shopping mall that they often frequented. The mall was air-conditioned, and in the lobby, they could see many elderly people who were tired from shopping taking a break and cooling off.

Noticing that Zhu Wenyun's gaze kept wandering between several bakeries and cake shops nearby, Chen Junqian asked her with concern:

"Haven't you had lunch yet?"

"Yes, I stayed up a little late last night because I was writing an article, and when I woke up it was already this late, so I rushed over here."

"Is there anything you'd like to eat, Wenjun?"

"I haven't decided yet, but I'm not particularly hungry right now. Junqian, come with me to look at the new books first."

If this were a scene from a typical romantic comedy in anime, Zhu Wenyun would probably have added a sound effect of her stomach growling with hunger after saying that to indicate it was a lie. But reality obviously doesn't have such special effects, so Chen Junqian had no choice but to follow her into the vicinity of the bookstore counter in the mall.

"Speaking of which, how's the draft? Last time you only said it was finished."

"Yes, and then I submitted the manuscript to the editor's email. The feedback seems to be pretty good, so now I'm making revisions and submitting a more complete outline."

Speaking of her manuscript, Zhu Wenyun unconsciously yawned again. It seems that she has been quite tired from being busy with this matter recently. After all, even though under Chen Junqian's guidance, she has gradually overcome her procrastination problem of having a thousand words in her heart but not being able to write a single word, her rigorous attitude towards words and works has not changed.

At least in Chen Junqian's view, Zhu Wenyun had a bit of a perfectionist mentality when it came to writing. After all, he had never seen a single draft of Zhu Wenyun's work. He just didn't know whether this pursuit of perfection was Zhu Wenyun's personal writing habit or just an attitude he held towards him alone.

Which magazine did you submit to?

"Fireworks, but the only problem now is that the editor seems to think I'm planning to write a long emotional story, so she's tacitly agreed to my approach of starting the first chapter from elementary school. But she also suggested that I could start directly from middle school and weave past events into the memories... But I haven't even been to middle school myself."

"The audience for 'Fireworks' is indeed mostly middle school students, but Wen Yun could also elevate the male and female protagonists in the story a bit. As long as it's not written too childishly, it shouldn't feel out of place."

"Yes, that's what I think too. After all, I don't think the story between you and me is childish at all. It's more than enough for a middle school student, and we're about to start middle school anyway."

In fact, among the three in Guoning, Zhu Wenyun was the one who was born the earliest and was also the most mature in both physiology and psychology. After all, she read a lot of books, and her reading volume was higher than that of Lin Mu and Xu Youwei combined.

In Chen Junqian's mind, Xu Youwei was not so much precocious as she was suddenly forced to mature at a certain point. But she was still a child at heart, and her thoughts and actions were like that most of the time. Otherwise, Lin Mu would not have complained that she could split into two forms with the Tiger Talisman.

Mu Mu... well, Mu Mu doesn't need to be mentioned.

As she spoke, Xu Youwei's fingers, which had been brushing across the bookshelf, paused briefly over a particular book before pulling it out.

It's Yu Hua's "To Live".

"Has Junqian read any of Yu Hua's works?"

"I've read some, but not many. However, this one you have is one of them. Why are you suddenly interested in Yu Hua, Wenjun?"

"Because I've been reading another of his books recently, 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant'."

As she spoke, Zhu Wenyun changed the subject again, quite unusually taking the initiative to talk to Chen Junqian about animated films.

"Although Junqian always says I've never watched cartoons, I have watched some of them here and there before. I remember you said you still have a toy sword from Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Swordsmen at home, right? I've watched that one."

"Then, a couple of days ago, while I was cooking at home, I suddenly remembered that I had watched a show called 'Little Chef Fu Gui' before. Although the recipes and cooking skills in it are not very useful for reference, and the dishes will not become delicious just by saying 'golden yellow'."

"However, I actually really like the plots of both of these films, and when I took out the DVDs to watch them again, I found that the credits for the opening theme songs of both films included a literary consultant, and that consultant was Yu Hua."

"Although I later looked up information online and found out that he was probably just a figurehead, I still suddenly became interested in reading his books, so I borrowed another copy of 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant' from the library."

Faced with Zhu Wenyun, who could rekindle her interest in traditional literature by watching an animated film, Chen Junqian felt a little speechless for a moment. After all, when he watched these films back then, he didn't care about the production credits at all. At most, he would learn to sing a couple of lines of his favorite songs and copy down the lyrics.

For example, regarding the two animated films mentioned by the other party, Chen Junqian had previously memorized the lyrics from their theme songs: "A man with courage travels the world with a sword" and "Being a person is like scallions mixed with tofu, traveling the world with integrity."

By the way, Mu Mu, who also loves watching Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit Seven Heroes, actually prefers the ending theme song. I guess next time the two of them go to karaoke together, he'll hear her continue singing off-key, "My heart is filled with thoughts of him, though my dreams are filled with countless falling flowers."

"I've also read 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant.' May I ask where you are on your reading list, or have you already finished it?"

"It's about halfway done. I haven't had much time lately, and I'm reading very slowly. It's like when I was reading Mark Twain and Maupassant's short story collections a couple of months ago. Sometimes I get a bit confused if I don't understand the historical context, so I'm looking it up as I read."

As she spoke, Zhu Wenyun put the book back on the shelf:

"Okay, I've decided what to eat. Let's go!"

Following the other person, they went down from the bookstore on the second floor of the mall back to the first floor. Chen Junqian saw Zhu Wenyun walk into a bakery next door, and then a short while later she came out holding a huge loaf of bread that looked like a chicken leg, skewered on a bamboo stick.

Of course, it only looks like a chicken leg. This thing is filled with pure red bean paste. Chen Junqian had eaten it before. Back then, it sold for one yuan each. He just didn't know if the price had gone up now. According to the previous price, it could definitely be called the king of cost-effectiveness.

However, the price probably hasn't increased. After all, she's already passed Wenyun's selection process and they've known each other for so long. Chen Junqian knows her personality very well, and anything with a lower cost-performance ratio than Xiaomantou is never within her consideration.

"Actually, imagination can be very helpful when it comes to eating."

Holding up the large chicken leg bread in front of Chen Junqian, Zhu Wenyun took a bite first, and then started chatting with him about the books they hadn't finished talking about earlier.

"Junqian should know which part I'm referring to, right?"

"If it's 'Chronicle of a Blood Merchant,' then the most likely part Wen Yun is referring to is the scene where Xu Sanguan stir-fries braised pork."

"You got it right, Junqian really did see it."

Zhu Wenyun never gets tired of this little game of question and answer with Chen Junqian.

"I probably watched that part three or four times. When the whole family was so hungry that they could only eat two meals of corn porridge a day, Xu Sanguan treated his three sons to a meal of braised pork that he cooked with his mouth on New Year's Day. Although it was just drawing a picture to satisfy hunger, he drew it really well. Yu Hua's writing was also very good. Even reading it made me hungry."

"But now that I think about it, I've always liked eating this kind of bread, which is kind of like this behavior, and at least I can actually get something to eat here, ahhh—"

Zhu Wenyun didn't know if Chen Junqian was aware of the true meaning behind her roundabout words, but he would understand after seeing his published manuscript in a while, since she had written much more directly there.

Of course, she hoped he would take her away, because she didn't eat much and was easy to feed. She could imagine what she didn't have as something she did, what she ate a little as a lot, and what she had as something real as something merely an appearance. If he really gave her a lot, wow, that would practically fill her entire world.

----------------------------------

The afternoon temperature showed no signs of dropping, to the point that Chen Junqian wished for a good, heavy rain to at least cool things down.

Fortunately, there are still places like libraries in this world where two people can cool off both physically and mentally. Just like when they first met, Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun spent the entire afternoon in the library. When the sun had set a little and the sunlight was not as intense as it was at noon, they decided to stroll home together.

Of course, it was Zhu Wenyun's home.

After all, if going once can consistently contribute to the progress of the two achievements of feeding play and loving bento boxes, then we must work hard when they are still children, because in a few years, it will definitely not be as convenient as it is now.

Zhu Wenyun's grandmother had just gone out on some errands, but she should be back soon, because the TV in the room was still on, and it was replaying "Boys and Girls Rush Forward," a large-scale outdoor obstacle course reality show that Anhui TV broadcasts regularly at noon every day.

In fact, various local TV stations have similar programs, but since Guoning belongs to Anhui Province, Chen Junqian naturally watched the local ones the most when he was a child. Moreover, the recording location was Hefei, and he even went to see it twice during his university years.

Summer can indeed make people lose their appetite, so today Chen Junqian and Zhu Wenyun simply made some cold noodles. After setting aside a portion for Grandma Zhu on the stove, the two of them took their bowls and sat down in front of the TV in the room, watching the program on the screen amidst the background noise of the electric fan humming in oscillating mode.

Perhaps because she often watches these kinds of shows with her grandmother, or perhaps because she simply likes this kind of outdoor obstacle course reality show that is still very novel at the time, it is clear that Zhu Wenyun is quite interested. Every time she sees the contestants falling into the water from various obstacles in all sorts of bizarre ways, she can't help but smile.