Chapter 14 Gratitude of an Ungrateful Female Lead 14 – The Trouble with Humblebragging

When the editor contacted Zhou He, they did not beat around the bush. They got straight to the point and, in recognition of the chapters she had already published on the site, invited her to become a contracted author.

A contract? That was a turn of events she had not expected at all.

After reading the contract carefully, she found that it would not affect her regular job in any way, nor would it have any negative consequences. After thinking it over again and again, she agreed to sign it. If she was lucky enough to make some money, then treating it as a side job and earning a little extra to help with household expenses would not be bad either.

She was not the same person she had once been anymore. After all, that new apartment was registered under her name, at least on paper, which meant she was now someone with a mortgage on her back. Even though, every month when it came time to pay it, Xie Qingjia transferred the money to her first, and then she paid the bank herself.

Everything was moving in a good direction. Zhou He now felt that she was practically the textbook definition of a winner in life.

Her job was settled.

The pay was only average, but it was stable, and it came with a certain social standing, which was respectable enough.

She had a side job too.

Even though it had not started making money yet, it helped her pass the time and let her realize her own value in a different way. At the very least, it made her very happy.

Her husband was settled too.

Love was flourishing, and in every possible sense, he doted on her and treated her well.

She had a house.

The monthly payment was not too high. Even if Xie Qingjia were to lose his job later on, her own salary would still be more than enough to cover it.

The car was settled too.

Her husband doubled as her chauffeur, and it could not be safer.

In Fang Ya’s words: it was enough to make anyone cry with envy.

For most students about to graduate, the future was still uncertain, and their prospects were unclear. Everything was filled with uncertainty.

But Zhou He, at this moment, was overflowing with a sense of security.

Resting her chin on her hand, Zhou He let out a long sigh. “Sigh, you wouldn’t understand…”

She had her own troubles too, okay?

“The way you’re humblebragging right now really makes me want to hit you.”

And Fang Ya did exactly that, reaching out and kneading Zhou He’s enviably pretty little face, bare of makeup yet still rosy, fair, and delicate.

“Let go of me, you evil woman.”

Only after the two of them had fooled around for a while did Fang Ya ask, “Alright then, Princess Xiao He, may I ask what exactly your trouble is? Too many dresses and you don’t know which one to wear? Or is your boyfriend too in love with you and you feel like you don’t have enough personal space?”

“Stop messing around. I’m being serious.”

Zhou He’s recent worry was simple in one way and complicated in another.

She and Xie Qingjia still had not become intimate.

Back then, when she still had reservations in her heart, it was understandable that the two of them had not been close. But over the past few months, the temperature of their relationship had shot up in a straight line. They kissed and hugged more often, and they often slept in the same bed. Many times, she could clearly sense his desire, yet in the end, nothing ever happened.

In the end, she summed it up like this: “So tell me, do you think he has some kind of problem in that department?”

Fang Ya had never imagined that the trouble her roommate was talking about would be this. She blinked at Zhou He.

Zhou He gazed back at her gloomily.

Alright, this really did seem like something worth worrying about.

“If he’s not some kind of superhuman ninja turtle¹, then yeah, there’s definitely a problem.”

Fang Ya was a fine young woman devoted to her studies, and she had not exactly had any firsthand experience either.

But with all the novels she had read, she confidently declared that while she had never eaten pork, she had seen plenty of pigs run².

Fang Ya began seriously offering Zhou He advice, with one daring to make wild suggestions and the other daring to listen to them. The atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious.

“It’s still not confirmed whether there’s really a problem, and it wouldn’t be good for you to bring up treatment directly and hurt his pride. It’s better to find an opportunity to confirm it first.”

In the end, the plan they came up with was this: pick a day for a date, and while they were out, Zhou He would take the initiative and casually flirt with Xie Qingjia. After enough times, once he was pushed to his limit, he definitely would not be able to hold back after they got home. Then Zhou He could test it personally and get her answer.

It sounded like a pretty good idea.

Zhou He was the type to act fast. She liked to finish today’s business today. Once she made up her mind, she wanted to put it into action immediately.

On Xie Qingjia’s side, he had already submitted his resignation and was only waiting for the time to come so he could return.

Their apartment was also more or less done with the soft furnishings³, and whenever Zhou He had nothing to do, she liked wandering around home furnishing malls, picking out little things she liked and adding them to the place.

That day, when Xie Qingjia came back, Zhou He decided to carry out the plan then. The key was catching him off guard, plus there was the added magic of a brief separation making a reunion sweeter than newlyweds.

She got up early that morning and carefully dressed herself up, then went to the high-speed rail station to pick him up, bringing a huge bouquet of flowers with her.

She had not told him in advance. Standing at the arrival exit with the bouquet in her arms, she was afraid of missing him, so she kept her eyes fixed without blinking, trying to spot the person she wanted to see in the crowd.

Xie Qingjia was far too easy to recognize.

He was tall, handsome, and walked with brisk, decisive strides. He really stood out from the crowd.

Zhou He spotted him and waved at him, calling out brightly, “Xie Qingjia!”

The man whose expression had been cool and indifferent turned toward the sound of her voice, and his face instantly softened. His eyes could only be described as delighted.

Without pausing for even a moment, he hurried toward her.

Zhou He greeted him with a big koala-style hug.

She could feel that Xie Qingjia was genuinely happy. Right there in full view of everyone, he lifted her up. She could even feel the faint vibration in his chest when he laughed.

“Why did you come?”

“Because I missed you, and I couldn’t wait another second to come pick you up and take you home.” Zhou He confessed openly.

Zhou He handed him the flowers.

“For me?”

“Who else would they be for?”

Holding the bouquet, Xie Qingjia grinned from ear to ear.

Hah, so men were pretty happy to receive flowers too. Her boyfriend was seriously so easy to please.

People were coming and going through the station, and plenty of them were looking their way.

But so what? Happiness was not afraid of being watched. If anything, it might even make the onlookers smile too.

Zhou He took Xie Qingjia out for a meal at a restaurant she had booked in advance. Fortunately, his luggage had already been shipped back ahead of time, so all he had on him now was a bag, which made things very convenient.

After they arrived at the restaurant, Xie Qingjia went in first to order while she went to the restroom. When she came back, she saw him sitting there quietly waiting. He was not playing with his phone, nor was he looking around.

Zhou He suddenly had an idea and walked over with a graceful sway of her waist.

“Handsome, eating alone?”

Xie Qingjia froze for a moment, and amusement spilled into his eyes.

“Mm.”

“What a coincidence, I’m alone too. Would I have the honor of sharing a table with you?”

“Mm.”

Zhou He rolled her eyes inwardly. This blockhead only knew how to go “mm, mm, mm.” Even the waiter setting down dishes beside them had a livelier expression than he did, though the waiter was probably gossiping like crazy inside.

After sitting down, she put on a look of surprise and asked, “Oh my, you’re wearing a ring. Are you married? If we eat together like this, your wife won’t get mad, will she?”

As she said this, the tip of her foot lightly brushed against his calf beneath the tablecloth.

Perhaps he was too shocked, because while drinking water, he suddenly choked and coughed for quite a while.

Zhou He looked back at him with an innocent expression.

Alright then, he was way too easy to tease. For the sake of his stomach, she had better not tease him while he was eating.

Zhou He poked at her bowl in boredom, while Xie Qingjia kept glancing up at her from time to time.

What was that supposed to mean?

Even when she asked him, he would not say.

Undeterred, Zhou He moved on to the next item on the agenda.

She took him to a movie. There just happened to be a suspense romance film with especially good reviews out recently.

After buying some fries, she insisted on having Xie Qingjia hold them.

And every time she took a fry, she would brush his leg as if by accident. In the end, she even pretended to get absorbed in the movie while reaching for one and forgot to take her hand back, leaving it resting directly on his leg.

Was it working? Zhou He thought it was.

In the movie theater, where the air conditioning was running full blast, she could feel the skin under her palm giving off heat.

She moved her hand slightly and placed it directly on his waist and lower abdomen. To keep it from slipping off, she loosely hooked her fingers around his belt buckle.

The movie had reached the most intense part of the plot, the moment when the biggest mystery was revealed. Zhou He was caught off guard too, and in her nervousness her hand tightened. With a click, she actually undid Xie Qingjia’s belt buckle…

Zhou He instantly sat up straight. She definitely hadn’t meant to go this far. She didn’t even dare turn her head to look at the person beside her.

Xie Qingjia, who had been indulging all her nonsense the whole time, finally moved. He enclosed her troublemaking hand in his large palm to restrain it, while his other hand refastened the belt buckle one-handed.

Zhou He was blushing so hard she was burning up. She didn’t even have the attention to spare for what the movie’s ending was about.

When the movie ended, Xie Qingjia took her, whose gaze didn’t dare wander, and headed home.

Who knew what he was thinking. He just held her hand and walked forward in silence without saying a word.

As they walked, Zhou He felt a little deflated.

That was it, they were just going home? But her plan didn’t seem to be going very smoothly.

Had she managed to flirt with him? The person being flirted with didn’t seem to have any reaction at all.

Then she felt annoyed with herself. Why was she even doing all this for no reason? Wouldn’t simple, direct communication have been much more efficient?

Did Xie Qingjia think she’d been acting like a lunatic all day?

Thinking that, they soon arrived home. By the time they entered the elevator in their apartment building, they were just about to reach their front door. Zhou He decided to make one last effort.

“Hubby~” she called out sweetly.

Xie Qingjia actually took a moment to realize she was calling him. Mainly because there were only the two of them in the elevator.

He stared at Zhou He in astonishment, thinking he’d heard wrong.

When Zhou He saw him look over, she softly repeated, “Hubby~”

It was light, soft, sweet and meltingly tender.

While he was still stunned, she rose onto her tiptoes and kissed him on the lips, then quickly lowered her head and refused to look at him.

Even though her eyes were fixed on the tips of her shoes, she couldn’t see anything. Her ears, however, dutifully listened for the reaction and any movement from the person beside her.

It seemed like… nothing happened? Even the hand holding his didn’t tighten around hers.

“Ding…”

The elevator doors opened.

Xie Qingjia led her out by the hand, his pace a little fast. Trailing behind him, she nearly couldn’t keep up.

Had her crazy behavior finally driven him mad? And now he was angry?

Ah… regret.

Zhou He looked utterly dejected.

It seemed she really didn’t possess the natural flirting skills Fang Ya claimed every girl was born with.

The door opened, and she went in with her head lowered.

“It’s so hot. I’m all sweaty. I’m going to take a shower.” Tossing out that line, she was about to run inside.

She really had no idea how to face Xie Qingjia right now. Ugh, this was too embarrassing.

But then her wrist was caught and she was pulled back. Her back hit the wall, the light that had just been switched on went dark again, and in the entryway only the half-open shoe cabinet and the faint light from the door gave off a dim glow.

Xie Qingjia pinned her there and asked in a hoarse voice, “You did it on purpose, didn’t you? Hmm?”

Before she could answer, the hand he was holding was guided somewhere else.

Her fingertips touched the cold metal and engraved texture, and she immediately realized what it was. Xie Qingjia’s belt buckle.

At that moment, the man trapping her there said, “You can play with this all you want once we’re home. When we’re outside, be good, alright?”

Translator’s Notes