The night before the college entrance exam results were released, I redeemed my Peking University ad

The entrance to a high-end restaurant in the city center.

Wan Qian, no, Li Mei walked over in low heels, wearing a beige fitted shirt and suit pants, her hair loosely tied back with stray hairs hanging down her temples, and she was also carrying a commuter bag.

"Hey kid, why did you choose this place? You just got two scholarships and you're already wasting your time, huh?"

She pulled out a chair and sat down, then glared at Ji Bai with slightly upturned eyes, making her look fierce yet beautiful.

Li Mei knew that Ji Bai had received scholarships from the school, district, and city, as well as the 60 yuan bet from the High-Intellectuals Alliance, and knew that he was not short of money now.

But when she heard "I have no money for food" on the phone, she still agreed without thinking. By the time she realized it, she was already halfway there in a taxi.

Ji Bai smiled and stood up, reaching out to grab her wrist.

Li Mei instinctively backed away, rolling her eyes: "Hey, so many people are watching!"

She froze as soon as she said it.

That's not right!

Why does this sound so ambiguous?

It's like they have some kind of shady relationship!

Sure enough, Ji Bai raised an eyebrow and grinned mischievously: "A place where no one is around is fine, right?"

"No! Not anywhere!"

Li Mei's ears instantly turned red, and she put her hands on her hips, feigning fierceness: "Are you going to eat or not? If not, I'm leaving!"

"Eat, eat, eat! Teacher, have a seat!"

When it came time to order, Ji Bai deliberately chose the most expensive items: Boston lobster, sea cucumber rice, foie gras, and truffle soup. He checked off half a page of the menu.

Li Mei's eyelids twitched as she looked at the prices. She was about to complain, "Are you sure you can finish all this? What a waste of money!"

As a result, the words slipped out, revealing what was on her mind: "You look quite handsome when you're seriously flipping through the menu..."

The air fell silent for two seconds.

Li Mei: "???"

She was completely stunned, wishing she could bite her tongue off on the spot.

What did I say?

Why did I blurt out what was on my mind?!

Her face flushed bright red, reaching her ears. She quickly picked up her water glass to drink and tried to cover it up, stammering as she tried to explain:

"I... I mean, the way you were seriously ordering food actually looked quite convincing... No, I meant don't order too much, we won't be able to finish it!"

The more you describe, the darker.

Ji Bai suppressed a laugh and nodded seriously: "I understand. It's normal for the teacher to think I'm handsome. After all, with my looks, I'd be considered a school heartthrob."

"You shameless jerk."

Li Mei glared at him, but inside she was panicking.

What happened today?

Why does your mouth seem to be completely open?

During the rest of the meal, Li Mei truly experienced what it meant to experience "repeated social death."

Seeing Ji Bai's well-defined hands as he cut the steak, she blurted out, "How can his hands be so beautiful? They're even more beautiful than mine after I've had my nails done."

After saying that, he immediately lowered his head and ate his salad, pretending that he hadn't been the one who had just spoken.

She now seriously suspects that she has developed a nervous breakdown from staying up late grading papers recently, otherwise why would she be able to blurt out one heartfelt sentence after another to her students?

It's like they've got a "truth or dare" autoplay buff; you can't stop them.

During the meal, Li Mei had lost count of how many times she had made a slip of the tongue.

Ji Bai peeled a lobster and placed the tender white meat on Li Mei's plate.

Li Mei had already prepared her answer: "No need, I can do it myself, you just eat."

But then she changed her tune: "The shrimp you peel are definitely tastier than the ones I peel myself."

Ji Bai handed her a tissue to wipe her mouth. She meant to say "thank you," but what came out was, "How can you be so thoughtful, even when you're handing me a tissue?"

By the end, she was completely numb. After each bite, she would close her mouth and purse her lips, afraid that she might utter some shocking or outrageous words.

Only one existential question remained in my mind: What's wrong with me today? Am I under a spell?

After finally finishing his meal, Ji Bai leaned back in his chair and smiled innocently, "Teacher, I'm done eating. Let's go pay the bill."

Li Mei had just wiped her mouth when she heard this and was stunned. Pointing to herself, she said, "I'll buy it?"

"Otherwise what? Didn't we agree that you'd treat?"

"You're trying to trick me, aren't you?!"

Li Mei glared at him angrily, her cheeks puffed out.

In the past, when she took Ji Bai out to eat, it was always at roadside restaurants like Lanzhou noodles or braised chicken, and she would pay only ten or eight yuan.

Today, she originally thought that the students had received scholarships and were treating their teachers to a nice thank-you dinner. It turns out that she was the one who was taking advantage of the teachers instead.

"Hey! You've got hundreds of thousands in scholarship money in your pocket! And you want me to treat you? Have you no shame?"

"So what if it's a few hundred thousand? That's money I'm saving to get married in the future. Do you think I can just spend it on other people?" Ji Bai said seriously.

"You!" Li Mei was speechless, choked by his words.

"Okay, okay, go quickly, I'll give you a surprise when I get back!"

"You win!"

When Li Mei returned after paying the bill, she slammed it on the table: "Do you know how much this meal cost? It's almost half a month's salary gone!"

"Are you doing this on purpose, trying to bankrupt me and then become my sugar daddy?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Li Mei felt like she wanted to die.

It’s over.

It's completely over.

Today, she completely lost control of her mouth, daring to utter the most outrageous and offensive words.

All she wanted to do was find a hole in the ground and quit her job to leave the city overnight.

Ji Bai burst out laughing, watching her bristle and deliberately teasing her in a drawn-out tone: "Kept? You're a bit too old for that..."

Seeing that Li Mei's anger was about to reach a breaking point and she was about to throw the menu at him, he quickly changed the subject:

"Get the biggest bag! A big one is better; a big one will be more considerate!"

Li Mei, who had been sulking, blushed instantly after his words. She turned her head away, but couldn't help but smile, managing to utter two words after a long pause:

"Virtue!"

"Where's the surprise you mentioned?"

"If you don't satisfy me, I'll never eat out with you again!"

Ji Bai smiled, leaned slightly forward, and moved closer to her.

The warm yellow light fell on the boy's clean-cut features. His voice was soft, with a hint of laughter, and clearly reached her ear:

You look beautiful today!

boom!

This sentence was like turning on the switch for dopamine in Li Mei's body.

In that instant, Li Mei felt as if a small firework had exploded in her mind.

It was just an ordinary compliment, but her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to burst out of her chest.

A sweet, joyful feeling shot from the soles of my feet to the top of my head, making me happier than winning a year-end bonus, being named an outstanding teacher, or having winter and summer vacations combined.

I felt lightheaded, like I was walking on cotton.

She could even clearly feel her cheeks burning and the corners of her mouth uncontrollably turning upwards, which she couldn't suppress.

What happened?

It's just a compliment, isn't it?

Do I really need to go that far?

Li Mei sat there in a daze, her mind blank, filled only with overflowing happiness. Even the anger she felt from being cheated out of a month's salary had completely dissipated.

Seeing her dizzy state, Ji Bai couldn't help but reach out and grab her hand that was on the table.

It's very soft, the skin is very tender, but there's a thin, hard callus on the pads of my thumb and forefinger.

That's from years of holding chalk and grinding it.

"Let's go for a walk and have some food!"

He simply took her hand and got up to walk outside.

Li Mei was still immersed in the immense pleasure brought by that compliment, her mind was dizzy, and she subconsciously followed him.

The warm yellow light cast long shadows of the two, their clasped hands concealing the boy's unconcealed thoughts and the woman's rumbling heartbeat.