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

Chapter 133 Because you're the only one who can call me Xiaozhi!

What are you doing at home this afternoon if you have nothing to do?

"Wood carving."

"The monthly exam is coming up soon, why aren't you studying harder?"

Wen Zhixia couldn't be bothered with that annoying racket anymore.

After all, she played basketball with Chen Shi'an every afternoon, and she knew all too well how difficult it was to get a point from him, and how tiring a long tug-of-war was. Usually, she would feel exhausted after playing against him for 21 points, but this ice-cold guy had some kind of willpower, and he actually scored 63 points in one go, and then it was a zero score...

They must be exhausted by now!

She took out the review materials and test papers she had brought with her from her schoolbag.

He turned his head and looked inside the room again.

"Where's Sister Wanyin? Isn't she home?"

"She's still taking a nap."

"Oh, I see. Why didn't you say so earlier..."

Upon hearing that Li Wanyin was still taking a nap, Wen Zhixia immediately lowered her voice.

Chen Shi'an picked up the box of durians she had brought and looked at it. The shells had already been removed and the flesh had been peeled out. The golden color looked very tempting, but Chen Shi'an, with her keen sense of smell, could already smell the durian's peculiar odor.

He frowned.

"This is the durian you were talking about?"

"Mmm! How about it? Doesn't the flesh look tempting? My aunt bought two durians today, and both of them had six chambers!"

The girl's face lit up when she talked about it.

Wen Zhixia's family all love durian. Opening a durian is like opening a blind box. A three-bedroom durian is considered a minimum, a five-bedroom durian is considered a great deal, and a six-bedroom durian is considered a huge profit.

"Taoist priest, have you ever eaten durian?"

"No."

"whee."

Seeing Chen Shi'an frowning as he examined the durian, a sly smile crept onto the girl's face.

As an ingredient as dark as stinky tofu, it's hilarious to see such a complete newbie frowning as they take a bite!

"Smell it, doesn't it smell wonderful?"

Wen Zhixia opened the box completely, and the strong smell of durian hit her nose. Chen Shi'an's expression immediately tightened.

"Hey, hey, hey... move away, move away... I can smell it, don't get too close!"

"What does it feel like?"

"..."

"Prefer not to say."

"Say it! Say it!"

"Then should I just say it?"

"Say it quickly."

"In terms of smell alone, it's so smelly that it's completely inedible."

"Hahaha……"

Upon receiving Chen Shi'an's comment, Wen Zhixia was not angry at all; instead, she smiled even more happily.

"It's delicious! You'll see once you try it."

"...just smelling it makes me lose my appetite."

"You don't know what's good for you~ Come, come, have a taste."

"...You really want to eat?"

"Eat, eat."

"...You eat first."

"Then I won't be polite."

In front of him, Wen Zhixia took out a piece of durian from the box, opened her mouth and put it in her mouth, then squinted her eyes and nodded, looking like she was enjoying it very much.

Chen Shi'an frowned, looking at the girl with suspicion, trying to tell from her expression whether she was faking it or if it really tasted that good...

"how?"

"It's so delicious!"

"..."

Seeing that they were eating, Fatty Mo, who was sleeping on the balcony, moved quickly and ran from the balcony into the house in a flash.

When Fei Mo was about two meters away from Wen Zhixia, who was eating durian, he suddenly stopped and then his cat face showed the same expression as Chen Shi'an's...

"Hey? Shimo! Do you want some durian?"

Wen Zhixia walked over, holding a piece of durian flesh.

The black cat gagged and retreated rapidly, disappearing back onto the balcony in the blink of an eye. It then looked at the girl with a hopeless expression.

Chen Shi'an: "..."

Having grown up with Fei Mo since he was a kitten, what else would this gluttonous cat refuse to eat besides poop?
Seeing that even Fei Mo wouldn't eat it, Chen Shi'an felt even less inclined to take a bite.

Wen Zhixia, who was standing to the side, had already happily eaten most of the piece. Seeing that Chen Shi'an still didn't seem interested, she urged him again:

"Eat up, eat up, I brought this food especially for you."

"Thank you, Xiaozhi."

"Then go ahead and eat! Didn't you want to experience life? Go ahead and try it! Then tell me how you feel!"

"...There's no need to experience everything."

"hurry up."

"Then I'll cut a small piece, so we don't waste it if we can't finish it later."

"alright."

Chen Shi'an frowned, took out a small knife, cut off a small piece, hesitated for a long time, and finally put the small piece of durian into his mouth...

Smell and taste are not always related. Some things that smell good taste bitter; some things that smell bad taste good... At least for Chen Shi'an, there are limits to how good something smells, since his sense of smell is too sensitive. And when it comes to 'deliciousness', smell inevitably affects taste to some extent.

Even while preserving his sense of smell, Chen Shi'an still frowned as he tasted the durian...

Only when he held his breath and focused all his senses on his mouth did his furrowed brows slowly relax...

How to describe it? The durian flesh is very soft. Although it is fruit flesh, it melts in your mouth like ice cream. It is very smooth and creamy. Then comes the rich sweetness. Unlike the refreshing taste of other fruits, this sweetness is more heavy. There is also a hint of bitterness, a faint nutty flavor, and a bit of an almond flavor...

Beside him, Wen Zhixia had stopped eating durian and was watching his expression change with wide eyes, feeling especially excited!

"How is it? How does it taste?"

"..."

Chen Shi'an swallowed the durian in his mouth, and as soon as he started to breathe, the pungent smell lingering in his mouth rushed straight to his head again.

"...If we ignore the smell, the taste is alright. ...I'll go rinse my mouth first."

"Hahaha……"

Wen Zhixia was amused by his rollercoaster-like changes in expression, which looked exactly like her grandfather's expression when he first ate durian.

Fatty Mo, standing on the balcony, saw Chen Shi'an actually eat 'shit' and looked at him with a hopeless expression. Did experiencing life really have to go this far...?

It was exactly two o'clock when Li Wanyin, having finished her lunch break, opened the door and came out.

"Huh! Zhixia..."

"Sister Wanyin~"

"When did Zhixia arrive?"

"Just now, Sister Wanyin, come quick! I brought you durians, let's eat them together!"

"Durian!"

"Does Sister Wanyin like to eat this?"

"Yes, I've eaten it twice."

Unlike Chen Shi'an, Li Wanyin, like Wen Zhixia, is a durian fan. Although she eats it very little, she has a particular fondness for its flavor.

Li Wanyin was stunned to see how big the durian flesh Wen Zhixia brought was. She had only bought small durians with her roommates before, and it was already pretty good that it could yield three sections of flesh.

"Is it delicious, Sister Wanyin?"

"Delicious! Thank you, Zhixia. Where's Shi'an?"

"Haha, he was so disgusted by the smell that he ran to the bathroom to rinse his mouth..."

"How can you be so ignorant!"

The two durian lovers were thoroughly enjoying their meal. Chen Shi'an had already rinsed his mouth clean. Luckily, he had magical powers that allowed him to cleanse his mouth of all the lingering smell; otherwise, he would have been bothered by the stench for a long time...

Putting aside the unbearable smell, the flesh itself tastes quite good. However, having already tried it, Chen Shi'an doesn't plan to try it again. After tasting it, he is even confident that he can use different fruits to recreate the texture and flavor of durian flesh, and the aroma will definitely be more fragrant than durian itself.

Wen Zhixia had already achieved her goal, so she didn't ask Chen Shi'an to eat any more. She brought three kinds of fruit pulp, which she and Li Wanyin each ate in half.

It was Wen Zhixia's first time visiting Chen Shi'an's home, and although Li Wanyin was there, she wasn't shy at all.

I wandered around the room out of curiosity.

"Sister Wanyin, is this your room?"

"Uh-huh."

After finishing her durian, Li Wanyin started preparing to make sweet soup.

"Zhixia, why don't you have dinner with us tonight? Shi'an will be going to evening self-study after dinner, so you can all eat together," Li Wanyin suggested.

"Okay, shall we have Wanyin cook dinner again? Or should we have the Taoist priest cook it? He's so free."

"Sure, then you go and talk to him."

Chen Shi'an had already started carving wood again. When he saw Wen Zhixia looking over, he nodded and said, "Okay, okay, I'll make it. I guarantee it will be more fragrant and delicious than your durian."

"Ha, I don't disagree with that."

Wen Zhixia had already witnessed Chen Shi'an's culinary skills during the last barbecue.

The thought that her dining partner had cooked for the Ice Queen but never for her made her determined to at least have a meal with her today.

The girl continued to wander around, and after circling the house for a while, she finally arrived at Chen Shi'an's room.

His door was open, and Wen Zhixia stood at the door for a while.

"Taoist priest, may I come into your room and take a look?"

"What are you going to do?"

"Let's take a look!"

"Then go ahead and watch it."

After receiving permission, Wen Zhixia entered his room.

Actually, Chen Shi'an's room wasn't anything special. His living quarters were shockingly simple. There weren't many items in the room; you could probably take everything with a large backpack. On a stool was a bamboo winnowing basket with the incense sticks he had made that morning drying in the room.

"Taoist priest, did you make this incense today?"

"Hmm, how did you feel after using that 'refreshing incense'?"

"very good!"

Wen Zhixia tried his refreshing incense last night. She didn't know how to describe the feeling. It had the effect of refreshing, but unlike tea or coffee, it didn't make people excited and unable to sleep. It was said to refresh, but it felt more like it made her mind clear.

So much so that she was in a very good state while doing her homework last night. Whether she was doing practice tests or reading, her mind was clear, and her thoughts flowed smoothly. Seeing the pillow on Chen Shi'an's bed, Wen Zhixia shouted outside again:
"Taoist priest!"

"Ok?"

Is your pillow a buckwheat pillow?

"Ah."

Is it easy to use?

"Easy to use."

"You made it yourself?"

"Ah."

"Can I lie down for a bit?"

"...What, are you going to take a nap here?"

"No, I slept enough this morning. I just lay down for a bit to see if your pillow is any good!"

"Then you can lie down."

Chen Shi'an was outside the living room, Li Wanyin was in the kitchen, and she was alone in the room.

The girl grew bolder, quietly sat down beside Chen Shi'an's bed, and then lay down, resting her head on his pillow.

Chen Shi'an's pillow is a buckwheat pillow. He had previously bought a regular pillow but found it unsatisfactory. On his way back from a trip to the mountains, he bought some buckwheat at the market and made a buckwheat pillow himself.

When Wen Zhixia lay down, she could only hear the rustling of buckwheat in the pillow beside her ear.

Whether it was the pillow itself that smelled good, or it was his pillow that smelled good, the girl blushed and secretly sniffed it...

Shrimp head! Shrimp head! Hello Shrimp head, Wen Zhixia!
Wen Zhixia quickly ran away from his room.

Chen Shi'an turned and glanced at her.

"easy to use?"

"...It works great! I'll buy a buckwheat pillow next time."

The girl continued to wander around the house, sometimes going to the kitchen to watch Li Wanyin make sweet soup, sometimes going to the balcony to look outside, looking completely at ease.

"Didn't you say you were coming to study?" Chen Shi'an asked.

"...That's how I learned it."

Wen Zhixia felt embarrassed and remembered the excuse she had given her aunt. She quickly took the review materials and test papers and sat down at the table opposite Chen Shi'an.

The table was a very ordinary folding square table. The two of them each took a chair and sat down. Chen Shi'an was carving wood, while Wen Zhixia spread out her test paper and prepared to do her homework.

"Taoist priest, don't you have homework to do?"

"Yes, Teacher Liang has approved my right to study freely without having to do classwork."

"...This is so awesome!"

What kind of test paper are you working on?

"Chinese language and literature."

"show me?"

"Here."

The Chinese language exam papers are the same for both arts and science students, and homework is usually assigned in the form of exam papers as well.

Chen Shi'an also has this test paper, but he hasn't done it yet.

Wen Zhixia had already completed most of her Chinese exam paper. As a student who could score over 140 points in Chinese, Chen Shi'an couldn't find any faults in her answers.

This was the first time he had ever seen a girl's exam paper. Her handwriting was also very beautiful. Compared to Lin Mengqiu's sharp handwriting, Wen Zhixia's handwriting was more rounded and delicate. Her handwriting was just like her personality, and it was very cute.

"Have you finished reading? I need to do my homework."

"Xiao Zhi's handwriting is quite good."

"That's~"

When Wen Zhixia writes or reads, she doesn't sit as upright as Lin Mengqiu. Perhaps it's because she's quite well-endowed. Even though her waist is fairly straight, she always gives the impression of hunching over the table while writing.

Just then, Chen Shi'an stopped carving her little wooden figurine and openly observed her.

When the girl first looked up and met his gaze, she instinctively lowered her head.
A short while later, when she quietly looked up for the second time, her eyes met his again. This time, Wen Zhixia did not look away or avoid his gaze, and they just stared at each other.

Ultimately, she couldn't match the shamelessness of this stinky Taoist priest. Wen Zhixia blushed and gave in, nudging him with her leg, which was practically reaching under the table, and asked:

"Why are you staring at me like that..."

"I'm carving a 'little cicada' for you."

"What the hell..."

"this."

Chen Shi'an shook the half-finished wood carving in his hand.

The artwork only had a rough outline, resembling a girl sitting in a chair with her head turned to the side. Wen Zhixia couldn't tell who he was carving until Chen Shi'an mentioned it. The girl was stunned for a moment, her eyes lit up, and her whole expression became radiant.

"You...you mean you're carving me right now?"

"Hmm, doesn't it look very similar?"

"Who can tell this? Let me see, let me see..."

Wen Zhixia reached out her hand to him, and Chen Shi'an generously handed her the half-finished product.

She hadn't noticed it before, but after Chen Shi'an reminded her, Wen Zhixia began to see more and more of her own shadow in the outline of the work.

Seat, backpack, shoulder-length short hair, turning around to the side...

"This is... um... when was this me?"

Wen Zhixia scratched her head, feeling that the scene was familiar, yet it didn't seem to belong to her. The wood carving was still unfinished, and she couldn't immediately recall when it was or if it was a scene imagined by Chen Shi'an.

“That was the first time we met, on the bus, and you asked me, ‘Is this seat taken?’”

"Oh—! I remember now!!"

Before Chen Shi'an could finish speaking, Wen Zhixia had already remembered.

After all, as the person involved, it's no wonder that she didn't have much of an impression of the scene. Even now, when Chen Shi'an talks about it, the first thing that comes to her mind is Chen Shi'an sitting by the window at that time, not herself.

"How did you come up with the idea of ​​carving this?"

Wen Zhixia played with the half-finished wood carving. The feeling of seeing herself through other people's eyes was wonderful. Compared to a photograph, the wood carving, which required careful carving of every detail, had a more wonderful feeling.

"It's our first meeting, so I wanted to make a record of it. I feel it's quite meaningful."

"..."

The girl didn't say anything, but she felt a sweet feeling in her heart, as if a strand of hair had fallen on the tip of her heart, making her feel a little itchy.

After all, she has known hundreds, if not thousands, of people in her life. With so many people and so many first meetings, she can no longer remember the scene of most of them when they first met, and she imagines that most of them wouldn't remember her either.

Chen Shi'an was the first and only person to carve and record the image of her from the first time he saw her.

"After you finish carving it, are you going to keep it for yourself, or give it to me...?"

"Do you want to?"

"miss you!"

"Okay, I'll give it to you after I finish carving it."

"Let's make this clear first, this doesn't count as part of the birthday present you promised me last time!"

"Well, okay."

"I'll keep it safe!"

"..."

"Taoist priest, could you please carve a few words on the base?"

"Sure, what words would you like engraved?"

"Engraved [Chen Shi'an gifted to Xiao Zhi]"

Why wasn't your name engraved on it?

"Because you're the only one who can call me Little Zhi."

……

evening.

Chen Shi'an cooks.

After finishing two bowls of rice at Chen Shi'an's house, Wen Zhixia was completely satisfied.

Chen Shi'an pondered whether he should collect the food fee from Xiao Zhi and the class monitor another day...

The two went to evening self-study, and Li Wanyin also prepared to go to her stall.

Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia helped Li Wanyin carry the sweet soup and her stall cart downstairs.

Li Wanyin prepared less sweet soup today than yesterday. After all, Chen Shi'an wouldn't be here tonight, so the flow of customers would definitely be less. She planned to experiment more and calculate the most suitable amount under normal circumstances to prevent making too much and losing money, and also to prevent making too little and not having enough to sell.

When doing business in public, you always need to develop a thicker skin.

When leaving the residential compound, Li Wanyin took the initiative to approach her neighbors to sell her wares.

Thanks to yesterday's positive word-of-mouth, sales are doing well in the neighborhood today as well.

After leaving the residential area, Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia could no longer accompany her to the West River. It was almost time, and they had to rush to evening self-study.

"Shall we go now? If Sister Wanyin hasn't sold out, send me a message, and I'll come to the West River to find you for dessert after my self-study session."

"Okay, don't worry, I'll definitely save you a bowl of sweet soup. I won't sell it to anyone else."

Li Wanyin waved and left first, pulling the small cart.

Fei Mo quickly jogged up to catch up, jumped onto the cart, and joined her at the stall.

The monthly exam is coming up soon, so there won't be a weekly test this week.

When Chen Shi'an arrived at the classroom, Lin Mengqiu was already sitting in her seat.

The girl's face remained calm, but her eyes kept darting left and right, observing her surroundings.

"The class monitor is here so early today?"

"Ah."

"Class monitor, here's your racket."

"Thank you."

As expected, the class monitor in the classroom and the class monitor outside the school are two different species.

Seeing Lin Mengqiu's current appearance, Chen Shi'an even began to doubt whether the girl who sat on the ground and refused to get up after losing the game was just a figment of his imagination...

When Chen Shi'an took out the martial arts uniform he had worn that morning from his backpack, Lin Mengqiu's body tensed up instantly.

Stinky Taoist!
You really want me to do your laundry?!

I haven't even washed my dad's clothes yet!

"Squad leader, what about this outfit..."

Before Chen Shi'an could finish speaking, a small, fair hand darted out like lightning, snatched the dirty clothes from his hand, and hid them inside his desk.

"Don't talk nonsense."

"Oh."

(End of this chapter)