What Lin Yi was worried about had finally come to pass.
After all, she had long known that this Jian Shuye girl was a seriously problematic beauty who couldn’t be judged by normal standards.
Lin Yi: “Sorry, I have something to do today and might not be free. Can I take a leave?”
Jian Shuye: “Reason.”
So fast! Was this girl constantly staring at her phone screen?
Lin Yi thought about it.
Going out to have fun with a classmate should be a legitimate reason, right?
Besides, Yan Jianxing had asked her first.
There had to be some order to things.
Lin Yi: “I’m going out to have fun with my roommate. We’re going to grab a meal together later.”
Jian Shuye: “Leisure activity. Denied.”
What a strict boss.
Lin Yi’s hands itched. The desire to hang the person on the other end from a lamppost was rising!
Lin Yi: “She had already made plans with me before we closed our deal. I thought about it and felt it wouldn’t be right to back out midway.”
This time, Jian Shuye thought for a moment before giving her answer.
Jian Shuye: “I’ll give you one hour to settle it.”
Just as Lin Yi was about to try and bargain for more time, she saw Yan Jianxing had already come up behind her.
“What are you doing?”
“Whoa! N-nothing, nothing. Let’s go.”
One hour… should be enough, right?
“So mysterious,” Yan Jianxing said, glancing sideways at Lin Yi.
“It’s not a boyfriend, is it?”
Lin Yi’s hair stood on end.
“Huh?!
A boyfriend?
How is that possible?
Not in this lifetime, no way, absolutely not!”
She would never let anyone else’s train enter her tunnel in this lifetime.
Absolutely never!
“I-I was just joking, don’t mind it.”
Yan Jianxing hurriedly explained, then placed a hand over her chest.
“I see… so you don’t have a boyfriend yet…”
“What’s with that relieved tone of yours?”
“Alright, alright, let’s go. Let’s go eat.”
Yan Jianxing pulled Lin Yi toward the restaurant.
Lin Yi followed behind Yan Jianxing, watching the beautiful girl who was a full head taller than her, her whole body emanating a fragrant scent.
And that super enticing, snow-white neck, hidden behind her swaying high ponytail, making one’s imagination run wild.
Walking slowly along the riverbank, they could see the tall buildings on the opposite shore, their glass curtain walls glinting, forming a strange contrast with the old European-style houses on this side.
It was just like her and Yan Jianxing.
They clearly didn’t seem like people who would walk the same path, yet here they were, brought together.
Fate is pretty magical, isn’t it?
Since the two of them had arrived fairly early, they didn’t have to wait in line outside and went straight to sit at a corner table.
The sunlight from outside the window shone right on the two of them, feeling warm and cozy.
“Um, Yan Jianxing…”
“Hmm?”
“I… I might have something to do a bit later.” Lin Yi tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“I might not be able to keep hanging out with you this afternoon.”
Yan Jianxing’s gaze lifted from the menu.
“Huh? What’s going on? That’s so sudden.”
“I think it’s pretty sudden too.”
Lin Yi was considering whether or not to mention the whole private model thing, but upon further thought, it seemed kind of awkward and not easy to bring up.
Besides, she had previously fainted because of work and was explicitly forbidden by the school from participating in any more work-study programs.
For some reason, Lin Yi had a small premonition that once she told Yan Jianxing about this black market work she was doing for Jian Shuye, the consequences might be hard to predict.
So she chose a strategy of concealment, only saying what she could.
“I see…”
Yan Jianxing chewed on a toothpick, looking genuinely troubled.
“Alright, fine. Ah, well, life is always full of surprises. It’s okay.”
Watching the sunny beauty across from her lower her head, Lin Yi couldn’t help but feel like she had done something terribly wrong to her.
“Lin Yi, do you… not really like going out with others?”
“Huh?”
Oh no.
Did Yan Jianxing think she was making up an excuse to leave?
She had to think of something to say to comfort her.
After all, they were classmates and roommates.
She couldn’t let the other girl misunderstand like this.
Lin Yi’s brain CPU immediately started running at full power.
“That’s not it at all! If anything, going out to have fun with you is something I’d beg for!”
“Beg for?” Yan Jianxing blinked.
“Yes! Because I… I really like you…” Lin Yi lifted her head.
“I really liked this morning I spent with you! I truly felt very happy!”
“Huh?!” Yan Jianxing was first startled, then slowly relaxed.
“Like… oh, oh, liked this morning, huh.”
What was going on?
She seemed even more disappointed now?
Could it be the emotions weren’t conveyed strongly enough?
Right, this was the time to add a little physical contact to strengthen the expression of feelings.
So Lin Yi reached out and grabbed Yan Jianxing’s fingers.
“As compensation, next time, I’ll definitely stay with you until the very end.”
The toothpick Yan Jianxing had been chewing on slowly fell onto the table.
The sound of bicycle bells came from outside the window.
Occasionally, a leaf would float down, spinning slowly before landing on the stone pavement.
A sparrow landed outside the window and, through the glass, watched the two girls holding hands, tilting its head.
“Um…”
“Whatever you want to do!”
“Is that so.” The corner of Yan Jianxing’s mouth lifted slightly.
“Then, it’s a promise, okay?”
As she spoke, Yan Jianxing looked at her hand, which Lin Yi was holding, and extended her thumb.
Lin Yi saw this and, seeming to understand Yan Jianxing’s intention, extended her own thumb as well.
Their two thumbs touched, sealing their mutual promise.
The server began bringing out the food.
The set meal for two included wagyu steak, chicken steak, fries, and cod pieces, along with two servings of abalone seafood soup.
Yan Jianxing and Lin Yi both felt this wasn’t enough, so they added spicy skewers and crayfish.
About fifty minutes later, the two of them, finally full and satisfied, walked out of the restaurant.
Lin Yi secretly let out a small burp but was still discovered by Yan Jianxing.
Just as her face flushed red and she was about to explain, Yan Jianxing burst into laughter and, in the process, let out a burp of her own.
So the two of them bent over, supporting each other’s shoulders, and laughed again.
Yan Jianxing wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and asked, “So about what time will you be heading back to school? Should I wait for you outside?”
“No, no, it’s fine. I’ll head back to school myself once I’m done.”
Just as Lin Yi was thinking about saying goodbye, she saw Yan Jianxing extend her hand.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’ll help you carry the bag back first.” Yan Jianxing wiggled her fingers. “The clothing bag, the one with the school uniform inside.”
Lin Yi was currently wearing her new clothes.
Her school uniform was in a kraft paper bag she was carrying.
“Then I’ll trouble you with it.”
This person was oddly kind.
Lin Yi handed over the kraft paper bag, then waved goodbye to Yan Jianxing.
After Lin Yi’s figure disappeared from sight, Yan Jianxing stayed where she was.
It wasn’t clear what she was looking at, but she stood there for several minutes without moving.
Then, she lowered her head to look at the kraft paper bag in her hand, opening it to take a brief glance inside.
The summer sports uniform, with the Zhuming Girls’ High School emblem embroidered on it.
Because there were changing rooms for physical education classes, to prevent the girls from accidentally taking each other’s clothes, the school had names sewn onto the back of the collars.
She flipped over the collar of the uniform and saw the characters for “Class 1-1, Lin Yi.”
“Whatever you want to do, huh?”
Yan Jianxing smiled, placing the uniform back into the paper bag.
Recalling Lin Yi’s flustered and hurried appearance from earlier, Yan Jianxing hugged the paper bag to her chest, humming a tune as she walked away.