Chapter 348

There wasn't anything particularly difficult about it. Sister Li Xue, Brother Shan Qing, teenagers still in school, adults exhausted from long periods of work and family life, middle-aged and elderly people who liked animals and wanted a quiet environment to pet cats and have a cup of tea... She often heard these customers from completely different age groups finding their own time in the shop, chatting about everything under the sun. Although she didn't participate in their conversations, listening quietly was still a novel experience for her. Gradually, she became more comfortable approaching and speaking confidently to all sorts of customers. While there were occasionally some unreasonable and difficult people, overall, it seemed that there were more good people than bad. Previously, Hua Xin's fear of the outside world stemmed largely from unresolved fantasies after being bullied. Whenever she crossed that door symbolizing the separation from the outside world, those memories would flood her mind like a tide, making it hard to breathe, and even robbing her of the courage to walk. But unknowingly, her illness had already healed. "What were you talking about just now?" The female teacher on the stage began her slow narration, and the classroom returned to its sleepy atmosphere. At this moment, Xia Yan leaned closer and asked in a low voice with some curiosity. He wasn't worried that Hua Xin was being bullied; he already knew most of the classmates' personalities and character perfectly, and there wasn't anyone particularly bad or fond of bullying others. "She said to be careful of you, that you're obviously a jerk," Hua Xin said seriously, while skillfully opening the Teamfight Tactics that had just caused her to suffer a heartbreaking second-place defeat. "?" "But why did I hear someone say that she was pursuing the Class Monitor?" Xia Yan stroked his chin, emphasizing the words "Class Monitor" as well, the teasing meaning obvious. Hua Xin silently removed one hand from her phone, then touched Xia Yan's waist and twisted it hard. Xia Yan immediately feigned pain, suppressing his discomfort by whimpering, "Uh..." His face contorted slightly, as if he had suffered some excruciating pain comparable to a fatal beating. But in reality, Hua Xin had only twisted her body through his clothes, causing no real physical harm. "You little rascal... stop pretending." "You're washing the dishes Xia Yan." "I'm sorry." Hearing the girl's nonchalant threat, his expression instantly reverted to his habitually pitiful surrender, and he became the obedient student diligently copying notes again. A man's change of expression is as fast-forward as when appreciating art. Turning her gaze back to her phone screen, Hua Xin's mind was no longer on the game; her eyes were slightly vacant and lost in thought. A fleeting liking versus a lasting liking... She only liked Xia Yan because he was handsome, and she only liked herself because she was good-looking... but maybe after a while, she wouldn't like him anymore and would like someone else? This bothered her. Although Hua Xin knew she shouldn't nitpick or get bogged down in such details, she couldn't shake the bad habit of associating her feelings with unrealistic scenarios and daydreaming. When they first got together, she felt incredibly happy. With Xia Yan by her side, she felt fearless, and each day seemed to pass by with hope. Living together, she became extremely attentive to every little detail, afraid he would discover any bad habits or flaws. She also tried to learn about makeup, fashion, and other essential skills to present her best self to him. As time went on, living under the same roof, they subconsciously discovered each other's strengths and weaknesses, and became accustomed to subconsciously learning about each other's preferences. The things she had worried about before seemed insignificant now. But was this "liking" and "love" just a fleeting infatuation, or a lasting one? From their shared experiences, it was clear that their relationship wasn't the superficial one that Tian Yue had described—"just because she/he is good-looking, so she wants to be with him/her." Hua Xin was confident and determined to make it last. But... something still felt off. Like... she was jealous? Thinking of this possibility, Hua Xin's eyes suddenly sharpened, and she slowly sat up straight from the wall. The other person wasn't like Tian Yue, relentlessly pursuing her, nor was there any sarcasm or mockery. In fact, they were unusually enthusiastic towards her, even offering their blessings at the end... that was the problem. A look of understanding flashed in Hua Xin's eyes, then she slowly turned her head and silently glanced at Xia Yan, who was still diligently writing. "What's wrong? I'm almost done, about twenty minutes to finish..." Xia Yan's radar quickly caught the girl looking at him and promptly reported the exact timeframe. Hua Xin didn't answer, but leaned back against the wall, put her phone in the desk, and crossed her arms thoughtfully. As the saying goes, no answer is the best answer. Seeing this, Xia Yan, sweating profusely, quickened his pace. You know, it wasn't because he was afraid Hua Xin. It was because they had agreed to release stress at a fixed frequency. Last time, although he used his hand to break the ultimate abstinence period of who knows how many days (day 1400+), Xia Yan had rediscovered the pleasure of being a man. But the price was that his condition was clearly off during the exercise; he had broken his promise. The girl pondered slowly. You know what. Xia Yan is really good-looking. This was obvious from the first time she saw him. From any angle, he perfectly fit the definition of "handsome guy." Stylish clothes, a gentle and sunny personality, a strong physique, and his endowment is quite good. (The last sentence appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated text.) It seemed unsurprising that a man like Xia Yan was pursued by many girls or had many girlfriends, even though he hadn't spoken to any of them in the previous scene. Hua Xin, however, was still very unhappy. She had that feeling of "why do people who don't interact much and aren't familiar with you seem to have a good relationship with you?" Everyone seemed to trust and rely on him, and she knew it was because of Xia Yan's personal charm... but she still felt a strong sense of jealousy... Class time passed by unnoticed, and Hua Xin didn't ask Xia Yan to play Teamfight Tactics with her until the end of class. Xia Yan seemed to notice Hua Xin's odd behavior. During lunch break, the school streets were lined with boys and girls leaving class. Xia Yan and Hua Xin walked side by side without speaking. He cleared his throat and casually asked, "Want to play Soul Fighting Arena tonight?" "Play my foot!" Hua Xin retorted irritably, making Xia Yan feel uneasy. Although he adhered to the principle that a girl's inexplicable anger must have a reason, and that it must be due to a detail he hadn't noticed, Xia Yan tentatively joked, "Okay." "..." However, this didn't improve the situation; Hua Xin remained silent. After walking a while longer, Hua Xin suddenly...