You’re Causing Chaos Again

Chapter 94

Dates were usually all about having a meal, watching a movie, browsing bookstores, or visiting cat cafes. In other words, it was about finding places to spend time together outside. There was generally no need for extensive planning, and certainly not a month in advance.

Moreover, Shen Yanming was someone who didn’t particularly enjoy making plans.

But this day was different. For the first time ever, Shen Yanming brought up the topic of their next date with He Changkong.

As they were getting ready to sleep, He Changkong was reading a book. Shen Yanming gazed at his well-defined fingers, waiting for him to turn a few pages before finally speaking up, “Aren’t you getting tired of going to the same few places every time?”

He Changkong, however, didn’t take the bait and simply glanced at him, saying, “No, I’m not.”

Shen Yanming persisted, “Well, you should be.”

He Changkong had to change his answer, “I am tired.”

Satisfied, Shen Yanming asked, “So, do you want to try a different place for our next date?”

He Changkong, playing along, asked, “Do you have any recommendations, Xiao Luan?”

Shen Yanming suggested, “How about going to an anime convention? There’s one around here next month, and I checked, we shouldn’t have any important schedules that day.”

Shen Yanming was a big fan of anime and manga, and He Changkong was well aware of this. He had seen the entire room filled with manga when he visited Shen Yanming’s place, and he knew that Shen Yanming occasionally binge-watched anime in his free time. But about this convention, Pudding had enthusiastically invited Shen Yanming a while back, and at the time, Shen Yanming had refused so quickly, saying, “I’m not going. It’s always so crowded, and there’s nothing much to see, just the same stuff over and over again. The lines for the restroom take forever, and once you finally get in, you might see a beautiful girl, and you’ll think you walked into the wrong restroom. Then you look closely and realize it’s a cross-dressing cosplayer…”

Pudding lifted his skirt, saying, “If you don’t want to go, just say so. Why do you have to insult cross-dressers?”

He Changkong had a vivid memory of this childish squabble between two elementary school kids. So, why did Shen Yanming suddenly want to go now?

He Changkong directly asked, “Didn’t you say you didn’t want to go before?”

“People change,” Shen Yanming thought for a moment and decided to be honest. “Actually, there’s this. A manga artist I like is coming here for a signing event. I thought, why not go see it? And it would be a change of scenery for our date.”

He Changkong commented on this behavior, “Fanboying.”

Shen Yanming felt like He Changkong was teasing him, so he retorted, “…No!”

He Changkong continued, “So, you don’t just like reading shoujo manga?”

Shen Yanming roared, “It’s been ages since I read shoujo manga!!!”

He Changkong closed the book he was holding, placed the bookmark, and put it back on the bedside table before lying down. “Then what are you reading these days?”

Shen Yanming propped his head on his hand and, while the lights were still on, gazed into He Changkong’s eyes, saying, “I’m reading you. There’s no cute girl who can compare to you.”

It was all in good fun, but He Changkong had never been to an anime convention before, and he thought it would be an interesting experience. Plus, he wanted to see what kind of things Shen Yanming used to enjoy. After some playful teasing, he eventually agreed.

Only, the crowd at the anime convention was no joke, especially since it was a major event held in a first-tier city. Finally, on the day of their convention date, He Changkong got to witness the rumored sea of people.

Before reaching the ticket checkpoint, Shen Yanming handed two peripheral masks of game characters from Return to the Throne to He Changkong, keeping one for himself.

Being a somewhat recognizable figure, and with some overlap between Two-Centimeter Demon and the Water Friend circle, wearing a mask could save them a lot of hassle.

Before putting on the mask, He Changkong hesitated, “Are you sure no one will find it strange?”

Shen Yanming patted He Changkong on the shoulder and calmly said, “Once you get inside, you’ll see all sorts of people, even those who cosplay as the insane Mediterranean math teacher from the TV series. Wearing a mask is nothing… Don’t worry.”

He Changkong asked again, “Have you ever cosplayed?”

Shen Yanming shook his head.

The manga artist that Shen Yanming admired was scheduled to have a signing session in an hour, but there was already a long line in front of the signing booth. Shen Yanming held a few volumes of the manga in his arms and followed the line.

Because the signing session hadn’t started yet, the line hardly moved. Experienced attendees had brought their own small stools. Since it was Shen Yanming’s first time attending such an event and he hadn’t prepared anything, standing there for a while made him feel tired, so he leaned on He Changkong.

After leaning for a while, he started to feel awkward. He asked He Changkong, “Are you tired?”

He Changkong replied, “Not tired.”

Shen Yanming asked again, “Do you find this boring?”

He Changkong said, “Not boring.”

In fact, just like when Shen Yanming had asked him if he ever got tired of going to the same places for their dates, He Changkong genuinely never got tired of it. The key wasn’t where they went; it was being with Shen Yanming.

As long as he was with him, even if they sat face to face doing nothing for an entire afternoon, he still found it interesting.

Although they were wearing masks that covered their faces, their figures were tall and attractive, and their fashion sense was on point. They were the type of people you’d consider handsome even with their faces covered. Therefore, people occasionally turned to look at them.

Taking advantage of the fact that nobody knew who they were, Shen Yanming didn’t pay much attention to the occasional glances thrown their way. He playfully tugged at He Changkong’s hand and said, “After we’re done with this line, let’s go find something interesting to do.”

An hour, which might seem long, passed surprisingly quickly while chatting. The line began moving forward, and after a considerable wait, it was finally Shen Yanming’s turn.

He Changkong watched as Shen Yanming tidied his hair, cleared his throat, bent over to hand the manga artist a book, and began praising enthusiastically, “Miss Your artwork is absolutely amazing! I’ve never seen anything so well-drawn in all my years! It’s super cool and super inspiring. I’ve read the latest chapter multiple times… Before coming here, I had this stereotypical image in my head that you’d be an older gentleman. I never expected you to be such a young lady! You’re amazing!”

He Changkong thought to himself that Shen Yanming was just as enthusiastic when he praised others with flattery.

The young manga artist was quite surprised, “I’ve been posting daily on Weibo. I even posted a selfie this morning before leaving. How did you think I was an older gentleman?”

Shen Yanming was caught off guard for a moment. He hadn’t been following the author’s Weibo, and he had received news of the signing session from someone else. But he quickly came up with a response, “Oh, no, that’s not what I meant. I meant to say your skill is so deep and profound, completely unlike a newbie artist who has only been drawing for a few years.”

The young lady artist chuckled and signed the book for Shen Yanming.

After a brief discussion about the story, with many people still waiting in line behind them, the two of them left.

As they left the line, Shen Yanming held a few signed books in his arms and sighed, “Ah, I’m satisfied.”

He Changkong, on the other hand, didn’t seem as happy, “Do you have many manga artists you like like this?”

Shen Yanming replied, “No.”

He Changkong asked, “So, is she the only manga artist you like?”

Shen Yanming, realizing the implication, hurriedly clarified, “No, no, no!”

He Changkong continued walking forward, casually glancing at the surrounding booths. Shen Yanming stuck close to him, saying, “I only like you.”

He Changkong did find this a bit suspicious, but getting angry or throwing a tantrum was absolutely out of the question. He just enjoyed Shen Yanming’s attempts to coax him and pretended to have a slight grudge, saying, “You promised to be my little puppy and wag your tail only for me. If I catch you wagging your tail for others, there will be consequences when we get back.”

The term “puppy” made Shen Yanming’s face suddenly heat up. They weren’t doing anything like that, so why suddenly call him a puppy?

He quickly explained, “Instead of saying I like the author, it’s more like I love the work, so I love the whole package… I wanted to attend the signing because I thought it was a rare opportunity to discuss the plot with the author in person. And mainly, I wanted to have fun with you. We haven’t gone to a convention together before.”

He Changkong’s lips twitched, but he tried to keep a straight face.

Shen Yanming continued earnestly, “Although it may sound a bit contrived to put it this way… I want to create memories with you in different places.”

He Changkong couldn’t hold back anymore. He reached over and ruffled Shen Yanming’s hair.

So obedient, so good.

After patting Shen Yanming, He Changkong took one of the manga volumes from his hand and started flipping through it.

As they strolled and casually browsed through the event, Shen Yanming began narrating the plot to He Changkong.

“The protagonist is basically an unlucky guy who loses his superpowers due to an accident. Then, he goes through a process of leveling up and eventually saves the world… It’s not a particularly unique storyline. But what’s interesting is that the protagonist has a life mentor. This mentor, upon hearing that the protagonist spent those years muddling through life, paid a significant price to travel back in time, but only for three minutes. During those three minutes, he said to the unfortunate protagonist, ‘Hold on a bit longer. Once you cross that hill, your future path will be smooth, filled with brilliance, and you will become a hero to many.’ After saying this, the life mentor traveled back.”

He Changkong commented, “It sounds pretty interesting… Though, when I asked you to recite texts, you acted like it was the end of the world. Quoting someone else’s lines seems to be no problem.”

Shen Yanming retorted, “You completely missed the point! It’s because I really like this part, and I’m not exaggerating. I’ve read it so many times… That’s why I remembered it. Do you want to hear what happens next?”

He Changkong replied, “Sure.”

Shen Yanming continued, “So, after the life mentor traveled back in time, everything went on peacefully for a while. Then, the protagonist mentioned it to the mentor, saying, ‘Although I was going through a tough time back then, a strange person suddenly appeared before me and told me I would become a hero to many in the future.’ The mentor was astonished. The protagonist continued, ‘So, I worked hard to move forward in time, not to become a hero for anyone but to see if I could meet that person again and witness the brilliance he mentioned… But even if I can’t meet him again, I don’t mind. He appeared on that day, and his presence brought light to my world.'”

He Changkong mused, “Time-travel-induced butterfly effect?”

Shen Yanming nodded, “Exactly. Anyway, I really like this part.” He gave He Changkong’s hand a little squeeze. “I also have a life mentor.”

He Changkong raised an eyebrow, “Oh? Who might that be?”

The two exchanged a knowing glance and decided not to delve further into that topic. He Changkong continued flipping through the manga for a while, then helped Shen Yanming organize the single volumes he was holding and placed them in a bag.

Not far away, there was a crowd of people gathered in a circle. Shen Yanming pointed in that direction, “Should we check it out?”

He Changkong agreed, and as they approached, they caught sight of the backs of two individuals surrounded by the crowd.

“It’s our team uniforms!” Shen Yanming exclaimed. “And one has pink twin-tails, while the other’s hairstyle looks familiar.”

He Changkong remarked, “It’s not them. Look at their body shapes; they don’t match. Besides, didn’t Pudding cut his hair short recently? It’s not this long anymore… The one who looks like Pudding is actually a real girl.”

“Really?” Shen Yanming blinked in surprise, then his face broke into an amused expression. “Holy crap, could it be that someone is cosplaying as them? But what’s there to cosplay?!”

He Changkong raised an eyebrow, “Weren’t you just saying that someone was cosplaying as the deranged math teacher from that TV series?”

Shen Yanming retorted, “Could it be that they’ve become so popular that people are cosplaying as them now?!”

A nearby passerby overheard their conversation and couldn’t help but comment, “Cosplaying isn’t limited to just popular characters, you know…”

Shen Yanming tugged He Changkong and led him to a spot in front of the two cosplayers, where they could get a clear view of their faces. Although the overall appearance didn’t resemble them, with the right makeup and costumes, it was evident who they were trying to portray.

At first, Shen Yanming was quite puzzled, wondering why anyone would want to cosplay as two esports players.

It wasn’t until the two cosplayers started striking poses that Shen Yanming finally understood.

They stood close together, both opening their mouths to an exaggerated extent, portraying an extremely terrified expression.

The sound of camera shutters clicked all around them.

Finally, Shen Yanming realized what was happening. He once did a live stream, not related to gaming but for an April Fools’ prank. Shen Yanming was known for his fearlessness; he had purchased a scary costume online beforehand. While Meng Yan and Pudding were busy playing in the kitchen, Shen Yanming sneakily turned off the lights, then held his phone under his chin, slowly floating towards the two with a spine-chilling voice, saying, “Gooood eveeeening~.”

He reaped the rewards of Meng Yan and Pudding’s prolonged screams and a plethora of reaction images. Their cosplaying mimicked his antics: huddled together, with horrifying expressions, almost on the verge of tears.

This particular meme even became a sensation, and now people were cosplaying it at the anime convention.

Shen Yanming was nearly laughing himself to death. He took out his phone and snapped a few pictures. Feeling that this wasn’t enough, he approached the cosplayers and asked if they could take a photo together.

After gaining their agreement, he had He Changkong help take a few pictures.

After the photos were taken, they crouched down on the spot to review them. Suddenly, a mischievous child came running with a clatter and accidentally bumped into Shen Yanming, then fell to the ground.

Shen Yanming went to help the child, but the child waved his hands erratically, inadvertently pulling Shen Yanming’s mask off.

Shen Yanming: “…”

The two cosplayers nearby: “…”

At this moment, the onlookers finally recognized Shen Yanming. It was unclear who yelled first, “Damn, it’s the real or fake Monkey King!”

The entire crowd burst into laughter.

The so-called real and fake team members laughed it off and even agreed to take pictures with those who wanted them.

Someone else said, “Isn’t the person next to them Kong?”

He Changkong: “…”

A passerby commented, “The members of this team are really crazy, wandering around the anime convention wearing such edgy masks!”

The two who had been recognized awkwardly chatted with the people around them, temporarily replacing the cosplayers as the center of attention. They took pictures with everyone for a long time and finally found an opportunity to make a hasty escape.

Originally, they had planned to explore the convention thoroughly, but because of the incident, they couldn’t do so properly.

On the way back, Shen Yanming gritted his teeth, “Next time, I’m cosplaying as the Masked Rider to visit an anime convention.”

He Changkong chuckled, “But today was fun too.”

That evening, when they returned, Weibo and forums were flooded with photos of the real and fake team members. Pudding saw them and almost blew his top, pointing at Shen Yanming, “You lied to me that you weren’t going, and then you secretly went with Kong! Are we still brothers?!”

Shen Yanming laughed, “Hahaha, no, I’m your dad.”

So Shen Yanming ended up being chased by Pudding again.

Meanwhile, the ongoing commotion prevented everyone from noticing a new fanfic thread on the forum.

The thread’s author was evidently struggling to contain their excitement.

Thread Author: My OTP is real! I went to the anime convention today and saw two guys who kinda resembled Kong and Luan. I kept an eye on them, and they were absolutely affectionate the entire time. At first, they stood in the autograph line, and the one who looked like Luan was leaning on the one who looked like Kong… Seriously, who ‘looked like’? It was them in person! Then, Kong occasionally lifted a water bottle to Luan’s mouth, touched his face, and even held hands. They couldn’t walk properly after the autograph session, with Luan almost hanging on Kong. It’s outrageously hilarious! They’re just taking advantage of wearing masks! But, as luck would have it, a brat knocked off Luan’s mask, and it really was them!! Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit! I’m going to die!

Someone replied: Seriously, you’ve been claiming that your OTP is real for ages, and no one believed it. [/facepalm]

(Extra Story Three, The End.)

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