Chapter 50: Dream

Chapter 50: Chapter 50: Dream

Early on the third day, Han Wenwen was woken by her alarm clock.

She opened her eyes, shook the thermometer from her nightstand, and placed it under her arm. Then, she climbed out of bed and headed to the bathroom.

Before brushing her teeth, she checked the thermometer. It read 37.5 degrees Celsius—a clear sign of improvement.

Even for a little fox as well-versed in the game of love as she was, there are moments when a crush feels new. No girl wants the boy she likes to see her at her worst.

But since being sick meant she couldn’t wash her hair or get properly dressed up, she had to find other ways to make herself look a little better.

For instance, she opened her lip balm, dabbed a little on her pinky, and gently applied it to her lips.

The advantage of this method was that it was more precise and subtle, but still effective.

She also wet her comb with a little water to smooth out her hair and used a facial cleanser to make her skin look more hydrated.

After finishing these almost pointless little tasks, she finally lay back on her bed, murmuring, ’He should be here soon. He said he would come over this morning.’

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before Lin Zhengran opened the door with a key. Han Wenwen had given him this spare. The Little Fox’s reasoning was that if he had a key, it would save her the trouble of getting up to let him in.

Of course, that excuse didn’t hold up to scrutiny.

"You’re awake?" Lin Zhengran said as he came in with breakfast. He saw Han Wenwen lying in bed, watching him.

A satisfied smile touched Han Wenwen’s lips. "Yeah, I just woke up. What did you get for breakfast? I’ve been craving some fried breadsticks."

"You didn’t say what you wanted to eat the other day, so I just grabbed something. You’ll have to make do."

Han Wenwen pursed her lips. "So what did you buy?"

"Fried breadsticks."

Han Wenwen stared at him, stunned. ’Is this what they call a soulmate? It’s magical,’ she thought.

Lin Zhengran sat on the edge of the bed. Seeing that her complexion looked pretty good and that her lips weren’t as dry anymore, he asked, "How have you been feeling the past couple of days? Did you take your temperature this morning?"

"I’ve had a little trouble sleeping at night—my mind keeps racing—but other than that, I’m fine. My temperature this morning was 37.5."

"That’s not bad. Are you still thinking about how to make money? If you feel clear-headed today, we can talk about what you plan on doing in the future."

Han Wenwen didn’t answer right away. She knew she hadn’t been thinking about making money for the past two days. Whenever she fell asleep, all she dreamt about was the man right in front of her.

After a moment’s pause, she finally spoke, a beat behind. "Talk about what I want to do in the future? What do you mean? Wasn’t I supposed to work with you?"

Lin Zhengran took a big bite of his fried breadstick as Han Wenwen slowly sat up.

Lin Zhengran said, "You will be working with me, but look at Jiang Xueli and He Qing as examples. You should get it. I won’t force you to do something you don’t want to. First, tell me what kind of work you’d like to do, and then I’ll help you get better and better on that path."

Han Wenwen was dumbfounded. This was completely different from what she’d imagined. She had assumed "working with him" meant something like being a helper at a stall he ran.

Leaning against her headboard, she tilted her head and laughed. "Are you really that amazing, Lin Zhengran? You mean I can do whatever I want, and you can help me make money doing it?"

"Mhm. That’s why I always say I’m jealous of you guys for having a friend as amazing as me."

His comment made her laugh. She hugged her knees on the bed and thought for a moment. "Well, I’ll have to think about it carefully, then. Now that you put it that way, I realize I’ve never really considered it before. I just know that making money is hard, and most people don’t really have the luxury of choosing, right?"

Lin Zhengran leaned against the headboard with her, their shoulders nearly touching.

"Let me ask a different question. Do you have any dreams? Or, what’s the one thing you want more than anything?"

"A dream?" Memories of everything that had happened, from childhood to the present, flashed before Han Wenwen’s eyes. For a moment, she didn’t know how to begin. "Actually, I do have one." She looked at Lin Zhengran with utmost sincerity.

"I’ve always wanted a real home of my own, to spend the rest of my life with the person I love... and maybe have a few little foxes with him."

Lin Zhengran slowed down mid-bite of his fried breadstick.

"Huh?"

Han Wenwen continued with a smile, "But that was just a childhood dream. I stopped thinking that way after elementary school because I figured I’d never fall in love with anyone. But now that you’ve asked, Zhengran, I think that’s still my dream."

Because it was only this year that Han Wenwen had realized she, too, could fall for someone.

Lin Zhengran met her gaze and spoke slowly. "So... what does that have to do with my question? Is that a freaking job?"

Han Wenwen looked at the clueless man before her.

She tilted her head up toward the ceiling and cupped her face in her hands, thinking hard.

"As for a job... I want one I can do without leaving the house. Since you said I could pick anything, Zhengran, then I want a job where I can make money just by playing video games all day!"

"Your dream... is pretty generic," he deadpanned.

"What, is that not allowed? The thing is, Zhengran, you see me as an extrovert, but I’m actually a huge homebody." She fiddled with her fingers. "I like to read novels, play games, and watch movies. That’s why I always say I don’t have any special skills."

Lin Zhengran asked if she had a pen and paper. Han Wenwen got her schoolbag and handed them to him.

Lin Zhengran wrote a bunch of things on the paper. Wenwen peeked and saw a list of different professions.

Lin Zhengran said, "I actually figured as much. You’d rather find all those odd jobs online—power-leveling for people in games, writing fanfiction, making fashion tutorials—but you never tried to start a business or anything in the real world. So I had a pretty good idea of what kind of work you’d prefer."

He handed her the paper. "I wrote down a few jobs you can do online to make money. See if any of them appeal to you."

Han Wenwen looked at the list, and her finger almost subconsciously pointed to one of them. "If we’re just talking about what I’d *like* to do, it’s this one. I’ve actually tried it before, but I never made any money, so I gave up."

Lin Zhengran saw the job she was pointing to. "Game streamer? I guess that really is a job where you can make money just by playing games at home."

Lin Zhengran thought it over.

"You know, that might actually be a good fit for you. After all, you don’t like going out, you love playing games, and if you were to stream, you’ve definitely got the looks and the voice for it."

He suggested, "We could start by posting some voice-dubbing videos. Once you’ve built up a bit of a following, you can start streaming live."

Wenwen eyed him. "But I’m terrible at games. I tried streaming for a few days before and discovered that nothing else matters in the gaming world. You have to be skilled, or the audience will start flaming you after a while."

Lin Zhengran stood up. "That’s not hard. I can just teach you. As it happens, my dad has a computer in his study. You get some sleep this morning, and I’ll take you over to my place this afternoon. We can get some practice in."

’Going to his house...’ Han Wenwen thought. She pretended to be less nervous than she was. "You’re so serious about this, Zhengran. But I just picked it on a whim. Can it really make money? I don’t have much spending money left."

"It’s like you said. You might not be able to do it on your own, but with me here, that’s a different story."

Wenwen looked up at him, a dazed expression on her face. Her fingers suddenly tightened on the blanket as she asked her earlier question again. "Well, since you’re so amazing, Zhengran, do you think the dream I just mentioned can come true?"

Lin Zhengran found it difficult to answer. He could only let out a long sigh. "I really don’t want to answer that, but since it’s your dream, as a good friend, I can only wish for it to come true for you soon."

Han Wenwen covered her mouth, a happy laugh escaping. She was overjoyed. "Thank you, Zhengran! It would be wonderful if that day really comes. If it does, I’ll be sure to thank you properly."