Shi Chen rolled his eyes at his phone and was about to turn off the screen when he received a message.

"Brother Shi Chen, has my brother encountered anything sad lately?"

Shi Chen raised an eyebrow, secretly admiring Pei Xi's meticulousness.

Before she could reply, Pei Xi sent another message, "For example... something like heartbreak."

Shi Chen was taken aback.

Heartbroken? What kind of nonsense is that?

Shi Chen was in a dilemma. He couldn't tell Pei Xi about Pei Zhi's problem directly, so he hesitated for a few seconds and said, "I think... it might be even more painful than a breakup."

Pei Xi sighed silently after seeing Shi Chen's reply.

Just as she expected.

Being rejected before even starting a relationship is even more painful than a breakup, isn't it?

She didn't ask any further questions, since asking would involve Pei Zhi's privacy. So she typed to Shi Chen, "Okay, I understand. Thank you, Brother Shi Chen."

On the other side, Shi Chen looked at Pei Xi's reply and fell into deep thought.

What does she know?

Shi Chen frowned. What exactly did Pei Zhi say to Pei Xi?

He was certain that Pei Zhi must have said something that caused Pei Xi to misunderstand.

But he couldn't press the matter further, so he simply replied, "It's nothing, you're welcome."

After a brief conversation with Shi Chen, Pei Xi became even more convinced that Pei Zhi's innocent young heart had been hurt.

Thinking of his melancholy and dejected appearance just now, Pei Xi frowned. No, she couldn't just watch Pei Zhi be sad.

She has to do something to coax him.

After all, Pei Zhi had never suffered such a blow since childhood, and seeing him like that, she felt quite sorry for him.

However, to comfort someone, you must cater to their preferences.

What does Pei Zhi like? Pei Xi thought for a moment, resting his chin on his hand.

Playing ball, playing video games, and... being number one in the grade.

Getting first place in the grade is out of the question, that's a no-go. Pei Xi thought for a moment, then opened her phone, wondering if there were any fun games she could buy for Pei Zhi some game cards.

Playing games can kill time and distract you, leaving Pei Zhi no time to wallow in sadness.

Pei Xi thought it was very good.

The next day was Friday. After school, Pei Xi and Shen Miaoyi went to the mall.

When she got home, she knocked on Pei Zhi's door. Pei Zhi was leaning against the headboard reading a book.

She walked over, handed him the bag containing the game cards, and said with a smile, "Brother, this is for you."

Pei Zhi was taken aback, took the bag, opened it and glanced at the contents, raising an eyebrow at her, "Why are you giving me something for no reason?"

Pei Xi smiled at him, her face full of innocent charm, "Do I need a reason to give my brother something?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Zhi couldn't help but smile slightly.

He lifted the bag in his hand and said, "Alright, then I'll mercifully accept it."

Pei Xi played along, fawningly saying, "Um, thank you for gracing me with your presence, brother."

As it turned out, the game cards Pei Xi gave him were very effective. The next day, Saturday, Pei Zhi stayed in his bedroom and played games all day.

During dinner that evening, Pei Zhi casually brought it up at the table, "Those games you gave me are all pretty good, the mechanics are really interesting. How did you choose them? Did you just pick them randomly?"

Pei Xi doesn't usually play games, but unexpectedly, all the games he bought were exactly what he wanted. Pei Zhi thought to himself, could this be called telepathy?

Pei Xi was delighted to hear that he liked it, and she smiled and said, "I asked Jiang Cheng."

Pei Zhi's smile froze.

Pei Xi added, "Jiang Cheng said this game is really interesting and highly playable, and that you'd definitely like it. I didn't expect him to be right."

Pei Zhi: "..."

...He suddenly seems to think it's not so fun anymore.

Pei Zhi coughed, put down his bowl, looked up and said, "My eyes hurt from playing games all day. I'm going out to play ball with Shi Chen and the others later."

Pei Xi exclaimed "Ah!" and frowned slightly. "It's already dark outside."

Pei Zhi gave him a look that said, "You just don't understand," adding, "Night games have a better atmosphere."

“Then I’ll stay with you.” Pei Xi put down the bowl in his hand as well.

Pei Zhiyi remained silent, looking at Pei Xi with suspicion.

"What's wrong?" Pei Xi lightly bit her chopsticks, looked up at him, and said, "Didn't I used to play ball with you all the time?"

Pei Zhi clicked his tongue lightly.

That was then. Back then, Pei Xi was young, and he felt more at ease having her by his side.

Furthermore, he believed he looked very handsome when playing basketball, so he wanted to establish a superior image in front of Pei Xi, something he had been influenced by since childhood.

But it's no longer used.

After all, he had already heard it that night, and in Pei Xi's eyes, he was already so perfect.

Pei Zhi snorted lightly, his eyes still filled with suspicion, "I've never seen you follow me around so attentively when I play basketball before."

Pei Xi smiled, her big, watery eyes blinking at him, her long eyelashes fluttering like butterflies. "I just want to stick close to you, brother, and go with you, is that not allowed?"

Pei Zhi was taken aback, forgetting to say anything sarcastic.

Pei Xi's gaze suddenly reminded him of when they were children, when she insisted on sleeping with him because she was afraid of the dark.

She openly flirted and acted spoiled.

He always accepted it without question; he was most susceptible to this kind of thing.

He couldn't utter a single word of refusal.

Sure enough, he sighed helplessly and suppressed the slight upturn of his lips, "Sure, of course you can, since you're such a tagalong."

-

After finishing their meal, the two rode their electric scooter leisurely to the sports field.

It's the place Pei Zhi and his friends often come to; the stadium lights are very bright, illuminating the field as if it were daytime.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!