9 PM.

  Chen Xi sat at her desk, pcing the completed exercises aside. She stretched zily and let out a long sigh.

  With no one around, the young girl blinked and then pulled a novel out of her backpack. As she opened it, a bnk sheet of draft paper y quietly inside.

  She took out a pen and began writing, pondering as she went. After scrutinizing the line she wrote, she felt it wasn't quite right, so she crossed it out and started over, repeating this process.

  She couldn't be too forward, too humble, or too blunt. It was her first time writing a love letter, and she found it hard to believe that this was even more challenging than the final question on the postgraduate entrance exam's math section...

  As she wrote, her brow unconsciously furrowed. After some thought, she picked up the pen again. Seeing the moving line of love words, her face flushed, her heart raced, and a silly smile lingered on her lips for a while.

  But then she wondered, was it too much to write like this? What if he saw through her feelings and rejected her? Should she be more subtle?

  Chen Xi thought, and complex thoughts flooded in, making her feel tangled all over again.

  "But he's so clueless. What if he doesn't get my meaning? It seems being too subtle isn't a good thing either..."

  The more she thought, the more confused she became, and the more confused she was, the more she thought. Her head felt swollen, filled with something unknown, yet her heart was sweet, especially when she imagined his reaction upon receiving the love letter.

  But...

  He's usually so busy, would he even have time to read what she wrote?

  The emotions that had just risen in her heart immediately sank, like clouds churning at the horizon, rising and falling, elusive and mysterious.

  The fluttering in her heart turned into a line of poetry, but at the crucial moment, she forgot a word, leaving only a half-finished sentence on the page:

  "Clouds and birds companion, sea rivers and streams, antelope feathers..."

  Chen Xi was still writing when suddenly, a thick finger reached over and nded on the words she had just written.

  Instinctively, she dodged and stepped back, her face already flushed, breathing heavily as she looked at the suddenly appearing Yan Feng.

  At some point, the man had stood behind her, and seeing her startled expression, he merely smiled and asked:

  "Why are you looking at me like that? I knocked just now, didn't you hear? Also, you wrote this character wrong, it's 'feather,' not 'antelope feather,' it should have a 'command' radical..."

  As he spoke, his gaze swept upwards, finally realizing what it was, but he didn't criticize, just scratched his head and said:

  "Sorry, I didn't realize this was... that..."

  His words trailed off, and Yan Feng pointed again at the unfinished love letter, seeking permission, "Can I take a look?"

  In a moment of impulse, Chen Xi nodded.

  Then she watched as the man took the messy draft of the love letter in his hand, reading it with interest, and excimed:

  "Hey, not bad, I didn't expect our Little Xi to have such a literary talent... Tsk tsk, if I had this kind of writing skill back then, I probably wouldn't still be single since birth... Hehehe..."

  Yan Feng was still reading when, in the next second, Chen Xi snatched the love letter back, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it aside.

  The suddenness of it all left the man stunned, but he quickly understood Chen Xi's meaning and said apologetically:

  "Sorry, I shouldn't have said anything... It really is well-written. If I were that guy, receiving such a nice love letter, I wouldn't know how happy I'd be!"

  Chen Xi looked up, her face still tinged with a lingering blush. She stole a gnce at the man's face, then quickly turned her head to the side, her lips moving as she softly asked:

  "Re... really?"

  "What do you mean really?"

  Chen Xi lowered her head, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz: "You said... do you think he would really like this... love... love letter?"

  "Of course," Yan Feng replied cheerfully, his tone encouraging, "Our Little Xi is so beautiful and so quiet, the number of boys pursuing you could probably fill a university! If you really find someone, I bet there'd be so many pure-hearted boys crying into their pillows at night~"

  "Pfft..."

  Perhaps it was the tension, or maybe Yan Feng's words were too exaggerated, but Chen Xi couldn't help but ugh, then half-jokingly retorted, "You're exaggerating, am I really that good-looking?"

  "Of course!" Yan Feng straightened up, a proud smile on his lips as he continued, "Just look at who your mom is! Back in the day, your sister on stage could charm..."

  Halfway through his sentence, Yan Feng felt a chill down his spine, shivering as he looked back at Chen Xi, only to find the shyness and joy in her eyes repced by her usual indifference.

  The man's mouth twitched, letting out a dry ugh, and tentatively asked, "Did I... say something wrong just now?"

  "Get out."

  Chen Xi issued an eviction order.

  Yan Feng wanted to ask more, but was pushed out of the room by her.

  Standing outside the door, he was at a loss, not knowing what he had said wrong.

  Could it be... the little girl was too shy and kicked him out?

  Yan Feng had never dealt with young girls before, and he felt that must be the reason. After all, being caught writing a love letter, who could handle that...

  But he still needed to talk to Chen Xi about retionships between men and women. After all, she had just started college and was still too young; she couldn't be fooled by some guy with dyed hair!

  On second thought, Yan Feng felt a bit jealous of the boy Chen Xi had a crush on. Chen Xi looked so much like Bai Xi, even more so, and to be liked by her, that boy must be really lucky!

  …………

  The next day.

  Chen Xi sat at her desk, listening intently to the teacher's lecture.

  Suddenly, a soft rustling sound came from beside her, and Xue Lan leaned over, whispering, "Xi Xi, what's up with you today?"

  The young girl was a bit puzzled, blinking as she asked, "Why do you say that?"

  Xue Lan leaned back slightly, looking Chen Xi up and down, puzzled, "I can't quite say... but you seem different, your aura is much more beautiful than before..."

  As she spoke, she secretly pointed to a few boys not far away who were sneaking gnces at Chen Xi, whispering, "Look, as soon as you came in today, their eyes almost popped out. The eyes of the masses are bright!"

  "Really?"

  Chen Xi asked, noncommittal, but a faint smile slowly curved at the corners of her mouth, like ripples on a clear ke, leaving a sting impression.

  xx34810