WG - 3

After dropping Chi Zhiyu off at home, Xie Ye returned to the alley across the street with half-wet shoulders.

When Chi Zhiyu’s “well-intentioned greeting” text arrived, he had just finished showering.

The phone buzzed twice on the table and then fell silent again.

Xie Ye, drying his semi-damp hair, leaned over to pick up the phone, unlocked it, and scanned the screen.

The familiar opening and address.

Brother Ye.

She only dared to call him that in writing.

Xie Ye smirked slightly, tossing the towel onto his head and slouching lazily into the couch, his arm resting on his knee as he typed a few words and hit send.

Chi Zhiyu cracked.

She double-checked the text.

— [Nope.]

Oh???

Who was this cold-hearted guy?

Taken aback by his reply, Chi Zhiyu froze for two seconds, [?]

Chi Zhiyu: [Little bro, who are you?]

After a few seconds, Xie Ye replied: [What does Sister Chi think?]

“...?”

Chi Zhiyu: [Xie Ye, if you’ve been kidnapped, call 110; don’t contact me.]

Seeing this, Xie Ye smirked, [Playing along with you.]

Chi Zhiyu typed expressionlessly, [What’s possessing you?]

Xie Ye: [Your beloved Brother Ye.]

Chi Zhiyu: [No thanks, I don’t want him.]

Receiving this, Xie Ye glanced at it, didn’t reply, and tossed the phone back onto the coffee table, continuing to dry his hair with the towel.

Meanwhile, Chi Zhiyu waited for a reply, but Aunt Wang in the kitchen had already prepared the ginger soup, pouring it into a cup and bringing it out.

“Thank you, Aunt Wang.”

After thanking her, Chi Zhiyu continued typing, [The ginger soup is ready; come out, and I’ll bring it to you.]

After waiting for a while, the other party remained calm and indifferent.

Chi Zhiyu blinked, [What’s wrong? Turned cool again?]

After sending the message, Chi Zhiyu wasn’t in a hurry. She leisurely picked up the cup and swirled it around for a while.

Steam rose from the rim of the cup, carrying the scent of ginger.

She wrinkled her nose, clearly disliking it.

Just then, Xie Ye’s reply came in.

Xie Ye: [Not drinking it.]

Alright.

The familiar cold and aloof tone.

Chi Zhiyu, well-versed in this dynamic, casually repeated her usual tactic: [How can you not drink it? This is, like, my heartfelt gesture for you, Brother Ye. You’re really breaking my heart here.]

The emotion conveyed in these words was clear:

Since I’ve gone through the trouble of preparing this for you, just accept it. Don’t be difficult, and come out quickly.

But without waiting for his reply, Chi Zhiyu stood up with the cup in hand and walked outside.

The Xie and Chi families weren’t far apart—their houses were separated by just an alleyway, practically across from each other.

So delivering the ginger soup was only a short walk away.

Chi Zhiyu strolled over to the opposite side, pressed the doorbell, and then sat down on the stone bench next to the door, cradling the cup as she enjoyed the cool evening breeze.

The torrential rain from earlier in the evening had already subsided by the time they finished eating.

A refreshing breeze replaced the summer heat, bringing a slight chill. Pedestrians passing through the alley occasionally chatted as they sought relief from the cooler air.

Bored while sitting there, Chi Zhiyu pulled out her phone to play around. Wu Xuan happened to text her, asking if she’d finished her homework since school would start in a few days.

Chi Zhiyu paused for a few seconds, suddenly snapping back to reality. Just then, the door behind her opened.

Xie Ye glanced at the person squatting outside. “Come in.”

Chi Zhiyu snapped out of her thoughts, looked up at him, and calmly called out, “Brother.”

“......”

Xie Ye: ?

Chi Zhiyu stood up, walked over to him, and respectfully handed him the cup with a smile. “Here you go.”

Her attitude was clearly off.

Xie Ye hesitated for a moment, narrowing his eyes at her, slightly wary. “What are you up to?”

“Drink the ginger soup,” Chi Zhiyu blinked innocently.

Xie Ye glanced at the steaming cup. “What did you put in it?”

Chi Zhiyu answered honestly, “Ginger.”

“......”

Xie Ye stared at her face for a few seconds. Under his gaze, Chi Zhiyu quickly lowered her eyes and hurriedly slipped past him into the house, muttering, “You have to drink ginger soup while it’s hot. Hurry up and come inside.”

As she slipped past him unnoticed,

Xie Ye didn’t bother stopping her. He lowered his gaze, closed the door casually, and followed her inside.

“Where’s Auntie?”

Chi Zhiyu changed her shoes and walked into the living room, glancing around before asking.

Xie Ye walked in from behind, his tone lazy. “Resting.”

Chi Zhiyu nodded, turning to hand him the cup. “Drink up. Ginger soup helps with the cold.”

Xie Ye sat down on the couch and gestured toward the coffee table. “Just put it there.”

Seeing this, Chi Zhiyu clicked her tongue. “What are you thinking? Am I the kind of person who’d harm you?”

Upon hearing that, Xie Ye raised his eyes to look at her, his expression calm. His dark eyes plainly spelled out one big word and a punctuation mark.

—【Yes.】

“......”

Chi Zhiyu held back her frustration, sat beside him, and shoved the cup into his hands. “Drink it quickly. Ginger soup isn’t poison. You’re old enough to stop being so picky.”

Xie Ye smirked. “I’m picky?”

The person who used to act like drinking ginger soup was torture wasn’t him.

“Hey, what’s wrong with you?” Chi Zhiyu lectured him earnestly. “If you don’t drink it and catch a cold later, don’t blame me…”

Hearing her nagging, Xie Ye calmly took a sip and looked at her. “Go ahead.”

This long buildup meant there was definitely something going on.

Seeing him drink it, Chi Zhiyu cleared her throat, glanced at him quickly, and mumbled, “School’s starting in a few days. There’s quite a bit of homework. You must have finished yours already, right?”

The moment her words landed,

The atmosphere grew quiet.

Chi Zhiyu could clearly feel his gaze fixed on her face, direct and obvious.

Under his stare, Chi Zhiyu already felt uneasy. Seeing him remain silent, she couldn’t help but say, “School’s almost starting. You can’t possibly not have done it, right?”

At this, Xie Ye finally spoke, his tone carrying a hint of nasal inflection. “It’s rare for you to remember this.”

Chi Zhiyu coughed, feeling a little guilty. “Of course I remember. Studying is a student’s duty.”

Xie Ye’s lips twitched. “Duty, and you’re remembering now?”

“It’s because I’ve been busy preparing for the dance assessment,” Chi Zhiyu touched her nose, explaining softly, “I forgot.”

Xie Ye swirled the cup and nodded calmly. “Yeah, busy finding a partner.”

“...?”

Chi Zhiyu widened her eyes. “I was an innocent victim. Don’t slander me.”

Perhaps she had chosen her words correctly, as Xie Ye withdrew his gaze, his expression nonchalant. “How much do you have left?”

“Huh?”

“Homework.”

“Oh, oh.” Chi Zhiyu quickly nodded and explained, “I’ve done Chinese, Math, and English. I just have Physics left.”

After saying that, she licked her lips and cautiously asked, “So… do you think you could lend me yours to reference?”

Xie Ye, sipping the ginger soup, raised an eyebrow. “You want to borrow mine?”

“Who else can I ask?” Chi Zhiyu blinked innocently. “Besides you?”

Wu Xuan, who had also asked her about it, was probably still waiting for her answer or help.

Xie Ye’s lips relaxed, his tone casual. “What good will borrowing mine do?”

Chi Zhiyu froze, not understanding.

Xie Ye handed the cup back to her with one hand. “You might as well go back and flip through your textbook and ask Newton. Maybe an apple will fall on your head.”

“...”

My head will fall off and hit you.

“He actually said that?”

The next day, Wu Xuan laughed as she listened to Chi Zhiyu’s complaints. “Isn’t he just telling you to do it yourself?”

Chi Zhiyu stretched her legs, rolling her eyes. “He’s deliberately refusing to lend it to me.”

“What can we do?” Wu Xuan sighed. “Even though the answers are at the back, we can’t just skip the process, right?”

Chi Zhiyu slowly replied, “What else can we do? Go ask Newton.”

“You’re actually planning to do it yourself?” Wu Xuan eyed her suspiciously.

“Nope.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll go ask Isaac Xie Ye Dun.” Chi Zhiyu finished stretching and dropped her leg casually.

Wu Xuan burst out laughing. “What nonsense is this?”

Chi Zhiyu thought for a moment. “His brain’s fine, but the person has issues.”

“There’s nothing wrong with him.” Wu Xuan chuckled. “When I went downstairs yesterday, I saw Xie Ye waiting below. Only you complain about him.”

At this, Chi Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, about to retort, when she noticed boys from the neighboring class entering the dance studio.

“Your male partner’s coming.” Wu Xuan noticed too, tilting her chin to indicate.

Chi Zhiyu watched Jiang Jinxu walk in, noticing the subtle glances from the girls around her. She stroked her chin thoughtfully. “I choose Xie Ye.”

“What?”

The comment came out of nowhere, leaving Wu Xuan confused.

“Didn’t you ask who looks better yesterday?” Chi Zhiyu drawled lazily.

Wu Xuan laughed. “Sister, your delayed reaction is incredible. You’re only replying now.”

Chi Zhiyu raised her eyebrows. “This is a matter of appearance. It requires deep consideration before answering.”

Wu Xuan glanced at Jiang Jinxu walking toward them and whispered, “So you chose Xie Ye?”

Chi Zhiyu lazily hummed an affirmation.

Wu Xuan blinked. “Is this answer completely unbiased?”

Chi Zhiyu smiled, bluntly admitting, “No.”

“...”

Wu Xuan laughed too. Just then, Jiang Jinxu approached. After exchanging brief greetings, she moved aside to find her own partner.

The two summer art student dance classes were divided by gender, usually practicing separately except during partner dance training.

Li Rulan instructed everyone to pair up and gave a few quick remarks before letting them practice freely.

Chi Zhiyu and Jiang Jinxu didn’t exchange much conversation, directly discussing how to coordinate their dance moves.

After Jiang Jinxu briefly explained, Chi Zhiyu thought for a moment and nodded. “Let’s try it.”

Jiang Jinxu nodded. “Alright.”

The difficulty of the assessment dance wasn’t high. With their level of skill and coordination, they easily completed it.

But when Chi Zhiyu landed from a lift near the end, preparing to finish the routine, she accidentally bumped into a nearby classmate. Losing her balance, she momentarily tilted outward.

Jiang Jinxu quickly grabbed her waist, pulling her back in. “Are you okay?”

Unexpectedly, her body fell into the arms of the young man.

The unfamiliar scent was somewhat uncomfortable.

After steadying herself, Chi Zhiyu subtly stepped back from his embrace. “I’m fine, thanks.”

With her departure, Jiang Jinxu paused for a moment, naturally retracting his hand. “Be careful.”

Chi Zhiyu didn’t dwell on it. “There shouldn’t be any issues with the moves. We can just do it like this during the performance.”

Jiang Jinxu smiled faintly and nodded. “We still have time. If there are problems, we can address them later.”

Mentioning time reminded Chi Zhiyu that school was starting soon, and she furrowed her brows.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Jinxu noticed, asking softly. “Issues with the moves?”

“No.” Chi Zhiyu casually lied. “I was just wondering if it’ll rain today.”

“It probably won’t.” After saying that, Jiang Jinxu hesitated, recalling something, and glanced at her uncertainly. “Will Xie Ye come to pick you up again this afternoon?”

“Hmm? Xie Ye?”

“Yeah.”

Chi Zhiyu raised an eyebrow. “Why would he come to pick me up? Is he bored with nothing to do?”

Jiang Jinxu chuckled at her sharp-tongued response, finding her comments always amusing.

Despite her cold, distant demeanor and striking beauty that naturally drew attention, she exuded an aura of indifference with a touch of aloofness.

A High-and-Mighty Flower.

Everyone who met Chi Zhiyu for the first time assumed she was the epitome of a cold, aloof goddess.

But who could have imagined that one word out of her mouth would shatter all those illusions?

It was all an illusion.

The dismissal bell rang.

After practicing a few rounds, Jiang Jinxu let go of her and bent down to hand her a bottle of water. “We can practice the remaining moves some other time.”

Chi Zhiyu accepted it with a word of thanks and rubbed her neck. “Mm, we’ll continue next class.”

“Alright. But if we only count class hours, our practice time might be limited,” Jiang Jinxu looked up at her, his tone slow. “Do you have time tomorrow afternoon? We can set aside some time to practice.”

At this, Chi Zhiyu looked at him. “Tomorrow afternoon?”

Catching her gaze suddenly, Jiang Jinxu curled his fingers slightly, responding nonchalantly. “Are you free?”

Chi Zhiyu glanced at him, then shifted her gaze, calmly uttering an “Oh.” “I might not have any time tomorrow.”

“...”

Jiang Jinxu was momentarily stunned. “No time at all?”

“Hmm…” Chi Zhiyu paused thoughtfully. “School’s starting soon.”

Jiang Jinxu: “?”

“I haven’t finished my physics homework yet.”

“...”