Chapter 7
Chapter Summary: You'd better go somewhere secluded to read it!
After class that morning, fearing being questioned by her roommates, Yao Ye made an excuse and hurriedly left the classroom without having lunch with Su Yan.
She even went to a more remote canteen. As she was carrying her tray and looking for a seat with a heavy heart, she found a familiar figure sitting in the corner. It was Hu Xiaojun. Why was he eating here too?
Remembering that Teacher Liu Yue had taken leave today and issued a last-minute notice to change the class time, Yao Ye went over to remind him again.
"Hi, Hu Xiaojun..." she called out to him, and then sat down in front of him.
Hu Xiaojun looked up and saw it was her. For some reason, he widened his eyes in surprise and asked nervously, "Yao Ye, what happened to you...?"
"I was just about to say, why are you eating in such a remote cafeteria?" Yao Ye smiled. "I..."
Before she could even mention the art class, Hu Xiaojun stammered, "Um... Yao Ye, this seat is taken..."
"Huh?" Yao Ye was taken aback. Following Hu Xiaojun's gaze, she saw a slender girl standing in front of the juice shop in the distance, waiting.
Yao Ye immediately understood, and opened her mouth in astonishment, "Ah... my god... Hu Xiaojun, you're amazing! That's Lili, right? You actually managed to win over the class beauty, that's incredible!"
Hu Xiaojun listened, but he didn't feel proud. Instead, he was filled with mixed emotions. He could tell that Yao Ye's tone was full of admiration for him, and she didn't feel sad about his change of goals in the slightest.
Seeing that Yao Ye even gave him a thumbs up and said, "Don't worry, don't worry, I'll leave right after I finish speaking. I just wanted to remind you, did you see the notice? Teacher Liu is taking leave tonight, so don't make a wasted trip."
"I saw the notice." Hu Xiaojun nodded, his expression a mixture of emotions. Seeing Yao Ye about to leave with her tray, he instinctively called out to her, "Yao Ye..."
"Um?"
"I……"
"Oh..." Yao Ye raised an eyebrow, thinking herself clever. "Is it still a secret? Can't we tell anyone?"
“…No,” he shook his head with a wry smile, “I’ve always pursued everyone openly and honestly…including you.”
“…Um…” Yao Ye frowned.
“Don’t tell me you never noticed,” Hu Xiaojun sighed. “I think I’ve made it pretty obvious.”
Yao Ye fell silent.
She was indeed slow to realize things, but she wasn't stupid. Even though she was late to the party, she did have a vague feeling about it, but she never took it to heart. She even breathed a sigh of relief when she heard that Hu Xiaojun had changed his girlfriend.
"I..." she began with an awkward smile, but Hu Xiaojun interrupted her,
"Never say sorry."
"...I didn't mean to apologize."
"...So what do you want to say?"
"I think you should be glad I didn't reciprocate your feelings!" Yao Ye said earnestly. "Otherwise, how could you have had that romance with the class beauty?"
Hu Xiaojun was stunned for a moment, then covered his face, both laughing and crying, "Oh my god... Yao Ye, you..."
You are so cute.
Unfortunately, Hu Xiaojun knew he was no longer in a position to say those words.
“Indeed,” he said, gathering his mixed emotions, “I remember one day you had a fever. You even told the owner of the bubble tea shop, but not me, who was pursuing you. That’s when I started to realize that I probably didn’t have much of a chance.”
"A bubble tea shop?" Yao Ye was taken aback. "You mean, Kazamado?" She remembered; it seemed there really was such a place.
“That’s right. That time I took my sister to her art class, and I went to the bubble tea shop first, wanting to buy you a drink. Then the owner told me that you hadn’t come to work that day. He even said that you told him yourself…” Hu Xiaojun paused here, “How should I put it… at that time, his eyes and tone made me feel that he seemed to mind me a little. And the only reason he minded me could only be because of you.”
“Yes, is that so…” Yao Ye listened blankly.
Hu Xiaojun then observed the subtle expressions on her face, "May I ask if I may presume to ask, about him and you..."
Yao Ye was at a loss and simply did not answer.
“Okay,” Hu Xiaojun shrugged, “Obviously, he might have some feelings for you, even I, a man, can sense it. So if you’re not interested in him either, then…” he said, smiling mischievously, “just reject him as soon as possible.”
…………
Yao Ye left because Lili would be back soon after buying the juice.
However, Hu Xiaojun's words lingered in her mind, refusing to leave. Even that afternoon, when she accompanied her sister and brother-in-law to Tiffany's to choose wedding rings, she remained absent-minded amidst the dazzling array of jewelry.
It was her older sister who poked her dazed head and said, "Yao Ye has grown into a young lady. Shouldn't you buy some jewelry to dress her up?"
Upon hearing this, Yao Ye glanced at the counter and exclaimed in surprise, "These are all too expensive. How can my part-time salary be enough?"
Lu Yufeng, the prospective brother-in-law, chimed in, "I've seen some necklaces and bracelets that would suit a young lady. Yao Ye helped me a lot before the proposal. So, I'll pay for them, and you can choose one!"
"Oh, really?" Yao Ye was overjoyed and looked at her sister expectantly.
The older sister frowned, "No..." but then smiled leisurely, "He's still my own sister, how can I let him steal the spotlight? You pick one you like, and your brother-in-law and I will buy it for you together!"
"Hooray! Then I won't stand on ceremony!" Yao Ye grinned from ear to ear, rubbing her hands together and rolling up her sleeves.
This prompted Yao Qin to quickly say, "Wait a minute, you should be a little more polite!"
Before long, a small, delicate collarbone necklace was placed around Yao Ye's neck. She gazed at herself in the mirror, lost in thought. The sales clerk smiled and asked her...
"Would you like to take it off and put it in the gift box, or will you wear it as is?"
"Ah..." Yao Ye smiled and raised her eyebrows, "I'll just wear it."
At this moment, Yao Ye suddenly felt a strong urge to see him.
………………
That evening, Li Fengjian was busy processing takeout orders when he heard the sound of wind chimes as someone pushed open the door behind him. At first, he simply said, "Welcome."
Until Aunt Sun greeted her, "Oh, Yao Ye, what would you like to drink today?"
He was taken aback, then handed his work to Xiao Dong, wiped his hands, and turned around, only to find himself staring into the eyes of Yao Ye, who was leaning against the bar.
Yao Ye blinked her big eyes, staring intently at him. Her gaze was alluring, like a spring breeze, yet it also held an inexplicable provocation and arrogance, captivating Li Fengjian for a moment, leaving him confused and his ears burning.
He couldn't help but take a half step back. "What would you like to drink today?"
"I didn't want anything to drink. I came here specifically to find you." Yao Ye smiled, and in Li Fengjian's eyes, that smile was somewhat captivating.
"...What do you want from me?" Li Fengjian stammered.
That day in front of the luxury store, it was just the two of them, and in his haste, he blurted out many impulsive thoughts. But now, with Aunt Sun and Xiao Dong around, although they were busy with their own things, Li Fengjian had to be more rational and restrained.
But Yao Ye seemed unusually 'wild' tonight. She beckoned to him mysteriously, "Come here, come here, I've got something good to show you!"
"What good stuff?" he asked, frowning, but subconsciously moved a little closer to her.
Yao Ye then proudly puffed out her small chest, raised her chin, and said, "Did you see that?"
"...What should I see?" Straight man Li Fengjian was stunned and did not understand what she meant.
Yao Ye pursed her lips, thinking that the collarbone chain was indeed too thin, and she would need to add some movements to enhance the effect! So she said, "Take a closer look!"
As Li Fengjian squinted and peered over, Yao Ye's hands gripped the collar of her shirt, intending to gently tug at it to accentuate the delicate yet expensive designer necklace adorning her collarbone, and perhaps tease him a bit, such as, "Hmph, open your eyes wide and take a good look! I'm wearing luxury goods again! How about that? Still dare to spout nonsense? If you dare to talk back, I'll really max out your credit card and then refuse to pay you back!"
She was gently pulling at her collar when a customer bumped into her hard from behind. The customer walked away without even looking up, but Yao Ye's hands, which were gripping her collar, suddenly slipped, and with a 'ripping' sound, two buttons on her white shirt popped open, revealing what lay beneath...
So Li Fengjian, who had been looking puzzled, first showed an expression of 'eye-opening', then couldn't take his eyes off her, 'feasting' for his eyes. Fortunately, reason eventually prevailed over instinct. He reached out and quickly closed Yao Ye's shirt collar, his brows furrowing deeply.
"Yao Ye, are you crazy! If you're going to look, you should go somewhere where no one's around!"
At this moment, Yao Ye was completely dumbfounded, her mind blank. Her remaining rationality led her to stammer in defense of herself, "This...this Korean-style shirt from Pinduoduo for 29.9 yuan with free shipping, the quality is really bad..." Then, she suddenly regained her composure, slapped Li Fengjian's hand away, and stumbled backward.
"Li Fengjian, what nonsense are you spouting?!"
That poor expensive designer necklace—Li Fengjian never even gave it a second glance until the very end…
………………
Oh no, Yao Ye is angry again. She picked up the button that had fallen to the ground, stomped her foot, and turned to leave.
Li Fengjian was utterly aggrieved. He ran over from behind the bar and grabbed her, trying to defend himself, "Hey, hey, you were the one who pulled it open and insisted on making me see it..."
"That's not what I showed you!!!" Yao Ye jumped up and down in a panic. "I showed you a necklace, a necklace, a designer necklace!!!"
"Wh-what necklace?"
"Hmph, forget it!" Yao Ye's face was flushed red. One hand was tightly gripping her shirt collar, while the other was being held tightly by Li Fengjian. She had no mind to show him the necklace anymore. "Let go, let go! I want to go back to work!"
"Wait, you're just going back to work like this?" Li Fengjian glared.
“I’m holding on tightly with my hands, isn’t that enough?” Yao Ye glared back.
"No! Wait for me a moment, don't leave!" Li Fengjian released her hand, but his eyes never left her. He stepped back behind the bar, took one of his coats, and handed it to her.
Yao Ye initially refused to accept it with a look of disgust, but when she saw that Li Fengjian was about to put it on for her directly, she quickly grabbed it, turned her back and put it on, and even zipped the zipper up really high with a 'whoosh'.
Li Fengjian's coat was inevitably a bit too big, and it draped loosely over her body, inexplicably giving Yao Ye a sense of warmth. The coat also carried a faint, sweet scent—the scent of Kazama-do, and also the scent of Li Fengjian—that enveloped her completely.
Yao Ye suddenly became shy, lowered her head and said, "I'll return it to you later," before hurriedly leaving.
………………
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