The door was knocked, someone called out in a low voice from outside.

“A’Ci, get up and eat.”

Xu You had never fallen asleep. At this moment, hearing the slightest sound, she opened her eyes. She moved her body and only then realized she was being completely held in someone’s embrace.

Xie Ci hadn’t woken up yet. His breathing was very steady, hot breath spraying bit by bit on her neck. His arm was draped across her waist, his chin resting against the back of her head.

A completely possessive posture.

“It’s time to eat.” Xu You pulled down his hand.

The moment she moved, Xie Ci lifted his leg to pin her down, completely restricting her movements. His reaction was swift, not at all like someone who had just woken up.

Seeing he was awake, Xu You no longer held back. Supporting herself with her elbow, she lifted the blanket intending to get out of bed.

“Wait a moment, what’s the rush…” Xie Ci yawned and grabbed one of her wrists.

Xu You ignored him, sitting on the edge of the bed by herself and bending down to put on her shoes with her other hand. Just as she finished putting them on, the person behind her pulled her back. Caught off guard, she fell backward onto the soft bedding.

Xie Ci turned over, propping himself up with one hand beside her ear.

Their gazes met. He lowered his head, rubbing his nose tip against hers. His voice was still somewhat hoarse from just waking up: “Hey, Xu You, let me ask you a question?”

Xu You averted her eyes, turning her face to the side, pushing away the person on top of her, frowning: “What question? Don’t press on me.”

“Tsk, you have no patience.”

“I just wanted to ask…” Xie Ci quickly lowered his head, leaning toward the still-red patch of skin on her neck and sucking on it, “Why do you like me so much?”

—-

The wooden tables and chairs, warm yellow light strips embedded in the walls. This Sichuan restaurant had good decor and tasty food. The entertainment options inside were fairly comprehensive. It was a place Xie Ci and Song Yifan used to frequent.

Xu You followed Xie Ci out. Outside, a large group of people created a lively atmosphere. The dishes were already on the table, but they hadn’t started eating yet, all waiting for them.

The room was very hot. Xie Ci took off his jacket and casually tossed it on a small sofa to the side.

A boy nearby saw Xie Ci’s hair was somewhat messy and he didn’t look too well, so he couldn’t help making a joke: “The battle just now was quite intense, Brother Ci. When you’re sick you should exercise some restraint.”

Xie Ci had been leaning against the chair back watching Xu You unwrap her utensils. Hearing this, he looked at the boy. He asked: “Are you sick?”

The person automatically went silent.

The atmosphere was awkward for a while.

Song Yifan, sitting across from them, came out to smooth things over, laughing: “Ni Ming, what’s wrong with you? There’s a whole circle of girls here, and even underclassmen. Why do you keep making dirty jokes? That’s not good, right?”

Anyway, since so many unrelated people had already come, might as well make it even livelier. Song Yifan had also called some people he knew from freshman year to play together. Some even brought girlfriends, and the girlfriends brought friends, so there was just a whole pile of people.

“The one next to him is Brother Ci’s girlfriend, right? What year is she in? Seems like I haven’t really seen her before.”

The speaker was Xu Xiaocheng’s girlfriend, called Sun Xiaoxue. She had been in Class 9 in freshman year, then transferred to Class 5 in sophomore year. But because of Xu Xiaocheng, Sun Xiaoxue usually went out with him to hang out, so she knew quite a few people in their circle. But this seemed to be the first time seeing Xu You, so she looked unfamiliar.

“She’s from our class. She just transferred last semester.”

“Oh… what’s her name?”

“Xu You.”

“Wow, so it’s her!” Sun Xiaoxue reacted.

This girl who had been parachuting into the top three rankings since the September monthly exam was quite famous in the grade. Even teachers sometimes mentioned her in class.

Who knows how Xie Ci managed to pursue these top student girls with such high ambitions… and there was Qiu Qingqing before too…

Sun Xiaoxue inwardly complained.

“But…” She bumped Xu Xiaocheng’s arm, lowering her voice: “Don’t you think Xu You looks a lot like Deng Ying?”

Xu Xiaocheng was playing a mobile game, not lifting his head: “Who’s Deng Ying?”

He was focused on his game and didn’t control his volume well for a moment, speaking a bit too loudly.

“Ah… what?”

Deng Ying was talking to someone nearby when someone bumped her arm. She turned around with a smile on her lips.

“They’re calling you,” someone said.

Deng Ying had a baby face, straight bangs, very fair skin, and big round eyes. She looked up and happened to meet Xie Ci’s sweeping gaze. She froze for two seconds before reacting, her face flushing red as she lowered her eyes and bit her lip, absent-minded.

“It’s nothing, nothing.” Sun Xiaoxue forced out a smile, secretly pinching Xu Xiaocheng’s thigh under the table.

Dinner began. Several people drank quite a bit of alcohol, getting somewhat tipsy. Xie Ci wasn’t feeling well, so no one forced him to drink. He only had a little bit.

So Li Jieyi and Song Yifan chugged several bottles, both their faces turning bright red. After drinking enough, they started eating and chatting along the way.

Chen Jing looked down at his phone from time to time.

“What are you looking at?”

Li Jieyi, sitting beside him, asked and then quickly leaned over to snatch it.

“Fuck off, get lost!” Chen Jing reacted quickly, dodging to the side.

But Li Jieyi still saw it. He leisurely leaned back in his seat, shaking his head: “Oh my, texting your girlfriend?”

“So what? Jealous?”

Chen Jing put away his phone and picked up his chopsticks to eat some food. After eating a bit, he called out toward Xu You not far away: “Hahahaha, English class representative, you’re here too.”

Making conversation out of nothing.

“…Ah.” Xu You looked completely baffled.

“I’m in your class! We even sit in the same group. You’re right in front of my front.” Chen Jing continued chatting enthusiastically.

Xu You didn’t make a sound, but it was clear she didn’t recognize him.

Song Yifan beside them laughed and cursed: “Fuck, Chen Jing, don’t you feel embarrassed? Can someone who bought their way in compare with her?”

Chen Jing smiled indifferently: “What about it? You have a problem?”

“Why did you buy your way into Class 0 with those grades?”

“For his girlfriend?” someone teased.

Another person added: “Qiu Qingqing, right?” After saying it, they seemed to realize something and couldn’t help glancing at Xie Ci.

He looked as if he hadn’t heard, saying to Xu You in a low voice: “I want to eat dumplings.”

Xu You picked one up for him and put it in his bowl.

Chen Jing rolled his eyes beside them: “Are you nuts? It was my dad who insisted on getting me in there, said it would cultivate my character. What does it have to do with Qiu Qingqing?”

Li Jieyi egged him on, clapping: “Impressive, impressive, Young Master Chen’s family has money.”

Several boys deliberately clowned around, making the girls at the table laugh.

But Xie Ci had no interest in their boring conversation. He sat to the side, too lazy to participate.

Feeling too lazy to use his chopsticks, he poked Xu You’s waist and said in a low voice: “Feed me?”

Xu You shook her head. She had also been quietly eating with her head down, completely out of place with the liveliness around her.

“What’s wrong? Unhappy?” Xie Ci frowned slightly, propping his elbow on the table edge and leaning toward Xu You’s face to look at her expression.

He liked such intimate gestures in public, but Xu You wasn’t used to it. She dodged to the side, putting down what she was holding: “I’m going to the restroom.”

After she left, Xie Ci’s expression clearly darkened.

“A’Ci, how come today you and Xu You seem weird? Did you two have a fight?”

Li Jieyi spoke honestly.

He saw that Xu You hadn’t really talked much during the meal and guessed she might be tired of this kind of occasion. After all, they weren’t the same type of people as her, their auras really didn’t match. The previous Qiu Qingqing was the same, similar type to Xu You. It was just that she controlled Xie Ci too much, making him impatient and bored, so they broke up. But for some reason, Xie Ci seemed quite fond of Xu You, probably wouldn’t break up so easily.

But honestly speaking, Li Jieyi was usually quite good at reading people. Xu You had something different from others – she was quite pure. Really pure, the kind you could tell.

Some people were promiscuous to the bone, but she was really pure to the bone. No wonder Xie Ci would fall.

Li Jieyi continued chatting sporadically with Song Yifan while silently sighing for his friend in his heart.

When a woman hardens her heart, she can torment the man who likes her to death.

Xie Ci was in a bad mood.

As long as Xu You became even a little cold like this, he couldn’t control his whole person becoming irritable. And he had no idea what had happened to Xu You in just this short time.

His mood was already annoyed when someone beside him called out: “Brother Ci, Brother Ci.”

Xie Ci looked up.

It was Ni Ming. He smiled mischievously with an ambiguous look: “I have something to tell you later.”

“Say it now.”

“No, no, no, your girlfriend is coming back soon, can’t say it.”

Ni Ming beat around the bush, but Xie Ci clearly had no mood to play guessing games with others and was too lazy to pay him any more attention.

After using the restroom, Xu You went to wash her hands. Warm water repeatedly washed over her palms. She cupped some water, closed her eyes, and splashed it on her face.

She was alone in the restroom, excessively quiet, with noisy sounds from outside faintly audible.

She looked at herself in the mirror – pale face, large dark pupils. Water droplets slid down along the edges of her cheeks.

Sigh…

—

Fu Xueli went home after eating. Using her key to open the door, she carried an unopened box of mango mille crepes, raising her hand to press the nearby switch. The house suddenly brightened.

She lowered her head to change into slippers, holding her phone in her right hand to play with, putting on the slippers.

“—Oh my god!!!”

Fu Xueli was startled by the person sitting quietly in the living room, her feet stepping back.

“You’re back.”

Xu Xingchun’s eyes looked at her, his voice very flat. His back was against the wall, half-sitting.

“What are you doing here?” Fu Xueli walked over.

“Waiting for you to come home.”

As he spoke, he bent forward to pick up the cigarette pack on the coffee table, pushing it open with his index finger.

Fu Xueli panicked, wanting to stop him: “What are you doing?”

“Don’t move.” Xu Xingchun looked down, pressing the lighter. The flame licked up at the cigarette.

He rarely looked this cold, directly making Fu Xueli not dare to move anymore.

“I…” She stammered, wanting to explain.

Xu Xingchun patiently finished smoking one cigarette, his posture hardly changing.

Fu Xueli didn’t dare look at him. After a long silence, she heard him say: “It doesn’t taste good. Don’t smoke anymore in the future.”

—-

“Why did you take so long?”

Xie Ci’s hand rested on the back of Xu You’s chair, his eyes looking at her as he casually threw out a card.

Xu You said quietly: “Oh, I’m feeling a bit unwell. You play first, I’m going to call my parents.”

They had just finished eating. Xu Xiaocheng had the waiter come over to clear the table to make room for cards.

“Play your card, stop just talking.” Song Yifan urged.

Xie Ci responded while putting all his attention on Xu You. She took her phone from her bag and stood in a quiet corner to the side to make a call.

Xie Ci’s eyes kept looking to the side, absent-minded, and then he lost this round too.

“Not playing anymore.”

He threw down his cards, saying flatly.

Chen Jing laughed maliciously: “Young Master Xie’s luck is bad today.”

“You two lost, so what do we do this round?” Xu Xiaocheng shuffled the cards, saying casually: “Old rules or what?”

Poor Song Yifan was Xie Ci’s partner. He said indignantly: “Fuck, A’Ci is getting worse and worse at this. Never want to team with him again.”

Their old rule was that the two losers drew two cards – the King of Spades and King of Hearts. Whoever drew the King of Hearts played Truth or Dare. Kind of similar to the King’s Game. Seeing a round finish here, several people from the side also came over.

“Come on, come on, let’s get some girls to play together.” Chen Jing smiled.

Deng Ying was curious, standing on tiptoes and craning her neck: “Play what?”

Chen Jing spread out his hands, saying: “I just like straightforward underclasswomen like you. Come on, come on, draw one.”

Deng Ying looked at Xie Ci sitting on the outer edge, pursing her lips as she randomly drew a card.

It was Song Yifan’s turn to draw. Xu Xiaocheng held two cards between his fingers: “Which one, left or right?”

“The right one.”

Xu Xiaocheng gave Xie Ci the remaining left card.

“Alright, everyone knows what card they have, right?”

Chen Jing sat his butt on the table, smiling lewdly: “Since A’Ci is a family man now, we won’t play anything too exciting. How about the guy who draws the King of Spades princess-carries the girl who draws the Joker and walks around the place once?”

No one objected.

Four girls were playing. Deng Ying flipped her card first, and people around her immediately started making noise.

She had drawn the Joker.

Then Song Yifan also tossed his card aside, shrugging. He drew the King of Spades.

“—Wow!!”

Someone reached out to push Deng Ying toward Xie Ci. She stumbled, her face flushing with embarrassment. Sensing all eyes on her, Deng Ying said quietly: “I’m fine with anything.”

Deng Ying glanced at Xie Ci from the corner of her eye, not knowing what kind of feeling was in her heart. She had heard friends mention Xie Ci before – good things and bad. She knew he hung out with bad crowds, his family had money but his grades weren’t good, and he changed girlfriends quickly. After friends mentioned him many times, she unconsciously started paying attention. Actually, Deng Ying had gone out to hang with them a few times before, each time only daring to look at Xie Ci from afar. He wasn’t someone with a cold personality, but always gave people a sense of unapproachable distance. But girls this age inexplicably liked this type of bad but handsome boy. She was no exception.

Especially after seeing today that his current girlfriend looked so similar to herself, a sour feeling of jealousy peaked in her heart. Like feeling unwilling… why couldn’t it be her…

Everyone’s gaze turned to Xie Ci.

He didn’t speak or refuse, his face wearing a half-smile.

Xu You had just finished her phone call and walked over, hearing someone laugh and say: “Stop tormenting A’Ci, everyone. Last time you made him kiss someone in front of Qiu Qingqing, causing them to break up. Why are you at it again?”

So Xu You roughly guessed they were playing a game and Xie Ci had lost.

Xu You stood outside the crowd, stopping in her tracks. Everyone’s eyes were on Xie Ci, no one noticed here. She was short, easily submerged in the crowd.

“Are you doing it or not? Princess-carrying isn’t anything difficult, and the girl already agreed.”

People in front started urging.

Xu You sensibly put away her phone, her steps light as she left the room.

Xu Xiaocheng looked at Xie Ci and originally wanted to say forget it. But now everyone was waiting, it wouldn’t be good to disappoint them like this, so he didn’t speak up.

But…

Were all these people egging them on stupid? Didn’t they know Xie Ci had a bad temper? Still making such a fuss…

People who knew Xie Ci knew that although he was still smiling, but…

Song Yifan was about to say he’d do it instead when he saw the smile on Xie Ci’s face suddenly disappear.

Downstairs.

Xu You stood in the cold wind, holding her phone. She wrapped her scarf properly and sent Xie Ci a text message:

—Xie Ci, I’m going home.