Chapter 3.2

 It had been 8 years since they last met, and yet he looked so good that it made her want to commit a crime. As a person who loved good looking faces, Zhen Yi could not describe the joy in her heart! Besides joy, she had no other thoughts.

She suddenly remembered that time in her junior year, when Si Gui's first love, whom Si Gui had described as delicate and lovely, came to the Imperial City to do business, and Zhen Yi being lecherous decided to accompany Si Gui, whose heart was in a frenzy, to invite him to dinner. As a result, she saw the cruelest thing in the world: Si Gui’s first love stood in front of them,but he was already swollen.

Si Gui's memories were completely disillusioned. On the way back to school, she didn't say a word. Before going to bed that night, she suddenly said: "Zhen, if you have a chance, don't go to see your first love."

That night, Zhen Yi dreamt of Yan Ge. Her beautiful boy had turned into a chubby person eating hamburgers and French fries in America. She was both anxious and angry, shaking his plump, soft arms, asking, "What happened to you? Are you swollen?"

What a cruel thing it is to be disillusioned with first love!

But presently, he was standing in front of her, looking even more beautiful than her memories. 8 years have passed, time has gone by, but he was still as bright as the moon and clear as the wind.

Her mind started to drift, and before she knew it her thoughts returned to 12 years ago when she had pursued him so vigorously. He couldn't handle it and would hide in the men's restroom after class. She would follow him, relentlessly banging on each door of the restroom. The male students, shocked, would flee the restroom while howling with their pants in their hands.

One door remained closed even after being knocked on for a long time.

It was him!

She had good athletic ability, so she clung to the door and jumped up, doing a pull-up. She leaned over the top of the door to look inside, and finally saw him. He wasn't wearing a school uniform, but a well-fitted white shirt with a slim black tie.

He looked really good, and she felt that she wouldn't get tired of looking at him even after hundreds of years.

He crossed his arms, his fair face slightly raised, deep eyes beneath thick eyebrows, and a perfectly-shaped nose. Calmly, without reproach, among the boys howling in the room, he remained quiet.

"Don't bother me," he said.

She hung herself on the door, her armpits aching, but her dangling feet happily swinging on the other side of the door. "Yan Ge, I like you."

"I know, you've said it 197 times."

"But I feel like you haven't listened even once!"

He replied indifferently, "There's nothing interesting about boring words."

"How can you say that? 'I like you' is such a pleasant thing to hear." She leaned her head on her arm, never taking her eyes off him. "If you were to say it to me, even just once, I would be ecstatic, fly to the sky, and scream all night, unable to sleep when I get back home."

The boys were all making a fuss; in the cubicle, yet he remained silent, as indifferent as ever.

Even now, at this moment, when Zhen Yi barged into the restroom, the only thing he did was to calmly zip up his pants, he didn’t act like a normal person, normally one would cover themselves with embarrassment and surprise.

Zhen Yi was extremely surprised, "How did you end up here?"

He glanced at her for half a second, "Because I went into the wrong restroom."

"..."

Saying the opposite... that's really his usual response to nonsense...

 He remembers her?

Zhen Yi explained her presence in the wrong restroom, "Someone was chasing after me, and I accidentally hid in the wrong place. But why did you come all the way here to use the restroom?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, it felt even stranger.

He was washing his hands without looking up, "Because I like the design and atmosphere of this restroom."

"..."

Zhen Yi secretly cursed in her heart: Will you die if you speak well?

He probably came to the mall to buy something.

She pursed her lips, not knowing what else to say, and said, "Well, see you next time." After saying it, she felt a strange movement in her heart, as if the person who said those words would have a difficult time in the future.

While she was lost in thought, Yan Ge opened the door. Lin Ziyi was already gone, and Zhen Yi followed him out.

In the arched corridor tens of meters away, Zhen Yi took a few steps and instinctively asked, "When did you come to the imperial city?"

"Last December."

"Ah, during the coldest time, you must have been freezing."

"It wasn't cold."

"..."

"You arrived later than me, so you're considered a guest. Do you want me to treat you to  dinner?"

"No."

"..."

After walking for more than ten meters, Zhen Yi remembered the day he visited her grandfather and tried to find something to talk about: "Did you study with my grandfather?"

"Yeah."

"..." She shrugged.

Talking to him was like trying to revive Hua Tuo, but even he couldn't save the awkwardness!

After a few seconds, he spoke up: "I didn't expect Professor Zhen to be your grandfather."

Zhen Yi's lips curved, and she smiled. In fact, that year, they knew very little about each other: "What do you do for work now?"

"It's complicated."

"Yeah, high-end."

Of course, Yan Ge could detect the sarcasm in her tone and stopped in his tracks. Zhen Yi also met his gaze calmly, with a smile that seemed both genuine and sarcastic.

He said seriously, "I won't explain. But would you like to give it a try?"

Try?

She raised her chin. "Sure, now?"

"Hmm." He nodded quietly.

"Look into my eyes." He whispered, taking a step closer. His voice was already warm and gentle, and with a slight drop in pitch, he exuded a calm and seductive voice.

They stood by the security gate, the corridor dimly lit, and a faint floral fragrance permeated the air.

The world was silent.

The soft music from the mall seemed to drift from a distance.

Zhen Yi involuntarily swayed a little, staring into his deep and tranquil eyes, she felt trapped as if she had fallen into them and somehow she was unable to move his feet.

His fingers were fair and slender, and they flickered in front of her eyes, like a white butterfly fluttering in the sunlight—illusory, unreal, yet stunningly beautiful. His voice was soft and pleasant, as if he said something, but Zhen Yi only heard the slow sound of a door opening.

Her thoughts seemed to ripple for a moment, then fell into the most comfortable dream, feeling relaxed and content.

Suddenly, she saw the 16-year-old Yan Ge, much taller than the 12-year-old version. He wore a dark blue coat with a dark red cord and ivory horn buttons, delicate and beautiful. (She wondered why she remembered such details.)

In the southern city, dense branches were everywhere. On winter nights, the lamplight shone through the mottled tree shadows, casting a golden halo on his jet-black short hair.

His long eyelashes were also tinged with gold, casting deep shadows in his eyes. (She didn't remember this beautiful moment in her memory.)

He walked quietly, while she hummed a song beside him, passing through the tranquil and ambiguous splendor of the night.

She suddenly asked, "Yan Ge, are you good at wood pecking?"

He turned his head, lowered his gaze, and his eyes seemed to ask, "What do you mean?"

"Literal meaning."

"... " He showed no curiosity at all.

She ran ahead and stopped him on the way. After a moment of consideration, he halted and asked, "What now?"

" I’ll Give you a chance to prove that you're better than a woodpecker."

He didn't understand, but he didn't ask either. He watched her quietly.

She did her best to tiptoe, raised her head, and approached his lips with her small face. "You can treat my face as a tree."

"..."

Her feet were sore, and she made an effort to steady herself and prevent herself from swaying.

Under the streetlight, her delicate and translucent face was close to his nose and lips. She didn't blush, but she jumped up and down, saying, "Hey, woodpecker, hurry up!"

Yan Ge's face heated up inch by inch, and he became angry from embarrassment. "Zhen Yi, aren't you ashamed?!"