Embedded Files
Psst! We're moving!
Below the stage, Xu Ting sat beside Chi Yao, chattering away:
“Nanxiang Street—is that where you live?”
“How nice. I wish I had childhood friends too. When I was little, I was the only one at home. There were other kids in the neighborhood, but we weren’t close.”
“Lin Shao’s speech script is pretty heartfelt—it feels authentic. It’s much better than the previous ones. She might actually win a good ranking.”
Lin Zhe Xia’s speech script focused on storytelling. She was quite interesting when it came to telling stories, vividly describing life on Nanxiang Street.
“Oh!” Xu Ting commented in real-time, “So Lin Shao used to get into fights when she was younger—didn’t expect that.”
Xu Ting’s mind wandered wildly: “But hey, if Lin Shao ever gets a boyfriend, do you think he’ll mind? After all, the two of you are so close it’s like one person.”
“They say male best friends are hated…”
Before he could finish, Chi Yao interrupted: “Are you done yet?”
“?”
“If you’re done, shut up—you’re annoying my ears.”
“...”
Xu Ting pouted, shrank back, and didn’t speak to Chi Yao anymore.
Chi Yao was sitting in a corner where the lighting wasn’t great. Half of his face was obscured by shadows, making his expression unreadable.
Earlier, the person giving the speech glanced over at him before going onstage. The girl wore a neat school uniform, with the overly long pants rolled up to reveal her thin, delicate ankles. At first, she seemed nervous, but halfway through her speech, she became increasingly fluent.
Her clear yet slightly soft voice was amplified through the microphone and carried over.
The speech ended.
He clapped along with the people around him.
The teacher from Class One turned around to check on their class’s viewing situation. Seeing their orderly behavior, he turned back, reassured.
What he didn’t know was that after listening to this contestant’s speech, Chi Yao leaned back immediately and said to Xu Ting: “I’m going to take a nap. Keep an eye on the teacher for me.”
Xu Ting: “You’re not listening to the rest?”
Chi Yao showed no interest: “This kind of speech—what’s there to listen to?”
Xu Ting: “...”
Yet you were just listening earlier.
________________________________________
Before dismissal that evening, during self-study class.
Tang Shuxuan came over from the teacher’s office holding a stack of things, one of which was a yellow certificate. She handed the certificate to Lin Zhe Xia: “Your award has been issued. Here, first prize!”
Although the rankings had already been announced at the end of the competition, receiving the physical certificate felt very different.
Lin Zhe Xia took it: “Thank you.”
She added: “You performed really well too.”
Tang Shuxuan smiled: “Don’t comfort me—I don’t care much about the rankings. Compared to rankings—” she lowered her voice, “let me secretly tell you, after I got offstage, my senior complimented me.”
Chen Lin chimed in: “That’s great.”
Tang Shuxuan beamed: “He said I did really well and that he was happy for me. Rounding up, we’re getting married tomorrow.”
Lin Zhe Xia: “...That’s quite the leap.”
Regardless, the end of the competition called for celebration, so Tang Shuxuan suggested: “Should we have dinner together tonight? There are a few restaurants near the school. Let’s invite someone surnamed Chi and eat together, okay?”
Lin Zhe Xia thought for a moment: “I don’t mind, but he might. I’ll ask him.”
She secretly messaged Chi Yao.
As expected, he quickly replied with two words: Not going.
Lin Zhe Xia typed and sent two sentences:
• How dare you reject me.
• Do you even know whose invitation you’re rejecting?
Dog Chi: ?
Lin Zhe Xia: You rejected the invitation of the first-place winner of the 10th Cheng’an No. 2 High School Speech Competition.
After sending this, the other side fell silent for a long time.
About half a minute later, Chi Yao replied with two sentences:
• Two minutes.
• Wake up yourself.
Lin Zhe Xia: “...”
You’re the one with a foggy brain.
After Tang Shuxuan distributed the rest of the assignments, she asked: “Did he reply?”
Lin Zhe Xia put her phone away and looked up: “I think we shouldn’t invite him. This guy probably doesn’t deserve to eat.”
Despite saying that, when school ended, she obediently waited outside Class One’s door for Chi Yao.
Class One ran late today.
Lin Zhe Xia waited nearly ten minutes outside until their math teacher finally said: “Alright, class dismissed.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the entire classroom seemed to spring to life. Many students had already packed up—they simply grabbed their bags and rushed out of the classroom.
Lin Zhe Xia stood at the hallway corner, holding her rolled-up certificate shaped like a stick, waiting for Chi Yao and Xu Ting to walk out calmly from the back door of the classroom.
She wanted to scare Chi Yao, so she suddenly jumped out from the corner: “Chi Yao.”
But Chi Yao wasn’t startled at all. He simply glanced up and swept his eyes over her.
She deliberately unfolded the certificate in her hand, wanting to show off, but feeling too shy to say it outright, she took a roundabout way: “There’s so much homework today, my bag is full. Sigh, I can only hold it like this.”
Chi Yao knew what she was up to and didn’t even bother glancing at her again.
Lin Zhe Xia: “It’s such a hassle to carry this. Winning awards is just empty fame—it’s not necessary to issue certificates like this.”
Chi Yao: “Is it troublesome?”
Lin Zhe Xia nodded.
Chi Yao pointed to the nearby trash bin: “Then throw it away.”
“...”
Lin Zhe Xia paused for a moment and then said: “Aren’t you surprised?”
Chi Yao: “What should I be surprised about?”
Lin Zhe Xia: “I didn’t recite the version we practiced over the weekend when I went onstage. I rewrote the draft overnight, so you should be amazed by my talent.”
Chi Yao casually pulled out his phone, turned the screen toward her, and pressed the side button—the screen lit up abruptly.
“Do you see the time on the screen?”
The screen displayed 6:18.
Chi Yao held the phone and said: “More than half an hour has passed, and you still haven’t woken up.”
Lin Zhe Xia: “..........”
Lin Zhe Xia turned to Xu Ting: “Being friends with someone like him must be exhausting, right?”
Xu Ting stifled a laugh and coughed, saying: “Ah yes, extremely exhausting.”
Lin Zhe Xia: “I understand you. Being friends with someone like him probably makes you want to sue them for emotional damages every day.”
Xu Ting tried to salvage the situation and give Lin Zhe Xia some face, walking while saying: “Lin Shao, the certificate in your hand is too dazzling. Its brilliance almost hurts my eyes. Let me admire it carefully—you actually won first place—you’re incredible.”
Lin Zhe Xia’s vanity was satisfied: “Low-key, low-key.”
As she spoke, she noticed Chi Yao looking at her.
Chi Yao shifted his gaze: “You two, whose combined IQ might not even reach a hundred, stay away from me when walking.”
Because Xu Ting’s flattery hit the mark, Lin Zhe Xia also invited him to eat together: “Tang Shuxuan has already ordered some dishes. Why don’t you join us?”
Outside the school gate, there were many restaurants. Although Cheng’an No. 2 High School strictly prohibited leaving campus during school days, many students still chose to eat near the school after dismissal. Thus, a row of restaurants opened across the street.
When Lin Zhe Xia led Chi Yao and the others inside, several cold dishes were already on the table.
Tang Shuxuan: “I was afraid the dishes would come out too slowly, so I ordered a few ahead of time. The rest haven’t been ordered yet—just as you arrived, take a look at the menu and add more dishes.”
The menu was first passed to Chi Yao.
He picked up a pen, glanced at it a few times, randomly checked a few boxes, and then handed the menu to her.
Lin Zhe Xia took it, and as she scanned the menu, she realized that every dish she wanted to check already had a somewhat messy checkmark next to it.
It was precise—as if those checkmarks were made by her own hand.
But she knew they weren’t. The handwriting on this piece of paper was completely different from hers.
“Why aren’t you ordering?” Chen Lin asked from the side.
Because everything she wanted to eat had already been ordered.
For some inexplicable reason, this realization stirred up strange emotions within her.
She hastily handed the paper and pen to Chen Lin: “You go first—I don’t have anything else to add.”
Chen Lin took it without thinking much: “Oh, let me take a look.”
They were seated by the window. Outside the large glass window, many students with backpacks passed by.
Midway through the meal, Chen Lin quietly said: “Is this the treatment of dining with someone who killed an entire forum page since the start of the semester?”
Lin Zhe Xia was busy gnawing on a chicken wing. She bit the wing and glanced at her, not understanding her meaning: “?”
Chen Lin pointed with her chopsticks at the glass window: “Just now, in ten minutes, out of every ten people passing by, nine looked over here.”
“...”
“That’s exaggerated.”
“Not exaggerated,” Chen Lin said. “I haven’t even used exaggeration—it’s just a simple statement.”
Everyone else at the table was busy discussing next week’s sports meet.
Tang Shuxuan: “I heard in the teacher’s office that we’re having a sports meet next week, and it’s being held together with other schools.”
Xu Ting: “I also heard from upperclassmen that our school’s sports meet will indeed be held together with other schools, lasting two days, and we don’t have to attend classes. This year, it seems to be with the neighboring school.”
“The neighboring school?”
“Experimental Affiliated Middle School.”
“...”
Lin Zhe Xia finished her chicken wing, feeling mostly full, so she set down her chopsticks and listened to their conversation.
Chen Lin asked: “Why are we holding it together with other schools?”
Xu Ting: “Our school rarely holds events—it’s probably trying to make a big splash and create glory all at once.”
Tang Shuxuan: “That makes sense.”
As Lin Zhe Xia listened, her thoughts wandered, recalling what Chen Lin had whispered to her earlier. She couldn’t help but glance at the person sitting beside her.
Chi Yao’s seat faced the large glass window. He didn’t join the conversation. The waiter had just served everyone a bowl of egg custard, and he was casually stirring it with a spoon.
His head was lowered, his eyelashes casting a shadow beneath his eyes, and even the lines of his jaw exuded a sense of detachment.
Watching him, Lin Zhe Xia thought absentmindedly:
If it’s this face, it’s not exaggerated at all.
As she thought this, the person she was secretly watching glanced up and said to her: “Give me your bowl.”
Realizing belatedly, Lin Zhe Xia pointed to the untouched custard in front of her: “This one?”
Chi Yao gave no confirmation.
Lin Zhe Xia found this absurd: “How can you be like this—”
“How am I?”
“Don’t be too greedy. You already have your share, and I still want to eat mine.”
Chi Yao leaned back indifferently: “What can I do? I want to eat two servings.”
Lin Zhe Xia: “Then go eat Xu Ting’s.”
Xu Ting, randomly prodded: “?”
Then Lin Zhe Xia said: “Or, starve to death.”
Chi Yao smirked: “Oh, I’ll starve to death.”
After saying that, he directly reached over and took her bowl of egg custard, placing it in front of himself. Just as Lin Zhe Xia was about to call him unreasonable, his hand released her bowl and placed the white porcelain bowl he had been stirring with a spoon for a while in front of her.
Inside the white porcelain bowl was another untouched serving of egg custard.
Though calling it untouched might not be entirely accurate.
The layer of chopped green onions sprinkled on top of the custard had already been picked out.
She didn’t particularly like green onions.
Not that she couldn’t eat them at all, but given enough time, she usually picked them out.
When Chi Yao ate at her house as a child, he’d seen her picking out green onions.
That time, Lin He’s hands must have slipped—she’d sprinkled an especially generous amount. Lin Zhe Xia spent a long time picking them out, finally sighing: “I’m so tired.”
Chi Yao’s words were as sharp as ever: “Then don’t eat.”
From a young age, Lin Zhe Xia had shown a knack for reading the room: “...Not eating will make me hungry. Let me rest a bit before I continue picking them out.”
But while she rested, Chi Yao picked up the chopsticks she had just set down.
Lin Zhe Xia: “Don’t steal my food.”
“...”
After a while.
She asked: “Are you helping me pick out the green onions?”
Back then, Chi Yao disdainfully replied: “Who wants to help you? I just don’t want to hear you sigh while I’m eating.”
...
Perhaps because she thought of her childhood.
Lin Zhe Xia looked at the bowl of egg custard in front of her, feeling as though someone had gently, ever so lightly, poked her heart.
It must be because of those childhood memories.
Lin Zhe Xia reinforced this assumption in her mind.
Otherwise, she couldn’t find any other reason to explain her current feelings.
Lin Zhe Xia quickly snapped out of her reminiscence, holding the bowl of egg custard and saying: “I apologize for my earlier rudeness—it was unworthy of you. I didn’t really mean for you to starve. No one hopes more than I do that you’ll eat your fill.”
Chi Yao acted as though he couldn’t be bothered with her.
He leaned back again and casually cracked the knuckles of the fingers he had just retracted: “Shut up and eat your food.”
Google Sites
Report abuse