Chapter 7
The next day, as soon as Momo opened her eyes, her first reaction was: Had she traveled through time again or lost her memory?! Otherwise, why had the ceiling changed when she woke up?! Thinking of such a bizarre possibility, Momo immediately rolled over and got up, only to find Baby still sleeping soundly in the little cradle beside her bed, limbs sprawled out, tiny fists clenched as if saying, “I’m strong.” She couldn’t help but smile, and the worry hanging in her heart finally settled.
It seemed she was already growing attached to the world ten years in the future. Momo felt a warm sensation in her heart and looked up to carefully examine her surroundings. The minimalist decor, black and white furniture, and strong personal style made it hard for Momo to pinpoint exactly where she was. The most astonishing feature was the floor-to-ceiling window. The glass was multi-faceted and diamond-shaped, seemingly coated with a silver layer that diffused the light evenly throughout the room, mimicking natural daylight-noble and elegant. Curious, Momo pressed the light switch, and sure enough, if all the lights were off, the room was pitch black; but if she turned them on one by one, the room gradually brightened. Wow, how creative! Momo couldn’t help but exclaim aloud-it was truly tailor-made for the Blood Clan!
After marveling at the room, Momo remembered she had woken up and should report in, and perhaps take a look at the environment outside. She tiptoed to the door, opened it a crack, and peeked out, just in time to see Naze’s busy figure.
Today, Naze wasn’t wearing his usual traditional aristocratic attire, but a black suit with silver-rimmed glasses. He listened attentively to someone beside him, occasionally nodding gently, looking both elegant and wise. Sensing Momo’s gaze, he looked up and smiled tenderly, waved to the person next to him, then got up and walked over to Momo, gently pulling her back into the room and closing the door. “When did you wake up?”
“Just now,” Momo shifted uneasily, suddenly curious to admire his tie up close. She touched it with her hand and asked, “Where is this place?”
“The company. Outside is my office, inside is the lounge.” Naze lowered his head to make it easier for Momo’s restless hand to grab his tie. “Did you sleep well? Are you hungry? Should I have someone bring you something to eat?”
“I slept well. I just woke up, so I’m not hungry.” Momo’s fingers began poking at Naze’s silver tie clip.
“Momo-” Naze’s tone sounded helpless. He loosened his tie and handed it to Momo. “Play with it for a while, or go online if you want. I’ll come back after my meeting, okay?”
“Oh, okay.” Momo obediently took the tie, waved at Naze, and smiled brightly. “Go ahead, go ahead!”
Naze was both amused and exasperated by her antics. He tightened his arm around her waist, then let go, turned, and left the room. Behind him, Momo flashed a victory sign-mission accomplished, yay! This was a great trick: she didn’t have to let him take advantage, nor did she make him angry. She could use it often in the future!
Feeling triumphant, Momo glanced at her adorable son, who was still sleeping like a little piglet. Unable to resist, she kissed his cheek. But come to think of it, she still didn’t know her own son’s name! What a crime! Momo playfully stuck out her tongue. Remembering Naze said she could go online, she suddenly got excited. Oh my god, how could she have forgotten-ten years, ten whole years, the world had moved forward by ten years!
She should hurry online and see what the world has become! She was dying to know how many gold medals China won at the 2008 Olympics; whether America was bullying people again; and, had humanity already landed on Mars? Oh, and also, had those unscrupulous authors on Qidian finally finished all their plot holes?!
Thinking of all this, Momo was so excited she didn’t know what to do. She quickly opened her ultra-thin, lightweight Heart-shaped Computer. The desktop was her own photo. Momo smiled sweetly at her picture, then impatiently went online. She didn’t know what the operating system was, but it was much more convenient and practical. Before Momo could even type in a web address, a website interface popped up automatically. A line of Chinese characters flashed in black and blood-red: “We Are All Human-Demons!” Below it, a smaller line read: “Living among humans as a demon, this life is for human-demons!”
Momo’s face was covered in black lines: What is this? Who’s messing around like this! With a strong sense of participation, she clicked on a popular post titled “Werewolves Never Bathe, Lower Than Humans,” posted by someone claiming to be an elegant member of the Blood Clan. The replies stretched for dozens of pages and were even funnier. First, the Werewolves banded together to explain all the benefits of not bathing; then the Female Demons stood up, saying they soaked in water every day and were the cleanest race in the world, and pointed out that the original poster violated the Convention and discriminated against humans; then someone else said the original poster wasn’t a Vampire but a Female Demon, and that person was actually a Zongzi; finally, the thread devolved into a mutual roasting session. Momo was thoroughly entertained, completely forgetting about the national affairs she’d been so concerned about just moments before.
Naze entered the room and saw Momo curled up in front of the computer, laughing wildly. He walked behind her and glanced at the screen. Sure enough, her memory was gone, but her nature hadn’t changed-she still liked the same things as before. Smiling, he kissed her cheek.
“Aha, you’re back!” Momo hadn’t even reacted yet.
“Mm.” Naze walked to her right side, gently picked her up, and placed her on his lap, his hands habitually encircling her waist. Feeling his little wife’s stiffness, he looked at her darting eyes with a relaxed air, “Thinking up mischief again?”
“Ah!” Momo froze, looking at Naze’s obviously teasing smile, finally realizing he’d seen through her little tricks all along. She could only blush and mumble awkwardly, “I wasn’t thinking anything mischievous~”
“Heh,” Naze couldn’t suppress a laugh in his throat, “Good, that’s best.”
Momo clearly felt that Naze was different today-much more relaxed and natural with her, while she herself was the one feeling awkward. “I’m reading posts. This forum is hilarious.”
Naze gave Momo a meaningful look, then suddenly laughed, “You know, you created this forum.”
“Eh, me?” Momo was startled. When did she become so fun-loving?!
“Of course!” Naze nodded. “You said, even demons have the right to enjoy technological civilization.”
“Huh?!”
Oh God, so it turns out the ones sitting in front of computers aren’t just humans after all!