Chapter 15 Strategy: Day 15 - Having Evil Intentions Towards You

Even though Ye Minjia made it sound so convincing, Liang Qianqian still didn't quite believe it.

The main problem is... this is just too ridiculous.

She and Xiang Di were inseparable every day, and she knew Xiang Di's personality all too well.

When I first entered my senior year of high school, I was all alone, having been admitted to their class from a regular class. At first, I didn't know anyone, so I could only follow her around every day, talking to her as soon as get out of class ended and sticking to her wherever we went. It only got a little better after I got to know the other girls in the class.

What an innocent and introverted child she is! How could she possibly be in a relationship? And even if she were, it wouldn't be with Bai Jiangxin.

Then Bai Jiangxin was even less likely to be in a relationship. After all, they had been classmates for three years. Although she wasn't close to him, she had at least witnessed his charm as a girl pursued by other girls.

Three years of classmates, a total of more than twenty girls in the class, but only a handful could talk to Bai Jiangxin. Some guessed that he had installed a "cool king system" and transmigrated to their world, and that he would die if he wasn't aloof. Others guessed that he was misogynistic. In short, there were all sorts of guesses. Some even guessed that he and Ye Minjia were a couple.

In conclusion, how could Bai Jiangxin and Xiang Di, two extremely passive individuals, possibly have anything to talk about? Not to mention that Bai Jiangxin was the one who got dumped.

"I still don't quite believe it," Liang Qianqian said. "If they're dating, then someone has to make the first move, right? Who did it?"

"Of course, it was Xiang Di who pursued Bai Jiangxin." Ye Minjia said without hesitation. "Then after she got together with him, she found out that Bai Jiangxin was just a boring straight man with good looks but no fun, so she dumped him, which made him unable to concentrate on his studies during this period."

Liang Qianqian sneered: "You're talking nonsense. How could my Xiang Di be that kind of person? It must be your Bai Jiangxin who seduced my innocent Xiang Di, and then didn't cherish her after getting her, which made Xiang Di reluctantly break up with him. Only then did Bai Jiangxin regret it and start his wife-chasing crematorium."

Ye Minjia sneered, "You've been reading too many novels. Crematorium? Don't you know how many girls in the whole school have a crush on my Bai Jiangxin? He could easily have any girl willing to be his girlfriend with a snap of his fingers. Why would he need to seduce anyone?"

"You don't need to say anything, my Xiang Di is definitely innocent." Liang Qianqian crossed her arms and unreasonably switched to her protective mode. "How could a simple little girl who is usually too shy to talk to boys possibly cheat on your Bai Jiangxin?"

Ye Minjia chuckled.

"Hilarious! Your Xiang Di is the shyest and most innocent, so my Bai Jiangxin deserves to be dumped by her?"

The two die-hard fans started arguing on the spot. There was no substantial evidence of the celebrity's romantic rumors, and the two sides began to shift the blame to each other.

"Anyway, my Xiang Di is definitely innocent," Liang Qianqian gritted her teeth. "Even if you break up, it's definitely your Bai Jiangxin's fault!"

"If your Xiang Di had any integrity whatsoever, she wouldn't have chosen to break up at such a crucial time, okay?" Ye Minjia said irritably. "If Bai Jiangxin doesn't do well on the college entrance exam, your Xiang Di can expect to have to apologize to the principal and the homeroom teacher."

Liang Qianqian suddenly fell silent. When she spoke again, her tone no longer held the arguing spirit she had just displayed: "...It can't be that bad, can it? Bai Jiangxin doesn't seem like the kind of person who would die from a breakup."

"Then let me ask you, besides this exam, when have you ever seen Bai Jiangxin score in the sixties? Isn't that enough to prove how deeply he was hurt?" Ye Minjia rolled her eyes. "Besides, what's wrong with being love-struck? You don't know anything about a man's deep affection. These days, men who are love-struck are rarer than endangered animals. So many people are looking for a love-struck man to date and still can't find one. Do you know how desirable a love-struck man is?"

Liang Qianqian: "..."

She was somewhat unable to refute it.

At this point, Ye Minjia added quietly, "Ruining someone's college entrance exam is like killing their parents."

Liang Qianqian blinked.

That's it. Her innocent and kind-hearted Xiang Di is now going to become a sinner for all time and be condemned by everyone.

"No." Liang Qianqian said, turning to walk back. "I have to go back and persuade Xiang Di. Even if we want to break up, we should wait until after the college entrance exam."

Ye Minjia quickly grabbed her: "Are you stupid? You're just going to go and tell her like that. Do you think she'll admit her crime?"

"That's true." Liang Qianqian asked worriedly, "Then what should we do?"

Ye Minjia patted her shoulder with a serious expression.

"This will depend on the wisdom of my good brother and your good sister."

-

Xiang Di's classmate was forcibly taken away by the class monitor before she could even try to stop him.

Whether she didn't have time to stop Liang Qianqian or deliberately didn't try to stop her out of selfishness, only she herself knows.

At least for now, her mind is completely blank, and she is still confused about what Bai Jiangxin suddenly did to stop her and say that he wanted to talk to her alone.

What could he possibly want from her? And why did he insist on talking to her alone in the classroom after school?

It seems like they don't have much in common to talk about.

Although he managed to stop Xiang Di, Bai Jiangxin really didn't know how to start the conversation.

How can you subtly suggest that a girl give up on you before she has confessed her feelings, without hurting her feelings, and also gently remind her to focus on her studies and stop fantasizing about things that are impossible?

...It's even harder than getting him to get full marks in all subjects of the college entrance exam.

Bai Jiangxin frowned, his lips were taut, and his face was dark and unreadable.

Xiang Di blinked, her innocent-looking face and round, clear eyes filled with naivety as she looked at him blankly.

Why isn't he saying anything?

A flurry of guesses flashed through her mind, from "Is he going to confess to me?" to "Hehe, you're overthinking it. Bai Jiangxin confessing to me? The chances are smaller than an asteroid hitting Earth tomorrow and destroying the planet. You can just fantasize about it normally, but don't be so narcissistic now, baby."

She was very daring when she fantasized, but once she returned to reality, she became frighteningly rational and cautious. Because with unrequited love, the greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment, so she would rather not think about it at all than think about it too much, for fear of being presumptuous.

It's so late, and he suddenly wants to talk to her and even offers to take her home. Something's fishy about this. Even if she likes him, she can't let her guard down.

[Late at night, a lone man and woman walking down the street, what if he gets some bad intentions and drags me into an alley...]

The more Xiang Di thought about it, the more outrageous it seemed, and the stranger her gaze became towards Bai Jiangxin.

Bai Jiangxin twitched the corner of his mouth.

Who exactly harbored ill intentions towards whom? Shouldn't he be the one afraid of being dragged into the alley?

[What if...then pulls out a fruit knife and chops me to death?]

Bai Jiangxin: "..."

Is she alright?

[No way! I'm still a virgin! I've never held a man's hand, kissed him, or even tasted a man's touch in my life. I don't want to be taken away so young!]

Thinking of this, Xiang Di silently took a step back, trying to get away from him.

Bai Jiangxin's lips twitched.

A certain virgin who claimed she had never even held a man's hand or kissed him in her life was still fantasizing about him giving her oral sex during evening self-study.

He must be out of his mind to try to talk to her.

"Well, if there's anything you want to say, why don't you wait until tomorrow during the day to tell me?" Xiang Di suggested quietly, "Look, it's already so late."

Bai Jiangxin said expressionlessly, "What? Are you afraid I'll have bad intentions towards you?"

Holy crap, how did he know?!

Xiang Di's eyes widened instantly. She never imagined that she would hear Bai Jiangxin say that he had evil intentions towards her.

...For some reason, the way he pronounced the words "malicious thoughts" sounded awkward. Xiang Di's cheeks flushed, and she quickly denied it: "No, no, I just felt that it wasn't a good idea."

Bai Jiangxin: "What's wrong with it?"

Xiang Di nodded and said, "If the teacher sees the two of us alone in the classroom so late, and thinks we... have something going on, that would be bad."

Bai Jiangxin raised an eyebrow and continued to ask her, "Did you think there was something between us?"

【Ugh, why do you keep asking? We're all eighteen years old, don't we understand?! Don't we even know the meaning of the word "subtlety"?!】

Bai Jiangxin understood perfectly; he just wanted to see just how innocent she could pretend to be.

Xiang Di forced a smile and said, "That's right, because they thought we were... having a puppy love."

Early romance?

Bai Jiangxin wanted to laugh.

With her yellow brain, how dare she talk about puppy love?

The little schemes she had for him went far beyond what can be described as puppy love; they were way beyond what's considered adult content.

Just then, a teacher on duty passed by their classroom and saw that there were still two people in the classroom, one of whom was Bai Jiangxin.

"Bai Jiangxin, evening self-study is over, why aren't you two leaving yet?"

Bai Jiangxin replied, "I'll leave right away."

The teacher on duty didn't say anything, just reminded me to turn off the lights and lock the door when I left, and then left.

Bai Jiangxin: "Let's go first, we'll talk on the way."

Xiang Di stood frozen in place.

Why didn't the teacher suspect us at all? Do I look like a boy?

Ignoring her frustrated feelings, Bai Jiangxin urged, "Are we going or not?"

Xiang Di snapped out of his daze and immediately responded.

"Let's go, let's go."

-

As they walked out of the teaching building, Bai Jiangxin asked, "Where do you live? I'll take you home."

How could she possibly trouble him to take her home? Xiang Di quickly and politely said, "No need, no need, I can just take a taxi home myself."

Bai Jiangxin asked calmly, "Do you think I would let you go home alone? Tell me your address."

Although she knew perfectly well that he was only walking her home out of a sense of duty as a male classmate, she couldn't help but feel happy.

She obediently gave him her home address, and Bai Jiangxin nodded, "Let's go."

Good heavens, who would have thought that one day she would be walking home alone with the boy she had a crush on?

The early spring nights were cool. Walking side by side with Bai Jiangxin in the school, Xiang Di raised her hand, scratched her bangs that had been ruffled by the wind, and patted her slightly flushed cheeks.

The two walked out of the school in silence and reached the roadside. However, Bai Jiangxin still didn't say what he wanted to talk to her about.

However, Xiang Di felt that it didn't matter what he wanted to talk to her about anymore.

She will probably remember this night for the rest of her life.

The secret joy of unrequited love quietly sprouted in her heart. Xiang Di silently gripped the strap of her schoolbag until she heard Bai Jiangxin call her name: "Xiang Di".

She immediately looked up: "Huh?"

Under the dim streetlights, the girl's eyes shone exceptionally bright.

"We'll start class next week." After a pause, Bai Jiangxin said, "Come with me to find Teacher Chen and ask him to change our seats."

Xiang Di blinked, not expecting that this was what he wanted to talk to her about.

It wasn't actually that sudden, because she had overheard his conversation with the teacher beforehand, in which he asked to change seats, and she had already reassured herself at that point.

But when he said it to her face, he couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment.

When you're truly sad, you often feel empty inside. There's nothing to ask, and nothing to be angry about. Xiang Di smiled slightly, asked nothing, and readily agreed, "Oh, sure."

Bai Jiangxin frowned slightly.

Why didn't she even ask why we had to change seats?

And why can't we hear what she's thinking right now? Doesn't she have any questions?

The bus arrived quickly, and Bai Jiangxin was about to board when Xiang Di said, "Um, why don't you not take me? Otherwise, it will be quite late by the time you get home by yourself."

Are you sure you don't need him to deliver it?

Bai Jiangxin didn't know, because he couldn't hear what she was thinking at that moment.

Has it already expired?

Since he couldn't hear, they would do as he suggested. Bai Jiangxin said, "It's okay, I'll take you."

He got into the car before her, giving her no reason to refuse.

Xiang Di sighed and had no choice but to get into the car with him.

Alright, let's just consider this the last dream.

Although she didn't know what she meant by the last dream, Bai Jiangxin could hear it again.

If it didn't fail, then why couldn't I hear it just now?

After boarding the bus, Bai Jiangxin randomly picked an empty seat and sat down. The seat next to him was empty, and Xiang Di hesitated for a moment.

"...Maybe I shouldn't sit next to him."

She gripped her backpack strap and sat down in another seat, not with him.

As the bus drove along the road, Xiang Di just stared blankly at the night view outside the window, not thinking about anything.

It was rare to be with her, and it was so quiet. Bai Jiangxin thought she would be glad that the world was finally peaceful, but she wasn't.

Looking at the back of her head resting quietly against the car window, his sudden silence didn't reassure him; instead, it inexplicably irritated him.

He finally heard her voice after the bus had passed several stops.

She hummed a song in her heart.

Bai Jiangxin had never heard this song before, and he didn't know if the tune was accurate, but he could hear the lyrics clearly.

He never mentioned liking you, but every word you uttered was "I do."

[His response during a time of loneliness thrilled you.]

He always avoided the topic, but you foolishly and enthusiastically approached him, crossing countless cities for him, just because he got soaked in the rain. Oh yeah!

"..."

He simply asked to change seats, but he felt like he had committed some unforgivable crime.

And was she really that enthusiastic about him? She never even confessed her feelings to him.

If he hadn't accidentally drunk her milk tea, he probably would never have realized that she liked him.

The bus arrived at its stop amidst her sad love song concert. After getting off the bus, it was only a few hundred meters to Xiang Di's residential area.

Xiang Di felt too embarrassed to ask him to deliver it again, so she casually pointed to a bakery on the side of the road that was about to close and said, "Um, I suddenly feel like buying some bread. You can just drop me off here."

After glancing at the store, Bai Jiangxin said, "Go ahead and buy it, I'll wait for you."

After remaining silent the whole way, Xiang Di finally couldn't help but mutter to himself.

What does this mean? Is this dream never going to end?

Unable to figure it out, Xiang Di simply stopped thinking about it and walked straight into the bakery.

The bakery was about to close, and many of the unsold breads from today were on sale. Since she was already there, Xiang Di thought she might as well buy a pork floss bread and a bottle of milk to eat tomorrow morning.

Bai Jiangxin saw her pick up a piece of pork floss bread and casually asked, "You like pork floss?"

"Yes," Xiang Di asked, "Do you like to eat it too?"

Bai Jiangxin hummed in agreement: "It's alright."

Xiang Di chuckled and said, "What a coincidence."

That's quite a coincidence.

Just as Bai Jiangxin was thinking this, Xiang Di, who was taking milk from the refrigerator, suddenly chuckled to herself.

[Successfully orchestrated a coincidence!]

Actually, I don't like pork floss bread at all. I used to only like sweet bread. I only started liking it because I knew you liked it.

I used to hate drinking plain milk, but after seeing you drink a bottle of it every morning, I started drinking it too.

[And I really loved sleeping in. In my first and second years of high school, I would often arrive at school just in time, which always got me scolded by my parents. It wasn't until I was in the same class as you in my final year that I started going to school earlier so I could see you sooner. My parents didn't know that and even praised me for finally getting up on my own in my final year. I don't dare tell them that it was actually because of you that I overcame my habit of sleeping in, but I still don't dare tell you.]

[Besides these, there are so many more. All the coincidences about your preferences are actually part of my long-planned schemes.]

Sigh, though you'll never know.

The girl's ramblings carried an optimistic and carefree air, but also a touch of sadness.

"..."

He knows now.

While Bai Jiangxin was still in a daze, a bottle of milk was suddenly handed to him.

Xiang Di smiled and asked him, "It's buy-one-get-one-free on milk! Do you like plain milk? Let me treat you."

Her eyes were bright and honest; even though she liked him, she should have been the one looking away when their eyes met.

But Bai Jiangxin turned his eyes away first.

She hid it so well; there wasn't a trace on the surface. She never said a word that she liked him, but she liked him so much in her heart.

Bai Jiangxin suddenly felt her ears and face getting hot.

It wasn't the physical burning sensation you feel during evening self-study, but rather a psychological one—a sudden, dull ache in my heart.

She hadn't even confessed her feelings to him yet, but he was already at a loss for what to do.