“How are you so good at comforting people?”
“Actually, a lot of it is wisdom I learned from books…”
After hearing this, Yan Junxi sniffled and mumbled, “What kind of book?”
Shu Wang’s face reddened slightly, and he said calmly, “A wuxia novel. It’s a very good book, but you need to read it with a calm mind.”
Yan Junxi didn’t speak again. She continued to lie there, as if she had cried herself out of strength. Inadvertently, she looked down, saw something, and suddenly burst into laughter, her tears turning to smiles.
“What’s wrong?” Shu Wang asked, puzzled.
“You’re still wearing my pink Kuromi slippers…”
“Ah?!”
Shu Wang was a bit bewildered. He looked down at his feet.
He was startled by what he saw.
He was indeed wearing a pair of pink slippers!
He looked embarrassed and said with a wry smile, “The bedroom was too dark, and I was in a hurry when I came out, so I just slipped on a pair. I’m sorry.”
Yan Junxi shook her head and murmured, “It’s okay, you can wear them. I’ll just buy another pair tomorrow.”
“…”
“Actually, I didn’t really want them…”
He thought to himself. The two were silent for a long time. Then, remembering something, he changed his address and said, “Sister Xi, should we go back?”
Yan Junxi didn’t answer him. Shu Wang mistakenly thought she wanted to stay there a little longer, so he didn’t ask again… “Sister Xi, Sister Xi…”
After a long time, the sky was already faintly lit. Shu Wang looked down and realized that the person in his arms had fallen asleep.
She was lying on his lap, eyes closed, brows furrowed, and her breathing wasn’t very steady. She must have been truly exhausted.
Shu Wang looked at her, his eyes complex, feeling a bit dazed for a moment.
Even though it was only from last night until almost dawn now, it felt like a very long time had passed.
He inexplicably met this girl; first, he saved her, then she brought him home, heated water for him to shower, and even helped him make the bed. He mistakenly thought she was going to jump into the lake, so he followed her to the park, sat there for half a day, and even, for the first time, spoke some heartfelt words.
He was thinking this, but soon, he realized something was wrong.
It was almost dawn, and he… his hair was a mess from sleeping, he was wearing a red floral shirt on top, red floral pants on the bottom, and pink slippers on his feet.
If someone took a picture of this and posted it online, and his classmates at school saw it…
Wouldn’t he directly lose four years of priority in choosing a partner?
Moreover, he was holding such a delicate older sister in his arms.
He started to panic, speaking incoherently, “Hey, Sister Xi, wake up quickly, don’t sleep here, go home and sleep…”
Yan Junxi grumbled, not waking up, and a faint snore could be heard.
They say that when a person is extremely nervous, their five senses are infinitely amplified. He felt as if he could already see a group of old men and Old Ladies coming to the park to practice tai chi, rushing towards them. And there were quite a few university students coming for morning exercise too.
He was burning with anxiety and raised his voice to call out twice more, but the person in his arms still didn’t move.
After a moment of internal struggle, he gritted his teeth and stomped his foot.
“I’m sorry, Sister Xi, but for the sake of my right to choose a partner, I must be presumptuous!”
He picked up Yan Junxi, shuffling in his slippers, found a secluded path through the woods, and quickly fled Longyuan Lake Park.
After returning to her rented apartment, Shu Wang carried her back to the bedroom.
He carefully placed Yan Junxi on the bed, helped her take off her shoes and socks, and covered her with the blanket.
After doing all this, it must have been around five in the morning. Even after drawing the curtains, the room was still pitch black.
He lay back down on the floor mat, let out a long sigh. A huge wave of sleepiness and fatigue washed over him; he was truly too tired, and he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
——
When the sun was high in the sky, he fumbled for his phone and turned it on, finding many unread messages, all from his roommate, Jiang Sheng.
【Shuai Fei Zhang Mu Niang】: “Here here here here!”
【Shuai Fei Zhang Mu Niang】: “Xiao Yue’er? It’s already eleven o’clock and you’re still not back?”
【Shuai Fei Zhang Mu Niang】: “What’s wrong with you, kid? Why didn’t you come back last night?!”
Shu Wang saw them but ignored him.
He glanced at the time again and realized he hadn’t slept much. Plus, after sitting by the lake for so long last night, his head was spinning.
He sat up, rubbed his eyes, and turned his head to find that Yan Junxi was no longer on the bed.
What greeted his eyes were his neatly folded clothes, and on top of the clothes was a note with a line of crooked writing:
“You’re awake? Help me fold the quilt. I’m going out to buy breakfast. I used a hairdryer to dry your clothes for you.”