LRTH - 13

The mess in the kitchen was left to Zhao Ke and Song Chuxuan. Li Yizhou took Xu Yuanhe and Fang Nanzhi to treat their burns.

What happened in the kitchen just now happened in a flash. Li Yizhou, who was standing not far away, naturally saw the scene and watched Fang Nanzhi calmly step forward, take the pot with the high flames, and extinguish it in an instant.

During the time he had known her, his impression of her was that she was quite soft-spoken, quiet, and very introverted, but he didn’t expect her to be so brave in a situation like this.

Li Yizhou took out a tube of ointment from the medicine box and handed it to the person next to him. “Just apply it to the wound.”

Fang Nanzhi gave a low hum in response.

“Besides your hand, did any other part of you get splashed?” he asked.

“...No.”

Li Yizhou said, “That was very dangerous just now. Next time, stand farther away.”

“It’s okay. I used to encounter things like that often when I cooked at home. Just putting the lid on the pot solves it.”

Li Yizhou paused. “Do you have to cook often at home?”

Fang Nanzhi answered honestly, “More often when I was a kid because my grandparents were busy working outside.”

Li Yizhou knew about Fang Nanzhi’s family situation. It wasn’t that he was a busybody, but he had a gossip machine named Zhao Ke next to him. When Zhao Ke chattered in his ear, it was hard for him not to hear these things.

What he heard from Zhao Ke about Fang Nanzhi was that her family had become rich overnight, and she was a poor girl who used to live in a small town. It was quite pitiful.

Hearing her say this now seemed to confirm those words.

No wonder she was always so obedient.

He looked at her again. “Put on a little more. It will heal faster.”

“Mhm.”

Li Yizhou watched her apply the ointment before taking it over to Xu Yuanhe, who was sitting in the living room.

Xu Yuanhe was frowning as he applied the medicine.

Li Yizhou sat down next to him and asked, “Is the fish still edible?”

Xu Yuanhe: “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“It’s all charred. Who would eat it? Would you?” Li Yizhou leaned back, looking like he was enjoying the show, which was rare for him and a little annoying. “I’m not eating it, that’s for sure.”

The ointment was cold, and Xu Yuanhe hissed, then laughed and cursed, “Damn... eat it or don’t.”

“You almost burned down my kitchen. Did you really make this dish at home before?”

“I made it once. If you don’t believe me, ask Xu Tingyou. She ate it, right?”

Xu Tingyou, who was not far away, looked confused. “Bro, which time did you make it? When was that?”

Xu Yuanhe’s face darkened. “Your memory can’t be so bad that you can’t remember something from two years ago, right?”

But Xu Tingyou really didn’t remember.

Li Yizhou teased, “Was it so bad that she got amnesia?”

Xu Yuanhe: “...Son of a bitch.”

Li Yizhou couldn’t stop laughing.

This was probably the first time Fang Nanzhi had seen him like this, the way he was with his friends. He was a little playful, and his teasing, slightly roguish manner was a bit annoying.

The evening sun was soft and not harsh. The light from outside streamed in, illuminating the youthful spirits of the boys.

Fang Nanzhi stood not far away. The back of her hand felt cool, but her heart was warm and had a tendency to beat faster.

She told herself not to stare for too long, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away.

She loved the gentle side of him and was also attracted to this raw and unrestrained side.

________________________________________

Xu Yuanhe’s fish was ultimately inedible, while Fang Nanzhi’s braised beef with tomatoes and potatoes became the most praised dish on the table.

Eight people sat around the table, and the first dish to be emptied was the braised beef.

“Is there none left? Is there no meat left at all?” Xu Yuanhao used the serving spoon to frantically scoop for some. “Ah—you guys didn’t leave any for your little brother.”

Xu Yuanhe gave him a glare. “There was only one pot. How can you say that when you ate so much yourself?”

Xu Yuanhao: “...Then I’ll just have some soup.”

The soup from the braised beef was amazing over rice, and Xu Yuanhao immediately ate another bowl of rice.

“Junior, how did you make this dish? It’s even better than what I’ve had at restaurants. It’s so good with rice,” Zhao Ke said.

Fang Nanzhi was a little embarrassed. “Not at all... You guys have probably been cooking for too long and are just hungry, so it tastes good.”

It was true that everyone was hungry, but it was also a fact that Fang Nanzhi’s dish was very well-made.

Zhao Ke: “Don’t be so modest. Why weren’t the other dishes cleaned out then, right, Chu Xuan?”

Song Chuxuan spread her hands. “Exactly! Did you guys even eat a few bites of my shredded potatoes?”

“I did, I did! Sister Chu Xuan, I ate several bites,” Xu Yuanhao said.

Song Chuxuan gave him a thumbs-up. “Ah Hao is still the most obedient. Hey, junior, can you teach me how to make this? I can try it at home next time. It’s so delicious.”

“Sure.”

“Then let’s add each other on WeChat so you can send me the recipe.”

Fang Nanzhi was stunned. “Huh? Oh, okay.”

Fang Nanzhi took out her phone and gave her the QR code.

After the fire incident, Zhao Ke thought Fang Nanzhi was pretty amazing. Plus, she was Xu Tingyou’s good friend, so he casually said, “I’ll add you, too. I’ll call you for these kinds of group activities in the future. You’re the best cook out of everyone at this table.”

Xu Tingyou said, “Oh, so you’re only inviting her because she’s a good cook? Who would want to come when you put it like that?”

“No! I’m treating her as a friend! And we live so close, it’s good to eat delicious food together,” Zhao Ke said, looking a little hurt. “Isn’t that right, junior?”

Fang Nanzhi couldn’t help but smile shyly. “It’s fine.”

“Alright,” Xu Tingyou said. “Then everyone add each other on WeChat. Liaoliao hasn’t been in Hangzhou for long and doesn’t have many friends. We’ll take care of her from now on. Bro, I’ll push her WeChat to you.”

On the surface, Xu Tingyou was a bit rough around the edges, but she was actually quite thoughtful. She knew that Fang Nanzhi was just like her at school and hadn’t made many friends. Of course, she herself disdained making friends with people like Zhang Lanlan, but Fang Nanzhi was different. She was too introverted and too easily bullied.

Xu Tingyou couldn’t stand her friend being so pitiful.

Xu Tingyou took out her phone and started pushing her WeChat, but Fang Nanzhi was extremely embarrassed. It was one thing for people to add her on their own, but it was another thing entirely to “force” them to add her!

And one of the people she was pushed to was Li Yizhou. Although she had been to his house a few times, she would never have had the nerve to ask him for his WeChat.

“You don’t... you don’t have to...” she said, pulling on Xu Tingyou with a flushed face.

Just as she finished speaking, her phone on the table rang, and a “+1” notification appeared on her contact list.

Xu Tingyou had already pushed it, and someone had already added her.

Li Yizhou seemed to be the one who saw her embarrassment and said, “I added you. It’s good. Now you can be like Tingyou and the others and just message me directly if you have any questions.”

Fang Nanzhi was speechless and slowly nodded.

Then, her contact list changed to “+2,” “+3”... Xu Yuanhe and Xu Yuanhao had also added her.

This felt like a signal that she had friends in Hangzhou now, many of them. She was no longer alone.

Fang Nanzhi felt a little giddy all the way home, not just because so many people had accepted her, but also because she had just become WeChat friends with Li Yizhou.

She hadn’t dared to click on his profile picture or moments at his house, but the moment she walked out the door, she couldn’t wait to see them.

A few minutes later, the group arrived at the Xu family’s doorstep. Xu Tingyou said goodbye and went inside with Xu Yuanhao. Fang Nanzhi turned to leave when Xu Yuanhe suddenly called out to her.

“Hey.”

“Huh?” Fang Nanzhi turned back, looking at him with a little surprise.

Xu Yuanhe’s face was expressionless. If there was anything on it, it would be awkwardness.

“Thanks.”

Fang Nanzhi was stunned. “For what?”

“For what happened in the kitchen today. Thanks.”

“Oh... it was nothing.”

Xu Yuanhe gave a small hum, said nothing more, and turned to go home.

Fang Nanzhi stood there for a while. This was probably the first time she had seen a “friendly” side of Xu Yuanhe.

It was quite new to her.

________________________________________

Back in her room, Fang Nanzhi opened her phone and clicked on Li Yizhou’s moments. His profile picture seemed to be a part of a building. The building was gray and white with clear angles, and behind it was a bright blue sky.

Clicking into his moments, she saw there wasn’t much content. The most recent one was a repost of an article from an official account. Fang Nanzhi clicked on it and found that it was also about architecture. After reading through the entire article, she followed the official account.

Under the details page of that account, a line appeared: “One of your friends follows this.”

Fang Nanzhi stared at the line for a few seconds, and a flower blossomed in her heart. She was incredibly happy.

It was as if she and he had a small, secret base that no one else knew about.

Next, she looked at Song Chuxuan’s moments. Compared to Li Yizhou’s simple feed, hers was rich and exciting.

She played the piano and posted a picture of her certificate. She loved desserts, and pictures of cafe afternoon tea appeared very frequently.

She was very confident and beautiful, and she had many selfies and full-body photos...

How could anyone not like a girl like that?

Fang Nanzhi no longer felt sad. She just secretly hoped that one day, she could become like her.

But hope was just hope, and there were still many difficulties on the road.

For example... she had recently noticed that her weight hadn’t budged for a long time.

She had hit a plateau.

A plateau was a torturous thing. Fang Nanzhi spent another week exercising diligently, but she still couldn’t move the scale even a little.

“Liaoliao, are you coming? Let’s go to the track and field,” Xu Tingyou said, coming in from outside and patting her on the shoulder.

At this moment, there were only a few students in the classroom. Everyone else had gone to the track and field.

Today was the first day of the school’s spring sports meet. Fang Nanzhi hadn’t signed up for any events and didn’t really want to watch the games, so she was, like a few other students, in the classroom doing test papers.

Fang Nanzhi asked, “Didn’t you say there was nothing good to watch and that you were going to skip school and go home?”

Xu Tingyou: “I was going to go home, but I ran into Zhao Ke on the way, and he asked me if I wanted to go to the track and field to watch the games. It’s the last time for the third-year students to participate.”

“Oh... but I haven’t finished this test paper yet. I’m not going. You go ahead.”

“It’s okay if you don’t finish. We have a three-day break, so you can write it later,” Xu Tingyou said. “It’s the last time Brother Yizhou and my brother are participating, so I figured I’d show them some face and go watch.”

Fang Nanzhi’s pen paused. “He... they are both participating?”

“Yeah, that’s why Zhao Ke asked me to go watch.” Xu Tingyou pulled on her. “Come on, stop writing. Let’s go watch and get some sun. It’s so boring sitting in the classroom.”

Fang Nanzhi let herself be pulled up. “Mhm... okay, let’s go then.”

Xu Tingyou thought she would have to coax her for a while, but she was so agreeable all of a sudden. “Huh? Okay then, let’s go. We can mooch some food and drinks there.”

The track and field was exceptionally lively today. People were sitting or standing in the bleachers and around the track. The areas for each class were also clearly marked.

The third-year Class 7 was in the bleachers. Xu Tingyou followed Zhao Ke’s directions and brought Fang Nanzhi to their class, pulling her to sit in the front row of their section.

It would have been strange for a first-year student to sit with a group of third-year students, but because it was Xu Tingyou, everything made sense.

The entire class knew her and knew that her brother was Xu Yuanhe. So everyone was very friendly to her. When they saw her, they gave her some snacks and water and also gave some to Fang Nanzhi.

“Chocolate, have some.”

Fang Nanzhi: “No thanks. I’m on a diet.”

Xu Tingyou was surprised. “It’s just one piece of chocolate!”

Fang Nanzhi shook her head firmly.

Xu Tingyou gave her a thumb-up in admiration. “Okay, then I’ll eat it.”

Fang Nanzhi was actually craving it, but she still held back and didn’t eat a single bite.

Because she had been on a plateau for a long time, she thought she might as well be a little stricter. If exercising didn’t work, she would fast. She was determined to get past this plateau.

In the past, she had sworn she wouldn’t diet again to lose weight because it was too unhealthy.

But this time, she was in too much of a hurry to succeed.

She was in a hurry for no other reason than that she suddenly had a small hope in her heart.

She hoped that before he graduated and left, she could be pretty, just for once.