I Snatched the Overbearing President’s Canary [Transmigration] - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Stars

“Ning Chen, what’s wrong?” Seeing his strange expression, He Shenyu leaned in to ask.

Ning Chen shook his head: “Nothing.”

“What happened?” Shen Di also leaned over. “He Shenyu, have you thought of how to punish Ning Chen yet?”

Seeing that Ning Chen’s expression had returned to normal, He Shenyu didn’t overthink it and said, “How about you sing a song? I haven’t heard you sing before…”

“Aww, does that even count as a punishment?”

“Of course it does!”

“Forget it, forget it,” Shen Di said with a laugh. “If that’s the punishment He Shenyu set, then so be it. You guys get ready to punish the others later. Come on, Ning Chen!”

Ning Chen picked up the microphone with some hesitation. He looked at He Shenyu and said, “I don’t know how to sing.”

Shenyu stood beside him to help pick a song. It was his idea for a punishment, but seeing Ning Chen so troubled, he started offering suggestions: “How about a nursery rhyme?”

“A nursery rhyme? I only know one,” Ning Chen said, and he clicked on the song to move it to the top of the queue.

Before He Shenyu could see what it was, the familiar intro began to play.

Ning Chen looked at him and began to sing, word for word: “Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.”

Somehow, perhaps because Ning Chen’s gaze never left He Shenyu’s for a single moment while he sang, He Shenyu felt a trace of tenderness in Ning Chen’s plain voice.

It was as if… he was coaxing a baby to sleep at bedtime, incredibly gentle…

Shenyu actually found himself unable to meet his eyes.

Bad memories came flooding back; he kept feeling like Ning Chen was going to lean in and kiss him the next second, even though Ning Chen was just standing there holding the microphone, making no move to shift.

Nursery rhymes are short by nature, and Ning Chen finished quickly, returning to He Shenyu’s side.

Finally, it was someone else’s turn to play the game, and the two of them could sit on the sofa and watch.

“Stars,” Ning Chen said suddenly.

Shenyu turned to look at him: “What?”

Ning Chen pointed to the carving on He Shenyu’s bracelet and said, “There are stars here too.”

“Yeah,” He Shenyu smiled, “I really like stars, so I chose this one specifically.”

“I know.” Ning Chen gave a small smile, showing his own bracelet and letting it clink against He Shenyu’s.

“You knew I liked stars?” Shenyu was surprised.

Ning Chen nodded and said, “When Shenyu signs his name, he likes to draw a little star in the bottom right corner.”

“You even noticed that…” Shenyu felt a bit embarrassed. It was a bad habit; he wouldn’t do it when he was paying attention, but when he wasn’t, it was hard to say.

“Whoa… it’s your turn, Cheng Zhao! Get up there!”

The main character had finally been drawn. The room was mostly filled with Guan Heng’s “fair-weather friends,” so the cheering was quite loud.

Shenyu pulled Ning Chen and sat closer to the front with excitement.

Guan Heng looked nervous, spinning the microphone in his hand repeatedly.

On the other side, Cheng Zhao looked perfectly calm.

This was the first time He Shenyu had observed Cheng Zhao closely. His hair was cut very short, his bangs didn’t reach his eyebrows, and he wore black-rimmed glasses, looking very much like a “good student.”

However, considering Guan Heng had crushed on him for so many years, he was reasonably handsome, though he didn’t have that “stunning at first sight” quality that Ning Chen possessed.

Still, standing next to the now straight-haired, gentle-looking Guan Heng, they seemed like a good match.

Shenyu felt nervous on Guan Heng’s behalf. He squeezed Ning Chen’s hand and whispered in his ear, “Ning Chen, do you think Guan Heng has a chance?”

Only then did Ning Chen look up to observe them properly, eventually shaking his head: “I don’t know. I’m not close to them, so I can’t make a judgment.”

Shenyu found Ning Chen a bit dull sometimes; he just wanted to gossip, but Ning Chen’s answer was so serious.

The timer started. Guan Heng on stage looked at the slip of paper, stared at Cheng Zhao, and said slowly:

“I am not a materialist. But for you alone, I hope for an afterlife.”

It seemed this slip was also specifically rigged by Shen Di—it was a very suitable line for a confession.

However, even after the timer ended, Cheng Zhao hadn’t moved.

According to the rules, he won.

On the other side, Guan Heng looked like he was about to cry.

Cheng Zhao looked at him curiously: “I haven’t said the punishment yet…”

Guan Heng gritted his teeth to hold back his emotions and asked, “What’s the punishment?”

Cheng Zhao looked at him and asked, “Anything goes?”

“Yes,” Guan Heng nodded.

Cheng Zhao said, “Then I punish you to go back and continue your studies. Do you agree?”

Guan Heng was momentarily caught off guard, looking at Cheng Zhao with an expression of total disbelief.

Seeing that his expression was truly awful, Shen Di rushed in to smooth things over: “Cheng Zhao, it’s just a game. Say something fun!”

Cheng Zhao nodded: “Then do ten push-ups.”

Guan Heng glared at him and silently began doing push-ups.

The atmosphere turned awkward, so Shen Di quickly drew the next pair for the game.

Shenyu pulled on Ning Chen’s sleeve, his mood dropping along with the atmosphere: “Guan Heng looks so sad…”

Ning Chen turned to He Shenyu, sighed in his heart, and said, “Looking at Cheng Zhao’s behavior, at least he still considers Guan Heng a friend.”

“Really?” Shenyu glanced at Guan Heng, who was still doing push-ups; he seemed to be crying, tears dripping onto the floor.

Ning Chen leaned in closer and spoke: “Yes. Cheng Zhao looks like a person who loves studying, so when he tells Guan Heng to go back to school, he probably thinks that’s the most important thing. If they weren’t friends, he wouldn’t say that.”

“You have a point,” He Shenyu nodded. “Should I go comfort Guan Heng?”

Ning Chen held him back: “Let him calm down by himself first…”

“Alright…” Shenyu glanced at Guan Heng in the corner again, feeling a bit sorry for him.

Ning Chen stroked the head of the person in his arms, thinking that He Shenyu must have become a doctor by choice—his heart was simply too soft…

…

Guan Heng’s situation ended without a clear resolution. After that day, He Shenyu took the time to ask him about it.

Guan Heng only said he planned to travel for a while to clear his head.

Shenyu didn’t know how to comfort him, so he just told him to have a good time.

In the original novel, Guan Heng was a background character who was only introduced as “the eldest son of the Guan family” during a cocktail party and rarely appeared afterward.

Even though He Shenyu had read the original book, he didn’t know Guan Heng’s story, let alone Cheng Zhao’s—that name hadn’t even appeared in the novel.

He wondered if it was because he had traveled here that the world had become a “real” one, automatically filling in all the loopholes and making people more vivid.

Or perhaps it was always a real world where everyone had their own story, just not all of them were recorded.

Since his arrival, the plot had changed significantly, and the weather had turned from hot to cool.

The original plot He Shenyu knew had already gone off the rails; fundamentally, the meeting between the leads had been severed by him, so the original book was now a weak reference.

Fu Hengzhan seemed to have reverted to his previous state since the last incident; during routine check-ups, he wouldn’t say anything extra.

Shenyu had almost forgotten about him.

He picked up his phone to reply to Ning Chen’s message. Ning Chen said he had class tonight and wouldn’t be back for dinner in the afternoon.

Shenyu sent him a “head pat” emoji.

After entering his junior year, Ning Chen had more classes than before, and he planned to work on more case studies, making him even busier than He Shenyu.

Ring ring ring…

The phone suddenly rang. He Shenyu looked at the name:

— He Lun.

Who?

A very unfamiliar name…

He had a bad habit: he saved everyone’s numbers with their full names, which meant He Shenyu couldn’t guess their identity based on the contact. Every time, he had to play dumb.

But since it was a saved contact, it must be someone Dr. He knew.

Shenyu answered: “Hello?”

“How long has it been? Don’t you know to call your mother? She’s the one nagging you every day.”

It was a middle-aged man’s voice. Shenyu understood—this was likely Dr. He’s father.

Come to think of it, since he traveled here, Dr. His parents had very little presence. He had almost thought Dr. He was an orphan…

He remained silent. The man on the other end continued grumbling:

“It was our fault for changing your college entrance exam preferences back then, but your mom and I apologized. It’s been so many years, you should have forgiven us by now, right? What, do you plan on never speaking to us again for the rest of your life?”

Shenyu’s brow furrowed. What was all this about?

He tried to gauge Dr. He’s mindset and lowered his voice: “Why are you calling?”

“Look at how you talk. Can’t I call you even if there’s nothing wrong?” There was a hint of anger in the man’s voice.

Seeing that He Shenyu didn’t answer, he sighed and asked, “How’s work lately? How is that hospital President Fu let you manage? Is President Fu satisfied with you?”

What did that mean? Was Dr. His job introduced by his parents?

Shenyu frowned again and repeated, “What exactly is the matter?”

The middle-aged man sighed deeply and said, “Your mother says she misses you. The Mid-Autumn Festival is coming up, and she plans to go back to see you and have a meal. She’s asking if you’re willing… if you aren’t, say so early so she doesn’t go through the trouble. With her health, taking a plane isn’t easy…”

Shenyu hesitated. From a child’s perspective, he was sure Dr. He wouldn’t have agreed.

However, he selfishly wanted to meet Dr. He’s parents. That sentence his father just said made Shenyu curious; he felt he could uncover some backstories.

If he found out the truth, maybe he could resign from the hospital Fu Hengzhan opened. It was a hidden danger after all…

“Are you going to say something or not!”

Shenyu took a deep breath and said, “Fine. Tell me when you arrive.”

The man seemed not to expect him to agree and paused for a moment before saying, “Okay, I’ll tell your mother.”

“Yeah.” Shenyu was about to hang up.

The man added, “Find some time to ask President Fu if he’d have time for a meal with us when we’re back. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen him.”

Shenyu was even more confused, but he couldn’t ask directly, so he just replied: “Okay, I’ll find a time to ask.”

“Your mother’s health is getting worse. If she says something you don’t like to hear this time, don’t slam the table and get angry with her, do you hear me?”

What a mess. Shenyu felt like Dr. His mother wasn’t exactly a “normal” person either.

No wonder there was zero information about his parents on his phone…

“Understood.” Shenyu sighed and hung up.

He opened his cloud document on his computer and updated the hidden information he had just learned.

To be honest, He Shenyu was a little happy.

If he could extract information this time, would he be able to leave Fu Hengzhan and stop being a private doctor early?

Even if it wasn’t possible temporarily, if things came to a head, running away with Ning Chen was always a fallback plan…