On his end, Long Aotian received the pictures from Ike and Yamauchi, but he didn't hurry to transfer the points. Since they were at a party, there was no guarantee the two wouldn't let something slip right then and there.
What surprised him was that Kushida Kikyo had also attended the party in the pictures.
A meaningful smile curled the corners of Long Aotian's mouth, and his eyes gleamed with calculation. He shook his head lightly, as if talking to himself. "I'll transfer the points later, and send over some more tasks. Since Kushida Kikyo went to the party too, I'll transfer some points to her as a reward."
[Points: 49.03 million points currently (the 50,000 points in the dummy account are not included) (I'm too lazy to keep calculating, so I won't display it from now on)]
"Aotian, what are you doing?" Sakura noticed the villainous, wicked grin curling Long Aotian's lips again. Raising an eyebrow, she asked with curiosity written all over her face.
"Oh, nothing. Do you want to hear something interesting?" Long Aotian quickly wiped the smile from his face, turning slightly toward her. His eyes softened as he spoke.
"I do!"
Before long, the lively party at Kushida Kikyo's place finally drew to a close, like the sun sinking below the horizon and leaving behind a gentle afterglow.
Ike and Yamauchi left with satisfied smiles, said their goodbyes, and disappeared through the door. Kushida Kikyo was left alone, standing quietly in the middle of the slightly messy party room.
She sighed softly and let her gaze wander around the room. A look of remorse appeared on Kushida Kikyo's face. She knew that the party had caused Ayanokoji quite a bit of trouble.
So she rolled up her sleeves without hesitation and decided to clean Ayanokoji's room herself, to show how sorry she was.
Not long afterward, Kushida Kikyo finished cleaning. Satisfied, she looked around and made sure everything was tidy and back in order.
Kushida Kikyo turned to him, wearing a slightly bashful, apologetic smile. "Ayanokoji, I'm really sorry we borrowed your room for the party and left it in such a mess. I've cleaned everything up for you. I hope you can forgive us for the trouble."
"It's fine, Kushida. Thanks for your help. You've cleaned the place up really well."
Ayanokoji lowered his eyes slightly. His expression was as still as water, without a ripple. His voice was quiet, like a breeze passing over a lake, and carried not a hint of warmth.
Seeing this, Kushida Kikyo felt a stir in her heart. A complicated emotion flashed through her eyes. She bit her lip lightly, seeming to want to say something, but in the end, she only smiled and nodded. "You're welcome, Ayanokoji. It was the least I could do."
"Well... Ayanokoji, I'll let you get some rest."
With that, she gave a playful wave. A smile as bright as spring flowers bloomed on her face, and she turned and left with a light step, strolling out of the room.
After leaving the dorm, Kushida Kikyo had barely gone a few steps when her phone vibrated softly.
She stopped and instinctively reached into her pocket with her right hand. Her fingertips brushed the cool screen as she unlocked it. A message from Long Aotian appeared before her.
Note: Kushida Kikyo actually had plenty of friends, since she was good at getting along with people and enjoyed making friends, so she received a lot of messages. Why, then, did only Long Aotian's messages make her phone vibrate? Because they were partners, she had pinned him to the top of her contacts.
Her brows knit slightly as she focused on the message notification on her screen, wondering to herself: Why was Long Aotian messaging her now? They had only just seen each other a little while ago.
Long Aotian had only just hit send. He put his phone away, turned to Sakura, and said, "Come on, Sakura. Let's go eat. Someone's generously offered to treat us."
"Okay." Sakura didn't ask who was paying. She simply nodded, a faint smile on her face.
Before long, they arrived outside a restaurant. Its exterior was elegant and old-fashioned. Through the gap in the entrance, they could make out the soft lighting and tasteful decorations inside.
Just then, they spotted a familiar figure. Kushida Kikyo was standing at the entrance, her hands folded over her chest and a hint of confusion in her eyes.
"Kushida! Oh, I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting here so long." Long Aotian grinned at her and spoke first.
Kushida Kikyo's brows drew together slightly, as if she was holding back some anger. But then she noticed the people coming and going nearby, so she lifted the corners of her mouth into a pleasant, playful smile.
Her bright eyes turned toward Long Aotian, gleaming with curiosity and anticipation. "Long, did you invite me here for something special, or is there something you wanted to share?"
Watching her, Long Aotian shook his head to himself, thinking: So this is what they mean by a veteran actor.
"Nothing. I just called you here to treat us to a meal."
Long Aotian waved a hand and spoke casually.
The corners of Kushida Kikyo's mouth twitched slightly, as if she were struggling to hold back her feelings. She grumbled inwardly: You called me over just for this little thing? Don't you have points?
Kushida Kikyo sighed softly. A helpless look flashed through her eyes, as if she was both annoyed by Long Aotian's behavior and unable to do anything about it.
"All right, let's go in and eat first."
She lowered her eyes, then looked up again and forced a faint smile as she spoke. Then she set off toward the restaurant ahead of them.
Long Aotian turned to Sakura and patted her on the shoulder. "Don't be shy. Eat as much as you want. This place is your second home."
"Okay~" Sakura answered softly. Two rosy clouds appeared on her cheeks, and her eyes held a trace of shyness.
Long Aotian's gaze fell unconsciously on Sakura's slender, delicate hands. He had wanted to hold her hand, but Sakura still felt a little shy with so many people around.
The two then entered the restaurant. Their eyes passed over the neatly arranged tables before settling on Kushida Kikyo.
She was seated at a table by the window, her head bowed as she focused on marking items on the menu. She seemed full of anticipation for the meal to come.
When they reached the table, the two pulled out their chairs and sat down.
"Look at you. You're still planning to eat? Didn't you just finish a party?"
"Actually, I barely ate anything at the party." As she spoke, she slowly raised her head from the menu and looked at Long Aotian. "Those snacks, you know, are just little bites to satisfy a craving. How could they possibly fill you up? Besides, they're no substitute for a proper meal."
"Wait. How did you know I'd just come back from a party?"
Realizing what she had just said, she asked in confusion, her voice tinged with surprise and suspicion.
Long Aotian didn't answer her question. He pointed to the menu in her hand. "Have you finished ordering? If you have, give it to me so I can order."
"Here," Kushida Kikyo said softly, her voice gentle as she held out the menu with both hands.
Long Aotian took the menu, then immediately passed it to Sakura. "You order first. Get plenty. We're more worried about not ordering enough than having leftovers."
Long Aotian reached out and took the menu Kushida Kikyo had offered, but almost at the same moment, he smoothly turned and handed it to Sakura.
"You order. Get plenty. We're more worried about not ordering enough than having leftovers."
"Okay," Sakura replied softly, taking the menu and considering which dishes to choose.
"..." Kushida Kikyo watched in silence. Suddenly, the food she was about to eat didn't seem quite so appetizing.
Not long after they finished ordering, the waiter quickly brought out one steaming dish after another and set them on the table.
Unable to wait, they picked up their chopsticks, reached for a fragrant dish, and put a tempting morsel into their mouths.
The two of them ate and chatted about the food, occasionally bursting into happy laughter as they enjoyed the lovely meal.
Kushida Kikyo ate in silence, occasionally glancing up at the lively conversation between Long Aotian and Sakura. She felt increasingly uncomfortable.
She felt like an outsider here—no, to put it more bluntly, she felt like she was intruding.
"When did you two get together?"
To keep from seeming so out of place, she found a topic and asked curiously.
Long Aotian had been chatting animatedly, but he paused when he heard the question. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Around the start of the school year, about half a month ago."
"That soon?!" Kushida Kikyo exclaimed, her face full of surprise.
She looked at Sakura in disbelief, thinking: With Sakura's shy personality, she was won over in just half a month?
Hearing that, Sakura's cheeks instantly flushed. She lowered her eyes in embarrassment and bowed her head shyly.
"Yeah. I made the first move. Sakura's cute and pretty, and I like her."
Long Aotian glanced at Sakura and continued.
In truth, Long Aotian had told a little lie. Thinking back on it, their feelings had actually grown during a study session in their dorm. One day, while Long Aotian was going on and on as he explained a problem, Sakura had suddenly pulled some move that was like, "How about I shut you up?" It had left Long Aotian completely baffled.
Hearing this, Kushida Kikyo grumbled inwardly: So I'm not cute? Or pretty? Is that why you're threatening me like this?
"Wow, that sounds like it must be an incredibly romantic story! And you really are made for each other—a perfect match!"
A sweet smile curved Kushida Kikyo's lips, and her eyes sparkled with curiosity. Though she didn't entirely believe what she was saying, she praised them all the same.
"Hahaha, not at all."
Long Aotian smiled happily. He knew full well that Kushida Kikyo might be criticizing him in her head, but he didn't take it to heart, keeping up his carefree expression.
With her head lowered, Sakura slipped a small hand beneath the table and gently took Long Aotian's hand.
"Keep eating, Kushida. Don't stop. You're the one paying later, after all."
Long Aotian noticed Sakura's little move beneath the table. He only smiled and gently rubbed her hand without making a fuss, then spoke softly.
"..." Kushida Kikyo's mood sank again. She grumbled to herself: Do you even know how to hold a conversation?
The atmosphere seemed to freeze for a moment. But Long Aotian didn't seem to notice. He casually picked up his chopsticks and placed some food from the plate into Sakura's bowl.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the pleasant meal was drawing to a close.
The three of them slowly made their way to the restaurant entrance. Long Aotian naturally reached out and patted Sakura's head (don't worry, he'd washed his hands). Sakura lowered her head slightly, a happy blush spreading across her face.
Kushida Kikyo walked beside them. She'd eaten her fill of PDA today.
"That's it for today. We're getting ready to head back, too." Long Aotian looked at her as if he were thinking about something, then added, "When you get back later, keep an eye on your points. There'll be a surprise."
"Huh?" Confusion filled Kushida Kikyo's face. She didn't seem to understand what he meant.
"See you. Bye."
Long Aotian waved and left with Sakura. He still had to go back and transfer points to those two idiots, then post one more task. After that, he'd be all done.
Before you continue