The bathroom that Xu Le used wasn't really well renovated; it only had a simple sink and a squat toilet. There wasn't even a shower head. The second floor, let alone a bed, didn't even have a straw mat at first. It was purely used as a small warehouse because Xu Le used to go home every day.

Even if there was a pair of parents-in-law who looked down on him,

Even if there was a bossy sister-in-law,

Even if there was a wife who wouldn't sleep with him,

Xu Le would still finish the bookstore's already limited business every day, close the store in the evening, and leisurely go home.

This was life.

It wasn't about dignity.

Nor was it about freedom.

But he was content with it.

He was cowardly, he was weak, and he had no ambition.

Because he was Xu Le. He wasn't some big shot who had left his name in history, so everyone thought it didn't matter to him.

If you put him in the shoes of some ancient figure, Xu Le's life would seem like profound wisdom concealing itself, adding too many flavors to it.

Zhou Ze couldn't understand Xu Le's taste. He grew up in an orphanage. Although the inferiority complex in his heart wouldn't show, it did exist all the time. So he was sensitive and worked hard, both in his studies and in his work, and in his own life, he always insisted on being the best and most outstanding.

But right now, looking at his wet face in the mirror, a trace of pity appeared in Zhou Ze's heart.

Pity for Xu Le, and also pity for himself.

Everyone has their own cage, it's just that the style and size of the cage are different, but there is always a cage.

Zhou Ze didn't want to be some Ghost King, nor did he expect to rely on his special powers to control things in the human world. On the one hand, he knew that if he was too high-profile, something bad would happen immediately. On the other hand, he was already very tired in his previous life, and he wanted to change the way he lived in this life.

In any case, he wanted to survive, to continue to live on in this physical body.

He spread out his palm and placed it in front of him. The nails had long since receded, and there was nothing unusual about it.

Zhou Ze smiled.

Forget it.

Maybe he just deserved it.

He took a towel to wipe his face, and then wiped his hands. Zhou Ze walked out of the bathroom, but when he came out, the entanglement on his face had disappeared, and he became a little more free and easy.

The little loli was still sitting on the plastic stool, intently reading her picture book.

"Uncle, Rui Rui is thirsty."

The little loli called out to Zhou Ze.

Like a pet acting cute to its owner.

Zhou Ze nodded, poured a cup of water in a paper cup, evenly mixing hot and cold, and delivered it to the little loli.

The little loli took the water cup, took a sip, and smiled, revealing crescent moons on her cheeks.

Zhou Ze simply sat down on the tiles, reached out and rubbed the little loli's head, generously, without any precautions.

Time passed slowly.

The little loli continued to read her book.

Zhou Ze continued to lie beside her.

One big and one small.

Getting along peacefully.

The little loli would take the interesting stories she saw to Zhou Ze and share them with him, and Zhou Ze would respond, telling her some of the deeper meanings of the fables or other short stories.

He didn't know how long had passed when the red car drove over again.

The girl's mother opened the door and thanked Zhou Ze. Her hair was the same as when she came. The corners of Zhou Ze's mouth curved into an arc. He really wanted to suggest that the woman go to the hair salon to ask for an explanation. You can't fool people like this.

Of course, if you really said that, the woman might blame you for meddling.

The little loli bowed to Zhou Ze and said thank you, and then left with her mother.

From beginning to end, the little loli didn't look back at him.

Gone was gone.

Zhou Ze walked to the counter and picked up the gift box that the woman had given him at the beginning, only to find that there was actually a stack of banknotes inside, three thousand yuan.

Not bad.

Zhou Ze didn't think about returning it.

He was short of money, so he would take it and use it first.

Zhou Ze felt that he had figured it out, just like a cultivator suddenly having a breakthrough.

But he also felt like he was giving up, not caring about the wind and rain, and just being carefree.

But in any case, he was at least much more relaxed now.

Zhou Ze casually picked up a book with a large cover from the bookshelf. It was an appreciation of famous calligraphy, which was a purely unsalable product. He didn't know if Xu Le's head had been crushed back and forth by the iron gate countless times, that he even bought this kind of book.

He casually flipped through it.

This page happened to be the four characters "nan de hu tu" (rarely confused),

"Tsk tsk."

Zhou Ze clicked his tongue.

Interesting.

He looked at the time and found that it was almost evening. Thinking that he had an appointment with Doctor Lin to see a movie tonight, Zhou Ze decided to go eat first.

Walking next door, Zhou Ze was stunned to see Xu Qinglang kneeling on the ground.

Xu Qinglang's eyes were red, and there were many wine bottles beside him. At this time, he was holding a bottle of wine in his hand and continuing to drink.

"Unfair... it's unfair..."

Xu Qinglang murmured to himself, even when Zhou Ze walked into the store, he seemed to have not noticed at all.

"Hey?" Zhou Ze reached out and patted Xu Qinglang's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

He really wanted to remind Xu Qinglang that for other men, getting drunk might just mean getting their money stolen, but if Xu Qinglang got drunk and ran out, it wouldn't be as simple as just losing money.

Even, if he were to lie on the road late at night with a girl, Xu Qinglang might be violated more times than that girl.

Xu Qinglang's body trembled, and he slowly raised his head, tears streaming down his face, looking pitiful. He held up his orchid fingers, pointed at Zhou Ze, and said in a melancholy tone:

"Today is my parents' death anniversary."

Zhou Ze was silent for a while and said, "My condolences."

After waiting for a while,

Xu Qinglang continued to drink.

Zhou Ze could only remind him: "Tonight, you're not cooking?"

"Cook! Cooking!"

Xu Qinglang stood up unsteadily. His slender waist was graceful and charming, especially the precarious posture, which made people want to go up and directly support him, smelling the fragrance on his body.

"You don't have to force yourself?"

Zhou Ze said this, but he still sat down on the chair, ready to eat.

It wasn't easy for him to have a meal, so he didn't want to look for a second place.

Xu Qinglang waved his hand and walked into the inner room.

Soon,

The sound of the stove being lit came from inside. Xu Qinglang was cooking.

Zhou Ze took out his phone and saw that Doctor Lin had just sent him a message, saying that she was coming to pick him up soon.

Zhou Ze replied with an "Okay."

Thinking about it, he felt it wasn't grand enough,

So he replied with a "haha Paopao soldier emoticon,"

Then he felt it was too frivolous,

So he withdrew the emoticon.

Thinking that withdrawing it seemed too much like he was trying to hide something,

He replied with a "Hehe,"

Then he felt that the word "Hehe" was not friendly enough,

But he felt that withdrawing it a second time would seem too pretentious,

It was a dilemma...

Zhou Ze was very conflicted at the dining table,

The chef who was cooking was also very conflicted.

In the pot was twice-cooked pork. After stir-frying it, covering it on rice would make a bowl of twice-cooked pork rice, which was very simple and delicious.

"Why didn't she catch you, but caught my parents?"

Xu Qinglang muttered to himself while cooking.

There is an ancient saying: "I am not worried about scarcity, but I am worried about inequality." This sentence speaks of too many truths and reveals the darkest side of people's hearts.

"This is unfair, really unfair." Xu Qinglang continued to mutter to himself,

"How can you be partial? How can you be partial?"

Xu Qinglang's eyes were dull, but the frequency of his cooking didn't change. He was a good chef, and cooking had almost become an instinct.

Silently, Xu Qinglang took out a yellow jar from the cabinet under the stove, poured some powder from it, and put it in the twice-cooked pork.

"My parents were taken away, why didn't you leave? Could it be that you saved her life?"

"Hehe, what a joke."

"You want to eat?"

"Okay, I'll give you food."

Xu Qinglang kept taking deep breaths.

"Is it ready yet?" Zhou Ze urged from outside.

"Almost."

Xu Qinglang was stunned for a moment, a trace of panic and hesitation flashed in his eyes, but he still put the lid on the pot. He found that his rice hadn't been put in the microwave to heat up, so he had to reheat the rice again.

After the rice was heated, Xu Qinglang put the twice-cooked pork on top of it, and then walked out with the plate.

Zhou Ze was looking at the phone screen with a tangle. Seeing Xu Qinglang walking over with a lost look, putting down the food, he said with some concern:

"Will you forget to put salt in it like this?"

Xu Qinglang shook his head.

Zhou Ze picked up his chopsticks, ready to eat.

Xu Qinglang's hand trembled, his lips parted slightly, and just as he was about to open his mouth, Zhou Ze put down his chopsticks.

"Sour plum juice or bitter gourd juice?" Zhou Ze asked.

"Oh, okay."

Xu Qinglang walked back and brought a glass of sour plum juice back.

Zhou Ze first picked up the sour plum juice, smelled the taste, and then took a deep breath. Just as he was about to drink it, the phone vibrated at this moment.

"I'm here, come out."

Zhou Ze hesitated for a moment, but still put down the sour plum juice.

He knew that after he ate this meal, his whole face might be sour for a long time, like everyone around him owed him a lot of money.

Thinking about it, forget it.

Adding up his previous life and this life, this was his first time going out to see a movie with a girl, so he should be a little more solemn.

There was no way, the difficulty of his original Doctor Lin copy was a beginner's novice mission,

Now that he had changed to Xu Le's skin, the rookie mission instantly became a Big Boss level mission,

He didn't know if he should be secretly happy or miserable?

What he had to work hard on now was,

Defeating himself? Then he could win the beauty's heart.

"The money, put it on the tab, we'll settle it together at the end of the month, I'm leaving first."

Zhou Ze got up, pushed the door open and went out.

Doctor Lin's car was parked on the side of the road, the window was down, and she was waiting for him.

In the noodle shop, Xu Qinglang's face was uncertain for a while, then he suddenly threw all the twice-cooked pork rice on the ground.

Holding his head, he cried on the ground.

He cried louder and louder,

Until the end,

It turned into a dry howl...