Chapter 41 Encounter "We meet again."

That day at the mall.

After Lu Chen finished his milk tea, he made an excuse that he had something to do and left first.

Maybe, it was because nothing unusual happened after that day.

Xin Jing's shocking theory that "Lu Chen must be interested in you" was almost never mentioned again.

And then one day, Xin Jing came to the cram school again to play with Yan Ning. Downstairs, while waiting for Yan Ning to finish class, Xin Jing happened to run into Lu Chen who had come downstairs first.

However, this time, Lu Chen behaved like an ordinary classmate.

After meeting Xin Jing.

Lu Chen just said hello briefly and then said goodbye and left.

After listening to Xin Jing's description, Yan Ning felt a little more relaxed.

She thought that her friend's wild and unrealistic imaginations should be put to rest...

At Lu Chen's place.

Ever since the milk tea shop incident, Yan Ning had done some deep reflection. Every time he met Lu Chen in the alley, he would make arrangements to meet there next time on the way home.

To prevent the situation where Lu Chen is waiting for her here but she breaks the appointment.

At the same time, it also derived.

If Yan Ning were to make an appointment with Xin Jing to go out and play one day, he would also inform Lu Chen of the approximate time and place to avoid the three of them meeting each other outside without any psychological preparation.

And it's probably a matter of reciprocity.

Lu Chen also started to tell her about his various schedules, such as who he would play basketball with, when he would take Qi Jin for a physical examination...

so.

Before you know it.

One day, Yan Ning was surprised to find that she already knew Lu Chen's whereabouts.

After realizing this, she felt like something was wrong.

But what exactly is this?

What's wrong?

Very strange.

Yan Ning couldn't think of anything, or rather, he didn't want to think in a certain direction...

The tutorial class will end at the end of August.

By then, there was still some time before school started. Thanks to the tests in the cram school, Yan Ning had excellent grades. After obtaining Lin Xinci's approval, these days finally became Yan Ning's short vacation.

A rare and well-deserved vacation.

Of course, have fun with your friends!

So, that night when I was allowed to use my cell phone.

Yan Ning immediately called Xin Jing, and the two girls happily planned where to go at each time of day.

But when Xin Jing said that they were going to a very busy pedestrian street on Saturday night.

Yan Ning subconsciously stopped him, "Don't go there!"

Xin Jing asked curiously, "Ah, why? Ningning, didn't you say last time that you wanted to go to the night market there?"

Why.

Probably because the pedestrian street is very close to the stadium.

And that Saturday night.

Lu Chen will play basketball in the gym.

Moreover, he himself said that after playing basketball, he would often go to the night market on the nearby pedestrian street with his teammates to stroll and have a midnight snack.

If she were to go with Xin Jing that day.

maybe.

I'll bump into him again.

Her friend is still waiting for her reply.

Yan Ning felt a little guilty, but he didn't want to make the matter between him and Lu Chen worse, and he was determined to tell Xin Jing everything when he graduated.

Yan Ning said "sorry" in his heart again, and then changed the subject:

"I think we should go see that horror movie on Saturday night. It's more atmospheric at night. As for the pedestrian street, we can go on Sunday night. How about that?"

Of course Xin Jing agreed without objection.

The two chatted for a long time. After Lin Xinci knocked on the door and reminded Yan Ning in a deep voice that it was time to go to bed, Yan Ning said good night to Xin Jing and hung up the phone.

Hand over your phone and come back.

Yan Ning lay on his back on the bed, immersed in the relaxed joy of going out.

only.

When she thought of the pedestrian street, she couldn't help but think of Lu Chen.

My thoughts took a turn inadvertently.

After the cram school ended, the two of them agreed to go home together after class, so of course they had to put an end to it.

When I think about this.

The originally light and airy emotions seemed to suddenly turn into a ball of wet cotton.

She didn't know why.

She was a little unhappy.

Yan Ning's thoughts drifted far away, but he still couldn't find a reasonable conclusion...

The end of summer vacation.

At the closing ceremony of the cram school.

Yan Ning won all the medals for outstanding students in various subjects, which meant that her final scores in each class were among the best in the highly competitive cram school.

Lin Xinci learned about this in advance by contacting the teacher, and she was quite satisfied with it.

That day, on the way home from get out of class for the last time, Lu Chen was there too.

Different from other evenings.

It was a sunny noon.

The air was scorching hot and cicadas were chirping. When Yan Ning, carrying his schoolbag, walked to the entrance of the alley, he saw a young man leaning on a mountain bike, already waiting there.

A transparent handbag hung on the handlebars, with condensed water droplets dripping to the bottom of the bag.

Yan Ning knew.

Those are two glasses of iced lemon tea.

Lu Chen hooked his hand to take the bag, then stretched out his other free hand and smiled, "Good afternoon, classmate."

So Yan Ning took off his schoolbag and handed it over.

Lu Chen took it.

The two of them handed the bag over with one hand and took the tea with the other, completing a habitual action that they had repeated countless times in this alley.

Although he was using Lu Chen's handlebars to help carry his backpack, in a sense, it was also Lu Chen who was doing him a favor.

In addition, Lu Chen always goes there to buy things.

Therefore, at this time in the past, Yan Ning would basically take the initiative to bring up some topics to slightly ease her guilt of being too soft-hearted and too grateful to receive favors from others.

But today.

As soon as she saw Lu Chen, that vague feeling of loss suddenly surrounded her again.

Yan Ning inexplicably lost his motivation.

She just pretended to be normal, smiled, and said, "Thank you."

Lu Chen didn't say much.

Holding his drink in one hand, he pushed the handlebars of his mountain bike with the other.

The sound of wheels was heard.

Yan Ning lowered his head, took a sip of the cool lemon tea, and was about to follow.

In no mood.

The car circled around her halfway, moving from her right side to her left side.

This is a step that has never been taken before.

After Lu Chen did this, he said with satisfaction, "Let's go."

Yan Ning nodded, pretending to be busy drinking a drink and remained silent.

But, he only took a few steps forward.

Yan Ning slowly understood Lu Chen's intention of switching places with her.

The old alley has low walls of houses on both sides, and is away from the shade of the landscape trees at the entrance of the alley. The midday sun is overwhelming, brushing against the walls, and the shadows cast are very limited.

It was so limited that even though the two of them had moved to the side, Yan Ning was basically the only one left in the shade.

And Lu Chen.

Most of his body was still exposed to the sun.

In silence.

Yan Ning moved a little closer to the wall.

The front of the mountain bike turned slightly.

Lu Chen followed.

Yan Ning quietly glanced at the shadow on the ground.

Unfortunately, the effect is not great.

The part of Lu Chen above his chest was still in the sunlight.

When Yan Ning was about to move a little further, the owner of the shadow in her sight seemed to notice her intention and turned his head to look at her.

"alright,"

Lu Chen spoke, half-jokingly saying, "If you lean any closer, the wall will probably be dissatisfied."

Yan Ning was speechless.

Who is she doing this for?

After thinking about it, Yan Ning finally spoke again, "How about you just walk in front of me?"

"That's not necessary."

Lu Chen’s refusal was too decisive.

Yan Ning was puzzled and thought, isn’t this a good solution?

She raised her eyes to look at him.

Lu Chen also looked over, his lips curled up, "Because of my height, I have to be exposed to the sun wherever I go."

Yan Ning: ...

She turned back and continued looking at the road.

But after roughly estimating the distance, he was right.

Okay.

Only someone as short as her can enjoy the coolness of summer.

Some people who are too tall.

You deserve it.

I don't want to pay attention to him anymore.

Lu Chen: "But, there are actually other ways."

Although.

but.

Yan Ning still paid attention with one ear.

"For example, you can chat with me and help distract me so that I don't feel hot."

Yan Ning didn't hesitate, "Okay."

Although she agreed subconsciously, she was really different from usual today. She had no topics to talk about in her head.

fine.

She was the only one who was abnormal.

Lu Chen, as usual, easily started with a funny incident that happened two days ago.

The two walked and talked as they walked forward side by side.

It seems like I'm back to the state before, when I had nothing to do and was chatting all the time.

But the chat didn't last long.

This road.

It seemed as if it had reached the end faster than ever before.

real.

It's time to say goodbye.

The previous topic just ended.

Yan Ning suppressed all unknown emotions and, for the last time, informed Lu Chen in advance of the time and place where she would go out to play with Xin Jing.

This time the trip is a bit long.

The two stopped.

Lu Chen directly took out his mobile phone, opened the memo, and wrote down the notes one by one.

"Don't let me touch you again."

There is a small stone on the ground.

Yan Ning tapped it lightly with the tip of his shoe, pretending to be relaxed and trying to put an end to this last topic.

Just in time, Lu Chen finished writing his memo.

He casually threw his phone into his bag, put his right index and middle finger together, and waved it in front of his forehead, "I promise to complete the task."

Handsome and casual.

However, before Yan Ning could respond to his words.

"but--"

Lu Chen's eyebrows curved, he held the handlebars with one hand, leaned over slightly, his eyes met hers, and smiled again:

"I can't guarantee anything once I get back to school. After all, the No. 1 Middle School campus is too small, and I can't control how many times we'll run into each other.

Even if you see me eight times a day, you can’t blame me.”

In the sunshine.

The boy's smile is too dazzling.

This moment.

The sense of loss that had been bothering Yan Ning these days suddenly disappeared.

Yes.

You may also meet in school.

If she continued to study next door, she would meet this "classmate" almost every week.

Move forward.

There is nothing to regret.

Yan Ning's mood suddenly brightened and he felt relaxed again.

But he also controlled his expression, not wanting the man to see that he was too happy.

"I don't blame you."

She finally heard herself say this.

In the last few days of summer vacation, Yan Ning finally had no psychological burden and went out with Xin Jing to have a good time for a few days.

In a blink of an eye.

It’s the start of the second year of high school.

After being reassigned to classes based on grades, Yan Ning entered the key science class, Class 1, Grade 12.

The head teacher was a very capable female teacher who taught physics. Her name was Xie Ying. Many of the students in the class knew Yan Ning because they had been in the same class.

Yan Ning was once again appointed as a class representative because of his outstanding performance in mathematics.

As for the liberal arts class, there is still only one key class, the Liberal Arts (1) class. Xin Jing performed steadily this time and was admitted. Of course, Lu Chen is also in this class without any suspense.

One evening, just after school started, Lin Xinci took Yan Ning to visit across the street again, and Grandma Cen and Grandpa Zhao greeted them warmly.

Then, Yan Ning decided to continue studying with Teacher Zhao on Saturday afternoon.

So, everything seemed to be no different from before.

At the beginning of the new semester, the schoolwork is not that intense yet.

Yan Ning and Xin Jing still have the tacit understanding of going to play with each other whenever they have time, and since they are not busy, they go there more frequently.

Therefore, Yan Ning saw Lu Chen more often.

It's not that she did it on purpose.

But every time she came to the liberal arts class to find Xin Jing, the two of them would basically lie on the corridor railing and talk.

Then, as expected, I would always see Lu Chen from the same class again.

Sometimes, it was him in the classroom. Even in a school full of peers, Lu Chen's height advantage was still too obvious. Even if his seat was changed, it was always in the last row.

Yan Ning glanced towards the back row of the classroom and could always see him, either sleeping on the desk or chatting with the boys around him with an indifferent expression.

Sometimes, he would just be leaving the classroom, with a cold expression, tall and long legs, one hand in his pocket, and always followed by three or four boys, heading to the end of the corridor, to the washroom or toilet.

More often.

As luck would have it, Lu Chen was also at the railing, relaxing and occasionally chatting with others.

Many times.

Many times when she came down the stairs and reached the corridor, she would always happen to meet his eyes.

His brows relaxed.

She basically understood what he meant:

"We meet again."

There were even one or two times when he was the one calling out to Xin Jing in class.

And if he wasn't always there first, Yan Ning would even start to suspect that he was deliberately...

The more times we meet.

One afternoon after class, Yan Ning went to the supermarket downstairs to buy used index stickers. It was very hot that day and there were many students buying things in the supermarket.

Yan Ning had just come out of the stationery area where there were relatively fewer people. As soon as he turned a corner, he saw Lu Chen standing tall not far away. He opened the freezer door and took out a bottle of cold drink.

Lu Chen obviously saw her too.

Because the next second.

He raised his eyebrows slightly, with a smile in his eyes, pressed his thumb on the neck of the bottle, spread out the other four fingers, raised his hand and gestured towards her.

Yan Ning reacted almost instantly——

Rather, he was greeting her.

Rather say.

He was reminding her.

This is the fourth time these two have met today.

She went to see Xin Jing twice today. At noon, she went to the office to deliver homework books and happened to meet Lu Chen who was coming down the stairs. Now, they just met each other.

Someone passing by blocked the view.

Yan Ning withdrew his gaze, and then, belatedly, his heart skipped a beat.

If you say.

He was in a playful mood.

Counting the number of times two people meet.

What about her?

I was able to think of the meaning behind this so quickly.

Is that what you mean.

She was there for him.

I also became a little more concerned...

That day, Yan Ning used the excuse that there were too many people in the beverage aisle and did not take that route. Instead, he changed to another one, but the effect was minimal. He even said that it would be better not to change.

Because when Yan Ning was queuing up to pay at the supermarket checkout counter, Lu Chen came over with two other boys as soon as she arrived. There was obviously a shorter line, but he didn't queue up and just stood behind her.

Yan Ning: ...

She paid the bill first and came out of the supermarket.

Lu Chen behind her quickly caught up. The boy took big steps and soon surpassed her again.

The scorching afternoon sun was cut into pieces by the shadows of tall trees, and there was a cool breeze.

In front of the teaching building.

Yan Ning witnessed it with his own eyes. Lu Chen turned his head and said something to the two people next to him. Then the few of them took the longer way instead of the closer one and took the stairs on the other side which was not only farther away from the downstairs but also farther away from the upstairs and the Liberal Arts (1) class.

But it is also the shortest way for Yan Ning to return to class.

Yan Ning again: ...

The three people in front slowed down as they went up the stairs.

Yan Ning happened to be following behind them.

Just like that, we "ran into each other" again along the way.

When Yan Ning arrived at her floor, one of the three people also stopped.

Then Lu Chen, who was almost standing next to her, said slowly:

"See you next time then."

Yan Ning's third time: ...

Always feel.

This person also told her.

Even this meeting is in the foreseeable future, maybe even today...

never mind.

Yan Ning returned to the classroom, tore off an index sticker and pasted it on the wrong question book, and came to a conclusion -

There's no point in thinking too much.

It’s better not to think about it.

Just let it be.

-

The start of the second year of high school also means another thing——

Another group of new students entered the school.

The competition for recruitment among the clubs will begin in mid-September.

No. 1 Middle School continues to support student clubs. For two consecutive weeks, the last evening self-study class is left to the students to decide. They can stay in class or go to the club to discuss and prepare for recruitment.

In the radio station.

Senior Chai Qingxue and Senior Ji Ze, who recruited Yan Ning to join the society, have reached their third year of high school. They will have to withdraw from the society by the end of this month at the latest according to school regulations. The positions of director and deputy director will be handed over to the second year students after the election.

However, although it is called an election, there are actually only two people running for election.

Before the vote, Chai Qingxue came to see Yan Ning specifically and said that she felt Yan Ning was meticulous and serious in her work and was very suitable to be a minister, and persuaded her to participate as well.

But Yan Ning was currently broadcasting and still used the duty as an excuse. He was worried that he would not be able to spare more time for the department, so he thanked the senior student for her kindness and declined.

In the end, Han Xiayang and Zhuang Yao, the only two people who signed up, became the minister and deputy minister of the new term.

Han Xiayang was the boy who came with Yan Ning at the time and was "tricked" by Senior Chai into filling out the form. He wore black-framed glasses, was a bit dull and didn't talk much.

Zhuang Yao's personality is the exact opposite of his. She is lively, enthusiastic, and even a little noisy.

Seniors Chai and Ji, as well as several other senior students, rarely come here after fully sharing last year's experience.

The various preparation processes for recruiting new members went smoothly thanks to the exploration and promotion of the sophomore class.

Except for one very important one——

Department promotional poster.

After all, it was the showcase for recruitment, so everyone brainstormed and revised it again and again.

After the last meeting, when the club recruitment was about to begin the following week, a USB flash drive containing a poster was suddenly handed to Yan Ning.

Zhuang Yao put down the USB drive and said with a smile, "Shall I ask Yan Ning to take care of the revisions this time?"

Yan Ning paused as he sorted through the meeting minutes. "Me?"