Friendship Proof Meeting

Xia Liang's chocolates were clearly more elaborate in design than Bai Jingxuan's. Although Lin Xiaolu could only see a half-finished product, the deliberate shaping of the flower-like leaves and the slightly distorted patterns on the surface showed the maker's effort and dedication.

"That's really impressive, you did a pretty good job."

Walking to Xia Liang's workbench, Lin Xiaolu tried to discern the artist's work. "This shape... is it a leaf? Or a flower?"

"It's the Heart Gem!"

Xia Liang wiped her hands with a towel and explained with a light laugh, "This one you're looking at is modeled after your Heart Gem, so it's shaped like a sprout."

"So that's how it is. No wonder it seemed a bit like a strange creature; it was actually the Heart Bud..."

Lin Xiaolu rubbed her chin and nodded, but then looked at Xia Liang somewhat belatedly. "Eh, mine?"

"What else? Xiao Xuan can make chocolate for you, but I can't?"

Xia Liang shrugged. "Valentine’s Day is about giving chocolates to the people you like, right? So I prepared one for each of you."

"No, it was just a bit of a surprise."

Lin Xiaolu shook her head. "Bai Jingxuan is still young, so she can easily say things like 'I like everyone.' I thought someone as precocious as you would be more particular about this, and would think things like 'chocolate can only be given to the person you like the most.'"

"It's not like I'm actually confessing my feelings to someone of the opposite sex, why all the formalities?"

Hearing Lin Xiaolu's evaluation of her, Xia Liang couldn't help but roll her eyes at her. "How about this, who said that I gave you chocolates just out of politeness? Couldn't it be because I really like you?"

"Ah, oh..." Lin Xiaolu blinked, then her calm voice suddenly rose a little. "... Huh? What did you say?"

I told you I actually like you a lot.

Xia Liang repeated, somewhat reproachfully, "Is it something so scary? Why are you acting like you've seen a ghost?"

"You... you like me?"

The other person's blatant confession startled Lin Xiaolu. She pointed to herself, her chaotic thoughts swirling in her eyes. "This, this is a bit... But I, I only consider you an ordinary friend..."

"It's just mutual affection between teammates and friends, is there a problem?"

Xia Liang initially found Lin Xiaolu's reaction a bit strange, but quickly realized where Lin Xiaolu's thoughts had wandered. She then grinned, a teasing expression on her face. "Otherwise, what kind of liking do you think it is? Are you love-struck?"

"Huh? What love-struck? No way!"

Lin Xiaolu finally came to her senses a little more and immediately retorted, "I, of course I know it's just between friends! It's just that your way of expressing yourself is weird!"

"You know you're talking about friends?"

Xia Liang blinked innocently, then her gaze flickered, her eyebrows furrowed, and she immediately wore a heartbroken expression. "So, you mean, don't you think Xiao Xuan and I are your friends? We shouldn't like you, and we're not worthy of your liking?"

"Why would you interpret it this way?" Lin Xiaolu asked, her eyes wide.

"Sigh, I thought that after a year of being together, fighting side by side, and staying up all night studying together, we were already as close as sisters, even though we weren't from the same father or mother. I never imagined that in your heart, I was someone you couldn't even call a friend."

Xia Liang lowered her gaze slightly, pretending to wipe away tears. "You're so heartless, Xiao Lu."

She didn't deliberately put on any particularly brilliant acting, so much so that even Lin Xiaolu could easily tell that "the other person was acting." During this process, Xia Liang even deliberately tossed her hair, revealing the earring Lin Xiaolu had given her for her birthday. But when Lin Xiaolu tried to retort, she realized she had unknowingly found herself on the wrong side, and immediately showed a disgusted expression, as if she had swallowed a fly.

Snap!

Not only that, Xia Liang's commotion also attracted Bai Jingxuan, who walked behind Lin Xiaolu and patted Lin Xiaolu on the shoulder:

"Don't bully Sister Xia Liang!"

Then, she delivered her "just verdict."

Lin Xiaolu's expression immediately turned even uglier.

She glared at Xia Liang, who was still pretending to cry, only to have the other girl blatantly stick her tongue out at her while crying, which infuriated her. However, the other girl's intention of "let's see how you comfort me" was very obvious, practically laying the right answer on the table. Even Lin Xiaolu knew that it would be better to go along with the other girl's wishes at this time.

"... You've misunderstood."

So she could only take a deep breath and say in an almost muffled voice, "I've always considered you my friends."

"How perfunctory," Xia Liang commented.

"It's fake." Bai Jingxuan still puffed out her cheeks, looking quite dissatisfied.

"Mmm..."

Lin Xiaolu pouted after receiving a negative review. "I didn't lie! Of course I think you're my friends!"

"... What do you think?" Xia Liang was too lazy to pretend to cry at this point, and instead stood with Bai Jingxuan, discussing the matter like judges.

"I don't believe it. He's always bullying me." Bai Jingxuan, the second judge, clearly spoke with personal emotion.

You all know I'm telling the truth, don't you?

Lin Xiaolu's face turned red with anxiety. "They're just using this opportunity to mess with me!"

"Don't rely on off-field logic, Lin Xiaolu."

Xia Liang extended a finger and pushed up the bridge of her nose, as if fiddling with a pair of glasses that didn't actually exist. "We need you to prove yourself now, not defend yourself."

"That's right, that's right." Bai Jingxuan immediately chimed in.

"What proof is needed for this?"

Lin Xiaolu was genuinely angry now, pointing at Xia Liang and saying, "You know perfectly well that I don't have many friends at school! If I really have friends outside of school, who else could it be besides you guys? Do you think I can conjure friends out of thin air?"

"Oh, Lin Xiaolu gave a very convincing speech."

Xia Liang clapped her hands and looked at Bai Jingxuan beside her. "I feel like she's about to convince me. What do you think, Dr. Bai?"

"Indeed... Sister Xiao Lu, she doesn't seem to have many other friends."

Bai Jingxuan, however, began to show a look of sympathy. "Every time, he goes straight home after school, or he goes on patrol."

"I guess I am! I still go out with friends occasionally, so I'm not that lonely!"

Lin Xiaolu instinctively retorted, but realizing her current purpose, she lowered her voice a little. "But it's pretty much the same, anyway, you have to believe it whether you want to or not."

"Whether you believe it or not, you have to believe it... Dr. Bai, what do you think?" Xia Liang asked Bai Jingxuan again.

"It seems to be true." Bai Jingxuan nodded in affirmation.

"Yes, I think so too. Although Lin Xiaolu can't convince us on the basis of emotion and memories—after all, she's always been a spoiled and pampered young lady, and even some 'gentle moments' between friends seem to be forgotten by her—she has grasped the most crucial part of the logic."

Xia Liang opened her mouth, as if she were really presenting an award, and announced, "That is—even at school, her only friend is Jiang Yuan. In other words, if she doesn't make friends with us, nobody will play with her!"

"You bastard! I'm really going to lose my temper!" Lin Xiaolu yelled.

"Anyway, that's pretty much it for chocolate." After her exaggerated performance, Xia Liang once again revealed her signature smile, and then casually concluded.

"... Huh?" Lin Xiaolu was clearly not used to the change in context, and just kept looking at Xia Liang with a displeased expression.

"In other words, if you're making chocolate but feel like you have no inspiration, just think of that feeling you just described."

Xia Liang reached out and patted Bai Jingxuan's head, saying as if it were a matter of course, "You just needed to convince us with words that 'we are friends,' proving yourself in that way. As for chocolate, it's about pouring all that feeling of wanting to confide in the other person, wanting to prove yourself, and wanting the other person to understand your feelings into the chocolate."

"I didn't understand. Are you really not changing the subject?" Lin Xiaolu raised her eyebrows.

"In other words, I'll use chocolate to tell the other person how I truly feel about you. Just like Xiao Xuan writes directly on chocolate, I'll also specially imitate your Heart Gem."

Xia Liang once again showed off her earring. "When you gave me my birthday present, didn't you understand perfectly? It was this feeling that 'only the two of us would understand'."

"Is it only the two of us who would understand...?" This time, Lin Xiaolu lowered her head thoughtfully.

"Hmm, that's about it. Let's continue making chocolates, Lin Xiaolu."

Releasing her hand from Bai Jingxuan's head, Xia Liang smiled and said, "You should know that the judges tonight won't be the two of us. If you fail to convey your feelings, you'll be the one who regrets it."

"Yes, I know."

After this ridiculous "guidance," Lin Xiaolu did indeed get a clue:

"But then again, you were definitely messing with me on purpose just now, and now you're trying to change the subject, aren't you?"

No one answered her.

The only response to this question was the sound of two people working at their desks.

"Hey, you two--"

Yes, regardless of the final outcome, there is no doubt that Lin Xiaolu was tricked in the process.