Lu Xun stood over a meter away from her in the shadows. Jiang Qiao couldn’t clearly see his expression and couldn’t help feeling disheartened, her high ponytail drooping slightly. She murmured softly, “Ignoring me again. It’s always like this. Just how much do you dislike me…”
The plaintive trailing note of her voice was scattered by the wind, becoming indistinct. Lu Xun emerged from the shadows, propping his bicycle neatly against the wall with a swift motion as he closed in on her.
The sudden sense of oppression made Jiang Qiao instinctively want to step back, but in the next second, he grabbed her arm. “Running away?”
Lu Xun stared at her. His grip was strong, his palm calloused, dry and scorching hot. His fingers dug into her fair skin.
Jiang Qiao only felt the pinched spot was both painful and burning. Her heartbeat quickened as she frantically tried to push Lu Xun’s hand away.
Lu Xun seized her other restless hand instead. Her slender wrist was completely restrained. He lowered his head, his eyelashes veiling the emotions in his eyes. “If you can’t wait for me, why not just leave?”
“You knew I was lying to you, yet you still squatted here foolishly waiting?” he said. “If I didn’t come back all night, would you have waited here the entire night?”
“Jiang Qiao, do you have any sense of safety at all?”
Jiang Qiao was stunned by his scolding. Already wronged, now she was being criticized by the very person who caused it—she had never felt so aggrieved. “Yes, I’m stupid, I’m foolish, I have no sense of safety.”
Tears gradually welled up in her eyes as she glared at Lu Xun. “No matter what I do, it’s always wrong in your eyes.”
She had painstakingly prepared a birthday gift, rushed over to deliver it, only to have her warmth met with cold indifference—her sincere feelings might as well have been thrown to the dogs.
Lu Xun simply watched her without speaking. An unspeakable silence spread between them.
After a long moment, Lu Xun loosened his grip on her wrist slightly. “I didn’t say that.”
“That’s exactly what you meant!”
“……………………”
Just as Jiang Qiao was about to say more, a “gurgling” sound suddenly broke the quiet space.
Jiang Qiao: “……………………”
She froze, sensing Lu Xun’s gaze fall upon her. Her face flushed bright red in an instant.
Just when she was getting into the drama of their argument, her empty stomach had to betray her with such an embarrassing rumble!
Realizing what had happened, Lu Xun frowned tightly. “You haven’t eaten?”
“Mmm… hmph.” Jiang Qiao awkwardly turned her face away.
Sitting on the small sofa in Lu Xun’s home, Jiang Qiao still felt a bit dazed, unsure how she had ended up being pulled inside by him.
This was her first time entering Lu Xun’s home. Her first impression was that it was small and old, but tidy.
Jiang Qiao stayed quiet for only a short while before she began moving around, commenting on how the refrigerator was too small one moment, and how the TV needed replacing the next.
The paint on the walls was peeling, there was too little furniture, the room was too small, the soundproofing was poor…
Once she had talked herself tired, she held a cup of water Lu Xun had poured for her and leaned against the kitchen doorway. “Hey, are you cooking for me?”
Lu Xun stood with his back to her, his figure tall and straight. The simple gray short-sleeved shirt and black pants he wore gave off an aloof, cool aura.
Lu Xun didn’t respond, but Jiang Qiao wasn’t annoyed. Her temper flared up quickly but faded just as fast. One moment she had been on the verge of tears from anger, and the next she was already perking up again. “By the way, let’s go buy a cake together. You can’t have a birthday without cake! Hey, what do you think of this shop? Lu Xun, take a look…”
Lu Xun carried a steaming bowl, expressionlessly walked past her, and set it on the table. “Eat.”
“Oh, oh, oh.”
Lu Xun’s vegetable and egg noodles were prepared with pan-fried eggs, two golden ones nestled atop the noodles alongside vibrant green bok choy, their aroma wafting enticingly.
Jiang Qiao swallowed hard, feeling her stomach growl even more fiercely. The tempting scent had awakened her hunger, making her forget all about cake. She lowered her head and ate the noodles, one mouthful after another.
Halfway through, her hunger slightly abated, and she lifted her head with a touch of restraint. Noticing Lu Xun had nothing in front of him, she asked curiously, “Aren’t you eating?”
“I’ve already eaten.”
So, he had really made it just for her.
Jiang Qiao paused mid-slurp, glancing subtly at Lu Xun across from her.
Lu Xun was slightly lowering his gaze, focused on a vocabulary booklet he’d pulled out from somewhere. His eyes were sharp and cool, his facial lines clean and defined, with a tall nose bridge. When he looked down, his thick, long lashes were visible. His lips, neither too thin nor too full, were pressed together, exuding an aloofness that seemed to keep others at a distance.
The intensity of her gaze from across the table was impossible to ignore. Without looking up, he parted his lips slightly and asked, “Like what you see?”
Caught staring absentmindedly and discovered by the person himself, Jiang Qiao’s cheeks flushed slightly. But she felt no awkwardness, answering openly in a clear voice, “Yes.”
She never hid her fondness for Lu Xun: “Lu Xun, you’re really good-looking.”
Instead of showing the pleasure she expected from the compliment, Lu Xun’s expression darkened. “Haven’t you gotten tired of looking after two years?”
I only like his face… and I’m not bored with him yet…
The girl’s immature yet proud voice seemed to echo in his ears. Lu Xun’s face completely lost all expression. He stood up, looking down at Jiang Qiao. “Leave when you’re done eating.”
Not understanding why his mood had shifted so suddenly, Jiang Qiao hurriedly finished the noodles in two or three bites, wiped her mouth haphazardly, and said, “No.”
“Am I someone you can invite and dismiss as you please?”
Inviting a wolf into your home—this was exactly what it meant.
She sat firmly, afraid Lu Xun might throw her out, leaning on the table without moving and stealing glances at him with her wide, peach blossom eyes.
The two locked eyes in silence for a while.
Lu Xun took a deep breath, his face expressionless. “Go wash the bowl.”
Was he letting her stay?
Jiang Qiao was inwardly delighted but pretended to be reluctant. “Fine…”
What passed for a kitchen was merely a small partitioned space. After washing the bowl and putting it away, Jiang Qiao came out to find Lu Xun gone.
A sliver of light shone from under the door of the adjacent room. She pushed it open and entered. Lu Xun was sitting at a small desk, head slightly lowered, with a half-finished test paper in front of him.
Jiang Qiao tiptoed over and leaned casually against the desk facing him, waving a hand in front of his eyes. “Hey, do you have to work so hard? Come out and celebrate your birthday.”
Lu Xun glanced at her, then lowered his eyes again.
Jiang Qiao lifted her leg slightly and nudged his. “I’m talking to you.”
Lu Xun: “Not going.”
“That won’t do,” Jiang Qiao straightened up. “I came all the way here to celebrate your birthday.”
Lu Xun set down his pen, picked up the book she had knocked over, and placed it back neatly, his gaze still downcast. “There’s no cake shop around here.”
“Ah…” Jiang Qiao’s face fell, but then she perked up as an idea struck her. “It’s fine, I’ll have someone deliver one.”
She pulled out her phone to send a message, but Lu Xun lightly pressed her wrist, took the phone, and set it on the desk. “Don’t bother.”
“It’s no trouble. I can pay for delivery.”
Looking at her serious expression, Lu Xun let out a soft chuckle: “I know you’re rich.”
Seeing him tuck the test paper into his book, Jiang Qiao asked him: “Aren’t you going to finish it?”
Lu Xun gave a light “mm” in response. After walking a few steps and noticing the person behind him hadn’t followed, he stopped and turned sideways: “Didn’t you want to buy cake?”