On this winter day, the sun finally peeked out from the sky, like a cozy down quilt, warming everything gently.
In the classroom, the teacher sat down beside the podium and asked the students to type the code according to the examples in the textbook on their own first.
It was so quiet that the only sound was the crisp and lively clattering of keyboards.
Jiang Yuan opened her textbook and quietly typed while reading. Her profile was half bathed in the lazy sunlight, and her pupils seemed almost transparent in the clear light.
Everything was calm, if one ignored Jiang Yuan's recent odd behavior.
It had already been three days.
On Monday night, Chi Xu didn't show up for the elective course. Jiang Yuan heaved a sigh of relief. She had just asked for leave last time. If she asked for leave again, the teacher would surely become suspicious.
[Jia Fang: Lin Suye, should we help those two? After you guys left that day, Chi Xu got so drunk that he was like a puddle of mud. We couldn't even lift him up.]
[Jia Fang: You guys don't know. When Chi Xu was drunk, he shouted at the sky, 'I like you, Jiang Yuan. Can you be with me?' Later, he even shed tears.]
[Jia Fang: I've really never seen Chi Xu like this. They obviously like each other. Why did Jiang Yuan reject him back then?]
[Jia Fang: Chi Xu has been so down lately. He's been absent-minded and missed several classes. Lin Suye, please, find a way to make them reconcile.]
Lin Suye only knew some of the story, not all of it.
After the military training in September, they accidentally ran into Chi Xu. Jiang Yuan said that three years ago, Chi Xu disliked her and left, which made her dislike him in return.
But Chi Xu didn't seem to dislike Jiang Yuan?
At least he didn't show any signs of dislike when they first reunited.
A doubt took root in Lin Suye's heart. She turned her head and looked at Jiang Yuan, slightly opening her mouth. Before she could say anything...
Jiang Yuan interrupted mercilessly, "Are you chatting with Jia Fang? If you want to talk to me about Chi Xu, you'd better not say a word."
Caught off guard, Lin Suye felt like something flew out of her head. She tried but couldn't remember it, so she simply gave up.
"No, Yuanyuan. There's a new dessert shop outside our school. Let's go there tonight."
Lin Suye already had a plan in mind. She would ask Jia Fang to invite Chi Xu out and let them hide nearby.
As for herself, she would gradually lead Jiang Yuan to reveal her true feelings.
Jiang Yuan wouldn't know that Chi Xu was around, so what she revealed would be her most genuine feelings. If Chi Xu happened to hear it, he would know that she was lying on the rooftop that day.
He would cheer up and pursue Jiang Yuan again.
Until the two of them got together naturally.
It was perfect.
"Sure. Let's go tonight," Jiang Yuan replied indifferently.
To forget about Chi Xu for a while, she filled her days with activities, making herself tired and worn out.
This way, she wouldn't think about him.
Lin Suye was overjoyed. She secretly sent a message to Jia Fang, telling him that everything was settled and asking them to arrive early.
After school in the evening, Jiang Yuan and Lin Suye rushed to the new dessert shop outside the school.
Since desserts couldn't be a main meal and there were no opening promotions, there were only a few customers in the shop.
Jiang Yuan casually ordered some things. Lin Suye pretended to order some too and then followed Jiang Yuan to a seat by the window.
After sitting down, Lin Suye looked around but didn't see Chi Xu or Jia Fang. She lowered her head and sent a message curiously.
[Jia Fang: We're on the second floor. We'll come down right away. Can Jiang Yuan see the staircase?]
[Lin Suye: No, I can. After you come down, find a suitable seat quickly.]
Jia Fang sent an OK.
The dessert shop was beautifully decorated. Instead of ordinary tables and chairs, it used extremely comfortable sofas. The sofas were back to back, so one couldn't see the other side unless they stood up.
This was also the reason why Lin Suye chose this shop.
The waiter brought the small cakes and drinks they ordered. After the waiter left, Lin Suye saw Jia Fang and Chi Xu sneak downstairs and carefully sit on the sofa behind Jiang Yuan.
After not seeing him for a few days, Chi Xu seemed like a different person. His eyes were unfocused and empty as he silently followed Jia Fang.
But when he saw Jiang Yuan's back, his eyes instantly lit up a little.
Jiang Yuan took a sip of her drink. When she looked up and saw Lin Suye's shocked face, she frowned slightly and leaned over to follow Lin Suye's line of sight.
Lin Suye was startled. She quickly came to her senses and grabbed Jiang Yuan, "What are you doing?"
"No, it's you. What are you doing? What did you see that made you so shocked?" Jiang Yuan asked curiously as she spoke.
Lin Suye held onto Jiang Yuan tightly, her heart pounding like a drum, "I was just daydreaming. You must be seeing things. There's nothing interesting behind you."
Chi Xu and Jia Fang had already taken their seats. Even if Jiang Yuan looked over, she wouldn't be able to see them.
Just in case, Lin Suye still didn't want Jiang Yuan to turn around.
"Really? What were you daydreaming about? Is the food not good here?" Jiang Yuan was skeptical. She gave up the idea of looking over and picked up a fork to take a small bite of the cake. It melted smoothly in her mouth, "It's delicious."
Lin Suye let go of her hand awkwardly. She randomly stabbed a small piece of cake and stuffed it into her mouth, nodding quickly, "Delicious, delicious."
She took a sip of her drink, looked down at Jiang Yuan's cake, and whispered while clutching the corner of her clothes, "Yuanyuan, actually I was thinking about something else just now. Don't scold me when I tell you!"
"We're not kids anymore. How could I scold you?" The smile on Jiang Yuan's lips faded a bit, "If it's about him, I suggest you don't say it."
"But Jia Fang told me that Chi Xu has been so depressed that he even skipped classes and got drunk every day."
Lin Suye couldn't help but raise her voice and exaggeratedly described the situation.
Jia Fang, Chi Xu, you guys have to thank me well today. I'm taking a huge risk by saying this.
Jiang Yuan was silent for a few seconds. She looked up at Lin Suye, "Depressed all day? Skipping classes? Getting drunk?".
At the same time, Chi Xu silently stared at Jia Fang as if to say, Are you sure?
Even if he was down, he wouldn't be so irresponsible.
Jia Fang blinked desperately and silently said, "Don't care. Just keep listening."
"Yes, yes, Yuanyuan. There's one thing I still don't understand. Didn't you want to take revenge for his leaving back then? Why did you reject Chi Xu when he confessed to you on Saturday?"
Jiang Yuan propped her chin on one hand and stared out the window at the passing crowd sadly.
"I just don't want to think about it anymore. What other reason could there be?"
"Yuanyuan, is it because you've fallen in love with Chi Xu that you don't want to hurt him in this way?"
As long as Jiang Yuan admitted it, Chi Xu would regain his confidence and the two would reconcile.
Lin Suye stared at her without blinking. The two people behind almost held their breath, waiting for Jiang Yuan's answer.
She said, "It's just for fun. How could I really fall in love with him?"