Among the hustle and bustle of the street, Lin Xingjie easily made her way to a noodle stall and, after exchanging a few words with the owner, sat down with him.
A little while later, the owner, with a white towel draped over his shoulder, came over and placed a bowl of plain noodles in front of each of them.
"Uh..."
Xu Xiangyang picked up his chopsticks but hesitated.
Having heard the line "Waiter, bring me a bowl of plain noodles" time and again in various period and martial arts dramas, he had out of curiosity tried them a few times. However, for a boy his age, even though the noodles were filling, they were frankly too bland for his taste, not nearly as satisfying as having some meat.
"What's the matter? Are you not satisfied with something?"
Lin Xingjie opened her wooden chopsticks, and noticing his actions, couldn't help but raise her eyebrows.
"No, nothing. By the way, do you like lamb skewers? There's a stall nearby that makes them really delicious, I can treat you..."
"Then let's go."
Without hesitation, Lin Xingjie put down her chopsticks and got ready to leave.
"Hey? Wait up! You're just going to leave like that?"
Xu Xiangyang looked surprised.
"Aren't you treating me to meat? Then we should definitely hurry."
"...But what about the noodles; isn't that wasteful?"
"If we're going to eat meat, we won't have room for anything else, come on, let's go."
Lin Xingjie grabbed his shoulder and forcefully pulled him away.
...
Anyway, although it turned out that instead of Lin Xingjie treating him, he was the one treating her, Xu Xiangyang didn't feel there was anything wrong with that. As a result, Xu Xiangyang and Lin Xingjie strolled through Crescent Moon Street for more than an hour, finally starting their journey home, satisfied.
The two of them visited several places, from a street vendor selling lamb skewers and cotton candy, to a beef noodle shop in a corner alley serving up bowls of steaming soup noodles, and finally to snack noodles and popsicles in a department store at the end of the street.
During this venture, Xu Xiangyang had the good fortune to see Student Lin with a mouth greasy from eating skewers, Student Lin yelping in pain from her tongue scalded by the hot soup, Student Lin holding a popsicle and not daring to take a big bite only to have it half melt and frantically lick it off her fingers, and Student Lin with a gloomy face because her cotton candy had accidentally fallen on the ground and got dirty.
Even though Xu Xiangyang was still in his youth, too young to fully grasp what "memories of youth" meant, he subconsciously committed the events of the evening, the bustling street, and the person by his side at that moment to memory.
It turned out that she had such a fun and endearing side. Lin Xingjie was no longer the distant and aloof girl to everyone but a neighborly girl who could casually joke around and playfully bicker with each other.
"Burp."
The dark-haired girl patted her stomach and ungracefully let out a loud burp.
Walking side by side in the crowded throng, the clamor of voices around them paradoxically made them feel more at ease.
"Ah, I'm full. Thanks for treating me today, I didn't bring any money with me, but I'll definitely pay you back in a few days."
"No problem, I can't just let you watch me eat," Xu Xiangyang said jokingly, "But, you seem to owe me more and more lately, is that okay?"
Their atmosphere had become quite harmonious, and he no longer put on the attitude he had shown before.
"What could be the problem? You afraid I won't be able to pay you back?"
Lin Xingjie clasped her hands behind her back, her gaze fixed forward, speaking with an air of deep meaning.
"Don't worry, if push comes to shove, I still have a last resort, I can definitely pay you back."
The last resort... What did she mean?
Xu Xiangyang couldn't help but turn his head to look at her.
His eyes landed on the girl's slightly upturned light pink lips, which, under the passing streetlights, shimmered with a moist and tempting luster, and for a moment, he found it hard to look away.
"What are you looking at?"
Lin Xingjie blinked her eyes as a smile slowly appeared on her face.
"What? Mesmerized by my face?"
"No."
"Don't be shy, I'm naturally quite popular with the guys," the girl said boldly, without a hint of shyness, "Of course, if someone else kept staring at me, I'd definitely get angry, but for you, I can bear it for now."
"...You might want to wipe your mouth first, I'm not interested in 'painted face' cats."
Xu Xiangyang took out a pack of napkins he had just bought from his pocket and handed them to her, seriously pointing out the grease spots on her face.
Lin Xingjie choked, gave him an annoyed glare, and grabbed the napkins irritably.
Watching his peer embarrass herself in front of him, he couldn't help a chuckle, which earned him several hard slaps.
Passersby brushed past them. Suddenly, a thought popped into Xu Xiangyang's head: to others, might they seem like a young couple?
The thought flashed through the young man's mind like a bubble on water, leaving no trace behind.
Lin Xingjie was silent for a while, merely walking quietly beside him. After they had proceeded a bit further and with the end of the commercial street nearing, she softly suggested:
"Let's go back."
"...Okay."
Xu Xiangyang thought for a moment, feeling that some things had to be addressed first. He spoke.
"You said you want to change, where do you plan to start?"
"Umm..." Lin Xingjie pondered, then shook her head and replied, "I don't have a specific idea. Why don't you give me an order?"
"Give you an order..."
Xu Xiangyang found the wording a bit strange. He decided to phrase it differently.
"So, you've already decided to keep your distance from that crowd, right?"
"Of course."