Lips puckered up, Tang Yuanyuan did not respond.
The next second, Zhong Chufeng took out a bottle of peach-flavored yogurt drink for Tang Yuanyuan.
“You’re heartless. I came all the way to send this yogurt drink to you, and is this how you treat me?”
Tang Yuanyuan’s eyes lit up as soon as she saw the yogurt drink. “Thank you, Chufeng.”
Zhong Chufeng proceeded to open the lid for her and sat next to her. Meng Kefei saw it and got up, remarking, “Yuanyuan, I’ll need to find some documents, so I’ll leave you with Chufeng for a short while.”
“Alright. Please come back as soon as you can.”
“Uh-huh.”
After Meng Kefei left, Zhong Chufeng flashed a smile and his gaze rested on the dull-looking Tang Yuanuan, who was lying flat on the desk.
“What’s going on with you? Why do you look unhappy?”
Zhong Chufeng had a pair of long legs, so he had to almost kneel on the ground and stretch out his legs to be able to get down to Tang Yuanyuan’s level.
“Nothing.”
Tang Yuanyuan shook her head while drinking the bottle of yogurt drink. “I’m not unhappy.”
“Really? Why do I feel that you look unusually sad?”
Then, Zhong Chufeng gently rubbed the back of her head. “Would you like me to bring you to get some barbecue tonight?”
The word ‘barbecue’ enlivened Tang Yuanyuan. She added, “Is Yishu coming too?”
“Yuanyuan, why do you have to keep bringing him up? Yishu’s such a busy man, unlike me.”
“Yishu is busy?”
Chufeng sniggered, “Yes. He’s busy being with the girl who likes him. Yuanyuan, you should just come with me to have some barbecue and leave Yishu alone.”
Tang Yuanyuan paused and gave him a confused look. “Is that girl the one that we saw at the birthday party?”
For reasons unbeknownst to her, the feeling that she had this morning came back to her. It was as if something was choking her.
“Not just her.” Zhong Chufeng sounded shady. “How can there be only one? So many girls like Yishu and that girl is just one of them.”
“T-That many?” Tang Yuanyuan’s eyes widened. She asked in disbelief, “Are there more than ten?”
“More than that.” He shook his head; he appeared to be counting as he was mumbling. “I’ve never really counted how many there are, but around eighty percent of the girls at school like Yishu. Apart from those, there are still some from the school nearby who have previously come to our school to deliver chocolates and cakes to Yishu.”
“Chocolates and cakes?”
“Yes. These are the gifts that girls love to give when they are confessing to a guy. Some of them even baked some cookies or made him breakfast. You name it.”
Zhong Chufeng clicked his tongue a couple of times. “I’m so jealous of how famous he is.”
“Does no one like you, Chufeng?”
“Yeap.”
Zhong Chufeng lowered himself and looked her in the eye. “No one would ever notice me as long as I’m with Yishu. It’s like what you just did to me. You only ever ask me about Yishu even when I’m standing right in front of you. It hurts so much,” he said these words sentimentally with a sad look on his face. Tang Yuanyuan naïvely believed him and thought that he was genuinely sad, so she quickly patted his hand.
“Don’t be sad, Chufeng. I won’t ask you that anymore.”
“Are you sure?” Zhong Chufeng maintained his pitiful look. “When I bring you the yogurt drink every day in the future, you won’t be asking for Yishu—is that what you mean?”
Though conflicted, Tang Yuanyuan felt that this should be normal even though she had never given it a thought before: Yishu was older than her by a couple of years, so she reckoned it should be normal for him to find a girlfriend.
And if Yishu was busy, she… would just stay put.
At this juncture, Tang Yuanyuan nodded.
“Yeah. Don’t worry, Chufeng; I won’t ask you again.”
Zhong Chufeng did not expect that his tactic would work on Tang Yuanyuan, but he felt that it was not enough. “So, are you coming with me for some barbecue tonight? It’s barbecue! After dinner, I’ll send you back to your dorm.”
“Sure.” Tang Yuanyuan nodded before adding, “Can I bring Fei along?”
“For sure. Just bring her. You can bring anyone from your dorm who would like to come.”
To Zhong Chufeng, as long as Yuanyuan was willing to come, it did not matter to him how many people eventually turned up—as long as the atmosphere would not be awkward. At this stage, he just wanted to show up in front of her—the more frequently the better.
Zhong Chufeng was not in the same league as Yuchi Yishu, who grew up with Tang Yuanyuan and had always taken care of her well. Since Zhong Chufeng appeared later in her life, it would naturally take some time and effort before Tang Yuanyuan could get used to his presence.
For this reason, Zhong Chufeng was all prepared to reach his goal.
“Sure.”
“Let’s do it, then. I’ll pick you up from school later today.”
“Alright. See you then.”
Meng Kefei came back not long after Zhong Chufeng left. Seeing her come back empty-handed, Tang Yuanyuan was confused.
“Fei, didn’t you go to look for some documents?”
Looking embarrassed, Meng Kefei responded, “Yes, I did, but then I realized that I’ve already seen those documents before. I’ll have to pay a visit to the library in town sometime in the future.”
“Would you like me to go with you?”
“It’s okay. I’ll go some other day. It’s not urgent.”
Meng Kefei proceeded to sit down next to her and opened a book. Alas, not being able to hold back her curiosity, she asked, “By the way, why did Chufeng come to see you?”
Her question immediately reminded Tang Yuanyuan of the barbecue tonight, so she told Meng Kefei about the dinner plan.
“I’ve promised Chufeng to go get some barbecue with him tonight, and I’ve also told him that I’d like to bring you along. Would you join us tonight?”
Meng Kefei shrieked and let out an apologetic look.
“Yuanyuan, I’m sorry, but I’ll need to do some reviews tonight, so I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it. Would you mind going by yourself? Perhaps you can eat my portion.”
“Reviews? Again?” A disappointed look washed over Tang Yuanyuan’s face. “You’ve already done so many reviews. Aren’t you tired?”
“Not really. I’ll have to study hard to get a scholarship.”
“Scholarship?” Tang Yuanyuan thought about it and realized that scholarship meant money. She grabbed Meng Kefei and whispered, “Forget about the scholarship. How about I ask my mother for some money and give it to you?”
Meng Kefei was shocked and could not utter a word.
“Yuanyuan, you—”
“How does that sound? In that case, you don’t have to study so hard anymore. You always stay up late at night and get up early. One day, you’re going to collapse.”
