A Bookworm’s New Routine

FEVER

It was already late when several people came out of the night club.

It’s now early winter, and the sweaty people who came out of the nightclub didn’t feel it, but after walking for a while, a few people shivered from the cold.

“Stinky mushroom, are you satisfied!” (!) Hu Ying felt good everywhere at the moment. If she had a tail behind her, she would be able to poke into the sky at this moment.

(!) OG is 服不服啊 which also can be translated to “(I’m) Not convinced!”. It didn’t make sense if I put “I’m” based on context so, I stuck with the google translate translation

Qi Wei gave her a contemptuous look and said: “What is the point of dancing? Let’s fight if we can!” 

“We are civilized people, we don’t fight!” Hu Ying said with a smile.

Qi Wei: “...” Fuck, why does it feel like she’s the same as her boss and wants to be beaten up so badly.

“Let’s go, we’ll have a chance to learn from each other next time!” Mu Qi said to Qi Wei and the others when they reached the red light intersection.

Qi Wei snorted, turned her head and left, determined not to speak, giving them a dashing back view and feeling it.

Seeing her leaving figure, Hu Ying “cut” and said: “You just like to act tough!” (!)

(!) 就喜欢装逼, which I just left as “you like to act tough” but it was also translated to “I like to pretend to be forced!”/”I just like to pretend” which didn’t really make any sense? I tried looking it up on some online dictionary and:  就 = just 喜欢 = to like 装逼 = to act like a pretentious prick
So I took that as meaning, (You) Just like to act like a prick! or something along those lines
Mu Qi patted the back of her head and said: “You’re about the same.” Just pulling someone and provoking them on the dance floor, how do you look like a male peacock who is about to open its screen? (!)

(!) Male peacock who is about to open its screen probably refers to male peacocks opening their feathers to attract females

Thinking of this metaphor, Mu Qi laughed, gave the green light, and crossed the road with her long legs.

“Boss, what are you slandering me for again?” Hu Ying felt something was wrong when she saw her expression, and immediately chased after her.

“Don’t you always say that you are a roundworm in my stomach? (!) Go figure it out yourself.” Mu Qi said.

(!): Apparently, having a “worm in one’s stomach” means to know exactly how one thinks. So, I’m guessing Mu Qi’s saying that Hu Ying always says that she knows what Mu Qi’s thoughts are.

Hu Ying yelled: “Qi-ge, don’t tell me that disgusting thing. I watched the news a few days ago, and I felt sick and vomited.”

Su Yanxi followed quietly, watching the interaction between the two of them, especially the smile on Mu Qi’s face, which made her unconsciously bend the corners of her mouth.

When she got home, the room was pitch black. Mu Qi threw her schoolbag on the sofa, then fell on the sofa and didn’t want to move.

In the night club, her mind was filled with intense music, and she couldn’t think about anything, but when she got home, she was alone, so she couldn’t help but think.

Finally, irritated, she entered the bathroom, stood under the shower, raised her head, and let the water flow down her face.

Because Su Yanxi came back home late and had a messy smell on her body, she ended up lying and said that she and her classmates went to the internet cafe to check some information, and then returned to her room. 

Pulling her collar and smelling the strong smell of smoke on her body, she couldn’t help but think that in the dim night club, Mu Qi was holding a cigarette, her lazy expression adding sexiness behind the smoke, making her heart beat wildly. 

Finally, she ran into the bathroom while pressing her chest, and when she looked up, she saw her flushed face and bright eyes on the mirror.

She quickly bent over and washed her face with cold water, and only then did the trace of heat dissipate.

The next day was Saturday, and it was a holiday. Su Yanxi couldn’t have a coincidence with Mu Qi, so she could only sit at home in disappointment, thinking about it while doing her homework.

On the other hand, Mu Qi didn’t wake up until noon. Maybe it was because she was in a good mood in the night club last night, so she slept soundly and didn't need to eat breakfast when she opened her eyes.

However, when she thought of going to the dinner party again in the evening, the good mood that Mu Qi finally gathered together was ruined at that moment, and she sat in front of the computer irritably and started playing games.

It was dark, and when she looked up again, it was already four o’clock in the afternoon, and there was still two hours before the dinner party, and she was not in the mood to continue playing games.

After wandering outside for a long time, she went to the hotel only after it was time.

Mu Guoqiang and Liu Xin had already arrived, and they were still sitting opposite each other, each doing their own thing.

When Mu Qi opened the door and came in, the two looked up at her. Mu Guoqiang continued to look down at the computer while Liu Xin stood up, walked over and took her hand, and led her to sit on a chair and said: “How are you studying recently?”

Mu Qi raised her eyes and glanced at her. The bright smile on the other party’s face never changed, and it was as it used to be. Mu Qi couldn’t help pulling the corners of her mouth and didn’t say anything.

Liu Xin retracted her hand a little embarrassedly, then smiled again and said: “Mom will go out to shoot in two days, and it is estimated that it will take three months to come back.” The deep meaning is that for the next three months, she won’t show up to the monthly dinner party again because she is busy. 

Mu Qi lowered her eyelids and said coldly, “Hmm.”

Mu Guoqiang still did his own thing. After the “family reunion” ended, he told Mu Qi that he would be very busy in the next three months, so she should study hard.
After hearing this, Mu Qi still had no expression. When she got home, all her emotions erupted. She kicked over the trash can beside the sofa, and swept everything on the coffee table to the ground. Even the thousands of dollars of crystal cups her mother bought for her was broken, and she didn’t even look at them.

Finally, standing under the shower, tears mixed with water flowed into the sewer drain.

Perhaps because she was very sad, she had a high fever that night.

Hu Ying came over to play with her and rang the doorbell for a long time. Just when she couldn’t help but make a phone call, the door opened from the inside. Hu Ying, who thought that the other party was going out, was startled when she saw the other party’s flushed face and white lips, and was taken aback immediately.

“What’s wrong with you?” Hu Ying hurriedly walked in.

Mu Qi used all her strength before to walk to the door and open the door for her, but at this moment, she had no strength and fell directly towards her.

Hu Ying hurriedly held her and put her hand on her forehead. Only then did she realize that the other party had a fever, and it was still very high. While helping the other party to the sofa she couldn’t help but mutter: ”How don’t you burn to death? Don’t you know to call me? Ah! You always talk about how cold you are all day long and how cold you are when you burp(!).”

(!): Hu Ying’s whole dialogue here was translated weirdly. OG is: “你特么怎么不烧死，不知道给我打电话吗？啊！你说说你一天到晚的，高冷个什么劲，哪天嗝屁了，看还高不高冷.”, which can be translated to, “Damn, don't you know how to call me? Ah! You talk about how cold you are all day long, and how cold you are when you hiccups one day."

“Don’t be noisy!” Mu Qi;s head was about to explode when she was talking about it, so she couldn’t help but hit her.

Usually this punch will definitely make Hu Ying grin for a while, but today, the fist hit the body softly and it didn’t even tickle. 

Hu Ying couldn't help but complain again, “Qi-ge, you're useless!” Seeing that the other party was really uncomfortable she didn't say anymore, and boiled hot water for the other party and took a thermometer.

39*.

Very high, to the point of rescue.

Hu Ying gritted her teeth, looked at Mu Qi, who was lying on the sofa with a weak face, and finally squatted down with her back to the other party and said, “Come on, you must go to the hospital now.” 

“Don’t go.” Mu Qi turned her head into the sofa, her face full of rejection.

Hu Ying turned her head and stared. She couldn’t believe that this person was so sick, and she was dragging her to death!

“Qi-ge, if you don’t get up, I'll drag you there!” Hu Ying couldn’t help but roaring”

“Don’t go.” Mu Qi turned over, and now her whole back was facing her, and her whole body was filled with messages of rejection.

Hu Ying was so angry that she wanted to jump. In the end, she somehow thought of Little Cutie. She took out her mobile phone and called Su Yanxi’s number, and said to the one who was lying on the sofa and didn’t understand: “You’re not going, are you? Okay, then I can only do one thing!” (!)

(!) The dialogue, “...then I can only do one thing!” was originally translated to be “...then I can only zoom in!” (OG: “你不去是吧，好，那我就只能放大招了！”). However, that did not make any sense to me at all, but from context, I’m assuming Hu Ying was saying that she had no choice but to call Su Yanxi, so I tried translating it as such.

Mu Qi’s brain was burning badly, and she only heard Hu Ying’s word’s intermittently. Of course, she didn’t hear the other party’s call.

The room was quiet for a while, and after a bit, the doorbell rang. Mu Qi thought it was so noisy that she covered her head with a pillow, with a face full of protest.

“What happened to Qiqi?” Su Yanxi ran over without stopping when she received Hu Ying’s call. Even in this early winter season, beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

Hu Ying had already used all kinds of tricks, but someone on the sofa still didn’t get up at all. She can’t be tossed around and was unable to do this, and said to Su Yanxi: “Go and persuade her, she has a high fever of 39*.”

When she heard the high temperature, Su Yanxi stopped talking, quickly squatted beside the sofa, touched Mu Qi’s face, and asked softly, “Mu Qi!”

Mu Qi frowned. Hearing her voice, her eyes opened slightly, then her brows frowned even tighter, and she looked sideways at Hu Ying and said, "Why is she here?”

Hu Ying rolled her eyes and said, “This is the soldier I brought to save you!” 

“Let her go back.” Mu Qi said in a hoarse voice.

Hu Ying turned a deaf ear.

Su Yanxi took her hand, her eyes were read, and tears came, and she said with a crying voice: “Mu Qi, shall we go to the hospital? If you don’t go, your brain will burn out, what if you become mentally retarded...”

Hu Ying: “...”

Mu Qi: “...”

“But don’t be afraid, if you burn out your brain by then, I can take care of you...” The little pitiful one sniffled and said very seriously.

Hu Ying laughed when she heard it.

The more Mu Qi listened, the more black lines appeared on her forehead, and it took a long time before she squeezed out two words from between her teeth.

“Hu! Ying!”

Hu Ying laughed and fell on the sofa. She was about to laugh to death by Little Cutie’s words. She was not afraid of Mu Qi’s gaze, and even nodded in agreement: “Yes, yes, Qi-ge, if you burn out your brain, let Little Cutie take care of you.”

Mu Qi felt a little stronger because of the two of them, and sat up from the sofa. She was dizzy immediately. She slowed down for a while before saying, “Let’s go.”

Seeing that she finally agreed, Hu Ying and Su Yanxi looked at each other, smiled in unison, and then quickly helped Mu Qi out of the house.

Su Yanxi hurriedly went to press the elevator button, and then used her mobile phone to call a taxi.

When she helped Mu Qi out of the neighborhood, the taxi was already waiting in the front.

“Is the little classmate sick?” The driver asked, looking at the rear seat from the rearview mirror.

“Yes, master, please hurry up!” Hu Ying said in the back seat.

“Okay!” The driver drove the car quickly without delay.

On the night of the early winter, there were not many pedestrians on the road, so the car drove unusually fast and arrived at the hospital in ten minutes.

“Thank you, master, I'll give you a good review!” After Hu Ying finished speaking, she and Su Yanxi helped Mu Qi out of the taxi and walked to the hospital.

With such a high fever, salt water will naturally be lost.

This is estimated to take an hour or two(!).

(!): I think they’re referring to the IV drip that Mu Qi’s getting

It was already past nine o-clock, and Hu Ying said to Su Yanxi, “Why don’t you go back first, I’ll be here with her.”

Su Yanxi came out with the lie of buying a book. If she doesn’t go back now, her parents would be really worried, so she glanced at Mu Qi, then stood up and said: “Then I’ll go back first. If something happens, you must call me.”

Hu Ying made an ‘OK’ gesture and said: “Be careful on your way back.”
​
Su Yanxi nodded.