I'm sorry, I like you.

Nanqi wasn't sure if she was right or wrong, and stammered, "No, yes, it's just..."

"I'm telling you about me and your 'brother-in-law' because I once told him that I didn't want to get involved with people who were in relationships. If anyone wanted to pursue me, they should at least be single. Perhaps my words gave him hope and a false sense of security, which indirectly hurt your sister."

“When you came to me because of him, I didn’t feel completely innocent either. Besides, I also talked to the director and the teacher afterwards. For me, this matter is already over.”

"Oh," Nanqi said softly.

Seeing her attitude, Song Zhao became even more furious and said, "So you don't need to worry about me anymore, and you don't need to bother me all day long!"

As she spoke, she angrily pushed Nanqi away.

Nanqi grabbed her wrist and said, "No, I already consider you a friend, so I won't."

Song Zhao tried to break free, but couldn't at all; perhaps she herself didn't want to use force on Nan Qi.

"But I don't want to be your friend, okay?!" Song Zhao said, feeling wronged.

"Why? What's wrong with me? I'll change, okay?" Nanqi said, her voice choked with emotion.

"It's not that you're bad, it's that I'm bad."

"What's wrong with you?! You're good at studying, good at singing, good at sports, and good to me. You take care of my studies and my meals. Nobody is better than you..."

Before Nanqi could finish speaking, two cool, thin lips pressed against hers. It was only a brief, fleeting kiss, but it made her heart beat incredibly fast, like a drumbeat out of rhythm, pounding in her ear, and her cheeks quickly flushed.

“I’m sorry, I like you. I always thought you felt the same way about me…” Song Zhao turned her head away, tears welling up in her eyes. “I misunderstood you…” She didn’t dare to look back at Nan Qi’s eyes, wiped away her tears and ran forward quickly, making herself disappear from Nan Qi’s sight.

Nanqi stood there, stunned, as if her soul had been ripped away. It took her a long time before she finally returned to the restaurant's private room in a daze.

Li Jia and Duan Peng were startled to see her so distraught. Li Jia held her shoulder and asked anxiously, "What's wrong? What happened?"

Nanqi slowly shook her head. "I don't know either."

Where is Song Zhao?

"have no idea."

Duan Peng exclaimed in panic, "Sister Qi, don't scare us! What's wrong?"

"It's okay, I'll go back now." She picked up her schoolbag, and after taking a step, she added, "Here's the money, remember to settle the bill."

The two stood frozen in place, completely bewildered.

When Nanqi got home, she was almost going crazy. She couldn't stop replaying the scene from today in her mind. The unexpected kiss made her heart race and her mind go blank. Her thoughts were a mess. She had never experienced someone else's declaration of love before. She didn't know what to do next or who to talk to.

"Sister, sister, sister!" Nan Yue called out to her, gradually increasing her volume.

"ah?"

"what's on your mind?"

"No."

"Then what about you..."

Nanqi followed Nanyue's gaze and looked down. She saw that Nanyue's top had one sleeve off and one leg of her pants had come off, leaving her dangling on the bed. She hurriedly took off her clothes, changed into comfortable pajamas, and then went to the mirror to carefully examine herself.

"Yueyue, tell me the truth, am I good-looking?"

"I'd say it's pretty."

"What do you mean by 'calculate'?"

Nan Yue looked left and right. "You're pretty, aren't you? But I see you every day, so I don't feel anything anymore."

"Then tell me, with my looks, would I attract anyone?"

"Hmm? Someone likes you?"

"Don't talk nonsense, I'm asking you seriously."

"Judging by appearance alone, it shouldn't be that bad. Otherwise, why would Brother Peng be your loyal follower without even the slightest improper thought?"

"What are you talking about? I mean, is it possible that my face would attract girls?"

"Huh? What? What? What?!" Nan Yue was so shocked her jaw almost dropped.

Nanqi sighed, "Forget it, it's pointless to ask you."

"How ridiculous." Nan Yue curled her lip, looking like she couldn't be bothered with her, and went downstairs on her own.

Nanqi rested her chin on her hand and pointed at herself in the mirror with the other. "You! Of all people to seduce, you had to go and seduce the class monitor. What are we going to do now? How are we going to clean this up? How are we going to face people after this? Are we even friends anymore?!"

I still can't understand it. She's so wonderful, how could she like me? She's rich, good-looking, not capricious, and so good to me...

Thinking of this, Nanqi's lips unconsciously curled into a smile.

But what do I have that she would like? Polite, gentle, considerate, generous... wow, it's hard to imagine these words being used to describe me. Sigh, maybe all I have left is my looks.

Ugh, this is so annoying! I don't want to think about it anymore, I need to wake up!

Nanqi took a deep breath and decided to talk about it tomorrow.

The next day at school, as soon as she entered the classroom, she was met with Song Zhao's dim eyes. His once bright eyes had turned gray overnight, as if covered by a layer of fog that could not be cleared. Looking at him, Nanqi was filled with self-blame and guilt. She reflected on whether her actions yesterday had been too hurtful.

Song Zhao looked much more haggard, but when she looked at Nan Qi, her expression seemed calm.

She must have been heartbroken yesterday. She probably won't talk to me anymore.

Nanqi placed the steaming breakfast on Song Zhao's table. Unlike before, this time she also put Song Zhao's meal card on it. Song Zhao didn't look up at her, only paused for a moment, and silently put the meal card back in his pocket.

Nanqi returned to her seat, and for some reason, she felt a strange tightness in her heart, a little painful, and a little empty.

The morning's classes went by like a revolving lantern for her; her eyes were fixed on Song Zhao, and she didn't hear a single word the teacher said.

It was rare to see her behaving so well in her class, neither whispering nor sleeping at her desk. Teacher Xue thought she had changed her ways, so she gave her a simple question to answer: a true or false question. When Nanqi was called on, she was still immersed in her annoyance. Guo Chao nudged her with his elbow several times before she came to her senses.

Nanqi slowly stood up, glanced at Guo Chao's book, and turned to page 90. A page full of questions rushed into her retina. Her page was completely blank in parentheses. Not to mention that she didn't know which question was asking her, even if she did know, she wouldn't be able to answer it at all.

Nanqi looked down at Guo Chao, who was pouting. "Pig?"

The answer is pig? Nanqi frowned in confusion.

"Nanqi, don't be nervous, be brave, it's okay if you answer incorrectly," Teacher Xue said with a warm smile.

Nanqi searched her memory for the English word for "pig," and perhaps it was the gentle encouragement from Teacher Xue that helped, because she actually remembered the English word and confidently shouted, "pig!"

The whole class burst into laughter. Guo Chao was laughing so hard he could barely breathe. Only Teacher Xue was exasperated and asked through gritted teeth, "What did you say?"

“p…” Nanqi thought she had misremembered and added, “I meant pig…”

As a result, the class laughed even harder, twice as loud as before.

Teacher Xue was so angry that she held her forehead, slammed the book on the table, and then clutched her chest for a while. "You, you get out here and stand at the back!"

"oh."

She stood ramrod straight against the wall, not paying attention to the lesson. Standing or sitting made no difference; it saved her from being called on again. Later, hearing someone else answer, she realized Guo Chao had said "True."

She didn't care when others laughed at her; she just wanted to see Song Zhao's reaction. Song Zhao didn't turn around, nor did she laugh at her like the others. As usual, she buried herself in taking notes, managing classroom discipline, and not only gave the correct answers when answering questions, but also communicated with the teacher in English. It seemed that she was the only one who had been so anxious yesterday.

During lunch, Nanqi sat back down at Duan Peng and Li Jia's table. She ate absentmindedly, her eyes constantly drifting towards Song Zhao.

Watching Song Zhao eat alone, she felt an indescribable sadness, but she had no reason to sit down next to him.

"Sister Qi, did you two have a falling out?" Duan Peng asked tentatively.

"Shh!" Li Jia gestured for Duan Peng to be quiet.

"No, we've always been good classmates." Nanqi felt awkward saying the word "classmates."

Li Jia sighed, "Why don't you sit over there?"

Nanqi shook her head and said awkwardly, "No."

“Then we’ll sit down there.” Li Jia gave Duan Peng a look, and the two of them carried their plates over.

"Hey!" Nanqi sighed helplessly and followed.

"Hello, classmate, is this seat empty?" Li Jia asked with a smile.

Song Zhao looked up in surprise, glancing at Li Jia and Duan Peng, as well as Nan Qi, who was tiptoeing behind them.

She gave Li Jia a smile and said, "No one's here, let's sit together."

"What's wrong with you two lately? You're even giving each other the silent treatment," Li Jiaman said casually.

Song Zhao remained silent for a while before calmly saying, "It's nothing. There was some misunderstanding before, but now that it's been cleared up, everything is back to normal, and we can get along like before."

Nanqi lowered her head, stirring the white rice on the iron plate. After hearing what she said, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, plummeted to the bottom.

Li Jia put down her chopsticks, crossed her hands to support her chin, looked into Song Zhao's eyes and said, "Let me tell you, Da Qi is just like that. She often speaks without thinking. She regrets some of the things she says as soon as she says them. In reality, she doesn't think that way at all. If you ask her again next time, I guarantee that even she won't remember what she said to you, right, Da Peng?"

Duan Peng was so startled by being called on that he almost choked. He took a sip of soup to calm himself down, and then chimed in, "Yes, yes, Sister Qi always says I'm a hindrance, but whenever she needs something, I'm the first person she thinks of." Duan Peng gave himself a thumbs up and looked at Nan Qi with a smug expression.

Li Jia laughed and said, "So, no matter what unpleasant things Da Qi says, just ignore it and pretend she's talking nonsense. Don't take it to heart. If you really can't stand it, just repeat those awful things she said to her face, a couple more times, and embarrass her to death! Hahaha..."

“That’s right! Sister Qi hates it when we mimic her speech the most.”

Seeing the two of them chatting and laughing so much about their relationship, Song Zhao smiled along with them. Nan Qi's anxiety eased considerably when she saw her smiling face.