Entering the residential area, Miss Ji Yun's figure was no longer visible. He followed the path through the greenery towards home, finally stopping beneath the 17th-floor building.
Putting the bicycle in the storage room, he opted not to take the elevator, instead choosing to leisurely ascend via the staircase.
Wanting to slow down the time it took to reach his floor, as he walked, a faint aroma of cooked meals wafted through the corridor.
A smile appeared on his lips involuntarily, though his heart felt somewhat uneasy.
Stopping in front of door 602, he took out his key to unlock it, but the door opened by itself.
"Why are you coming home late today? Were you at the internet café again?"
Li Yuan, wearing an apron, walked out. Though her tone was plain, it made Xu Lin more fearful than if she were angry.
From childhood to adulthood, his father was responsible for heated violence and his mother for cold violence—he was all too familiar.
"No, Mom, I'm in high school now. When would I go to an internet café?"
"Come inside. Don't argue outside; it's embarrassing."
"Alright!" With this scolding, the discomfort he felt instantly disappeared.
Xu Lin immediately entered the house, discovering that the enticing aroma he had smelled earlier was coming from his own home.
On the dining table were already five dishes, and it seemed something was simmering in the kitchen.
"How come? Is someone coming over as a guest?"
"No, just because there's no guest doesn't mean we can't improve our lives."
Xu Feng came out of the bathroom. "Your mom specially cooked for you, considering how tired you've been from studying lately."
"After working all day, coming back and making so many dishes, it's too tiring. Don't do this in the future."
Xu Lin watched his mom busy in the kitchen. This scene seemed like something he had witnessed countless times, but her figure seemed less upright now. He suddenly felt a little melancholy.
"You little rascal, now you know how to feel sorry for others. Sit over there and eat."
"If you don't cause trouble for me, go to school well and get admitted to college. That would be better than anything else."
His mom repeated these words hundreds of times.
In the past, he would have argued for sure, asserting that his studies were fine and getting into college wasn't that difficult!
But this time, he just nodded, firmly saying, "Okay!"
"By the way, why did you come home late today?" His dad, opening a beer, asked.
"A few troublemakers blocked our classmates in class, so I helped out and got delayed for a bit."
"You got into a fight?!"
Father Xu widened his eyes, frightening Xu Lin, who quickly waved his hands.
"Of course not! We just went up, scared them off, and next to us is the police station."
"Well, don't fight with people. If there's an issue, find the police."
His mom, holding a porcelain bowl, joined them. Seeing the ribs in the bowl, Xu Lin's appetite grew.
Since graduating from college and working, he hasn't tasted his mom's ribs again. He reached for the chopsticks to grab some.
"Go wash your hands first! You look like you've been hungry for days."
"Okay! But dad didn't wash his hands when he came out of the bathroom either!"
"Hey, hey, when did you see me not washing my hands?"
Father Xu glared at him, but under Mother Xu's gaze, he stood up, put down the chopsticks, and went to the washroom.
After dinner, Xu Lin returned to his bedroom, and the unease in his heart completely dissipated. This was still the same home, with his parents unchanged—everything remained as it always had.
Sighing, he said, "Since I'm back, let's live well and accomplish the things I wanted to do but didn't."
But, hmm, this doesn't quite fit my laid-back persona.
Muttering to himself, he opened the system interface. Another name had been added to the favorability list, and Ji Yun met the system's criteria.
[Ji Yun]
[Age: 16]
[Gender: Female]
[Chinese Zodiac: Ox]
[Intelligence: 7]
[Physical Fitness: 3]
[Charm: 7.5]
[Favorability: 17]
When he was knocked down, Ji Yun actively helped him up, and their hands touched.
It seemed physical contact was indeed necessary, just as the system mentioned.
But he couldn't just go and touch someone's hand upon meeting them, right? Father Xu and mother Xu would probably hang him for mixed doubles!
"Oh no! There's still homework, dear heavens!"
Xu Lin opened his backpack. High school courses weren't like an arcane language for him, considering he had worked as a part-time tutor even before completing college.
But who likes doing homework from the bottom of their hearts? Still, for the sake of getting into a good college, he decided to handle it seriously.
However, half an hour later, he felt drowsy and, upon closer inspection, realised he had only completed one assignment.
"Ah! I'm done with this!"
Xu Lin flipped his notebook shut, turned on the computer, and prepared to find some study materials. Before he could open the folder, QQ started blinking.
'Floating Light Cloud'? Class monitor Ji's account. She's messaging me first? That's something unheard of in my past life...
Opening the chat box, it was a simple sentence:Xu Lin, are you resting?"
"Not yet; just say what you need."
"Tomorrow morning, will you come to find me? Can we walk to school together?"
"Okay." Xu Lin's typing speed increased, and he quickly replied.
"Under building 9, meet at 6 o'clock."
"Alright, remember to wear an extra coat. Mornings are still chilly, especially in October."
"Yeah, you too."
Along with the incoming message, a line of text appeared in front of him: [Ji Yun's favorability +3, gained 3000 points, current favorability: 20]
"Huh? It increased just like that. I really didn't intentionally boost favorability."
But 3000 points, System, Are you trying to tempt me?
But I, Xu Lin, am not that kind of person. How could I deliberately raise favorability like this?
"Classmate Ji, go to bed after finishing your homework at night. Don't stay up late. Drink more water; otherwise, you might get too heated."
...
The next morning, Xu Lin woke up at 5:20, not even needing the 5:30 alarm. He quietly brushed his teeth, washed his face, and, seeing it was 5:50, left the house and rode his bike to building 9.
Not far from building 9, a familiar figure was already there, holding onto her bike.
Rubbing her hands together, she occasionally breathes out a faint warmth into her palms.
"Why aren't you wearing gloves?"
Xu Lin looked at her fair fingers turning slightly red, took off his own gloves, and placed them on her hands.
"I don't want them."
"If I give them to you, wear them."
Xu Lin directly grabbed her hand, putting the gloves on for her, leaving no room for her to resist. Her ears turned red instantly.
Looking at his face, she felt that Xu Lin was a bit forceful today, but she didn't dislike it.
"But you'll be cold like this too. Let me go upstairs and get them."
"No need to bother."
Seeing Xu Lin's insistence, Ji Yun didn't say anything more. The two of them headed towards the school. She also discovered that her neighbourhood surprisingly had a West Small Gate.
Directly adjacent to the road, impassable for cars, only trams and small electric tricycles could pass through.
Following this north-south road would lead them directly to the school. Apart from the south gate, there was also a west gate where they could enter.
"It takes only ten minutes to get to school from here. Let me treat you to breakfast."
"Eating at school is fine."
"But I've never seen you eat at the cafeteria. Miss Ji, losing weight is fine, but skipping breakfast isn't a good solution."
"I'm not used to eating breakfast. My stomach isn't hungry when I wake up. Don't force me to eat, okay?"
Xu Lin looked at Ji Yun, who was acting coquettishly towards him for the first time, and sighed, while Ji Yun's lips curled up.
"Come on, let's have some soup dumplings."
"No, please!"
A few minutes later...
"Can I just have another one?"
A few minutes later...
"Xu Lin, don't waste these two. I'll eat them."
Then, in a voice that seemed hesitant to call, she said, "Boss, bring me a bowl of pumpkin congee."
"What?" The owner looked over at her.
"A bowl of pumpkin congee, please."
"Alright!"
As the boss shouted, many passing students subconsciously looked over, including two familiar figures.
"Li Bin, am I hallucinating?"
"What's going on?"
Ma Zhiyu rubbed his eyes. His parents had night shifts last night, and he played on the computer until 2 o'clock without recovering yet.
"Look over there, the bun shop."
"Xu Lin... he treated us in that shop last time."
"Look who is next to him..."
"Oh my god! Ji Yun..."
"Don't judge Xu Lin by his usual reserved appearance. He's got skills for pursuing girls! He got rejected just yesterday, and today they're having a meal together."
"Should we go over?"
"Don't go over. Let's ask him at school; maybe because he helped her yesterday, she is treating him today. We might be misunderstanding, and making a scene would be awkward."
"That makes sense."