How Did I Only Just Discover Her Smile Was So Beautiful

After class, Ding Yebai stood in the hallway, his gaze coldly fixed on the overcast sky.

Li Pingqiu walked over and offered him a candy.

"Hm? Want one?"

"Thanks."

Ding Yebai took it and popped it into his mouth.

Seeing him like that, Li Pingqiu couldn't help but laugh.

"You're so cool."

Ding Yebai raised his right eyebrow, suppressing a smile at the corner of his lips, and turned to look at him. "What?"

Li Pingqiu: "I said you're handsome."

Ding Yebai: "..."

Good taste!

Li Pingqiu gave a dry laugh. "Haha..."

Ding Yebai glanced at him, straightened his posture, and asked, "By the way, you've already gotten into university, why did you choose to go through it all again?"

Li Pingqiu narrowed his eyes and smiled. "..."

Ding Yebai's gaze drifted further into the distance, his tone calm. "I wouldn't want to experience senior year of high school again. Maybe I'll reminisce about it in the future, but I would absolutely never choose to do it over."

Li Pingqiu: "For me, it was because the major wasn't to my liking. So, I chose to repeat the year."

Ding Yebai: "Just for that reason?"

Li Pingqiu: "Yeah. I'm not happy studying this major. So, I'm starting over. I'm confident in myself to take the university entrance exam again."

"I see." Ding Yebai didn't say much more, savoring the candy.

"Yang Zhi... is she well-known at Jinghuai University?" he paused, then asked abruptly.

Li Pingqiu pushed up his glasses, looking at him with gossip-filled eyes. "Haha, she's quite famous. After all, she's a recognized beauty."

Ding Yebai: "...So."

Li Pingqiu: "How do you know her?"

Ding Yebai: "She's my sister's junior, and she's currently tutoring me in English."

"..."

Li Pingqiu went through a long, long, long period of thought, and then...

Everything became clear.

"It's normal, totally normal." He smiled, his eyes seeming to see through everything. "You're 18 now, after all. I understand, I understand!"

"...Don't overthink it. We're completely innocent."

"But the look in your eyes right now doesn't seem innocent at all."

"Nonsense, my eyes are black and white, perfectly innocent!"

Ding Yebai, in a rare display of childishness, said this, then deliberately changed the subject. "Oh right, I heard you're really good at physics."

The topic change was incredibly abrupt.

Li Pingqiu didn't dwell on the previous subject anymore and replied modestly, "So-so."

Ding Yebai: "There's a problem I haven't figured out. Can we discuss it?"

"Sure." Li Pingqiu readily agreed.

Evening, after school.

Ding Yebai was still listening to lectures and doing problems, studying intently.

Today's dictation was another perfect score, and he finished it quickly.

For some reason, he just wanted to study desperately now, wanting to get good grades quickly, wanting to become a well-rounded top student with no weak subjects!!!

Later, during the five-minute break.

Yang Zhi took a piece of paper out of her bag to look at it.

Ding Yebai saw it and asked, "What's that?"

Yang Zhi: "Lyrics."

Ding Yebai: "Lyrics?"

Yang Zhi: "Yeah. There's a singing competition at school. I printed out the lyrics for my roommate."

Ding Yebai: "Can I have a look?"

"Mm-hmm." Yang Zhi handed the paper over.

Ding Yebai happened to see two lines and read them out naturally.

"Eternal longing in morning and dusk, deep affection in every glance."

After speaking, he looked up with a hint of confusion.

Seeing his dazed expression, Yang Zhi smiled slightly and said, "It means that every morning and dusk carries the sorrow of separation, and feelings are stirred up unknowingly, growing deeper and deeper."

Thump--

This sentence struck Ding Yebai's heart like lightning.

It was like a needle, piercing in quickly, then disappearing without a trace.

His pupils widened, as if he had understood something. He turned to face forward, twirling his pen with his fingers.

Yang Zhi: "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Ding Yebai said, handing the paper back to her.

Yang Zhi: "..."

She didn't say much more, folding the paper and putting it into her bag.

"Your accuracy rate has been steadily improving recently."

"Hm?"

Ding Yebai turned his head to look at her.

Yang Zhi, as always, had a gentle smile on her face. "Keep it up, and you'll reap good rewards."

Ding Yebai stared blankly, gazing directly at the smile, at the smile, at the smile...

Time passed second by second, and within those seconds, it felt like an eternity.

After a while, His pupils contracted, his eyebrows furrowed into tiny hills, and his face inexplicably flushed!

Damn it!!!

He knew in his heart that Yang Zhi's smile was beautiful, but how had he only just realized how incredibly beautiful it was!! He used to just dislike how much she smiled...

Now he felt like her smile could melt the snow on Mount Tianheng!!!

"I understand," Ding Yebai said in a very cool tone, then opened his test paper and silently began to do the problems.

Though he appeared indifferent, his heart was pounding like a drum, about to leap out of his chest.

To Yang Zhi, however, it was just a perfectly ordinary, completely normal smile.

Her eyes curved into a gentle smile, and as she looked at Ding Yebai's profile, she couldn't help but add, "Actually, I believe you can achieve anything you set your mind to."

Ding Yebai suddenly looked up, his arm freezing, his pen still. He just stared blankly at Yang Zhi.

Yang Zhi: "Hm?" she asked, puzzled.

Ding Yebai's mouth was half-open, about to say something, when Yang Zhi preempted him with, "Don't tell me my lipstick got on my teeth again..."

"Ah, no. No, no," Ding Yebai quickly explained, then looked away and said casually, "You really believe that?"

Yang Zhi: "You're smart and diligent, with perseverance. With these two qualities, success is just a matter of time. And during this time..." She paused, patting Ding Yebai's test paper with her palm: "I'll help you too."

Ding Yebai looked at the fair, slender hand on his test paper, then at her exquisite face.

After a moment, he softly said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, you're welcome, it's just the truth." Yang Zhi said, flipping through his completed work: "Alright, let's get back to the problems."

Ding Yebai: "Mm."

Thanks to Gao Mu for the 1500 Qidian coins, Hua Qing for the 100 Qidian coins, and Flying Duck for the 1500 Qidian coins for their rewards.