21

The next day, Lin Xiao took Su Bai to get contact lenses.

It was Su Bai’s first time wearing contacts, and he was a little clumsy, always worried his fingers might poke his eyeball.

After finally getting them on, Su Bai looked up and blinked at the mirror.

He had a pair of bright, expressive big eyes, with a hint of youthful innocence. When he widened them in surprise, they appeared innocent and docile.

Lin Xiao watched and suddenly thought of a little deer in the forest.

The deer ran and ran around, then unexpectedly bumped gently into his heart.

Su Bai was happy, his cheeks blushing slightly. He kept saying, “This is so clear, so good, and it’s not tiring to wear.”

Lin Xiao came back to his senses, smiled, and said, “Looks good too.”

Su Bai showed that innocent look again, his big eyes staring at Lin Xiao. He smiled, revealing two particularly charming dimples and bashfully rubbed his nose to hide his joyful smile.

Lin Xiao’s heart raced. He reached out and ruffled Su Bai’s slightly long hair, feeling helpless. “How long has it been since you cut your hair?”

Su Bai tilted his head and thought for a moment, then proudly held up three fingers. “Three months!”

Lin Xiao rolled his eyes. “You’re proud of that?”

Su Bai shook his head, acting playful. “Great people don’t care about small details. Even scientists are like me.”

Lin Xiao: …

Su Bai added, “And I wash it every day.”

Lin Xiao grabbed his wrist, his voice firm. “Come with me.”

Lin Xiao took Su Bai to his regular barber. The barber was skilled, and Lin Xiao gently pushed Su Bai toward the shampoo bed. He grabbed a men’s hairstyle book and started flipping through it.

When Su Bai was done washing his hair, Lin Xiao pointed to a page in the book and said to the barber, “Cut it like this.”

Su Bai glanced at the page and quickly shook his head. “This one, this one won’t do, it doesn’t suit me.”

Lin Xiao gave him a side glance. “How doesn’t it suit you?”

Su Bai thought for a moment and replied with a serious tone, “It looks too sloppy, too showy.”

The barber was stunned for a second, clearly not expecting a young person to use a phrase like ‘showy.’ It felt like something from the ’50s or ’60s, like an old cadre!

Lin Xiao was almost laughing with anger. “Showy my ass! We’re cutting it like this. Do you still want to chase me or not?”

Su Bai’s face turned bright red. Under the barber’s surprised gaze, he muttered softly but firmly, “I want to chase you.”

Lin Xiao raised an eyebrow. “Then let’s go with my taste.”

Su Bai, subdued, said nothing further.

An hour later, the barber’s careful work was freshly done.

Lin Xiao’s taste was indeed excellent. After the haircut, Su Bai looked fresh and handsome. Plus, with the contact lenses making his eyes more lively and bright, his looks instantly jumped several levels.

Su Bai touched his hair, carefully looking at himself in the mirror, almost as if he didn’t recognize the person staring back.

Lin Xiao let out a soft hum, his eyes and smile full of pride. He nodded approvingly. “Not bad. You even look like a school heartthrob’s boyfriend.”

Su Bai looked at himself in the mirror again, shyly smiling. “So, I’m this good-looking, huh?”

Lin Xiao rolled his eyes. “…

Now you realize? Nineteen years wasted.”

“Really a retard.”

22

Su Bai returned to school with his new hairstyle and contact lenses.

These past few days, the girls at the academy were gossiping about a handsome new guy who had suddenly appeared. They never realized how much a hairstyle could change someone. Before, Su Bai hadn’t seemed that good-looking, but with his new style and without his glasses, he was unexpectedly stunning, and they couldn’t stop talking about it.

Lin Xiao listened, feeling both proud and oddly annoyed, a mix of emotions he couldn’t quite explain.

It felt like a hidden treasure that only he knew about had suddenly been discovered by everyone.

After class that day, Lin Xiao called Su Bai to his dorm room and took out a set of new clothes for him. “Try these on, I bought them too small.”

Su Bai’s first reaction was to wave his hand. “Then you should return them.”

Lin Xiao gruffly responded, “The tags are already cut. No returns.”

It was actually intentional, but that couldn’t be said out loud.

That day after the haircut, Lin Xiao originally planned to take Su Bai straight to the mall to buy a few new outfits, to avoid Su Bai always wearing T-shirts, jeans, and sneakers. But then he thought about it—Su Bai was usually frugal, and buying clothes would definitely make him reluctant to spend. On the other hand, he couldn’t expect Su Bai to let him pay. So, Lin Xiao secretly went shopping himself. He was confident in his taste and believed that the clothes he picked out would definitely look good on Su Bai.

Su Bai awkwardly took the clothes, hesitating for a moment.

Lin Xiao pointed with his chin. “Try it on.”

Su Bai’s face turned red. “I’ll go back to my dorm and change, then come show you.”

Lin Xiao flashed a mischievous grin. “Are you scared I’ll see you?”

Su Bai stammered, his face turning even redder. “It’s… it’s not that, it’s just…”

Lin Xiao’s gaze swept up and down Su Bai’s body twice, and he kicked his lips, saying, “Then just take it off, I want to see.”

Su Bai was blushing furiously, clutching the clothes and turning to run. “I-I’ll change in my dorm!”

Lin Xiao couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Pfft.”

“Damn it, I really want to eat this little fool.”