Chapter 29: Movie Date—She Gets Mad, He’s Still Smiling

Under the table, Li Zhi secretly poked his clenched fist with her index finger.

“Don’t be so nervous. Relax a bit. Is this your first relationship?”

“Yeah, my first.”

Li Zhi’s beautiful eyes flashed with surprise.

He was twenty-eight this year—successful, handsome, and popular with women. Most people wouldn’t believe he’d never dated before.

“You never met a girl who made your heart race before?”

Fu Tingzhou answered honestly, “No. You’re the most beautiful and unique woman I’ve ever seen. You’re also the only one who’s ever made my heart flutter.”

“I’m not that pretty.”

“You really are. You’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.”

Maybe this was what the saying meant: “In the eyes of a lover, she’s always a beauty.”

Li Zhi didn’t think she was that attractive. She was just a bit prettier than average, had a decent figure—there were plenty of girls better-looking than her.

Still, Jingyi once said she had that delicate and cold “white flower” kind of beauty—the type that brought lots of romantic attention.

Maybe that was true. A lot of guys at school wanted to pursue her, but she turned them all down, saying she just wanted to focus on her studies.

But now she was wondering… could there be something wrong with Fu Tingzhou’s body?

She’d heard that soldiers could get injured in certain places from battle or intense training.

Her eyes involuntarily drifted toward his lower body… that prominent bulge… didn’t look like there was any problem.

Fu Tingzhou noticed her glance, his deep, fox-like eyes landing on her face.

She was caught staring and blushed with embarrassment. “I…”

Just as she was about to pull her hand away, Fu Tingzhou suddenly held her fingers, placing his hand over hers.

His warm, large palm wrapped around her smaller one and tugged gently upward.

“What are you doing?” Li Zhi was startled, thinking he was about to make her touch that.

Even though they were in a private room, the door wasn’t locked—someone could walk in at any moment.

And just as she feared, the door opened.

Li Zhi panicked, trying to pull her hand back, but he gripped it too tightly.

Two waiters walked closer.

Her cheeks flushed again. In her past life, she and Lu Yanzhi had never even held hands in public.

She snuck a glance at Fu Tingzhou. He didn’t even look at the waiters, keeping a calm expression like nothing was happening.

Then he used his fingertips to lightly scratch her palm.

The tingling sensation made her skin crawl—it was ticklish.

Her face turned even redder, heart pounding. She glared at him, silently warning him to behave.

People are watching!

Why had she never realized he was so shameless?

The waiters placed dishes on the table and smiled. “Here’s everything. Enjoy your meal.”

They were locals from Guangzhou and spoke in Cantonese.

Both Fu Tingzhou and Li Zhi replied in Cantonese, “Thank you!”

Once the waiters left, Li Zhi tried moving her hand again, and only then did Fu Tingzhou let go.

Her palm was sweaty from nerves.

If the waiters had noticed, she would’ve died of embarrassment.

She gave him a playful glare, her clear almond eyes filled with light scolding.

Fu Tingzhou smiled dotingly, his eyes full of tenderness. To him, her glare was just a form of flirting—and he loved it.

Li Zhi feigned annoyance. “Stop smiling!”

She was mad, and he was still smiling?

“Okay, I won’t. Let’s have some congee.” Fu Tingzhou held back his laughter and quickly served her some, trying to shift her focus.

…

After lunch, Li Zhi wanted to get back to studying.

Fu Tingzhou wanted to stay with her but was worried it would affect her concentration.

He said, “I’ll come pick you up tonight. I’ll wait outside the library.”

“Okay.”

That afternoon, he sat in the library behind her, slightly diagonal, his eyes constantly drawn to her as an unconscious smile tugged at his lips.

Someone else saw this and finally relaxed—so Fu Tingzhou wasn’t her boyfriend after all.

Sunlight streamed through the classroom windows, casting a soft glow that outlined Li Zhi’s delicate profile.

She bent slightly over her notebook, pen gliding across the page. Sometimes she frowned when stuck on a hard problem, and other times, the corners of her mouth curved up when she solved one.

That onlooker made a silent vow in his heart: I’ll work harder and try to catch up with Zhizhi—to get closer to her.

At 6 p.m., Li Zhi wrapped up her study session and went to meet Fu Tingzhou at the café across the street. They had dinner together again.

As they walked and chatted, Li Zhi brought up her original plan. She had seven days off and wanted to take one day to relax. She’d planned to go alone but now wanted to ask him along.

Fu Tingzhou was thrilled and even made a detailed itinerary.

His plan: breakfast dim sum, a bike ride along the Pearl River, lunch, then a movie in the afternoon, followed by strolling the night market—classic date activities for couples.

Li Zhi asked, “You have so many days off. Aren’t you going home to spend time with your family?”

Fu Tingzhou replied, “I usually do during National Day, but this time, I’m not going back. I want to spend it with you.”

Opportunities to pursue someone you love aren’t easy to come by.

His vacation days were limited. How could he waste this rare chance?

Li Zhi’s eyes instantly turned red.

In both lifetimes, no one had ever put her first.

Turns out, she was someone worth cherishing and putting first.

Fu Tingzhou noticed her rubbing her eyes. He stopped his bike, gently cupped her face, and asked tenderly, “Zhizhi, why are you crying? Are you feeling unwell?”

Li Zhi blinked. “No, my eyes are just a little itchy.”

She didn’t want him to know—it was because she was starved for love. It felt shameful.

In her past life, that same emptiness led her to become irrational in love.

But Fu Tingzhou was such a good person. Being with him felt worth it.

Even if things didn’t work out in the end, she wouldn’t regret giving him a chance.

“Maybe your eyes are tired from too much studying. I’ll give you a little massage or buy some eye drops,” he said as he gently rubbed her eyelids with his warm fingers.

“I’m fine.”

As they walked, they passed a pharmacy, and Fu Tingzhou bought her several bottles of eye drops to relieve eye fatigue.

These days, Fu Tingzhou had been picking her up and dropping her off at the library every day.