Chapter 63
She suppressed her emotions, crossed her arms, and gently raised her eyes to look at his pale face, then at his lips as they moved, lingering there for a long time.
The sudden observation calmed her downcast mind.
Chen Zhoujing's voice gradually faded away as she looked over.
Then, his lips pressed into a straight line, and then curved into a slight arc.
Jian Sheng's gaze moved upwards from the corner of his mouth.
His hair had grown a bit longer, almost covering his deep-set eyes, which held faint dark circles that were unlikely to be noticed without close inspection.
I don’t know if it’s because I haven’t looked at him closely in a long time, but his face seems thinner than last semester, his eye sockets are deeper, and the curve of his jawline is more defined.
She frowned as she pondered.
Seeing her expression, Chen Zhou was startled and his smile slowly faded. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his hands on the table clenched tightly.
What is this for?
The blatant stares made him almost flee in terror, turning his eyes away.
He lowered his head, his voice hoarse: "Why are you looking at me like that?"
The redness on the tips of her ears had somehow spread to her cheeks. Chen Zhoujing put one hand on the back of her neck and lowered her head a little further, the tips of her hair brushing against the papers on the table.
Jian Sheng asked, "Why have you lost weight?"
"Huh?" He looked up abruptly, staring at her serious face, and didn't react for a moment.
She raised her hand to touch her face, her voice trembling slightly: "No...no."
"Have I... lost weight?"
Jian Sheng gave a soft "hmm," lowered her arms, leaned forward slightly, and placed her hands on the table like him: "Didn't you eat properly?"
Chen Zhou gasped in surprise. When they looked at each other up close, he suddenly forgot what he was going to say.
"Eat...eat what...?" His mind went blank, and his heart rate soared.
She fell silent, and he stammered, "Ah, eating... I ate properly."
"This...this is concern for me?" Chen Zhou murmured in surprise.
Unexpectedly, there was no response, but the next second, a firm "hmm" came from beside me.
His pupils widened slightly, and he raised his hand to his unusually heaving chest.
"Oh my god..." A very low whisper escaped his lips.
A smile crept across his lips, his heart pounded, and he said with delight, "I've been eating properly."
“I’ve been working out lately. Last weekend when you came down to walk in the wheat field, I was running.”
Jian Sheng bit her lip and thought for a moment. She realized that she had seen him running every weekend she walked the dog, whether it was in the morning or at night.
Always using fitness as an excuse, she nodded with some skepticism.
His grandmother passed away about a month ago. Although he hasn't taken any leave during this month, he's been a little quieter.
To outsiders, he still seemed to have endless things to say every day, but when he was alone with her, that energy gradually faded.
Most of the time, the two of them would take a leisurely stroll, and occasionally, when he realized there was a silence, he would speak up to ease the atmosphere.
Jian Sheng noticed it at first, and although he wasn't used to it at first, he gradually realized that this might be his true self.
It is the truth hidden deep in one's heart.
This truth quietly surfaced after his grandmother passed away, but he himself seemed unaware of it.
She has experienced the death of a loved one.
Pain is not just a momentary emotional outburst, but more often it manifests in the subtle moments of daily life.
Fragmented memories of the past gradually erode the lives of those who care.
Her eyelashes fluttered a few times, and then, thinking of Zhou Yilian, her eyes involuntarily reddened.
Looking down, she said, "You need to supplement your nutrition while exercising."
"Okay, okay." Chen Zhou smiled and said, "You're right, then I'll eat properly from now on."
"Oh no, I should say we should eat well after lunch!"
His tone was cheerful, and he nodded briefly, almost unable to contain his suppressed emotions.
She coughed and said, "You should go back now, I need to do my test."
He was advised to withdraw, but when he heard her say she was writing a test paper, Chen Zhoujing didn't bother her anymore. He stood up and walked behind her.
Jian Sheng breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back.
The stool was placed next to his desk, and when you leaned on it, there was a loud thud.
Before she could turn around, she heard Chen Zhoujing's panicked voice.
"Holy crap."
Jian Sheng turned her head and saw him squatting on the ground, holding a thermos cup that she had long forgotten.
"Oh, I forgot." She leaned closer. "It fell down."
Did I just crash into it?
"No," he denied. "I just didn't hold it properly."
After saying that, Chen Zhoujing stood up and handed her the water glass: "Pour it for me next time, okay?"
"Okay, sure." Jian Sheng took the water glass with both hands and placed it on the upper left corner of the table. The next second, he continued, "And one more thing!"
Jian Sheng turned his head and said, "Hmm?"
"Don't get angry with me because of others!" He said, then sat back down in his seat.
Jian Sheng blinked, silently said "oh" to himself, and turned around.
She didn't want to be angry with him because of others, and she felt that she wouldn't be angry with him because of anyone.
But the unease and melancholy in her chest made her realize that she truly couldn't remain emotionally stable while watching him alone with someone else.
Being concerned about this thing will unconsciously lead her to construct a series of unfounded assumptions.
On Thursday afternoon, during activity class, Jian Sheng, carrying her test paper, and Lin You walked across the corridor from the bridge to the building opposite.
After going downstairs, the two were discussing the topic when their voices reached her ears from around the corner of the stairs.
Upon hearing Chen Zhou's surprise, she slowed her pace.
Lin You also stopped talking and listened quietly to the sounds coming from the other side of the door.
"Holy crap, that stunningly beautiful new transfer student knows Chen Zhoujing!"
"Who is Chen Zhoujing? That name sounds familiar."
"The one who almost killed someone with a stool before, and who even had to go on stage to apologize, was ranked first in the second year of high school."
"I remember now. I heard he was pursuing another girl in his class. He was pretty crazy about her, bringing her breakfast every day. How come he's now dating a new classmate?"
"Someone from Class 7 of Grade 11 said that they were classmates in junior high school, but later separated, and they never expected to transfer here."
"Isn't that unfair to the other girl?"
"How can someone like him, who hangs out with Yu Chao, that womanizer and fickle person, be a good person?"
"Yu Chao? The one you talked to before? Aren't they sworn enemies?"
"They only dated for a month. They weren't at all like oil and water; they had no deep-seated hatred for each other, just occasional bickering. But after he got together with Gu Zhenyi last semester, I heard he developed a crush on the girl Chen Zhoujing liked and even stalked her. As a result, Chen Zhoujing beat him up, but then..."
As they turned the corner, the person speaking bumped into Jian Sheng, and the sound abruptly stopped.
"What are you doing? Why did you stop talking?" The person next to her pulled her.
The girl, with her hair down, bangs, three earrings, and a lip piercing, coughed when she saw Jian Sheng. Her face remained expressionless, and she stayed for less than half a minute before pulling the person next to her away.
After Lin You and the others left, he looked at Jian Sheng's expression: "They..."
"Let's go." Jian interrupted her, took her arm, and continued turning the corner.
The further she turned the corner, the heavier her steps became.
Upon seeing that familiar figure, a pang of sadness gripped her heart, causing her body to stiffen.
She raised her gaze and looked towards the water dispenser in the center of the corridor outside the building one floor above.
Chen Zhoujing was leaning against the wall, half of his body turned away from this side, his hands in his pockets, and his waist slightly bent.
Standing next to him was a girl, turned to the side, her hair casually tied in a low ponytail with a hair tie, her long hair reaching her waist, her skull was superior, her temperament was good, and every move she made exuded the elegance of a dancer.
The two chatted about something, and the girl covered her mouth with her hand and laughed. As she left, she patted Chen Zhoujing on the shoulder, then walked backwards, waving and laughing.
Jian Shengmu stood there, looking at her smiling face, and slowly lowered his eyes.
After the person left, Chen Zhou frowned, but once the chill in his body subsided, he relaxed his brow and slowly took a wet wipe out of his pocket.
He casually wiped his hands and then wiped his shoulders a few times.
After doing all that, he wrapped the wet wipe in a tissue, stuffed it back into his pocket, and just as he turned around, his gaze froze.
A look of panic flashed in his eyes. Just as he was about to take a step, Jian Sheng, who was sitting opposite him with his head down, turned around and went upstairs.
"Damn it..." Chen Zhou gasped and strode forward.
As he reached the stairwell, Lin You grabbed him with a strong hand, squeezing his arm until it turned red.
"What are you doing?" he asked, his voice suppressed, his chest filled with anger and frustration.
Lin You looked up, her expression cold: "Do you think you're so great?"
"Trying to seduce one woman after another to show off your charm, is that it?"
Chen Zhou pulled his hand back in surprise, his voice turning cold: "Who have I offended?"
He lowered his eyes slightly, his tone distant: "Tell me about it?"
"Hmm? Can't say?" Receiving no response, he smiled slightly, but his eyes held no mirth. "Your good friend, He Man?"
"A new transfer student?"
"Or is it Jian Sheng who considers you her best friend?"
Lin You's eyelashes trembled slightly.
He added, "Or perhaps those people who rush up to give me things, sit in my seat without permission, or slip me notes?"
"Apart from Jian Sheng, everyone else is irrelevant to me."
"It's your business if you have feelings..."
Chen Zhou glanced away and walked behind her, saying, "You've already stopped me once, so let's just let it go this time."
Lin You didn't say anything. After he left, she turned around and looked up at his afterimage as he ran upstairs.
She was indeed moved by what he said, but she just didn't want to see Jian Sheng upset because of him.
When Chen Zhoujing returned to the classroom, he didn't see Jian Sheng. He waited at his seat for a few minutes, but still didn't see him.
He stood up, walked towards the back door, and circled the corridor several times.
He didn't see the person, but a lot of rumors slipped into his ears.
He leaned restlessly against the railing by the door, lost in thought.
When He Shang returned, he saw that he had a deadpan expression. He threw the basketball into the classroom and walked towards him.
"What are you thinking about?" He put his arm around his shoulder and squinted at him.
"Did you have a fight with Jian Sheng?"
His words hit the nail on the head, and Chen Zhou glanced at him sideways in surprise: "Who said that? No one did."
"Oh." He Shang clicked his tongue. "Do you know what one of your characteristics is?"
Chen Zhoujing didn't speak, but He Shang answered his own question: "When he's irritable, there's a very obvious characteristic: he doesn't talk and likes to frown and think."
“But you don’t do this often. I’ve only seen you like this a few times, and it’s always because of her.” He was a little exasperated. “So what if you just say you like her?”
"You said that if things work out, there won't be any more rumors about a 'white moonlight' or an ex-girlfriend."
"Tsk, are you sick? There was never any!" Chen Zhoujing took two steps to the side.
He Shang's hand missed its mark, and he nearly fell to the ground. He gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it..."
"I don't know what you people who know the truth but don't say it are thinking. You either keep it to yourself and guess, or you're secretly in love but refuse to admit it."
Chen Zhoujing was struck by his reasoning. He said calmly, "Tell Xu Xiaxia that you like her first, then talk to me."
He didn't need to explain anything further after he finished speaking, because He Shang automatically fell silent.
The two leaned against the railing, remaining silent for a long time.
It wasn't until some students were carrying their packed books and preparing to go back that Chen Zhoujing straightened up. Just as he was about to enter the classroom, he saw Jian Sheng walking over from the side.
He stepped forward and grabbed her arm: "You..."
"Let go," she said in a hoarse voice.
Chen Zhou was startled and let go of her hand. Without saying a word, he followed her into the classroom.
After packing his schoolbag, he walked behind her, slowly going downstairs and heading towards the school gate.
After leaving the school gate, Jian Sheng didn't take Chenfu Road, but took another route.
Chen Zhoujing hesitated at the intersection for a moment, but when her figure was about to disappear on the other side of the street, he didn't think too much about it and strode over.
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