Chapter 121: The Growth of a Genius Is a Miracle

By the time Tan Xue returned, dusk was settling in. Little Yu’er had been waiting impatiently, making several calls to nag her sister into coming home to order dinner.

“Oh? What’s going on here?” Tan Xue tossed her small purse onto the sofa and sat down beside Chu Dong, curiosity piqued as she glanced at what he was reading. She snatched the book and flipped through it. “You’re being quite diligent, huh? But isn’t this a last-minute cram session?”

Chu Dong snatched the book back. He found the classic game records a bit profound at first, so he started with the simpler ones. Feeling a bit embarrassed by Tan Xue’s teasing, he protested, “I’m just reviewing, that’s all. And you still haven’t ordered dinner; the girls are starving.”

“Can’t you order it yourselves? The phone’s right there; you’re just waiting on me? Even a fool could do this, but you lot can’t manage it,” Tan Xue grumbled, picking up the phone. “Bring the last five of your signature dishes, plus a soup, and the best shark fin you have. Hurry up.” After hanging up, she looked at Little Yu’er and Chu Dong, who were both staring at her. “Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?”

They exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison, then asked, “Did you always order food like this?”

“Of course. What’s wrong with that?” Tan Xue was puzzled by their question.

“Nothing, it’s just that now we understand why you said even a fool could do it,” they answered together, then scattered as Tan Xue reached for a cushion on the sofa.

After dinner, Li Youlan went back to her room. Seeing she had no intention of continuing training, Tan Xue followed her out of curiosity. Once the door closed, she eagerly asked, “What’s going on? Weren’t you supposed to keep training?”

“Training? With your family’s materials? No matter how I carve it, it’s just carrots. I’m better off hiding here for a couple of days. Once my lost passport is replaced, I’m out. I refuse to believe they can force me into marriage,” Li Youlan said, lying back lazily on the bed, giving up all hope in Chu Dong. “Oh heavens, please just take me away.”

“That can’t be true. When I came back, he was still seriously reading. It can’t be as bad as you say. Dong Ge has been smart since he was little; how could he not hold his own against me?” Tan Xue was skeptical, unwilling to believe Li Youlan’s low opinion of Chu Dong.

“You’re blinded by love. You always see him as a treasure,” Li Youlan chided, a hint of frustration in her voice. “What did you say before? ‘I’d rather die than marry a rogue. The only way I'd marry him is if the Yellow River flows backward...’” she mocked Tan Xue’s coquettish tone.

“Don’t tease me. When you finally see how good he is, it’ll be too late. I’m telling you, right now you think Dong Ge is just a weed, but when you see he’s a gem, don’t you dare fight me for him,” Tan Xue said, climbing onto the bed like a little woman, hugging a cushion and swaying side to side.

“Fight you? Xue’er, are you crazy? Him?” Li Youlan got up. “Even if you handed him to me, I’d just kick him out the door.”

“Really?” Tan Xue’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Good. I hope every woman thinks that way.”

“You’re deluded, mistaking a piece of rotten stone for raw jade. I hope you never wake up from this dream,” Li Youlan said, realizing Tan Xue was truly smitten and gave up on trying to reason with her.

Chu Dong was utterly captivated. From rooks and knights to pawns and even advisors, every piece had its offense and defense. The more he read, the more he wanted to continue. Since the moment he got the book, he hadn’t put it down. Even while eating, one eye watched his plate and the other the book—a little obsessed.

Late into the night, his eyes grew heavy, but he refused to set the book aside. Suddenly, his stomach felt uneasy, so he grabbed the book and hurried to the bathroom.

There were two bathrooms in the villa, plus one downstairs. Usually, when more people were around, Chu Dong was pushed to use the downstairs one. But now, since it was late and everyone else was asleep, he headed for the one upstairs.

The bathroom door was ajar with the light on. Chu Dong, not paying much attention, assumed Tan Xue or someone else had simply forgotten to turn off the light. Holding the book, he pushed the door open and stepped inside, reading as he went.

Li Youlan was feeling unwell these days—typical monthly discomfort for women. Awakening in the night feeling uneasy, she hurriedly woke the half-asleep Tan Xue to borrow a sanitary napkin and dashed to the bathroom.

Caught off guard, Li Youlan’s panties were still hanging around her knees as she bent over, unable to straighten up yet. She had just removed the used pad and hadn’t thrown it in the trash when Chu Dong walked in.

She quickly dropped the nightgown she had lifted, but it couldn’t fully cover her underwear. Flustered, she squeezed her eyes shut.

Chu Dong hadn’t noticed she was there. The toilet seat was empty, so he stood still and began unfastening his pants.

When Li Youlan slightly opened her eyes, she widened them in shock: Chu Dong was sitting on the toilet, strangely unaware of her presence, engrossed in his book. She thought he might be sleepwalking. As long as she didn’t wake him, nothing would happen. Gaining courage, she waved her hand in front of his eyes.

No reaction.

“Phew!” Li Youlan exhaled deeply, feeling relieved. “Oh my god, you scared me.”

Convinced he was sleepwalking, she quickly reapplied her sanitary napkin, pulled up her panties, washed her hands at the sink, then smiled and waved at Chu Dong, who was still sitting on the toilet reading, as she headed out.

“Bye,” Chu Dong replied casually.

“Bye? Bye?” Li Youlan was stunned, eyes wide, turning to look at Chu Dong. “You... you—”

Chu Dong looked up, flashing a bright smile. “I didn’t see anything.”

Li Youlan nearly lost her mind. This scoundrel wasn’t sleepwalking; he was pretending ignorance to make her misunderstand. Then... Li Youlan couldn’t think further. She grabbed a slipper and threw it at Chu Dong before dashing away at top speed.

In truth, Chu Dong hadn’t noticed her at first. Given how absorbed he was, even if Li Youlan had changed in front of him, it’s doubtful he would have noticed. When she waved her hand in front of the book to test him, if he hadn’t seen her then, something would have been wrong.

But Chu Dong thought if he made any sudden moves, Li Youlan might scream in the middle of the night, which would be hard to explain. So he kept still, letting her misunderstand he was sleepwalking. After she finished and provocatively shook her pert hips in front of him, he couldn’t help but smirk but held back. When she waved goodbye, he politely replied, and that one word startled Li Youlan.

“Why hit me? You didn’t lose anything,” Chu Dong muttered, dodging the flying slipper, pulling up his pants, grabbing his book, and leaving the bathroom. Instead of returning to his room, he went to the computer in the living room, turned on the desk lamp, and resumed his intense study.

Rarely did Tan Xue get up so early, still looking languid and disheveled, her loose hair adding to her charm. Stretching, she stepped out of her room and immediately spotted Chu Dong diligently working at the computer.

“Dong Ge, up so early?” Tan Xue ran over, leaning over his shoulder to see what he was doing, but couldn’t resist teasing him. “Are your hormones out of balance? Why can’t you sleep?”

When she saw the screen displaying his game results, her mouth dropped open and stayed that way. She patted Chu Dong’s shoulder aimlessly, unable to find words, then turned and ran back to her room, slippers abandoned halfway.

Shortly after, Tan Xue dragged Li Youlan out of her room. “Come on, I’m not lying. His win rate is over ninety percent. Dong Ge is still working hard. Just look for yourself.”

“Are you dreaming? Or maybe sleep-talking?” Li Youlan was still dazed, having nearly lost sleep after her midnight “ghost” encounter, only falling asleep at dawn and now abruptly woken.

Chu Dong was fully immersed, oblivious to the two watching him. His eyes fixed on the screen, calculating his opponent’s next moves and his counters.

Li Youlan’s first instinct was to kick him twice but had to pretend she was calm in front of Tan Xue. Pulled behind Chu Dong by Tan Xue, she resisted the urge to pinch him, focusing on the screen that read: 56 wins, 5 losses.

Covering her mouth, Li Youlan couldn’t believe it. The “madman” she saw getting beaten repeatedly just yesterday had become so fierce overnight, undefeated in every game.

“I told you Dong Ge was fine, right? Haha!” Tan Xue was so proud she hugged Li Youlan, bouncing with excitement.

“He must be cheating,” Li Youlan grumbled, still reluctant to admit it even after seeing it herself.

Suddenly, Chu Dong burst into loud laughter, making the desk shake as if it might fall apart.

“Oh my god,” Li Youlan jumped, turning to Tan Xue. “Has that kid been drinking bad milk or what?”

“He played with me all morning yesterday. We had three matches. He lost each time because he ran out of time. He wasn’t satisfied and insisted on playing again, this time with each side having an hour on the clock. In the end, I cornered him with pawns. Haha!” Chu Dong was ecstatic.

“What time did you get up?” Tan Xue asked, eyeing his stubbled face in disbelief.

“Get up? I never slept,” Chu Dong said, eyes red, pointing at the screen. “Phase one task complete. Please verify.”

The book is first released here.

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