Chapter 1: Lucky Night
"Why'd you come all the way here just to drink with me?"
In a second-tier coastal city in the south, a small barbecue restaurant was filled with the sizzling sound of grilled fish and the smoky aroma of roasted meat. After six months, the two friends met again.
Chen Cheng held a chicken skewer in one hand and a lamb skewer in the other, oil dripping from his mouth as he ate. Even though he was already twenty-seven or twenty-eight, he still looked like a college student. His clear yet somewhat naive eyes behind his glasses made it obvious that he hadn’t experienced much of the real world.
Sitting across from him was a young man who looked exhausted, his back unconsciously slouched. This was An Yuan, his childhood friend. Despite being the same age, An Yuan's hairline had noticeably receded, his dark circles were heavy, and he had gained a lot of weight.
"Look at you now. I told you not to rush into love and marriage," Chen Cheng teased, his tone a mix of envy and relief. "You used to be just slightly less attractive than me, barely qualified as a handsome guy. Now, you're a full-blown middle-aged man."
For once, An Yuan didn’t argue back. Instead, he picked up a beer bottle and gulped down half of it.
"Honestly, looking at your face, I’m afraid you might drop dead at any moment. Meanwhile, look at me, healthy and glowing! Just earlier, the taxi driver even asked me which university I attend!"
Chen Cheng straightened his back proudly. This was probably the only time he could feel superior to An Yuan.
After all, An Yuan made tens of thousands a month, owned a car and an apartment, and had a beautiful fiancée. A perfect match. No matter how much Chen Cheng tried to act indifferent, deep down, he was jealous.
Meanwhile, Chen Cheng was just a web novelist, writing in a rented apartment. His books never really took off, just barely enough to support himself. Forget about relationships, he didn’t even have anyone in his life besides himself.
"Being alone is nice..."
An Yuan sighed deeply, barely touching his food but drinking nonstop.
"What's wrong?"
Chen Cheng noticed something was off.
During past gatherings, An Yuan always lectured him about going out more, socializing, dating, and not staying up late. But today, he seemed completely different.
Chen Cheng raised his bottle for a toast and joked, "Come on, tell me something that’ll make me happy."
"The building project has stalled."
"Hah! Didn't I tell you not to buy pre-sale properties?"
"I got laid off. Still have to pay for the mortgage and car loan."
"The economy sucks right now. Just hold on for a couple of years, it’ll pass! Honestly, your job is even less stable than my writing career. You should join me in writing novels. No social security benefits, though."
"Wanyi cheated on me. We fought, and she left."
"......"
Chen Cheng suddenly didn’t feel like joking anymore.
Sure, when his friend was living a fancy lifestyle, he felt a bit jealous. But now that An Yuan was struggling, he genuinely felt bad for him.
"You’re kidding, right? Weren’t you guys supposed to get married in two months?"
An Yuan lifted his head, his eyes hollow.
"Does it look like a joke? The wedding’s off. She doesn’t even want to return the dowry."
"Uh... more drinks! More drinks!"
Chen Cheng forced a laugh and quickly handed him some skewers, even putting a big piece of grilled fish on his plate.
"Don't just drink, eat something."
He wasn’t great at comforting people, so all he could do was drink with him.
Trying to lighten the mood, he shared some of his own troubles, hoping An Yuan would find them amusing.
"My mom called me the other day, telling me to come home for a blind date. When I refused, she said she’d report me missing to the police. Do you think the cops would actually bother looking for me?"
"Look at my situation, no house, no car, just a crappy old apartment in my hometown with no elevator. Who would want me?"
"I've been in a relationship before, and let me tell you, I did everything, took care of her, spent my money on her. It was exhausting. Being single is way better. At least I get to spend all my money on myself."
"I'm just some lowly web novelist. I can't do anything else. Almost thirty now, still a nobody, average-looking, with no future..."
As the alcohol took effect, Chen Cheng leaned on the table, resting his head on one hand, mumbling, "If only I were a girl... at least then I wouldn't have to worry about all this. Maybe if I were pretty, everyone would love me..."
With a loud "thud," he passed out on the table.
An Yuan looked at his drunk friend and let out a sigh.
"I came to drink with you, but you got drunk before I did."
……………………………………………
It was late at night, and the sky was gloomy with rain.
The sound of raindrops pattering against the window mixed with the rustling of the curtains swaying in the wind.
Chen Cheng slowly opened her eyes, feeling a burning dryness in her throat. Her head was spinning, and her eyelids were so heavy that she could barely keep them open.
She weakly reached for her phone and glanced at the time, 7:30.
"Only seven... wait, seven in the morning?"
As a writer, her sleep schedule was completely messed up. Waking up like this, she couldn’t even tell if it was day or night.
Her head drooped again, and she closed her eyes, planning to go back to sleep, when her eyelids suddenly twitched.
Wait... was that an iPhone 6?
Did she get so drunk last night that she dug out this ancient relic?
Before she could think further, hurried footsteps sounded from outside.
The next second, there was a loud bang bang bang at the door, shaking the entire room.
"What the hell?!"
Ever since graduating from college, she had never been rudely awakened like this.
How bold!
Chen Cheng rolled over, pulled the blanket over her head, and pretended not to hear anything.
But the door suddenly burst open.
An Yuan stormed into the room, rushed to the bed, and pulled the blanket away.
"Chengzi! Something’s wrong!"
"Huh?"
"AHHHH!"
An Yuan was stunned. In the quilt was a young girl wearing only a camisole and a short skirt. The hem of the girl's skirt was pulled up to her waist, revealing white cotton underwear and the delicate, fair skin of her thighs. The camisole straps had slipped messily off her shoulders, half-exposing the smooth, snow-white curves of her chest.
She had short, ear-length hair, the kind commonly seen on middle school girls. Her face was small and youthful, her big, clear eyes full of confusion and the irritation of being woken up. Frantically, she reached for her glasses on the bedside table.
"S-Sorry..." An Yuan instinctively backed away, hastily pulling the blanket back over her. "Wrong room."
Wait... no, that’s not right.
But before he could process it, the girl suddenly threw the blanket off again and jumped up, pointing a furious finger at his face.
"An Yuan, what the hell is wrong with you?! It’s so early, why are you yelling? You have work, I don’t!"
"I drank so much with you last night! Can’t you just let me sleep a little longer?! You—"
An Yuan stared at the furious girl standing on the bed, completely dumbfounded.
For a long moment, he didn't know what expression he should make.
"...It's night now."
"Night? I slept the whole day?!"
Chen Cheng’s face suddenly twisted in horror.
"Wait, WHAT?! Since when did you get so handsome?! Your bald spot, it's gone?! Where’s your beer belly?!"
"......"
An Yuan fell silent, staring at the pretty girl in a thin nightdress standing before him.
A ridiculous thought began to form in his mind.
No way… Could this really be Chen Cheng?
The room plunged into dead silence.
The two stared at each other, neither daring to speak.
Then, the girl slowly lowered her head.
Right in front of An Yuan, she lifted both hands and pressed them against the soft fullness on her chest, her face still dazed and confused.
An Yuan instinctively wanted to look away, but then he realized, if he acted flustered in front of his brother, he'd definitely get mocked for it. So, instead, he kept a straight face and just stared at her.
"AHHHHHHH!!!"
The deafening scream could have blown the roof off, nearly rupturing An Yuan’s eardrums.
"WHY THE HELL DID I TURN INTO A WOMAN?!"