Chapter Ten

The weather is getting colder and colder, and unlike the dry cold of the north, it's a damp cold, and clothes don't dry for days.

Lu Nan washed her down jacket and turned it inside out to wear as Xiang Bei's overcoat. The two of them are more than ten centimeters apart in height, so it always looks a bit odd. Besides, the overcoat is very uncomfortable to wear and always feels cumbersome.

Taking advantage of the fact that there were no classes in the afternoon, Cheng Xiangbei dragged Lu Nan to buy clothes.

“Hey, just buy one from any roadside shop,” Lu Nan protested.

Cheng Xiangbei ignored him and dragged him directly to a large shopping mall. "Come on, let's go shopping!"

Lu Nan's lips twitched as she looked at Cheng Xiangbei. "You know how ridiculously expensive the stuff in here is?"

Cheng Xiangbei grinned, slung his bag over Lu Nan's shoulder, and laughed, "Alright, you've got control of the wallet now. You decide what to buy, and we'll buy it!"

"Shameless!" Lu Nan curled her lip and went straight to the fourth floor, where the trendy clothing market was located.

Lu Nan had never been interested in brands, while Cheng Xiangbei had some knowledge of them but hadn't paid much attention to them. For students, comfort was paramount when it came to clothing, though Cheng Xiangbei secretly hoped to provide Lu Nan with a better material life. The two strolled along, browsing until Lu Nan spotted a dark blue down jacket.

"Tiger, how about that one?"

Cheng Xiangbei followed his finger and thought the color was too dark. "I don't think it's good."

“Uh…” Lu Nan was at a loss. Cheng Xiangbei’s taste had always been better than his, and there was nothing wrong with admitting that. “Then take a look for yourself, and let me know if you like it.” Lu Nan sat down on a chair by the corridor and didn’t move.

"Nannan, take another look."

"I'm not going! Call me when you've chosen!" Lu Nan took out her phone to play games and refused to move.

"Alright, alright, you sit here and wait for me to come back." Cheng Xiangbei had no choice but to tell him to wait for him where he was.

Lu Nan nodded perfunctorily and went back to playing the game.

Meng Tianze accompanied his cousin Chu Lian to buy clothes. The two strolled along and unknowingly entered a fashion store.

The fourth floor was a mixed area, selling only trendy youth clothing for men and women. It was unclear what the designer was thinking, as there was no clear distinction between the men's and women's brands. Meng Tianze accompanied Chu Lian as they strolled around until Chu Lian entered a purely feminine store, at which point she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't follow, but instead leaned against the shop door to rest. Not far away, a familiar figure was sitting cross-legged on a bench, using his phone. Meng Tianze squinted, staring at the person in front of him in disbelief. Was he seeing things? Wasn't that Lu Nan? Thinking that he hadn't seen her at the library for several days, and now she was appearing in front of him, Meng Tianze felt his heart beating a little fast.

He cleared his throat, intending to go over and say hello, but then he thought again, the other person didn't even recognize him when they were so close last time, wouldn't it be embarrassing to go up now? Besides... how could he possibly have feelings for a boy? However, Meng Tianze quickly regretted it, because he watched as another handsome boy ran up to Lu Nan with two pieces of clothing.

"Nannan! What do you think of this?" Cheng Xiangbei presented it to Bei.

Lu Nan glanced up. "Hmm, not bad."

"Then let's buy this one? Do you want to try it on? Or should we get your usual size?"

"Oh." He nodded. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he looked up. "How much?"

"Oh, it's not expensive at all!" The key point is that the shopkeeper recommended that this coat is very warm. Just thinking about how Lu Nan would curl up in a ball when she couldn't stand the cold, Cheng Xiangbei's eyes flashed with heartache.

Lu Nan grabbed the price tag and glanced at it, then gasped. "Even if my mom bought it and had it flown in, it wouldn't cost this much!"

"Nannan, I can afford these clothes, don't worry." Cheng Xiangbei looked at him with a smile. "The weather is too cold, I can't bear to see you get cold."

Lu Nan glared at him, a look that seemed both reproachful and angry, and reluctantly pulled her wallet out of her bag. "Here, be careful with your money!"

Cheng Xiangbei took the wallet and gave an odd military salute. "Yes, sir!"

Meng Tianze watched coldly as Lu Nan chatted and laughed with a boy.

It seemed the boy wanted to buy clothes, but Lu Nan didn't, so the boy actually begged him in a low voice. And that wasn't all; in the end, Lu Nan pouted and pulled out her wallet, and then the boy ran off happily. Meng Tianze felt a surge of anger rising in his chest. Watching Lu Nan go from being unwilling to finally giving in, he inexplicably felt a sense of disappointment and frustration. Although he didn't know who the tall boy was, the way he humbly begged Lu Nan for money was truly annoying.

The more he thought about it, the uglier his face became. Chu Lian poked her head out of the shop and called to him, "Brother, what do you think of this one?"

"Huh?" He was a little stunned.

Chu Lian tugged at his arm worriedly and asked, "Brother, what's wrong?"

"Oh, no, I was just thinking about something." He forced a smile.

"It's good that you're alright." Chu Lian smiled, tugged at her sweater, and asked, "Brother, do you think this looks good?"

"Xiao Lian looks good in anything," Meng Tianze said dismissively.

“Brother…” Chu Lian stamped her foot.

"It looks really good, this color suits your skin tone so well." Meng Tianze pinched her nose and laughed, "Don't you believe your brother?"

"How annoying!" Chu Lian smiled broadly, asked the clerk to cut off the price tag, and swiped her card to pay.

As the two left the store, they happened to see Lu Nan and Cheng Xiangbei leaving from across the street.

Chu Lian could hardly believe this golden opportunity. She shouted excitedly, "Xiang Bei!"

Cheng Xiangbei froze. He'd run into someone he knew in a place like this? He turned his head and saw the girl waving at him. He remembered her; they'd just had dinner together last week. Her name was Chu… Chu something again?

As the two drew closer, Cheng Xiangbei smiled and greeted them. "Classmate Chu."

"You're shopping here too?" Chu Lian's face flushed.

Meng Tianze glanced at Cheng Xiangbei, then noticed the blush on his sister's face, and his brows furrowed involuntarily.

"Yes." Cheng Xiangbei nodded, then turned his gaze to Meng Tianze and politely asked, "And this gentleman is?"

"Oh, this is my cousin Meng Tianze. He's in the same school as us, a second-year student in the business school."

"Hello, Cheng Xiangbei." Cheng Xiangbei extended his hand first.

Meng Tianze snorted coldly and reached out to shake hands in return. Cheng Xiangbei's expression changed slightly. Did he have a grudge against this person? Why did he have to use so much force to shake hands? However, he had no time to be polite with the brother and sister, and with good manners waited for them to let go of his hand, ignoring the reddening back of his hand.

"Nan Nan is hungry, I'll take him to eat. It was nice meeting you all, goodbye." Without any hesitation, Cheng Xiangbei ended this inexplicable encounter and prepared to leave with Lu Nan.

Unexpectedly, Meng Tianze suddenly blurted out, "Chu Lian didn't eat lunch either, so let's go together!"

"Huh?" Chu Lian was surprised, but then realized that her cousin might be creating an opportunity for her. She blushed and said softly, "C-can I?"

Cheng Xiangbei and Lu Nan exchanged a glance. Could they refuse at this moment?

A tea restaurant with an eerie atmosphere.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, there weren't many customers in the store.

The group chose seats by the window and asked Chu Lian to order first. Chu Lian only ordered two small snacks. Lu Nan unceremoniously ordered Set Meal A, while Cheng Xiangbei ordered two more snacks and a pot of hot milk tea.

"The weather is so nice today!" Chu Lian exclaimed.

Cheng and Lu exchanged a glance. Was it a cloudy day outside? Cheng Xiangbei nodded in agreement, his expression unchanged. Lu Nan curled the corners of her lips, suppressing a laugh.

Meng Tianze patted his sister's hand, knowing she was too nervous. "Xiao Lian, the weather was fine when we came in, but it's cloudy now."

"Oh? Really?" Chu Lian's cheeks flushed, the blush spreading all the way to her ears. She was already beautiful, and this shyness truly revealed a certain charm.

However, Cheng Xiangbei had no interest in appreciating her beauty. Why were they having afternoon tea with this brother and sister? They didn't even have enough time to spend with Lu Nan, did they?

Lu Nan waited listlessly for the food to be served. He rarely thought about romantic relationships, but that didn't mean he was ignorant. Who would force someone they'd only met once to eat together? In his opinion, Cheng Xiangbei's joke from that day must have come true! Could this woman have taken a liking to his "tiger" (his wife)? Hmph! Look at that blushing face, there's definitely something fishy going on.

Thinking of this, Lu Nan became restless. Noticing his unusual behavior, Cheng Xiangbei patted his head and asked worriedly, "Nan Nan, what's wrong?"

Lu Nan glared at him.

Cheng looked back innocently to the north.

Lu Nan pinched Cheng Xiangbei's thigh hard under the table. Cheng Xiangbei's eyes welled up with tears, but he didn't dare move. What had he done to offend his darling? This was practically murdering her husband!

"Your name is Lu Nan, right?" Meng Tianze couldn't help but ask, watching the two interacting as if no one else was around.

"Huh? How did you know?" Lu Nan asked in surprise.

"Top floor, ice cream," Meng Tianze prompted him.

Lu Nan was bewildered.

Meng Tianze chuckled and said, "You once threw ice cream at me on the rooftop."

"Huh?...Oh!" Lu Nan suddenly realized, and he stammered, "So, so it was you who was smashed!"

Meng Tianze shook his head and continued, "You not only threw ice cream at me, but you also threw my slippers in the lecture hall."

"Ahhh!" Lu Nan pointed at him, her face turning bright red. "That...that...that..."

Meng Tianze smiled, enjoying his awkward and flustered appearance.

"I didn't mean to!" Lu Nan stood up and argued.

"I've never blamed you," Meng Tianze said gently.

Chu Lian stared blankly at her cousin; she had never seen Meng Tianze treat anyone with such a gentle and kind demeanor.

Cheng Xiangbei's hair stood on end! This person! What kind of look was this person giving Lu Nan?! Perhaps he didn't realize it, but for someone who cherished Lu Nan so much, he could sense any danger around him instantly. No matter what Meng Tianze's intentions were, even being friends was out of the question!

"Nannan, let's go!" Cheng Xiangbei stood up and decided to take Lu Nan away from this dangerous person.

"Huh?" Lu Nan protested, saying, "You're the one who's eating, why are you leaving before the food has even been served?"

"I suddenly remembered I have something urgent to do, I'm sorry." He grabbed the bag and clung tightly to Lu Nan as they walked out. "Tiger... Tiger..." Lu Nan was confused and stumbled after him.

"Hey!" Chu Lian stood up to chase after them, but was stopped by Meng Tianze. "Brother, they..."

Meng Tianze shook his head, smiling as he asked the waiter to bring his order. Was this the food Lu Nan wanted? He scooped up some rice and chewed slowly. "Brother, why didn't you stop them?" Chu Lian sat down angrily.

He ate his meal slowly and carefully, then poured his cousin a cup of milk tea. "Try it, it's from Cheng Xiangbei."