The sunlight in the student council office slanted across the desk, illuminating Yu Jiuyuan's open leave slip.
She held the pen, the nib hovering over the "reason for leave" section, hesitant to write it down.
Rong Shenghan walked in carrying freshly brewed tea. Seeing her like this, he raised an eyebrow: "Even the student council president is skipping work?"
"Hmm." Yu Jiuyuan looked up at him, a sly glint in her eyes. "I'd like to ask for two days off to take care of some personal matters."
"What personal matter?" Rong Shenghan placed the teacup beside her, his gaze falling on the blank leave slip, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger.
"It's a secret." Yu Jiuyuan closed her pen and pushed the leave slip to him. "Can the vice president sign it for me? You can handle it anyway."
Her tone was as natural as if she were just saying the weather was nice today, completely disregarding the "absenteeism" as a serious matter.
Rong Shenghan picked up the leave slip, his fingertips tracing her delicate handwriting, and suddenly chuckled: "I can sign it for you, but... you have to tell me what you're going to do."
“I told you it was a secret.” Yu Jiuyuan reached out to grab it, but he held her wrist.
His palm was warm, and his pressure was just right, enough to immobilize her.
"Not going to talk?" Rong Shenghan leaned closer, his nose almost touching her forehead. "Then I won't sign it for you."
A warm breath brushed against his cheek, carrying his usual ebony scent.
Yu Jiuyuan looked at the teasing smile in his eyes, then suddenly tiptoed and gave him a quick peck on the corner of his lips: "I'm not telling you."
The kiss was light and quick, like a feather brushing against the tip of my heart.
Rong Shenghan paused, and the grip on her wrist loosened unconsciously.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Yu Jiuyuan pulled her hand back, grabbed the leave slip, and ran out the door, her voice as clear as a wind chime: "Sign it and put it on your desk!"
Watching her light and nimble figure disappear into the distance, Rong Shenghan looked down at the corner of his lips and smiled helplessly.
This little fox always finds a way to get him to compromise.
Yu Jiuyuan didn't return to her villa, but instead went to that secluded handicraft workshop in the city center.
Pushing open the carved wooden door, a rich aroma of wood wafted out, and the workshop owner greeted her with a smile: "Miss Yu, all the materials you requested are ready."
The workbench was spotless, with several piles of different pieces of wood on it.
There's rosewood, perfect for making fountain pens; beechwood, perfect for making decorative pieces; and a piece of gleaming silver metal, a special alloy that Lin Yanran mentioned last time, perfect for making wristbands.
She took off her coat, rolled up her sleeves, picked up a carving knife, and began to polish the piece of sandalwood.
Xie Zhecheng gave her a fountain pen, so she wanted to reciprocate by making one herself, with the nib polished exceptionally smooth to suit his personality.
The fluorescent bacteria of Yuanxu require a special petri dish holder, and a small base made of beech wood is just right, which can also be engraved with his initials.
Lin Yanran likes playing basketball. If you make a wristband out of that alloy and secretly engrave the words "Don't be stubborn" on it, he would probably accept it, albeit awkwardly and stubbornly.
As for Rong Shenghan... Yu Jiuyuan picked up a piece of dark brown wood and ran her fingertips along its delicate texture.
He has everything he needs; perhaps a simple bookmark would suffice, engraved with the words "I've heard so much about you" he said when they first met.
Sunlight streamed through the workshop's glass windows, casting a soft glow on her focused profile.
The sound of the carving knife cutting through the wood was crisp and melodious, like weaving a secret known only to her.
She was immersed in the process of making the gift by hand, temporarily forgetting the system task and those complicated calculations, only feeling a sense of comfort and warmth from the temperature of her fingertips and the grain of the wood.
After some time, my phone suddenly vibrated.
It was a message from Xie Zhecheng: "There's a detail in the club activity plan that needs confirmation. Are you in the office?"
Yu Jiuyuan wiped the sawdust from her hands and replied, "I took the day off today; I'm out. What details? I'll take a look for you."
Xie Zhecheng quickly sent a photo of the plan, along with a voice message, his tone as calm as ever: "Is it appropriate to arrange the guest seating here in alphabetical order by surname?"
“Not good.” Yu Jiuyuan replied directly via voice message. “Ji Nianqin just transferred here, so she will be listed first in alphabetical order, which may attract unnecessary attention. Move her two places to the back, to separate her from the Lin family’s position.”
She remembered that the Lin family and the Su family were on good terms, and Ji Nianqin's appearance always made her feel that she was inextricably linked to the Su family, so it was better to keep her distance.
Xie Zhecheng replied instantly: 【Understood.】
Just as Yu Jiuyuan was about to continue sanding the wood after putting down her phone, she received another message from Yuan Xu. It was a photo of fluorescent fungus with the caption: "[It's even brighter now, waiting for you to come back.]"
She smiled and replied with "okay," and suddenly felt that these seemingly ordinary interactions, like scattered beads, had been strung together by the thread of "gifts," forming a delicate balance.
As evening fell, the workshop owner brought over a cup of hot cocoa, smiling and saying, "Miss Yu, the things you've made this afternoon are much more carefully made than what you buy outside."
"Things made by hand are always different."
Yu Jiuyuan blew on the milk foam on the hot cocoa and suddenly remembered the hot cocoa that Rong Shenghan hadn't been able to drink that morning. The corners of her mouth unconsciously curved up.
Just then, the phone rang again; this time it was Lin Yanran.
He mustered up his courage and sent a voice message, his tone curt: "Do you want the photos from the basketball game this afternoon? They said they were pretty good."
Yu Jiuyuan raised an eyebrow and replied, "Send it over and let me see."
Soon, I received a bunch of photos on my phone, mostly of Lin Yanran on the court.
There are images of him shooting, high-fiving with his teammates, and a profile picture of him holding the trophy, secretly glancing at the audience, his eyes brimming with anticipation.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
