Chapter 23
Chen Zhoujing suddenly exclaimed as if he had discovered a new continent: "You laughed twice this morning."
Jian Sheng turned her head away, hiding her slightly flushed cheeks: "No."
"Yes, it is, no arguments allowed." Chen Zhoujing crossed his arms and unconsciously moved closer to her.
“By the way, your cousin isn’t very old…” He was about to say something more when Jian Sheng interrupted him.
She said, "There's no need to deliberately say anything good about him because of me."
“He’s nineteen this year, he repeated a grade, and he’s still in his senior year of high school. I’m living with him, staying at his house.” She stopped at the red light at the intersection.
Chen Zhou was so shocked he almost bumped into it. After regaining his balance, he asked, "You live at his father's house?"
“It’s my grandma’s house,” she said.
"?" Chen Zhou walked up to her, looking puzzled. "Grandma's house isn't just his house, it's also your house."
"How can this be considered living under someone else's roof?"
Jian Sheng was taken aback, not expecting him to say that; she hadn't actually thought of it.
According to Jian Zihua, who was drunk, Ye Hua and her grandfather actually owned a house in Jeju City. Later, because Jian Zihua grew up and needed to get married, they sold the house. However, at that time, Jian Zihua somehow managed to coax Zhou Yilian into not wanting anything.
In the end, Jian Zihua didn't want the house from the two elders. Ye Hua took the money and gave it to his second son. The second son got married, and the two of them made a fortune. They bought a house to give back to the two elders.
“My uncle bought the house,” Jian said in a low voice.
"That's your home too..." Chen Zhou started to say, but then seemed to realize something, perhaps her family situation was complicated, so he shut his mouth.
The two walked on the noisy sidewalk, amidst the clamor of passing vehicles, as the city gradually awoke from its bustling activity.
Chen Zhoujing glanced at the intersection ahead and then asked, "Have you had breakfast?"
Jian Sheng shook his head: "I have no appetite."
In fact, her portion was stuffed into her mouth by Jian Qingyao, who usually sleeps until one o'clock in the afternoon.
Chen Zhou raised an eyebrow in surprise: "Wait for me."
After saying that, he ran towards the breakfast shop he often went to on the side.
Jian Sheng watched his back and wanted to call out to him, but there were too many people walking by with bags in their hands. She waited for the people in front of her to pass before preparing to follow him.
"Jian Sheng?" A familiar voice sounded from behind.
Jian Sheng turned around and saw Lin You and Qi Jing standing behind her, greeting her. She was a little surprised: "What a coincidence."
“We live in the same neighborhood but different sections. Qi Jing is in the South District, and I’m in the West District. We just happened to run into each other at the intersection behind us,” Lin You said.
She glanced at her, then looked around: "What are you doing here all by yourself?"
Jian Sheng's pupils widened slightly: "I....."
"I'm not alone..." she said, somewhat embarrassed.
"Who else?" Qi Jing asked, puzzled.
As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Zhoujing ran over from not far away, carrying a brown paper bag in his hand.
Jian Sheng pursed her lips. It's all over.
"Hey, what a coincidence." Chen Zhou greeted them, then opened the bag as if no one else was there and said to Jian Sheng, "I bought a few. I don't know what you like to eat, take a look."
Jian Shengbei kept saying, "Um, I..."
"Oh dear." Lin You glanced at the atmosphere between the two: "Chen Zhoujing, I haven't had breakfast either."
"Huh?" Chen Zhou was surprised by her teasing look and clicked his tongue. "If you haven't eaten, go buy some. Look, the shop is right there."
He gestured with his chin to the right, pointing the brown paper bag in his hand toward Jian Sheng.
Lin You's face darkened: "We're all classmates, how come there's such a big difference, Chen Zhoujing!"
There are still two of us here!
Chen Zhou was taken aback for a moment, then realized what was happening amidst the two people's amused expressions. He glanced at Jian Sheng's embarrassed look with his eyes downcast, and pretended to look at his watch: "We're going to be late."
He sealed the breakfast bag again: "Go to school first."
After saying that, he pushed Jian Sheng's schoolbag forward.
Qi Jing and Lin You chuckled quietly for a long time behind them.
Jian Sheng awkwardly rubbed his forehead. He was too slow and couldn't stop this enthusiastic, big, clumsy guy.
She waved her hand: "Chen Zhoujing, I can walk."
After saying that, Chen Zhou realized he had been rash, and he chuckled as he held his breakfast.
Jian Sheng moved to the side, slowed her pace, and waited for the two people behind her to come up before leisurely moving to Lin You's side.
Chen Zhoujing, seemingly oblivious to her presence, moved closer to her.
The four of them lined up and walked towards the school.
"When did he become so talkative?" Qi Jing whispered in Lin You's ear.
Lin You listened to the person beside her talking non-stop and was also puzzled: "I don't know. Zhao Chengyang said that he used to be quiet, but he changed after he went to high school. Maybe, boys change a lot as they grow up?"
"I feel like the iron tree has finally blossomed?" Qi Jing glanced at Jian Sheng, who was looking down and trying to avoid her, and couldn't help but laugh. "Alright, maybe before long, Jian Sheng will also be encouraged to talk more."
Who knows?
There were still about ten minutes before morning reading when Jian Sheng arrived at the classroom. As soon as he put down his schoolbag, two steamed buns and a bottle of pure milk were placed on his desk.
She looked up at Chen Zhoujing, who was grinning beside her: "I..."
"Try it. I bought one sesame and one custard. Oh, the milk isn't sweetened milk, so you can drink it without worry." He stared with bright eyes.
Jian Sheng swallowed back her refusal.
"Okay." She held the still-warm milk on the table, opened the lid, and took a sip in front of him. "It's delicious."
After receiving an affirmative answer, Chen Zhoujing finally breathed a sigh of relief, returned to his seat, and began to eat his steamed bun.
"Wow~" A surprised voice rang in his ears.
He turned his head and saw Xu Yanghe taking off his schoolbag and sitting down.
Chen Zhou swallowed hard: "What are you doing?"
"It's been sent out this time." Xu Yanghe nodded slowly, giving him a serious thumbs up.
Chen Zhou indifferently withdrew his gaze and turned back to continue gnawing.
"Yo yo yo, it's been sent out this time~" Xu Xiu, who came in with Xu Yanghe, also chimed in.
Just then, He Shang came in through the back door: "What was sent out?"
He glanced at the unchanging steamed buns and pure milk on Chen Zhoujing's table.
"When did you start liking to drink this tasteless stuff that makes you feel nauseous?" he said, walking over and taking a sip of milk from a distance.
After finishing his drink, he gave a disgusted look, frowned, and looked at Chen Zhoujing, only to be met with a dark expression.
He Shang was taken aback: "Oh my god, I forgot."
Chen Zhou waved his hand dismissively: "Go drink it yourself."
He Shang grunted an "oh," and, enduring the discomfort, drank most of the glass from the bottle: "It tastes awful. How can anyone like to drink this stuff?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than he received a punch to the leg. He heard Chen Zhoujing say, "Drink it or don't, you're getting a good deal and you're still acting innocent. Get lost."
He Shang turned his head and caught a glimpse of the same brand of pure milk on Jian Sheng's table. He changed the subject before he could finish his sentence: "Damn, how come I never noticed before? This stuff is so delicious."
"So classy, so classy!" After saying that, he shouted to the whole class, "I declare that those who love to drink pure milk are simply gods."
"Neuropathy."
"He Shang, are you crazy?"
He Shang chuckled and sat back down.
Jian Sheng, who had just finished drinking pure milk in the front row, placed the can in the upper left corner, then opened the custard bun, took a few bites, and was surprised to find that it was quite delicious.
She silently made a mental note of it, adding another layer of gratitude to Chen Zhou's kindness.
Just then, Zhong Mei came in. She quickly stuffed the custard bun into her mouth in a few bites, and with her cheeks puffed out, she started looking for her Chinese textbook in the drawer of the table.
When I touched it, I felt something cool and slippery.
She looked down in confusion.
There were ten brand-new book covers, each printed with a colorful image of a boy, which looked quite nice together.
Jian Sheng froze, and the chewing motion in his mouth also stopped.
Then came a long silence, until the bell rang again and Zhong Mei slammed her hand on the table a few times before she came to her senses.
Jian Sheng swallowed the bun in her mouth with force, her fingers trembling slightly as she reached for the book covers. The coldness she felt when her fingertips touched traveled down her limbs and throughout her body.
“This is…” she turned to ask Qi Jing.
Qi Jing squinted as she wiped her glasses and said, "This is what Xia Xia put in your desk drawer when she was cleaning after you left yesterday."
"She said she didn't need that many, and she wasn't sure if you liked the group, so she tried her best to pick a few with fewer people and more patterns and put them in your drawer."
Jian Sheng felt a tingling sensation in her heart, and her nose began to sting.
Then Qi Jing spoke up again: "She said good things should be shared."
With tears welling up in her eyes, Jian Sheng softly said thank you. Then, she carefully picked up the brand-new book covers, flipped them open one by one, and touched them with her hands before finally putting them back in her pocket.
Xu Xiaxia made a note of it.
The weather in Jiangzhou at the end of October was not very hot, but the weather was unpredictable.
During the time it takes for morning reading and one class period, a light rain begins to fall outside the window, washing away the morning exercise routine during the long break.
Jian Sheng had just returned from the restroom when he saw that his seat had been taken by a girl, and a group of people were gathered in the middle of groups two and three, discussing something and laughing.
She stood at the back door for a while, hesitating whether to go in.
Suddenly, a voice came from beside me: "They're discussing Gu Zhenyi's birthday."
Jian Sheng turned her head and saw Zhao Chengyang peeking out from his extracurricular book to look at her.
“You can just go over there. Your seat is Lin You’s deskmate, Zheng Nian,” he added.
Jian nodded, said thank you, and walked in that direction.
"Chen Zhoujing," Zhao Chengyang called out from behind.
Chen Zhoujing, who was in the middle of the discussion, turned his head.
Jian Sheng's gaze automatically met his. The person behind him seemed to give him some kind of hint. Chen Zhoujing raised his hand and tapped the upper right corner of the table. The girl who was having a lively discussion reacted.
She turned her head and exclaimed, "Oh, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, please come and sit down."
Zheng Nian was about to get up when Jian waved his hand and said, "Please sit down, please sit down."
"That won't do, it's your seat." Zheng Nian scratched her face, a little embarrassed.
"I'll go to your seat, and we'll switch back after class," Jian said.
Zheng Nian stared wide-eyed: "Okay, okay, in the second group, third row."
Jian Sheng nodded and prepared to turn around and go around from behind, but Chen Zhoujing stopped him.
"Wait a minute." He stood up and made room for me. "Sit here."
He pulled out a chair to make room for Xu Xiu, then pulled over the empty chair next to Xu Xiu: "I'll sit here. He went to the restroom and won't be back for a while."
"Continue, continue." Chen Zhou raised his chin, gesturing for Jian Sheng to sit down.
Seeing everyone waiting for her to sit down, Jian Sheng fidgeted with her fingers and awkwardly walked over.
The group was having a lively discussion about things like buying gifts and celebrating birthdays. Xu Xiu was the one who usually came up with the plans, and the group discussed them intensely.
Xu Yanghe occasionally chimed in, while Jian Sheng and Chen Zhoujing remained silent.
She propped her head up and glanced at the test paper on the table. It seemed that Teacher Zhong had given her another set. Every blank was filled in, and the paper was very clean, without any messy scratches, except that the handwriting was a little sloppy.
She scanned the first question; the first few questions looked somewhat familiar, but starting from the fifth multiple-choice question, they became unfamiliar.
Jian Sheng was engrossed in watching when suddenly, the chair next to her moved. She turned her head and saw Chen Zhoujing sitting in the chair, shuffling his feet along the ground, moving towards her with the chair.
He looked up and saw Jian Sheng looking at her, so he raised an eyebrow and asked, "How is it? Pretty, right?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
