Ying Yunsheng nodded: "We can't stay in the classroom; the playground and gymnasium are full of people."
So he also thought of the cafeteria, which rarely had customers outside of mealtimes.
Ji Li didn't ask any more questions, and the two of them sat facing each other just like they used to after school on weekends, each solving their own problems.
If this were to get out, it would probably shock many people.
What's really amazing is that their relationship lasted for most of the semester without anyone noticing.
Even if someone occasionally comes up at this time and sees the two people sitting opposite each other in the corner from afar, they will consciously lower their voices so as not to disturb their thoughts. If they happen to recognize the one facing them, they dare not linger any longer.
Only once, when Cui Zhuoyue came upstairs carrying braised pork rice she bought from the convenience store downstairs, did she glance in this direction.
Then I took another look.
With a "thud," Cui Zhuoyue's knee slammed directly against the edge of the table, and the pain brought tears to her eyes.
The commotion on the second floor of the cafeteria was like a thunderclap. Ji Li subconsciously looked up, but only caught a glimpse of the girl covering her knees and carrying her lunchbox as she went downstairs.
Wu Yiqing had just stepped onto the stairs from the first floor to the second floor when she saw her: "Didn't you say you were going to eat on the second floor?"
Cui Zhuoyue quickly nodded: "Let's eat, but let's eat on the first floor."
Wu Yiqing was puzzled: "Didn't you just say the second floor was quiet?"
Cui Zhuoyue: "I suddenly feel that it's better if there are more people and it's more lively on the first floor... Okay, let's go, let's go downstairs."
.
The second half of the academic year always seems to be a bit more boring than the first half, because there are no new students, no arts festival, no club competitions, no New Year's Day cultural performances, only a constant stream of competition results and announcements of guaranteed admissions. Students are mostly enveloped in anxiety and can only immerse themselves in the heavy sea of learning.
The only event still being held on schedule is the sports meet.
Having learned his lesson, Jian Mingyuan immediately signed up as soon as the news came out, but he still fell behind in the 5,000-meter race. Ye Ruhui, the sports committee member, had to take his place, and Jian Mingyuan mocked him for it for a whole week.
A week later, Ye Ruhui won third place in the 5,000 meters. Standing at the finish line, he gulped down half a bottle of mineral water and glanced at the person next to him: "Who just said that if I were to win an award, I would have to maintain a daily exercise routine of at least 2,000 meters?"
Jian Mingyuan: "..."
The top three finishers were very close, arriving almost one after the other.
After handing Ye Ruhui the water, Ji Li casually took another bottle from the plastic bag: "Would you like some water?"
Ying Yunsheng paused in his action of wiping away sweat.
The surroundings were still noisy, with whistles, cheers, and shouts still clearly audible, but it seemed as if a sudden silence had fallen between the two of them.
Ying Yunsheng couldn't remember the last time he had looked into the other person's eyes like that.
Even though they meet every week, sit at the same table, and spend several tens of minutes together in their own private world, neither of them is talkative. Once they start studying, they can completely forget about their surroundings and barely say a few words during an entire class.
Even Ji Li rarely jokes with him anymore.
This kind of interaction is actually no different from that of ordinary classmates.
After Ji Li finished speaking, he realized that it was a bit inappropriate to start a conversation at this time. Since their social distance had been successfully restored to normal, speaking now would be a disruption of all their previous efforts.
Students from Ying Yunsheng's class also excitedly came over with water bottles, shouting that they wanted to "pay tribute to the big boss."
Just as Ji Li was about to pull his hand back, Ying Yunsheng suddenly reached out and caught it.
The water bottle was pulled by someone's force, and its weight was transferred from his hand to another person's hand.
Ying Yunsheng said, "Thank you."
A note from the author:
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 43
Chapter 43
taxi
The sports meet is held on Friday and Saturday.
On Saturday afternoon, the school held its closing ceremony. Before letting everyone go home, Mao Xianzhi spent half a day on stage explaining the weekend's arrangements. When announcing that everyone could leave, he didn't forget to nag the athletes to get a good rest when they got home.
The phone vibrated, and a message from Lin Chengshuang popped up: 【Have you guys finished school? Want to go home together?】
Ji Li typed: "No, I'll be a little later."
Because he holds the key, he also needs to stay behind to lock the door.
There were always a few students in the class who were slow to finish up, but Ji Li never urged them. He would just sit in his seat and work on his practice papers until he finished one paper. When he looked up, he realized that it was already dark outside.
The classroom was empty, the lights in the corridor were on, and he took out his phone to check the time; it was already past seven o'clock.
Even evening study sessions for boarding students have started.
The thought popped into Ji Li's mind, but then, a beat later, he remembered that Ying Yunsheng hadn't come.
Since the beginning of this semester, the two classes have had their meal times staggered. Apart from the weekly outdoor activity classes, the time between Saturday afternoon after school and nightfall is almost the only time they can see each other.
He couldn't deny that his refusal of Lin Chengshuang's suggestion to go home together was actually because he was waiting for someone else.
For the past semester, although they maintained a lukewarm relationship as ordinary classmates, they never lost contact. They also met tacitly without interruption. Ji Li would wait for him after finishing his homework in advance, and Ying Yunsheng would come to inform him in advance if he couldn't come.
This is the first time the other party has left without even saying hello.
Surprised?
It doesn't seem too surprising.
Since the incident during winter break, Ji Li had been mentally preparing for this situation, so now that it has happened, it can only be said that he had expected it.
Are you sad?
Actually, it's not too bad.
But when he finished packing his things, closed the door, and locked it, he heard the crisp sound of metal clashing, and belatedly realized that he probably shouldn't have given the other person that bottle of water.
Their distance kept growing, getting further and further apart. Ying Yunsheng never advised him to "take a different path," respecting his wishes. In return, he never asked her "whether she could accept it," but always avoided the topic, clinging to a shaky pretense, enjoying the days they were still together before their separation like drinking poison to quench thirst.
He could sense that the other person's mindset was actually similar.
Until yesterday, with that bottle of mineral water.
Ji Li didn't think too much before handing it over; she just happened to see that the other person had just finished running and was covered in sweat and looked tired, so she subconsciously wanted to do something.
Looking back now, this happened between two people who weren't even classmates, especially since the other person didn't need anyone to bring them water. His actions were actually a bit unnecessary.
He didn't know if the other person had considered refusing, or why they chose him over their classmate.
The balance has been broken; they've both crossed the line. Not wanting the mistake to snowball, distancing themselves is the best course of action.
Now that Ying Yunsheng has taken the first step, he can't deliberately cause trouble and make the other party's efforts go to waste a second time.
As soon as Ji Li stepped out of the teaching building, he received another text message from Lin Chengshuang.
[Scholar: Ancestor, why haven't you returned yet? Did you get lost again? My mom just told me to invite you over for dinner.]
Ji Li replied: [I went to the bookstore and bought some things, I didn't pay attention to the time.]
Lin Chengshuang didn't think much of it and just urged him to hurry up.
Ji Li exited the page, intending to call a car directly, but remembering the excuse he had just made up, he decided to go to Qingyun Bookstore outside the school to make it easier to cover up the lie later.
The bookstore was on the slope across the street, lined with stalls. While waiting for the light to turn red, Ji Li started playing a game. Because he was idle for a while while crossing the street, when he looked back, the situation had become a complete mess due to a team fight, with special effects flying all over the screen.
He took control of his character again. In the game, he was always violent, a stark contrast to his usual self. His attacks were always fierce and relentless. Before he could even catch his breath after a battle, he was already exhausted.
The roadside vendor packed up his stall and was pushing his metal cart toward the middle of the road to leave. With the rain awning blocking his view, he didn't notice the person standing in front of him. Of course, it's more likely that he didn't expect anyone to see the tricycle coming and didn't dodge, so he just crashed straight into it.
Caught off guard, the metal bar struck Ji Li squarely on his right knee, the dull thud heard even by the people selling goods around him.
The vendor stopped, poked his head out from behind, and frowned: "Why didn't you move away when you saw the car coming?"
Ji Li picked up her phone from the ground and walked to the side: "Sorry."
The vendor glanced at it, pushed his cart away, and muttered to himself, "Really, students these days have to look at their phones even while walking..."
Ji Li remained silent.
He was the one who started walking without looking where he was going, so there's nothing to argue about.
But more importantly, he really doesn't have any energy right now.
It was probably the sudden shock that welled up inside me when I was being questioned by the other party.
He wouldn't have been like this before. He wasn't addicted to his phone. Once he left the school gates, he wouldn't look at the screen while walking. He dared to develop this bad habit because Ying Yunsheng had been with him for the past six months.
Every weekend after school, when the two left the classroom, Ying Yunsheng would always see him off at the school gate, across the road, all the way to the intersection to flag down a taxi. He would spend a few seconds writing down the license plate number before waving to him through the window, then turn around and run back to school to catch the 7 o'clock evening self-study session for boarding students.
Ji Li only needed to follow behind him, and he would never make a mistake.
Occasionally, if he strays off course or misses a step, the other person will always notice before he does and pull him back to safety. They will scold him sternly, but he will usually be shut down with a laugh and "Isn't that what you're here for?" after a few words, and then the matter will simply be dropped.
Habits are truly a terrible thing.
What's terrifying is that it subtly changes a person even before they are fully aware of it.
He seems to have overestimated his adaptability and underestimated Ying Yunsheng's influence on him.
There weren't many people at Qingyun Bookstore at the moment. The store manager was arranging the newly arrived goods one by one on the shelves when he suddenly heard someone call out from the cashier: "Boss, checkout."
"Coming, coming!" The store manager quickly ran over, packed the workbooks and stationery into bags, and casually asked, "Why are you here so late? Don't you have evening self-study sessions?"
Ji Li shook his head: "It's Saturday today, I'll be going home later."
The store manager then remembered that it was a day off, and immediately and naturally "deduce" what had happened: "You probably lost track of time playing with your classmates after school, right?"
Ji Li lowered his eyes and hummed in agreement: "I didn't notice."
He picked up his bag, went out, called a car on his phone, and waited for the car to be waiting by the roadside as he went down the slope.
The driver asked for the last four digits of his phone number before turning on the navigation.
The engine roared to life with a "whoosh," accompanied by the cry: "Ji Li!"
He had barely looked up, and before he could even pinpoint the source of the sound, his sleeve was grabbed.
Ying Yunsheng had clearly run over; his head was covered in sweat, and he was still out of breath. "I... after the closing ceremony, my teacher called me to attend the final sprint meeting."