She put down her pen and picked up the box of chocolates, examining it closely.
Did Chai Qianning ask her sister to relay this message?
That's pretty outrageous.
The figure in the corridor disappeared into the dormitory, while quilts of various colors hung out to dry on the railings swayed gently in the breeze.
Sheng Muxi turned her gaze back, took out her phone, snapped a picture of the chocolate, opened Chai Qianning's chat window, and sent the picture.
When Chai Qianning received Sheng Muxi's message, she was at Xu Yuan's private villa.
In the villa's backyard, there was a small vegetable patch, and Fang Jiaqin was proudly showing off her harvest. So when Chai Qianning received a message notification on her phone, she didn't check it immediately.
"Sister Xu Yuan's wedding was canceled, and she's been having a falling out with her parents these past few days."
Chai Qianning held a freshly picked tomato in her hand, tossed it up and caught it again, and listened to Fang Jiaqin talk about the recent events that had happened in Xu Yuan's family.
Xu Yuan wasn't much older than the two of them, but she was always the "perfect child" from a young age.
When they were little, she and Fang Jiaqin often got into trouble, and Xu Yuan would often act like a little adult and speak up for them in front of their elders.
They couldn't help with Xu Yuan's family matters; at most, they would listen, accompany Xu Yuan to play, and advise her to relax.
"These must have all been done by Sister Xu Yuan, right? You don't look like someone who would grow vegetables at all." Chai Qianning looked at the small, miniature vegetable garden in front of her.
Fang Jiaqin retorted, "I also helped."
The two entered through the back gate of the courtyard, where Xu Yuan was cooking in the open kitchen.
"Sister Xu Yuan, do you need our help?"
"Just wait and eat. The kitchen isn't big enough to accommodate so many people."
"Okay, I'll take Qian Ning upstairs to take a look."
The villa has only two floors; upstairs are several bedrooms and a large terrace. Chai Qianning leaned against the white railing, only then remembering to check her WeChat messages.
When she opened her phone, the first thing she saw was a message from Sheng Muxi. She was a little surprised, then clicked into the chat window. There was a picture and a sentence: "Why did you have your sister send me this? It's quite unique."
Chai Qianning paused for a moment, then clicked on the picture to look at it: a box of heart-shaped chocolates.
If I remember correctly, she gave it to Chai Shuqing to take to school. At the time, she just picked it up because the packaging was nice, and didn't think much of it when she went to pay.
So now, Chai Shuqing gave this box of chocolates to Sheng Muxi, and then claimed that it was a gift from her?
This seems like something her sister would do.
But why did I have to choose a box of heart-shaped chocolates of all things!
In the context of school days, having someone else deliver heart-shaped chocolates to someone you have a crush on is considered fairly normal.
But when applied to her and Sheng Muxi, it just seems a little odd.
I imagine Sheng Muxi was quite surprised when he received it, right?
Her sister probably thought she wasn't shameless enough, so she helped her out.
The villa area was remote and sparsely populated, with very few cars even passing by on the road. Xu Yuan was downstairs, calling them down for dinner.
Chai Qianning's finger hovered over the screen for a while, unable to think of anything to reply. In the end, she could only choose an emoji to send.
On the way back after dinner, while waiting at a traffic light, Chai Qianning opened Sheng Muxi's chat window again, then added a message and sent it: "Professor Sheng is usually busy teaching, so I asked my sister to bring you some food. It's just a small token of my appreciation."
It means that I'm giving you chocolates only because you're my sister's homeroom teacher. I'm giving them to the teacher as a student's parent, as a way to express my support and gratitude for the teacher's teaching work.
It was a friendly exchange and interaction between a parent and a teacher, unrelated to any personal grudges between them.
After sending the message, the red light turned green, and Chai Qianning turned off her phone screen without looking at it again.
After parking her car in the underground parking garage of the residential complex, Chai Qianning went to take the elevator and saw Sheng Muxi's reply: 【I understand.】
I understand?
What do you know?
Chai Qianning stared at those two words for a few seconds, feeling that they sounded both normal and abnormal. Was she overthinking it? She definitely was.
She didn't intend to reply to the past and end the topic there, but Sheng Muxi later sent another message: "Are you free this afternoon?"
That short sentence was probably setting the stage for what would happen later. It's like how Chai Qianning always asked this question before inviting someone out. This was probably one of the few times the other person had taken the initiative during this period.
She couldn't bring herself to directly say she was busy, but she genuinely had nothing planned for the afternoon. If she replied directly that she was free, she would be giving the other party the upper hand. Therefore, Chai Qianning neither said she was free nor that she wasn't, but simply replied: 【Is there something you need?】
First, find out what the matter is, and then decide if you have time.
Sheng Muxi: [I'm taking you to meet someone.]
Chai Qianning was puzzled for a while after seeing this line of text. She and Sheng Muxi didn't have any mutual old friends or anything, so who did they want to meet together? And why did they specifically ask her if she was free to take her to meet someone?
Even so, Chai Qianning still agreed.
When she got home, she first went to the closet to find clothes to change into.
She dressed very casually when she went to Xu Yuan's house in the morning. After all, they had known each other since childhood, so it didn't matter what she wore when they met.
But she didn't know who Sheng Muxi was going to take her to see in the afternoon, so just in case, she put on light makeup before going out.
I went out in Sheng Muxi's car.
After Chai Qianning got into the passenger seat and fastened her seatbelt, she turned to ask, "Teacher Sheng, I heard from my sister that you were supposed to be on duty at the school dormitory building today, weren't you?"
"It wasn't my shift today, but a teacher had something come up and I filled in for them for the morning."
As Sheng Muxi spoke, his eyes lingered on Chai Qianning's face, recalling what Chai Shuqing had said: "My sister told me that she lives alone and feels lonely, empty, and cold."
It was as if they wanted to see through Chai Qianning, to see through the emotions hidden in her heart, whether they truly contained some unspeakable loneliness, emptiness, and coldness.
It has to be said that if Chai Qianning hadn't gotten drunk last time, she might still not be able to see through her. But after that drunken outburst, Sheng Muxi now always feels that this person is often trying to cover up her true intentions.
For example, even though she had her younger sister deliver chocolates to her, she still had to explain on WeChat that she shouldn't overthink it.
For example, some people refuse to use the main gate of the residential complex and insist on using the back gate instead.
For example, I ran into this person at the elevator the other day, and without saying a word, they abandoned the elevator and took the stairs directly. I wonder if Chai Qianning's legs were okay after climbing to the tenth floor?
Feeling somewhat anxious under Sheng Muxi's gaze, Chai Qianning looked away, only to see the box of heart-shaped chocolates placed next to a carton of milk.
The chocolate packaging had been opened, and there was an empty space inside, indicating that the other person had tasted one.
Seeing that she was staring at the chocolate, Sheng Muxi said, "The chocolate you bought is quite delicious."
"If you like it, that's fine." Chai Qianning forced a smile, glanced at the scenery outside the car window, then looked down and sent a message to Chai Shuqing: [Should I praise you?]
Chai Shuqing: [Wow, Teacher Sheng told you so quickly! No need to praise me, just call me a living Lei Feng. (smug)]
Chai Qianning looked up from her phone screen, glanced outside again, then turned her gaze to Sheng Muxi and asked, "Who are you taking me to see?"
You'll know when you get there.
"Why are you being so mysterious?"
Sheng Muxi just smiled and didn't say anything.
Get off near the parking lot of the same shopping district as last time.
Sheng Muxi took her to the Western restaurant where she had eaten with Fang Jiaqin last time.
Throughout the entire process, Chai Qianning looked puzzled. She didn't know why Sheng Muxi had brought her to this familiar place. Was it to help her recall the time she got drunk here last time?
Upon arriving at the Western restaurant, the two went inside, where Chai Qianning saw the man who often appeared beside Sheng Muxi.
She stopped and looked at Sheng Muxi: "The person you're taking me to see is him?"
Unexpectedly, Sheng Muxi nodded and pulled her towards the table where the man was sitting.
“Uncle, this is the friend I told you about,” Sheng Muxi said happily.
Chai Qianning felt a sudden jolt in her heart, as if something had exploded.
uncle?
Chai Qianning looked at Sheng Muxi in disbelief, then at the man.
This is actually her uncle?
Sheng Muxi then introduced her: "This is my uncle. He's in City A on a business trip and came to visit me."
Chai Qianning's temples throbbed several times, and she couldn't hide the shock on her face: "Uncle... Uncle, you really are so young."
Upon hearing her words, the man's eyebrows curved slightly: "Not at all, I'm not young anymore."
“Uncle, I must say, you really do look very young. Everyone says so.” Sheng Muxi said from the side, glancing at Chai Qianning’s complicated expression, and couldn’t help but smile as well.
"Yes, yes, he does look relatively young," the man said with a smile.
Chai Qianning then realized that he and Sheng Muxi had a similar charm when they smiled, and they both had gentle personalities, speaking softly throughout.
Sheng Muxi's uncle is staying at a hotel nearby, the same hotel where Fang Jiaqin and Xu Yuan stayed last time.
No wonder she saw Sheng Muxi and him walking towards the hotel.
It seems to have been a misunderstanding.
Chai Qianning rubbed her forehead.
Sheng Muxi's uncle really liked the steak at this restaurant, so he made a special trip to eat there one last time before leaving City A. Chai Qianning hadn't finished digesting her lunch, so she was mostly chatting and didn't eat much.
After finishing their steak, the man went back to the hotel to get his luggage. Sheng Muxi and she went to the airport to see him off. After all that was over, the sunset had already faded.
"What do you want for dinner?" Sheng Muxi asked her.
"I'm actually a bit full, so I don't really want to eat dinner so soon."
Chai Qianning raised her eyes and glanced at the sky.
“Okay, let’s go back first.” Sheng Muxi opened the car door.
A dozen minutes later, the two returned to the residential area.
While taking the elevator up, Sheng Muxi told her, "My father passed away when I was very young. My mother and stepfather were both busy and didn't take care of me much when I was little. My uncle's family used to live in City A, and my uncle always took care of me more."
Chai Qianning hummed in agreement and pursed her lips.
“I haven’t seen my uncle for a long time. He came here on a business trip this time, so I thought I’d spend more time with him.”
Chai Qianning looked up and met Sheng Muxi's eyes.
Sheng Muxi's eyes curved into a smile: "Last time at the Nuannuan Milk Tea shop, you didn't see me on a blind date, but actually my mom made me go. My mom made an appointment with someone behind my back, and it would be too embarrassing for her if I didn't go, so I went. But I didn't actually want to go on a blind date, and I will never marry a man in the future."