Fortunately, by the time the bus arrived at Lanruo Village, the location for this sketching trip, Tan Yin had already tossed all of that to the back of her mind.

Lanruo Village was simply too beautiful. In other people’s eyes, it might just be a rundown, dilapidated old village, far from the city, without a trace of modern atmosphere. But to Tan Yin, these ancient buildings that had survived from the Ming and Qing dynasties still seemed to carry the flavor of the farming life of old, that plain and traditional charm.

Lanruo Village was far from any urban district. As a protected site of cultural and historical heritage, only a very small number of local villagers still lived outside the old village proper, and the village was surrounded by a stretch of forest.

The other students all showed curiosity and interest toward this unfamiliar rural environment, most of them gathering in front of the buildings at the village entrance, chattering away and not yet settling into the work. Tan Yin, however, couldn’t wait to take out her sketchbook. She found a spot that was out of the way but quiet enough, and began sketching the ancient buildings in front of her.

Once she started drawing, Tan Yin threw herself into it completely, forgetting everything else — which was why she hadn’t noticed at all that Chu Hang was sketching by a haystack not far from her.

It wasn’t often they got to come out and unwind like this, and quite a few students were a bit excited, chatting as they drew. Chu Hang, disliking how noisy the crowded spots were, had also found his way to this same secluded, quiet place. The two of them were separated by the haystack, each in the other’s blind spot, peacefully sketching away without either noticing the other.

She drew like this for several hours, until Tan Yin’s stomach was growling with hunger. She checked her watch — it was already two in the afternoon!

Tan Yin packed up her sketchbook and started to head out, only to discover Chu Hang by accident.

His head was bowed, still absorbed in his sketching. From Tan Yin’s angle, all she could see was his long, elegant neck and his handsome profile. Though his skin was very fair and his features refined, Chu Hang never came across as feminine — quite the opposite, he had a striking, aristocratic handsomeness about him, nothing forced about it, yet every movement he made betrayed a privileged upbringing and good breeding.

No matter how many times she looked at his face, Tan Yin couldn’t help but marvel — this was truly a face capable of bringing ruin. And perhaps because her gaze was too intense, Chu Hang finally sensed something and lifted his head.

Because he’d been focused on his sketching, his expression at first was unguarded, faintly innocent, still carrying the intensity of his earlier concentration — until he registered it was Tan Yin, at which point his gaze turned cold.

Tan Yin rubbed her hands together, still hoping to build a good relationship with her group leader. “Hey, want to go grab something to eat together? It’s already two.”

Chu Hang pressed his lips together and said nothing. He packed up his sketching supplies, ignored Tan Yin, and walked off toward the village on his own.

Tan Yin walked behind him. After about five minutes, she finally heard his cold voice from ahead —

“Tan Yin, following me like this won’t do you any good.”

Tan Yin: ???

“Don’t think that just because you’re sketching in the same spot as me, I’ll start noticing you.”

Tan Yin: ???

Buddy, first of all, this is the only path to the food — and second, I got to that sketching spot before you did!

Before Tan Yin could even explain, Chu Hang picked up his pace, rounded a corner, and left her behind.

Unfortunately, the two of them ended up in the same place regardless — because Lanruo Village was so remote it was outside any delivery zone, so for this trip, lunch had been arranged at a nearby villager’s home.

Only when the two of them arrived — one right after the other — at the house providing lunch did they learn that the food had already run out!

To make it easier for everyone to adjust their sketching and meal times, lunch had been made flexible, available from eleven-thirty to one-thirty, with students going to eat in twos and threes according to their own schedules. Because of this, Teacher Lin hadn’t kept track of whether everyone had eaten.

She was quite apologetic. “This is my fault — I should have reminded you all. Once you start drawing, it’s easy to lose track of time. The villagers here go out to work the fields right after cooking, and I have no idea where to find anyone now to make more food.”

Chu Hang’s family was in real estate, and given his background, he counted as a proper young master from a wealthy family — yet the young master himself was remarkably calm about having no lunch. “Teacher Lin, it’s not your fault. I just wasn’t paying attention to the time. I’m not that hungry anyway.”

His tone was even and unbothered, without a trace of complaint or displeasure, polite and composed. He chatted with Teacher Lin a bit more, then went back to his sketching.

How could he not be hungry, Tan Yin thought. She herself, a woman, was already so hungry her stomach felt like it was touching her spine — and he was over six feet tall, needing far more energy than she did. He was putting on such a convincing act.

Tan Yin caught up to him and called out. “Chu Hang, do you want to eat with me?” She pulled out her thermos of red date, peanut, longan, and goji berry congee. “I brought quite a lot — enough for two.”

Chu Hang glanced at Tan Yin and said in a low voice, “I’m not hungry.”

Unfortunately, while his mouth said no, his body was far more honest — almost at the same moment, his stomach let out a growl of protest.

“Your stomach just growled.”

“It didn’t.”

“I just heard it.”

“You heard wrong.”

“You’re definitely hungry.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“Your stomach definitely growled.”

Chu Hang finally couldn’t take it anymore. “Tan Yin. Be quiet.”

Tan Yin blinked and offered up the congee. “Here, eat. We picked a sketching spot away from the main group — it’s just you and me. If you faint from hunger while sketching later, I’ll have to give you CPR.”

“I’m not drowning, why would you need to give me CPR?!”

“I’m just speaking figuratively! Once you’re passed out, I can do whatever I want, can’t I? Free rein, you know what I mean? Wake up and find one of your kidneys missing, floating in ice water, with a note next to you saying ‘Call an ambulance or you’ll die’ — you’d just have to accept it!”

“…” Chu Hang endured it for a moment, but ultimately couldn’t hold back. “That story is fake. Stealing a kidney isn’t that simple. Can you stop reading fake news like that all the time? Have a bit of scientific literacy.”

“Don’t worry about the details. Anyway, I suggest you just eat.”

Chu Hang frowned at the congee in front of him, still resisting stubbornly. “I don’t like red dates, peanuts, longan, or goji berries…”

Having already given Chu Hang an easy way out, only for him to keep putting on airs, Tan Yin lost patience with persuading him further. She simply shoved the congee into his hands. “You really need to get over this fussiness of yours. Once you’ve gone hungry for a few days, people will eat anything to survive — no need to be so picky.”

“…”

Tan Yin opened the thermos. “It’s really good! You won’t regret it!”

Chu Hang stiffened his neck. “I don’t want to owe you a favor.”

“How would this be owing me a favor? After I drew that comic about you, there’s no apology I could give that would be too much. If you drink this, my conscience will finally rest easy. This isn’t owing me a favor — this is you being kind and generous enough to give me a chance to atone!”

Chu Hang really was hungry, and the aroma of Tan Yin’s red date congee was wafting over. He glanced at her. “Let me make this clear — even if I drink it, I still won’t owe you anything. Don’t think you can make demands of me with a bowl of congee. I’m not going to agree to date you just because of this.”

Tan Yin nodded rapidly.

Chu Hang finally let his guard down and started drinking the congee. Tan Yin’s cooking was genuinely good — Chu Hang, frowning, took his first sip slowly, then began drinking faster and faster.

Red dates, peanuts, longan, goji berries — Chu Hang disliked every single one of these on its own, yet somehow, boiled together into congee, it actually tasted good? Just to maintain appearances, he kept a stern face the whole time he drank, as if he were forcing himself through it reluctantly.

“Finish it, there’s plenty more.”

Chu Hang, suspecting nothing, quickly finished the entire thermos. Then he looked up at Tan Yin, before quickly and deliberately looking away again, saying casually, “Is there more?”

Only then did Tan Yin smile and spread her hands. “Nope, there’s none left. And not only is there none left — you actually finished my portion too. That was the only thermos I brought, my only ration.” She winked at Chu Hang. “A moment ago you didn’t owe me anything. Now, you do.”

Chu Hang frowned and glared at her.

Tan Yin stared right back at him. “See, you drank my congee, and now I have nothing to eat. It’s about four hours until dinner — I’ll probably get so hungry my stomach will hurt, and I might even faint from low blood sugar. Not to mention, going hungry increases my risk of ulcers and stomach disease, which could shorten my life by a few days…”

Chu Hang pressed his lips together. “What exactly do you want?”

“That group evaluation score…”

“I won’t show favoritism.”

“…”

“I’ll pay you back the congee.”

Tan Yin exploded. “Can a bowl of congee when you’re on the brink of starvation really mean the same as an ordinary bowl of congee?! You’re just going to pay me back one bowl?! Chu Hang! Chu Hang, don’t you walk away! You ungrateful, treacherous man! Drank my congee and now you’re kicking down the bridge behind you!”

Chu Hang went back behind the haystack to continue sketching. Tan Yin, resigned to her fate, set down her bag, sighed mournfully, then pulled a bag of beef jerky out of her backpack and started gnawing on it while facing the ancient buildings.

As she ate, Tan Yin couldn’t help but sigh with satisfaction, “There’s really nothing like the smell of meat!”

Tan Yin thought smugly to herself — with the acting job she’d just pulled off, even if she and Chu Hang couldn’t fully bury the hatchet, she’d at least scored some brownie points, right? Sacrificing her only congee for him — even with a bit of self-interest mixed in — surely that would leave a lasting impression on Chu Hang!

“Tan Yin, this is for you…”

Just as Tan Yin was contentedly gnawing on her beef jerky, feeling pretty pleased with herself, Chu Hang’s voice suddenly rang out. Tan Yin looked up and was caught red-handed, her face going completely blank.

In Chu Hang’s hand was a bar of chocolate, while in Tan Yin’s mouth was a piece of beef jerky…

The scene was, for a moment, extremely awkward. A total, spectacular disaster.

Chu Hang glared at Tan Yin. “Didn’t you say you had nothing left to eat, that you were completely out of supplies? That you gave up your only bowl of congee for me? Then what exactly is that you’re eating right now?”

“That…” Tan Yin forced herself to continue, “Do you know that during the Red Army’s Long March, when there was really nothing left to eat, they cut up their leather belts into strips and boiled them to eat like jerky, to fill their stomachs and stave off hunger? This is actually a belt I just picked up off the ground?”

Chu Hang looked at Tan Yin coldly.

Tan Yin admitted defeat. “Chu Hang, you can’t blame me for this. There’s a saying — a woman should be good to herself…”

Chu Hang pressed his lips together. “You are simply unreasonable.”

“Chu Hang, let me explain…”

“No need.” Chu Hang said coldly, tossing the chocolate down. “I just happened to find it, so I gave it to you. I don’t eat sweets like this.”

“You should keep the chocolate for yourself, then! Do you want some of my beef jerky?”

Chu Hang glanced at Tan Yin, expressionless. “No need. Enjoy your meal alone. A gentleman does not take what belongs to others.”

“…”