coincidence

Bai Yixia might be a little crazy.

Nie Jiayuan held the instant noodles in the shopping cart, feeling a numb sensation in her heart.

She moved closer to Bai Yixia and said quickly, "I'm not saying this to be mean, but even though I saw him being very considerate and hypocritical towards you today, aren't you being a little impulsive? After all, I saw him treat you the same way ten years ago."

Bai Yixia was dizzy from her string of words without punctuation. After sorting them out herself, she raised her head and said, "It means he liked me ten years ago."

These words left Nie Jiayuan speechless. Of course, she wasn't unhappy to see Bai Yixia's crush succeed, but as the first person to pass on information about Zhou Qingchi's love life to Bai Yixia, she felt that a man who dumped his girlfriend so often was completely unreliable.

Even knowing someone for twenty years is unreliable.

Bai Yixia wrinkled her nose and whispered, "Actually, I didn't think those messages were very true at the time."

Nie Jiayuan's pupils dilated in shock. What did this mean? Was she implying that she had been spreading false information all along? "Your Majesty, I'm innocent!"

She crunched the instant noodles in her hands, and Bai Yixia quickly added, "No, no, I wasn't talking about you. It's just that as a friend, he should at least tell us about our relationship, but he's never said anything."

Nie Jiayuan looked at her with a deep resentment, "I clearly wanted to ask back then, but you stopped me."

"A hero doesn't dwell on past glories," Bai Yixia said with a forced smile, waving her hand. "Back then, I didn't realize anything. I was always feeling lost. Who would have thought about it?"

Nie Jiayuan then asked Bai Yixia, "Are you really going to confess?"

“Of course, it’s been four years.” Bai Yixia nodded.

What if I get rejected?

Bai Yixia gave her a reproachful look. Why couldn't she wish her best friend a better day?

"I don't care, it's his birthday anyway. I'm just hoping for good luck. Even if I misunderstand, it would be great to have a chance to pursue him." Bai Yixia said this, but she started making instant noodles with Nie Jiayuan.

"...Isn't that Zhou Qingchi's birthday?"

Bai Yixia retorted defiantly, "So what! I prepared a lot for him! And it was very hard work for me."

Seeing her unwavering determination, Nie Jiayuan agreed with a heavy heart.

But a new problem arose: "But where do I get the nerve to ask him to spend the whole day with me?"

Bai Yixia's eyes widened. "We've known each other for twenty years, you guys can't be that bad, can you?"

Nie Jiayuan forced a smile and said, "It's been twenty years, fifteen of which were spent bickering with each other. It's hard to find a moment of peace."

That statement is indeed somewhat absolute, but it's at least 80% true.

Seeing that Bai Yixia didn't quite believe it, Nie Jiayuan took out his phone and showed her the few private messages he had with Zhou Qingchi.

Seventy percent of the messages were about Bai Yixia, twenty percent were academic research discussions and requests, and the remaining ten percent were the words used to argue with each other when they were out of their minds, as well as holiday greetings forwarded in the group chat.

Bai Yixia was amazed by the sheer brevity of the message, as it was incredibly thin, with a simple swipe up to the beginning of the year.

She was very curious, "How exactly do you maintain your friendship?"

Nie Jiayuan tossed her hair. "Half of it is because of you, and half is because of my family."

Of course, it goes far beyond that. Although they often bickered, when they were still young, Zhou Qingchi truly took on the role of an older brother, caring for his two younger sisters.

This situation continued until Nie Jiayuan learned that her birthday was only about two months apart from Zhou Qingchi's. Nie Jiayuan refused to accept it anymore; she wanted to be the boss.

Zhou Qingchi was dispensable, but Nie Jiayuan was too much of a jerk, so he quit too.

Bai Yixia: "..." Such a simple reason.

Nie Jiayuan felt that the instant noodles in her hand were almost crushed into powder, so she restrained herself and lightened her grip.

Not far away, Zhou Qingchi glanced at her expressionlessly, then quickly flashed a smile when Bai Yixia looked over.

"Xia, come and take a look?" Zhou Qingchi called out.

Bai Yixia lurched forward before remembering that Nie Jiayuan was beside her today. Without any guilt, she turned her head to meet Nie Jiayuan's gaze, only to be ruthlessly pushed away.

Thus, Zhou Qingchi gained a smiling Bai Yixia.

He patted Bai Yixia's head in a good mood and held up a box of steak. "Want to eat this?"

Bai Yixia saw the ingredients and automatically generated recipes in her mind. Steak is also very versatile, which is great. So she nodded in satisfaction.

Seeing this, Zhou Qingchi took two boxes, and seeing the fish next to him, he went and asked for a ribbonfish.

I can remember a few of the foods that Nie Jiayuan likes to eat.

Bai Yixia went to look at jams again, so Zhou Qingchi put the ingredients in the shopping cart first.

When I arrived, I saw Nie Jiayuan staring blankly, clutching a bowl of instant noodles, seemingly lost in thought.

Zhou Qingchi's conscience suddenly kicked in. After putting the things in the car, he hesitated and asked softly, "Are you under a lot of pressure?"

Nie Jiayuan was trying to figure out how to get Zhou Qingchi out without any chance of failure when she was caught off guard by this greeting, which startled her so much that she trembled.

Zhou Qingchi: "..."

Nie Jiayuan: "..."

Zhou Qingchi: "Am I a ghost?"

Nie Jiayuan awkwardly ran her fingers through her hair. "No. I was just spacing out."

"you--"

"You are this year..."

The two fell silent again.

At this point, could we please avoid having some unspoken understanding between childhood friends?

Nie Jiayuan spoke first, "Where are you spending Chinese New Year today?"

Zhou Qingchi said, "It's right here."

Will Aunt Jiang be able to come back?

“It’s a long shot. I called you a couple of days ago and you were still busy with a project.” Zhou Qingchi sorted through his shopping cart and found three packs of instant noodles that felt like they were crumbling into powder.

He looked at Nie Jiayuan with a puzzled expression: "?"

Nie Jiayuan calmly replied, "The chopped pieces taste better and can be made into a paste. I will buy them."

Zhou Qingchi's gaze suddenly revealed a strange quality, as if he were looking at a fool.

Nie Jiayuan swallowed this undeserved disaster, after all, at least half of the bag wasn't her fault.

After Zhou Qingchi spoke, Nie Jiayuan continued to try to gain the upper hand, "Then why don't you spend today with Xiaxia? Aunt Lin will definitely drag you and Xiaoyan over."

This isn't the first time; there's nothing wrong with it.

Zhou Qingchi nodded, "I just don't know where Xia will be spending the New Year this year."

Nie Jiayuan said, "Don't doubt me. I remember their family's routine. This year, it's Xiaxia's turn to host the New Year's Eve dinner."

Zhou Qingchi said, "What about you—? Never mind, how about you this year?"

With a snap, Nie Jiayuan suddenly had an idea. She quickly put on an act, letting out a long sigh, "I have to go back to my hometown this year, and I probably won't be able to see you all until after the New Year."

"So, I'd like to ask you for a favor."

Zhou Qingchi's eyelids twitched. Nie Jiayuan was only this gentle with him when she needed his help. He looked over nervously and asked warily, "What?"

Nie Jiayuan said, half-jokingly, "Xiaxia and I exchange New Year's gifts every year."

Zhou Qingchi was quite surprised: "Is that so? How come I didn't know?"

Nie Jiayuan suddenly snorted coldly, "You used to be one of us, but ever since you gave me a huge English-Chinese dictionary in my second year of high school, I've taken your place."

"...Didn't you use it?"

Nie Jiayuan, who is still using the phone, chose to play dead, saying, "In short, I've been quite busy this year and haven't contacted Xiaxia much, so I'm a bit confused about her preferences."

She paused suddenly, then said as if squeezing it out from her throat, "Could you come with me to pick out some gifts?"

Normally, Zhou Qingchi would have suspected that Nie Jiayuan had ulterior motives, but he was preoccupied with something today and even needed Nie Jiayuan's help, so he couldn't pay attention to her strange behavior.

“Sure,” Zhou Qingchi said. “You can also help me check it out.”

Nie Jiayuan was prepared to engage in a few more rounds of back-and-forth with him, but she didn't expect him to agree so easily. Then she heard an unexpected question: "What kind of gatekeeping?"

Zhou Qingchi certainly wouldn't tell her, since if he told her one second, he might tell Bai Yixia the next.

In addition, Bai Yixia had already chosen her items and was calling to them from the front.

She's been loving warm colors lately, especially warm yellows and pale yellows. Today she's wearing a beige fluffy coat with two big ears dangling from the hood, which looks really cute.

I feel like a fluffy ball of fluff.

Zhou Qingchi felt good just looking at her, and ignoring Nie Jiayuan, he pushed the cart forward and called out loudly, "Have you made your choice?"

Bai Yixia looked bright and cheerful. "Hmm~ I've eaten this brand the most, and it's the best."

Zhou Qingchi couldn't resist putting the hat on her head. Seeing her looking up at him with a puzzled expression, he said gently, "I'm glad you like it."

I'd be happy if you liked someone else too.

Zhou Qingchi rarely looked forward to his birthday; this was the only time. It might sound like moral blackmail, but he wasn't exactly a good person to begin with.

But Bai Yixia is hard to say. Maybe she'll let me pursue her because it's her birthday.

The strawberry jam in the shopping cart was a bit too sweet for Zhou Qingchi, but he didn't frown when he saw it this time. His heart was bubbling with joy; the thought of cooking it was sweeter than anything else.

-

At eight o'clock on the morning of January 20th, Nie Jiayuan stood at Zhou Qingchi's door as promised and rang the doorbell.

A dozen minutes later, the two informed Bai Yixia and went out together.

Bai Yixia stood at her door and gave a thumbs-up to Nie Jiayuan, who was giving her a wink from inside the elevator.

I trust Jiajia to handle things!

Half an hour later, Bai Yixia had prepared the ingredients and tied on her apron, ready to start her big cooking session.

Fortunately, no one was home, and the housekeeper was given a day off, giving Bai Yixia plenty of room to express herself.

Because they had exchanged door lock codes with the Zhou family across the street, the door was unlocked after being knocked twice.

Bai Yixia was afraid that Zhou Qingchi and the others had returned. She racked her brains trying to figure out how to explain, her heart pounding in her throat.

The moment Zhou Qingyan poked his head in, Bai Yixia breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhou Qingyan strolled into the kitchen and stared at Bai Yixia.

"Xiao Yan, what's wrong?" Playing games today might not be an option.

Zhou Qingyan, who is usually very talkative, was unusually shy. He scratched here and there, but didn't say anything.

Bai Yixia asked doubtfully, "Xiao Yan?"

A few minutes later, as if he had made up his mind, Zhou Qingyan shouted, "Sister Xiaxia, do you like my brother?!"