Rebirth: Saving the Lovely Girl from the Start

Chapter 234: Chapter 232: Don’t Dare to Use a Nickname

"I’m on the landlord’s team," Lin Ruoxi whispered.

"What kind of world is this? The landlords are teaming up. How are the peasants supposed to win?" Yu Minlan complained.

"This is just the beginning. I haven’t even planted a mole yet," Xue Rui said with a smile.

"I’m going to go easy on Xue Rui," Lin Ruoxi said, smiling.

Yu Minlan had said she wasn’t afraid of Lin Ruoxi throwing the game for him, so that’s exactly what she did.

After saying that, Lin Ruoxi played a single 3.

Xue Rui chuckled. "A 6!"

Yu Minlan covered her face. Xue Rui had played the 6 with the swagger of a rocket.

The young woman shook her head. "Pass."

Xue Rui thought for a moment. He had a terrible hand, and Yu Minlan only had one card left.

"Do you need a 3?" Xue Rui furtively showed his cards to the young woman.

"Mm, Sister Yu’s last card is a 3, so she can’t play," Lin Ruoxi whispered.

Yu Minlan’s expression soured. Lin Ruoxi had figured out her hand, too.

Xue Rui understood instantly. Yu Minlan really did only have a single 3 left. He threw down his card. "A lousy little 3, huh? Then I win."

"Mhm, you won." The corners of Lin Ruoxi’s eyes crinkled into a smile. If she let Xue Rui win, he would be happy.

And that made her happy, too.

Xue Rui picked up a slip of paper, dipped it in a nearby cup of water, and stuck it onto Yu Minlan’s already-covered face.

The young woman had a few slips of paper on her face as well.

Just as he was about to dip another one, he accidentally knocked the disposable paper cup of water into the trash can.

Seeing Xue Rui holding the slip of paper at a loss, the young woman grabbed his hand, licked the paper, and then had Xue Rui stick it to her own forehead.

Xue Rui froze for a second. ’This girl really doesn’t care about her image. Her actions don’t match her cool, aloof expression at all.’

’And that little tongue... it looked so soft. I really want to pinch it.’

"Stick it out and let me pinch it," Xue Rui said.

Lin Ruoxi obediently stuck her tongue out, her big eyes looking straight at Xue Rui as if trying to be cute.

Xue Rui looked at his own greasy hands from handling the playing cards. It was far too unhygienic. He said, "I’m going to take a shower first. I’ll pinch it when I get out."

After Xue Rui left, the sound of the shower soon started up from the bathroom.

’Using her own spit to stick on a slip of paper... Lin Ruoxi is a lost cause,’ Yu Minlan thought.

’If Xue Rui sold her, she’d probably help him wet his fingers to make counting the money easier.’

"You know, Ruoxi, you’ll lose all your friends if you keep playing cards like that," Yu Minlan sighed.

Lin Ruoxi had completely given up her social circle. It was as if Xue Rui was the only person in her life. Even her friendship with Yu Minlan had been specifically vetted by Xue Rui. Essentially, Lin Ruoxi was her sugar mama.

"I don’t need friends. All I need is Xue Rui," Lin Ruoxi said, staring blankly in the direction of the bathroom.

"Are you going to keep spoiling him like this in the future?" Yu Minlan asked with a smile.

"Mhm, the internet says that to love someone is to show them favoritism," Lin Ruoxi said seriously.

"You learned all this from the internet?" Yu Minlan frowned. She suddenly felt the urge to open another beer.

Lin Ruoxi slowly shook her head. "Back when we were in school, Xue Rui would give other people one piece of chocolate, but he’d give me two."

She had just met Xue Rui back then, and it was the first time she had ever experienced what it felt like to be someone’s favorite.

She knew it wasn’t fair, but the feeling was just so wonderful.

Who doesn’t like being favored? The young woman simply wanted to give her everything to Xue Rui.

Yu Minlan’s eyes filled with envy. Although their interactions were simple, every detail was dripping with sweet public displays of affection.

She wished she could meet someone like Xue Rui, too—though preferably one who wasn’t two-timing.

She tilted her head and looked at Lin Ruoxi. The girl was so beautiful it was impossible to even feel jealous of her.

’You’ve given him your everything, but Xue Rui’s love is split in two.’

But whether for her own benefit or for Lin Ruoxi’s sake, she couldn’t bring herself to expose the truth.

A question lingered in Yu Minlan’s mind: did Lin Ruoxi actually know about Gu Muxue?

Lin Ruoxi might be a bit slow, but surely she couldn’t be the only one left in the dark when everyone else already knew, right?

’Does she really not know? Or does she not *want* to know?’

She suddenly recalled Lin Ruoxi saying she didn’t need friends. After steeling herself for a moment, she mimicked the playfully passive-aggressive tone of an old roommate. "Aww~ So if my dear Ruoxi says she doesn’t need friends, does that mean I’m disposable? Suddenly, I’m so hurt."

The young woman’s expression froze, and she frantically waved her hands. "No, no, no... That’s not what I meant."

Yu Minlan suddenly understood Xue Rui. Teasing Lin Ruoxi really was a lot of fun. "Then call me ’Sister,’ and I’ll forgive you."

"Sister," Lin Ruoxi said.

"Not sweet enough. You have to say it coaxingly."

"Coaxingly?"

"Siiis-ter~" Yu Minlan pinched her voice, demonstrating for Lin Ruoxi with a coy little squirm.

"Siiis-ter~" Lin Ruoxi copied her, her voice coming out sweet and crisp.

"Nope, that’s not right."

...

Just then, Xue Rui had finished his shower. He looked down, unable to find a bath towel anywhere. The moment he opened the bathroom door, he heard a series of seductive-sounding cries from the living room.

Xue Rui’s brow furrowed. "What kind of demon is that? What’s with all that damn noise?"

"Ahem, ahem~" Yu Minlan, who had been pinching her voice to sound cute, was startled by Xue Rui’s shout and broke into a coughing fit.

"Lin Ruoxi, bring me a bath towel," Xue Rui yelled.

"Coming!" Lin Ruoxi’s ears perked up, and she sprang into action the moment she heard Xue Rui call her name.

She dug Xue Rui’s bath towel out of a suitcase and trotted in the direction of his voice.

Xue Rui was still standing nonchalantly in the doorway. When he heard the FLIP-FLOP-FLIP-FLOP of slippers, he suddenly felt a little awkward.

Because the young woman was a bit slow on the uptake, there weren’t many situations that made her feel shy. In a situation like this, where he was the one being seen, she never shied away and would just hand him things openly.

This, in turn, made his own face flush, and he quickly ducked behind the door.

Lin Ruoxi stood obediently in front of the door, extending her slender arm to pass the towel inside.

Xue Rui’s gaze passed through the translucent frosted glass, and he saw that the young woman was still standing right outside the door. ’What’s this girl planning?’ he wondered.

"What are you waiting for at the door?" Xue Rui asked casually.

"To dry your hair," Lin Ruoxi said.

"Then wait for me outside," Xue Rui said.

Lin Ruoxi said meekly, "I am at the door... I didn’t go in."

Xue Rui paused, the towel in his hand. ’What kind of scumbag line is that?’

"I meant in the living room."

...

Yu Minlan was cracking sunflower seeds on the sofa when a question suddenly occurred to her. Xue Rui called Gu Muxue by her first name, but he actually called Lin Ruoxi by her full name.

Seeing Lin Ruoxi come back out after giving Xue Rui the towel, she asked, "Why does Xue Rui call you by your full name? It feels so distant, like you’re strangers."

She believed that people who were close should use nicknames. What kind of couple called each other by their full names?

Thinking back, she realized Lin Ruoxi also called Xue Rui by his full name.

That was another strange thing about those two.

Lin Ruoxi thought of Xue Rui calling her "Xixi"...

The young woman’s face flushed red, her gaze grew flustered, and she even let out a silly little laugh.

Yu Minlan was baffled. ’You didn’t even have this expression when you were about to walk in on a guy in the bathroom, but now you’re blushing just from hearing a name?’

She reached out and tugged on Lin Ruoxi’s arm, which finally brought Lin Ruoxi back to her usual self.

"Because... I don’t dare to use his nickname..." Lin Ruoxi said meekly.

Many people called Xue Rui by his nickname—his elders, his classmate Gu Muxue...

These were people who had known Xue Rui for a very, very long time, people who had grown up with him.

She had only known Xue Rui for two years. She didn’t know if she was allowed to.

"Just call him it! Why not?" Yu Minlan looked astonished. She couldn’t believe Lin Ruoxi was hung up on this.

"But... he hasn’t given me permission," Lin Ruoxi whispered.

Yu Minlan sighed. What did she mean, Xue Rui hadn’t given her permission?

’You haven’t even asked, so how would you know he wouldn’t agree?’

In her relationship with Xue Rui, Lin Ruoxi placed herself in far too low a position. She didn’t have a shred of a girl’s pride; she needed Xue Rui’s approval for everything.

Any other girl would be treating her boyfriend like a workhorse, making him fetch water and meals, an expert at every chore...

But Lin Ruoxi had proactively taken on all these tasks herself. Even now, she was holding a hairdryer, waiting for Xue Rui to come out so she could dry his hair.

When Xue Rui came out, he was wearing a newly bought pair of baggy shorts and a pair of flip-flops. He had decided to do as the locals do.

This was a Guangdong Province specialty. He had seen people wearing flip-flops when he got off the plane, and the subway in the afternoon was full of them too. Only people who had to go to work were dressed neatly...

He plopped down nonchalantly on the sofa, and the young woman immediately ran to his side and turned on the hairdryer. Her small hands kept ruffling through his hair, and the corners of her eyes lifted as if she were having a lot of fun.

After she finished drying Xue Rui’s hair, the young woman put the hairdryer away and started making his bed and tidying up the room.

Yu Minlan took this opportunity to ask, "Boss Xue, she said she’s too scared to use your nickname. Why do you also call her by her full name?"

It made sense for Lin Ruoxi to be slow on the uptake, but Xue Rui was as sharp as they come. Why wouldn’t he take advantage of something as simple as a form of address?

Xue Rui glanced sideways at Yu Minlan. He didn’t know how to explain it to her.

Yu Minlan grew more and more confused. Why had Xue Rui gone silent?

"Did you two... have some kind of unpleasant incident involving your names?" Yu Minlan asked tentatively. Afraid she was prying into something she shouldn’t, she quickly shut her mouth halfway through the sentence.

Xue Rui shook his head. He felt it would be too much trouble to explain. It was better to just let Yu Minlan see for herself.

He called out, "Xixi, come here a second."

Only a single second passed between Xue Rui calling her name and Lin Ruoxi appearing.

"Mhm." Lin Ruoxi walked over obediently, her eyes full of tenderness as she looked at Xue Rui.

Every time Xue Rui called her by her nickname, her heart would skip a beat. She didn’t know why; she just felt a little nervous, yet also secretly delighted.

Yu Minlan also noticed something was off. Lin Ruoxi’s current state was even more subservient than her usual obedience. It was as if that one word, "Xixi," had completely blinded her. She would probably do anything Xue Rui said.

"It’s nothing. I was just going to say, we need to check our scores later. Once you’re done with the bed, bring the laptop over," Xue Rui said.

"Mhm." Lin Ruoxi tilted her head and gazed at Xue Rui for a good while longer before reluctantly heading into the room.

Yu Minlan was completely shocked. ’Just changing the way he calls her has this effect?’

It was like how a boy can’t resist a girl’s coaxing and will soften up to anything, but all Xue Rui had done was call Lin Ruoxi by her nickname.