Forcing Me to Be Reborn?!
Chapter 465 - 379: Both Tormenting and Thrilling

Chapter 465: Chapter 379: Both Tormenting and Thrilling

At the restaurant, Ningning clinked glasses with Lin Lu and sipped the juice in her cup.

Despite its sweetness, she tasted nothing but overwhelming sourness.

"Are... Are they together now?" she wondered to herself.

The cool young girl’s eyelids drooped slightly, a prickling pain surfacing in her heart.

She couldn’t describe how she felt at that moment.

Ningning loved reading tragic romance novels.

She had read many such novels and often paid attention to book lists and recommendations online.

Among the physical books she purchased, several were described by readers as "so tragically suffocating that one could hardly breathe."

Indeed, those books could deeply distress her.

But none of those feelings compared to what she was going through now—not even one ten-thousandth of it.

In that instant, she had so much she wanted to say, so many questions she wanted to ask.

Yet, those words were stuck in her throat, refusing to come out.

She saw the unmistakable joy and happiness in Lin Lu’s eyes as she shared her news.

However, this only intensified the bitterness within her own heart.

"It’s true, I’ve always known that Lu Lu can’t conceal her feelings. When she likes someone, she shows it very obviously," she thought.

"When she likes Cheng Zhu, she confesses her feelings, expressing her affection without any reservation on a daily basis."

"Being with Lu Lu, who is so wonderful, would always bring happiness every day."

But then...

What about me?

She couldn’t help but recall the last time she dined with Cheng Zhu, the look he gave her.

And each word he said that day.

Plus the view of his retreating back when he walked away.

Throughout this process, she had opportunities to do many things, countless chances to express her inner thoughts.

But she kept retreating, over and over again.

This proud young girl was simply too haughty and reserved.

If you moved one step closer, she would step half a step back.

You had to make an effort of one and a half steps.

In contrast, Lin Lu was always brash, enthusiastic, and straightforward, sometimes even unbearably smug.

As long as she liked you, you didn’t have to do anything; she would run towards you.

At this very moment, Ningning had a thousand words she wanted to speak.

Yet, in the end, those many words became just one sentence, "Congratulations to you both."

She offered Lin Lu a shallow smile.

...

...

After chatting for a bit longer, Ningning excused herself to use the restroom.

She always held herself with dignity, maintaining composure to keep her true emotions from showing in public, preserving her pride and image.

Lin Lu, completely unaware, had no idea that her best friend had just become a "loser in love."

Sitting alone at the table, Little Lu took out her phone to send a WeChat message to her boyfriend.

"Cheng Zhu, Cheng Zhu, calling Cheng Zhu!"

"Received, received, Cheng Zhu here!"

The young voice actress’s face lit up with a smile as she sent him a cute kitten emoji, followed by a message:

"I told Ningning, I let her know we’re dating now!"

Cheng Zhu looked at the message and calmly replied, "Really? What did she say?"

"She congratulated us, what else could she say? You know what Ningning is like; she rarely reveals her emotions and thoughts."

"That’s true," he replied.

Cheng Zhu glanced at the WeChat message from Lin Lu, sighed softly, then lapsed into thought.

After a few seconds, he received another message from her.

"Ningning told me that her daddy is planning to invest in your Youu Tea and wants her to join in too."

"Yes, that’s true. I’m not opposed to it; I’m just considering some of the details," Cheng Zhu first responded, expressing his stance. Then he asked, "What do you think?"

"I think it’s super awesome!" Lin Lu replied immediately and sent a dancing kitten emoji.

After all, a good friend joining her boyfriend’s entrepreneurial team—blood relatives!

Cheng Zhu: That’s your own words!

He immediately sent a WeChat message, "Okay then, I’ve pretty much decided too. I’ll call Shen Minglang right now."

"Okay!"

At this moment, Cheng Zhu’s thoughts were straightforward: delay could lead to trouble.

After all, Ningning had just found out he was with Lin Lu.

What she thought and whether it would affect her joining Youu Tea were unknowns.

Feelings between men and women can be so unpredictable.

They could make even the most rational person lose their sense.

That’s why they say that once strategists fall in love, they become lovesick fools.

When spectating, one might seem brilliant. But only when truly in love does one realize that even swimmers can drown.

"Hey, cousin," Shen Minglang sounded hopeful upon receiving Cheng Zhu’s call.

"I’ve thought it over, and I think it’s fine for you and Ningning to invest more money. There’s no major issue," Cheng Zhu spoke.

"Awesome! That’s exactly what I’ve been waiting to hear!" Shen Minglang was inexplicably excited.

In his view, his old man’s willingness to invest was a kind of unconventional recognition, right?

And the cousin accepting this investment; by some estimates, wasn’t that recognition for himself too?

It can be! Hang City, here comes my success!

Although, now that Shen Minglang thought about it, he couldn’t quite understand why his old man suddenly agreed to invest or why the cousin really accepted?

Could it be as old Shen said, they’d planned all along for the Shen family to invest these tens of millions, which is why they refused the 160 million investment from Pulin Capital?

"I just don’t get it! I feel like these people are living their lives with drama-filled imaginations," Young Master Shen thought.

As for his old man favoring women over men, giving Ningning 40 million but only giving him 20 million, he didn’t mind at all.

In fact, he was thrilled.

million? To think I’m worth that much in his mind!

Progress! I, Shen Minglang, have made progress!

—Thrilling!!!

"Cousin, I truly believe that the best decision I’ve made in recent years is joining Youu Tea!" Shen Minglang felt wholly refreshed.

These past few days, his life had been either about showing off or on his way to do so.

At the same time, he felt a strong sense of accomplishment.

The fatigue from his trip to Yun Province had vanished entirely.

Conversely, after showing off for some time, in his excitement, he gradually started to feel a hint of emptiness.

Young Master Shen actually began to crave work!

He hoped that in this year’s expansion, he would make a meaningful contribution.

"Don’t forget, the cousin emphasized many times how important my job is; he wouldn’t trust anyone else to do it!"

Having been educated in a suppressive manner by Shen Guoqiang since he was a child, Shen Minglang could feel Cheng Zhu’s esteem.

"I, am irreplaceable!" he was brimming with motivation.

...

...

After dinner, Lin Lu and Ningning returned together to Building A of Xinhang Apartment.

The cool young girl hadn’t been to their shared apartment for over a week, as she was either traveling with her brother or staying at family home.

Lin Lu was very cheerful that night and excitedly suggested, "Ningning, I’m living alone in a three-bedroom apartment, and it feels too lonely."

The two girls sat on the sofa chatting. She could sense that Ningning was a bit distracted that day.

"Ningning, is something troubling you?" Lin Lu asked bluntly, concern etched on her face.

"No, just feeling a bit tired lately," Ningning shook her head, her eyelids drooping.

"Ah! It’s all Cheng Zhu and Shen Minglang’s fault!" Lin Lu then offered to massage Ningning’s shoulders, "Shall we go for a SPA? Or just head to bed early tonight?"

"Let’s head to bed early," Ningning replied.

"Alright then. I actually wanted to sleep with you tonight, so Ningning darling, looks like we’ll be ’separated’ for tonight!" the voice actress expressed with reluctance.

After returning to their rooms, the cool young girl received a phone call from her unreliable brother.

"Ningning, Cheng Zhu agreed, haha!" Shen Guoqiang was obviously very happy.

"Then how about I give my share to you too," Ningning said amidst his laughter, catching him off guard.

"Uh." The words stunned Shen Minglang.

"Isn’t that, Ningning, aren’t you perhaps thinking too highly of me?" He sounded unusually sincere.

million, all for me? Would the old man approve?

I might not be worth that much to him!

"Didn’t old Shen say it, that this was part of your dowry?" Shen Minglang patted his chest, "Rest assured, your brother will definitely do his best to help your 40 million dowry appreciate in Youu Tea!"

Ningning: "..."

She suddenly felt a surge of emotions that she couldn’t express, without even a single person to confide in.

Her best friend wouldn’t understand.

Nor would her family.

And all of this, was it perhaps... her own fault?

After ending the call, Ningning placed her phone on the bedside table to charge.

She immediately noticed the Land Rover car keys on the table, along with that Pikachu keychain.

That keychain, it was Cheng Zhu who had won it for her at the arcade.

The craftsmanship of Pikachu was fairly good, but the quality wasn’t particularly high. Having used it for half a year, some edges were wearing off.

A rich girl like her wouldn’t usually use such a worn object in her daily life.

Ningning looked at it absentmindedly for a while, then got up to go to the bathroom to wash.

While showering, the hot water cascaded over her body, travelling past her shapely curves, over her flat belly, and finally down her extraordinarily long and slim legs.

She took an unusually long hot shower, as if trying to soothe her inner turmoil with it.

Back in her room, unable to sleep, she did as she usually did and started browsing the bookshelf for something to read.

Eventually, her gaze settled on a tragic romance novel she had read twice before.

To her, this romance novel was a masterpiece.

Ningning had read countless books, and her threshold for feelings of sadness was actually quite high. Ordinary books couldn’t move her, let alone bring her to tears.

But she so loved this book that she had only dared to read it twice, simply because she was a little scared to revisit it.

The first time she read it, she cried three times.

The second time was the same.

Those three most poignant scenes always struck right to her heart, making tears involuntarily flow.

This haughty young girl had a strange habit: when she was feeling down, she would choose the most tragic books to read.

The worse she felt, the more turmoil within her, the more tragic the book she would pick.

As she read, she inexplicably experienced a mix of agony and exhilaration!

At this moment, with her mind in turmoil, she sat at the desk and opened the novel she considered a top-tier work in her heart.

Ningning’s right hand flipped the pages, while her left unconsciously stroked the bookmark.

—The bookmark made from a photo of herself with Cheng Zhu.

Even though she was reading her favorite novel, her thoughts kept drifting.

She remembered the night they spent talking in the wind, the dance machine at the arcade, the strawberry gift box he bought for her, the specially made Cheese Mixed Berries...

She thought of every close encounter, each tug-of-war where she quietly pushed him farther away, and so many more memories.

It was as if she was flipping through the pages of her own recollections.

As for the content of the novel, she didn’t really absorb much of it today.

Splat—

A tear suddenly fell onto the page, spreading upon the paper and soaking through.

Ningning’s eyes reddened, and with her head still bowed, her eyes too tear-filled to see the words on the page clearly, her vision a blur, she murmured softly:

"It’s... It’s really well written."

...

(ps: End of the month, asking for monthly tickets!

Tomorrow we have to leave two hours early to go to the airport, then take a 6-hour flight back home, and then drive four hours from Shanghai back to Yiwu. Economy class really is cramped. Let’s see if I can type some more on the plane, sigh.)