Only then did Pei Xingche realize something was off. He turned back and met Old Wang’s complicated gaze.
[What the hell!!]
He pressed his thin lips together, not a trace of alarm showing on his face, and said calmly, “I was thinking about a geometry problem—a rectangle. I was using this wrapper to simulate the folding.”
Old Wang seemed to squint with some suspicion, his expression unreadable, instantly making both of their hearts leap into their throats.
[Oh no! We’re about to get caught dating! What do I do? Asking urgently online!]
[Will this implicate Little Snail? What do I do, wuwuwu… Will our parents get called in? Will I not be able to sit next to her as deskmates anymore?]
[Aaaah I was wrong, I shouldn’t have let love cloud my brain!]
Yun Xiang blinked softly. In her line of sight, Little Ala was spinning frantically on top of Pei Xingche’s head, its fluffy big tail puffed up like it had been startled.
It couldn’t be that serious, right?
Wait, no!
Who was dating him?!
Old Wang’s brow relaxed quickly. He smiled and patted Pei Xingche’s shoulder, praising him, “Not bad. If it’s hard to visualize the folding pattern, you can use a physical object to simulate it.”
[Scared me to death! That was close! Good thing I’m quick-witted enough.]
Pei Xingche let out a breath of relief.
Old Wang nodded at the two of them with a squinty smile, then picked up his thermos and left.
Pei Xingche quickly glanced sideways at Yun Xiang, then pretended to casually look away.
He picked up that chocolate wrapper and tucked it into his pencil case.
Inside the boy’s light gray pencil case, there weren’t many pens, but there were quite a few odd little trinkets—sticky notes, wrappers, and such…
[No, I need to buy a storage box to collect everything my wife gives me!]
[When I’m old and open it up, it’ll be full of memories of love!]
Yun Xiang: …Those are literally all trash.
[Speaking of which, is my wife really not hungry? What do I do if I’m about to starve?]
[No no, hold it in. I want to go eat with my wife.]
Who wants to go with you?
The girl’s doe-like eyes darted around. She slowly closed the workbook on her desk.
She turned to the side and felt around the side pocket of her backpack.
Then she froze.
Where’s her meal card?
Yun Xiang turned a little more, her wrist halfway into the backpack, sweeping up and down—still nothing.
Her clear, bright doe eyes widened slightly as she began to recall.
Did she leave it at home? Or did she lose it?
Her brows knitted together. If she lost it, that would be a real hassle—there was still a hundred yuan on it.
[Wife, what are you looking for in your backpack?]
“My meal card.”
Yun Xiang froze, and when she realized what she’d said, two patches of crimson suddenly flooded her cheeks.
She’d accidentally answered Pei Xingche’s inner voice again.
Actually, there was a big difference between how he normally spoke and his inner voice. For instance, Pei Xingche would never call her “wife” in normal speech.
But Yun Xiang… had heard Pei Xingche call her that so many times over the past few days that she’d gradually gotten used to it.
On top of that, with her meal card missing and her mind in a jumble, she’d muddled it up.
“Hm?”
Hearing her voice, Pei Xingche turned his head over openly, his sword-like brows lifting slightly, his jawline taut and smooth.
Yun Xiang awkwardly pulled her hand back, tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear, and tried to cover it up: “I can’t find my meal card.”
“Use mine.”
The words slipped out of Pei Xingche’s mouth, and he quickly realized that didn’t sound right. He scrambled for an excuse too: “I mean—consider it a thank-you for the chocolate you gave me. It was really good.”
[Finally, my CEO moment has arrived! (rubbing hands excitedly) Heh, woman, swipe this bro’s card—don’t come home until it’s maxed out!]
[Heaven is on my side! Does this mean I finally get to eat at the same table as my wife?]
[Aaaah who gets it? This bro is making lightning-fast progress!]
Yun Xiang paused briefly. “I don’t think I’m that hungry. Thanks, though. I can just have a piece of bread.”
[No no no, that won’t do?!]
[Silly snail, not eating properly is bad for your health!]
[What nutrition is there in just bread? No way, no way (doggy head shake)]
Pei Xingche frowned almost imperceptibly, a rare hint of persistence coloring his cool voice: “Let’s go to the cafeteria together.”
Yun Xiang lowered her head, twisting her fingers, feeling the emptiness in her stomach. She gave a small nod.
“Then I’ll give you the money for the meal tomorrow,” she said.
[Give what? Money between us two is so distant.]
[I want to treat my wife to a meal so bad, I want to feed my wife till she’s full aaaaah!]
[Wuwuwu I’m such a useless man, I actually have to take my wife’s money.]
Somehow, listening to the boy’s chattering nonsense, Yun Xiang’s embarrassment slowly faded.
Actually, she didn’t have a single cent on her right now. Saying she’d buy bread was just a lie to Pei Xingche.
But Pei Xingche didn’t seem to care at all why she could only give him the money tomorrow. What he cared about was…
Cough. She couldn’t figure him out.
The two walked side by side down the corridor. Bright sunlight cast a gentle glow, lingering as it diffused, leaving inch by inch of shadow to measure the frozen moments of time.
This was the first time Pei Xingche walked openly beside Yun Xiang.
Not deliberately slowing his pace ahead of her, nor trailing closely behind her.
It was beside her.
【This is a small step, but also a giant leap for Brother Che’s brave pursuit of love!】
【Hahaha, rounding up, the two of us are basically already dating (wagging tail)】
The boy’s mood was brighter than the sunshine, and he hummed a nonsensical tune in his heart, while his face remained its usual calm and composed mask.
【I heard you’re a bit hard to chase, OK, Brother Che will drop a DJ track first to vibrate your DNA directly.】
【Songs may go off-key, but Brother Che won’t run away, got it?】
Yun Xiang: …
She tilted her head up and glanced at Pei Xingche’s handsome face, which was aloof, indifferent, and expressionless.
It was… hard to imagine.
The boy stood tall and straight, with broad shoulders, wearing a clean and neatly pressed school uniform that was a bit loose, the hem fluttering in the breeze when the wind passed.
So tall.
Yun Xiang secretly compared and found that she only reached up to Pei Xingche’s shoulder.
He must eat a lot.
Yun Xiang speculated inwardly, straightening her back, thinking that if she could eat more, she would grow taller too.
Before long, the two arrived at the cafeteria.
Somehow, Yun Xiang felt that there were more eyes on her today, their gazes weighing heavily on her.
Actually, this was normal.
When an extremely good-looking boy and girl walk together on campus, they’re bound to attract stares and whispers, let alone with Pei Xingche’s recent popularity.
“Whoa, isn’t that Brother Che?”
Jiang Li’s eyes widened as he pointed at the tall figure standing at a meal window.
“Didn’t we agree to get his food for him?” Jiang Li scratched his head, confused. “Could Brother Che have forgotten, being the busy man he is?”
With that, he hurriedly stood up, intending to remind Pei Xingche.
Zhou Chuanting, sitting beside him, quickly pulled him back and nodded his chin in Pei Xingche’s direction. “Look, what’s that?”
“It’s Brother Che.”