Chapter 9 Song Juelan felt a heat in his nose.

"Mmm!" Xiao Tang's mouth was tightly covered, and she swallowed the rest of the words back down her throat.

He opened his big, round eyes, blinked in confusion, and couldn't understand why Wen Zhi wouldn't let him continue.

A bead of sweat appeared on Wen Zhi's smooth forehead, her heart pounding. She tried to remain calm and coaxed, "Brother Jue Lan is in a hurry to get home, so let's not keep him any longer."

He didn't know if Song Juelan had heard anything, and he didn't dare to look up at his expression.

Xiao Tang nodded as if she understood, then glanced back at Song Juelan.

But he felt that Jue Lan didn't seem to be in a hurry to go home at all, and he kept staring at Zhi Zhi.

Wen Zhi hurried away, taking Xiao Tang's hand, without looking back.

Under the brightly lit sign, that tall figure still stood in the same spot, not leaving.

Song Juelan watched the direction the two left in, their figures, one tall and one short, gradually disappearing into the night.

He didn't hear Xiaotang's last sentence clearly; he only caught a few indistinct syllables.

What he cared more about was the sentence Xiaotang had relayed earlier.

I wonder what Wen Zhi will think if she hears what I said.

Wouldn't you think he's meddling in other people's business?

A strange feeling crept into my heart.

Song Juelan stood there for a moment before slowly turning around, carrying the shopping bag in her hand, and walking in the opposite direction from Wen Zhi.

As night fell, the sweltering heat finally subsided a bit. The aroma of food wafted from the apartment buildings, and pedestrians hurried home.

Walking home alone, Song Juelan suddenly missed the lively atmosphere of shopping at the supermarket with Wen Zhi and Xiao Tang earlier.

Perhaps Wen Zhi will carefully hide the small bottle of Coke that came home with the two of them, and give it to Xiao Tang next week.

Xiao Tang will definitely listen to Wen Zhi, after all, Wen Zhi can be quite fierce when she's being stern.

Song Juelan thought of Wen Zhi's stern face in front of the freezer earlier, and a very slight smile appeared on the corner of her lips.

However, it still wasn't very intimidating, and even made people want to poke its soft, white cheeks.

He subconsciously imagined the delicate sensation of his fingertips touching it, and suddenly felt the evening breeze become hot again.

*

The next day at noon, the blazing sunlight streamed in through the glass window, making the water surface look like a sparkling sapphire.

As Zhu Zhenghao stepped into the swimming pool, he was not surprised to see that familiar tall figure standing by the pool, his smooth and firm muscles particularly eye-catching.

After doing the math, it turns out today is the day that father and son come to class, no wonder Song Juelan came so early.

"Is class at 2 PM today too?" Zhu Zhenghao asked the person by the pool as he took his work clothes out of his locker.

"Hmm." Song Juelan responded absentmindedly, his brows furrowed slightly, as if he were pondering something.

After Zhu Zhenghao changed his clothes, he heard Song Juelan speak again: "Xiao Tang has made great progress. Today I plan to have him replace his swimming ring with a kickboard."

Zhu Zhenghao had known Song Juelan for so many years, and he knew immediately that the other party was asking for his opinion.

Although Song Juelan is a professional in swimming and has obtained a coaching certificate, his teaching experience is far inferior to his.

Zhu Zhenghao recalled Xiao Tang's performance in the water during the last lesson and nodded: "He's doing well, he's adapted quite well. Anyway, since you're having one-on-one lessons, there's no need to worry about safety. It's a good thing for him to get rid of the swim ring sooner."

Song Juelan's brows relaxed a little: "Okay."

"You really care about this student," Zhu Zhenghao said half-jokingly. "What, do you find kids cute now?"

He had only met Wen Zhi and the others twice, but he had a deep impression of them.

The child was exquisitely beautiful, with a round and delicate appearance; he was indeed very likable.

Thinking of Wen Zhi's exquisite face, Zhu Zhenghao couldn't help but marvel inwardly.

With such a handsome father, it's no wonder the child is good-looking.

Song Juelan remained silent.

He doesn't feel that his views on children have changed, and if Zhu Zhenghao asked him to mentor other students, he definitely wouldn't agree.

But he couldn't feel any aversion towards the child who resembled Wen Zhi.

"It's what I should do," Song Juelan said calmly, stretching his shoulders.

Zhu Zhenghao pondered these words for a moment and felt that Song Juelan's concern for them must stem from sympathy.

They had only recently graduated from high school, their social circles were not complicated, and their friends all had happy and fulfilling families. They had never met anyone with a special situation like Wen Zhi.

Even Zhu Zhenghao couldn't help but feel some sympathy when he learned that Wen Zhi was a single father.

It wasn't the kind of condescending pity; it was simply thinking that if there was anything I could do to help them, I would do my best to lend a hand.

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhenghao had a sudden inspiration and remembered something.

"Hey, I heard the other day that a student's tuition was undercharged, and it took the accountant a long time to find out. It was a student in the basic class."

Song Juelan froze, quickly recalling that day when she had accidentally pressed the discount button several times because she was distracted.

After that day, he originally planned to tell Zhu Zhenghao, but then he couldn't remember.

Judging from his reaction alone, Zhu Zhenghao had already guessed what had happened: "Was it you who did it at the front desk last time?"

Song Juelan did not deny it, and without thinking, said, "I'll make it up to you."

He didn't take it seriously last time. Given his relationship with Zhu Zhenghao, neither of them would care about that little bit of money.

But now, he subconsciously felt that he should make up for the part of the money Wen Zhi was short.

Zhu Zhenghao quickly waved his hand, not caring at all: "No need, no need. Even if you don't do that, I'm planning to give them an even better discount."

Song Juelan didn't listen to what he said and planned to transfer the money after class.

Around 1 p.m., the swimming pool gradually became more crowded, and several pools started to get congested.

Song Juelan raised his head and looked at the digital clock on the wall. There were still several tens of minutes until two o'clock.

Wen Zhi usually arrives at class on time, which means he has to wait another several tens of minutes before he can see them.

Song Juelan considers himself a very patient person, but the tens of minutes of waiting before each class always feel exceptionally long.

His gaze involuntarily drifted back to the entrance.

I don't know how far Wenzhi lives from here. She always seems to be in a hurry when she comes to class.

In addition, children tend to sleep a lot, so waking Xiaotang up and changing him into his swimsuit takes quite a bit of time.

If someone could help, Wenzhi would have a much easier time.

Song Juelan was staring at the entrance, lost in thought, when suddenly two familiar figures appeared in her line of sight.

"Coach Song, good afternoon." Wen Zhi led Xiao Tang closer and gave him a slight smile.

Her pale face was bloodless, her lips were very pale, and she looked rather listless.

Song Juelan's fingertips paused slightly.

Last time at the supermarket, Wen Zhi clearly promised him that she would call him by his name from now on, but today she still used that unfamiliar form of address.

"Good afternoon." Song Juelan suppressed the subtle sense of disappointment in his heart, his gaze slowly sweeping over that face that looked different from usual. "Are you alright?"

Wen Zhi paused for a moment, then nodded, puzzled, "It's fine."

He just ate lunch a little late today and didn't have time to take a nap before bringing Xiaotang to class, so he wasn't very energetic.

Could Song Juelan have seen through that?

Song Juelan's gaze lingered on him for a moment before she took Xiaotang to class.

Wen Zhi followed behind the two, looking at the tall and upright figure in front of her. Her gaze slid down from the other person's broad and straight shoulders to his strong waist.

After looking him over, he nodded in satisfaction.

Song Juelan looks better without clothes.

Swimming lessons are a great thing.

Wen Zhi felt sleepy as soon as she sat down on the bench.

It would be too inappropriate to fall asleep in the swimming pool, so he forced himself to stay awake, half-closing his eyes and trying to focus his gaze on the scene in the pool.

In the pool, Song Juelan seemed to be saying something to Xiao Tang. After he finished speaking, Xiao Tang immediately hugged her little yellow duck swim ring tightly and shook her head like a rattle drum.

The conversation lasted for five minutes. Just as Wen Zhi was about to close her eyes, someone walked over.

“Coach Song plans to have Xiao Tang switch to a float board today,” Zhu Zhenghao explained to him, standing by the bench. “But it seems Xiao Tang is still a little nervous.”

Wen Zhi struggled to lift her long eyelashes, focused her gaze, and sure enough, saw a floating board with a little yellow duck printed on it floating next to Xiao Tang.

At the same time, his gaze met Xiaotang's pleading look.

"Should we go down and keep him company?" Zhu Zhenghao suggested with a smile from the side.

Wen Zhi's drowsiness vanished instantly, her eyes widening slightly, like a student who was secretly dozing off in class and was suddenly called on by the teacher.

Should I go down and keep Xiaotang company?

Him?

Wen Zhi stared at the shallow swimming pool, unsure whether she should tell Zhu Zhenghao that he was actually quite scared too.

But that would be too embarrassing.

“…Okay.” Wen Zhi stood up and slowly took a few steps toward the edge of the pool.

In the swimming pool, Song Juelan was still patiently trying to reassure Xiaotang.

With a splash, someone stepped into the pool.

He assumed they were students taught by other coaches and didn't pay much attention, casually glancing up at them.

The next second, his gaze suddenly froze.

Wen Zhi carefully stepped into the water and bent down to hold onto the edge of the pool.

To avoid getting them wet, the shorts were rolled up to the top of the thighs, revealing delicate skin that had never seen the sun before.

And that soft, rounded part, tightly wrapped in fabric, was facing him directly.

Song Juelan felt a burning sensation in his nasal cavity.

A note from the author:

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Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution!

Crane Fish 10 bottles; Don't Cry, Bright Moon Stir-fried Beautiful Wife, Author, When Will You Update, Wen Weiyan, All Autumn Colors, Xiao Yu 1 bottle