Although They're Mentally ill, They're Extremely Easy to Comfort - Chapter 7

In the private room of the upscale fine-dining restaurant, the atmosphere was so peaceful and quiet that only the crisp sounds of cutlery clinking remained.

Chu Xi signaled the manager to sign the bill and check out, then asked with concern, “Miss, were the dishes tonight to your liking?”

Qiao Bo’er, who had a small appetite and had only sampled a bit, was elegantly dabbing the corners of her lips with a napkin. She replied indifferently, “They were alright.”

After tea and dinner, Chu Xi appropriately changed the subject: “Qu Ye is waiting outside the door already, and Zanda is too.”

Upon mentioning Zanda, Qiao Bo’er looked slightly surprised: “He’s back?”

“Just now. Do you need to talk to him about anything?”

“No need, let him rest well for a while… Oh, help me prepare a gift. I’ll send you the recipient’s address later.”

Chu Xi was puzzled, not understanding what her boss suddenly needed.

Thinking of that lazy kitten, Qiao Bo’er’s mood brightened, and she abandoned her naturally reserved nature. Her words were meaningful: “Do you know the best way to cook salted fish? Pan-frying and braising are too ordinary. Mince it, boil it in soup, and strain out the residue—only then will it have a unique flavor.”

Understanding her intent, Chu Xi’s smile gradually became awkward.

Whenever the boss held a grudge and sought revenge, that cunning expression would surface. Her methods were varied and her techniques were startling. If she hadn’t gotten tired of it, the torment would be endless.

Chu Xi’s smile turned from awkwardness to helplessness. She quietly packed her handbag, sighing inwardly: Why did you have to provoke her? Just silently pray for that salted fish.

Waking up was a daily catastrophe for Ling Xi. She was deeply versed in the first rule of the Zen lazy dog doctrine—enjoy the bed’s seal.

She could lie there until “It’s dark, close your eyes,” or even until the end of time, starving and dying of thirst.

The department head called her repeatedly more than ten times before she finally answered weakly: “Hello?”

Hearing the groggy sound of Ling Xi’s voice, the director was furious: “I told you yesterday to come to my office. It’s half a corridor away, did you get lost and walk for a day and a night? What time is it, and you’re still not out of bed!”

“It’s Saturday today. Why should I get up?”

“What about Saturday? The notice for today’s meeting was sent out in the group chat three times last night. Everyone is here except you!”

“Who’s possessed to choose today for a meeting?”

“Your department head demanded it!”

“Anyway, none of my classes are being taught. It’s useless even if I come, I’ll just be making up the numbers.” Ling Xi lay in bed, lazily stalling, and even shamelessly pleaded: “Uncle Chen… I beg you, just mark me absent… My system is paralyzed when I get out of bed.”

Upon being called ‘Uncle Chen,’ the director’s temper immediately softened: “How can a young comrade like you have a ‘lie flat’ mentality? If you had half the dedication of your parents and focused on teaching and research, and published a few more academic papers, the ‘Associate’ in your title would have been removed long ago! I’m warning you, this is the only time. Don’t let it happen again.”

“I knew it, my leader is the best.”

“Don’t take advantage of me and still pretend to be good. If you don’t come to my office next Monday, I’ll settle all accounts with you.”

“Ding dong, ding dong…”

She had just hung up the phone and was about to drift back to sleep when the doorbell rang again.

Ling Xi dragged her pillow and slowly shuffled to the door. She had already decided that if it was Xiao Mo, she would unleash a torrent of abuse.

Opening the door before clearly seeing who it was, Ling Xi immediately launched into an outburst: “Waking people up early on a weekend morning—did your ancestral grave get blown up, and you’ve come to invite me to a village feast?”

The delivery guy, who had just had his whole family insulted, stood there dumbfounded: “Uh… your, your, your takeout.”

Ling Xi snapped back to reality, quickly snatched the bag, yelled “Sorry,” and slammed the door shut, terrified that a moment’s delay would result in a murder case making the social news headlines.

Pondering that she hadn’t ordered any takeout, Ling Xi lifted the bag and examined it repeatedly. Yet, the recipient was definitely her name.

Yay… Which kind person worried I’d starve at home and sent charcoal in the snow? So thoughtful…

It was quite heavy, too!

Seeing food made her hungry. Her stomach rumbled non-stop.

Ling Xi sat down on the sofa, rubbing her hands with an audible hiss. The packaging was very careful, sealed tightly with three layers inside and three layers outside.

She eagerly fiddled with it for a while, but something felt increasingly wrong.

Finally, the sealed box was opened like Pandora’s Box, and chaos erupted.

A stench—powerful enough to send Ling Xi to the netherworld of a thousand-year-old cesspit—swiftly engulfed the entire house, penetrating her nasal passages from every angle and assaulting her brain, causing a tumultuous storm in her stomach.

“Ugh!”

Ling Xi covered her nose in horror and bolted to the bathroom. Leaning over the sink, a valiant retching sound pierced the sky: “Aargh!!”

Almost at the same time, shouts of abuse came from the windows of unknown residents outside: “Ugh… which house got hit by a sewage explosion? It stinks!”

“Who’s eating poop? My kid is crying from the smell. What the hell is going on? Ugh…”

The strongest biological weapon—Surströmming (fermented herring) can reach a lethal dose of at least three catties.

Her stomach was already empty, and Ling Xi was retching so hard that her bile was nearly squeezed out. Panicking, she stuffed tissue paper into both nostrils and didn’t dare to take a deep breath with her mouth.

Seeing stars and staggering, she was so weak that she could only move by leaning on the wall.

The short distance from the bathroom to the living room felt like walking through a frontline trench. If it were any more exaggerated, Ling Xi would have been crawling on her belly.

Looking at the evil can of herring, brimming with juice, she covered her mouth and experienced another fit of convulsive retching.

In the end, she had no choice but to lift the takeout bag with a raised pinky finger and quickly rush to the kitchen.

She accidentally stumbled twice, and the overpowering, noxious liquid splashed onto her hands and the carpet. Wasn’t this worse than sulfuric acid?

Ling Xi was so terrified her wits were nearly scattered. She screamed with a hoarse voice: “Ah!! Help!”

The house was completely overtaken.

Ling Xi even felt the stench drilling into her brain through her ears, wantonly invading her nerves. A thousand herrings were excitedly breakdancing in her mind, Doo-doo-wei doo-doo 857 857…

This clueless, lazy person, who was not skilled at self-care, stupidly used the most terrifying method: she wasted an entire bottle of perfume, but still couldn’t cover up the smell that could take people to the underworld. Finally, she chose to open the windows for ventilation.

Since misery loves company, she decided to share the joy of the stink with the whole neighborhood.

The nightmare of herring began to shroud the outside world. The entire apartment building exploded!

Soon, the property management, thinking a sewer pipe had burst, came knocking to check the situation.

The mix of perfume and herring stench was simply adding insult to injury. The moment Ling Xi opened the door, the odor that rushed out instantly made the whole group gag and vomit.

Retching sounds echoed up and down the staircase. The scene was utterly out of control, and no one knew whether to call 911 or the police for help.

Ling Xi sat pitifully on the sofa, shoulders hunched, hands clamped between her legs to guard against the physical attack of the stench. She had even stuffed tissue paper in her ears.

Neighbors and property staff took turns frantically criticizing her, occasionally accompanied by intermittent retching sounds.

Her head has seven orifices in total, four of which were plugged with tissue. The lingering odor was trapped in her forehead, and she felt as if her brain was being smoked.

By the time the crowd dispersed, Ling Xi had entered a state of being completely shut down. Now that her reputation was as smelly as the herring, how could she hold her head up in the neighborhood again?

The social death left Ling Xi nowhere to hide, and she was on the verge of tears.

The house felt like a giant methane pool. Staying any longer risked danger; a slight spark could cause an explosion.

Ling Xi’s messy hair was frazzled. The edges of the tissue paper stuck in her ears fluttered in the wind from the window—she looked utterly wretched but also genuinely hilarious.

She quickly packed a few changes of clothes and decided to temporarily run away from home.

On the balcony of the building directly across from Ling Xi’s home stood a slender figure in a high-fashion designer suit. She was holding binoculars, appreciating her brilliant creativity, watching the entire spectacle from a safe distance.

In her other hand, she lightly held a smooth and rich chocolate ice cream cone, occasionally bringing it to her mouth for a leisurely lick.

Watching the wretched and comical state of the person in her scope, her sly smile eventually turned into unrestrained laughter from an inability to hold it back: “Hahaha, herring is salted fish too! Look at her embarrassing appearance, it really resembles a salted fish. This is so much fun…”

The secretary beside her smiled helplessly, sighing inwardly. It turned out her boss could laugh so uncontrollably. It seemed she was genuinely happy.

But… Boss… you really are a childish person with a wicked sense of humor!

I’m quietly asking, are there any darlings who want to join the ‘Pleasure Home’ QQ Group?

Leave a mysterious code: Six Goose Six, Yao, my dad is going to be mad at me (If you can’t translate the message, just ask).

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