Chapter 53: Her Birthday

In the new week, aside from the discussion about the meteor shower at the stern of Second High School, there wasn’t much else going on.

In the blink of an eye, it was Saturday afternoon. Amidst the continuous reminders from Teacher Chen, Wen Yu took leave and went to the small building to set up in advance.

By evening, it was mostly done.

With a little time left, he sat on the second-floor terrace, watching the setting sun in the west, pondering the peculiar idea that had suddenly emerged last Sunday night—

If the system’s skill instructions were really that powerful…

If it could really activate a completely new identity…

Even if it was just for a minute, his current idea should work!

Wen Yu got up, picked up a fist-sized pebble from the potted plant next to him, feeling its smooth surface against his skin.

He placed the small stone in a corner of the courtyard, then returned to the living room.

Standing in the center of the room, he focused his mind and called out to the system:

“System, I want to turn that small stone into a shooting star!”

After a moment of silence, the system responded—

【Event feasible, duration maintained for 1 minute, confirm activation?】

“Do not activate!” Wen Yu interrupted directly.

It’s possible!!

It’s really possible!

A shooting star, letting a stone turn into a shooting star streaking across the sky.

Wen Yu remembered that on Fu Chengque’s birthday in the previous life, there was no meteor shower, but there was one the day before and the day after.

Today, however, turned out to be an ordinary day.

Since that’s the case, he wants to make today, at the moment Fu Chengque makes a wish, also have a brilliant shooting star streak across the sky!

Calming his surging emotions, Wen Yu sent a message in the group chat:

【Chengque Birthday Planning Committee】(4)

【Wen Yu】: It’s ready, bring it over!

【Fang Ling】: Coming, coming, we’re also ready

【Lu Min】: childhood sweetheart, it’s really nice, really nice

【Xiao Gua】: Is everything prepared for eating and drinking? Is the fun ready too? Hahaha, I’m coming!

The group of people set out from Lu Min’s house.

Fu Chengque was still holding a box containing super-sized cream puffs.

As the night deepened, they took a taxi to the small villa, and as they arrived, they were instantly surprised.

The courtyard entrance was lit up by colorful lights, lined along the path, and wrapped around the door pillars, extending all the way to the second-floor terrace. Through the windows, they could see the brightly lit interior decorated with various decorations, and balloons adorned the atmosphere.

Even before entering, they could feel the festive atmosphere.

“Hahaha, the atmosphere is really lively, you can tell this family is celebrating.” Fang Ling laughed.

“Wen Yu is thoughtful, this is nice, otherwise there would be pressure to have fun.” Lu Min observed and commented.

Xiao Gua said, “Indeed, this is the best, balloons to pop, decorations to play with, I think it’s perfect for our idea of playing around.”

The word “tacky” was on the tip of their tongues.

Fu Chengque also looked around and found it very beautiful.

She didn’t find it tacky at all; in fact, she felt it perfectly met the requirements she had suggested to Wen Yu!

Fu Chengque was ecstatic and shouted, “I love it here!!”

Then she rushed inside.

A happy house, where you can be noisy and play around freely!

“I love it too!” Xiao Gua shouted, following.

“I love it times 2!” Fang Ling also chimed in.

“Well… I don’t find it tacky either.” Lu Min followed slowly behind.

Fu Chengque ran to the front door, couldn’t find the doorbell, and didn’t dare to knock, so she shouted inside, “Wen Yu, open the door, I’m here. Hahaha!”

Wen Yu heard the noise from afar, went from the second floor to the first floor, and heard Fu Chengque making a commotion.

“I’m coming, can you be a bit more civilized.”

As the door opened, two figures rushed in, and before they could react, another one rushed in.

Looking back, Fu Chengque, Xiao Gua, and Fang Ling were already “wow-ing” around, as if they had entered some amusement park.

Lu Min, at the end, saw the girls already having fun inside, so her steps towards the inside noticeably quickened.

Wen Yu closed the door, then turned around to see the balloons piled up on the sofa in the living room trembling, and from inside came Fu Chengque’s buried voice:

“Wen Yu, hey, where’s the fridge—”

Then a head popped out with Fu Chengque’s delicate and charming smile.

“It’s over there.” Wen Yu pointed the direction, then asked loudly, “Do we play first or eat first?”

“Play!”

Several girls unanimously agreed, with voices coming from the balloon pile, the second-floor terrace, a small room, and even a faint response from the top floor.

Wen Yu leisurely said, “Okay, let’s forget about the order and just go with the flow.”

After each having some fun, they gradually started gathering in the living room and collectively filled the table with snacks, drinks, pickled dishes, and cold dishes.

At some point, everyone had their gifts in hand.

Xiao Gua took the lead, “Chengque, happy birthday! I have a gift for you!”

Fu Chengque obediently took it and sweetly thanked her.

Seeing Fu Chengque not opening the package, Xiao Gua urged, “Open it, open it!”

Fu Chengque glanced at Wen Yu, as if to say: isn’t it customary not to open gifts right away in China? Then she slowly unwrapped Xiao Gua’s gift.

Inside was an envelope sealed with wax, about an inch thick, with each page meticulously adorned with various stickers and many words written on each page —

September 16, 2009, met you, you’re really beautiful!

October 2, 2009, added you on QQ, your nickname is so cute, visited your space~

……

Flipping a few pages, there were also:

March 2010, had an argument with you, it was my fault, apologizing to you!

September 2011, high school student now, still together with you, so happy. Sob, you’re getting more and more beautiful, stunning!

……

As Fu Chengque flipped through, tears almost started streaming down.

She hugged the notebook and tilted her head back for a while before finally stopping her tears.

Turning to Xiao Gua, with a slightly teary voice, she said, “Thank you, Xiao Gua!”

Wen Yu, Lu Min, and the others waited for a moment, then gave Fang Ling a signal.

Fang Ling stepped forward, “Oh, Xiao Gua’s gift is so amazing at the beginning. I feel a bit embarrassed about mine.”

Fu Chengque turned around and wiped away half of her tears, “No, no, I will definitely like whatever you give me!”

Fang Ling smirked and took out a small square box from behind.

“Happy birthday, Chengque. This is a gift for you. I hope you like it.”

“Thank you!”

Fu Chengque happily accepted it and carefully opened it.

Inside Fang Ling’s box was another transparent box, containing a handcrafted orange-yellow bird, uniquely shaped.

Upon closer inspection, the bird turned out to be made of orange-yellow gingko leaves, cut and inlaid one by one, exquisite and cleverly crafted.

Fu Chengque widened her eyes, “This…”

Fang Ling proudly said, “Not bad, right? These gingko leaves were collected by me two months ago for scrapbooking. Later, I thought it would be suitable for a gift, so I consulted Xiao Gua, and she helped me make it for half a month. Oh, don’t look at me like that… it’s hollow inside, made of bamboo weaving, not as precious and difficult as you think.”

Fu Chengque’s eyes welled up with tears again, and Fang Ling quickly stopped her, “Don’t, don’t… Chengque, do you like it?”

Fu Chengque nodded vigorously.

At this moment, Lu Min also took out a sizable gift from behind, smiling, “This is for you, Chengque, I hope you like it.”

Fu Chengque thanked her repeatedly and opened the gift to find a well-fitting windbreaker inside, comfortable to the touch and seemingly expensive.

“Your body shape is similar to mine, so I picked a windbreaker based on my own body shape and preferences for you. The wind in Jiangcheng is cold, I hope you can use it.”

“Thank you!!”

Fu Chengque hugged it tightly, feeling her heart warming up.

Everyone looked at Wen Yu.

Wen Yu also took out a box from his pocket and handed it to Fu Chengque.

“Happy birthday, Fu. Do you want to open it?”

“Sure.”

The girl gently tore open the wrapping paper, opened the box, and found a dazzling silver bracelet inside, adorned with multi-colored crystals, meticulously crafted and extremely eye-catching.

At the moment the gift was revealed, everyone exclaimed, “Wow” in unison.

Fu Chengque held the bracelet, feeling both joyous and reluctant, thinking it must be expensive, feeling unworthy. She was about to speak but was preempted by Wen Yu.

“I felt like you were missing something on stage during the last performance, so I chose this bracelet for you. I hope you like it.”

He paused and continued, “Take it, it’s not expensive. Also, I have another gift that I want to give you after the party ends, it’s a little personal obsession of mine.”

Fu Chengque quickly shook her head, “Too much, too much… I can’t accept any more.”

“No, you must accept it.”

“Uh… okay.”

Seeing the two of them quiet, the others looked around and started to create a lively atmosphere.

Fang Ling said, “Oh my, we did this kind of activity last time too, is there another one this time?”

Xiao Gua approached Fu Chengque, “Chengque, are you blushing?” Then she was tapped.

“This has become their regular routine.” Lu Min laughed, “I envy them a lot, but unfortunately, I don’t have a childhood sweetheart.”

“Xiao Min, I’m willing to be your childhood sweetheart.” Fang Ling floated over to Lu Min, holding her hand affectionately, “Will you be my Qingmei?”

After a moment of daze, Lu Min also boldly responded with emotion, “Can it only be your Qingmei?”

“Ah! You… you…”

“It’s me, yes, it’s me!”

“Uh… uh—” Fang Ling sighed and then circled around and hugged Xiao Gua, “I already have her!”

Their exaggerated performance made Fu Chengque blush intensely, and she chased after the three with a strip-shaped balloon in hand.

Laughter filled the room again, and the atmosphere became lively once more.

When the playfulness of the group settled down and they each took a break, Wen Yu asked, “Is nobody hungry?”

“I’m not hungry!”

Fu Chengque, fully revived, shouted the loudest.

“I’m not hungry either!”

Seeing that the others didn’t object, Wen Yu said, “Okay, let’s play first. If you get hungry, just say so, we can grill some meat! We’ll cut the cake later, there’s still plenty of time.”

Fang Ling suddenly raised her hand, “I have a suggestion!”

Fu Chengque immediately seized the role of the host from Wen Yu, “Fang Ling, please speak!”

“I heard there have been meteor showers these two days, there was one yesterday, and there might be one today too. How about we wait for the meteor shower and then immediately light the candles to make a wish?”

Xiao Gua praised, “I think that’s a great idea! We can make a wish with the meteor shower and then make another wish for the birthday. Double fulfillment!”

Fu Chengque was quite excited and looked at Wen Yu.

“If you all think it’s okay, then we can do it. After all, there are still a few hours left before the end of the birthday.”

The girls cheered, “Great!”

Wen Yu continued, “I also prepared audio equipment and KTV equipment. Who wants to sing? We also have board games like Three Kingdoms, poker, and mahjong. Anyone want to play?”

Fu Chengque jumped up, “I want to sing!”

Wen Yu handed the microphone to Fu Chengque and listened to her singing while eating. The other girls started playing cards.

Fu Chengque sang for a while, then shoved the microphone into Wen Yu’s arms, squeezed into the card game, and ended up with her face covered in sticky notes, looking disheveled as she retreated.

“Wow, Wen Yu, they’re ganging up on me!”

“How are they ganging up on you?”

“I keep drawing the ghost tiles!”

“Isn’t it because you’re not good enough?”

“How could it be? I have very good luck. There’s no way I could lose!” Fu Chengque was very unconvinced. “If it were a game that relies more on luck, there’s no way I’d lose.”

At this moment, Xiao Gua and the others moved the mahjong table, shuffled a set of tiles with a clatter, and each grabbed their positions.

Then they shouted towards this side, “We need one more player for mahjong!”

Fu Chengque’s spirits lifted, and she tore off the pieces of paper from her face. “I’m coming!!”

“I definitely won’t lose at mahjong!”

“I, the Empress, will wipe you all out later!”

“Hahaha—”

Half an hour later, Fu Chengque returned with a frustrated expression.

“Wen Yu, take over for me!”

“You lost again?”

“Darn it! Hurry up, my loyal legs, go and defeat them all!”

“As the Empress commands, I shall obey, I’m off!”

Wen Yu also shouted a slogan and went to the mahjong table. After a chaotic battle, all the chips were in his possession, and he handed them all over to Fu Chengque in person.

Fu Chengque laughed heartily, “All the riches of the world belong to me! Hahaha—”

The others laughed along, the birthday girl was happy, and thus the birthday party was deemed successful.

The time had already passed eleven o’clock at night.

Unfortunately, despite waiting, the meteor shower didn’t come.

“There might not be any meteors tonight…” Fang Ling said.

Everyone looked at the sky, feeling quite disappointed.

What a great day it would have been, if only they could have witnessed a meteor shower on the birthday, especially in the outskirts of the city, where there were few lights and no rain, it would have been a rare opportunity.

But Fu Chengque comforted everyone, “It’s okay, it’s already very good like this.”

Lu Min also said, “Chengque is right, the meteor shower would have just been an added bonus. Let’s cut the cake now, otherwise the birthday will be over soon.”

Everyone cheered and agreed with this suggestion.

Wen Yu pushed out the two-layered cake. While everyone’s attention was diverted, he quietly observed the small stone in the courtyard from a corner of the living room through the window, making sure it was still there.

Tonight, just like in the past life, there were no meteors.

But—

It could be created!

Listening to the sound of the wind outside and feeling the relatively cool temperature indoors, Wen Yu felt a burning excitement within himself.

At this moment, there was another him in his heart shouting loudly:

“Little stone, oh little stone, you must fly into the sky and become a shooting star, drawing the most brilliant trajectory in this night sky!”

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