Xu Zhilin was still in the same spot, glancing at her son's casual, unrestrained demeanor.
She suddenly felt some doubt—if she had him keep an eye on things, it would already be good if he didn't join in on the bullying himself.
But on second thought, she was still relatively at ease when it came to her son.
When the phone rang, she pulled her cell phone from her bag, answered it, and walked out the front door.
In the remaining space, only two people were left in an instant.
Lin Wutong walked ahead somewhat stiffly, her steps rigid.
She didn't know where Ji Ciye's eyes were looking behind her.
But it certainly wouldn't be the steps beneath her feet.
Beneath her feet, wearing slippers that didn't quite fit, on another tense lift, she accidentally caught the edge of the wood.
Her body suddenly pitched forward uncontrollably, her mind going blank in an instant.
Before she could even let out a cry, her slender arm was firmly grasped by a pair of strong hands.
Her body was steadied and set upright.
Only then did Lin Wutong let out a soft breath.
A false alarm.
The lingering fear kept her standing frozen in place, taking a full few seconds to recover.
"What are you thinking about? You're not even paying attention while walking."
The youth had at some point come to stand on the same step as her.
One of his arms rested on the stair railing behind her.
From the side, it looked like a confining posture.
But on the other side, he had given her enough space.
So it was merely a protective stance.
Lin Wutong's heart beat somewhat fast—she didn't know if it was from the fright just now or from the distance being too close at this moment.
She steadied her nerves, her voice still carrying a slight tremor, "Nothing."
As she spoke, she lifted her eyes to look at him.
Her dark, beautiful eyes were clean and docile.
At this moment, some of her guard had been let down.
Ji Ciye watched, his gaze flickering slightly.
His Adam's apple rolled unconsciously, his low, magnetic voice somewhat hoarse, "You like that type?"
"Huh?" The topic changed so abruptly that Lin Wutong was caught off guard.
Ji Ciye took in her reaction.
Clearly, she didn't know who he was talking about.
So he reminded her directly, "Zheng Xin."
The matter of adding Zheng Xin on WeChat at the school gate that day flashed back into her mind.
Now Lin Wutong knew what he was talking about.
Her eyelashes blinked lightly as she tried to avoid his gaze.
But he just happened to be staring at her without moving, as if to see whether she would lie.
Lin Wutong couldn't avoid it, so she could only reply, "No."
"I don't have a type I like."
She didn't have a type she liked.
She only had a person she liked.
Ji Ciye leaned in slightly closer, examining her eyes from an even nearer distance.
Her eyes flickered nervously again, and because of the extremely close distance, the shyness in them was almost impossible to hide.
Slowly, a faint blush also spread across her cheeks.
Ji Ciye let out a soft laugh, the corners of his lips curving up in pleasure.
At the same time, he drew back and withdrew his arm.
"Let's go, time for class."
This time he walked in front.
Lin Wutong followed behind him, her steps seeming a bit lighter, though her heart was somewhat pounding.
Ji Mingfei was in her room playing on her iPad when she heard a knock on the door. She casually set it down and came over.
After opening the door, she looked at Lin Wutong with a trace of surprise, "Sister Lin, why is your face so red?"
The room wasn't hot.
Could she have a fever? She instinctively raised her hand to feel Lin Wutong's forehead, then felt her own forehead.
Her fussing only made Lin Wutong embarrassed.
She raised the back of her hand to her cheek, trying to cool herself down. "It's probably just from walking all the way here."
It was indeed a bit warm from walking up the steps.
Seeing that she was truly fine, Ji Mingfei went with her to the study.
The two of them had their lesson until the mid-session break.
Auntie Zhang knocked on the door and brought in a fruit platter, urging Lin Wutong to eat some fruit.
Lin Wutong took it and said thank you.
The moment the plate was set down, Ji Mingfei picked up a fork, speared a piece, and after taking a bite, casually remarked, "Auntie Zhang, during break tomorrow, bring us another plate too."
Auntie Zhang had already been about to leave, but upon hearing this, she said with a chuckle, "Sure."
"It's just that today's plate was made by your brother. If I make it tomorrow, it might be a bit different."
The moment Ji Mingfei heard it was made by her brother, she couldn't sit still.
"Lin jiejie, wait for me a moment."
Ji Mingfei put down the fork and ran downstairs.
Sure enough, Ji Ciye was still in the living room.
There was also a small fruit platter in front of him, but it looked much more casually arranged.
"Gege." Ji Mingfei acted coquettishly, putting on a precocious air as she sidled up next to him and sat down. "When someone is unusually attentive for no reason, they're either scheming or thieving."
This was something he had taught her.
Ji Ciye pushed her little head away. "Girls should be more reserved."
Ji Mingfei pouted, sat up straight properly, and put some distance between them.
"Go on then."
"What are you being so attentive for?"
What could Ji Ciye possibly say to her?
Besides, even if he was being attentive, it wasn't for her.
For now, he brushed it off. "Mom said to tell you not to bully your teacher."
"Aiya." Ji Mingfei was dissatisfied, and retorted with some exasperation, "Didn't you already threaten me about that? Why bring it up again?"
At this point, her suppressed curiosity resurfaced. "Gege, is it really true that you and Lin jiejie just have a mutual friend in common?"
"A mutual friend in common?" Ji Ciye looked at her and repeated the question back.
"Yeah." Ji Mingfei said. "I asked Lin jiejie if you two were very familiar, and that's what she said."
"What else did she say?" Ji Ciye coaxed her along.
Ji Mingfei: "She said you two aren't very familiar."
"Heh~" Ji Ciye let out a cold laugh.
The fruit beside him instantly lost its appeal. The half-eaten piece was tossed back onto the platter.
Ji Mingfei: "…"
If you're not going to eat it, throw it in the trash. She could have eaten the rest.
Now?
She glanced at the fruit platter.
Never mind, she'd just go back upstairs to eat.
Tonight, the weather forecast wasn't very accurate.
There had been no rain in the forecast, but after seven o'clock, the sky began to drizzle.
It gradually showed signs of getting heavier.
Before leaving the Ji household after the lesson, Auntie Zhang handed Lin Wutong an umbrella.
"Thank you, Auntie Zhang." Lin Wutong said after taking it. "I'll come over again for class tomorrow."
She happened to have another tutoring session tomorrow.
Auntie Zhang smiled and said, "No worries, you use it first."
Just as the living room door was pushed open, footsteps came from the direction of the stairs.
Both of them turned to look at the same time. It was Ji Ciye coming down.
He was still wearing the same clothes from when he'd returned, hadn't changed.
As he walked over, he asked as if casually, "Done with class?"
The very picture of a good older brother.
As if he were concerned about his sister's studies.
"Mm." Lin Wutong responded softly.
Auntie Zhang noticed the car keys in his hand and asked with concern, "Ciye, are you going out?"
Ji Ciye: "Mm, Yan Shijin is looking for me."
He glanced once more at the dark, heavy night outside the door. The patter of raindrops came in through the gap of the opened door.
When he spoke again, his tone carried a touch of gentlemanly kindness as he looked at Lin Wutong. "Classmate Lin, are you heading back to school?"
"It's raining outside. I'm on my way—I can give you a ride."
He said it as if it were a casual remark, his expression mild and unreadable, showing no trace of the unbridled boldness from the stairwell that afternoon.
Before Lin Wutong could speak, Auntie Zhang heard it and thought it was a good idea. With such heavy rain, even with an umbrella, she might still get soaked. Worried the girl would feel embarrassed, she took the initiative to suggest, "Classmate Lin, why don't you go with Ciyie? He's heading out anyway."
Lin Wutong lowered her lashes, her fingers gripping the umbrella handle tightening unconsciously. After a moment, she said softly, "Then I'll trouble you."
"No trouble at all."