Trapped in Paradise (In a Hentai World, as a Trap)-Chapter 358
As dusk fell, red lanterns hanging from balconies and doorways flickered on one after another. Strings of lights glowed brilliantly against the shadows in the corners, while in the distance—muted by the tall buildings—came the muffled booms of fireworks.
Ning Chu sat on a little stool by the door, watching her mother burn paper offerings for their ancestors in the corridor. The heat from the flames carried with it drifting ash. Black Bean darted around the fire bucket, waving a sparkler in her hand, so recklessly that their mother looked about ready to smack her backside.
“Shoo, shoo! Don’t bump into the bucket!”
Special iron barrels were always set out during New Year for burning paper money. In a few days, someone would even come by to collect the ashes—for a price, of course.
“Ning Chu, close the door! Don’t let the ashes blow inside.”
“Yes~”
She swung the door shut, propped her chin in her hands, and stared out the corridor window at the deepening night.
‘When will Wen Yang get here…’
She knew he wouldn’t make it until around eleven, but still—she couldn’t help daydreaming that maybe he’d get off work early and show up with a surprise.
“Make some space, make some space.”
The door opened again. Ning Yuan stepped out, carrying a set of red couplets. “I’m putting these up. Move over a bit.”
Dragging her stool, Ning Chu shuffled to the neighbor’s doorway and tilted her head back to watch her brother paste the decorations.
“Bro, have you talked with Lily yet?”
He had added her as a friend in the afternoon—several hours had already passed. Surely they’d have said something by now?
“Talk about what?”
Ning Chu: “...”
Ning Yuan kept working as he answered calmly, “I just said hello. I don’t know what else to talk about.”
“Then just… I don’t know, start with something random!”
“She hasn’t responded to me either. It’s New Year’s Eve—what if she’s busy?”
Ning Chu muttered under her breath, “Straight as steel… waiting for the girl to start the conversation first…”
At this point she’d all but given up on pairing her brother and Lily. One was painfully introverted, the other practically allergic to women—what part of them looked remotely compatible? Even chatting seemed like a miracle.
“Like you’re one to talk,” Ning Yuan shot back, pressing a couplet to the wall before glancing over his shoulder. “Check for me, is it crooked?”
“Down a little… okay, stop. That’s good.”
When they were kids, the lanterns they hung were real, with glowing candles inside, and the couplets were pasted up with homemade rice glue. But somewhere along the way, the lanterns had all turned electric, and that sticky glue was something she hadn’t seen in years.
Even the sound of firecrackers only drifted in faintly from afar; the air had none of that choking sulfur scent. The community was quiet—barely any children running about.
“Bro, remember when we used to toss firecrackers into other people’s yards?”
“Mn. I remember.”
Ning Chu pouted, glaring at him. “And then you ran off, leaving me to get scolded. The idea was yours too!”
“I don’t remember,” Ning Yuan said flatly, clearly choosing selective amnesia. He finished putting up the couplets, stepped back to admire them, and promptly changed the subject. “Come inside. The Spring Festival Gala’s about to start.”
“Don’t feel like it. Nothing good to watch anyway.”
The coffee table had already been moved aside, replaced with the dining table right in front of the TV. Their uncle had set up the induction stove and hotpot, the platters of sliced meat and vegetables covering every inch.
By the time everything was ready, it was already close to eight o’clock.
Wen Yang definitely wouldn’t make it in time.
“Ning Xin! Come eat hotpot!”
“Coming, coming!”
Black Bean zoomed into the house, only to be stopped by their mother.
“Wash your hands first.”
She gave them a quick rinse—barely—and rushed to the table, her eyes immediately locking onto the beef and lamb. The pot hadn’t even started boiling yet, but she already tossed in two slices of beef with eager chopsticks.
Everyone else slowly gathered at the table, while uncle went back outside to help their mother with the burning paper.
Ning Chu quickly snapped a photo of the table and sent it to Wen Yang, adding a little complaint:
It’s already eight! When are you getting off work and coming home?
To her surprise, he actually replied this time:
Probably nine. Hardly any customers tonight, so the manager’s letting us leave early.
‘He really is coming earlier!’
Ning Chu’s mood instantly brightened, a faint smile tugging at her lips.
The hotpot began to bubble, and the first act of the Spring Festival Gala appeared on screen. She spared the TV a glance, then quickly lost interest, lowering her head to open a jar of sesame paste and pour it into her dipping bowl.
Black Bean, on the other hand, had never seen the Gala before. She sat up straight, ears practically perked, staring at the stage with rapt attention—so much so that she didn’t even notice the beef she’d been cooking vanish from her chopsticks until Ning Chu popped it into her own mouth.
“Sis! That was my meat!”
“It’s cooked too long, so it wouldn’t taste good. I was doing you a favor.”
“Big Brother~!” Black Bean turned pitiful eyes toward Ning Yuan, pointing her chopsticks accusingly. “She’s bullying me!”
Ning Yuan responded with all the warmth of an ice cube: “Mn.”
Just then, their mother and uncle came in, smelling faintly of burnt paper as they returned from the ancestor offerings. Sitting down at the table, Uncle pulled out a bottle of baijiu from under the corner and poured a glass for Mother before turning to the siblings.
“You two want some as well?”
“Sure.”
Ning Yuan accepted the glass. Right at that moment, Black Bean shoved her bowl forward, eyes shining.
“Pour some for me too!”
“You’re still a kid.” Ning Juan glared at her. “Go drink milk. Didn’t you get a whole box in your gift pack?”
Pouting, Black Bean hopped off her chair and scampered away, soon returning with a can of Wangzai milk, drinking noisily through the straw.
“Ning Chu.”
Uncle set a glass of baijiu in front of her as well.
She frowned slightly, looking troubled.
She’d never liked alcohol, and especially not baijiu—neither in this life nor the last. But at home, getting tipsy wasn’t a big deal, and she supposed it was worth giving her mother’s boyfriend some face.
“...Thanks.”
Murmuring, Ning Chu lifted the glass. She wrinkled her nose and took the tiniest sip—
Her throat and mouth exploded in fire. She coughed violently, eyes watering until tears pricked the corners.
Only then did her mother chuckle and warn her gently: “That’s strong stuff. Girls shouldn’t drink too much. If you can’t handle it, don’t force yourself.”
“You should’ve said so earlier...”
Ning Chu stuck out her tongue, exhaling to cool the burn. Even with just that one sip, her cheeks flushed scarlet from the alcohol.
A sidelong glance told her Ning Yuan wasn’t doing much better—he too frowned with the taste of the strong liquor. Meanwhile, their mother was drinking with ease, her smile making it clear this was nothing new for her and Uncle.
With hotpot simmering, drinks flowing, chatter rising, and the Gala playing in the background, the New Year’s Eve dinner dragged on slowly. Half an hour passed, yet the dishes on the table hardly seemed to shrink.
Only Black Bean devoured food like a whirlwind, until she finally collapsed on the sofa, belly round, sprawled out like a lazy cat.
Then came a soft knock on the door.
Ning Chu jolted to her feet and hurried over, heart thumping. Sure enough—when she opened it, Wen Yang stood outside.
“You’re late. We’ve nearly finished eating.”
“It couldn’t be helped. I got no break even on New Year’s Eve. I thought I’d be stuck until eleven, but the boss finally did something decent for once.”
All traces of fatigue melted from him the instant he saw her. As he stepped inside and slipped off his shoes, Ning Chu had already rushed forward, helping him shrug out of his heavy coat.
“Go eat quickly, before Black Bean finishes off all the meat.”
Glancing at the table, Wen Yang noticed the glasses of baijiu. He bent close, murmuring in Ning Chu’s ear: “Don’t drink too much. After this, let’s go to Huahai Park to watch the fireworks.”
His breath tickled her sensitive ear, turning it pink. She froze for a heartbeat, then burst into a laugh. “Eh? That’s exactly what I was thinking~.”
Ning Juan propped her chin in one hand, watching the pair at the door with a smirk. “Look at your sister—like a little wife already. I’ve never seen her this eager about anything at home.”
Ning Yuan’s gaze lingered on Ning Chu, complicated emotions stirring in his chest.
Just a few months ago, his younger brother had turned into a girl. Last week, she had already grown into a strikingly beautiful young woman. And now… now he finally understood why Ning Chu carried that trace of maturity and allure in her expression.
In the blink of an eye, his little brother had transformed—fallen, even—into someone who felt like a married woman. The feeling left a strange weight in his heart and are hard to put into words.
:
Volume 2 Chapter 112 / Chapter 393: P.E. Class
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Chapter 358
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