Chapter 396 - 204: Nothing Happened
Chapter 396: Chapter 204: Nothing Happened
On the other end of the line, before Li Zhi’s voice—which had shot up an octave in a shriek of pure, tail-stepped-on mortification—could even fade, the phone screen abruptly went black.
The "call ended" tone was cold and brief.
Under the bright lights of the living room, Xu Chan remained frozen with the phone to her ear. The smile and lingering concern on her face instantly solidified, then dissolved into a state of stunned emptiness.
She stared at the instantly darkened screen, the echo of that "Mom!" seeming to still ring in her ears, but all the screen showed was the reflection of her own bewildered face.
Finally, all her emotions melted into a long, deeply helpless sigh that escaped her lips.
She slowly lowered her slightly stiff arm and shook her head at the black screen, unsure whether to laugh or cry.
Sitting on the sofa nearby, Old Li, who was leisurely holding a teacup, had witnessed the entire lightning-fast hang-up.
Seeing his wife’s dumbstruck expression, he couldn’t hold it in any longer. A series of low, gloating chuckles rumbled in his throat.
He set down his teacup and slapped his own sturdy thigh.
"HAHAHAHA!" The laughter finally burst out, ringing out with particular clarity in the quiet living room.
"See? See?" Old Li laughed so hard that crow’s feet appeared at the corners of his eyes. "What did I tell you? That call was a total waste! Don’t even think about trying to ’check up’ on them."
He leaned forward and gave Xu Chan a teasing wink. "And what good would it do even if you did find something out now? They aren’t coming back until tomorrow."
Xu Chan shot Old Li an annoyed glare. "That’s your daughter, you know! Aren’t you worried at all?"
Hearing this, Old Li let out a long sigh. "Of course I’m worried, but I trust that kid, Shen Yuan. Besides, our daughter is thinking about homework even while she’s on vacation. What do you think that kid Shen Yuan is doing right now?"
Xu Chan blinked, then replied with a helpless tone, "Probably doing his homework, too."
Old Li laughed. "What else? You think he’d dare disobey Zhizhi?"
Xu Chan shot Old Li another annoyed glare, but amidst her exasperation, a soft, resigned smile still managed to peek through.
She glanced down at the silent phone screen one more time before gently placing it on the coffee table and muttering, "That little rascal..."
...
Outside the hotel room, Shen Yuan’s back was pressed tightly against the cool wood of the door, his ear practically glued to it.
From inside, Li Zhi’s mortified and indignant cry of "Mooooom—!!" had been crystal clear.
Immediately after, the room fell silent.
Shen Yuan: (⊙_⊙)...
He held his breath and pressed against the door again, listening for a few more seconds.
The room was eerily quiet.
There was no sound of a phone call, nor any muttering from Li Zhi, whether in complaint or relief.
’After surviving that life-or-death-speed inspection from her mom, Li Zhi should be breathing a sigh of relief right now. Why would she suddenly go silent?’
"Li Bao?" Shen Yuan called out tentatively, keeping his voice low as he spoke toward the crack of the door.
No response.
He raised his voice slightly. "Li Zhi? Are you okay?"
...Still, dead silence.
The cold sweat that had broken out from dodging the parental inspection hadn’t even dried yet, but now a new sense of unease was quietly creeping up his spine.
’The call had ended so abruptly, and Li Zhi’s voice sounded so agitated and angry at the end...’
’Could it be that Auntie Xu Chan said something harsh to her through the phone, and now she’s hiding in the room, sulking by herself?’
’No, I have to go in and check on her!’
No longer hesitating, Shen Yuan fished the spare key card for the room out of his pocket.
When they had checked in, Shen Yuan had made a point to get a spare, just in case.
Of course, it was mainly to prevent himself from getting locked out.
With his fingers on the doorknob, he could almost feel his own thumping heartbeat, amplified countless times in the silent corridor.
"BEEP—"
With a soft click, the lock disengaged.
Shen Yuan took a deep breath and, filled with worry and urgency, abruptly pushed the door open!
The bright light from within the room instantly spilled out.
Shen Yuan’s gaze swept anxiously across the entire space.
Li Zhi was sitting perfectly upright on the sofa in the center of the room.
Her posture was ramrod straight, her hands placed on her knees. Her face was still flushed, and her eyes were fixed directly on the entryway—or more precisely, on Shen Yuan, who had just walked in.
The moment Shen Yuan’s left foot crossed the threshold, before he’d even had a chance to step all the way inside, while he was still standing in the entryway...
Li Zhi suddenly lunged forward, snatched a throw pillow from the sofa beside her, and with all her might, hurled it viciously at the familiar yet detestable face in the doorway!
"THWUMP!"
"...ASSHOLE!!!"
The soft pillow landed squarely on Shen Yuan’s face, bringing with it a gust of wind and his own utter, uncomprehending shock.
"Oof!"
The impact knocked Shen Yuan’s head back. He instinctively grabbed the weapon, his face burning—not from pain, but from the sheer shock of the ambush and the profound injustice of it all.
He stood frozen in the entryway, hair slightly disheveled from the impact, clutching the throw pillow.
Li Zhi’s chest was still heaving slightly. She glared at him fiercely, her cheeks as red as ripe apples, lips pressed into a thin line, her anger clearly not yet spent.
The air seemed to freeze for several seconds.
Shen Yuan looked at Li Zhi’s expression—a mixture of shame and fury, as if she were about to lunge at him and kill him the next second. All the words he wanted to say, all his defenses and questions, dissolved into nothing before that glare.