112 Transmigration and the Rise of Ancient-Style Fiction

Lin Xia joined You Xin and the others, and they walked toward their rented apartment.

"Hey, what were you and A-Xin talking about by the lake earlier?" Sun Xiaoxiao asked, brimming with gossip.

"It was nothing, he was just asking about Tongtong's condition," Lin Xia replied. "Seeing how the auntie was, he didn't want to ask us in front of her and cause them more heartache."

"That's true." Sun Xiaoxiao hung her head. The four of them were a tight-knit group, and Xie Xitong was the core; without her, things just couldn't be the same.

Thinking of this, everyone felt a bit dispirited. As for Zhou Meng, he hadn't said another word since they had seen Xie Xitong.

At this moment, Zhou Meng was struggling with his own internal conflict.

Just a moment ago, through the glass window, he had seen Xie Xitong lying listlessly in her hospital bed. In his memory, she was supposed to be full of life and vitality, not lying there so lifelessly on a cold bed.

Her dark hair had been shaved off completely, a bandage was wrapped around her forehead, and her once round face was now no larger than a palm. The natural rosiness of her cheeks had been replaced by a deathly pallor, making her look incredibly frail against the stark white sheets and walls.

It was hard for Zhou Meng to articulate his current state of mind. Xie Xitong was indeed one of the more unique girls he had encountered in the past decade. Seeing her like this did bring him a pang of heartache, but it was overshadowed by a sense of dissatisfaction and loss—the kind of feeling one has when a tantalizing, flirtatious hunt vanishes into thin air.

It had been so difficult to find a girl who suited his tastes, and he hadn't even won her over or grown tired of her yet when this incident occurred. Even if he were to pursue her now, what would be the point? Xie Xitong was no longer "whole," and appearing at her side while she was at her most vulnerable and in need of love—anyone could see that her acceptance would be a foregone conclusion.

Thinking of this, Zhou Meng felt a bit melancholy. An Xie Xitong like this lacked any sense of challenge. The budding romantic thoughts he had harbored as a young man were quickly extinguished by the harsh reality.

He began to draft a plan in his mind for how he should treat Xie Xitong and her family moving forward, ensuring his transition would be natural and devoid of any awkwardness.

Because You Xin and the others had told Lin Xia before they arrived, Zhao Xin had already found them a place to stay, not too far from their rented apartment.

"Xiaxia, when is your mom coming over? My mom is coming to B City in a couple of days, and she’ll definitely take us home when she does," Zhao Qian said, kicking a small pebble at her feet with clear reluctance. "I really don't want to go back."

"Me neither. With Tongtong in this state, I don't want to leave either," Sun Xiaoxiao agreed.

Lin Xia looked at them both with amusement. Even though they had been extremely worried at first, Xie Xitong’s life was not in danger. Over the past few days, their anxiety had subsided significantly. Apart from the time spent visiting Xie Xitong and comforting Xie Fanghua, the two had been having a blast in B City, often nowhere to be found.

Lin Xia occasionally went out with them, but most of the time she stayed locked in her room writing, claiming she needed to rest. Seeing how much weight she had lost since Xie Xitong's accident, the others didn't press her, only telling her to get more rest.

The one who had truly been a great help during these days was Zhao Xin. She was truly capable of both hosting guests and managing the kitchen, with a temperament that was top-tier, treating everyone with impartiality. She was like a real-life version of Xue Baochai, which left Lin Xia filled with admiration.

Even with the experience of a past life, Lin Xia knew she couldn't match that level of grace. Seeing how adept she was at navigating social circles, she figured Zhao Xin must have endured much hardship in her previous life to have become so tactful in this one.

"There's no way around it; we haven't finished our summer assignments yet," Lin Xia said, though she understood why the parents were coming now.

With senior year approaching, the three of them had already missed several weeks of school prep due to Tongtong's accident. While the parents were sympathetic, they were, after all, outsiders—not even relatives—and naturally prioritized their own children's futures. Besides, they had already shown enough respect to the Chen family, and since the girls were loyal friends who couldn't really do much to help, the Chen family wouldn't blame them for leaving now.

The parents had consulted with one another and decided that since Xie Xitong was now more conscious, they would come together, visit her, and then take their children home. With senior year looming and other students having already studied for weeks, letting their children wander around indefinitely wasn't an option.

Hearing Lin Xia mention homework, Zhao and Sun both wilted; their assignments were far from finished. Thinking about how they had been so caught up in having fun lately, they couldn't help but feel a bit guilty.

Seeing this, You Xin smiled and said, "I've finished all my assignments. If you guys are running out of time, I can help you out."

Seeing him being so accommodating, Zhao Qian praised him: "A-Xin, you're the best! It’s true that you shouldn't judge a man by his past after three days of separation!"

You Xin offered his usual faint smile and said nothing more.

After leading the two to their accommodation, Lin Xia yawned and apologized to You Xin and Zhou Meng, "I'm a bit tired. I'll let Xiaoxiao and Qianqian take you around. I need to rest for a while."

Knowing she had the habit of taking an afternoon nap, You Xin nodded, "Don't worry about us, go get some rest."

After nodding to Zhou Meng, Lin Xia returned to her room to rest.

When she woke up, she looked at the unfamiliar surroundings with a sense of disorientation, wondering what day it even was. After changing her clothes and opening her bedroom door, she found that Sun and Zhao were not in the apartment, presumably still out exploring. She washed an apple, turned on her computer, and sat down to eat.

The fruit on the living room table had likely been plucked by Zhao Xin from her "space." Although Lin Xia didn't know how Zhao Xin managed to make the fruit look exactly like what was sold in supermarkets, the taste was far superior. The girls loved them, eating at least three or four a day, which had resulted in their skin becoming noticeably fairer.

However, since Zhao and Sun had been running around outside so much lately, they had tanned a bit. Of the three, Lin Xia remained the fairest. But she had lost the most weight, and everyone assumed it was because she was worried about Xie Xitong and wasn't sleeping well.

Taking a bite of the apple, Lin Xia pondered to herself. Zhao Xin was certainly generous, but wasn't she worried about being discovered by someone observant, given how brazenly she produced items from her space?

Especially since she had discovered that Xu Yichen was a reincarnator.

Just as she logged onto QQ, Chen Qing sent a message.

MeowMeow: Why are you on QQ?

Before Lin Xia could reply, the next message followed immediately—

MeowMeow: Where is the latest chapter? Send it over to me, sister, I'm waiting to read it.

Lin Xia: ...

After a moment's thought, she replied: Wait a second, let me find it for you.

MeowMeow: Mm-hmm, hurry up, I'm waiting.

Lin Xia opened her folder and found the remaining manuscript.

Liu Yan: There isn't much left, only three chapters.

MeowMeow: A little bit is better than nothing, I'm waiting to read it.

It was no wonder Chen Qing loved it so much. At this time, the book market was dominated by "youth pain" literature, and the internet was just beginning to take off; "fast-food culture" was barely emerging alongside the popularity of fantasy and martial arts novels by authors like Cang Yue.

Lin Xia, however, had used her current influence to introduce the concept of "transmigration" to the public ahead of its time.

Of course, she had underestimated her own influence, and naturally, she hadn't anticipated the series of events that would follow.