Chereads / What happened to falling in love / Chapter 15 - Chapter 15: Twenty-One Articles of Agreement

Chapter 15 - Chapter 15: Twenty-One Articles of Agreement

Yang Ke and Ye Xuan returned to their respective rooms, and their negotiations ended in a stalemate. However, as time passed, both of them found it unbearable to endure the silent suffering and secretly hoped to break free from the cold war.

"Perhaps, a skirmish is much more comfortable than a cold war!" both of them thought.

"Qiancao, you're still here! I accept your proposal, we've reconciled!" 

"Okay! But I have 'Three No Talks'!"

"What are the 'Three No Talks'?"

"First, do not talk about subverting or attacking the other party under the guise of reconciliation; second, do not discuss unfair terms that attempt to infringe on the other party's interests; third, do not discuss with those who fail to fulfill their obligations under the agreement after reconciliation."

"Agreed! But both parties should be open and honest with each other before reconciliation!"

"Alright!" Ye Xuan asked, "Who goes first?"

"The usual—ladies first!"

"Yang Ke, today I did something to your English cassette tapes. I messed up all the labels on them! If you want to listen, I think there's only one way to find the order!"

"What?!" Yang Ke immediately jumped up from his chair, opened the bedroom door, and loudly asked, "What's the way?"

"It's simple!" Ye Xuan stood at the bedroom door, smiling, and said, "The most primitive method—listen to all the tapes again and figure out the order yourself!"

"Don't be too pleased with yourself, Ye Xuan!" Yang Ke said, "Today, while you weren't paying attention, I changed the password on your computer. If you shut down the computer, I think you won't be able to start it up!"

"What?" Ye Xuan said disbelievingly, "How did you know my password?"

"It's simple!" Yang Ke said triumphantly. "Just make a phone call and ask Tong Tong!"

"It's Tong Tong again!" Ye Xuan felt dizzy hearing that name these days.

"If you can accurately put all the labels back on the English cassettes, I'll tell you the password!" Yang Ke threatened. "Otherwise, although my password is only six digits, if you try one by one, you'll have to try over thirty thousand times at the worst!"

Ye Xuan suppressed her anger and moved Yang Ke's English cassette tapes and related books out, stacking them into a small mountain in the living room.

"You're ruthless!" Ye Xuan said to Yang Ke standing at the door as she carried out the last batch of books.

"Let's end the prelude to our negotiations here. See you tomorrow!"

Yang Ke yawned and walked into the bedroom, leaving Ye Xuan looking at the pile of tapes and books with a troubled expression.

The next morning, as Yang Ke walked out of the living room, he was shocked by the sight before him. The floor of the living room was covered with books, and Ye Xuan, wearing headphones, was constantly flipping through them, sometimes turning the pages and then returning to the table where various tools were laid out: scissors, small knives, pens, paper scraps, glue...

"Did you work all night?" Yang Ke asked, looking at Ye Xuan's bloodshot eyes.

"It's none of your business. Don't come and disturb me!" Ye Xuan pushed Yang Ke back into the bedroom, and as she closed the door, she added, "You're not allowed to come out without my permission. Otherwise, you'll be responsible for the consequences!"

For Yang Ke, this day was too lonely. Ye Xuan hardly said a word to him seriously all day. She was busy labeling each cassette tape in the living room, and her serious demeanor made Yang Ke feel a bit guilty and even cruel.

"Why do I have so many cassette tapes?" Yang Ke thought when his request for help was rejected.

During Ye Xuan's nap time, Yang Ke planned to secretly help her, but when he removed the headphones from Ye Xuan's neck, she woke up, and he ended up being driven back again.

Night fell once again. Yang Ke quietly entered the living room, and Ye Xuan was already asleep on the sofa, with books and cassette tapes neatly arranged on the floor and table.

It was the first time for Yang Ke to earnestly admire Ye Xuan's beautiful face under the night. Tonight, he was truly deeply moved. Even when Ye Xuan cried under the sunlight, there was a kind of indescribable strength and stubbornness on her face. Perhaps that was the last line of defense in her heart. It was extremely strong, and it would not collapse even under surging tears, guarding her heart tenaciously. But tonight was completely different. Those strength and stubbornness were covered by the night, or perhaps they had already melted away. Her face was full of tenderness and tranquility, like a sleeping beauty.

If Ye Xuan under the sunlight was stubbornly lovable, then Ye Xuan under the night was elegantly lovely.

Yang Ke was completely enchanted by the girl in front of him and even found it difficult to control himself. He even had the impulse to lean over and kiss her cheek.

When Yang Ke entered Ye Xuan's bedroom to get her a blanket, he saw those shoes with "twisted braids" again. He remembered Ye Xuan's swollen eyes, and he felt that he should protect Ye Xuan well tonight and do something for this busy girl. Yang Ke sat down beside Ye Xuan and began to untie the knots in the shoelaces...

When Yang Ke woke up, he found himself sleeping on the floor, leaning against the sofa, covered with the same blanket from last night. Opening his blurry eyes, Yang Ke saw Ye Xuan standing in front of him.

"You're awake! Sign these!" Ye Xuan handed over several sheets of paper.

"What's this?" Yang Ke asked.

"The 'Twenty-One Articles of Agreement for Summer Roommates'!"

"Just hearing the name makes it notorious!"

"What can we do? We've just managed to make up twenty-one articles!" Ye Xuan said.

"Then can't we delete one?" Yang Ke suggested.

"Deleting one would make it incomplete! What if there's a dispute later on?" 

"Then let's add one more!" Yang Ke said.

"What do we add?"

"Add a twenty-second article. I've already thought of the content. It's 'In case of disputes, the decision will be entirely based on Yang Ke's personal opinion. If there is still disagreement, please refer to Article twenty-two again'!"

"You're dreaming! Sign it quickly! It'll take effect immediately after you sign!" Ye Xuan urged. 

As Yang Ke was about to sign, he suddenly stopped and said, "I feel like this is a trap! No, I need to take a look!"

Yang Ke unfolded the papers and began to read them carefully.

The 'Twenty-One Articles of Agreement for Summer Roommates' stipulated the following specific contents under the premise of not violating any laws and moral standards:

1. Both parties should live peacefully and courteously. Polite language such as "please" and "hello" should be used when addressing each other, and gratitude should be expressed to the other party after receiving help. Provocation, as well as disrespectful words and actions, are strictly prohibited;

2. Neither party is allowed to smoke or drink excessively indoors, nor to engage in behaviors harmful to the health of the other party. Otherwise, the other party has the right to evict the violating party from the door, and the specific eviction time will depend on the severity of the violating party's behavior and their degree of repentance;

3. Neither party, especially Yang Ke, is allowed to bring friends of the opposite sex home, let alone use the rented house as a place for romantic relationships with friends of the opposite sex, and to let them stay and live in the house.

...