Chapter 51 part 1
Bai He wasn’t staying at the school for winter break; he moved back to his old apartment building.
With his help and two other members from the club, the game script was revised for a fifth time and submitted to their group leader. Just a few days later, they heard that the club’s revised script had been adopted by the Tiandi company.
It was something worth celebrating. The club president treated everyone to a meal, and Bai He went along that day.
The winter break was long, so Bai He occasionally did some writing at home, and his time for streaming also increased.
He had saved up a sum of money recently from his streaming income. He used two-thirds of it to pay back Bai Qiu, leaving only one-third for himself. He didn’t feel bad about the money; with his current fanbase, he could earn it back quickly.
As for why he was paying Bai Qiu back? First, it was to break free from that irresponsible father. Second, it was for the original owner of this body.
Taking back the original owner’s “little dad’s” ring was for the same reason.
He just considered it a gift for the original owner. It might seem unnecessary, and Bai He didn’t even know where the original owner had gone, but he had a strange feeling. If he could end up here, perhaps the original owner had gone somewhere else, too.
Aside from that, because he had more time, Bai He’s fitness routine was back on the agenda. Strengthening his body was a pressing matter.
It was morning. Bai He had an appointment at the gym, and when he arrived, the instructor was already there.
The gym was divided into two zones: a separate one for omegas, and another for alphas and betas.
Bai He’s instructor was a young, cheerful male omega with healthy, wheat-colored skin. He was about the same height as Bai He, and the muscle definition on his arms was beautiful but not jarring.
When the instructor saw Bai He, he put down his water cup and stood up. “Bai He?”
Bai He nodded. “Hello.”
“Hello, hello! I’m Liu Ruo.” He introduced himself, looking Bai He up and down with a puzzled expression. “You have a pretty good build. Are you looking to gain muscle?”
Bai He shook his head with a wry smile. “No, I want to improve my physical constitution.”
“Oh!” Liu Ruo clapped his hands, smiling. “I get it. Your health isn’t great, right? Do you have any underlying conditions? I’ll need to keep that in mind when setting up your program.”
Bai He thought for a moment. “I used to be very weak and frail, though it’s gotten a little better recently. Does that count?”
Liu Ruo took out his phone to make a note in his memo app and nodded. “It counts.”
“Nothing else,” Bai He said, then added as an afterthought, “Oh, and the late differentiation. That shouldn’t be an issue, right?”
Liu Ruo noted that down as well. He put his phone away and smiled. “No problem at all. Let’s start with a warm-up. In the beginning, I’ll arrange some simpler exercises for you. We’ll progress gradually and take it slow. Improving your constitution is slow, careful work. Trust me, you’ll end up loving exercise.”
Bai He smiled. “Then I’ll be in your care, Instructor Liu.”
Noon arrived in a flash. They hadn’t done many exercises that morning, and the workout volume wasn’t high, but Bai He was still drenched in sweat. Liu Ruo led him through some stretches, and when they finished, he laughed again. “It’s normal to not be used to it at first. Your body will probably be sore tomorrow, that’s completely normal. If it’s really bad, we can move our session to tomorrow afternoon instead.”
Bai He wiped the sweat from his face with a towel and gave a weak smile. “My body… it’s really not in good shape.”
“That’s totally normal,” Liu Ruo reassured him. “Don’t worry, we can get it sorted out in about six months. Oh, right, another crucial part of conditioning your body is diet. Exercise needs to be paired with nutritious meals. I’ll give you a copy of the meal plan our gym developed. You can use it as a reference for cooking when you get home.”
Bai He received a thick, printed meal plan. He flipped through it and saw it was all pre-planned meals. He suddenly felt a wave of melancholy.
Cooking was just so difficult.
When he got home, Bai He went to take a shower. He wasn’t quite used to showering at the gym. Even though everyone there was an omega, it was his first time, and Bai He felt he still needed some time to get comfortable with it.
Experiencing that level of exercise was exhausting. Although, in Instructor Liu’s eyes, it probably didn’t even count as an intense workout—it was likely just child’s play.
Bai He flopped onto his bed, utterly tired and weary. But he hadn’t eaten lunch yet, and he was starving.
He struggled to sit up, grabbed his phone, and saw a video call coming in from Qin Yao.
At that, Bai He immediately fell back onto the bed. If he didn’t have to stand, he wasn’t going to.
He answered the call, and Qin Yao’s pleasant voice filled his ears.
“Little Bai He, have you eaten lunch? I’m heading back now. Tell me what you want to eat.”
Bai He was lying prone on his bed, his finger poking at Qin Yao’s face on the screen. “Are you done with work?”
The other side hummed an “Mm,” then chuckled. “Miss me?”
Bai He didn’t say anything. After a moment, he rolled onto his side, his voice muffled. “I want to eat your cooking.”
The other end was quiet for a few seconds, then he suddenly laughed, sounding clearly delighted. “What do you want to eat? I’ll go buy groceries.”
Bai He thought for a moment. “We have food at home. Just come back.”
Even though Bai He said they had food at home, Qin Yao still went to the supermarket to stock up. Since Bai He had moved back, Qin Yao often came over to cook, always making different dishes. The fridge was practically never short on ingredients.
Carrying the ingredients home, Qin Yao tied on his apron and headed straight for the kitchen, only to find Bai He had followed him in.
“I’ll watch you,” Bai He said, grabbing some garlic to peel.
Qin Yao watched him for a moment, then smiled. “What’s up today?”
Bai He told him about going to the gym. “I think I really need to learn how to cook. Why don’t you teach me?”
Qin Yao handed the nearby vegetables to Bai He. “You can help me wash these, and just watch me from the side.” He added with another smile, “Honestly, if you want to follow that meal plan, I can just learn the recipes and make them for you.”
Bai He shook his head. “I need to learn.”
Qin Yao nodded. “Alright.”
Cooking wasn’t actually that difficult. Bai He observed Qin Yao’s process; it was really just a few steps. But when it came time for him to actually do it, his hands couldn’t keep up with his brain.
Because of the added “lesson,” the meal wasn’t ready until one in the afternoon.
Qin Yao had been busy during this time. The Xingchen open beta had already launched, and he was at the company almost every day, sometimes even pulling all-nighters there.
Bai He had also only learned recently that Qin Yao’s illness wasn’t fully cured. A few days ago, Bai He had gone to the hospital for a follow-up check-up and ran into Chen Wensheng, who was there looking for Dr. Lai. He had wanted to ask about Qin Yao’s condition, but knowing the doctor couldn’t disclose private information, he just asked about the symptoms.
Dr. Chen told him that Qin Yao had been sick for several years, ever since he presented. The accompanying symptoms were insomnia, emotional instability during his susceptible periods, and so on. The most severe symptom was the insomnia—especially in the first few years, he would be unable to sleep for days during his susceptible periods.
Only then did Bai He understand that Qin Yao’s username, “Insomniac,” wasn’t just some random name. He really was an insomniac.
He had nothing to do that afternoon, so he searched online for related conditions but couldn’t find any treatment terms. He closed the browser, thought for a moment, and then found Dr. Lai, whom he had added previously, and asked for Dr. Chen’s contact information.
Meanwhile, at FREE.
On the fifth floor of the office building, Zhang Wenyi sat across from the desk, monitoring the open beta data, unable to suppress the grin on his face.
“Qin-ge, this is unexpected!” Zhang Wenyi chuckled for a long time, then leaned his head back and clicked his tongue. “Well, actually, it makes sense. After all, the reception for Xingchen‘s first and second tests was fantastic.”
Recommended Reads
Thanks for the update but this is chapter 53 instead of 51
thank you for letting me know. I edited it. haha.