Gu Chen took the soft-style tennis racket and swung it once, imitating the movements just demonstrated. The rubber surface of the racket had a good drape, and as long as the angle was controlled well, the ball would not fall off the racket surface.
"Hey deskmate—" Gu Chen finished swinging the soft ball and saw Xiang Yu looking at him, so he waved and called out, "Come on—this is pretty fun—"
"..."
Don't call me.
The noise was so loud that all the elderly people in the soft ball area, like sunflowers facing the sun, immediately focused their attention on Xiang Yu.
The scene looked strange and eerie. Xiang Yu's legs went weak and his head buzzed. He quickly waved his hand to signal him not to go over.
"Sigh." Seeing that the other person wasn't coming, Gu Chen handed the racket back to the old lady: "Grandma, thank you."
"It's alright, it's alright," the old lady waved and smiled.
Gu Chen smiled and said goodbye to the other person, then jogged over to sit down next to Xiang Yu.
He laughed and said, "This is really interesting. These grandpas and grandmas know how to have fun."
You're the one who knows how to have fun.
Xiang Yu glanced up at him, then suddenly decided she didn't want to talk to him anymore.
Gu Chen looked around, then decided to go north to take a look.
"Hey deskmate, shall we go play shuttlecock?"
"I'm not going." The other person was so excited and always wanted to bring him along, so Xiang Yu couldn't help but say to him, "Aren't you sleepy? Can't you just rest quietly?" He couldn't get up in the morning but was still quite energetic.
Xiang Yu hadn't calmed down since she got up, and her tone of voice sounded a bit fierce to Gu Chen.
It's kind of cute.
"Okay." Gu Chen nodded in agreement.
"Really?" Xiang Yu looked at him suspiciously.
"Of course." Fearing he wouldn't believe him, Gu Chen added seriously, "I will do whatever I promise you."
"..." There's no need for that.
Xiang Yu felt that Gu Chen had worn her down to the point of losing her temper.
He put his hands in his pockets and drifted off to sleep again.
When Xiang Yu woke up again, she found her head resting on Gu Chen's shoulder.
What's going on?
"Xiao Yu is awake?" The sun had fully risen, and Grandma Hou felt refreshed after finishing her Tai Chi.
Xiang Yu nodded and looked at Gu Chen beside him. Gu Chen was stretching his numb shoulders and smiled at him when their eyes met.
"I'm very quiet."
"...Hmm." Why do I feel inexplicably guilty?
Feeling guilty, Xiang Yu was very well-behaved. The three of them went to the market together. Gu Chen held him and kept nagging him the whole way. He didn't say a word of dissent, listened very attentively, and even responded to the other person.
This made Gu Chen more and more excited as he talked, laughing and talking.
Grandma Hou was delighted to see this: "Xiao Chen, it's so good that Xiao Yu can be your friend. She's become much more cheerful."
"Sigh." The other person just doesn't like to communicate with others, but Gu Chen doesn't think he needs to worry about that: "My deskmate is fine."
The market was located inside a large shed, surrounded by shops offering everything from daily necessities and dried vegetables to snacks, cooked food, and breakfast items.
Grandma Hou led them around to various stalls, asking, "Xiao Chen, Grandma hasn't asked you about your dietary restrictions yet. Is there anything you don't eat?"
"I don't have any dietary restrictions, Grandma, just make whatever you like, I can eat anything," Gu Chen said casually.
"Then let's make stir-fried beef with cilantro for lunch."
"Um, either is fine."
“…He doesn’t eat cilantro.” Xiang Yu glanced at him and said helplessly.
"Okay, I know." Grandma Hou asked with a smile, "Anything else?"
"It's gone."
"Then let's have stir-fried pork intestines instead."
"Um, either is fine."
"...He doesn't eat animal organs or entrails either." Xiang Yu sighed.
Upon hearing this, Grandma Hou complained, "Xiao Chen, why are you being so polite with your grandma?"
Gu Chen said, "You're welcome. That's all. This time, it's really all."
After Grandma Hou turned around, Gu Chen immediately tightened his arms around her and leaned closer to Xiang Yu, asking, "Classmate, how did you know I have dietary restrictions?"
Xiang Yu frankly said, "I could tell from the barbecue and the dinner I treated them to."
Gu Chen blinked, his smile wide and bright: "Classmate, why do you usually pay so much attention to me?"
He lost his mind and blurted out, "Hey deskmate, you're paying so much attention to me, do you like me?"
"..." Heh, Xiang Yu rolled her eyes at him, rarely joking.
"You've been paying a lot of attention to me, haven't you?"
Could it be that you like me?
Xiang Yu didn't mean it that way, but Gu Chen imagined it that way.
Gu Chen was stunned. He suddenly released the other person and took a step back, the large movement attracting the attention of those around him.
"?" Xiang Yu looked at him in confusion.
That can't be right.
"What’s wrong with you?"
"It's nothing, it's nothing." Gu Chen straightened up and coughed twice.
"Hey, the fish looks great, and the shrimp looks good too." Grandma Hou, who hadn't noticed what was happening behind her, turned around and asked, "Shall we have steamed fish or steamed shrimp for lunch?"
"Either is fine, either is fine!" Gu Chen walked over to Grandma Hou and looked at her, saying, "This carp looks really fresh, not bad."
The seafood vendor, being an honest man, couldn't help but point it out: "This is grass carp."
"...Sigh, it's all the same." Gu Chen waved his hand as if nothing had happened.
"Alright, you and Xiaoyu can just stand in the back and watch." Grandma Hou laughed at him, "Don't pretend to be someone with connections."
"Sigh." Gu Chen touched the tip of his nose and walked over to Xiang Yu.
Seeing the other person looking at him, he laughed and said, "It's quite sudden. The last time I saw it, it was a carp. How did it turn into a grass carp?"
"Huh?" Xiang Yu tilted his head slightly.
[Author's Note: Gu Chen: It was quite sudden, and I have a feeling something's not right.]
I need to find someone to date right now, I'm so miserable!!!
Chapter Thirty: What are the signs of Gu Chen's first stirrings of love? Please elaborate.
Chapter Thirty Gu Chen: What are the signs of a young girl in love? Please explain in detail.
Xiang Yu sometimes really felt like she couldn't understand Gu Chen.
A few minutes ago, he was wrapped around my neck and I couldn't get his arms off him. He looked like he wanted me to drag him away. Now, he's suddenly walking ahead on his own.
Xiang Yu watched as Gu Chen walked alongside Grandma Hou, helping her carry her bags. Gu Chen was chatting with Grandma Hou, who was beaming with joy.
Xiang Yu smiled slightly. It was wonderful. Due to her personality, she had never made her grandmother so happy before. Sometimes she even envied her for being such an outgoing person.
Gu Chen always had a good-natured and smiling face towards everyone. He was always willing to help anyone who needed his help. He was the kind of person who was well-liked no matter where he was.
Gu Chen watched as Grandma Hou laughed heartily. As if sensing the gaze behind him, he turned around, and their eyes met in the air. Xiang Yu gave him a slight smile.
This smile startled Gu Chen. His eyes flickered, and he was about to speak when he suddenly seemed to remember something and quickly turned his head away.
Xiang Yu's upturned lips slowly fell, staring at Gu Chen, whose head was turned away from her, in confusion.
Did he do something to offend the other party?
The three of them returned home around eight o'clock. Grandma Hou went to the kitchen to wash and prepare the vegetables, and Gu Chen tied on his apron to help, but Grandma Hou pushed him out.
"Go and have some fruit and watch TV with Xiaoyu in the living room. Don't keep running into the kitchen." Grandma Hou couldn't let him keep doing chores, so she called Xiangyu to lead him: "Xiaoyu, take Xiaochen outside for a walk."
Xiang Yu had no objections, got up from the sofa and walked towards Gu Chen. Before she could speak, Gu Chen suddenly took a step back and said, "Then I'll write something for a while, while my memory is better early in the morning." After saying that, he hurriedly took off his apron and hung it on the clothes rack outside the kitchen, then dashed into the bedroom at top speed.
"Oh? So rushed? I bet you haven't written something really important yet?" Grandma Hou asked Xiang Yu as she picked at the vegetables.
Xiang Yu shook his head in silence.
Why does he feel like the other person is avoiding him?
"Grandma, let me help you." Xiang Yu walked to the kitchen.
"Come on, you've never been in the kitchen before!" Grandma Hou laughed and didn't let him into the kitchen: "I can make congee with preserved egg and lean pork and stir-fry a couple of dishes. It's quick. You watch TV."
Gu Chen hurriedly ran back to his bedroom, and only after sitting down did he realize that his reaction might have been a bit too much. As he thought this, he took out a notebook from his bag, picked up a pen, and started writing.
Open it up, the left half contains the plan for the day, and the right half contains a diary entry.
On the left side of the new page, Gu Chen put a checkmark next to the first two lines about accompanying his grandmother to practice Tai Chi at the market, and then put an X next to the second line about advising his grandmother not to buy random promotional items.
I accompanied my grandmother out this morning because I was worried she might be tricked into buying things by unscrupulous vendors again. But today, it seemed like there weren't many vendors setting up stalls outside at the market. The vendors with fixed stalls said that the urban management department has been strictly inspecting the market environment these days, so mobile vendors basically don't dare to come.
This is good. Grandma is home alone, and my deskmate doesn't come back often. After the National Day holiday, my deskmate will go back to school in X City. I don't know if my deskmate will come back for the New Year's Day holiday. If he does, he'll come with him—damn!
Gu Chen shook his head and quickly stopped thinking.
This is not normal. This is so abnormal of me. Why is my mind filled with thoughts of my deskmate?
Gu Chen felt a surge of irritation. He put down his pen, picked up his phone, and listlessly watched the morning news. He calmed down while watching, but became irritable again after finishing.
Even though he was right outside, he couldn't help but open the other person's WeChat and scroll through their chat history. Looking at these exchanges gave him a strange sense of peace.
- Dongyu: I have no intention of dating in high school.
When these words came into view, Gu Chen's sense of security gradually crumbled and was replaced by a feeling of desolation.