Mistaken Canary Chapter 26 (Part 2)
TL Note: Ayeee, I forgot to mention it last update, but I saw daehoneydae made a five-star rating and review for this novel, thank you for that! I always check the reviews and ratings, so whenever a novel I translates gets a positive review, I get all giddy hehe. Muah, i love uuu
Edited by megane-kun (ko-fi)
Chapter 26.2
When Zhuo Shu parked the Bentley downstairs at the company, he ran into Mi Shu. He quickly called out to her, "Is the house you showed me last time still available?"
Mi Shu immediately replied, "The one on the outskirts is still available, but the city center one’s been taken."
"That’s the one. Make the arrangements and make sure everything’s in order; I want to move in right away," Zhuo Shu declared, brimming with enthusiasm.
Mi Shu followed him, saying, "Chairman, that house is really far from the company. It would be inconvenient for your commute."
"Who said I’ll be going there during work hours? It’s for relaxation and leisure, of course," Zhuo Shu said as he stepped into the elevator and pressed the close button.
Mi Shu glanced down at his fidgeting legs, a flash of sharpness in her eyes. "Understood. Oh, and by the way, wasn’t that car you gave to Mr. Ying? Why is it back with you?"
"I took it back," Zhuo Shu said solemnly. "I can't be too nice to him. Otherwise, he’ll stay a good-for-nothing salted fish forever. He needs to suffer some setbacks."
Mi Shu gave him a subtle side-eye: So, you took his car back, planning to swap it for a villa?
That sure sounds like a tough setback :)
Once back in his office on the top floor, Zhuo Shu dealt with some paperwork and checked on the progress of each department. Afterward, he decided it was time for a break and few days of relaxation.
He pushed open the door to his private lounge, gathered a few things, and prepared to head back to the Zhuo family home. His gaze suddenly landed on the bed, and memories from two days ago, during an afternoon break, flooded back.
It was daylight, the sun high, and Yi Tongchen was quietly lying beside him, breathing evenly.
That was the first time he had consciously suppressed his desires and taken a peaceful nap with his bed companion…
His phone buzzed, pulling Zhuo Shu from his reverie. He opened his eyes and realized he had fallen asleep on the bed.
Sitting up, he glanced at the messages on his phone, which were sent to his unimportant alternate account.
[Liu Li'ang]: Chairman Zhuo, I’m passing by K.W. Do you have some free time? Would you like to join me for a meal?
[Liu Li'ang]: Chairman Zhuo, are you there? Cat question mark.jpg
[.]: No.
[Liu Li'ang]: …
[Liu Li'ang]: You mean you're not at the company?
[.]: Yeah.
[Liu Li'ang]: "That's too bad. By the way, did you get in touch with the factory you asked about last time? I happen to have two extra dolls here. Would you like me to send them to you?" {Selfie holding the dolls}
[.]: "No, too ugly."
Liu Li'ang: "..." He must be talking about the dolls in the photo, not the handsome guy next to them!
It was getting late outside, and Zhuo Shu didn’t respond further. He called home and asked them to prepare his meal, and then stood up, ready to head back.
His phone vibrated a few more times. Irritated, he picked it up and saw it wasn’t Liu Li'ang, but Homeroom Teacher.
Equally annoying.
The homeroom teacher had tagged everyone in the parent group and posted the latest school notice. To ensure the students' safety during the holiday travels, parents were asked to report their children's whereabouts in the group during the National Day holiday.
[Bu Xuexi’s Parent]: "Safe, my child is at home playing video games."
[You Diansha’s Parent]: "Safe, my child is in their room sleeping."
[Xiang Fangjia’s Parent]: "Safe, my child is on the phone with their girlfriend."
[Zhuo Zi’s Parent]: Cat question mark.jpg
[Xiang Fangjia’s Parent]: "@[Zhuo Zi’s Parent], you’re messing up the group formation. Did you not understand the teacher's instructions, or are you unaware of Zhuo Zi’s location?"
Zhuo Shu truly didn’t know where Zhuo Zi had gone. He’d been busy with work lately, so Zhuo Zi had been reporting her whereabouts directly to her parents.
At this point, the homeroom teacher, perhaps concerned about him losing face in the parent group, privately messaged him.
[Homeroom Teacher]: "Are you aware of Zhuo Zi’s whereabouts?"
[Zhuo Zi’s Parent]: "Not really."
[Homeroom Teacher]: "She called me earlier. She’s now back at the hotel, resting with her classmates. I hope you can pay more attention to your child's growth. Business is important, but your child needs your companionship."
Zhuo Shu didn’t expect to be criticized by a teacher even after all these years since graduation. Even his real homeroom teacher had never criticized him before.
Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to be angry, as the homeroom teacher’s point was valid. His father was busy with social events, his mother was focused on e-sports, and he was buried in work. No one else was around to watch over Zhuo Zi.
So, he quickly took charge of the situation: {Report your whereabouts to me every hour.}
[A'Zi is waiting for her Mr. Qiao]: "Are you satan!?!"
Zhuo Shu, caught between two sources of frustration, was so angry that he logged out of his unimportant alternative account and switched back to his regular private one.
Meanwhile, Ying Tongchen noticed that this parent had stopped replying, and assumed he must be feeling down. He silently chuckled, then checked all the reports from the other parents in the group before finishing his task and switching back to his main account.
There was a new notification in his Moments feed that still hadn’t disappeared. He clicked to open it and saw that Zhuo Shu had posted something just ten minutes ago.
[Zhuo Shu]: Feeling down
Ying Tongchen opened the comment box, typed a few words, then immediately deleted them. He typed a few more, but kept deleting and rewriting, until he finally decided not to post anything.
Wouldn’t commenting seem too eager and concerned?
Curious, he clicked on Zhuo Shu's Moments. After adding him as a friend, he realized he hadn’t really explored his feed yet.
The first post was the {feeling down} message, followed by another right below it—
[Zhuo Shu]: I’ve never seen such a childish and ignorant soul, clutching a doll while taking a doze, growing shorter with each toll [Image attachment]
The figure in the photo was so familiar to Ying Tongchen. Upon zooming in, it was undeniably a shot of him asleep, his head tilted to one side with a doll beside him. The expression on the chibi version of Zhuo Shu seemed to radiate joy.
Then he checked the timestamp and confirmed he had posted this photo that morning, from the hotel.
[Ying Tongchen]: I’ve never seen such a childish and ignorant soul as you.
[Zhuo Shu]: Feeling down.jpg
[Ying Tongchen]: What happened?
“Tongchen, it’s time to eat,” his old man called from the kitchen. Ying Tongchen replied and put down his phone to serve the food.
During dinner, his old man’s eyes landed on the sofa, and he chuckled, "That little doll is pretty cute."
After leaving the hotel, Ying Tongchen had taken a taxi directly to his old man's house and brought his luggage along. He turned around and happened to lock eyes with the chibi version of Zhuo Shu. Staring at the doll’s little expression, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
"Where did you buy this?" his old man asked.
Ying Tongchen: "A friend gave it to me. The original one was meant for you, but he swapped it for this one."
His old man was silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "So, you’re not giving me this one? You want to keep it for yourself?"
Ying Tongchen lowered his head to eat.
Seeing his reaction, his old man had already figured it out. "Your boyfriend gave it to you, didn’t he?"
"No," Ying Tongchen immediately retorted, nearly choking on his food. After coughing twice, he muttered, "I just thought this thing was quite fun—it has a lot of features."
"Oh~? Is that so?" His old man had a "keep making up excuses, I’ll just watch you do it" look on his face.
Ying Tongchen suddenly became serious, put down his bowl, and brought the doll to the table to personally demonstrate what he meant by a ‘feature-packed’ doll. "Look, not only does it have an interesting expression, but it can also cover its hands and act as a Bluetooth speaker. I heard this upgraded version even has a recording function." Ying Tongchen said as he firmly squeezed the chibi version of Zhuo Shu’s mouth. There was a hissing sound, and then a voice came out.
"Mm... Ah, deeper..."
Ying Tongchen: "...!" F*ck!
Ying Tongchen frantically pressed several buttons, but it seemed like the doll didn’t have a pause button and kept making noises, continuing with the "mm" and "ahh" sounds.
Old man: "..."
His old man awkwardly laughed and said, "Th–This voice sounds a bit familiar, doesn’t it, Tongchen?"
Ying Tongchen felt a flush of embarrassment creep up his scalp, quickly tossing the doll back into his room and locking the door to shut out the noise.
His old man, standing by the door, gave him a knowing look. Ying Tongchen's neck and ears were bright red, his forced calm betrayed by his flushed face. His old man sighed. "Alright, Tongchen, I understand why you wanted to keep it."
Ying Tongchen: "............"
Social death*. Ying Tongchen seriously considered just ending it all then and there.
(TLN: On Chinese social media, unrepairable reputation damage is often called a 'social death'.)