You are my wife, don't doubt it!

"Auntie, you misunderstood, I didn't mean that—"

"I didn't mean that. What do you mean?" Yu Lihua said angrily, "You mean my daughter wishes I wasn't at home, and she'll be happy when I'm not around?!"

"Auntie, she didn't say that. Please don't think that way." Xiao Yao hugged his head with both hands.

Yu Lihua placed a hundred-dollar bill on the table in front of her, stood up and pushed open the door of the cafe.

The sound of wind chimes came with the night breeze, making Yu Lihua feel a little sober.

She took a deep breath, left without looking back.

Chapter 40 Young Werther

Xiao Yao never dared to believe that he would be liked by girls.

He especially couldn't believe that "the person he liked also happened to like him", which was like winning the lottery.

It's not simply because of inferiority complex, I'm just used to being rejected.

"Please," Xiao Xiong and Xiao Yao lay on the railing of the corridor during the break on Thursday morning. "You are only a freshman. How many times can you be rejected? Don't tell me you are the kind of god who chases all the girls in the class?"

"That's not that exaggerated..." Xiao Yao looked at the dove meditating on the treetop nearby. "The people I've liked before, one in fifth grade, one in junior high school, plus Yu Luying, three, Shen Jie is the fourth one?"

Xiao Xiong opened his mouth to say something, but Xiao Yao continued: "However, Yu Luying is the first one I really fell in love with... I should say it was love. As for the previous two, I actually liked them both and we have always been good friends, but I gave up after being rejected and didn't have too much entanglement. You know, I can easily become good friends with girls, but as long as I want to go beyond the line-"

"You've said it many times. No, you just want to fall in love?" Little Bear held his forehead with his hand: "There are many other fun things in life."

"I really do want to," Xiao Yao laughed self-deprecatingly, "Maybe I've read too many youth romance novels in the magazine 'Youth Literature'? I always feel that when I go to college and get into society, having a girlfriend will be a completely different experience, not like this now..."

"How can I stand a literary boy like you who is in love?" Little Bear said helplessly, "You are just like a little girl who is poisoned by Qiong Yao!"

"It's 'Youth Literature' and 'New Sprouts'," Xiao Yao corrected.

"So what? Now that you suspect that Yu Luying actually likes you, you're getting impatient again?" Little Bear didn't understand: "Don't you just want to have a relationship? How is Miss Shen worse than her? Just be content. If you keep doing this, you'll end up with nothing!"

Xiao Yao turned around and leaned against the railing: "Shen Jie also said that Yu Luying liked me, I didn't take it seriously, but now that it comes out of her mother's mouth...it's hard for me not to take it to heart."

"Isn't it just something I said unintentionally?" Little Bear was a little angry: "If Yu Luying wanted to agree to you, she would have agreed to it a long time ago. We finally became friends again. If you want to take it a step further, she will ignore you again-"

"Well, I'm worried about that too, so I don't dare to ask her."

As the preparatory bell rang, the noisy corridor returned to silence in a few seconds.

"You asked me whether Yu Luying likes you or not, but I can't tell. Although Shen Bin and Hua Ang both said that you two could still reconcile after such a quarrel, and she even helped you with your lessons, made lunch boxes, and took you to her house, if she didn't like you, she would have asked you to step aside long ago." Xiao Xiong spoke quickly and waved at Xiao Yao: "If you ask me, they have never been in a relationship, so what do they know? Why don't you go and discuss it with your sister who is an expert in love? Only girls understand girls. Let's go."

Xiao Yao didn't say anything, just bent his hand and walked into the classroom.

During the ten-minute break, Yu Luying did not leave her seat, but just lay on the table writing something.

He returned to his seat and looked at her thin shoulders hidden by her long, loose hair from behind.

She really works hard, Xiao Yao thought.

Teacher Yao originally wanted to appoint Yu Luying as class monitor, league secretary, and student committee member, but she refused all of them. Otherwise, what would be the point of the current student committee member?

"For the revolution, protect your eyesight. Start eye exercises!"

Yu Luying's slender and long thighs were folded over the knee of her other leg under the desk.

He has always envied girls for this skill - boys really can't do it.

"Close your eyes! First section, shake the Tianyin acupoint!"

Xiao Yao's gaze moved downwards and landed on her dangling ankle.

A touch of pure and flawless white appeared from the uppers of sneakers and the trouser legs of school pants. It was a scene that Xiao Yao never tired of looking at.

Whether in spring, summer, autumn or winter, Yu Luying always wears snow-white sneakers and snow-white cotton socks at school - her socks outline the graceful curve of her ankles, without any patterns or floral embellishments, no lace, lace or ruffles, no hollowing, just like the endless and spotless white snow.

No matter when or where, whether it is shoes or socks, they are whiter than any other girl's. Xiao Yao feels that this is difficult to explain scientifically.

"Second section, squeeze and press the Jingming acupoint..."

I was not the only boy who had approached her, and I was definitely not the best one, Xiao Yao thought.

But they didn't even get a cold shoulder and were directly ignored, but they became her only boyfriend...male friend.

Of course I became friends with her because I like her, but what about her?

Or is this all just my wishful thinking?

"Third quarter, shake the four white points!"

This symbiosis without any reason...even God is helping me by making us "one person", should I still sit still?

But if I do something, will it be considered a betrayal to Shen Jie? I shouldn't be that kind of person.

Besides, if I scare Yu Luying and put me in the category of invisible people again, can I really use this to coerce her?

She really is like a... frightened little deer.

...Xiao Yao was glad that he and Yu Luying were sitting far enough apart that she wouldn't be able to hear his inner thoughts.

He felt a little palpitation, like the nervousness before an exam.

There seemed to be an urge somewhere in my body to burst out.

"In the fourth quarter, shake the temples and scrape the eye sockets..."

The girl seemed to have noticed something. She looked back, gave him an angry expression, and then quickly turned away.

Xiao Yao closed his eyes and began to do eye exercises nonchalantly.

……

"Class is starting!" As soon as the music stopped, Xiao Yao heard a sharp female voice.

"Stand up!" said the monitor, followed by the sound of everyone in the class moving their chairs.

"Hello students!"

"Hello, teacher!" This was a weak and weird chorus.

"Please sit down!"

Xiao Yao sat down, held up the textbook he had prepared long ago, covered his cell phone, and flipped through the text messages in his inbox.

"I was really scared when my mom went to open the closet door!" This was the text message Yu Luying sent last night.

Xiao Yao: "Haha, you didn't expect that, I just had an idea in a hurry and thought of hiding in the mirror."

Yu Luying: "Although you said you can pass through the mirror, but... seeing you come out of the mirror still scared me a lot."

Yu Luying: "By the way, what's in my mirror?"

Xiao Yao: "Well, your mother didn't make things difficult for you when she returned home, did she?"

Yu Luying: "No, she didn't find anything."

Xiao Yao: "Yeah, that's good."

Yu Luying: "However, you can't come to the concert and rehearsal these two days. My mother will be there."

Xiao Yao: “...got it.”

After reviewing the text messages between him and Yu Luying, Xiao Yao looked at Shen Jie's number again.

Sure enough, it was almost noon and my good morning text message had not been replied to.

It's time to have a good talk with her, Xiao Yao thought.

Preview of the next episode: Tomorrow’s update will be a 5000-word chapter, which will be a head-on confrontation with Shen Jie, and the relationship will undergo a phased change.

Chapter 41 Declined

2023-07-31

After school, Xiao Yao finally made up his mind and called Ouyang Qianqian.

Ouyang Qianqian tied many small braids on her head today, wore a shortened school skirt, knee-length white stockings and white sneakers.

"Today? I'm not free." Ouyang Qianqian answered while pressing the phone: "Maybe tomorrow... I'll see..."

"It's okay, let's talk about it later." Xiao Yao turned his ankle nonchalantly.

"Okay." Ouyang Qianqian left the classroom without much hesitation.

When passing by the playground, Xiao Yao saw Zhang Jialong, Daiyu and a group of people playing basketball loudly.

"Brother Yao!" Hairtail started shouting from a long distance away.

"Brother Long, Brother Daiyu." Xiao Yao nodded stiffly.

"What Brother Yao!" Zhang Jialong deliberately shouted, "Call him Love Saint!"

"Love Saint!" several people shouted together.

"Uh..." Xiao Yao didn't want to get too close to these little hooligans, so he slipped out of the school's side door before they could stop him from gossiping.

The weather is very good today. The sunlight at four or five in the afternoon makes the streets shine with golden light.

He wasn't very hungry yet, and Shen Tianyun probably hadn't returned home yet, so Xiao Yao was not in a hurry to go back.

When I first came to Shanghai in my freshman year, the most I could expect at home was a simple dinner from my grandma, not to mention a beautiful girl.

Besides, the high school in Shanghai finishes school earlier than his junior high school, so after school every day he either hangs out in the school or in the green space around the school, and sometimes even goes to the Bund to take a ferry.

For only 5 cents, you can travel back and forth between the two sides of the Huangjiang River many times, listen to the whistle in the center of the river, and look out at the steel forest full of desires on both sides of the river, sighing at the vastness of the world and the insignificance of human beings.

Many of his poems were written on the ferry.

However, Xiao Yao was not in the mood for this today.

He wandered aimlessly and came to the green space opposite the junior high school.

The so-called green space is actually a small park without walls or boundaries. Because it is located between many junior high schools, high schools and vocational schools, it becomes a paradise for students every time at this time.

I still remember that when I first accidentally came to this green land last year, Xiao Yao was shocked by the teams...ah, sorry, pairs of people wearing red scarves around their necks (author's note: unlike other parts of China, junior high school students in Shanghai also wear red scarves), wearing school uniforms, and walking around hand in hand.

After all, although there were people who secretly dated in my junior high school in another city, they were rare after all, and they would not be so arrogant and swaggering.

Now, after living in Shanghai for a year, Xiao Yao has become accustomed to the open-minded atmosphere of this international metropolis - although, he still does not have a girlfriend.

Ignoring the lovey-dovey chatter around him, Xiao Yao sat down next to the small fountain in the middle of the green space.

In this hot season, listening to the sound of the fountain, feeling the coolness on the back, and occasionally having a few drops of water splash on the body, is really refreshing.

If I ask Yu Luying to come here for a walk, will she refuse now? Xiao Yao leaned forward and put one hand in the water, thinking while playing with it.

The spring water was so clear that you could see the bottom. A chill ran down from the fingertips to the top of the head along the arm, making Xiao Yao want to scoop up a big sip to enjoy.

Then, he felt a slap on the back of his hand. He quickly raised it up, shook off the water, and wiped it on his school uniform twice.

Then, Xiao Yao took out his cell phone and dialed the number.

beep - beep - beep -

The wait was so long that when Xiao Yao was about to call again, the other party finally answered.

"Hello?" A girl's voice with a cold attitude came from the phone.

"Hello? Are you busy?"

“Busy.”

Xiao Yao took a deep breath and didn't ask her what she was busy with: "Shen Jie, I want to see you."

"..." The only answer he got was silence.

Xiao Yao looked around: "I'm in the green space next to our school now. The scenery here is pretty good, very suitable for a walk..."

"I'm almost home, and I have to take a private lesson later." Shen Jie cleared her throat and said slowly.

"Oh... I was wondering why you haven't replied to my message since this morning." Xiao Yao said nonchalantly.

“……” Another annoying silence.

"Oh, by the way, have you read all the messages I sent?" Xiao Yao really had no choice but to ask this question.

"I have seen it." Shen Jie answered clearly.

"Well, I know you're busy, but why don't you reply when you're free? What do you think?" Xiao Yao felt that his tone sounded like that of Old Yao, who was patient and persuading him.