Chen Bing remained silent, simply waiting for Ma Shaolong to continue his story.
"I...I actually like Zhang Xinyu!" To show his sincerity, and also to free himself, Ma Shaolong mustered his courage and revealed his deepest secret. This was something he had kept hidden in his heart for a long time, and this was the first time he had spoken of it.
As for why he told Chen Bing, Ma Shaolong himself didn't know either.
He wasn't very familiar with the other person, and Shang Yunmiao was with him. Perhaps seeing that Chen Bing had a girlfriend made him feel that the other person's opinion was worth considering, or perhaps deep down he hoped that Shang Yunmiao would convey this secret to Zhang Xinyu, thus freeing him from this predicament. In any case, he revealed it.
However, when he turned to look at Chen Bing's shocked, surprised, confused, and bewildered eyes, all he received in response was a bland nod, followed by a bland utterance from the other party.
"Hmm, and then what?"
Not only Chen Bing, but even Shang Yunmiao behind him had a very calm expression.
"You? Aren't you surprised?"
After exchanging a glance with Shang Yunmiao, Chen Bing calmly stated, "I noticed it a long time ago. Hmm... that you're interested in her."
Now it was Ma Shaolong's turn to be shocked, surprised, confused, and bewildered. But he quickly composed himself and continued telling Chen Bing, "Actually, my feelings for her started on the first day of school..."
Later, during military training, her earnest and beautiful face captivated me... Later still, we went on stage together. You might not understand, but she was incredibly considerate back then. She not only fed me my medicine but also encouraged me. I was truly...
Then came the class committee election. I was initially quite upset about not getting the class monitor position, but when I heard that Zhang Xinyu was going to be the class monitor, especially after hearing it from you, Bing-ge… I've been working really hard ever since, always thinking about becoming her boyfriend. I often…
But now it's all over, haha..."
The long and tedious love story was finally over. After listening to Ma Shaolong's inner journey, Chen Bing felt that it was just a clown's self-entertainment, and the whole thing was as long and smelly as a lazy woman's foot binding cloth.
There are tons of Tom Sawyer adventure stories like this online, and they're not really funny at all.
However, these were just Chen Bing's personal thoughts. As for Shang Yunmiao, as innocent as she was, she was quite moved after hearing Ma Shaolong's love story. Her small, cute nose twitched behind Chen Bing, sounding rather pitiful.
"Bing-ge, I want to give up. Maybe you don't understand, but having a crush on someone is really too painful. Anyway, my image in Zhang Xinyu's eyes and in the eyes of the whole class is ruined, so I might as well just give up."
Unrequited love...
Shang Yunmiao glanced at Chen Bing's profile and, after sorting through Chen Bing's various thoughts, suddenly felt that Ma Shaolong's words, "It's really too painful to have a crush on someone," made a lot of sense.
However, Chen Bing didn't feel that way at all. As mentioned above, he only thought Ma Shaolong was a complete clown, overly concerned about his image in other people's eyes. But, since the other party had spoken to him from the bottom of his heart, as a kind person, it was Chen Bing's duty to enlighten him.
After thinking for a moment, Chen Bing comforted Ma Shaolong, saying, "Actually... life isn't a TV drama, and none of us are the main characters."
Ma Shaolong raised his sorrowful head and looked at Master Chen with confusion, waiting for the other party to continue to enlighten him.
"Instead of worrying about what others think, focus on your own growth and progress. Dante once said, 'Go your own way and let others talk.' In reality, not many people care about you; the only one who truly cares is yourself. If you feel hopeless, then you really are hopeless."
After saying this, Chen Bing took Shang Yunmiao's hand and left. Many principles become less useful the more they are explained; for Ma Shaolong, a middle school boy in his rebellious phase, these vaguely understood words only fueled his inexplicable excitement.
Only when time is gradually extended, and he independently and bit by bit fills in the blanks to understand what he wants to know, will the correct truth take root in his heart and become unshakable.
So, that can be considered the cost of listening to Ma Shaolong's story.
After Chen Bing and the other person left, Ma Shaolong stood there staring blankly in the direction they had gone.
His mind was churning with thoughts, but ultimately, these thoughts transformed into motivation to move forward. After giving himself a pep talk, Ma Shaolong ended his first time skipping class and, like a warrior, resolutely walked towards the classroom.
Leaving aside what Ma Shaolong was thinking tonight and what changes he made, let's talk about Chen Bing and her companion, who, having just finished listening to Tom's Adventures, were now enjoying the cool evening breeze and riding through the tranquil summer night...
Although I really wanted to say that, Baishi Street was still quite lively before nine o'clock. Today, there must have been some kind of event. Not only was People's Park full of stalls, but the streets on both sides were also packed with all kinds of vendors. People were coming and going, shoulder to shoulder, and it looked extremely lively.
Therefore, this night in mid-September was not only an autumn night, but also noisy and anything but peaceful.
Just then, Chen Bing and his companion passed by, and the autumn breeze carried the aroma of grilled squid into their nostrils.
Upon smelling the aroma, Shang Yunmiao's mouth watered almost instantly. It was nearly three hours since lunchtime, so it was normal to be hungry.
However, Shang Yunmiao was a well-behaved child, and the principle that one shouldn't eat street food so late at night was ingrained in her mind like a steel engraving. So, the girl suppressed her urge to eat, only swallowing a little saliva, without saying a word.
But, whether he heard her swallowing or Chen Bing himself was craving something, he stopped his electric scooter, turned around and looked at Shang Yunmiao behind him, asking, "Do you want grilled squid or lamb skewers?"
"I... I didn't say I wanted to eat."
"But I could hear you swallowing."
Shang Yunmiao: ∑( 口||
"Oh, you actually swallowed your saliva?" Chen Bing tilted his head and looked at Shang Yunmiao with a mischievous smile.
The little girl realized she had been tricked by Chen Bing, and immediately blushed and stopped talking.
"So, do you want to eat or not?" Chen Bing's face got even closer to hers, and Shang Yunmiao's face became even redder.
This rosy complexion was like a red lantern in a night market, gently swaying in the breeze, reflecting on the girl's cheeks under the white light.
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