Chapter 86: Chapter 86: Does This Count as Our Love Token?

"Good night, my ass!"

After getting home, Shen Yuan flopped onto his bed and started squirming.

’This is agony! Why did I have to act all cool?!’

’Why didn’t I just turn on the light?! The switch was right there!’

’That was Young Master Li in limited-edition black stockings and high heels!’

’This goes against the sacred rites!’

"I could have even seen it just by turning around..."

Shen Yuan buried his head deep into his pillow like an ostrich, his voice trembling with frustration.

Memories flickered like film overexposed by moonlight, replaying stunning but fleeting images.

The curve of black silk cinched at her waist, the soft tap of a high heel on the wood floor, the feel of her skin.

Shen Yuan brought his hand up before his eyes, rubbing his palm with his fingers.

"Damn tsundere."

Shen Yuan said to the wall.

"Dumbass Shen Yuan!"

In the room next door, Li Zhi still hadn’t turned on the light.

She sat on the rug beside her bed, her high heels kicked to one side.

A rustle of fabric came from the darkness. Li Zhi curled her legs to her chest, hugging her shins and pressing her burning cheeks against her knees.

Li Zhi instinctively placed her hand on the spot where Shen Yuan had just grabbed her, as if she could still feel the warmth he’d left behind.

The full-length mirror in the room reflected a moonlit silhouette. Li Zhi turned to look at it.

The girl in the mirror had flushed cheeks.

"Dumbass Shen Yuan."

Li Zhi looked at the girl in the mirror. "You’re a dumbass too!"

Under the bright moonlight, the neighboring boy and girl each stayed in their own room.

Meanwhile, in a residential complex in Jiyang, a certain young author was completely unaware of what a premium, all-natural, sweet delicacy he had just missed out on.

「The next day.」

In the faint light of dawn, the hinges of two doors creaked softly at almost the same time.

Shen Yuan’s hand froze on the doorknob as he found himself face-to-face with Li Zhi, who was peeking out from the door opposite his.

Seeing the familiar figure in the hallway, both Shen Yuan and Li Zhi froze for a second.

"Morning," Shen Yuan said, breaking the silence.

Li Zhi hummed softly in response. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

After putting on his shoes, Shen Yuan walked over to the elevators near Li Zhi’s door as usual.

As Li Zhi bent down to tie her shoelaces, Shen Yuan’s gaze was irresistibly drawn to her feet in their white socks.

’He was starting to regret it all over again.’

’He really should have turned on the light yesterday.’

Seeing that she was almost done with her shoes, Shen Yuan grabbed her schoolbag from the cabinet.

The elevator arrived just as Li Zhi stood up.

They stepped into the elevator together. As they faced the mirrored wall, Shen Yuan noticed the faint dark circles under the beautiful girl’s eyes.

"Pull an all-nighter cramming? You’ve got dark circles."

Li Zhi froze, quickly looking at her reflection in the mirror.

Only then did she notice them.

But she quickly noticed that Shen Yuan’s eyelids were slightly swollen, just like hers.

"You’re one to talk."

They both tacitly avoided mentioning the moonlit intimacy of the previous night, yet as they turned away, they each stole glances at the other in the elevator’s mirrored surface.

Li Zhi might have been too embarrassed to say anything, but Shen Yuan was another story.

Seeing her avert her gaze in the mirror, Shen Yuan immediately pounced. "Caught you sneaking a peek at me, huh? You think I look even more handsome today? Got that charming, brooding-young-man vibe?"

He even stroked his chin as he spoke.

His sudden absurdity shattered the atmosphere.

’Li Zhi mentally rolled her eyes.’

"You should go get your eyes checked."

"My vision is 5.2 in both eyes. You know my secret for keeping them in good shape?"

"What is it?"

Shen Yuan looked at Li Zhi. "Look at beautiful things more often."

Li Zhi’s face was blank. She had a feeling he was about to say something ridiculous.

Sure enough, the next second, Shen Yuan pointed to himself. "That’s why I stare at myself in the mirror for five minutes before bed every night. It’s a treat for my eyes and helps me relax."

"I think if you just went to sleep five minutes earlier, your vision would be 5.3."

Shen Yuan waved his hands frantically. "No, no, no. Anything but Wu San."

Li Zhi snorted with laughter.

Seeing her smile, Shen Yuan started laughing too.

"Hey, I’m bringing the Huanggang Paper you gave me to school. What about you?"

"I brought mine too," Li Zhi said proudly.

"Heh!"

Shen Yuan turned to Li Zhi, his expression full of mock seriousness. "Baby, does this mean these are tokens of our undying love?"

"Drop dead!"

Li Zhi aimed a kick at him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! No roughhousing in the elevator!"

"I’m not roughhousing, I want you dead!"

The elevator doors opened, and Shen Yuan bolted out.

"Sari Lang! Sari Lang!"

"Dumbass Shen Yuan! Get back here!"

At the complex entrance, Xiaoguo watched the pair of childhood friends run out the main gate, silently wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

"Ah, to be young. I want to fall in love, too."

The two of them ran all the way to the other side of the road.

Shen Yuan looked back at Li Zhi with a cheeky grin. "Jeez, you’re so slow. You can’t even catch me when you’re not carrying anything?"

Hearing this only made the already breathless Li Zhi even more exasperated.

"You’re buying me breakfast! I want an egg pancake, with everything on it!"

"One with everything costs 25. You think you can finish it?"

"None of your business."

Seeing that Li Zhi was about to hit her boiling point, Shen Yuan nodded quickly. "Alright, alright, my treat."

’He had money now, anyway. Forget one pancake with everything; he could buy her two and let her eat until she was stuffed.’

After buying Li Zhi her breakfast, Shen Yuan went over to the steamed bun vendor’s stall.

When the vendor saw Shen Yuan, he immediately narrowed his eyes.

"What’ll you have?"

Hearing the vendor’s question, Shen Yuan’s Adam’s apple bobbed, his mouth already starting to water.

The next second, Shen Yuan rattled off his order in a single breath.

"Boss! Buns! One with pork, one with pickled vegetables, one with vermicelli, one with preserved greens, one with shiitake mushrooms and bok choy, and a savory tofu pudding."

"15!"

Shen Yuan stared at the bag placed before him, a sense of defeat washing over him.

BEEP!

"Alipay payment received: fifteen yuan."

The vendor watched Shen Yuan walk away, lightly wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.

’This kid... he’s a true challenger in my professional career!’

On the way to school, Shen Yuan ate the buns from his bag as if he were opening a blind box.

Each bun had a different flavor, but all of them were well within his range of acceptability.

As he ate, Shen Yuan glanced at Li Zhi.

The egg pancake with everything was a bit too big for her.

It looked incredibly awkward to eat.

"You’ve got sauce on your mouth."

Li Zhi froze for a second, then quickly pulled a tissue from the side pocket of Shen Yuan’s backpack.

Shen Yuan looked at the large half of the pancake still in Li Zhi’s hands. "You gonna be able to finish that?"

"Don’t you worry about it. If I can’t finish it, I’ll feed it to the dogs."

"Tsk. What a waste."

By the time they reached the classroom, Li Zhi still had half the pancake left.

She didn’t have a big appetite to begin with, and after a carton of soy milk, she was completely full.

"Hey, I can’t eat anymore. Here, you take it."

Shen Yuan stared at the pancake on his desk, Li Zhi’s earlier words echoing in his ears.

’If I can’t finish it, I’ll feed it to the dogs...’

’...feed it to the dogs...’

’...to the dogs...’

’...dogs...’

Shen Yuan pointed to himself.

Li Zhi made a series of clicking sounds with her tongue. "Tsk tsk tsk."