You Call This a Green Tea? - Chapter 2

Sheng Junwen drove the car, his eyes shifting frequently to the rearview mirror to check on He Zhen and Zhuo Luyuan in the back seat. The two of them were sitting as far apart as possible, as if a Great Canyon had opened up between them.

Zhuo Luyuan was still reeling from the shock of his “Green Tea Little Sister” turning into the hunk He Zhen. Thinking back to their childhood interactions felt surreal, leaving him unable to find a single topic of conversation.

He Zhen looked like he was leisurely resting with his eyes closed, but in reality, he was interrogating the “dog system” in his mind about the world’s plot. “Tell me the story of this world in full, the more detailed the better. I assume you don’t want my story to change every time I talk to a different person?”

For instance, when Zhuo Luyuan and Sheng Junwen asked why he was a man today, he had to claim it was his parents’ eccentric sense of humor. He wasn’t sure if the System had retroactively fixed the plot for him.

The System took its mission seriously, so under the Host’s intense gaze, it revealed the original story.

This world was a classic “dog-blood” (melodramatic) novel. The protagonists were Zhuo Luyuan and Qi Qiongyin. As the male lead, Zhuo Luyuan was dining with the Green Tea antagonist, He Zhenzhen, when he encountered Qi Qiongyin being harassed by a customer. He stepped in to save her, earning the heroine’s gratitude and the eternal spite of the Green Tea antagonist.

The heroine’s mother was chronically hospitalized, so she had to work multiple part-time jobs. From then on, the leads would “coincidentally” meet at bars, horse racing tracks, and golf courses. Thanks to the “assistance” of the antagonist’s sabotage, their feelings blossomed.

Eventually, the Zhuo family company faced a crisis, and Zhuo’s father fell ill. The Green Tea antagonist coerced Zhuo Luyuan into an engagement, threatening to withhold help unless he complied. With no other choice, the male lead agreed. However, at the critical moment, the heroine invented a new patent, sold it to the male lead, and saved his company. The two finally ended up together.

As for the Green Tea antagonist, she faded into obscurity. Rumor had it her family went bankrupt, and she ended up working as a waitress at the very same restaurant the heroine once worked at—though she didn’t last long and eventually ended up scavenging for trash.

He Zhen found this strange. He pointed to a line of text: “The heroine works this many jobs and still has the energy to fall in love? Isn’t she supposed to be busy paying for her mother’s treatment?”

Working that many non-conflicting shifts without collapsing? Was she the King of Part-Timers?

The System was speechless and could only waffle: “It’s a novel, just a novel.”

He Zhen still didn’t understand the logic. He pointed to the penultimate line: “And here? The heroine invents a new patent to save the company. If I recall correctly, she’s still a graduate student. She works all those jobs and still has time for R&D? Does that seem reasonable to you?”

Are patents like cabbages you can just pick up whenever you want?

The System laughed awkwardly. It didn’t know; it couldn’t change the settings of a melodramatic novel. It turned back into a cat to coax him: “Plot convenience! In an era where transmigrators are everywhere and systems are as common as… cats, a patent is nothing!”

He Zhen glanced at it and said no more.

After a long silence, Zhuo Luyuan realized He Zhen wasn’t going to speak, so he broke the ice. “Where are you staying?”

He Zhen glanced at the Ragdoll cat on his lap. The System quickly answered: [The plot only triggers at key nodes. Otherwise, feel free to improvise. Personal data has been uploaded to your brain; just check it.]

Accessing “He Zhenzhen’s” data, He Zhen replied, “Guanlan Yayuan.”

Guanlan Yayuan was where the He family lived before moving abroad—right next door to Zhuo Luyuan. Since the families were close, the He family had simply bought back their old house.

Zhuo Luyuan sat up, surprised. “You guys bought that house back?”

No wonder he’d seen movers recently. He hadn’t paid attention, and his mom hadn’t mentioned it.

Zhuo Luyuan grabbed a few invitation cards from the front seat and handed them to He Zhen. “My family is hosting a business banquet soon. My mom wanted me to give these to you and your parents.” Mrs. Zhuo wanted the He family to make an appearance and announce their return. It was a win-win.

He Zhen took them. “Thanks. I’ll let my parents know.”

Since He Zhen had just returned, Zhuo Luyuan didn’t overstay his welcome and headed back to his own house next door.

When Zhuo Luyuan walked in, his mother was having breakfast with his father. She waved him over. “Yuan-yuan, you’re back! Did you pick up Little He?”

Zhuo Luyuan sat down and popped a shrimp dumpling into his mouth, looking at his mother with resentment. “Mom, did you forget to tell me something?”

Mrs. Zhuo was puzzled. “I don’t think so?”

The shrimp dumpling was delicious, but it couldn’t heal his trauma. “You didn’t tell me He Zhenzhen… that He Zhen is a man.”

Mrs. Zhuo’s eyes widened. She covered her face and laughed shamelessly at her son. “Oh, Yuan-yuan, you didn’t know he was a boy? You two played so well together, I thought you knew!”

Mr. Zhuo chimed in with a chuckle. “The He family really wanted a daughter. When they had a son, they coaxed him into wearing dresses for a while. We thought you were in on it.”

The He family had thrown a massive feast when He Zhen was born. All their business partners knew; it wasn’t a secret. Only their “silly son” was in the dark.

Seeing Zhuo Luyuan’s blatant pout, his mother gave him another dumpling. “Alright, so he’s a boy. It doesn’t hurt anything. Did you give him the invitations? Are they coming?”

Zhuo Luyuan softened. “Yes. Based on He Zhen’s reaction, they should be coming.”

Mrs. Zhuo nodded. “He just got back and isn’t familiar with the country. Take him out to have some fun when you have time. Your dad will handle the company.”

What’s so fun about hanging out with He Zhen? Zhuo Luyuan grumbled internally, but he agreed. Then he held out his hand to his father. “I’m taking He Zhen out. I need some pocket money.”

Mr. Zhuo glared at him. “Are you short on clothes or dividends? You’re in your twenties and still asking your father for money.” Despite the scolding, he handed over a card. Zhuo Luyuan took it with a sweet grin. “With a dad who’s this handsome and good at making money, I have to enjoy life while I’m young.”

Zhuo Luyuan headed to his room, only to realize he didn’t have He Zhen’s contact info.

Should I go next door and ask?

In the villa next door, He Zhen was staring at his phone. “Now what?”

Ten minutes ago, as he stepped through the door, the System issued a new plot node:

【He Zhenzhen finds a candid photo of Zhuo Luyuan’s profile on her phone. With a shy heart, she posts it to her Moments for everyone to see with the caption: “Smooth return to the country.”】

He Zhen and the System stared at each other. He hadn’t taken a photo, and he didn’t have Zhuo Luyuan on WeChat.

“Does ‘everyone’ have to include Zhuo Luyuan?” He Zhen asked.

The System nodded. “Yes. This is a point where Zhuo Luyuan’s favorability toward the Green Tea antagonist drops. You need his contact info.” As for the photo, the System offered to generate one using the points He Zhen had just earned.

He Zhen had never asked a man for his contact info before. For the sake of the mission, he headed back outside to “coincidentally” bump into Zhuo Luyuan.

He opened WeChat, deleted the original nickname “Zhen-zhen is Super Cute,” and changed it to a simple “Z” (for the ‘Zhen’ in He Zhen).

As he walked with his head down, he heard someone coughing loudly. He looked up—it was Zhuo Luyuan.

“Are you going to my house?” Zhuo Luyuan asked, surprised.

“I forgot to get your contact info in the car,” He Zhen lied. “I wanted to add you so it’s easier to stay in touch.”

Zhuo Luyuan’s awkwardness vanished. He’d come out for the same reason. He pulled up his QR code.

When he saw He Zhen’s WeChat name, his expression turned complicated. “That’s your name on here?”

“What’s wrong with it?” He Zhen looked down at the notification:

[You have successfully added Z as a friend. You can now start chatting.]

“You’re also ‘Z’?” He Zhen explained first. “Z for the ‘Zhen’ in He Zhen.”

“Z for the ‘Zhuo’ in Zhuo Luyuan,” Zhuo Luyuan added.

He Zhen made an excuse about being busy and headed back. Zhuo Luyuan watched him go, wondering if he was being petty for remembering He Zhen’s old “Green Tea” ways.

That night, after a shower, Zhuo Luyuan scrolled through his feed and saw a new post from He Zhen: “Smooth return to the country.”

The attached photo was a side profile of himself sitting in the car.

Zhuo Luyuan’s hand slipped, and he accidentally “Liked” the post. He un-liked it instantly, but his “Green Tea Radar” was screaming.

He Zhen definitely did that on purpose!