Chapter 008

He Ye took a nap, woke up, put away the clothes that had dried on the balcony, and then read a book.

At 3:50, He Ye pinched her arm, which hadn’t played ball for a long time, and went downstairs.

The sunlight was still glaring, so He Ye walked under the shade of trees. After turning a few corners, she arrived at the community’s brand-new open-air badminton court.

Zhou Xiangming and Lu Jin were already there. Zhou Xiangming was sitting on a bench, looking up and talking, while Lu Jin stood next to him, wearing a white T-shirt and black sports shorts. He looked tall and thin. Upon closer inspection, his arms and calf muscles were smooth and toned, showing he wasn’t just a nerd who only studied.

He Ye’s discomfort grew as she got closer.

To be honest, she didn’t feel that they were really friends. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be friends with them, but they weren’t very familiar with each other. Besides going to school together, she didn’t know them any better than other classmates, and they probably felt the same about her.

“He Ye, do you have WeChat? Let’s add each other so we can stay in touch if we need anything in the future,” Zhou Xiangming said.

He Ye replied, “Yes, but my phone is at home. I didn’t bring it with me.”

Zhou Xiangming said, “It’s okay. Just tell me your number, and I’ll add you first.”

He Ye gave him her number.

Zhou Xiangming lowered his head to operate his phone. Lu Jin looked at the screen and saw that Zhou Xiangming had searched for a person named “Ye Zi Yuan Yuan.” The avatar was a pair of round lotus leaves, one tall and one short, in a simple cartoon style.

Just by looking at the profile picture, it was clear that it must be He Ye.

Zhou Xiangming turned his phone towards He Ye. “This?”

He Ye blushed, as she had never expected to reveal her WeChat name.

Zhou Xiangming smiled understandingly. “What’s the big deal? It’s cute. Although it’s not as artistic as mine.”

He Ye asked curiously, “What’s your name?”

Zhou Xiangming hesitated to reveal it, but Lu Jin said, “Changzhou Xiangming.”

He Ye: “…”

It was indeed very artistic, but in a way that didn’t quite match Zhou Xiangming’s own style.

Zhou Xiangming coughed.

He Ye smiled. “It sounds nice, and the meaning is good too.”

Zhou Xiangming said, “Well, I thought about it for a long time. Unlike Lu Jin, who just used his real name, mine has some cultural connotation.”

He Ye glanced at Lu Jin.

Lu Jin handed her a racket. “Let’s start. Who wants to play with me first?”

Zhou Xiangming nodded towards He Ye. “You go first. I’ll reply to a few messages.”

He Ye had no choice but to take the racket and stand at one end of the court with Lu Jin.

When she arrived, she was worried that she might not be strong enough to keep up with the boys’ play. However, Lu Jin’s serves weren’t very powerful. He Ye played with him back and forth seven or eight times before missing a shot.

The disadvantages of being a homebody were evident. Even with just a little exercise, He Ye was already out of breath, with beads of sweat on her forehead and red cheeks.

She picked up the shuttlecock and looked at Zhou Xiangming, who was sitting on the bench. “It’s your turn?”

Zhou Xiangming replied, “You two continue. I haven’t finished my messages yet.”

He Ye didn’t think much of it.

Zhou Xiangming wore a meaningful smile and winked at Lu Jin.

Lu Jin was focused on the game and didn’t look at him.

When He Ye returned home, it was already half-past five.

After steaming rice in the rice cooker, she took a relaxing bath.

Although she had felt tired while playing badminton, she now felt completely relaxed. It showed that exercise was indeed beneficial for physical and mental health.

After tying her hair, He Ye went into the kitchen and made stir-fried meat and a cold cucumber dish.

After delivering the meal to her father and washing the dishes, He Ye went to the study and noticed her phone on the mouse pad. Then she remembered that Zhou Xiangming wanted to add her as a friend.

When she opened WeChat, she found two friend requests: one from “Changzhou Xiangming” and the other from “Lu Jin.”

He Ye was a bit surprised because, when Zhou Xiangming had asked for her WeChat ID, Lu Jin had been fiddling with the badminton racket and seemed uninterested in their conversation.

She approved Zhou Xiangming’s request first. When she approved Lu Jin’s request, she thought about it and changed the note to “team leader.”

Zhu Qing sometimes plays with her phone. If Zhu Qing saw that Lu Jin was on her friend list, she would definitely imagine more.

Soon, both boys sent messages.

Changzhou Xiangming: [Why did you approve my request so late? I thought you didn’t want to add me.]

Ye Ziyuanyuan: [No, I was busy with dinner after I got back, and I was just checking my phone.]

Changzhou Xiangming: [That’s fine. My dad is calling me now, so let’s talk later!]

He Ye replied, “OK,” exited the chat with Zhou Xiangming, and opened Lu Jin’s message.

Team Leader: [Add me as a friend, and contact me anytime if you need anything.]

Ye Ziyuanyuan: [Yes.]

The next day, He Ye rode her bicycle to school from the east gate as usual but did not encounter the two boys on the way.

Lu Jin was still waiting for Zhou Xiangming at the south gate.

Although Zhou Xiangming liked to stay in bed, he was already refreshed when he arrived. He raised his eyebrows at Lu Jin when they met. “He Ye and I became friends last night. How about it? Want me to give you her phone number?”

He Ye’s WeChat ID was quite difficult to remember, so Zhou Xiangming typed it in immediately. He didn’t think that Lu Jin, who was fiddling with his tennis racket and looking down, would be able to remember the number.

Lu Jin took off his headphones and said calmly, “No need.”

Zhou Xiangming looked unconvinced.

Lu Jin started riding forward.

Zhou Xiangming followed him. When they were almost at school, seeing that Lu Jin was really not anxious at all, Zhou Xiangming gave in. “Forget it, forget it. I know you can pretend. I’ll send it to you directly later.”

Lu Jin smiled, the wind blowing the strands of hair on his forehead, and the morning light illuminating his handsome face, which had not yet lost its youthfulness.

In Zhou Xiangming’s eyes, this smile felt like the pride of “Jiang Taigong catching a fish.”

Zhou Xiangming suddenly felt very frustrated. It was obvious that Lu Jin liked He Ye, so why was he always the one taking the initiative?

“If you really end up with He Ye in the future, you must give me a big red envelope!” Zhou Xiangming patted Lu Jin’s shoulder hard.

Lu Jin did not comment.

During the ten-minute break, some students chatted and played, while others continued studying.

He Ye was clearly in the latter group.

Except when classmates came to her for questions or when she went to the bathroom, He Ye mostly stayed in her seat, reading and working on exercises.

Zhou Xiangming rested his arms on the table, his chin on his arms, and his eyes moved around the girls in the class like a camera.

After observing for a while, Zhou Xiangming poked Lu Jin’s arm and whispered, “You’re done.”

Lu Jin gave him a condescending look.

Zhou Xiangming pointed at He Ye’s back and continued to whisper to Lu Jin, “Based on my observation, He Ye doesn’t seem like the type to fall in love easily. She’s all about her studies.”

No boy or girl in the class could divert He Ye’s attention. Even if there was any distraction, He Ye would glance at them for a few seconds and then refocus on her books.

The most obvious evidence was that when Lu Jin walked into the classroom, many girls would secretly pay attention to him, but He Ye never looked at him more than once.

After hearing his friend’s analysis, Lu Jin simply said, “That’s good.”

Zhou Xiangming started to worry again. “How can you pursue her if she’s like this?”

Lu Jin lowered his eyelashes and turned a page of his book with his slender fingers. “I don’t want to chase her.”

Zhou Xiangming sneered, “You don’t want to pursue her, but you still make an effort to chat with her?”

Lu Jin replied, “You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.”

Zhou Xiangming: …

It’s this sentence again. If Lu Jin has the courage, why doesn’t he just say it? How can we know he doesn’t understand if he doesn’t explain it?

Knowing that Lu Jin didn’t need him as a third wheel, Zhou Xiangming left with his schoolbag as soon as evening study was over.

Fang Xiaohui had someone waiting for her, so she picked up the broom early, not minding the trouble of sweeping while her classmates were already sitting on the floor.

By the time He Ye started cleaning, Fang Xiaohui had already finished sweeping one row.

“I’m leaving first!” she said.

Two minutes later, Fang Xiaohui walked out of the classroom with a smile.

Lu Jin mopped the floor where she had swept.

With only the two of them left in the classroom, He Ye, while sweeping, glanced towards Lu Jin.

The handsome and tall boy was both patient and meticulous. He first placed the four stools from the same row on the table, then put the stools back down after mopping the floor. This ensured there were no missed spots, unlike some students who mopped casually.

Noticing these small details, He Ye finished her work.

Last time, it was Lu Jin who took the initiative to ask her to wait for him, but this time…

“You can sit here and read for a while,” Lu Jin said after finishing mopping a row. He looked at her, indicating he still wanted them to go back to the community together.

This reminder quickly dispelled He Ye’s hesitation. She nodded, carried her schoolbag, and walked towards the row of seats Lu Jin had cleaned. When she got close, she found that the ground was still wet.

He Ye subconsciously looked at her shoes. If she stepped on it, she would dirty the clean floor.

“I’d better wait outside.”

“No need.”

Lu Jin came over with the mop and placed it at her feet. “Step on it a few times.”

He Ye hesitated.

Lu Jin raised his eyes and noticed her face was slightly red.

He paused and handed her the mop handle. “You do it yourself. I’ll move the remaining stools.”

He Ye instinctively took the mop handle and watched as Lu Jin walked back to put the stools on the table one by one.

He Ye suddenly realized she could help Lu Jin.

“You mop the floor, and I’ll put the stools away. That way, it’ll be faster.”

Lu Jin looked at her and said, “That’s fine.”

He Ye placed her schoolbag on the podium and quickly helped to lift the stools. After everything was in place, she took out two wet wipes from her schoolbag, wiped the soles of her feet, and then placed the stools that had been mopped across the area.

The two of them worked together, and their efficiency was much higher than if Lu Jin had done it alone.

He Ye helped, and when she accepted Lu Jin’s “escort,” the burden on her heart was significantly relieved.

The only awkwardness was the persistent silence on the way.

Suddenly, Lu Jin stopped his bike.

He was in front of He Ye, and after parking, he turned around and looked at her.

He Ye quickly stopped as well.

It was around ten o’clock in the evening. The night was dark, with almost no vehicles passing by. Only the dim light from the street lamps nearby illuminated the scene.

In this context, Lu Jin looked at her seriously, as if they were very close and he could look directly into her eyes. “Do you like listening to music?”

He Ye understood what he meant and nodded. “Not bad.”

As expected, Lu Jin took his schoolbag from the back seat, pulled out his MP4 player, and explained while pressing the buttons, “I have a lot of English songs on here.”

He Ye replied, “That’s good. It can also help improve your listening skills.”

After she finished speaking, she noticed Lu Jin seemed to smile.

Not long after, Lu Jin put his schoolbag back and placed the MP4 player into his pocket.

As the two of them set off again, light music began to float out from the pocket of his side, which was leaning against He Ye’s side.

He Ye rode her bike while trying to decipher the English lyrics that flashed by quickly.

As she listened, she mentally followed along with part of the song:

“Good morning and good night,

I wake up at twilight,

It’s gonna be alright, we don’t even have to try

It’s always a good time.”