Chapter 319 316. Making a Wish
After welcoming everyone into the house, the living room—which normally felt quite spacious—suddenly seemed a bit crowded.
There were seven people in total. They gave the sofa to the three girls, while the others grabbed small stools and sat around the coffee table.
Wu Dongming clearly seemed a little afraid of women. He sat alone in the farthest corner, barely speaking since he entered. He hadn’t brought a gift either, and nervously fiddled with his phone.
An Han only glanced at him once before getting busy entertaining the other guests. Su Peng had practically become the host of the house, helping everyone get bowls and chopsticks, handing out drinks, and putting all the snacks on the table.
Lin Yi had an outgoing and cheerful personality and could drink well. She quickly blended in with the group of guys. An Kexin, on the other hand, was a bit shy and timidly hid in the corner just like Wu Dongming.
“I also ordered a cake. It should be delivered soon.”
Su Peng sat on the armrest of the sofa with one arm wrapped around An Han’s shoulders.
He knew Long Xing had some interest in An Han. Even though Long Xing now seemed to have someone else he liked, Su Peng still subconsciously showed off their affection whenever Long Xing was around.
“I don’t like cake…” An Han muttered as she poked open the package of sliced lamb with her chopsticks before looking up at him. “So what gift did you prepare for me?”
“Well…”
Su Peng awkwardly avoided her gaze and warned her in advance.
“If you don’t like it, don’t get mad.”
He had only learned about her birthday recently and hadn’t had time to carefully prepare anything. Otherwise, he had planned to make something handmade—those kinds of gifts rarely go wrong.
“Am I really that unreasonable?”
“Not really…”
An Han rolled her eyes at him. When she turned back to the others, she noticed the hot pot had already begun boiling. They were dipping meat while drinking and chatting.
She quickly grabbed her chopsticks and snatched the meat Chen Junjie had just put into the pot. Just as he was about to curse, she spoke confidently:
“It’s my birthday today! What’s wrong with eating two pieces of your meat?!”
“Exactly!” Lin Yi chimed in.
“You’re stealing someone else’s meat! And you’re targeting me!”
Chen Junjie complained like a resentful housewife. But unlike before, he didn’t argue with An Han head-on. Instead, he immediately snatched a slice of meat from under Long Xing’s chopsticks.
Long Xing refused to back down and began fighting him with chopsticks, stirring the hot pot into chaos.
“So childish…” An Kexin commented softly.
“Men are like that.” An Han said with deep understanding.
She hadn’t been a woman for very long, and her thinking still leaned more toward that of a man. She could guess men’s thoughts fairly accurately and understood the silly scene in front of her very well.
“It’s mine! Brother Long, you’re not very good at this. That’s not how you use chopsticks!”
Chen Junjie grabbed another piece of meat and smugly mocked Long Xing. He opened his mouth wide and deliberately placed the meat into it in slow motion, wearing an exaggerated expression of enjoyment.
Even An Han clenched her fists at his punchable face.
In truth, there was plenty of meat prepared—enough for everyone to eat their fill. But Long Xing and Chen Junjie insisted on fighting over the same piece for half the day.
Watching the chaotic and ridiculous scene in front of her, An Han couldn’t help but smile slightly. Yet there was also a hint of sadness and melancholy.
She should have been part of the chaos.
But since becoming a girl, even Chen Junjie—who used to clash with her the most—had become noticeably gentler and more accommodating.
And it was already the second semester of their third year. Moments like this would become rarer and rarer.
“Brother Long, what do you plan to do after graduation?” An Han suddenly asked about the future.
Long Xing paused mid-movement before answering after a moment.
“Not sure yet. My family wants me to start as an auxiliary police officer first, then try for a formal position after a couple of years.”
“What about you, Junjie?”
“Me? What’s it to you?” Chen Junjie snapped as usual, then answered honestly. “No idea. I’m useless at everything. I’ll see which company is blind enough to hire me during the spring recruitment.”
Wu Dongming was preparing for graduate school, while Su Peng planned to study abroad, so there was no need to ask them.
An Kexin spoke up on her own.
“I want to become a kindergarten teacher. I’m taking certification exams recently. I’m trying to pass them before the first semester of senior year.”
“That personality of yours does suit it.”
Lin Yi rolled her eyes.
“I learned nothing and can do nothing. I’m just going to slack off.”
Then she turned to An Han.
“After asking everyone else, what about you?”
But An Han could only shake her head blankly.
Her situation was slightly better than Lin Yi’s and Chen Junjie’s. She had paid attention in most of her major courses and could complete assignments and projects on her own.
But she didn’t like her major.
She had chosen computer science because her mother thought it had good prospects, without considering whether she actually liked it.
“Maybe… I’ll try becoming a teacher? That sounds pretty good, right?” she said hesitantly.
“Right! I think being a teacher is great too!” An Kexin agreed enthusiastically, nodding repeatedly.
But their university wasn’t a teachers’ college, and their major wasn’t education either. Becoming a teacher after graduation didn’t seem very competitive.
Su Peng suddenly chimed in from the side.
“It’s fine. I’ll support you.”
“What are you thinking!”
An Han widened her eyes and knocked him lightly on the head.
Even though she felt tempted, she had still lived twenty years as a man. The values she had grown up with made her resistant to the idea of living off someone else or becoming a decorative burden. If she could support herself, she didn’t want to rely on a man.
Besides, it might set a bad example for her younger sister.
When she looked back at the others, however, she noticed the unmistakable envy in Lin Yi’s eyes.
“How nice~” Lin Yi muttered while chewing meat, her words slightly muffled.
A knock sounded at the door.
Su Peng quickly stood up to answer it and soon returned with an enormous cake box, placing it beside the coffee table.
“Clear some space.”
“Why is the box so big?”
“It’s three tiers. I originally wanted to order a nine-tier one, but I was afraid you guys wouldn’t finish it and it would go to waste.”
“Three tiers is probably already too much,” An Han said.
But just then she saw Lin Yi’s eyes sparkle like a cat spotting its favorite treat. The girl almost jumped up to greet the cake, looking like she might start drooling.
An Han had never realized before that she liked desserts so much.
“Was it expensive?”
“About a thousand or so. Not bad.”
Su Peng opened the cake box, and An Kexin and Lin Yi immediately exclaimed:
“It’s so pretty!”
Then they quickly stopped the guys who were about to cut the cake and took out their phones to take pictures.
“We still have to light candles, make a wish, and sing the birthday song. Why are you all in such a hurry?”
“That’s too troublesome…”
An Han felt a bit reluctant. She always thought wishing and singing during birthdays was meaningless and a little embarrassing.
But after months of training from the system, her tolerance for embarrassment had become surprisingly flexible. She easily accepted the girls’ suggestion and personally inserted two candles and lit them.
Chen Junjie quickly got up to close the curtains, blocking out the evening sunlight. Su Peng turned off the lights, leaving the room in darkness with only the faint glow of phone screens.
“Blow out the candles and make a wish!”
An Han frowned slightly in annoyance as she leaned down to blow out the candles, her mind racing.
Make a wish?
It didn’t feel like she had any particular wish.
Puffing out her cheeks, she blew out the candles in one breath.
Lin Yi immediately led everyone in singing the birthday song. The guys hadn’t drunk much yet and were too stiff to sing properly, so the song sounded messy and out of tune.
An Han closed her eyes and clasped her hands together, pretending to make a wish.
She only intended to fake it and get it over with.
But suddenly, faces began appearing in her mind.
Her parents, her younger sister, her friends, and Su Peng…
And the system—without any human form, only a projection of text—that had suddenly barged into her life.
Thinking back on the past half year, everything she had gained and lost…
I hope my sister will behave better and stop raising Mom’s blood pressure.
I hope Mom and Dad stay healthy.
I hope I never lose any more friends.
And I hope Su Peng and I can continue living a peaceful, ordinary life together…
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