Chapter Five: The Second Encounter

During halftime, Wang Quan ran up to Zhou Xiaoqi, wiping his sweat as he spoke, “You’ve never been to an event like this before. Are you getting used to it? Here, this is some water for you.”

Zhou Xiaoqi took the water and thanked Wang Quan.

Just as Wang Quan was about to say something, a voice came from behind, “Hello, Zhou Xiaoqi. I’m Li Feng.”

Li Feng’s action immediately set off a flurry of whispers among the girls nearby. Even Xue Ran looked at Zhou Xiaoqi in disbelief. After all, Li Feng was considered the perfect student at school, but his aloofness was well known. Now, seeing him greet Zhou Xiaoqi of his own accord, how could this not cause a stir?

Observing this, Wang Quan couldn’t help but furrow his brows slightly.

Zhou Xiaoqi looked at Li Feng in confusion but politely extended her hand in response. “Hello, I’m Zhou Xiaoqi.”

Xue Ran came over to Zhou Xiaoqi, nudged her, and whispered in her ear, “Do you know Li Feng?”

“I don’t.” Zhou Xiaoqi herself looked at Li Feng with the same puzzled expression. Although they went to the same school, they lived in completely different worlds.

Li Feng paid no attention to the looks from others, keeping his eyes on Zhou Xiaoqi. “Are you free after school?”

The moment he said this, Zhou Xiaoqi could clearly feel the “hostility” radiating from the girls around her. They say a wise person knows when to retreat. In such a tense atmosphere, only a fool would say yes, right?

“I’m not free tonight,” Zhou Xiaoqi replied, forcing an awkward smile at Li Feng’s invitation.

“Can I borrow your phone for a moment?” Li Feng was unfazed by her refusal and changed the subject.

“What?” Zhou Xiaoqi felt like she couldn’t keep up with Li Feng’s pace, standing there dumbfounded.

“Never mind,” he said, tearing a piece of paper from his notebook, scribbling something on it, and folding it into Zhou Xiaoqi’s hand. “Look at it when you get home.” With that, he walked away, rejoining the basketball game as if nothing had just happened.

After that, Zhou Xiaoqi felt restless. Everyone around her was whispering and watching her. Never before had she been the focus of so much attention, and she began to regret Li Feng’s actions. “Xue Ran, I’m leaving first. See you in the classroom later.” Not waiting for Xue Ran’s reply, Zhou Xiaoqi got up and left.

She walked to a grassy spot on campus where there were few people and finally let out a sigh of relief, as if she had just come back to life. Relaxed, she lay down on the grass, closed her eyes, and basked in the warmth of the sun.

“Xiaoqi?” A familiar voice sounded by her ear.

“Uncle? What are you doing here?” Zhou Xiaoqi opened her eyes in surprise to see Cui Hao appear out of nowhere.

“I have a partnership with your school, so I came to have a look around. What’s wrong? Are you surprised to see me?” Cui Hao looked at the girl he had just met yesterday. Every time he saw Zhou Xiaoqi, she seemed so simple, and being around her always made him feel younger.

“Oh, that explains why you’re at our school,” Zhou Xiaoqi replied earnestly, looking so serious that she resembled a child caught misbehaving.

“What’s wrong? You’re not happy to see me?” Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Cui Hao pretended to be hurt.

“No, not at all! I’m just curious, that’s all. Uncle, don’t take a child like me too seriously,” Zhou Xiaoqi hurried to explain.

He chuckled, “Silly girl, I was just teasing you. Look how scared you are—I don’t bite, you know!” Cui Hao flicked Zhou Xiaoqi’s forehead with his finger. That little exchange lightened the mood considerably.

They continued to chat idly on the grass, enjoying their first time truly interacting so closely.

After a while, Cui Hao stood up and said, “Alright, I have to get going now. I came to your school for work, after all. Can’t have anyone thinking I’m slacking off, right? Little one, I’m sure we’ll meet again.”

“Okay, goodbye, Uncle.” Without realizing it, there was a hint of reluctance in Zhou Xiaoqi’s tone.

As she watched Cui Hao’s figure disappear, a phrase suddenly echoed in Zhou Xiaoqi’s mind: “Life before twenty-two is an age of confusion.” Indeed, at this moment, Zhou Xiaoqi vaguely understood her own feelings, and she was lost. She knew she couldn’t continue down this path, or she would never be able to turn back.

Steadying herself, she took out the slip of paper Li Feng had given her. On it was nothing but a string of numbers—likely his phone number. But what was the point of him leaving her his number? Recalling the looks from the other girls, Zhou Xiaoqi quickly snapped herself out of her thoughts, tore up the note, and threw it in the trash. Only then did she feel relieved enough to return to the classroom.

Because of Li Feng’s sudden appearance, Wang Quan had been worried about Zhou Xiaoqi. When he saw her walk in, he hurried over and asked, “Xiaoqi, are you alright?”

“I’m fine. I just went out for a walk,” Zhou Xiaoqi replied casually and returned to her seat.

Seeing that Zhou Xiaoqi was unaffected, Wang Quan finally relaxed. Watching her settle back at her desk, he wondered whether she truly loved to sleep or simply enjoyed basking in the sunlight with her eyes closed. Nine times out of ten, he would find her in the same pose, lying on her desk. And yet, to Wang Quan, even like this, Zhou Xiaoqi was always beautiful—a scene he never had the heart to disturb.