Chapter 35

His words were like magic, incredibly convincing, like a protective charm, making Xia Qingning feel incredibly at ease. She nodded at him and started to control the handlebars herself.

The bike, which had been swaying, became stable under the strong support of the person behind her. Xia Qingning only needed to focus on holding the handlebars.

Slowly, from needing his help to hold the handlebars to only needing him to hold the back of the bike, Xia Qingning was able to control the direction and ride forward smoothly.

Feeling like she could ride on her own, Xia Qingning said to Lu Jingzhe:

“You don’t need to hold on anymore, I’ll try on my own.”

Even the best teachers need to let go, so that the student can eventually learn on their own.

Lu Jingzhe nodded, telling her to be careful, then let go. He stood there, but his eyes never left her.

At first, Xia Qingning was still a little scared riding on her own, but luckily, it went smoothly. The handlebars only swayed a few times when she first started, but then they became much steadier.

Now Xia Qingning could basically master the technique, and she was riding more and more smoothly. After riding a few laps, she looked at Lu Jingzhe with a happy smile and said:

“Haha… look, I can ride now.”

She was so happy, so beautiful, her eyes sparkling with excitement, like two little stars. Lu Jingzhe couldn’t help but smile slightly at her.

When Wu Xiaodong walked into the courtyard with a bottle of soy sauce, he saw Xia Qingning riding alone, steadily circling the courtyard.

He scratched his head in surprise and confusion, wondering how Sister Qingning had learned to ride in the short time he was gone.

What surprised him even more was that Jingzhe was looking at Sister Qingning riding… and smiling.

So, he did know how to smile!

He Shanshan, who was fixing her hair in her room, also heard Xia Qingning’s voice. Curious, she pulled open the curtains and saw Xia Qingning riding the bike with ease, smiling happily.

She had just mocked her for not knowing how to ride, and now, in the blink of an eye, she had learned. He Shanshan felt the slap in the face was too fast. She angrily pulled the curtains shut.

Humph! What’s so great about that, just a bicycle? The day after tomorrow, she was going on a blind date with that rich and handsome man. If it went well, she would definitely buy a bike even better than Xia Qingning’s.

Thinking about this, she started fixing her hair again, vowing to win over the rich man on this blind date.

Xia Qingning was riding very steadily in the courtyard. But just as she was about to turn, her wheel hit a hard object, the handlebars instantly became uncontrollable, and the bike tilted to the side.

Seeing the situation, Lu Jingzhe took a step forward, but it was too late to help her steady the bike. She was about to fall.

He didn’t think twice. In the moment she fell, he reacted quickly and hugged her, but because the center of gravity was off-balance, he fell to the ground with the bike and Xia Qingning.

Everything happened so fast that Xia Qingning didn’t have time to react before she fell, but after falling, she didn’t feel any pain.

When she came to her senses, she realized she was in Lu Jingzhe’s arms, and he had become a human cushion, landing heavily on the ground to protect her.

A low grunt sounded in her ear, and Xia Qingning immediately stood up, her face turning pale. She didn’t know how badly Lu Jingzhe was hurt and anxiously asked:

“Are you okay?”

The pain in his elbow made Lu Jingzhe frown slightly, but seeing her frightened look, he calmly smoothed out his furrowed brows, becoming calm, even comforting her:

“I’m fine.”

The weight of one person plus the weight of a bike, all falling on him, how could he be fine? Xia Qingning immediately reached out to help him up, worriedly looking him over. Seeing that he was truly alright, she finally relaxed.

At this time, Wu Xiaodong also ran over, helping to pick up the bike and asking with concern:

“Sister Qingning, Jingzhe, are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Xia Qingning said, but her gaze remained on Lu Jingzhe. Although she didn’t see any injuries, she still felt a sense of unease.

“Let’s stop here for today.” Lu Jingzhe said, his voice as deep as ever.

“Okay.” Xia Qingning quickly replied.

She was still shaken and didn’t want to ride anymore.

Seeing her fear, Lu Jingzhe remained silent for a moment, then comforted her:

“It’s inevitable to fall when learning to ride, especially when you’re about to get it. Don’t be afraid, we’ll practice again tomorrow, and you’ll get it.”

He had never spoken so softly before. Even Wu Xiaodong, who was standing nearby, was stunned. Was this the same cold and indifferent Jingzhe? When did he become so caring?

Xia Qingning was still a little shaken and didn’t notice the change in Lu Jingzhe’s tone. She took the bike from Wu Xiaodong’s hands and remembered to check if it was damaged.

She quickly noticed that the front fender was bent, and she felt a little guilty, saying:

“Sorry, I bent this.”

Lu Jingzhe didn’t show much emotion on his face, as if he didn’t care at all. He glanced at it and said:

“It’s fine.” Then he squatted down and straightened the bent fender with his bare hands.

Xia Qingning was about to ask if they should get it fixed, but the next second, she saw it restored to its original state. She was once again amazed by Lu Jingzhe’s strength.

“Let’s go back.” Lu Jingzhe stood up and said.

Seeing that he was about to leave, Wu Xiaodong remembered the soy sauce in his hand, and quickly handed it to him, saying:

“Jingzhe, I got the soy sauce.”

“Hm.” Lu Jingzhe replied, but didn’t take it.

“Don’t you want it?” Wu Xiaodong asked, confused when he didn’t take it.

“Keep it for yourself.” Lu Jingzhe said in a deep voice, then didn’t stay any longer and walked forward.

Wu Xiaodong scratched his head in confusion, wondering why he didn’t want it but asked him to get it. He couldn’t figure it out after thinking for a long time, and looked at Xia Qingning for help.

Xia Qingning didn’t understand either. She shook her head at him and said:

“Xiaodong, thank you for today, I’ll treat you to popsicles tomorrow.”

Lu Jingzhe, who was walking ahead, heard the words “popsicles” and suddenly paused for a moment. Then he continued walking forward.

Seeing him walk away, Xia Qingning waved goodbye to Wu Xiaodong, pushed her bike, and was about to follow him. But then, Maimiao, who had just come back from buying vegetables, suddenly ran over and grabbed her, saying in surprise:

“Wow, Qingning, you got a new hairstyle, it’s even prettier than the last one. Teach me sometime, okay?”

Since she had learned the side ponytail from Xia Qingning last time, she had gone to work at the commune, and all the girls and women there had envied her, praising her from head to toe. She was so happy.

Now, seeing Xia Qingning with a new and even more beautiful headband braid, how could she not be tempted.

“Okay, I have time now.” Xia Qingning said with a smile.

“Now? I need to cook dinner.” Maimiao said with a hint of regret:

“Tomorrow won’t work either, I need to go to the department store tomorrow. How about the day after tomorrow? I’ll come to your place the day after tomorrow, and you teach me.”

“Okay.” Xia Qingning readily agreed.

“Oh, do you need to buy anything? We can go to the department store together after work tomorrow.” Maimiao invited.

Xia Qingning thought for a moment. In two days, she was going to visit the original owner’s family in the countryside with Lu Jingzhe. She couldn’t go empty-handed, so it was a good opportunity to go to the department store with Maimiao. She nodded and replied:

“Okay, we’ll go after work.”

They made an appointment, and after waving goodbye to Maimiao, Xia Qingning pushed her bike towards home.

She parked the bike in a corner and was about to go to her room to get a basin to wash her face.

She had been sweating from learning to ride, and it felt sticky and uncomfortable.

She just pushed open the door to her room and saw Lu Jingzhe taking off his clothes. She wanted to retreat and wait for him to change before going in, but her gaze fell on his shirt sleeve.

A bright red stain stood out against the white shirt. She was stunned for a moment before she realized it was blood.