Ning Chu felt a prickling sensation at the tip of his nose, and his heart twinged slightly. He suddenly realized that this voice sounded very much like his late mother’s.

“I… probably won’t be able to make it…”

“You won’t?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Without asking why, the other side let out a cheerful laugh. “Then Mom will go traveling by herself.”

Even her personality seemed very similar.

“You don’t have money at the end of every month again, do you? Mom transferred two thousand yuan to your account; it should be enough for you to spend.”

“It’s more than enough.”

“Eat some meat and buy some fruit every day, I remember how short you are.”

Ning Chu remained silent, listening to his mother nag about the usual things: food, clothes, whether he had found a girlfriend, and his grades.

He always responded with silence, occasionally acknowledging her words.

As he recalled his mother from back then, he realized that although he felt as if he remembered her clearly, upon careful reflection, he couldn’t recall what she looked like or even what they talked about. By the time he hung up the phone, half an hour had already passed.

His expression was blank as he stood dumbly on the spot, leaning against the balcony railing, unconsciously gazing skyward. In the endless darkness, a single star shone faintly amidst the void.

Suddenly, Ning Chu realized that perhaps traveling to this world wasn’t entirely bad for him either.

“Ning Chu?”

A raspy male voice came from behind him. Without thinking, Ning Chu turned around only to see Wen Yang holding his head while leaning against the doorframe. “Why am I in the dormitory?”

“And, how come your eyes are red?”

Ning Chu quickly pulled himself together and guiltily avoided Wen Yang’s gaze. “Well.. I was passing by the food stall when I saw you drunk outside; I brought you back here on my way home.”

“What?”

Zhang Shaoqing’s desk happened to be right next to the balcony door, so he leaned back and tilted his head, calling out with astonished delight, “Oh wow! So you didn’t see Wen Yang fainting and then crying outside?”

“Fainted?” Wen Yang started.

Ning Chu’s face darkened, completely dissipating that fleeting hint of emotion from earlier. “Don’t just make stuff up! Why would I cry?!”

Zhang Shaoqing darted out of the dormitory at top speed, leaving Ning Chu fuming behind him.

Only then did Ning Chu turn around to explain to Wen Yang, “That fox girl drugged your drink, and I happened to stumble on you before she could do anything about it.”

“Drugged?” Wen Yang shuddered. “Sounds terrifying.”

In the original novel, you seemed quite pleased about it, and by the end of it, even reluctant to leave their bed.

But this kind of thing happening in reality is indeed terrifying. Moreover, Wen Yang only felt the terror of being drugged; he hadn’t yet experienced the comfort of having sex  with a mature fox girl.

“I told you not to drink.” Ning Chu crossed his arms, his voice low and threatening as he shook his head. “The world nowadays is full of treacherous people… if she took you away, who knows where you’d end up—maybe even in a black mine forced to work under dangerous conditions. Judging by your physique, you could probably replace two workers.”

“Or maybe they’d just cut out your kidneys and sell you off somewhere as a sex slave? Who knows?” Ning Chu continued mockingly.

Wen Yang’s face paled from fright, feeling his kidney ache slightly.

“Be more careful in the future!” Seeing that his words had taken effect, Ning Chu’s mood immediately lifted quite a bit. “All those girls out there are wicked!”

Wen Yang solemnly nodded, then turned to look at Ning Chu with eyes that were warmer than usual. He let out a bitter laugh and sighed, “From now on, I won’t drink alcohol outside.”

“That’s right! You can’t touch a drop of liquor or smoke a single cigarette!”

He didn’t know how to thank Ning Chu, whose worry had caused him to secretly cry on the balcony.

What a good roommate—if only Ning Chu were a girl, Wen Yang would gladly marry him!