While Jiang Xule was still hesitating over which shower gel to use, there was a sudden knock on the bathroom door.
“Jiang Xule, are you finished washing?”
Jiang Xule jumped in fright, feeling like a thief caught red-handed. Seeing the silhouette of the person reflected through the glass door, she scratched her head in confusion.
“I’m almost done, what’s the matter?”
Fang Yize: “I just wanted to tell you that you can use anything in the bathroom you like, no need to hesitate.”
How did she know I was hesitating? Jiang Xule was startled and immediately looked around for cameras, even peering into the holes of the showerhead.
Then she heard Fang Yize say: “Because when I have friends over, they also don’t know which ones are available to use and even call me specifically to ask.”
“Then… I’ll go back to washing.”
She specifically stepped out halfway through her own shower to tell me this? Jiang Xule stood frozen in place, wondering if this woman took her for a fool.
In addition to Fang Yize’s personal items, the bathroom also contained toiletries Fang Yize had prepared specifically for Jiang Xule.
Jiang Xule usually used a facial cleanser and applied some Dabao cream afterward; compared to Fang Yize’s vanity… hers was relatively simple.
When she finished washing and came out, she found Fang Yize waiting for her at the door.
“Why are you standing here?”
This was the fastest Fang Yize had ever finished her routine. No one knew what kind of scheme she was plotting, but she looked at Jiang Xule with a shy expression.
“The clothes fit quite well, huh.”
Jiang Xule was wearing Fang Yize’s white T-shirt. It was a style Fang Yize wore often; she had bought many in different sizes and wore them in various ways.
“Yeah.” Jiang Xule averted her gaze, standing there awkwardly.
“Um… I’ve finished brushing my teeth,” Fang Yize asked again. “What about you?”
Jiang Xule nodded and replied, “I’ve brushed them.”
“Then let’s kiss!”
Fang Yize stepped forward toward Jiang Xule with excitement. Her eyes shimmered with a moist luster, and her expression was full of anticipation.
Jiang Xule was pressed back against the wall. Her eyes blinked rapidly, and her expression was unnatural. Both her hands were braced against the wall behind her; seeing Fang Yize’s face slowly approaching, she subconsciously swallowed.
She thought Fang Yize was going to kiss her immediately, and her breath nearly stopped. To her surprise, Fang Yize stopped just as their noses were about to touch.
She asked again: “Is it okay?”
If you’re going to kiss me, just do it, why ask so much?!
Fang Yize’s breath hit Jiang Xule’s chin as she spoke, making it itch so much that she instinctively wanted to shrink back, but there was nowhere to run.
She heard her own heartbeat; they both heard their heartbeats.
Before Jiang Xule could respond, Fang Yize’s gaze moved downward. Without a word, she raised her hand and placed it over Jiang Xule’s heart, feeling its rapid, frantic pounding while also sensing the softness of that spot.
“Our hearts are beating at the same speed, Jiang Xule.”
Jiang Xule felt like she was going to die of suffocation!
If something didn’t happen tonight, she felt she could smoke an entire pack of cigarettes in one go.
Just when Jiang Xule thought Fang Yize was finally going to kiss her, her hand was suddenly grabbed and placed over Fang Yize’s own heart.
Then she heard her ask: “Can you feel it?”
Jiang Xule’s hand was trembling because she didn’t just feel the heartbeat—she also realized that the young miss wasn’t wearing a bra.
Seduction. Absolute, blatant seduction!
Jiang Xule’s gaze moved from the back of her own hand to Fang Yize’s face. Seeing her expression, she knew it was intentional.
How could someone do something so bold and daring yet still maintain such a harmless, innocent, and naive expression?!
Who could endure this?
In the next second, Jiang Xule broke free from Fang Yize’s grasp on her wrist, pinched her chin, and leaned in toward her lips.
Just as their lips were about to meet, the doorbell suddenly rang rapidly. Startled, Jiang Xule made a sharp turn, slamming her forehead against the cold wall. She wished she could dig a hole in it and hide.
Fang Yize, who had already closed her eyes, opened them in dissatisfaction, her gaze still clouded with lingering desire. She sighed, gritted her teeth, and turned to open the door.
This was already the third ring of the doorbell.
The moment the door opened, Sun Lin walked in while grumbling, “My ancestor, what are you doing taking so long? Can’t you control this door with your tablet… Ah!”
When Sun Lin saw Jiang Xule standing by the bathroom door, she thought she was in the wrong place. She turned to leave, only to see Fang Yize just closing the main door.
She whipped back around to look at Jiang Xule, whose ears were beet red, and then at Fang Yize’s gloomy face. Realizing something, she let out an awkward laugh.
“It seems… I haven’t come at a very good time?”
Fang Yize gritted her teeth: “You’d better have a good reason.”
Sun Lin was about to apologize when she suddenly realized something wasn’t right. She straightened her back and asked, “Wait! Since when has your relationship been good enough to spend the night at each other’s houses?”
Hearing this, Fang Yize raised her hands to split her long hair into two sections and draped them over her chest. She shuffled to the sofa in her slippers and sat down; Jiang Xule followed closely behind her.
“Is it hard to tell? We are together.”
“Huh?!”
Sun Lin’s eyes nearly popped out in shock. The level of surprise was no less than finding out her favorite male idol’s dating rumors were exposed, and the “sister-in-law” was her own closest friend.
As expected of you, Fang Yize! You secretly went to get a teaching certificate, secretly went to the countryside to be a volunteer teacher, secretly became a formal teacher at Yuegang No. 1 Middle School, and now you’ve secretly started dating!
Sun Lin’s internal monologue: I only looked away for one day and you two have already moved in together. If I hadn’t come today, what were you two planning to do? Was the “dry wood and fierce fire” about to burn everything down?
She struck the pose of an elder, crossing her arms and leaning against the back of the sofa, scrutinizing the two people sitting side-by-side opposite her. Her eyes narrowed into slits.
She didn’t know Jiang Xule well, but didn’t she know Fang Yize? She must have used some little tricks.
“Jiang Xule, did you know Fang Yize had a crush on you in high school?” Sun Lin had brought a large bag of snacks and casually opened a pack, asking while she ate.
Jiang Xule wore her emotions on her sleeve; she truly didn’t know this. She only knew that she had misheard Fang Yize “scolding” her and “stalking” her.
“She used to run to your Class 1 every day after class. Why do you think that was?”
Back then, Jiang Xule was immersed in her studies and hadn’t noticed Fang Yize running to their class at all. Before she encountered Fang Yize climbing through a window, she had only heard of her through classmates. It was only after being “scolded” for the window incident that she truly noticed her.
She wasn’t interested before, but now she really wanted to know, so she asked: “Why?”
“Because she liked you, why else?” Sun Lin crunched on her potato chips and continued, “And also, every time after school, she would follow behind you. Every time you went home for the holidays, she would follow you for a while. She wouldn’t even take her private car and would squeeze onto the bus with you. You didn’t know any of this?”
As Sun Lin spoke, she felt it wasn’t worth it for Fang Yize. She sighed and continued: “One time she even lost you. She has a terrible sense of direction and can’t read a map. In the end, I was the one who found her.”
Jiang Xule had never imagined that Fang Yize followed her because of a crush. She had always thought Fang Yize wanted to confirm her home address so she could bring people to ambush her.
Thinking about it now, she was somewhat paranoid.
At the thought of falling into a ditch while trying to dodge Fang Yize because she wasn’t looking at the road, a wave of embarrassment immediately surged up. Luckily, Fang Yize hadn’t caught up, or she would have seen her crush lying in a stinking ditch.
“She used to have a crush with that face of hers, but now she’s started taking the initiative, and she got you so easily. I didn’t expect it, really didn’t expect it.”
Sun Lin: “Jiang Xule, you look quite cold and aloof, how are you so easy to pursue? You must have been in quite a few relationships, right? Our Yiyi is a ‘mother-born solo’ (never dated), you have to treat her well.”
Sun Lin was usually talkative, but today she was exceptionally so. Fang Yize really wanted to use tape to seal her mouth shut.
Jiang Xule pursed her lips and said: “No, this is my first time dating too.”
“For real?!” Sun Lin’s mouth hung open. She tossed the snacks onto the table and began to clap for the two of them in admiration.
Just by looking at their faces, one could tell many people had pursued them. To be able to withstand so many temptations and remain single for twenty-four years was not simple.
But Jiang Xule was simply used to being alone. Her family didn’t have much money; when she finally got out of school for the holidays and everyone invited her to play, she would often refuse. She felt that going out even once would cost a lot of money.
Afterward, it would mean a long period of eating pickles with steamed buns—breaking one bun in half to last for two meals.
Not to mention dating; dating cost even more money—anniversaries, birthdays, this holiday, that holiday… just thinking about it gave her a headache.
But Fang Yize was different. she had been surrounded and pampered since she was a child. The reason she hadn’t dated for so many years was simply because she had never found a “substitute” for Jiang Xule.
She was long-suffering and persistent; unless the person she liked did something that completely repulsed her, it was impossible for her to give up. If she couldn’t have them, she would rather die alone.
“So, what is your purpose for coming to my house?” Fang Yize asked.
She had been seconds away from giving her first kiss of over twenty years to her first love, but at the critical moment, Sun Lin had popped up. Fang Yize had been brooding over it since she entered the door.
Sun Lin gave a couple of “haha”s. She had never needed a reason to come to Fang Yize’s house before, but now that she was being asked, she knew she had ruined someone’s good moment.
She sensibly wiped the snack crumbs off her hands, stood up, and grabbed her bag. “Actually, it’s nothing important. I was just passing by on an errand and came up to take a look.”
“Now that you’ve looked, you can leave.”
Sun Lin frowned with indignation, her expression seemingly saying: You have such a cruel heart! All these years as best friends, and in the end, I can’t compare to your ‘dear baby’! Fine, I’m leaving!
After the sound of the door closing faded, silence returned to the living room.
After a moment of silence, Fang Yize shifted her position, leaning closer to Jiang Xule. She took her arm and rested her head on her shoulder.
Jiang Xule used to think Fang Yize’s feelings for her were inexplicable, but after hearing Sun Lin’s words, she realized that to Fang Yize, it really wasn’t just a rich young lady wanting to date for fun.
“If you knew that I’m actually not as good as you imagine, would you still like me?”
Jiang Xule’s voice was very soft, exactly the same as the Jiang Xule in Fang Yize’s memory who represented the top students during speeches on stage.
Fang Yize looked up, rested her chin on Jiang Xule’s shoulder, and looked into her worried eyes. She felt the same heartache she had felt the day Fang Xize showed her Jiang Xule’s background information.
Fang Yize lacked nothing, so she expected nothing from being with Jiang Xule; she only hoped Jiang Xule would like her as much as she liked Jiang Xule.
Although she knew Jiang Xule might not like her that much yet—that she had used some schemes to get her—it didn’t matter. Her love at first sight was real, and she believed in the saying that “love grows over time.”
After staring at each other for a long while, Fang Yize silently tilted her head up, closed her eyes, and pecked Jiang Xule on the lips.
Jiang Xule’s eyes were half-open. Her heart skipped a beat when she kissed her without notice, and her scalp felt numb for a long while.
This kiss only lasted for a second or two, but it had already given Jiang Xule a clear answer.