Chapter 111: Great Historical Change

Chapter 111: Chapter 111: Great Historical Change

Deng Yuyuan shook her head.

The dim light illuminated his straight, lonely silhouette. "I understand."

His perfect, god-like face was cast down, looking as if he had suffered endless grievances. Even Deng Yuyuan was not immune to such a sight; her heart skipped a beat.

In a corner Deng Yuyuan couldn’t see, Chu Tiankuo’s eyes were dark and unreadable. He had been too hasty this time. Next time, he would hide his feelings better—at least until Deng Yuyuan developed some affection for him.

Deng Yuyuan’s boyfriend minded the possibility of her having an affair, but *he* didn’t mind her having a boyfriend. Wasn’t it obvious who loved her more?!

"Then can we still be friends?" Chu Tiankuo probed carefully.

What a classic question. Deng Yuyuan’s answer to this was different every time.

She smiled faintly, giving Chu Tiankuo some reassurance. "You’re welcome to remain my friend."

Deng Yuyuan felt she hadn’t interacted much with Chu Tiankuo, so his feelings for her couldn’t be that deep. Now that they had cleared the air, it was best if they could continue being friends. If it didn’t work out later, she could always make a clean break then.

After that day, Chu Tiankuo restrained himself and returned to the position of a friend.

Deng Yuyuan had originally wanted to carefully consider her dynamic with Chu Tiankuo, but after she returned that night, the farm system’s shop refreshed with an item from the Cultivation World.

[Jade Pendant Space: A jade product from the Cultivation World that can appear in any world. It takes the form of a medium-high quality Green and White Jade Peace Button, complete with a red string. It contains five cubic meters of space. Living creatures cannot enter, and time stands still inside.]

Deng Yuyuan decisively bought it. Even though it was so expensive that it cost half of her gold coin savings, it was simply too practical!

Having spent her gold coins, Deng Yuyuan had no choice but to pour her limited time into frantically grinding the game. With even less time to consider her social life, she simply let things drift along with Chu Tiankuo.

Besides, he was a free college student offering to help babysit right at her doorstep—it would be a waste to refuse.

Compared to the slightly distant interactions between Chu Tiankuo and Deng Yuyuan after that night, he got along much better with Tuantuan. He often let her ride on his shoulders and played with her toys. The little cub’s face would be flushed red from playing every day. By the time Deng Yuyuan returned and Chu Tiankuo had to leave, Tuantuan would still be left wanting more.

Sometimes, Chu Tiankuo would even carry Tuantuan out of the dorm to stroll and run around the campus. After all, it wasn’t good for a child to always be cooped up in the dormitory and classrooms. Getting out more to breathe fresh air and bask in the sun was good for her health.

Tuantuan was naturally a lively and active little cub. She liked keeping her mother company, and she also liked going out to bounce and skip around.

She was currently at that delightful stage of being an adorable and somewhat sensible toddler. When they went out together, Chu Tiankuo’s handsome face would attract a wave of attention, and people’s gazes would inevitably drift to the soft, pale, chubby little cub beside him.

Socializing with adults always required some effort, but it was much easier with a child. Plus, Tuantuan was extroverted. If someone waved at her with some snacks, the soft little dumpling would run over, reach out her chubby little hands to take them, and sweetly say, "Thank you, mister," or "Thank you, miss." Once they grew familiar, she would even fish candies out of her own pockets to give to the adults. Occasionally, Chu Tiankuo would step in to stop the feeding, stating that the child had already exceeded her daily snack limit and couldn’t eat anymore.

Deng Yuyuan and Chu Tiankuo were already highly noticeable due to their good looks. For a time, rumors about their romantic involvement circulated endlessly in private.

The two parties involved actively refuted the rumors. Since their daily interactions showed no signs of blazing romantic sparks, the gossip gradually died down.

Among Chu Tiankuo’s classmates were married women who would braid Tuantuan’s hair into two thick fishtail braids, praising her for having so much hair. Tuantuan cherished her new hairstyle very much. She became much more careful when walking and running, and she couldn’t even bear to undo the braids when it was time for bed at night.

On weekends, Deng Yuyuan would usually look after her for one day and send her to play at the Wei Family’s home for the other. Tuantuan had grown used to this routine and gradually stopped fearing that her mother would come to pick her up late.

In fact, Deng Yuyuan rarely picked her up late. After her life in Beijing got on track, she was able to free up more time to accompany Tuantuan. Often, while Tuantuan played at the Wei Family’s home, Deng Yuyuan would model for Wei Yin.

Wei’s mother was very grateful to Deng Yuyuan and her daughter. When she went up the mountain to worship Buddha, she even prayed for a peace charm for the pair. As the saying went, every lock has its key. After Deng Yuyuan and her daughter came to the Wei Family, they instantly solved the issues of the family’s two problematic figures.

Ever since Wei Shu’s rigid principles had been shattered by Tuantuan, he was still prone to getting stuck in dead ends, but the Wei Family could finally see the possibility of improvement.

As for the youngest sister, Wei Yin, she used to spend every day off revolving around Zhao Mingzhao, only to return looking disheveled and pitiful. Since Deng Yuyuan came along, Wei Yin had to dedicate one of her days off to spending time with her muse. With her time spent seeking rejection cut in half, Zhao Mingzhao’s attitude toward her had actually improved slightly.

"It seems playing hard to get is the right strategy. You just used the wrong method before," Deng Yuyuan remarked during a modeling break, snacking on melon seeds and sipping tea while chatting with Wei Yin.

"Xiao Yuan, you know what? Now that I spend almost every Saturday with you, Ah Zhao actually takes the initiative on Sundays to ask where I’ve been. He never used to pay attention to what I was doing! And the way he asked... it seemed like he was jealous." Wei Yin’s eyes sparkled as she talked about the details of her interactions with Zhao Mingzhao. "Before, his love for me was implicit and reserved. Now, even my parents can feel that he cares about me."

Deng Yuyuan lounged in a rocking chair with a rosewood frame and a woven rattan seat, laughing so hard she trembled.

This darned hopeless romantic was cracking her up.

Wei Yin grabbed her camera and quickly snapped a photo. Even though she knew Deng Yuyuan was laughing at her, the way Deng Yuyuan lay there so languidly, with a teasing glint at the corners of her eyes, was simply too cool and captivating.

"It’s a pity I have to develop the film to see the final picture. I heard a new type of camera called a digital camera has already been invented abroad, where you can see the photos in real time," Wei Yin said, shaking her camera with a hint of regret in her tone.

"A digital camera??" Deng Yuyuan sat up from the rocking chair.

"Yeah, it was my first time hearing about the concept, too. I think your major is pretty good. It’ll develop rapidly in the future, and majors related to technology will be at the forefront of the times," Wei Yin praised enviously.

Wait, in her original era, a truly practical digital camera wouldn’t be invented for another few years, and it wouldn’t be put into commercial use until the 1990s.

Why was this world so fast?! Technological progress was nearly over a decade ahead of schedule.

Only then did Deng Yuyuan truly realize how massive a difference the altered historical timeline would cause. The original novel hadn’t mentioned any severe crackdowns on speculation and profiteering in the country during the 1980s. From the perspective of the female lead’s family, the opening of policies had been completely smooth sailing, without any setbacks or backlash.