Open your heart
She carefully approached the lawn, her gaze falling on his drawing paper, and softly exclaimed, "It's so well drawn."
Xu Sheng didn't even look up, his tone indifferent: "You're blocking my way."
She moved away shyly, but couldn't help but strike up a conversation with him: "You come here to paint every day?"
Xu Sheng remained silent, his brush carefully sketching on the paper, so focused that it seemed as if the only thing in the world he saw was the color before him.
She didn't want to disturb such a beautiful scene, so she stood aside and admired the beautiful painting in front of her.
She followed closely behind him until he finished painting and packed up his art supplies.
Xu Sheng tried to go around her, but Li Mengyao kept blocking his way, preventing him from leaving. He frowned and asked impatiently, "What exactly do you want?"
Li Mengyao didn't mince words and went straight to the point: "I've taken a liking to you and want you to be my boyfriend."
"I don't like you!" He wanted to leave.
Unexpectedly, Li Mengyao grabbed his wrist, preventing him from leaving, and her confident smile disgusted him.
After that, Xu Sheng never set foot in this place again.
But no matter where he went, Li Mengyao could always find him with pinpoint accuracy.
At the supermarket entrance, in the school building corridor, on the edge of the playground... she is like an inescapable shadow.
He had just finished shopping at the supermarket when she stopped him as soon as he came out: "Hi, Xu Sheng."
You're so annoying!
"I know."
Xu Sheng really didn't want to see her or talk to her.
"What are you pretending to be innocent for?"
He stopped abruptly: "What do you mean?"
She circled him halfway around and laughed, "I've investigated you thoroughly. You either stay with me, or..."
She didn't say the rest, but he already understood everything.
Helpless, he said, "I can agree to that, but you'd better watch your mouth!"
"I also have a requirement: you have to do what a boyfriend should do, and you have to have a real sense of being a couple."
"You're taking food and money at the same time, don't go too far."
"Then I'll have to..."
Xu Sheng said urgently, "No... but don't make unreasonable demands."
"That depends on your performance."
Li Mengyao thought of something fun, so she had someone spread rumors in Class 8 that Xu Sheng was pursuing her.
She felt that this was more exciting.
Xu Sheng's thoughts returned, and he silently ate his grilled fish.
Halfway through the meal, Qi Xu picked up a piece of paper from the table and went to the restroom. When he came back, he paid the bill directly.
Back at our seats, we chatted for a few minutes before heading home.
As Hao Nan was about to pay the bill, Qi Xu said, "I've already paid."
"What bill are you paying?" Hao Nan questioned her.
"I also want to thank you for the medical expenses and for taking care of me today," Qi Xu said.
Hao Nan's face darkened: "I'm treating you to dinner, not the other way around. How much is it? I'll pay you."
"No need," Qi Xu refused outright.
Qi Xu insisted on not accepting, so he added her as a friend in the class group and sent her 100 yuan.
The two were walking home side by side when Hao Nan saw his phone. It was already 7 p.m. He was startled when a car sped up and a child in the back seat picked up a water gun and started spraying water outside.
Qi Xu noticed the water gun and quickly pulled him over, thus avoiding the water being shot out by the gun.
Don't space out, or you'll have bad luck.
It was only after she reminded me that I suddenly realized I always liked to daydream, and then all sorts of bad luck would come my way.
He just knew that his unlucky number was seven, so he insisted on blaming everything on the number seven.
Just like last time when I was about to be hit by a basketball, it was only after school had just ended, at least 5:30, and had nothing to do with the number seven.
There are many other experiences, and upon closer reflection, it becomes clear that not all the unfortunate events occurred in relation to the number 7.
It turns out that seven wasn't my unlucky number, but rather the lucky number that solved the mystery for me.
She still hadn't claimed the 100 yuan when she got home.
I sent her another message asking her to collect the money, but she still didn't.
He opened Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), noticed his favorite author, and drew another cartoon character.
Scrolling through the comments, I saw some haters spewing nonsense again.
They claim this wasn't drawn by her, that she must have just stuck a piece of paper on her phone and drawn it, thus deceiving her fans.
Because she used to draw on transparent paper, people became suspicious of her.
Another time, someone dug up a photo of her with a chubby face, and she was attacked for her appearance.
She read a novel and suddenly had the idea to draw an original anime heroine. She didn't post it on Xiaohongshu. When she posted it again, it was labeled as her original work.
The attack by that comic book fan was exactly the same as the one that was recently popular.
Finally, she deleted the post, and her number of followers plummeted.
Hao Nan was furious when he saw these haters cursing his idol, so he quickly responded by replying to them in the comments section.
Qi Xu was figuring out how to play Peace Elite, but he really didn't know how. He played a game and was killed before he even saw anyone.
I quit the game and noticed the message on Xiaohongshu. When I clicked on it, I saw that someone was helping me fight back against those haters.
She was sincerely grateful to this person and sent him a private message saying thank you.
She never cared about the trolls online. In her eyes, these people were just people who were overwhelmed by pressure in real life and came online to attack various people to vent their anger.
In real life, not many people can curse at others casually. Even if they can, it's usually with people they know well, and they certainly wouldn't expose themselves to outsiders.
In her eyes, such a person is completely incompetent, someone who can't stand others being better or doing better than her, someone with extreme jealousy but no ability.
But seeing someone defend me, I was quite touched.
When he saw someone reply to him, he thought it was another hater and was about to curse her when he realized it was his idol.
He sat up excitedly, his smile widening, and replied, "You're welcome," adding, "Idol, I think you can definitely become a great cartoonist."
I secretly prayed that I could become a cartoonist.
He got out of bed, took out his drawing board, pen and paper, and started drawing an anime character.
After struggling for more than ten minutes, he thought he had drawn it quite well, but when he picked it up and looked at it, even he began to dislike it.
His lips twitched slightly. What was this thing? It was a strange creature. He wanted to throw the painting away, but it was the result of his hard work.
Finally, he wrote the three characters "四不相" (four unlikes) on the painting.
He took out his drawing paper again and began to draw without stopping.
I stayed up until after six in the morning and finally finished a pretty good drawing. The dark circles under my eyes were clearly visible.
Sleepiness quickly overwhelmed him, and he almost collapsed onto the bed, falling into a dreamless sleep the next second.
The next day in class, the teacher noticed that Hao Nan was absent and asked the class monitor, Wan Xiaoyi, "Did anyone ask for leave?"
Wan Xiaoyi shook her head: "No."
“The students in the last row are not here. Go and tell your homeroom teacher.”
Wan Xiaoyi went to the office to report the situation in the classroom to the teacher.
The homeroom teacher immediately called Hao Nan's parents to inquire about the reason.
"Teacher Qi, what's the matter?" Hao Nan's mother's voice came from the other end of the phone.
Is Hao Nan sick? Why didn't he come to school today?
"Let me ask."
Hao Nan's mother hung up the phone and called Hao Nan, asking, "Why didn't you go to class again today?"
Hao Nancai realized he still had class, so he quickly got up to wash and get ready, saying, "Mom, I'll be right there."
"Has your dad been out gallivanting around again? Why didn't he wake you up this late?"
Hao Nan said urgently, "I'll hang up now, we'll talk when I get back tonight."
He returned to his room and packed his work from the previous night into his schoolbag.
Qi Xu's fever hasn't completely subsided. She was scolded last night and didn't sleep well all night. She was sleepy throughout the entire class.
Just as she was about to pick up her water glass to get a drink from the water room, she bumped right into Hao Nan.
The impact immediately snapped Qi Xu back to her senses. She rubbed her forehead and asked, "Why are you in such a panic?"
"Sorry." He quickly returned to his seat, tidied up his things, and then lay down on the table to catch up on sleep.
After sleeping for a while, he woke up, picked up his painting, and walked towards Qi Xu.
He spread his painting out in front of the two of them and proudly said, "How about it? Aren't you very talented?"
Looking at his painting, Wan Xiaoyi couldn't help but burst into laughter: "What did you paint?"
Hao Nan glared at Wan Xiaoyi, took his painting, and complained, "You can't even paint, what do you know? You don't even have an eye for beauty."
"I'm sorry, your painting is really ugly, I just can't appreciate it."
Hao Nan placed the painting on Qi Xu's table, like a pet waiting for its owner's praise.
Qi Xu looked closely at his painting and bluntly criticized it, "So ugly."
Hearing Qi Xu say that his painting was ugly, he felt extremely wronged, his face fell, and he silently took back his painting.
Seeing his aggrieved look, Qi Xu wondered if she had gone too far. She quickly snatched the drawing from him and said, "Hey, wait a minute, the shape is there, but the proportions and lines are not quite right."
"Really?" His eyes lit up again.
Qi Xu focused intently on making the revisions, responding softly. Her nimble hands held the pencil, erasing and revising, and the character's spirit was revealed through her skillful touch.
Hao Nan's gaze was completely drawn to Qi Xu, and all his attention was focused on the "painting" that was gradually coming to life in his hands and under his brush.
"Alright." Qi Xu put down his pen, let out a soft sigh of relief, and handed the revised drawing to Hao Nan: "Take a look, doesn't it look much better?"
Although the figures on the painting were still the same characters, after Qi Xu's rewriting, the proportions were more harmonious, the lines were smoother, and the expressions were much more vivid. He gently rolled up the painting and said, "Qi Xu?"
"Is there anything else?"
"I want to be as good at drawing as you."
"No problem, I believe you can do it."
"What I mean is, I want you to teach me to draw."
Qi Xu smiled and said, "I draw well, but that doesn't mean I can teach you."
Hao Nan insisted, "I think you're absolutely capable."
She wanted to refuse: "Why don't you enroll in a formal art class? The teachers there will be more professional."
The two of them were pulling and tugging at each other, and Wan Xiaoyi couldn't stand it anymore. She said to Qi Xu, "Just accept him. Consider it as finding a companion to pass the time."
Qi Xu reluctantly accepted him, saying, "Alright then."
Hearing that Qi Xu had agreed to teach him, he happily took off and returned to his seat.
However, Qi Xu encountered obstacles in his planned path.
In the office, the homeroom teacher looked at the list of clubs and said to Qi Xu with some difficulty, "Qi Xu, the art club is too popular this year, and the quota is full. How about we switch to another club? For example, the literature club or the photography club?"
Qi Xu shook his head and said, "Teacher, I can only draw, I don't have any other special skills."
The teacher rubbed his temples, carefully flipped through the list again, and after a long while, he cautiously asked, "Are you planning to take the art college entrance exam route?"
"What are my thoughts?"
The homeroom teacher said earnestly, "With your current academic performance, you can get into a very good university even without taking the art exam."
"Does the art exam require joining a club?" Qi Xu sensed the underlying meaning and asked directly.
"Not exactly, it's just that in the club, there are dedicated instructors, and the resources are more convenient than figuring things out on your own." The homeroom teacher's words were loaded with meaning.
Qi Xu understood. The so-called resources were actually that clubs could more easily obtain information and recommendation opportunities for competitions both inside and outside the school, and could even access some resources outside the school.
She paused for a moment. The teacher's hesitation suggested that some students had already paid and been pre-selected: "If I can't get into the art club, can I sit in on one class?"
"Okay." The teacher breathed a sigh of relief: "Why don't you attend one or two classes in each club and find one that suits you?"
Qi Xu nodded and walked out.
Actually, she wasn't very interested in joining the club itself; she just hoped to get free guidance from professional teachers and improve her drawing skills. Now it seems that this path is no longer viable.
Then there's only one way: find an opportunity to go to the company for training.
Not long after he stepped out of the office, Hao Nan, who was waiting in the corridor, came up to him and asked, "How did it go? Did you get into the art club?"
Qi Xu shook his head: "The teacher said that the art club is full and I should choose another one."
Do you really like the art club?
Qi Xu shook his head and said, "I didn't think that way, it's just that it's the best choice for me right now."
Hao Nan was about to ask Xu Sheng for help when Qi Xu stopped him and said, "It's okay if you didn't go in. Don't you also want to learn painting? If you're free this weekend, come with me to the library and brush up on your basics."
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