This humble Taoist priest wants to take the college entrance exam.

Chapter 111 The Girls Begin Their Game

Eight twenty.

On a sunny Sunday morning, Wen Zhixia and Lin Mengqiu met at the intersection of Chen Shi'an residential area.

Wen Zhixia came from the other side of the road via the zebra crossing, while Lin Mengqiu came from the other side of the road.

When they happened to meet at the intersection, both girls were stunned for a moment.

This was the first time Wen Zhixia and Lin Mengqiu had met each other outside of school, and neither of them was wearing their school uniforms.

Neither of them noticed the other when they were walking from a distance, until they met at this corner, at which point they paused slightly.

Despite having been deskmates for a semester and knowing each other, they acted like strangers when they met off-campus.

Neither of them spoke up to each other. Their eyes met briefly before they looked away and continued walking in silence.

They came from different directions, but for the next short distance, the two girls were heading to the same destination.

Seeing that the ice spirit was taking the same route as her, Wen Zhixia's mind quickly started racing—could this woman also be going to ride a bicycle?!
She glanced at Lin Mengqiu without making a sound. Lin Mengqiu's expression was calm. After all, Chen Shi'an had contacted her later, and she knew that Wen Zhixia was going there.

The slight information gap in the middle turned into an advantage in the game. Seeing that the annoying cicada seemed to be stiff, Lin Mengqiu's lips curled up into an almost invisible arc, and even her walking posture became more upright.

When they arrived at the bus stop near the entrance of Chen Shi'an's residential area and both of them stopped at the same time, Wen Zhixia was finally certain that the ice spirit was going on a trip with her.

Their eyes met again.

Wen Zhixia took the initiative to speak.

"You're going to Mangrove Lake too?"

"Ah."

Lin Mengqiu responded calmly, her eyes fixed ahead.

Wen Zhixia also withdrew her gaze, picked up the soy milk in her hand, inserted the straw with a "pop," then drank the soy milk with one hand, crossed the other hand over her chest, and, imitating her, looked straight ahead, responding again:
"What a coincidence."

"Ah."

They clearly knew that they were definitely disliked by the other, but when faced with this trip together, they both wore nonchalant and carefree expressions.

Wen Zhixia sipped her soy milk slowly, pondering to herself:

Ha, pretending to be so nonchalant...

You must have been itching to get it done a long time ago, right?
That stinky Taoist priest clearly didn't mention you when he told me who went there! Knowing his personality, if he didn't mention you, you definitely weren't there at that time!
Is it possible that someone is stubbornly insisting on going along?
I've never seen you participate in a group activity with such enthusiasm, you ice cube! Don't make your intentions so obvious!

Lin Mengqiu looked at the vehicles and pedestrians passing by on the road and pursed her lips:

Oh, you got a fright, didn't you?

I'm upset because your plans were ruined?
Yesterday you only mentioned going to the movies, but not cycling. Knowing your personality, if this activity had been planned earlier, wouldn't you have announced it over the loudspeaker?

The stinky Taoist priest and his roommate went cycling, and what was that person thinking, shamelessly joining in? Doesn't he care about bothering people?!

Time flies when you're with someone you like;
Time seems to drag on when you're with someone you don't like.

After standing there waiting for less than two minutes, Wen Zhixia and Lin Mengqiu simultaneously took out their phones from their pockets.

They glanced at each other out of the corner of their eyes.

Of course, they couldn't see each other's screens, but that didn't stop the two girls from guessing who the other was trying to message.

Lin Mengqiu held her phone, her fingers flying across the keyboard as she typed rapidly—

Ling: [Where is he? Why isn't he coming down yet?]
Wen Zhixia pressed the voice button and sent a voice message—

Zhizhi: [I've arrived at the bus stop, have you gotten off yet?]
After sending the message, the two girls glanced at each other again.

Wen Zhixia held up her phone and brought it to her other ear, seemingly listening to someone's voice reply.

Then, a moment later, she made the motion of sending a voice message, bringing the phone to her mouth—

"Oh, hurry up, I've been waiting for you for ages."

Lin Mengqiu: "???"

The class monitor stared at her empty chat box, which only contained the message she had just sent, but there was no reply from Chen Shi'an!
That damned Taoist priest! That deadbeat Taoist priest! Why isn't she replying to me?!

Just as Lin Mengqiu was about to feel a surge of frustration, she saw Wen Zhixia still sending voice messages, seemingly chatting happily.

The class monitor blinked...

wrong!

You annoying cicada, are you faking it?!
I spend every day with that stinky Taoist priest, but I've never seen him reply to messages so quickly.

childish! childish!
Lin Mengqiu reacted quickly, immediately turning her phone screen back on as if she had already received a reply to someone's message, and her fingers flew across the keyboard as she began typing—

[Total oh ah ha vi oh hi oh love oh angry oh you beat the wax method...]
Now it was Wen Zhixia's turn to be stunned.

She couldn't see Lin Mengqiu's phone screen, nor did she know what she was typing. She just saw her typing away enthusiastically, and when she looked at her own phone screen, there was no reply from Chen Shi'an!
When Wen Zhixia thought that Chen Shi'an never sent voice messages, her heart skipped a beat.

You stinky Taoist priest! You dead Taoist priest! Isn't voice chat better than typing?!

Just as the girl was about to find an excuse to sneak a peek at Lin Mengqiu's phone screen, she turned around and saw Chen Shi'an and Li Wanyin walking out of the community gate.

She immediately looked at Chen Shi'an's hand.

Where are people holding cell phones?

Then look at Lin Mengqiu beside her; this ice-cold spirit is still typing furiously with her fingers flying across the keyboard...

what!
installed!

How boring!
Wen Zhixia reacted quickly, mischievously shouting, "Taoist priest! Over here!"

Lin Mengqiu then came to her senses and turned to look. Walking out of the community gate empty-handed was none other than Chen Shi'an, who had been slow to respond.

She reacted quickly, as if she didn't have time to type, and replied with a voice message: "Okay, Dad, I'll talk to you later."

Wen Zhixia: "???"

Just when they thought this tedious game was about to end, the annoying Taoist priest pulled out his phone, stood in front of them, and said in surprise:

"Huh, you guys messaged me? I didn't notice."

Wen Zhixia: “┗|｀O′|┛~~”

Lin Mengqiu: "XXX!"

The two girls thought to themselves in unison: Will they die if they don't talk?!

Chen Shi'an had no idea what kind of silent game they had just gone through. They used to see each other every day on campus, but now they were all gathered outside the campus, none of them wearing school uniforms.

Wen Zhixia wore casual shorts with a beige T-shirt, while Lin Mengqiu wore athletic shorts with a sporty polo shirt.

Two pairs of beautiful, white legs, paired with two youthful faces of different temperaments, are exceptionally pleasing to the eye and beautiful.

No need for makeup; youth itself is the best makeup.

As Chen Shi'an sized up the girls, the girls were also sizing him up.

Wearing a short-sleeved Taoist robe that seemed out of place with modern style, he looked like a Wudang disciple going to participate in some event.

Of course, to other passersby, their outfits would be completely unexpected, making it impossible to guess that the girls were going cycling...

"Where is Sister Wanyin?"

Wen Zhixia took the initiative to ask, as if she was not only very familiar with Chen Shi'an, but also with the interpersonal relationships around him.

This inexplicable little group instantly excluded Lin Mengqiu. Lin Mengqiu didn't speak, but simply glanced at the two of them calmly.

"She went to the bakery to buy bread and prepare some dry food in case she needs to eat it later."

"Okay, let's wait for her. One bus just left, and the next one won't arrive for another fifteen minutes."

Have you all had breakfast?

"..."

The two girls remained silent.

Chen Shi'an: "..."

"Squad leader, have you had breakfast?"

"have eaten."

Are you wearing badminton attire?

"Yeah, I was all ready to go play basketball. You called me over, but I didn't have time to change, so I just came straight here."

Despite the seemingly ordinary conversation, Wen Zhixia keenly grasped the key point that someone was deliberately emphasizing—you called me here.

Tch! It's the same no matter who you're talking about!
"Little Zhiliao, have you had breakfast yet?"

"I've eaten. I'm drinking soy milk now. My phone isn't even fully charged yet. Next time, remember to tell me in advance."

"Okay, okay, it's my fault."

Lin Mengqiu crossed her arms in front of her, pretending not to hear what the two were saying.

A dark shadow suddenly darted out from the side, leaped onto Chen Shi'an's shoulder, and settled firmly on his shoulder. Its amber eyes looked at the two girls in front of it. The outdoor light was bright, and the black cat's pupils narrowed into vertical slits.

The two girls were startled by the sudden noise, thinking that some big black rat had jumped onto Chen Shi'an. But upon closer inspection, they realized it was a chubby black cat.

"Ah! Kitty!"

Wen Zhixia exclaimed in surprise, then, as if she had seen an 'old friend,' excitedly moved closer to Chen Shi'an.

This was the second time she had seen the black cat.

The first time was on the bus, but she didn't get to touch the cat or even know its name... After all, she didn't even know Chen Shi'an's name back then.

When they met again, the girl asked him with a giggle, "What's the cat's name?"

"Picking up ink".

"Shimo...was it also picked up by your master?"

"correct."

"Haha, it's so dark, the name 'Picking Up Ink' suits it so well..."

Lin Mengqiu, who was standing to the side, raised an eyebrow as she listened.

My family also has a "Golden Treasure" character. Do you want to guess who named it?

I thought Wen Zhixia was going to form some kind of clique again, but it turns out she only just learned the cat's name...

Just as Wen Zhixia was about to reach out and pet the cat, the black cat, which had been lying on Chen Shi'an's right side, nimbly wrapped its body around Chen Shi'an's neck and lay down on Chen Shi'an's left shoulder, closer to Lin Mengqiu's side.

Lin Mengqiu's eyes lit up!
What an excellent cat!

Sure enough, this cat's aloof demeanor matches me better.

Like Wen Zhixia, Lin Mengqiu also likes cats. When the cat ran to her side, the class monitor was very pleased.

Having learned from Wen Zhixia's failed attempt to pet the cat, Lin Mengqiu resisted the urge to touch it and simply blinked her eyes curiously at it.

But the cat was much more aloof than her. It didn't even look at her, and just sat steadily on Chen Shi'an's shoulder, watching the passing vehicles and pedestrians.

"Taoist priest, does the cat want to come bike riding with us?"

"correct."

"This is so cool!! Why is Shimo so intelligent? It actually goes out, follows people, and doesn't react to stress? How come it stays so steadily on your shoulder!"

"I'm used to it. When Fei Mo is too lazy to walk, he leans on my shoulder."

Chen Shi'an stretched out his right hand, wrapped it around his left shoulder, and vigorously rubbed the cat's head. The cat, which wouldn't let anyone else touch it, let him pet it.

Not only was Wen Zhixia surprised, but Lin Mengqiu was also extremely surprised.

I had heard Chen Shi'an mention before that he, his master, and this black cat were the only people on the mountain. When Chen Shi'an mentioned these three things, he did not include the chickens and ducks he raised. In other words, in Chen Shi'an's view, this black cat was an equal to him and his master. Perhaps, to some extent, it would not be an exaggeration to call it family.

Seeing this today, I'm amazed at how intelligent and understanding the cat that Chen Shi'an treats like family is!
It's not unusual to see people walking their dogs, birds, or even geese outside, but it's truly rare to see a cat as black as ink following someone around like this.

"Thai pants are hot! Thai pants are hot!"

Wen Zhixia took out her phone, walked up to Chen Shi'an, and was about to take a picture of him and Shi Mo on his shoulder.

"what?"

"Let me take your picture!"

"Then let's take the picture."

Chen Shi'an stood there naturally. Shi Mo liked taking pictures, and when it saw the little gadget in the girl's hand pointing at it, it posed cooperatively, its amber eyes looking at the camera.

However, Shi Mo was standing on Chen Shi An's left shoulder, and Lin Meng Qiu was right next to him on the left shoulder. When the camera turned on him, this ice-cold spirit neither dodged nor avoided it.

This made Wen Zhixia very dissatisfied. When she saw the image of the two of them on the screen, it looked like she was taking a picture of them.

"Taoist priest, move over here a little, the light is better here!"

"Is that so?"

"Ok, Ok!"

As Chen Shi'an moved a little to the right, Lin Mengqiu was finally out of the frame, and Wen Zhixia pressed the shutter with satisfaction.

Just as Lin Mengqiu was putting away her phone and preparing to take another selfie with Chen Shi'an, she took out her phone first.

She didn't tell Chen Shi'an that she wanted to take a picture, but simply moved a little closer to him and then raised her phone to switch to the front-facing camera.

The Taoist priest and the cat, who both enjoyed taking photos, turned to look at her camera.

A girl with a cool expression, a dark cat, and a Taoist priest with a smile on his lips—the scene freezes at this moment.

"Class monitor, you like taking selfies too?"

"..."

Lin Mengqiu didn't speak. She looked down at the photos on her phone, quite satisfied.

Just as Chen Shi'an was about to come closer to see how the photos were taken, a small hand tugged at the right corner of his shirt.

When he turned around, Wen Zhixia was already standing to his right, and she had also raised her phone and switched to the front-facing camera.

Seeing this, the black cat, who loves taking pictures, quickly circled around Chen Shi'an's neck and ran back to lie on his right shoulder.

"Let's take a group photo too!"

"Meow."

Fei Mo thought to himself, "As expected, I'm very popular. Everyone likes to take pictures with me."

But could you please show me the photos you took?!
(End of this chapter)