In the audience, Xu Ting sat next to Chi Yao, chattering:

“Nanxiang Street, is that where you live?”

“That’s nice. I wish I had childhood friends, too. When I was little, I was the only child at home. Although there were other kids in the neighborhood, we weren’t close.”

Lin’s speech was quite authentic, speaking from experience. It feels much better than the previous ones. She’ll probably get a good ranking.”

Lin Zhexia’s speech was primarily narrative. She was actually quite interesting when telling stories, describing life on Nanxiang Street vividly.

“Wow,” Xu Ting commented in real-time, “my Lin even got into fights when she was little. I couldn’t tell.”

Xu Ting was a person with extremely divergent thinking: “But you know, when Lin gets a boyfriend in the future, won’t her boyfriend mind you?”

“After all, you two are so close, like you’re one person.”

“They say male best friends are often resented…”

As he was saying this, Chi Yao interrupted him: “Are you done?”

“?”

“If you’re done, shut up. You’re disturbing my ears.”

“…”

Xu Ting pouted, shrank back, and didn’t speak to Chi Yao again.

Chi Yao’s seat was near the corner, where the light wasn’t good.

Half of his face was covered in shadow, his expression unclear.

The person on stage had glanced in his direction before her speech. The girl was wearing a clean school uniform, the too-long trouser legs were rolled up, revealing thin, delicate ankles. She was very nervous at first, but halfway through her speech, she was already speaking more and more fluently.

Her clear voice, with a hint of gentleness, was amplified through the microphone and carried over.

The speech ended.

He applauded along with the people around him.

The teacher of Class 1, Grade 2, looked back to check on their class’s spectating situation, and seeing their orderly behavior, turned back with relief.

However, what he didn’t know was that Chi Yao, after listening to this contestant’s speech, immediately leaned back, closed his eyes, and said to Xu Ting: “I’m going to sleep for a while, help me keep an eye on the teacher.”

Xu Ting: “You’re not going to listen to the ones that follow?”

Chi Yao was uninterested: “What’s there to listen to in this kind of speech?”

Xu Ting: “…”

But you were just listening—

In the evening, during a self-study class before school ended.

Tang Shuxuan came back from the teacher’s office with a stack of documents, including a yellow certificate. She handed the certificate to Lin Zhexia: “Your certificate has been issued, here, first prize!”

Although the rankings had already been announced when the competition ended, actually receiving the certificate felt quite different.

Lin Zhexia took it: “Thank you.”

She added, “You also performed very well.”

Tang Shuxuan smiled: “Don’t comfort me, I don’t care much about the ranking. Compared to the ranking—” she lowered her voice, “I’ll tell you a secret, after I came off stage, the senior complimented me.”

Chen Lin interjected: “Not bad.”

Tang Shuxuan smiled sweetly: “He said I performed very well and that he was happy for me. Rounding up, we’re getting married tomorrow.”

Lin Zhexia: “…That’s a bit too much rounding.”

But regardless, the end of the competition called for a celebration, so Tang Shuxuan suggested: “Should we have a dinner gathering tonight? There are several restaurants near the school. Let’s invite that surname Chi too, and all eat together?”

Lin Zhexia thought for a moment: “I don’t have any problem with it, but he might not. Let me ask him.”

She secretly sent a message to Chi Yao.

Sure enough, he quickly replied with two words: Not going.

Lin Zhexia typed and sent two sentences—

You dare to refuse me—

Do you know whose invitation you’re rejecting?

Chi Dog:?

Lin Zhexia: You’re rejecting the first-place winner of the 10th Chengan No.2 Middle School Speech Competition.

After Lin Zhexia sent this message, the other side remained silent for a long time.

After about half a minute, Chi Yao replied with two sentences—

Two minutes—

Wake up by yourself

Lin Zhexia: “…”

You’re the one who’s not thinking clearly.

After Tang Shuxuan distributed the homework to the others, she asked: “Did he reply to you?”

Lin Zhexia put away her phone, looked up, and said: “I think we’d better not invite him. This person might not be worthy of eating food.”

Although she said this, when school ended, she still dutifully went to Class 1’s door to wait for Chi Yao.

Class 1 was running overtime today.

Lin Zhexia waited outside for nearly ten minutes, until their math teacher called out: “Alright, class dismissed.”

As soon as the words fell, the entire classroom seemed like someone had pressed a start button. Many had already packed their things and immediately rushed out of the classroom with their backpacks—

Lin Zhexia stood at the corridor corner with her certificate rolled into a tube, waiting until Chi Yao and Xu Ting walked out of the back door of the classroom side by side, unhurried.

She wanted to scare Chi Yao, suddenly jumping out from the corner: “Chi Yao.”

But Chi Yao wasn’t scared at all, just slightly raised his eyes and glanced at her.

She deliberately unfolded the certificate in her hand, wanting to show off, but too embarrassed to say it directly, so she took a roundabout approach: “There’s too much homework today, my backpack is completely full, ah, I can only carry this in my hand.”

Chi Yao knew her intention and didn’t even spare her a glance.

Lin Zhexia: “It’s such a hassle to have to carry it. Winning a prize is just an empty honor. They don’t necessarily need to specially issue this kind of certificate.”

Chi Yao: “Find it troublesome?”

Lin Zhexia nodded.

Chi Yao pointed to the nearby trash can: “Then throw it away.”

“…”

Lin Zhexia was silent for a moment, then said: “Aren’t you surprised?”

Chi Yao: “What should I be surprised about?”

Lin Zhexia: “When I went on stage, I didn’t recite the draft we rehearsed over the weekend. I made last-minute changes overnight, so you should be surprised by my talent.”

Chi Yao casually took out his phone, then turned the screen toward her, pressed the side switch, and the phone screen suddenly lit up—

“Do you see the time up there?”

The screen displayed 6:18.

Chi Yao held the phone and said, “It’s been over half an hour, and you’re still not awake.”

Lin Zhexia: “……”

Lin Zhexia turned to Xu Ting: “It must be very tiring to be friends with this kind of person.”

Xu Ting was trying to hold back his laughter on the side. He coughed and said: “Ah, yes, very tiring.”

Lin Zhexia: “I understand you. Being friends with this kind of person probably makes you want to claim compensation for mental damage every day.”

Xu Ting tried to salvage the situation and give Lin Zhexia a bit of face, saying as they walked: “Lin, that certificate in your hand is so dazzling, the brilliance almost hurt my eyes. Let me appreciate it carefully. You actually got first prize—you’re too amazing.”

Lin Zhexia’s vanity was satisfied: “Low-key, low-key.”

As she spoke, she noticed Chi Yao was looking at her.

Chi Yao shifted his gaze: “You two, whose combined IQ might not even reach a hundred, stay away from me while walking.”

Because Xu Ting’s flattery was on point.

So Lin Zhexia also invited him to dinner: “Tang Shuxuan has already ordered dishes. Why don’t you come along too?”

There were many restaurants outside of school.

Although No.2 Middle School strictly prohibited leaving campus during school hours, many people still chose to eat near the school after classes, so there was a row of restaurants across the street.

When Lin Zhexia brought Chi Yao and the others in, several cold dishes had already been served on the table.

Tang Shuxuan: “I was afraid the dishes would be served too slowly, so I ordered a few first. I haven’t ordered the rest yet. Perfect timing, now that you’re here, look at the menu and add some dishes.”

The menu was passed to Chi Yao first.

He took the pen, lowered his head to scan a few lines, casually marked a few items, then handed the menu to her.

Lin Zhexia took it, and then she discovered that as she scanned the menu, every dish she wanted to check already had a somewhat carelessly drawn check mark in front of it.

It was so accurate, as if.

These check marks were made by her.

But she knew they were completely different, because the handwriting on the paper in her hand was distinctly different from hers.

“Why aren’t you ordering?” Chen Lin asked beside her.

Because everything she wanted to eat had already been ordered.

This realization, for some unknown reason, stirred some inexplicable emotions in her.

She, somewhat flustered, handed the paper and pen to Chen Lin: “You look first, I don’t have anything to add.”

Chen Lin took them without thinking much: “Oh, then let me see.”

Their seats were by the window, and outside the large glass window, many students passed by carrying backpacks.

During the meal, Chen Lin said softly, “Is this the treatment of dining out with someone who dominated an entire page of the forum since the beginning of the semester?”

Lin Zhexia was busy gnawing on a chicken wing. She glanced at her while biting the wing, not understanding her meaning: “?”

Chen Lin pointed outside the glass window with her chopsticks: “Just in the past ten minutes, out of ten people who walked by, nine looked over at our table.”

“…”

“That’s so exaggerated.”

“Not exaggerated,” Chen Lin said, “I haven’t even used hyperbole yet, just stating facts.”

The others at the table were busy discussing next week’s sports meet.

Tang Shuxuan: “I heard it in the teacher’s office, we’re having a sports meet next week, and it’s being held together with other schools.”

Xu Ting: “I also heard from the seniors, our school’s sports meet will indeed be held with other schools, and it will last two days with no classes needed. This year, it seems to be with the neighboring school.”

“Neighboring school?”

“That Experimental Affiliated Middle School.”

“…”

Lin Zhexia finished her chicken wing, was quite full, so she put down her chopsticks and listened to their conversation.

Chen Lin asked: “Why have it together with other schools?”

Xu Ting: “Our school rarely organizes one, and usually doesn’t organize many activities. I guess they want to make it big, strong, and glorious all at once.”

Tang Shuxuan: “That makes sense.”

As Lin Zhexia listened, her thoughts drifted, thinking about what Chen Lin had secretly told her, and she couldn’t help but glance at the person sitting beside her.

Chi Yao’s position was right opposite the large glass window. He wasn’t joining the conversation. The waiter had just served everyone a portion of steamed egg custard, and he was casually stirring his bowl with a spoon.

He lowered his eyes, his eyelashes casting a shadow beneath, and even the line of his jaw exuded a sense of detachment.

Looking at him, Lin Zhexia thought randomly:

If it’s this face, it’s indeed not an exaggeration.

Just as she was thinking this, the person she was secretly watching also looked up at her and said, “Give me your bowl.”

Lin Zhexia belatedly pointed at the untouched egg custard in front of her: “This one?”

Chi Yao neither confirmed nor denied.

Lin Zhexia found it somewhat ridiculous: “How can you be like this—”

“Like what?”

“Don’t be too greedy. You already have a portion, and I still want to eat this one.”

Chi Yao leaned back slightly, saying nonchalantly: “What can we do? I just want to eat two portions.”

Lin Zhexia: “Then go eat Xu Ting’s.”

Xu Ting, who was inexplicably dragged in: “?”

Then, Lin Zhexia said, “Or, you can starve to death.”

Chi Yao curled his lips slightly: “Oh, I’ll starve to death.”

After saying this, he directly reached out and took her bowl of egg custard in front of him. Lin Zhexia was about to say he was going too far when the hand released the bowl and placed the white porcelain bowl he had been stirring with a spoon for half a day in front of her.

The white porcelain bowl also contained an untouched portion of egg custard.

But to say it was untouched might not be quite accurate.

Because the layer of green onions originally sprinkled on top of the egg custard had been picked out.

She didn’t particularly like eating green onions.

It wasn’t that she couldn’t eat them, but if time allowed, she would generally pick them out.

When Chi Yao ate at her house when they were young, he had seen her picking out green onions.

That time, Lin He’s hand probably trembled, scattering an unusually large amount. She picked for a long time, and finally sighed: “I’m so tired.”

Chi Yao’s words were as unpleasant as ever: “Then don’t eat.”

Lin Zhexia had shown a knack for knowing how to adapt from a young age: “…Not eating will make me hungry. I’ll rest a bit and then continue picking.”

However, while she was resting, Chi Yao picked up the chopsticks she had just put down.

Lin Zhexia: “Don’t steal my food.”

“…”

After a while.

She asked again: “Are you helping me pick out the green onions?”

The young Chi Yao said disdainfully, “Who wants to help you pick? I just don’t want someone sighing while I’m eating.”

…

Perhaps because she thought of childhood.

Looking at the bowl of egg custard in front of her, Lin Zhexia felt as if someone had very gently poked her heart.

It should be because of the childhood memory.

Lin Zhexia reinforced this hypothesis in her mind.

Otherwise, she couldn’t find any other reason to explain her current feelings.

Lin Zhexia quickly extricated herself from the memory, holding that bowl of egg custard and saying, “I apologize for my offense just now. I was being small-minded. I didn’t mean for you to starve to death. I hope more than anyone that you can eat your fill.”

Chi Yao appeared too lazy to bother with her.

He leaned back again, casually squeezing the knuckles of the hand he had just withdrawn: “Shut your mouth and eat your food.”