r18novel Chapter 21 | Known in the martial arts world as... the King of Dwarfs?
Chapter 21 | Known in the martial arts world as... the King of Dwarfs?
The upstairs living room was temporarily transformed into a "celebration site": balloons, disposable confetti cans, fruit platters, a large bag of fried chicken, and beer and soft drinks that no one could say for sure who ordered, were piled up everywhere.
"Hurry, hurry, they could come up at any moment!"
Choi Ye-na sat cross-legged on the carpet, holding a bag of ribbons in one hand, and directed, "Hye-won, blow that balloon up a little bigger."
Jiang Huiyuan said speechlessly, "Why don't you try blowing it? Blowing this is tiring, you know."
Choi Ye-na rolled her eyes at her: "I'm going to be in charge of the 'scare' segment later, okay? I'm the main firepower."
On the sofa, Kwon Eunbi was bending down to help tie a knot in the balloon string. She was wearing an ordinary baseball cap and dressed casually, but her figure was anything but ordinary.
"Please clean up the confetti on the ground first."
Kwon Eunbi spoke gently, but with a leader's habitual "discipline": "It wouldn't be good if he slipped and fell as soon as he walked in."
"Aigoo, our captain is still the most realistic."
While laughing, Choi Ye-na actually picked up the scraps of paper on the ground. "Don't worry, we guarantee he was startled by the ribbons, not slipped."
Not far away, Ahn Yoo-jin and Jang Won-young were studying the instruction manual around a spray can of confetti.
"So, should we pull out this plastic plug first, or just press this thing directly?"
Ahn Yu-jin frowned. "If it doesn't spray after pressing the button, we'll be in a very awkward situation."
"It's clearly stated in the instruction manual."
Zhang Yuanying held the spray can, her tone serious, "Rotate, aim, press. Just like adjusting the headset on stage."
"Stop spouting your professional opinions. Everyone knows you're a notorious troublemaker."
Choi Ye-na complained online, "Last time you set off those party fireworks in the dorm, you almost triggered the smoke alarm. And that time on stage, you even broke someone's headset."
Zhang Yuanying snorted and raised her chin: "That's because those fireworks were too cheap. They're different from this one. That time on stage, it was an accident! An accident, okay!"
After she finished speaking, she couldn't help but glance at the living room doorway again.
"So, is he really coming?"
Jang Won-young casually asked, "Yuri unnie's younger brother."
Of course!
Choi Ye-na was the first to speak, "I just saw a message from Yuri; he's already downstairs. What are you so nervous about? Didn't you used to love clinging to him the most?"
"ah!"
Zhang Yuanying immediately bristled, "When did I ever 'like to cling to him the most'?"
Ahn Yoo-jin laughed heartily beside her: "I remember. When he came to visit us backstage before, you always sat next to him, ate his snacks, and said—"
She deliberately dragged out her words: "Oppa, when I grow up, I'm going to marry you."
"Wow!!! I was only a few years old back then!"
Zhang Yuanying's ears turned red. "Can you really take a child's words seriously?"
"Then why did you later become his hater?"
Choi Ye-na added, "You used to call me 'oppa' every day."
Kwon Eunbi looked up at them, her eyes filled with a smile: "Alright, stop bullying our maknae."
As she spoke, she habitually tightened the string around a balloon with her fingertips, her voice soft.
"But he really went too far back then."
Ahn Yoo-jin immediately chimed in, "That's right, he shouldn't have said that hurtful thing."
Several people spoke in unison, as if they had rehearsed it:
"My ideal type isn't a little brat like you." After saying that, everyone couldn't help but laugh.
"You guys!!!" Zhang Yuanying bit her lower lip and glared at an innocent balloon in the air: "Besides, who would say something like that to a little kid? He could have said something like 'Grow up quickly' back then."
Choi Ye-na laughed so hard she rolled on the floor: "So you became his hater from that day on, right? You turned around and walked away whenever you saw him backstage."
"That's basic dignity."
Zhang Yuanying coldly concluded, "Moreover, he clearly has a crush on our captain, but he pretends to be so aloof."
As soon as the words were spoken, the air in the living room fell silent for a brief second.
Kwon Eunbi paused for a moment, then continued tying the knot as if nothing had happened: "Don't talk nonsense."
"I won't talk nonsense. I won't talk nonsense~"
Yena's eyes sparkled. "No wonder I felt the way he looked at Eunbi unnie was different back then. There were so many people backstage, but he always remembered to get water for our leader."
"That's just normal politeness, okay?" Kwon Eunbi corrected calmly.
Yu-jin raised her hand in agreement, saying, "It is a little different."
Zhang Yuanying snorted: "Anyway, his ideal type isn't little kids."
After she finished speaking, she couldn't help but laugh. It was as if bringing out that childish obsession from many years ago to air it out again made it less irritating.
"But then again,"
Jiang Huiyuan finally finished blowing up the balloons in her hand, looked up and asked, "This is supposed to be a housewarming party for Yuli, but why does it look like a welcome party for her younger brother?"
"Because Yuri said her brother would live with her."
Choi Ye-na said matter-of-factly, "Yuri's younger brother is also our half-brother."
Ahn Yu-jin rested her chin on her hand: "I'm a little curious about what he looks like now. When I met him backstage a few times before, he seemed more like... well, the nerdy type."
Zhang Yuanying immediately replied, "I would be very happy if he grew up to be less attractive in the next few years."
After she finished speaking, she added, "But if he grows up to be ugly, I will be even more certain that I have good taste, because I have been his hater for a long time."
Everyone: "..."
Kwon Eun-bi finally laughed helplessly: "If you keep doing this, people really won't dare to come in later."
Just then, the doorbell rang out, perfectly timed.
Everyone fell silent instantly.
Choi Ye-na immediately jumped up: "Everyone, to your positions!"
She handed the confetti canisters to Youzhen and Zhang Yuanying, whispering instructions: "Once the door opens, count to three, and after I finish spraying, you two spray together."
Kang Hye-won hugged the balloon and hid in the back, while Kwon Eun-bi stood a little behind, holding a small sign that read "Congratulations on moving in".
Outside the door, Cao Yisen, pulling a suitcase, stopped behind Cao Rouli. Rouli, holding the access card in one hand, turned back to him and said, "Don't say anything out of line later, we have guests."
"What kind of guest?"
Cao Yisen asked instinctively.
You'll find out soon enough.
Cao Rouli smiled mysteriously and swiped her card to open the door.
With a click, the door was pushed open a crack, and immediately a unified shout erupted from inside:
"Surprise—!"
Choi Ye-na was the first to rush to the front, her expression, momentum, and positioning all spot on. Full of confidence, she pulled down the ring on the confetti canister.
Then. . .
Nothing happened.
There was no sound, no streamers, and the air was awkwardly quiet.
Cao Yisen stood at the door, frozen in place.
The row of people in the room also froze.
Yu-jin blinked and whispered, "...Is it broken?"
Jiang Huiyuan pushed up her glasses: "Or did you pull the wrong way?"
Choi Ye-na refused to believe it, looked down at the spray nozzle, and frowned: "That's impossible, I clearly followed the instructions."
As she spoke, she subconsciously turned the nozzle around, wanting to get a closer look to see if it was stuck inside.
"Choi Ye-na, please stop—"
Kwon Eun-bi had only managed to utter the first half of her sentence.
"Bang--!"
With a muffled thud, the ribbon finally remembered that it was a ribbon.
Colorful strips of paper exploded in the center of the living room, accurately targeting and covering the entire area, mercilessly sweeping across the back row—
Ahn Yu-jin was hit head-on and instinctively took a step back, her hair instantly covered in confetti;
Zhang Yuanying froze for a second, and the next second her whole body was covered in ribbons;
Two strips of colored paper were hanging on Jiang Huiyuan's glasses, instantly blurring his vision;
Kwon Eunbi stood at the back, and although she was blocked by several tall people in front of her, her hat brim was neatly covered with a circle of decorations, as if it had been temporarily added.
And the one who should truly be "welcomed" standing at the door—
But not a single ribbon got on it.
He stood cleanly at the door, dragging his suitcase, and witnessed this precise "friendly fire".
"..."
After a few seconds of silence, Cao Yisen couldn't help but comment, "This celebration... is quite unique."
Zhang Yuanying reacted first, ripping the ribbon off her head and glaring at Cui Yena: "Hey!! Cui Yena! You did this on purpose, didn't you?!"
"It wasn't me!"
Choi Ye-na immediately raised her hand, speaking rapidly, "It's...it! The ribbon is faulty! I'm a victim too!"
Ahn Yu-jin was laughing so hard she was squatting on the ground, trying to shake the confetti out of her hair as she laughed: "This surprise is a little off-target."
As Jiang Huiyuan removed and cleaned her glasses, she earnestly summarized, "At least there's a sense of ritual involved."
Kwon Eunbi sighed, taking off the ribbons from the brim of her hat one by one, her tone both helpless and amused: "Next time, let's not use props that require 'technical skill'."
Cao Rouli, standing at the door, was laughing so hard she was practically leaning against the doorframe: "Oh, who are you celebrating for? For yourselves?"
Cao Yisen then came to his senses, pulled his suitcase inside a couple of steps, then stopped and bowed respectfully.
"that……"
He said sincerely, "Thank you all for testing the safety of the ribbons with your own bodies."
There was a moment of silence in the room.
The next second, laughter erupted.
Zhang Yuanying was the first to recover from the shock of being sprayed. She pulled the colored strips out of her hair, her movements clearly showing her willfulness and defiance. It was as if she was writing a sentence all over her body: I'm very unhappy, and I'm going to let you know.
"Look," she said, holding up the spray can to Choi Ye-na, "you almost turned me into a Christmas tree."
Choi Ye-na laughed and waved her hand, "It's not me, it's this. This ribbon isn't very reliable."
"Even if it's unreliable, it's still your purchase!!" Zhang Yuanying concluded irrationally, her gaze suddenly shifting to the person at the door.
Cao Yisen was standing at the door dragging his suitcase. His suit jacket was spotless, without a single confetti on it. In contrast, everyone inside looked like they had just finished a "confetti war".
Zhang Yuanying stared at him, her gaze growing increasingly unsettling, as if she had suddenly found an outlet for her anger.
"How come you didn't hit anything?" Her tone was clearly sarcastic. "Why are you standing so far away? Afraid of getting sprayed?"
Cao Yisen paused for a moment, looked down at his suitcase beside his feet, then at the threshold. He was certain he hadn't stepped back; the confetti had been sprayed backwards.
"I'm standing here because the door just opened," Cao Yisen said, shrugging innocently.
Zhang Yuanying snorted, clearly unconvinced, as if she didn't care about logic at all, only about emotions: "Then come in now, don't block the door."
This sounds like a normal urging, but she said it so deliberately, so deliberately, that it sounded like she was testing you: Do you dare to come any closer?
Cao Yisen pulled his suitcase and took a step inside. Only after crossing the threshold did he truly see Zhang Yuanying. Several years had passed, and the young girl had grown into a beautiful young woman. Standing under the light, she was tall and slender, her long legs certainly drawing attention. Her aura was completely different from before. She was wearing simple casual clothes today, yet she inexplicably exuded a sense of "I am meant to be seen."
She was clearly over 1.7 meters tall, almost reaching his shoulder. Cao Yisen felt a momentary sense of disorientation, as if he had suddenly realized that the child who used to jump around backstage had grown into an "adult" who could look him in the eye.
Before he could even process what had happened, Zhang Yuanying took another half step forward, standing even closer, her gaze unwavering, as if deliberately creating pressure.
"You're still so... pretentious," she said, offering a vague assessment.
Cao Yisen: "...?"
He was genuinely bewildered. The phrase "pretentious" didn't seem like something that had just happened; it felt more like a long-standing grudge. He had no idea when he had offended her and could only instinctively look to Cao Rouli for help.
Cao Rouli was laughing so hard she was leaning against the sofa armrest, panting. She showed no intention of helping, and even added insult to injury: "Why are you two like this the moment you meet?"
Yu-jin couldn't stand it anymore and quickly stepped in to act as a "friends mediator." She brushed the confetti off Zhang Yuan-ying's shoulder while smiling and smoothing things over between the two.
"Yuanying wasn't yelling at you," Youzhen said with a smile, trying to smooth things over for Cao Yisen. "She was just upset because she was criticized."
Zhang Yuanying immediately turned around and complained, "Hey! I'm not in a bad mood, I just think it's unfair."
Ahn Yu-jin suppressed a laugh: "Fine, fine, that's not fair. Then you can lash out at your Ye-na unnie later."
Choi Ye-na immediately raised her hands in surrender: "I accept the punishment, but please don't spray water on my face, I need to make a living with my looks."
Jiang Huiyuan added slowly from the side, "Hey, aren't you someone who makes a living by your loud voice?"
Yena: "Hey! What did you say?!"
The atmosphere in the living room immediately relaxed after their commotion. Quan Enfei then walked over, first removing the confetti from the brim of her hat, then smiled and greeted Cao Yisen in a gentle tone.
"Yisen, it's been a long time." Her voice wasn't loud, but it made people subconsciously quiet down. "You must have had a long journey."
Cao Yisen subconsciously straightened up, feeling a vague, inexplicable emotion for her deep within his soul, and his entire demeanor became more respectful. He quickly greeted her, "Eunbi Noona, it's been a long time. Thank you for coming to celebrate with us."