Mr. Melancholy Wants to Live a Peaceful Life - Chap 124
EXTRA 2
The Zhen Li Studio’s livestream barrage:
[While I think the training is very hard for the guys, watching them streaming with sweat… I’m sorry, I could watch another two hours!]
[The important point is that good looking people look good no matter what they’re doing. Www, when the guys are wearing clothes, I feel like they’re very thin. It doesn’t look like they have that much meat on them. Slurp~]
[They’re just selling sex. When they get older, it’ll be too late.]
[How did these anti-fans get into the livestream? What do you mean, when they get older, it’ll be too late? Don’t you know that Yuan Luori has given up on being an idol? He tested into a nationally renowned university, and next year he’s going to be junior at my school. Covering my face.]
[And he was the number one scorer in the city. The local tutorial classes are full up. They’re saying that when Yuan Luori graduates, they’ll invite him to come teach politics.]
[Yuan Luori’s popularity has already extended outside of the idol circle! I was rewatching “Idol’s Light” the other day. When I got to the point where Yuan Luori was eliminated, my mom was angry enough to spit. Later my grandma pulled her aside and told her that Yuan Luori had better choices, so she didn’t call to complain about the production company making shady backroom deals.]
[Using a talent show to get in with fan circles, using university entrance exam scores to get in with parent and grandparent circles, using his figure and exercise to get in with straight guy circles—Yuan Luori truly is popular.]
[Quiet. Last night at the night market I saw the city’s handsomest urban management officer watching Zhen Li’s livestream during his break.]
[Let’s compare notes—are you talking about Officer Luo? Once I had too much to drink while eating at the food stalls at the night market, and he helped me get my footing. I’ve been thinking about him ever since. Ahem. I’m interested in men.]
[That’s him, the city’s handsomest urban management officer according the Xuyang District forum, with a melancholy scholar’s temperament and a face to fall in love with.]
[My Aunt Three said she was going to set me up on a blind date with a potential partner. I didn’t agree at first. After all, I just graduated, why would I be going on a blind date? And the blind date had a difficult job and didn’t make much money. Later my Aunt Three showed me his picture, and I had a look—wasn’t that Officer Luo? I agreed at once!]
[What? I have a rival in love? I’m pulling out my knife. What was the outcome of your blind date?]
[Well…it turned out my Aunt Three had gotten ahead of herself. Officer Luo didn’t have any thoughts of going on a blind date, www…I covered my face and ran. I’d already thought of how we were going to have two kids, one boy and one girl, and what we were going to name them.]
[Why doesn’t anyone mind that we’re discussing the city’s handsomest urban management officer on Zhen Li’s livestream?]
[Because they’re all handsome.]
Luo Huai, deemed “the city’s handsomest urban management officer,” was watching Zhen Li’s livestream right now. Seeing that the barrage had somehow started talking about him, a faint flush covered his face.
He had specifically requested to be an urban management officer. He liked having dealings with the city’s enthusiastic elderly men and women, liked the feeling of people seeing him and calling out, “Xiao Luo, have you eaten?”, liked being remembered.
But it was no good being remembered so much that he got brought up on the forums. And he was constantly being dragged on blind dates.
Luo Huai didn’t intend to meet a potential partner and get married. He thought it would be very hard for him to get used to the feeling of being with another person. He was afraid of excessively complicated feelings, and he was worried about not being remembered by others.
But the warm-hearted elderly men and women were too warm-hearted. They seemed very interested in seeing two attractive people they knew get married. He had been introduced to countless men and women of all different types. The only similarity was that they were all good-looking.
Luo Huai was a little vexed, but he still patiently responded to each of the elderly men and women that he wasn’t interested in finding a partner at the moment. He was too busy at work and didn’t want to waste anyone’s time.
At this point, the elderly ladies would say, How could that be? Look at Officer Xiao You. Isn’t Officer Xiao You busy? But he has a partner who knows how to take care of people. Everything in his life is smooth and precise. If you’re busy, then you especially need to find someone who likes taking care of people as much as Xiao Yu!
Hearing them say “Xiao Yu,” Luo Huai could barely restrain a laugh.
However you counted it, Yu Hua was several thousand years old. How could you call him “Xiao Yu?”
While he thought this, Luo Huai turned off the livestream on his phone and went searching for a stall in the night market. Just then, someone called, “Luo Huai, over here!”
Luo Huai came over to the seats and saw some familiar faces he hadn’t seen in a few months, all rounder than before. He stared blankly for a moment, then hesitantly said, “Have you all…gained weight?”
“Gained weight?” Cen Xiao hesitantly touched his face. “I don’t feel that. I’ve been eating like normal. My clothes have been a little tight, though. I’ve had to buy all new ones.”
Luo Huai: “…”
He had the day off, so he had arranged to meet some Protector comrades to eat at the night market, but he hadn’t wanted to see a group of pancake faces.
Luo Huai, who was particularly careful about what impression he left on others, moved his lips slightly, wanting to say something, but finally he didn’t speak.
But Lian Yufan, who arrived a beat later than him, saw the others and laughed scornfully. “Look at how fat you’ve all gotten. If this goes on, the organization won’t even want to acknowledge you.”
“Fat?” Cen Xiao touched his face. “No way, Yu Hua was just telling me how good my figure looked the other day. He invited me to eat at his house.”
“That’s right, how could we get fat?” Second underling Shi Yongfu ate a mouthful of skewer. Savoring it, he said, “All these years, no matter how much I eat, I haven’t gained weight, hahaha!”
“Exactly!” Third underling Xiao Rui proudly pinched his waist. “All my colleagues at the police bureau envy how I can eat without getting fat.”
Lian Yufan didn’t say anything. He could never wake a group of people pretending to be asleep.
He glanced at Luo Huai, nodded, and said, “Hello.”
Luo Huai froze for a moment. Then he answered, “Hello to you, too.”
Lian Yufan drained a big glass of beer in one go, hesitated, then said to Luo Huai, “I went to see my mother a few days ago.”
Luo Huai’s relaxed expression became nervous. He sipped his beer to cover up his unnatural expression.
He knew that Lian Yufan hated him. He hated his ability to snatch people’s memories, and he hated his own powerlessness.
Lian Yufan had never spoken directly to Luo Huai, but today he had not only voluntarily started a conversation, he had also mentioned the subject neither of them was willing to touch. Luo Huai was surprised, and a little glad. He considered and said, “How…is she doing?”
“Very well. She had a daughter after she remarried. The child is going to middle school this year. She’s very busy, bustling but calm.” Lian Yufan drained another glass of beer.
“Don’t drink so fast,” Luo Huai advised him. “It’ll go to your head.”
Lian Yufan said, “I requested to do security work at the middle school entrance exam testing site. I saw her at the doors of the school. I handed her a cup of water.”
Luo Huai listened quietly. Seeing that he wasn’t going to continue, he asked, “And then what?”
“And then she said ‘thank you’ and told me I was a good child.” Lian Yufan smiled faintly. “That’s enough.”
It was plenty. Hadn’t the Protectors been organized in order to protect the world belonging to countless ordinary people? Why weigh her down with too heavy a burden? It was enough that she was happy.
“I’ve let go. You should let go, too.” Lian Yufan raised a glass towards Luo Huai. “There’s no question of who’s right and who’s wrong, isn’t that right?”
Luo Huai refilled his glass, knocked it against Lian Yufan’s, and drank it down in one go.
All the unwillingness, pain, blame, and criticism were relieved by this glass of beer. They were comrades in arms. They had fought shoulder to shoulder for the sake of a goal. They had entrusted each other with their lives. What hatred needed to be remembered for so long?
When the two of them clinked glasses, Cen Xiao and the others, nibbling on skewers, noticed their action. The Protector squad went over to embrace the two of them, insisting that everyone drink together, breaking up the sentimental atmosphere.
Lian Yufan truly couldn’t stand the atmosphere of You Zhengping’s squad. He avoided Cen Xiao’s warm hug. Turning, he said, “Mind your weight and stop squashing me. Wise up!”
Cen Xiao took exception. “What are you talking about? Zhen Li probably values appearances more than anyone else, and I saw him just a few days ago. He didn’t say I was fat.”
Seeing that Cen Xiao still didn’t know what he was talking about, Lian Yufan quickly gave Zhen Li a video call. Zhen Li and the rest were doing their exercise livestream, though their livestreams had always been fairly casual. Zhen Li took advantage of Lian Yufan’s call to quickly drop the barbells he was holding and, all sweaty, pick up the video call.
Lian Yufan saw that the call had been picked up and turned the camera right towards Cen Xiao’s face.
Zhen Li had meant to say hello, but as soon as he picked up, he saw a big, round face. He was startled. “Director Lian, how did you get so fat?”
“Look more closely, is that me or Cen Xiao on camera?” Lian Yufan pinched Cen Xiao’s double chin and aimed it at the camera. “Tell the truth. Is he fat or not?”
Zhen Li: “…”
Cen Xiao looked wounded. “Zhen Li, you didn’t say I was fat before. Were you lying to me?”
Zhen Li was silent for a moment. Then he said, “…it must be that…the camera adds ten pounds.”
“That’s possible.” Cen Xiao relaxed.
Seeing that this person was going to destroy his own attractiveness, Lian Yufan couldn’t be bothered to say anything. He was just about to turn off the video call when he saw Luo Huai quietly put his phone in front of Cen Xiao’s eyes.
Someone had linked Zhen Li’s phone camera to the livestream picture. The livestream barrage was saying—
[Fat!]
[So fat!]
[That big double chin! Take it away, take it away! Get rid of the picture, I want to see Beauty Zhen!]
Cen Xiao lost his temper at once. “Who did that!”
“Me.” The video shook. Someone had taken Zhen Li’s phone. Yu Hua’s increasingly photogenic face appeared.
Seeing Yu Hua, everyone immediately fell silent. Cen Xiao asked, “Don’t you not work overtime? Why are you still at the studio at 9 PM?”
“Xiao You was taking a walk with me today, so I came to the studio to train a bit,” Yu Hua said with a trace of satisfaction.
After all, this was his territory. Nothing could be better than Xiao You coming to inspect the work of the slaves.
Since people had bluntly brought up the topic of weight, Zhen Li was forced to tell the truth. “Officer Cen, you…you’ve all really put on weight.”
After losing their powers and becoming ordinary people, some people had adjusted as fast as possible, while others still hadn’t adapted.
Seeing everyone saying he was fat, Cen Xiao furiously said, “Come on, what are you still eating for?! We’re going to Zhen Li’s studio to exercise! There’s exercise equipment there.”
“In losing weight, the important thing is to mind your food intake and stay active. You can exercise anywhere. Why do you need to go interrupt their livestream?” Lian Yufan said.
“Yu Hua took Captain You to the studio to exercise, didn’t he? If they’re losing weight together, how can they leave me out?” Cen Xiao said angrily. “Do they think I’m in the way? I’ll show them being in the way!”
He could be glaringly in the way with his special ability, and he could still be glaringly in the way without it!
They instantly got a taxi and went to the studio, leaving Luo Huai alone to settle the bill.
Luo Huai went up to the stall owner, but the stall owner shook his hand and said, “Xiao Luo, you don’t need to pay to eat here. If I take your money, my mom will beat me. You can eat on the strength of your face.”
“On the strength of my face?” Luo Huai touched his face. He was a little bit pleased, but he still had to pay. Seeing that the owner wouldn’t say exactly how much money it was, he calculated, forced a few hundreds on him, and ran.
Luo Huai got in the last taxi in time and went to exercise at the studio with the others.
When he walked into the office building, he saw Junjun leading Director Ha. Junjun saw Luo Huai and instantly saluted. “Luo-gege, I remember you this time!”
Luo Huai smiled in gratification. “Are you…”
“I came to exercise with Xiao Ha, and now Xiao Ha is taking me home,” Junjun said. “It’s late, I have to go home to sleep. Bye, Luo-gege!”
Luo Huai watched Junjun and Xiao Ha’s figures recede, then went to the office’s gym. He saw Cen Xiao and the others suffering through exercise under Yu Hua’s scorn.
“I-I used to be able to burn up this many calories with a single fireball!” Cen Xiao was half dead from running, gasping for breath.
The other members of the squad were also wailing in agony. Before, they could eat anything they wanted. It was too hard to give up good food now.
“But don’t you have to be prepared to do battle at any time?” said Huan Zixu, who always had a sense of danger. “You’ve lost your powers now because the world law thinks it’s safe. That’s why it took back everyone’s abilities. But if one day, a new threat arrives in this world, if you’re all still so fat, will you still be able to pick up your guns?”
Huan Zixu’s words were a more dire blow than Yu Hua’s mockery.
The Protectors found that their bodies, which before could have been compared to those of special forces, were far inferior now. They instantly threw themselves into exercising.
Perhaps the rest of their lives could go smoothly, or perhaps not long in the future, they would encounter a new threat.
When that time came, the stingy human resources director, the patrolman Xiao You, the internet celebrity boss, the legal studies scholar, the super fast husky, the marketing demon, the simple and honest bodyguard, the police dog trainer, the most handsome urban management officer, and all the rest, would once again take up their weapons and fight for the sake of everyone’s peaceful lives, leaving behind another legend.
