Yun Xiang was startled; she hadn’t expected Pei Xingche to think that way.
The boy cleared his throat, and his deep, cold voice rang out, gradually becoming distinct.
“A simple-looking fellow came, bartering cloth for silk. He came not for silk, but to scheme for my hand.”
【Hmph, fake sincerity. Truly honest men send matchmakers and proper dowries. Why just talk to a girl in private? Are you trying to get her to elope with you?】
Yun Xiang’s eyelashes fluttered.
“Come with your carriage, and I shall move with my goods.”
【Ah, when can I marry my Little Snail and bring her home?】
【Even scumbags have wives, but my wife is still worlds away. Sob, sob… (sad puppy noises).】
【By the way, why isn’t my wife looking at me? Isn’t this a recitation check? Wife, you should look up and inspect me more. What if I’m cheating and you don’t even know?】
Yun Xiang: “…”
The girl pursed her lips, her cheeks heating up. Even though she indeed wasn’t looking at Pei Xingche, she could still feel an intense gaze fixed on her face.
“When a man indulges in love, he can still extricate himself. When a woman indulges, she cannot.”
【No, no, I’m the one who can’t extricate himself. I’ve already sunk into the sea of love.】
【Actually, being able to pull away has nothing to do with gender. I’m a tough guy, but I’m still a total ‘love-brain.’】
【Really, baby, pick me for your first love. I’m super sweet. (Acting cute).】
Yun Xiang: …Help.
The girl’s bright eyes shimmered with emotion as she bit her lower lip hard.
She really wanted to laugh.
Was it necessary for Pei Xingche to be this ridiculous while reciting a book?
Did he really need this much internal drama?
And how could he recite the poem perfectly while being so distracted?
“Once your wishes were met, you turned to violence.”
【Oh my god, a scumbag and a domestic abuser. He really deserves to die!】
【Speaking of which, I feel like that dog Shen-whatever is exactly like that. No way! I absolutely cannot let him bully Xiangxiang!】
Mm.
Yun Xiang thought about it seriously and found herself agreeing with Pei Xingche.
At the very least, her sixth sense told her that Shen Zhe was far from the gentle and kind person he appeared to be on the surface.
Although it felt somewhat immoral to think this way about someone who had helped her, Yun Xiang simply had this inexplicable intuition that she couldn’t account for.
“You have gone back on your word, so let it be!”
Pei Xingche spoke every word clearly, finishing the poem with a tone that lacked any emotional fluctuation.
Xu Ran, who was sitting behind them, looked at Pei Xingche for a moment and then at An Wuyang. Finally, she commented, “The two of you are like AI robots. The Chinese teacher said to read with emotion, and neither of you meets the standard.”
No.
Actually, Pei Xingche did meet the standard.
Yun Xiang argued back in her mind. She felt that it wasn’t that Pei Xingche lacked emotion, but rather that his emotions were far too abundant; his internal mental journey was more turbulent than a mountain road with eighteen hairpins.
She glanced at Pei Xingche’s expressionless face and thought: *He must be naturally stone-faced.*
Behind them, An Wuyang reached out and closed the Chinese textbook on Xu Ran’s desk, his eyes lifting slightly. “Your turn.”
Xu Ran was still brooding over him calling her a pervert that morning. She puckered her lips and snorted.
“Let me show you guys what real skill looks like.”
Following that, Xu Ran gave a vivid performance of a woman betrayed by a scumbag—lonely, desperate, yet daring to love and hate.
The corners of An Wuyang’s mouth could hardly stay down. His eyes were lit with dappled laughter as he gave an objective critique: “Not bad acting.”
“I think I acted well, too.”
Having received praise, Xu Ran was happy again.
The emotions of youth were always like this—coming and going like the wind, unpredictable and impossible to catch, leaving one’s heart feeling itchy.
“What do you guys think?” One person’s praise wasn’t enough for Xu Ran. She blinked her excited eyes at the two people in the front row, seeking more an audience and validation.
Unfortunately, no one responded to her.
At this moment, Yun Xiang hadn’t finished her own mental check of the text, while Pei Xingche was staring blankly at Yun Xiang’s profile. Neither of them heard Xu Ran’s voice.
More accurately, Pei Xingche didn’t hear anything at all.
The noisy sounds of the classroom’s recitation drowned out his thoughts. That beautiful face he dreamed of night and day was right there, as if magnified infinitely, becoming the only clear and vivid existence in his consciousness.
*So pretty.*
Pei Xingche’s mind was filled with those two words.
How could someone look so “well-behaved”? Every inch of her seemed to dance perfectly upon his personal aesthetic preferences.
From the first time he saw Yun Xiang, he had thought she was beautiful.
Under the green shade of summer, the young girl sat on a campus bench. The gentle sunlight fell upon her hair and brushed against her cheeks.
A warm breeze blew softly, and the green leaves swayed, making layered, delicate, and pleasant sounds. The stray hairs by the girl’s ears were ruffled by the wind; she habitually reached out to tuck them behind her ear, revealing soft, gentle lines.
*Gurgle—*
The quiet, beautiful scene was interrupted by a pitiable stomach growl.
Pei Xingche instinctively looked around until he saw the girl on the bench pouting and rubbing her stomach. Only then was he certain that the sound had indeed come from her.
Unexpectedly and inexplicably, it was rather cute.
The heat was rising, and the noisy chirping of cicadas mingled with the rustling of leaves. The air seemed to taste of heatwaves.
Yet Pei Xingche stood there for a long time.
His position was quite hidden; someone sitting on the bench wouldn’t easily discover him.
Therefore, he had essentially stood there in silence, peeking for a long time.
The girl was somewhat guarded, looking left and right every now and then. But since it was the lunch break, there really wasn’t anyone around.
After a few checks, she let down her guard.
She lifted her foot and kicked a green leaf that had fallen by her feet, then pressed down, making the crisp leaf crunch.
As if that wasn’t enough, the girl stood up and stomped hard on the leaves under her shoes.
Her doe-like eyes were wide, and her pale pink lips were pressed tight. Her exquisite, dainty face looked puffed up with annoyance.
It wasn’t hard to see she was venting.
Pei Xingche suppressed a laugh, thinking the girl’s way of venting was truly childish—and truly cute.
After playing for a while, the girl sat back down. Swinging her toes, she propped her hands on the bench and tilted her crisp little face up to look at the sky.
She looked for a long time.
Finally, she smiled for no apparent reason, the dimples on her cheeks shallow and sweet.
Pei Xingche didn’t know what she was thinking.
In fact, he didn’t even know what he was thinking at that moment.
He seemed to just be staring at the girl in a daze—or perhaps, it was love at first sight.
*Love at first sight.*
As soon as this thought popped up, he was shocked by himself.
Previously, he felt that such a phrase should only appear in movies, in books, or in the mouths of those hypocritical people who were merely shallowly attracted to someone’s looks.
He never expected that on a certain afternoon, he too would become such a superficial person who was “smitten by beauty.”