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“......”
Chi Zhiyu blinked, pretending not to understand, “Huh?”
Xie Ye didn’t repeat. He held the cup with one hand, tilted his head, and looked at her silently.
Their eyes met. Besides the sound of the TV, there was also the faint chatter of Jian Yazhi and the aunt in the kitchen.
A few seconds later, Chi Zhiyu couldn’t hold on anymore and averted her gaze, glancing at the cup in his hand. She quickly thought for a moment, then as if understanding, she let out an “Ah.”
She nodded and smiled, “I haven’t drunk from this cup, don’t worry.”
Upon hearing this, Xie Ye raised an eyebrow, slowly saying, “So I overthought it?”
Chi Zhiyu blinked, “Probably, otherwise...”
She glanced at how he held the cup, feeling there might be another possibility. Looking up at him slightly suspiciously, she asked, “Could it be that you did it on purpose?”
“Oh, rest assured.” Xie Ye caught her meaning, raising his eyebrows slightly, “I didn’t drink.”
“Huh?” Chi Zhiyu was stunned, realizing, “You didn’t drink?”
Xie Ye indifferently hummed, casually placing the cup on the coffee table.
Chi Zhiyu glanced at the cup, looked up at him, feeling confused, “Then why did you just say you drank?”
Xie Ye calmly stated, “Oh, I lied to you.”
“......”
Chi Zhiyu realized she indeed hadn’t seen him drink earlier; she only saw him holding the cup and putting it down. That action would naturally make someone assume he had drunk from it.
Unexpectedly, he hadn’t, and he even lied to her.
Chi Zhiyu felt that all the tension from before was suddenly unwarranted, and she wanted to beat him up.
Chi Zhiyu glared at him, reaching out to grab his hand.
“However,” Xie Ye suddenly spoke again, his tone casual, “You said you didn’t drink from this cup.”
Chi Zhiyu’s hand paused.
Xie Ye leaned back into the sofa, his elbow half-resting on the armrest, his fingertips tapping lightly and rhythmically. He turned his head to stare at her, continuing word by word, “So how did you drink water upstairs?”
“......”
It was as if a thunderbolt struck.
Before Chi Zhiyu’s mind could react, she heard Xie Ye say again, “Could it be.”
He scanned her lips meaningfully, slowly guessing, “You drank from mine?”
“......”
This statement sent a shiver down her scalp.
Chi Zhiyu froze in place. After a few seconds, she curved her lips and slowly asked, “Did I really drink water upstairs just now?”
Xie Ye, seeing her expression, suddenly smirked and nodded, “Yes, you did.”
“Oh.” Chi Zhiyu kept smiling, maintaining a calm demeanor, “Then you must have remembered wrong. I didn’t drink water just now.”
The fingertip tapping on the sofa stopped. Xie Ye scrutinized her up and down, raising an eyebrow, “Is that so?”
Chi Zhiyu stiffly responded, “Yes.”
Xie Ye shifted his gaze, the curve of his lips unchanged, whether he believed her or not unclear. Casually, he hummed, “Alright.”
“......”
Chi Zhiyu didn’t care whether he believed her or not; she considered it the best outcome if he didn’t press further.
Her stiffened spine relaxed slightly, but she didn’t hear him continue speaking.
Chi Zhiyu glanced at Xie Ye.
He slouched bonelessly in his seat, half-lidded eyes gazing forward at the TV screen. His features were extremely handsome, with inward-turned brows and outward-curving lashes, his eyelids lifted, and the corners of his eyes slightly raised. At this moment, he still looked aloof, but inexplicably exuded a sense of ease, his posture relaxed.
Out of the corner of her eye, Chi Zhiyu noticed his fingertips lightly tapping on the armrest, one tap after another, slow yet rhythmic.
His mood seemed pretty good.
Chi Zhiyu observed this scene, slightly turning her head toward the TV direction—it was playing a Carefree advertisement.
“......”
Feeling something was missing, Chi Zhiyu thought for a moment and kindly added, reminding him, “If your memory is bad or you have issues somewhere, you should go to the hospital and get checked.”
“......”
________________________________________
The end-of-term mock exam was already talked to death by the teachers.
They said this was the reference score for your future college entrance exam, a city-wide unified test, and you should take it seriously, treating it as the real thing. The final ranking would be crucial, and how well you performed entirely depended on your own efforts.
Some people in the class were naturally nervous, worried about performing poorly, fearing it would damage their confidence and ruin their mindset.
Previously, Chi Zhiyu didn’t think much about it, but because of Bai Li’s demands, by the second afternoon during the physics exam, she unusually felt uneasy.
Wu Xuan, who was in the same examination room, seeing her like this, laughed, “What’s wrong with you? It’s not like you’ve never taken an exam before, why are you panicking?”
“I wish I could stay calm,” Chi Zhiyu sighed, “But when I think about the consequences of failing, my head starts hurting.”
“It’s fine,” Wu Xuan thought for a moment, “Your mom wouldn’t possibly stop you from seeing Xie Ye—”
She didn’t finish her sentence, thinking about Bai Li’s personality she knew, hesitated, then quickly corrected herself, “—Well, she actually might do that.”
Chi Zhiyu clicked her tongue.
“Not that,” Wu Xuan looked at her, “Why are you worrying about your mom while fretting about Xie Ye? What exactly do you feel for Xie Ye?”
Previously, Wu Xuan thought these two childhood friends definitely had other thoughts, but she couldn’t figure out Xie Ye.
Looking at Chi Zhiyu also felt ambiguous. If they were just friends, their intimacy seemed too close. But if Chi Zhiyu liked Xie Ye, she hadn’t seen her get jealous when younger girls tried to flirt with him; instead, she joked along with them.
It was quite confusing.
But she felt Chi Zhiyu couldn’t possibly regard Xie Ye as an ordinary friend or some distant relative.
There must be other feelings.
“No feelings,” Chi Zhiyu lazily answered, resting her head on the desk.
Wu Xuan: “Who are you kidding?”
Chi Zhiyu blinked, “Really, why would I lie to you?”
Wu Xuan: “How would I know why you’re lying to me? Anyway, something’s off.”
“Alright, tell me what’s off about me?” Chi Zhiyu found it amusing and countered.
Wu Xuan shook her head, “Something’s off about you, my woman’s intuition tells me so.”
Chi Zhiyu nodded, casually saying, “Then you’re pretty accurate.”
“Of course—” Wu Xuan replied instinctively, suddenly realizing something was amiss, “Wait, what did you say?”
Chi Zhiyu blinked, slowly saying, “I said you can return to your seat now.”
“?” Wu Xuan narrowed her eyes, “Why?”
Chi Zhiyu glanced toward the podium, “The invigilator is here.”
“......”
Wu Xuan turned to confirm the truth and quickly stood up to walk to the adjacent group.
The invigilator entered carrying the test paper bag, scanning the people in the classroom, “Anyone who needs to use the restroom, go now. Try not to leave during the exam.”
As soon as the words fell, three or four people stood up and walked out.
Chi Zhiyu sat in her seat, seeing a shadow pass by outside the window from the corner of her eye. Instinctively, she turned her head to look.
Her seat was in the first row by the window. The sliding glass window was open, allowing her to see the people passing by in the corridor, and vice versa.
Perhaps the teachers in other examination rooms also mentioned using the restroom, as she noticed people coming and going one after another.
At this moment, Li Taoran and Su Le appeared. Seeing Chi Zhiyu by the window, they paused momentarily before waving enthusiastically.
Chi Zhiyu smiled at their enthusiastic expressions and was about to nod.
The next moment, Chi Zhiyu noticed Xie Ye’s figure appearing in her line of sight.
One hand in his pocket, he followed behind Su Le and Li Taoran leisurely, his long legs moving at a relaxed pace, as if taking a stroll.
He appeared soundlessly.
Perhaps finding the weather too cold, he zipped his school uniform jacket all the way up, the collar slightly covering his chin, looking lazy and drowsy.
Li Taoran in front saw her and whispered softly, “Little Sister Chi.”
Upon hearing this, Chi Zhiyu snapped back to attention and looked at him, her eyes asking what was the matter?
Li Taoran clenched his fist and encouraged her with concern, “Do your best in physics.”
As the words fell, Chi Zhiyu noticed Xie Ye suddenly lifting his eyes to look at her.
Chi Zhiyu’s gaze paused, and by the time she came to her senses, the three had already passed by her.
People returning from the restroom began filtering back in, and the invigilator started explaining the examination rules.
Upon hearing this, Chi Zhiyu turned her head back to the front, blinking once, recalling her previous eye contact with Xie Ye.
Suddenly, an unbelievable thought popped into her mind.
This person...
Had come to cheer her on?
...
Ninety minutes passed imperceptibly.
When the bell rang, Chi Zhiyu put down her pen.
“Time’s up, all candidates stop answering questions,” the invigilator announced.
Chi Zhiyu watched as the test papers and answer sheets were collected, waited for a moment, then stood up and left according to the teacher’s instructions.
The instant she stepped out of the classroom, Chi Zhiyu exhaled deeply. Wu Xuan caught up from behind, “How was it? Did you manage to answer everything?”
Chi Zhiyu waved her hand, “Alright, alright, you can relax.”
Wu Xuan blinked, “So confident, huh?”
Chi Zhiyu: “Similar question types I’ve done with Xie Ye, no problem.”
Wu Xuan clicked her tongue, “Xie Ye is impressive, very strong.”
Chi Zhiyu nodded happily, “Of course.”
Wu Xuan gave a meaningful “Oh,” “Then you can rest assured about being together with him, right?”
Chi Zhiyu: “......”
Chi Zhiyu: “? “
“Don’t try to change the subject,” Wu Xuan scrutinized her, “I heard what you said before the exam.”
Chi Zhiyu nodded, “Alright, ask away.”
Wu Xuan pulled her aside, glanced at the surrounding crowd, and asked mysteriously, “Do you like him?”
Chi Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, “Who?”
Wu Xuan clicked her tongue, patting her hand, “Don’t pretend.”
Chi Zhiyu’s lips curved slightly, no longer teasing her, directly answering, “Hmm, probably yes.”
Wu Xuan frowned upon hearing this, “Does Xie Ye kno—”
“Little Sister Chi!”
A voice interrupted from behind.
Wu Xuan: “......”
Li Taoran walked over, looking at the two, whispering, “How was the exam? Was it okay?”
Wu Xuan restrained herself, “Can’t you come a bit later?”
“?” Li Taoran said, “I came to find you as soon as I finished. What’s wrong?”
After asking, Li Taoran saw Wu Xuan’s frustrated expression and paused, “You... failed your physics exam?”
“...”
“No worries, it’s just a mock test, don’t take it to heart.”
“...”
“You must remember, sunshine always comes after the storm.”
Chi Zhiyu couldn’t help but laugh out loud, quite unkindly.
“What’s so funny? Did you do well?” Su Le, who had been leading Xie Ye over, raised an eyebrow at the scene.
Chi Zhiyu nodded slightly, “Not bad.”
Upon hearing this, Xie Ye glanced at her, “Not bad?”
Chi Zhiyu lazily responded with an “Ah,” “Don’t worry, when the results come out, they’ll definitely amaze you.”
Seeing her so confident, even Xie Ye rarely retorted her.
The group walked downstairs together, discussing what to have for dinner later.
Chi Zhiyu didn’t have any particular preferences, she was fine with anything.
As for Xie Ye, he didn’t participate in the discussion. He only spoke up when asked for his opinion, saying whether something was good or not.
When they reached the first-floor lobby, Chi Zhiyu was talking to Li Taoran and wasn’t paying much attention. As she turned a corner, she suddenly caught sight of Jiang Jinxu ahead and realized she couldn’t stop in time.
Just as she was about to collide with his chest, Xie Ye suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her toward himself.
Jiang Jinxu, who had already prepared to step back, paused upon seeing this.
Chi Zhiyu stood beside Xie Ye, relieved that she hadn’t bumped into anyone, and nodded at him, “Hello, Jiang.”
Jiang Jinxu nodded, “Hello, Chi. Are you going to eat?”
Chi Zhiyu nodded, reciprocating politely, “Yes, how did you do on the exam?”
“I’m alright.” Jiang Jinxu looked at the person beside her, “How about you, Xie? You must have done well, right?”
Xie Ye glanced at him, “What else?”
“...”
Jiang Jinxu wasn’t embarrassed and turned to Chi Zhiyu, “How about you? How did you do?”
Chi Zhiyu smiled lightly, “I’m okay, I wrote down everything I could.”
Hearing this, Xie Ye looked at her and casually remarked, “If you couldn’t write it down—”
Chi Zhiyu: “Hmm?”
“—then it would be a waste of my every night’s hard work.”
“...”
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