AAWOMAHI Chapter5

Upon seeing the other party accept the transfer and reply with “Alright,” Lu Xingmian breathed a sigh of relief.

 

[Thank you.]

 

The other side replied: [You’re welcome. I’m just doing my job for the money.]

 

Lu Xingmian: [Can you tell me a story tonight?]

 

[Yes.]

 

Lu Xingmian: [Can it be a bit later?]

 

[How late?]

 

Lu Xingmian: [Midnight.]

 

[Do you always go to bed so late?]

 

Lu Xingmian: [Around that time. I usually finish up around midnight.]

 

Before midnight, he had to do his homework and then review, usually until one or two in the morning. Lu Xingmian suggested midnight, considering the other party might have other plans, as not everyone suffered from insomnia like him.

 

[We’ll see.]

 

Lu Xingmian: [Then I’ll message you at midnight.]

 

[Okay.]

 

Lu Xingmian thought, …The other party is really cold, but I didn’t expect such a pleasant voice.

 

Regardless, the other party wouldn’t delete him again. He could finally sleep tonight.

 

Putting down his phone, Lu Xingmian happily took out a test paper to work on. With exams approaching, he couldn’t afford to be careless.

 

Perhaps due to his good mood, Lu Xingmian worked through the paper quickly, finishing a math exam by 11:30 PM.

 

Then he checked it over, and there were no problems.

 

Checking the time, Lu Xingmian quickly went to take a shower.

 

When he lay down in bed, it was exactly midnight.

 

Lu Xingmian put on his Bluetooth earphones.

 

Lu Xingmian: [Do you have time now? Can I send you a voice call?]

 

Lu Shiran leaned back against his headboard, smoking a cigarette, finding the previous events a bit unbelievable. This wasn’t his usual style.

 

Ever since he first accepted the other party, he’d found it quite unbelievable.

 

Perhaps it was because Xiao Youzi really liked that avatar, or maybe it was because this person actually managed to add him twice, or perhaps it was because the other party claimed to have had insomnia for half a year, which softened his heart momentarily.

 

It could also be because the other party transferred 20,000 yuan to him without any hesitation. Lu Shiran earned hundreds or even thousands of times that amount per second; if he saw 20,000 yuan dropped on the ground, he wouldn’t even glance at it, because in the time it took to bend down and pick it up, he would have already earned millions.

 

Lu Shiran exhaled the last puff of smoke and extinguished the cigarette.

 

His phone rang; his “client” had sent a voice call.

 

The voice call rang several times, and the other party didn’t answer. Lu Xingmian felt a bit nervous, wondering if he had regretted it.

 

After two more rings, the call connected.

 

Lu Xingmian spoke first: “Hello.”

 

Lu Xingmian’s long-awaited voice came through the earphones: “Hello.”

 

Lu Xingmian was incredibly glad he was wearing headphones. The voice, carried through the earphones to his ears, delivered a grand auditory feast with just two short words.

 

How could there be such a beautiful voice in this world? It was even better than the voices of the voice actors he’d heard.

 

If such a voice were used for audio dramas, Lu Xingmian would listen to it every day.

 

The other side seemed to be silent, so Lu Xingmian quickly pulled his thoughts back: “Can you tell me a story today?”

 

Lu Shiran: “What kind of story?”

 

Lu Xingmian: “The one you told me the first time, a children’s story.”

 

Lu Shiran immediately remembered the story he told Xiao Youzi that day, the day this person first accidentally added him.

 

At that time, Xiao Youzi had added this person, and it was probably Xiao Youzi who answered that voice call as well.

 

Telling children’s stories was no problem; Xiao Youzi had brought many bedtime storybooks.

 

Lu Shiran: “Please wait, I’m going to get a book.”

 

Lu Xingmian: “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

 

Lu Shiran casually picked out a book from Xiao Youzi’s collection of storybooks. In truth, Lu Shiran rarely told Xiao Youzi stories.

 

“The frog and the turtle were good friends.”

 

“One day, the frog was playing by the river when a fox secretly walked over…”

 

The story Lu Shiran was telling was called “The Clever Turtle.”

 

Lu Xingmian closed his eyes, listening in stillness. The storyteller’s voice was like the toll of an ancient temple bell, like the clarity of spring water coursing through a mountain stream, like summer rain pattering on banana leaves, like wind chimes swaying softly under the eaves, stirred by a gentle breeze.

 

This voice was like a warm pair of hands caressing Lu Xingmian’s head.

 

Wrapped in that voice, Lu Xingmian’s drowsiness stirred longingly, reaching out for it. Each word the storyteller spoke softly lulled and calmed the sleepiness welling up within him.

 

After one story was finished, Lu Xingmian heard someone ask him, “Do you want to hear another story?”

 

Lu Xingmian hummed in affirmation.

 

After the second story was finished, Lu Xingmian felt even sleepier: “Could you tell one more story?”

 

Lu Xingmian wanted to listen to such a beautiful voice a little longer. His eyelids felt heavy. If he had felt this heaviness before, Lu Xingmian would have immediately closed his eyes and gone to sleep already.

 

Alright, Lu Shiran told a third story.

 

After listening to the third story, Lu Xingmian fell into a deep sleep.

 

Lu Shiran noticed the person on the phone had stopped speaking and asked, “Are you already asleep?”

 

There was no response, only the faint sound of slow, steady breathing from the other end. It seemed this person had already drifted off to sleep.

 

Lu Shiran ended the call and glanced at the time, it had been under an hour. Falling asleep that quickly seemed rather fast.

 

Lu Shiran believed the person on the other end hadn’t lied to him; otherwise, he wouldn’t have directly transferred so much money. From his voice, the boy on the phone didn’t seem very old, certainly not older than him. He was a bit curious why the boy had suffered from insomnia for half a year.

 

Because he had a good night’s sleep, Lu Xingmian woke up feeling very refreshed the next day. He left home fifteen minutes early and had breakfast at a shop near his door, ordering a bowl of sweet tofu pudding and two fried dough sticks. After breakfast, he took the bus to school.

 

Lu Xingmian’s adaptability was strong; in just a few days, he had fully integrated into the new school, new class, and new learning environment. He was also working through the notes and exercise books his homeroom teacher had sent him. And thanks to the sleep-aid provider, Lu Xingmian no longer dreaded the arrival of night so much.

 

During his lunch break, when Lu Xingmian messaged the sleep-aid provider to arrange a time, the provider said he wouldn’t be available for the next two days. It seemed he was busier than Lu Xingmian had imagined.

 

Lu Shiran’s brother and sister-in-law finally returned. When they picked up Xiao Youzi, Lu Shiran asked Xiao Youzi for two bedtime storybooks. Xiao Youzi really liked her uncle and generously gave him all the storybooks she had brought.

 

“Uncle, I have many more! If you like them, I’ll bring them to you tomorrow.”

 

The first mock exam was scheduled for two days before the weekend. The test paper wasn’t difficult for Lu Xingmian, but he would have to wait until Monday to know his exact score. However, Lu Xingmian felt his score wouldn’t differ by more than ten points from his estimate.

 

His sleep-coaxer had been busy these past two days, and Lu Xingmian had gone another two nights without sleep. On the bus, with his eyes closed, he received a WeChat message from Xia Yuefang, informing him that someone would pick him up tomorrow afternoon to take him back to the Lu family home.

 

The next day, the car sent to pick up Lu Xingmian was parked downstairs. It was the same driver as last time, who looked quite displeased upon seeing Lu Xingmian, complaining about how he had suddenly moved to this place, causing the driver to search for a while.

 

The luxury car then took Lu Xingmian back to the Lu family home.