SWTHTC - 30

Chapter 30: “Good Night”

“Are you there?”

Before Hou Zihao typed those two words in just two seconds, he had spent two hours sorting through his emotions and an entire day hesitating over whether or not to send her a message.

He considered many things—would she find it annoying if he reached out? What time would be most convenient for her to reply? What should they talk about? These thoughts were so easy to overthink, so he ended up spending the whole day cooped up in his room. When Aunt Ding called him down for dinner, he didn’t even go.

By 9 PM, he finally sent those two words and then began the long wait.

Waiting was excruciating, but it also carried a subtle sweetness. He was tormented by these conflicting feelings for a while before finally trying to distract himself with his physics homework.

Ping.

She replied.

He immediately put down his pen and picked up his phone. Her reply was simple:

“Mm.”

The system showed her response time as 9:53 PM, while his message had been sent at 9:51 PM.

...So that seemingly endless wait had only lasted two minutes.

Hou Zihao chuckled, shaking his head at how ridiculous he was being. After a moment of thought, he typed a few more words: What are you doing?

“What are you doing?”

This was a subtle question, seemingly meaningless, yet it conveyed something deeper: someone was thinking about you.

Zhou Leqi couldn’t fully grasp this nuance, but she could faintly sense the delicate atmosphere and felt her heart flutter slightly.

She wasn’t sure if she’d been waiting for him to contact her—perhaps she had. Otherwise, why would she have given him her number that day, and why would she have asked Yu Qing for her phone today?

She realized she was doing things outside her usual plans.

Taking a deep breath, she replied: Resting.

He didn’t keep her waiting and responded quickly: Oh, what do you do when you’re resting?

Though they weren’t face-to-face, Zhou Leqi could almost picture Hou Zihao’s expression as he said this—cool, nonchalant, a little clingy, and a little… handsome.

She bit her lip and replied: Just scrolling on my phone.

He replied instantly: What time do you usually sleep?

It was as if he was asking how much longer they could chat.

Zhou Leqi hesitated before replying: Depends on my mood.

This slightly playful response made Hou Zihao chuckle on the other end. After a moment, he typed: So, how’s your mood today?

The use of “you” amused Zhou Leqi. A random image of a large German Shepherd popped into her mind, circling her and wagging its tail affectionately.

She stifled a laugh and replied: Not bad.

A joyful atmosphere wafted around both of them. Even though they weren’t together, it felt like they were sharing the same mood.

He asked: Are you going anywhere during the holiday?

She replied: Probably not.

He pressed: Probably?

She didn’t respond, so he followed up: You’re not leaving the house for seven days?

She: I’ll definitely go out—at least to the supermarket.

He: Oh.

He: When are you going? Which supermarket?

On her end, Zhou Leqi laughed silently.

She didn’t realize she was laughing, but she truly was—her tiny fangs peeked out, and her beautiful big eyes curved into crescents.

She: I always go with my mom.

After sending this, there was silence from the other side for over ten seconds. She thought he might have given up, but then, after another ten seconds, he replied: Then I’ll pretend to bump into you?

Two seconds later, he added: Or maybe I can just say hello to your mom?

Zhou Leqi couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Yu Qing, who was preparing to rest in her room, heard her laughter and poked her head out to ask, “Qiqi?”

Startled, Zhou Leqi quickly suppressed her laughter, instinctively closing the messaging app and pretending nothing happened. She told Yu Qing, “N-nothing, I just saw a funny joke.”

Seeing her daughter in good spirits, Yu Qing was in a cheerful mood herself. She replied, “Mom’s going to bed. You should rest early too, don’t stay up too late.”

Zhou Leqi nodded in agreement.

Once Yu Qing went back into her room, Zhou Leqi waited a little longer before daring to reopen her phone. By now, several minutes had passed since her last message, and Hou Zihao had already sent several more.

He: Are you mad?

He: ? Are you really mad?

He: I won’t come see you if you’re mad, okay?

Zhou Leqi: “….”

This guy… Why does he always think she’s mad?

She replied: I’m not mad, I just couldn’t reply earlier.

On his end, Hou Zihao had been anxiously waiting for her reply. Now that he knew she wasn’t mad, he perked up again and teased: So I can still come see you, right?

Silently, Zhou Leqi laughed on her end and replied: Of course not.

He: Why not?

She: No reason.

He: Can you give me a better explanation?

He: If I meet your mom, I’ll behave well. If I don’t, I’m a dog, okay?

She: You’re already a dog.

He: ?

Looking at the “?” he sent, Zhou Leqi laughed even harder.

Her mood continued to improve.

She didn’t know why she felt so happy at this moment. After seeing her old high school group chat earlier, she had felt a bit melancholic, and Pei Qiming’s message had weighed on her mind. But once Hou Zihao started texting, everything seemed lighter.

Even without seeing him, she already felt happy.

They didn’t have much to talk about, yet they exchanged messages back and forth for nearly an hour. The conversation was filled with trivial nonsense, and Zhou Leqi didn’t notice how quickly time flew. When she finally snapped out of it, it was almost 11 PM.

She felt absurd and a little panicked, so she decided to bid him farewell first.

She: It’s late. I’m going to sleep. Good night.

This farewell was a bit rushed and abrupt, but the “good night” at the end felt particularly tender. When Hou Zihao read it, his heart softened.

If they became lovers… would they say good night to each other every day?

How many times would they say it? Assuming they got together tomorrow and lived to be a hundred, they’d have at least 82 years left. With 365 days in a year, that meant 29,930 opportunities.

They’d said it once today, leaving 29,929 more.

To extrapolate so much from a simple “good night” was perhaps the most exaggerated overinterpretation in human history—more absurd than the reading comprehension questions on the college entrance exam. Hou Zihao chuckled at himself, but his expression remained serious as he replied to her with all the tenderness he could muster, unseen by her.

He: Alright, good night.

Have sweet dreams.

As it turned out, dogs were enthusiastic and clingy creatures—even a cool German Shepherd could be a sticky little thing.

Zhou Leqi now received texts from Hou Zihao every day.

In the first few days of the National Day holiday, he had been relatively restrained, only messaging her in the evenings. Later, he grew bolder and started texting during the day too. Sometimes he’d ask what she was doing; sometimes he’d pretend he didn’t understand a problem; other times, he’d act like he forgot the homework and ask her to tell him.

...It was ridiculous.

Even more ridiculous was Zhou Leqi herself. She didn’t find him annoying at all. Sometimes, even when she knew he was deliberately making small talk, she’d still reply. On the sixth day, when he didn’t text her, she even felt a little down.

She hadn’t received a message during the day, which already felt strange. When he didn’t contact her by evening either, she felt even more uneasy—not angry or sad, just… hard to explain.

It was like a child expecting to eat a sweet candy but not getting it. Though it didn’t matter that much, it still left her feeling a little unhappy.

But Hou Zihao hadn’t intentionally ignored her. On the sixth, his family had some matters to attend to, and he simply hadn’t found the chance to chat with her.

Su Ruini was a true powerhouse—a slender, beautiful Southern woman who single-handedly ran a massive real estate company. Her net worth was estimated in the billions, with projects all over the country. She was a hands-on, strong-willed individual, which naturally made her work even more exhausting. Fortunately, the real estate business had been booming in previous years, giving her a solid foundation to weather the recent tightening of policies.

Still, the business world was ever-changing, and networking was crucial. Su Ruini had close friends who had helped her when she was just starting out. She was sentimental and grateful, and after more than a decade, she remained close with them. Now that her friends had also married and started families, the two households naturally maintained a friendly relationship, occasionally gathering for meals.

On the sixth of this month, Su Ruini had finally wrapped up her company affairs, and coincidentally, Hou Feng was off work. The family arranged to dine with their friends.

The venue was a private club owned by Su Ruini’s friend. When they arrived, the host was already there. The elegantly decorated, spacious private dining room was brightly lit, and three people were already seated at the large round table: a middle-aged man in his forties, Yuan Jianxin; a slightly plump woman in her forties, Zhang Min; and a familiar face—Yuan Jiahui.

As soon as they saw the Hou family, they joyfully stood up to greet them with handshakes, hugs, and warm hellos. The atmosphere was indeed familiar and harmonious. Both families’ children politely greeted the elders, but between themselves, there was a subtle distance—an unspoken estrangement.

This estrangement was understandable. Less than a month ago, Yuan Jiahui had confessed her feelings to Hou Zihao, only to be rejected. Later, driven by jealousy, she reported him and Zhou Leqi to Teacher Pan, thoroughly offending him. Though Hou Zihao hadn’t outwardly expressed his anger, Yuan Jiahui knew he was truly upset. Their relationship had completely frozen, and they hadn’t spoken at school for a long time.

But this was a family gathering, so neither of them could make their strained relationship too obvious. On the surface, they exchanged greetings as usual, though the atmosphere was far from natural—especially for Yuan Jiahui, who felt so uncomfortable she didn’t dare look Hou Zihao in the eye.

However, no matter how cleverly children tried to hide their feelings, adults could easily see through it. For instance, Zhang Min quickly noticed her daughter’s unease. But at this moment, she couldn’t bring it up. Instead, she complimented Su Ruini on her figure and complexion while warmly saying, “Don’t stand anymore, everyone sit, sit!”

________________________________________

Author’s Note:

Right now, Hou Zihao is probably the only one who hasn’t realized he’s a dog. Sigh.

P.S.: The setup for this story is pretty much complete here. There was a small hint earlier about Yuan Jiahui’s family—when Su Ruini mentioned “President Yuan” during a phone meeting. Sorry, I know I love foreshadowing, but I’ve really been trying to restrain myself! This book isn’t as excessive as Wind Lotus, right?