Oh no! I've only been a freshman and I've already been targeted by a mean upperclassman.

The sound of a water tap, the soft clatter of dishes, and occasional snippets of Li Chen humming a song could be heard from downstairs.

out of tune.

Yan Xi paused for a moment.

She smiled and continued drawing.

She drew the stone bridge on the opposite bank, the ripples in the water under the bridge, and the crooked willow tree at the bridgehead.

Then turn to a new page.

On this page, she drew a person's back view.

Broad shoulders, narrow waist, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, standing in front of the stove.

An apron was tied around her waist, with the straps tied in a slightly crooked knot.

She used the side of the charcoal pencil to create the texture of cooking oil smoke, and then repeatedly made a few more strokes on the lines of the figure's shoulders.

It took her twenty minutes to draw this picture.

It lasted longer than all the previous scenery combined.

When Li Chen came up, she closed her sketchbook.

"Finished drawing?"

"Um."

"show me."

"No."

Li Chen sat down next to her without insisting.

He took out his phone from his pocket and scrolled through the group messages for 302.

Wang Qiang posted a selfie with the caption, "On the third day without Lao San, my mental state has become unstable."

In the photo, his eyes are lifeless, and he has a sausage in his mouth.

Zhao Zixuan replied with a crying emoji.

Chen Mo posted a message: "After seventy-two hours of observation, I can confirm that the ecosystem in our dormitory has entered a metastable state due to the lack of a core node."

"Specifically, Wang Qiang's consumption of ham sausages increased by 300%, Zhao Zixuan's sighing frequency reached seventeen times per hour, and I started playing chess with myself."

Li Chen turned his phone screen towards Yan Xi.

Yan Xi glanced at it, her expression unchanged.

"Your roommate."

"Um."

"It's quite pitiful."

"Um."

"Don't you feel bad?"

"I feel sorry for you."

Li Chen locked the screen.

"But I'd rather feel sorry for you."

Yan Xi turned her head and looked at him.

Sunlight shone on his profile, highlighting his defined features, and a hint of a smile appeared in his eyes.

She reached out and used her fingertips to wipe away a small patch of flour that had somehow gotten on his cheek.

"Dirty".

"It got on my skin when I was kneading the dough."

"What are you kneading the dough for?"

I'll make you handmade noodles for lunch.

Yan Xi's hand stopped beside his face.

"You can even make noodles?"

"I learned it on the spot; I asked the innkeeper."

Yan Xi withdrew her hand.

She reopened her sketchbook, turned to a blank page, and began to draw the third sketch.

This time, I drew a pair of hands.

With distinct knuckles and thin calluses on his fingertips, he was kneading a lump of dough on the cutting board.

At 1 p.m., the two checked out of the room.

The innkeeper stood at the door, watching Li Chen load his suitcase into the trunk of the Porsche, and said something expressionless.

"Next time you come, stay here again, and we'll reserve the best room for you."

Li Chen nodded and thanked him.

Yan Xi had already gotten into the driver's seat.

She rolled the car window down halfway and glanced at the old plaque on the wooden door of the inn that read "Tingyuxuan" (Listening to the Rain Pavilion).

Li Chen got into the passenger seat.

The car started, drove out of the ancient town's stone-paved road, and turned onto the asphalt road.

In the rearview mirror, the outline of the white walls and gray tiles gradually lowered, finally disappearing behind the bend of the road.

Yan Xi did not turn around.

But her right hand left the steering wheel and flipped over on the center armrest.

Palms facing up, fingers slightly spread.

Li Chen saw it.

He reached out and took her fingers in his.

Yan Xi's palms were warm.

Neither of them spoke.

An old song was playing on the car stereo at a very low volume, so the lyrics were indistinct; only the melody floated in the car.

The scenery outside the window changed from the stone walls of the small town to the roadside trees on both sides of the road, and then to the factories and gas stations on the outskirts of the city.

Li Chen's phone vibrated.

He unlocked it with one hand and glanced at it.

News of Li Mohan.

[Dad: Are you back yet? Your mom made braised pork ribs, and I was forced to eat three bowls of rice. You'd better deal with that.]

Li Chen replied.

[Li Chen: Still on the way, will arrive at school tonight.]

Ten seconds later.

[Dad: Your mom said she wants to talk to your girlfriend on the phone.]

Li Chen's thumb hovered above the screen for three seconds.

He glanced at Yan Xi.

She kept her eyes on the road ahead, driving steadily with one hand on the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position and the other hand clasped in his palm.

[Li Chen: Let me ask her.]

[Dad: What are you asking? Just hit her! Your mom's been waiting for a month! If this drags on any longer, she's going to come all the way to Linjiang.]

[Dad: Also, tell your girlfriend not to be nervous. Your mom, apart from being a little talkative, is perfectly fine.]

Li Chen locked the screen.

"What's wrong?" Yan Xi's gaze didn't leave the road.

"My mom wants to call you."

The steering wheel turned slightly to one side.

Yan Xi immediately corrected it.

"When?"

"My dad said tonight."

The car was silent for a few seconds.

The song on the stereo just changed, and the only sound in the gap was the tires rolling over the road.

"OK."

One word.

The voice was half a octave lower than before.

Li Chen rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand.

"nervous?"

"I'm not nervous."

"Your steering wheel was tilted just now."

Yan Xi's jawline tightened slightly.

"The road surface is uneven."

Li Chen didn't expose her.

He put his phone back in his pocket and changed the subject.

"How much longer until we reach the highway?"

"An hour and a half."

"You've been driving for over an hour, do you want me to switch?"

"Need not."

Li Chen leaned back in his seat and turned his head to look at the scenery passing by outside the car window.

In the reflection, Yan Xi's profile flickered.

She bit her lower lip, seemingly lost in thought.

Five minutes later.

"Li Chen".

"Um."

What does your mom like?

Li Chen turned his head.

Yan Xi continued to look ahead, her tone remaining as calm as ever.

But her fingers tightened around the steering wheel a little, her knuckles turning white.

"She likes good-looking people."

"Seriously."

"I'm serious." Li Chen thought for a moment. "She likes to cook, likes to watch variety shows, and likes to banter with the neighbors in the community group chat."

Yan Xi frowned slightly.

This information was of no use to her.

Cooking, variety shows, neighbors... these keywords depict an image completely different from the people she has encountered since childhood.

The Yan family's social activities consist of business banquets, charity galas, and golf courses.

Although her mother, Luo Yun, was gentle, she was still a member of that social circle at heart.

The woman Li Chen described was so down-to-earth that Li Chen didn't know how to deal with her.

"What will she ask me?"

"I don't know, they might ask if you've eaten."

"and then?"

"They might ask if you're cold."

"And then?"

"They might ask me if I bullied you."

Yan Xi fell silent.

Li Chen observed her reaction.

His lips were slightly pursed, and his eyes blinked more frequently than usual.

He saw many different emotions in her.

The cold-bloodedness with which he crushed his subordinates in the student council.

Disdain when being gossiped about on the forum.

The smugness of successfully flirting with him.

Vulnerability when you shed your disguise at the mountaintop.

But this kind of...

This kind of earnestness, tinged with a hint of panic, was a first for me.