Font Size:
Xu Zhiqiao felt like dying.
When was she ever going to change this habit of blabbering when she was nervous?
No wonder she and Ji Huailuo were from the same family. The way they spoke without thinking was just like their parents’.
Zhou Cong didn’t say anything. He just looked at her for a while, lowered his head, and suppressed a smile, trying to appear serious, though the effort was obvious.
Xu Zhiqiao buried her head, scooping up a small wonton with her spoon.
Zhou Cong turned his face away, looking at the bookshelf. The curve of his lips was out of control and gradually deepened.
The chicken soup was delicious, and its aroma spread through the room.
“I’m in 1608,” Zhou Cong barely managed to hide his expression, afraid of irritating her, and said in a very serious tone, “I’ll be staying here tonight. You can knock on my door if you need anything.”
“Okay.”
“Is it good?”
“Mm.”
“The downstairs shop, Old Yuan’s, the owner is a bit of a germaphobe. The cleanliness is almost excessive.”
“…Okay.”
Zhou Cong sat next to her, his arm brushing against hers. “If you want more next time, I’ll buy it for you.”
“……” Xu Zhiqiao’s face turned bright red, and she muttered, “Sit across from me.”
Zhou Cong rested his elbow on the table, his chin in his hand, and tilted his head to look at her. “Give me one.”
“……”
There were extra small bowls and spoons on the table. Xu Zhiqiao spooned half into one for him.
Zhou Cong glanced at her. “Is that enough?”
“Mm.”
“I only want one.”
“Less talking.”
“……” Zhou Cong teased her, in a half-serious tone, “You’re getting more and more aggressive with me.”
Xu Zhiqiao lowered her head quickly, almost dunking it into her bowl of wontons. “Eat it or not? If not, then leave.”
“Eating~” Zhou Cong said lazily, “I’m just saying, your face is almost…”
Xu Zhiqiao suddenly looked up. “Don’t say that! I’m not blushing!!”
Zhou Cong stiffened for a second. “…I was burned by the soup.”
Xu Zhiqiao: “……”
Silence.
After a moment, Zhou Cong’s shoulders started shaking, and he couldn’t hold back his laughter.
Xu Zhiqiao almost cried, feeling like she wanted to give herself a good scolding.
He finally stopped laughing, but Zhou Cong couldn’t contain his smile and roughly rubbed her head with his palm, trying to change the topic. “How did you resolve the issue? Tell Big Brother.”
Xu Zhiqiao was silent for a few seconds, then recounted everything to him word for word.
Zhou Cong listened without any change in expression, as calm as if he were watching a play, handling the situation effortlessly, and offered no comment.
“This is on me and your brother,” Zhou Cong said lightly, “We didn’t let you benefit, only brought you trouble.”
Xu Zhiqiao suddenly remembered Ji Huailuo, whom she hadn’t seen in a long time. “Has my brother contacted you?”
Zhou Cong: “?”
Xu Zhiqiao hesitated. “He hasn’t been home for a while. Does he have clothes to wear?”
“……” Zhou Cong clicked his tongue. “You should worry about yourself. You’re on your period and still not wearing a jacket…”
Xu Zhiqiao exploded again. “Don’t bring that up!”
Zhou Cong smiled and pinched her cheek, sighing. “You’ve really lost all your baby fat.”
You’re growing up now, your chin is even starting to look sharper.
Though she didn’t want to admit it, his observation was indeed accurate. After he’d said that, Xu Zhiqiao weighed herself when she got home.
She had lost three pounds.
These past few days, she’d shed a few more pounds, to the point where Xu Shu nearly forbade her from staying in the dorm and wanted her to move back to the Ji family for a while to gain some weight.
Zhou Cong glanced toward the bedroom. “Do you have a small jacket here?”
“I’ll get it this weekend,” Xu Zhiqiao replied. “It’s not that cold anyway.”
Zhou Cong: “I have one, new, I’ll get it for you later.”
“……” Xu Zhiqiao hesitated. “How do you have women’s clothes?”
Zhou Cong raised an eyebrow. “It’s mine. You can wear it as a long jacket if it’s short for you, is that alright?”
“……”
“Xu Zhiqiao.”
“…Huh?”
“I’ve noticed,” Zhou Cong said meaningfully, “That sounds a little… sour.”
Xu Zhiqiao buried her head in her soup. “You’d better not find out.”
——-
Zhou Cong really did bring her a down jacket, black and casual, with a hood and a short length. Xu Zhiqiao put it on and it reached her thighs. She paired it with fleece-lined wide-leg pants and short snow boots, a simple, low-key, and comfortable outfit.
“I told you it’s fine,” Xu Zhiqiao hugged her book. “One more day won’t kill me.”
Zhou Cong bent over, acting like a servant, zipping up her jacket and adjusting her slightly crooked hood.
Xu Zhiqiao glanced at him, then quickly averted her gaze, feeling guilty.
“You’ll still catch a cold,” Zhou Cong tapped her head. “You think I’ll be the one to suffer?”
Xu Zhiqiao didn’t respond, but the corner of her lips briefly curved upward, the fleeting expression quickly disappearing.
Zhou Cong’s clothes were all low-key, but the quality was impeccable, and they were incredibly comfortable.
The first period was a large class, with students from several sections gathering in the multimedia classroom.
Yesterday, Xu Zhiqiao had gained fame in one fell swoop. Although no one knew why the argument had started, no one disliked her sharpness. In fact, some thought her determined attitude made her resemble a little angry gray fox.
Adorably fierce.
Song Siting approached her with no expression, standing in front of her. “Hey, I’ll say sorry again. I was a jerk yesterday, alright?”
“……” Xu Zhiqiao flipped a page in her book. “You reflect for a few days, and I’ll think about it.”
Wang Miaomiao carefully spoke up. “Stop being angry, alright?”
Xu Zhiqiao replied, “We’ll see.”
“……” Zou Qi cleared her throat. “We’ll make sure to behave well.”
Xu Zhiqiao remained silent.
When fighting, people always chose the most hurtful, cruel words to say. Xu Zhiqiao understood that, but she couldn’t agree with the way they handled things.
Even if they made up, things would never be the same.
The girl sitting next to her was named Zhang Wanying.
Zhang Wanying pinched her down jacket and lifted her hood. “This jacket is so expensive.”
Xu Zhiqiao turned her head. “How much?”
“Very expensive,” Zhang Wanying said. “Although it’s black, the fabric has a pearl-like sheen, and it feels thick and luxurious. I’ve only seen it on some celebrities.”
At this point, Zhang Wanying couldn’t help but envy. “You’re really rich.”
Xu Zhiqiao: “I just borrowed it.”
“……”
Xu Zhiqiao honestly admitted, “I have to return it.”
“……” Zhang Wanying paused. “Do you have an older sister?”
Xu Zhiqiao froze.
Zhang Wanying continued. “You said you borrowed it, didn’t you? Was it from your sister? This is a women’s version.”
Xu Zhiqiao: “Women’s version?”
“Yeah,” Zhang Wanying pointed to the tag inside the sleeve that wasn’t very obvious. “This is a women’s version. The men’s version has the opposite tag.”
“……”
——
Friday afternoon, after more than a month, Xu Zhiqiao received a call from Ji Huailuo.
His voice was as impatient as ever. “I’ve already seen your roommate. What are you dragging your feet for?”
“……” Xu Zhiqiao was downstairs. “Brother, you’re here?”
Ji Huailuo seemed to sneer. “Your Zhou Cong brother said you were being bullied, so I came to take a look. I want to see who dares to bully… how pathetic you are.”
When Xu Zhiqiao reached the second floor, she saw him through the window… and Zhou Cong was standing next to him.
Zhou Cong was wearing the exact same jacket as hers.
For some strange reason, Xu Zhiqiao felt guilty, as if she had done something bad behind Ji Huailuo’s back.
The next second, she grabbed Song Siting, who had fallen behind. “Help me take this jacket back to the dorm. Forget about what happened before.”