Chapter 9

The doll was made by needle-felting wool, and when brought close, it carried a faint scent of traditional herbal medicine.

Chu Mingming had seen this kind of handmade doll before at a female classmate’s place in high school. Crafting one was quite laborious and required a lot of patience.

Though he couldn’t quite tell what the doll in his hand was supposed to be, Mingming still hurriedly hung it on his keychain before Chu Ning could ask for it back.

Unexpectedly, that very night, as soon as he touched his bed and closed his eyes, darkness quickly swallowed him, and he fell into a deep sleep.

...

A couple of days later, Chu Mingming returned to the dormitory from the library, lively and energetic with textbooks in his arms. After washing up and preparing to lie down, his roommate, sporting heavy dark circles under his eyes and looking like a restless ghost, anxiously asked, "Chu Mingming, how can you still sleep?"

They were freshmen at Tongcheng University, burdened with heavy coursework since the beginning of the semester—nothing like what their high school homeroom teacher had said about university life being carefree.

Especially this month, when they faced a pop quiz personally administered by the dean. Terrified of messing up and losing class participation points, their study efforts were frantic, trying to stretch every minute for maximum use. Nights were restless, filled with dreams of practice exercises.

During previous campus assessments, the roommates had been anxious together, even crying their heads off as they studied. But recently, they noticed that Chu Mingming seemed to have abandoned the group. Not only was he vibrant and highly efficient during the day, but at night he neither fretted nor suffered insomnia; he fell asleep the moment his head touched the pillow!

Such a calm mindset was enviable!

After watching him for two days, his roommate couldn’t help but envy him. Seizing Mingming before he fell asleep, he grilled him: "We have an exam this weekend. Aren’t you even a little nervous or anxious?"

Mingming yawned sleepily, pulling the blanket over himself: "I’m nervous—I’ve been studying all day."

The roommate replied sourly, "But you’re definitely not anxious! You sleep so soundly every night! Come on, spill it — did you get some miracle cure for pre-exam insomnia and anxiety? Share it with us!"

"A miracle cure?" Mingming thought for a moment, then honestly said, "My brother gave me a doll that can cure insomnia. You’ve seen it these past two days."

The keychain with the odd-looking doll hung beside his bed, resting on his pillow.

The roommate glanced at it, recalling how a couple of days ago they had mocked Mingming’s poor taste for bringing such an ugly thing into the dorm.

Yet now Mingming claimed that this thing could cure insomnia?

The roommate suspected Mingming was messing with him and frowned, "If you don’t want to share how you ease pre-exam anxiety, fine. But don’t try to fool me with some doll."

Mingming was puzzled: "I’m not fooling you."

The roommate chuckled bitterly, "You say a doll can cure insomnia? Go ask the elementary school kids next door if they’d believe that."

Mingming, too tired to argue, tossed the keychain to his roommate: "I don’t know if elementary kids would believe it, but try putting it by your bed and sleeping on it. Then you’ll know if I’m fooling you."

The roommate reflexively grabbed the doll but sneered, "Who wants to sleep hugging such an ugly thing? So unmanly..."

Mingming turned over, ignoring him.

After all, he had once thought the same way.

The roommate was left speechless.

After a moment of silence, seeing Mingming disregarding him, the roommate’s rebellious spirit flared up: "Fine, then I’ll hug it just for one night!"

Just one night! He wanted to see how magical this thing really was!

...

"It’s truly amazing!!!"

"Does your brother still have more of these dolls?"

"Mingming, oh Mingming! Please ask your brother to make more!"

In the large lecture hall, the roommate, who had hugged the keychain doll all night and slept soundly, eagerly gathered around Mingming with excitement clearly written on his face. Gone was yesterday’s sarcasm and disdain; now he looked energized and ready to serve Mingming tea.

Chu Mingming was focused on solving a complex calculus problem, but his roommate’s persistent questions drew the attention of nearby classmates.

Soon, several people gathered, asking what was going on and why the roommate was suddenly so attentive toward Mingming.

The roommate, an open book who could hide nothing, eagerly recounted how hugging Mingming’s doll had granted him a full night’s sleep.

He spoke passionately, "After so many sleepless nights, only last night—no dreams of review questions at all!!!"

"Seriously? You’re a grown man hugging a doll and sleeping so soundly?!"

"If we didn’t know you were such a straight guy, this would be hilarious."

"I think it’s not the doll curing insomnia, but that you just needed something to warm your bed."

"...Haha, spread the word: xx needs someone to warm his bed!"

Everyone laughed and teased, and the roommate saw in their faces the foolish version of himself from yesterday.

He sighed, shook his head, and pointed to his eyes: "Look at me."

The onlookers laughed and asked, "Look at what?"

He pulled down his lower eyelid, emphasizing, "Look at my red bloodshot eyes—aren’t they gone? And my dark circles, haven’t they faded a lot?"

The crowd was speechless: "...You really slept that well hugging a doll?"

To be honest, a few female students there were intrigued, curious about what kind of doll could even captivate a straight guy.

At the roommate’s urging, Mingming took out his keychain. The odd-looking felt doll caught everyone’s eyes.

The girls frowned: "...You guys have such strange taste."

The roommate cleared his throat and defended, "It may be ugly, but it really helps with sleep! Look at my red bloodshot eyes, and now my dark circles!"

The girls, amused by his enthusiastic endorsement, took the ugly doll and examined it closely.

To their surprise, when they got close, a faint herbal scent wafted from the doll, and each was momentarily stunned.

Whether by illusion or not, after inhaling the scent, several girls immediately felt a clear-headedness wash over them, as if the stagnant gloom that had weighed on them for days was lifting...

They exchanged glances quietly, and one asked softly, "Where can we buy these dolls?"

A small group’s eyes gleamed with interest.

The roommate stared at Mingming expectantly: "Mingming, can your brother make a few more? We’re willing to pay."

Mingming put down his pen, realizing they genuinely wanted to buy, and said, "You all know my brother has a stall at the creative market. He’s been selling these dolls these past few days. You can buy one anytime after class."

That night, Mingming’s insomnia and anxiety had inspired Chu Ning to add sleep-enhancing features to several new dolls paired with decorative knots.

The roommate, having experienced the doll’s miraculous sleep aid, was overjoyed: "That’s awesome! I’m buying one right after class!"

Many people at the lecture hall suspected that Mingming and his roommate were just promoting his brother’s stall together and shook their heads dismissively.

But some still asked, "Chu Mingming, how much do your brother’s dolls cost?"

Mingming smiled: "Thirty-nine yuan each, or seventy for two."

Those interested considered the price reasonable and decided to try one after class, to see if it really was as magical as the roommate claimed.

...

In front of the creative market, at Chu Ning’s stall, a short bespectacled young man was staring at the row of needle-felt dolls, hesitating over whether to buy.

Chu Ning glanced at him several times before finally saying, "Hey, you’ve been looking for half an hour. Haven’t decided yet?"

Jiang Weizhen looked carefully at the dolls and, pushing his glasses up his nose, said seriously, "Your dolls are ugly. I want to choose carefully."

Chu Ning laughed in disbelief, "Ugly and you still want to buy?"

Jiang Weizhen said, "Your dolls are the cheapest at the creative market. I don’t have enough pocket money for the expensive ones, so I’ll just buy from you."

Chu Ning was speechless at his blunt honesty and asked, "What do you want the doll for?"

Jiang Weizhen paused, his earlobes flushing red: "It’s for my girlfriend’s birthday."

Chu Ning nodded in understanding: "Then keep looking."

Because the dolls were unattractive, over two days, aside from some loyal customers like Su Xiaqing and Zhao Kexin, only a few random customers had bought two or three dolls. Most people glanced and walked away, repelled by their ugliness.

Chu Ning sighed and envied the bustling tarot booth next door, wondering if he should change his sales strategy. Suddenly, a large crowd of girls, with a few boys scattered among them, rushed straight toward his stall.

"Boss, how much for the dolls?"

"Two dolls for seventy! If four of us buy together, can we get a discount?"

"Hello! I’m a classmate of Chu Mingming. Can we get a discount?"

"Ah, I’m a classmate of Zhao Kexin. She recommended these dolls to me!"

"Brother! I’m Su Xiaqing’s classmate. Can you give me a discount too..."

...

Chu Ning was momentarily overwhelmed by the scene, but noticed a few students’ eyes gleamed with excitement, their gaze fixed on the dolls, eager to grab them.

The female classmates of Chu Mingming had come to buy the dolls with a “just trying it out” mindset. Seeing a crowd of seniors competing at the stall, one asked, "Seniors, you’re buying this doll too?"

"Yes, yes!" The senior replied excitedly, paying promptly and clutching a doll from the table. "This doll really works! I’ve had insomnia for half a year. Yesterday, a classmate recommended it to me. At first, I didn’t believe it, but she insisted I try it. I hugged it to sleep for one night, and surprisingly, I slept straight until morning! I haven’t slept this well in a long time!"

The senior’s joy was genuine. She truly found it miraculous: sleeping soundly hugging the doll, and smelling it during the day instantly cleared her mind, washing away all gloom.

It was far more effective than the melatonin and sleeping pills she’d taken over the past six months.

Most buyers were students troubled by insomnia and anxiety. Some were persuaded by Zhao Kexin and Su Xiaqing’s repeated endorsements and eagerly bought after experiencing the doll’s sleep aid. Others, having heard about it, came to try their luck.

The once deserted, cold stall instantly became crowded with more than a dozen students.

Jiang Weizhen, initially at the front of the line, nearly had his glasses knocked off by the crowd.

Chu Ning steadied Jiang Weizhen’s glasses, cleared his throat, and organized the queue: "There are plenty of dolls. Everyone, please line up."

The crowd gradually formed a long line, with Jiang Weizhen at the front. But now, there was no time for him to continue picking and choosing.

Chu Ning gave him a glance. Jiang Weizhen took a deep breath and chose the doll that looked most like a puppy.

"I’ll take this one."

"Thirty-nine yuan, thank you for your patronage," Chu Ning said. "Your girlfriend will like it."

Jiang Weizhen rubbed his nose, stared at the puppy doll, and said dejectedly, "I hope so."

...He hoped his girlfriend wouldn’t break up with him over this ugly doll.