Question 0016
Chang Ching University covers an area of more than 460 hectares. Shen Yuxiu's residence is near the east gate of the school, while Song Ning's dormitory is near the south gate. It takes about 15 minutes to drive from the east gate to the dormitory.
Song Ning changed into Shen Yuxiu's clothes and went to the garage with Shen Yuxiu.
A white Audi A6 and a bicycle were parked in the garage. Shen Yuxiu usually rode his bicycle to school, but since his bicycle didn't have a back seat, it was inconvenient to carry someone, so he had to drive Song Ning back.
Song Ning, with her hair tied in a high ponytail, leaned casually against the corner between the car seat and the window. She wore a men's shirt and suit shorts in a cool and stylish way, with a touch of lazy comfort.
Her gaze fell on Shen Yuxiu's clean and upright profile, her eyes probing, as if there was something she couldn't understand.
Shen Yuxiu: "I'll send your clothes over to you after they're dry-cleaned."
Although it wasn't rush hour, there were still quite a few students riding bikes on the road. The constant stopping and starting of the cars was inexplicably irritating, and Song Ning responded absentmindedly.
Shen Yuxiu stepped on the brakes and stopped behind an electric scooter. His gaze swept over Song Ning before returning to his own, the tips of his ears turning slightly red: "Stop looking."
From the moment she got into the car, Song Ning's gaze never left Shen Yuxiu, and the probing look in her eyes intensified.
He didn't react when he saw her chest, but his ears turned red after she looked at him a few times. Did he have inappropriate thoughts about her or not?
“Shen Yuxiu,” Song Ning called to him.
Shen Yuxiu shifted gears and drove, letting out a soft "hmm," the taillights rising gently—a subtle teasing that he himself didn't even notice.
"Do you like men?" Song Ning's voice was neither loud nor soft, but it contained seven parts teasing, two parts doubt, and one part worry about hearing a confirmation.
Shen Yuxiu's accelerator seemed to have gone out of control; if he hadn't braked in time, it would probably be a car accident scene by now.
Song Ning was thrown out, then pulled back by the seatbelt. She sat up abruptly, her expression changing slightly, as if she was terrified: "Why are you reacting so strongly? You're not really going to..."
"No, I like the opposite sex." Shen Yuxiu released the steering wheel with his right hand and ruffled the hair on her forehead that he had combed neatly that morning, as if trying to dispel the random thoughts in her mind. "Someone in front of me suddenly stopped, so I braked suddenly."
Shen Yuxiu withdrew his hand and pointed his chin at an electric scooter in front of them. The person on the scooter was turning around and waving apologetically at them.
"What?! That scared me to death!" Song Ning relaxed, leaning back lazily, her brows furrowed.
Is it because her body isn't attractive? They're not even siblings, so why isn't she reacting at all? She saw her two years ago, and she wasn't young either. If she had reacted, she should have been able to tell.
Could it be—
no?
Song Ning continued to stare at Shen Yuxiu openly, from top to bottom, from his dignified suit and vest to his trousers, wanting to test whether she or he was inadequate.
Two years ago, his lips, his hands, and the scent and heat of his touch remained vividly in her memory, unforgettable.
If she hadn't been so tactless as to call him "brother," would things be different now?
"What do you want for breakfast? I'll go buy it." Shen Yuxiu parked the car on the side of the road and turned on the hazard lights.
Song Ning looked around and realized that they had arrived at the Manyuan Canteen.
Cannibalism.
"You can decide which one to buy."
There are two answers: one in my heart and one out loud.
Shen Yuxiu glanced at Song Ning, a tender smile in his eyes. This glance inexplicably made Song Ning's heart flutter. She turned to the south playground, where people were running.
I wonder if he still ran here in the mornings when he was in college.
That was a habit he developed after they first sneaked out at night. He said he was afraid he wouldn't be able to outrun her in the future, so he needed to train hard.
"Wait for me in the car."
Shen Yuxiu understands Song Ning very well, just as she understands him, so he must have been aware of her thoughts just now, which is why he showed that smile as if watching a naughty child.
Song Ning watched as Shen Yuxiu unbuckled his seatbelt and entered the restaurant, wondering if there was any other meaning behind his smile.
The ringing of her cell phone interrupted her thoughts.
It is Shen Xiaoyue.
"Ningning, are you awake?" Shen Xiaoyue was stern and unsmiling in front of outsiders, but he always spoke softly and gently to Song Ning, even more so than to her own father.
"I'm awake, and I was just about to have breakfast."
"Yes, you should eat a good breakfast. Health is the foundation of everything, so don't let yourself get sick from starving," Shen Xiaoyue said. "Are you having trouble adjusting to the new semester? Are you getting along well with your roommates?"
"Everything is fine."
"Haha." Shen Xiaoyue's laughter seemed to overflow from his chest, very hearty: "That's good. If you need anything, just tell Dad, and I'll have Uncle Zhang send it to you."
"I don't need it. The school can buy it if I need it. Don't worry, my brother is here too. He will take good care of me." Song Ning looked towards the restaurant entrance.
After buying breakfast, Shen Yuxiu came out. With his elegant demeanor and tall stature, he was someone who could be recognized at a glance in a crowd.
“With your brother here, your mother and I feel much more at ease. Dad will be back on Thursday, and on Saturday you and your brother will come to my place for dinner. I will cook some authentic hometown dishes for you myself.”
Song Ning didn't agree immediately. It wasn't until Shen Yuxiu opened the door and got into the car that she took out her phone and turned on the speakerphone: "Dad asked if you're going to his place for dinner on Saturday."
Shen Yuxiu glanced at the contact name on his phone: "Dad".
"Yuxiu, are you with Ningning? I was wondering why she got up so early."
"You don't remember that I got up at 5 a.m. every day to memorize my lessons in my junior and senior years of high school, but you remember the old almanacs very clearly," Song Ning retorted.
"Keep up the positive and enterprising spirit you had in high school and don't back down. Getting into a good university is just a small step into society. You have a long life ahead of you, with many more challenges and tests to come. Dad hopes you can be resilient, courageous, and persevering through all difficulties."
Having been a leader for so long, lecturing has become ingrained in his bones. Song Ning pretended not to hear, and Shen Yuxiu sighed softly, then smiled helplessly and replied, "I know, Dad. I'll take her over for dinner on Saturday."
"You silly girl, are you complaining that your dad talks too much again? Fine, fine, I won't say anything more. But, I'm really proud of you for getting into Changqing University."
Shen Xiaoyue hesitated, as if he wanted to say something more, but had some concerns. In the end, he didn't say it and only said, "Alright, I won't keep you from eating. See you on Saturday."
"See you on Saturday." Song Ning hung up the phone quickly, knowing exactly what he wanted to say: that her biological parents would be proud of her and that he hadn't let her parents down. But perhaps he didn't say it for fear of hurting her feelings.
In fact, Song Ning had already accepted the facts and no longer felt anything.
Song Ning took the breakfast that Shen Yuxiu handed her; it was still warm. She opened it and ate it as if nothing had happened.
When they arrived at the dormitory building, Shen Yuxiu had already finished his breakfast, but Song Ning hadn't. She sat in the car, chewing slowly, and asked, "Do you have classes this morning?"
"Hmm, it's alright, there's still plenty of time." Shen Yuxiu had switched from a sports watch to a mechanical watch. His fair and clean hands rested on the steering wheel, the bones on the back of his hands clearly visible, making his hands appear long and strong.
As Song Ning watched more and more people emerge from the dormitory building, and recalling Shen Xiaoyue's words from earlier, she inexplicably felt a sense of righteous indignation mixed with guilt.
She didn't have pure motives for applying to this school in the first place, so what's wrong with deliberately wasting a little time? What's there to be ashamed of?
Song Ning swallowed the last bite of breakfast, knowing there was no excuse to delay any longer. She took two tissues, wiped her mouth, and said in an extremely "elegant" manner: "I'm leaving."
"Okay," Shen Yuxiu replied lightly.
Song Ning got out of the car, and after taking only two steps, she turned back and knocked on the car window.
The car window rolled down, and Song Ning, pressing down on the edge of the window, smiled radiantly and arrogantly: "Why aren't you wearing your glasses today?"
Shen Yuxiu pushed up his high, straight nose, seemed lost in thought, and replied, "I forgot."
"Take it with you when you get back, otherwise it will attract too much attention." Although it will still attract attention even if you take it with you.
Shen Yuxiu nodded, and after Song Ning got up, he shielded himself behind the closed car window.
Song Ning stood by the car window, her face beaming with a bright smile and her eyes sparkling.
So it turns out, it wasn't that I really didn't feel anything.
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