On the first day after the college military training ended, Jiang Yuan posted a thread on the school forum.
"What should I do if my long - lost childhood friend suddenly turns into a pure college boy?"
Someone replied below.
"Chase him! Flirt with him! Kiss him! The childhood - friend romance is the best to ship."
---
At the stuffy noon, the air was filled with heatwaves. It seemed that one could feel the scorching temperature even when breathing.
"I must catch the person who has stolen my takeaways several times!"
The angry voice of the young girl was particularly noticeable at the noisy school gate.
Jiang Yuan was standing under the shade of a tree, with a plump and round ball - head hairstyle, revealing her long and fair neck.
Her eyes were bright and clear, staring directly at the takeaway counter at the gate, full of anger.
She clenched her two hands into fists and then slammed them together, making a "bang" sound.
In just two or three seconds, the passing students glanced at her curiously and then casually looked away.
The theft of takeaways was simply too common in college.
People were coming and going at the school gate. Jiang Yuan stood there for quite a while but didn't wait for the takeaway thief. She regretted more than once dragging her friend Lin Suye along to catch the thief.
She gave Lin Suye an apologetic smile.
Lin Suye shook her head and silently said it was okay. Then she pointed at the takeaway counter, asking her to pay more attention to it.
"Yuanyuan, look quickly! It seems someone is about to take your takeaway!"
Lin Suye suddenly exclaimed.
Jiang Yuan immediately turned her head and squinted at her takeaway.
A tall and slender boy was standing in front of her takeaway.
The dazzling sunlight was pouring down on his head. His facial features were well - defined, and the eyelashes that caught the sunlight cast shadows, making his eyes look even more profound and his nose bridge more prominent.
Why did this person look a bit familiar?
Jiang Yuan tilted her head and sized him up.
Seeing that the boy's hand was about to touch her takeaway, Jiang Yuan's eyes were on fire. She grabbed Lin Suye and rushed over angrily.
"Hey! Are you so poor that you can't afford to eat? Can't you even eat the five - cent rice in the school canteen? Why do you have to steal my takeaways? And you've stolen them several times! Do you really think I'm a sick cat just because I don't show my claws?"
"Ah? Are you mute? Why don't you say a word? Are you feeling guilty?"
Jiang Yuan was so angry that she gritted her teeth. Her eyes were shooting out hot flames as she charged towards the takeaway counter aggressively.
The boy who was about to pick up the takeaway order was slightly stunned. He turned his head towards the source of the sound.
Lin Suye, who was trying to hold her good friend back and calm her down, was caught off - guard by this scene. She was immediately amazed and almost dazzled.
"Yuanyuan, Yuanyuan, calm down! He's a super - handsome guy! But why does he look a bit familiar?"
"I don't care if he's a super - handsome guy or a jerk. In my eyes, he has only one identity - the despicable, shameless and damned person who stole my takeaways."
Jiang Yuan was already blinded by anger. She strode up to the boy bravely.
She suddenly slapped the takeaway table and glared at him, shouting, "Confess honestly! Did you steal my takeaways?"
Their eyes met in mid - air.
The boy made a "tsk" sound with an unclear meaning.
He slightly lowered his eyes. His black pupils caught the fragmented light, reflecting her figure.
"Jiang Yuan, have your brains rusted after not seeing each other for a few years? Do I need to help you clean them with alcohol? How could you even forget me?"
Huh?
This... this familiar tone. Jiang Yuan trembled all over. It was her childhood friend Chi Xu who had disappeared for three years, no doubt about it.
"Oh, I finally remember who he is. It's Chi Xu. He's one year senior to us. I heard he was the most handsome one in the previous batch."
Lin Suye racked her brains and finally remembered who the boy in front of her was. She blushed and whispered in Jiang Yuan's ear while stealing glances at him.
After saying that, she sighed, "He's really fucking handsome."
Then she changed the topic and asked curiously, "Judging from his tone, do you two know each other?"
Jiang Yuan: "..."
They didn't just know each other. They were childhood friends who had grown up together.
"I don't know him. Who is he? I've never seen him before." Jiang Yuan sized him up from head to toe, then twitched the corner of her mouth and sneered.
"This is the most handsome guy in the previous batch? They must have ranked him from the bottom."
Jiang Yuan tilted her head and said earnestly, "Suye, it seems your taste needs to be improved. Don't worry. I know a lot of handsome guys. I'll show them to you later to broaden your horizons."
Lin Suye: "..."
She seemed to smell gunpowder. She was inexplicably dragged into this and was now shivering between the two of them.
Chi Xu hooked his lips. His beautiful black eyes locked onto Jiang Yuan, deliberately dragging out the end of his words.
"Jiang Yuan, who used to follow me around back then? And who used to call me Brother Chi Xu over and over again?"
Oh no. The long - buried memories were attacking.
Jiang Yuan's face changed. She glared at Chi Xu with her round almond eyes and counterattacked, "You're not a kid anymore. Do you still like me to call you brother? Didn't you have enough of kindergarten?"
Chi Xu blinked innocently and calmly admitted, "Yes, I'm much better than someone who is stubborn and refuses to admit it."
Fine. He was really comparing now.
Anyway, Jiang Yuan was so angry that she laughed.
She grabbed the takeaway and protected it behind her back. "So, did you steal my takeaways these days?"
Chi Xu frowned and snorted. His eyes slowly fell on the takeaway bag in the girl's hand. He said contemptuously, "This? Junk food. I'm afraid it will lower my IQ if I eat it. It's not worth it."
"It's none of your business. Who do you think you are?" Jiang Yuan tightened her grip on the takeaway bag, suppressing the surging emotions in her heart. She turned around and looked down at her friend.
"Let's go back to the dormitory. We don't need to argue with such a person."
Lin Suye noticed Jiang Yuan's unhappiness and quickly hooked her arm and walked towards the dormitory.
The early - autumn sun still retained the aftertaste of summer. It was overly bright, roasting the earth like a furnace.
Jiang Yuan stubbornly walked forward without turning back to look at the boy standing beside the takeaway counter.
It seemed that only by doing so could the pain and longing that had lasted for three years disappear.
"Jiang Yuan!"
The familiar voice came from behind.
Jiang Yuan paused slightly. A faint hint of joy welled up in her heart. She turned her head to look.
The boy trotted over, holding an umbrella in his hand. When he reached her, he tilted his head slightly, and his hair was damp with sweat.
His smiling eyes were brightly shining.
He held out the umbrella. "You've already gotten tanned during the military training. If you don't pay attention to sun protection now, you'll get even darker."
Jiang Yuan was still angry and didn't want to take the umbrella.
Suddenly, her slender and fair wrist was grabbed. There was an inexplicable coolness.
Jiang Yuan was surprised and opened her eyes wide. Her eyes were filled with a bit of water vapor, looking like a startled fawn.
Then, Chi Xu leaned closer bit by bit. His hot breath fell on her neck.
Her snow - white and translucent skin instantly trembled.
The tremor made her heart flutter.
He was getting too close.
So close that as long as he lowered his head a little, he could kiss her.
Jiang Yuan let out a soft whimper and avoided the boy's burning gaze. The snow - white earlobes half - hidden under her long hair were shamefully blushed.
"Right, my dear charcoal princess."
Jiang Yuan: "..."
The boy let out a happy laugh from his throat after successfully teasing her. He lowered his head and placed the umbrella in Jiang Yuan's palm. Then he let go and took a step back. The cool touch also left.
She actually felt a bit reluctant.
Lin Suye, who was standing beside them trying to reduce her presence, looked left and right. The high - upturned corners of her mouth revealed her excited mood of watching the show.
Jiang Yuan endured it for a while and then chose to glare at the over - joyed Chi Xu fiercely.
A strange smile appeared on her lips. Taking advantage of the fact that there was no one around, she reached out and accurately grabbed the boy's ear and pulled it down slightly.
"Ouch, ouch..."
Chi Xu was in so much pain that tears came out. He kept begging for mercy.
Then Jiang Yuan was afraid that Chi Xu would retaliate immediately. She immediately grabbed Lin Suye's arm and rushed forward as if fleeing for her life.
Chi Xu stood up straight again and helplessly rubbed his red - tugged ear. His eyes were full of doting as he whispered softly.
"Yuanyuan, you're being too harsh."
...
Lin Suye was directly dragged to the dormitory building. She bent down and gasped for breath. Just as she was about to open her mouth, a finger was placed in front of her.
She looked up and saw it was Jiang Yuan.
"What do you want to ask?" she asked.
Lin Suye was overjoyed. She had been holding back a lot of doubts. Just as she was about to open her mouth, she saw Jiang Yuan's eyes light up like a light bulb with its switch turned on.
Lin Suye forgot what she wanted to say and blankly followed her gaze.
There was a poster from the canteen at the dormitory building. It said that in order to celebrate the end of the freshmen's military training, the school was giving out vouchers on a first - come - first - served basis.
"The canteen is giving out free vouchers today!"
Jiang Yuan grabbed Lin Suye's arm and rushed towards the canteen.
Lin Suye: "..."
But as soon as they got to the canteen, Jiang Yuan and Lin Suye regretted it.
Because there were free things, the canteen was crowded with people. It was almost impossible to move forward.
Jiang Yuan first found a place to put their things. Then the two of them, taking advantage of their small stature and flexible movement, squeezed through the gaps in the crowd with great effort and finally managed to get to the innermost layer.
Lin Suye suddenly noticed that Jiang Yuan was still holding the umbrella in her hand. She said speechlessly, "Yuanyuan, why are you still holding the umbrella?"
Jiang Yuan, with much experience, said earnestly, "Look at the posts on our school's confession wall. It's either the takeaways are stolen or the umbrellas are taken, especially on rainy days."
It seemed... she had a point.
When the last voucher was taken away by the classmate in front of Jiang Yuan, Jiang Yuan stared at the empty cardboard box pitifully and aggrievedly.
She was like a deflated balloon, slumping down all of a sudden. She waved her clenched fist weakly in the air a few times.
"After all this trouble, it was all for nothing."
Jiang Yuan muttered softly. Suddenly, she noticed that Lin Suye beside her had been quiet for a long time. She looked up and suddenly found herself surrounded.
To be more precise, she accidentally found herself at the front - line of a gossip scene.
Not far away, there was a boy and a girl. The boy was standing with his back to them, wearing a loose short - sleeved shirt and standing lazily.
The girl was facing them, holding a megaphone in her hand. Her cheeks were as red as ripe apples.
Jiang Yuan wasn't interested in this. She grabbed Lin Suye and was about to leave.
"Chi Xu, I like you. Can you be my boyfriend?"
The voice was powerful and resounding through the sky. Jiang Yuan quickly covered her ears. "Oh my god. This girl is so bold."
"Yuanyuan, it's actually Chi Xu. She's confessing to Chi Xu." Lin Suye grabbed Jiang Yuan who was about to leave and desperately winked at her.
Chi Xu?
The male protagonist of this confession drama?
How could she miss Chi Xu's show?
"I suddenly think we can't leave for a while. Let's just stay here for now." Jiang Yuan coughed lightly, trying hard to save face.
Lin Suye held back her laughter and didn't expose her.
Jiang Yuan looked up again. The boy was tall and standing lazily, as if he had no bones.
"He seems really impatient," she glanced and commented.
Lin Suye asked suspiciously, "How do you know? Where did you see that?"
Well... after knowing each other for so many years, Jiang Yuan could tell what Chi Xu was thinking just from one of his actions or one of his glances.
She scratched the back of her head. Her clean and innocent eyes were full of confusion as she said uncertainly, "Maybe it's because we've known each other for a long time?"
"Chi Xu, do you want to be my boyfriend?"
The girl with the megaphone was looking at the boy she adored with bright eyes, full of expectation and nervousness.
Chi Xu, who was in the middle of this gossip scene, lazily lifted his eyelids. His expression was as calm as water, without the slightest ripple. "Sorry, I don't like you. I can't be your boyfriend."
"Why? You don't have a girlfriend now. You can try to date me." The girl refused to give up and insisted that Chi Xu give her an answer.
Chi Xu frowned slightly. His amber eyes slowly scanned the surrounding crowd. It was a sea of people. He didn't want to embarrass her.
Suddenly, Chi Xu saw a familiar figure diagonally behind him.
Their eyes met. Jiang Yuan saw a dangerous and successful glint in those cold eyes. She immediately had a bad feeling.
Without hesitation, Jiang Yuan immediately gave up watching the show and grabbed Lin Suye, trying to squeeze through the gaps in the crowd.
The dense crowd was like solid walls, blocking all of Jiang Yuan's escape routes.
Jiang Yuan was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, jumping up and down, afraid that this confession incident would involve her.
"Yuanyuan, why are you in such a hurry to leave?" Lin Suye was confused.
Jiang Yuan rolled a big eye in Chi Xu's direction.
"I suddenly remembered I have something to do. I don't want to waste time here." Jiang Yuan was seriously making things up.
Finally, she found a breakthrough in the crowd. Jiang Yuan was overjoyed and quickly fled this place of trouble.
"I have someone I like," Chi Xu answered very seriously. He casually pointed a finger at Jiang Yuan who was bending down to squeeze out. "It's her."
Jiang Yuan: "..."
Jiang Yuan slowly stood up straight and looked at him.
Their eyes met again.
Jiang Yuan twitched the corner of her mouth. She just thought it was funny. For a moment, she wanted to cry.
All those happy, painful, sad and sorrowful emotions were like seasonings that had been suddenly knocked over. It was a mixed feeling.
Chi Xu, how could you dare to say you like me?